The word sting wasn’t all that accurate, Katie thought as she swallowed two full-bodied curses, because Keely would have heard her curse, even in her sleep.

“Sorry. No more stingy stuff, just the bandages.” Sherlock put the iodine back into the kit.

As Sherlock bandaged her feet, Katie said quietly, “I couldn’t believe how Miles kicked the bejesus out of Clancy. He knows karate well.” Katie looked over at him as she spoke. “I’ve never learned a martial art, and after watching Miles, I want to.”

Sherlock said, “Martial arts is grand as long as a gun’s not in your face. Miles and Dillon used to work out together a lot. Not so often now, maybe once a month they get together. Miles has been so tied up with his new military contract and trying to get all the bugs out of the new guidance system design for the army. He’s really quite talented. Dillon said he could fly anything as long as it had one wing.”

After a moment, Sherlock added, “Miles was in the FBI, you know.”

“Yeah, he told me,” Katie said, looking over at Miles, who’d moved to Katie’s big rocking chair, as she spoke. He was holding Keely in his arms, his cheek resting against her head, slowly rocking, all his attention on his son. She supposed she was seeing him with new eyes now. There was no particular expression on his face, but she knew he was fighting his fear for his son. He was hurting, bad. He was holding her daughter carefully, but he never looked away from Sam. It was as if just looking at him, concentrating only on Sam, he could somehow help him.

Savich was sitting next to him, leaning forward because of his back, his hands between his legs, saying nothing. He was just there with him, and that was good.

Sherlock said, “After Alicia died, Miles just retreated, I guess you could say. It was tough for all his friends to see it and not be able to do anything about it. I never really knew her, but Dillon said she was bright, always upbeat, and smart as a whip.” Sherlock looked over her shoulder at him, and said thoughtfully, “Dillon also told me that Alicia sometimes did things he didn’t understand, things over the top, like she’d be terrified if Sam even got the mildest cold. Once she freaked out when Sam had a slight fever. She stripped him down, examined every inch of him before she wrapped him in a pile of blankets. When Miles tried to calm her down, she lost it, screamed at him to leave her alone.

“But that doesn’t matter now. What’s happened to Sam would lay any parent nearly flat. Miles is holding up well, but I’ll tell you, Katie, I’ve never seen anyone so scared as when he discovered that someone took Sam.”

“I can’t begin to imagine that fear,” Katie said. “Thank God, I’ve never had to face it.”

“I pray that I won’t have to either.” Sherlock peeled the wrapper off a Band-Aid and gently wrapped it around a cut on the pad of Katie’s foot. “It’s got to be a parent’s worst nightmare. You know something? I’m glad Clancy is out of the picture, dead or alive. Finally. I’m glad you just got it over with. Do you believe for even an instant that he would have stopped? I can see him breaking out of prison to come after Sam again, no matter what. My God, he came two times. What would make someone do that?”

Before Katie could say anything, Miles said, to no one in particular, his voice pitched low, “Clancy said he didn’t necessarily believe it.”

“Believe what?” Savich said.

Miles shrugged. “I asked him why he wanted Sam so badly and he said someday he just might tell me, and then he added that he ‘didn’t necessarily believe it.’ It sounded like someone else believed something about Sam, but Clancy didn’t agree with it, or wasn’t sure about it. I’d swear now that he looked baffled when he said that. Like it was something unbelievable, which makes no sense at all to me. I don’t know of anything weird or unusual about Sam at all.”

He looked over at Sam again, who was now holding Dr. Raines’s hand. She was closer to him, too, and he was leaning into her. It looked like she was getting through to him. He felt a jolt of helplessness that he couldn’t be the one with Sam, that he wasn’t the one Sam was leaning against, listening to.

He looked up when Sherlock came down on her knees in front of him. “No, you won’t do this yourself, Miles. You’ve done enough. You just sit there and let me clean up your feet. Don’t rock too much or you might kick me on my butt. Now, I’ve finished with Katie, if you want a recommendation.”

Miles said, without hesitation, “Katie, are your feet better?”

“She put iodine on all the cuts and they stung for a bit, but yes, now they’re better. Trust Sherlock.”

Miles smiled down at her. “She’s always been a rock, just like her old man. I’d trust her to make doubly sure I’m really croaked before she let anyone pull the plug.”

“That really makes me feel special, Miles,” Sherlock said, and patted his knee.

“Okay, that was a bit much,” he said to Katie. “I’d trust her enough to play net in tennis doubles. How’s that?”

“Not as dramatic,” Katie said. “How good are you, Sherlock?”

“She’s a killer,” Savich said, and smiled at his wife.

Sherlock just grinned. “Now, hold still, Miles. Goodness, you’ve got big feet. What, size twelve?”

“Just about.”

“Well, you’ve got a big body to support, so that’s okay.”

“What size does Savich wear?”

Sherlock patted his arch. “A twelve.”

Katie stretched out her long narrow bandaged feet in front of her. “Well, I’m nearly five-ten, not all that much shorter than you guys. Maybe someday I can wear a twelve, too. Just three sizes to go.”

Savich watched his wife putting Band-Aids on Miles’s feet when he wasn’t watching Sam and Dr. Raines. He wanted to move from the chair to that very comfortable sofa to relieve the pain in his back. He also wanted some tea. He took everyone’s order and went to the kitchen. He saw Katie start to follow him and held up his hand. “Nope, you just sit there and let those size nines recover. If you abuse them, they just might never grow. I’ll find everything, and I won’t make a mess.”

Dr. Sheila Raines, holding both of Sam’s hands, said quietly against his temple, “Your papa is so scared I think he’s going to start howling at the moon.”

Sam gave her a long look and said, “Clancy’s not going to come back anymore, is he?”

T hat stopped the show for about ten seconds. Then Sheila answered him. “No, he’s not, and that’s a very good thing. He was a criminal, Sam, and criminals shouldn’t be allowed to terrorize us. What do you think about him and Beau being dead?”

Sam thought about it, bit his lower lip, shot a look toward his father, and said at long last, “It’s just that one minute he was yelling and then… he was just… gone. There was this gunshot, and he was dead, just like my mama. I’m not glad my mama’s dead.”

Oh dear. At least Sam was talking, thank God. Sheila leaned her forehead against Sam’s and said not an inch from his nose, “Trust me on this, Sam. Your mama’s in Heaven and I’ll bet she’s kicking up her heels that you’re okay. All the angels are cheering and I’ll bet you there’s even a big smile on Saint Peter’s face.

“As for Beau and Clancy, they’re probably so deep in Hell that the Devil doesn’t even know where they are.”

Sam thought about that, pulled back and smiled at her. He said, his little boy’s voice sounding strong again, “Next time Mama talks to me, I’ll ask her if she’s heard anything about Beau and Clancy.”

“That’s a great idea. You can tell the sheriff what your mama says.”

Miles wanted to shout when he saw that smile and heard Sam’s words. He had no idea what Dr. Raines had said to get Sam speaking again, but she’d done it and he owed her forever.

He said, “Sam, would you please come over and hug me? I’m really on the shaky side. You’d better hurry before I fall over. I don’t want to drop Keely. You don’t want me to do that, do you?”