—ROBERTBURNS, SCOTTISH POET
After days without positive results, Nora had left experiments running and headed to her apartment for a very late dinner with Lynne and Bobbi. They devoured her homemade chicken-surprise dish, and she clicked off the phone after giving directions for Amanda Bison to play first base and July Newcomb to cover for shortstop.
As she slipped her phone back into her pocket, both women stared at her with various expressions ofwhat the hell?
She sighed. “Last year, one of my bunko friends needed an assistant coach for a girls’ softball team. The Tigers. I played softball as a kid and somehow ended up volunteering.” She had a blast with the girls and the team. “We won the division last year.”
Bobbi raised both eyebrows. “You play bunko?”
Nora nodded. “Yes. I do have a life outside of my job, you know.” She played bunko with a fun and tipsy group of friends, jogged regularly, and coached softball. “I miss my life.” The calmness and order of it.
“You’ll get back to it soon,” Lynne said, patting her hand.
Would she? Although she’d only been gone a week, she wondered if life would ever get back to normal. Scorpius was spreading. “I hope so.” When the president had died, they’d had to announce his passing to the world, but the government had lied by saying it was a stroke. “We need to cure this thing and now. When will the neurologists from Johns Hopkins head this way?” Nora asked.
Lynne set down her beer bottle and rubbed her bloodshot eyes. “Tomorrow morning.”
Bobbi scratched her head. “Why aren’t they here already?”
“Their medical facility in Baltimore is the best. Now they want a firsthand look,” Lynne murmured, reaching for another scan. “Zach’s brain scan is bright and colorful.”
“He is a genius.” Bobbi snorted, her gaze remaining sober. “But he’s still contagious.”
Lynne nodded. “I know. Any thoughts on that one?” She lifted an eyebrow at Nora.
Nora shrugged. While she’d been watching Zach carefully, he really did seem to be all right. Cheerful, smart, and nerdy as usual. “Being contagious sucks, but it isn’t the end of the world. I mean, there are many carriers of MRSA, and they live normal lives. They can only infect people who have wounds, and it’s rare. But possible.”
“We don’t know enough about Scorpius yet, so I can’t release him from the CDC’s secure facility,” Lynne said on a strong exhale. “I think I’d almost prefer if Scorpius were a virus.”
“No.” Nora flipped open another manila file folder. “With a bacteria, we can create an antibiotic or at least a nanosponge to take it out. Hopefully.”
Lynne yawned until her jaw popped and then glanced at her watch. “Crap. It’s midnight. Let’s all get a few hours’ shuteye and meet in the main lab at four. The enzyme experiments should be concluded by then. Hopefully they’ve done their job and discovered a way to break up the DNA of Scorpius.”
Bobbi groaned and pushed away from the table. “Four a.m.?”
Lynne stood and rolled her eyes. “All right. Five a.m., but everyone be ready to go.” She glanced at the cluttered table. “You need help cleaning up?”
“No.” Nora wanted a few more minutes of work. “You’ll just make it more disorganized.”
“I’d object to that statement if I wasn’t so tired.” Lynne stood and inched toward the door.
Bobbi hovered. “Thanks for dinner, and thanks for letting me work with you two. I really like Zach and want to help him.”
“You bet.” Nora smiled. Ah, young love. She remembered how quickly it could happen.
Lynne and Bobbi took off.
Less than a minute later, a knock echoed on the door. Nora glanced around the table. What had Lynne forgotten now?
Humming and shrugging stiff shoulders, Nora crossed the living room and opened the door. Her mouth gaped open. “Zach.”
He stood in pressed pants and a crisp shirt, looking like a clean-cut superhero. A bouquet of roses filled one slender hand. “I wanted to thank you for staying at the hospital all night, and I figured we should get some things straight.”
Her body stiffened in pure instinct. “Uh, what are you doing here?” She blinked. He hadn’t been released from the CDC.
He wiped a hand across his brow and shrugged. “My key card still works, and I just changed into doctor attire. Nobody expected me to leave, so nobody was watching.”
Well, hell. Good point. “You dropped by your place for fresh clothing?”
