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“I’m afraid I have to report this.”
“I know,” he replied. She wouldn’t be the diligent teacher he felt she was if she didn’t. He cleared his throat. “What’s going to happen to my son?”
“Gavin will get a suspension for smoking on school grounds.”
Of course he would. And he’d be lucky if that was all he suffered from this. The idiot. But Ian wasn’t sure who was the bigger idiot here, son or father. His hands bunched into fists.
“Ian.” He looked down to see Sofia’s small hand on his arm. Her soft touch relaxed his muscles that were taut in anger. “Do you mind if I ask…does Gavin have a history of seizures?”
Concern shone from her chocolate-brown eyes. All his instincts told him there was something more going on here. She needed this answer from him…and then he would get some answers from her.
“He used to have them as a kid. We could never figure out why, even after we did all sorts of testing. But he hasn’t had one in years. I honestly thought that the problem had worked itself out. I guess that was too optimistic.”
“Maybe, maybe not,” she answered, looking even more worried. He noticed her fiddling with the end of her ponytail again, the same way she had right before telling him about the joint. He was getting a sense that that was her “bad news” tell. He’d have to keep an eye out for it. He found himself taking a breath, bracing for whatever she’d say next. “I think the seizure happened because of the drugs.”
“You think Gavin is…what, allergic to marijuana?”
“No, I think the marijuana he smoked was enhanced. And not by accident. This isn’t the first case I’ve seen this year of a kid being hospitalized after a joint. And yes, there are always going to be some extreme cases every now and then, but it’s been happening more and more in the past six months. There’s even been a drugs-related death. I’m very concerned.”
“Have you done anything about it?” Ian didn’t know her well, but doubted she’d just sit and wring her hands. She thrummed with energy and determination.
Sofia nodded. “When I first got suspicious, I told my administrator and I also went to the police, but they brushed me off. They didn’t say it to my face, but I could tell the detective thought I was blowing things out of proportion. But there have been so many kids, Ian! And some of them mine. Ones I teach, I mean.” She blushed.
Like Gavin.Sofia’s dedication to her students shone from her. She wasn’t hysterical. She was logical and intelligent. If she felt these numbers were off, that something was wrong, then, as horrifying as it was…Ian believed her.
“What do you think is happening?”
“I think someone’s put out a new strain—one that mixes marijuana with something else, something more dangerous.”
“What do you need to prove this?”
“Honestly, since the police aren’t interested in pursuing it I’m not sure where to start.
“I work for Bronte Security Services. It’s staffed by former SEALs, using their skills to help people. We may be able to help you put together a solid case. One the police can’t ignore.”
“That could change everything.” Sofia blinked her dark eyes.
“Wait to be impressed until we’ve gotten results.”
“Results…” Sofia nodded as if reminded of something. “I’ll analyze the chemical compound of the marijuana in the joint Gavin was carrying. I’ll have to turn most of it in, but I can keep enough for testing. At least then we’ll know what we’re up against.”
“Good idea.” She was proactive, not expecting someone else to do all the heavy lifting. Ian liked that.
“I should get back—I got a teacher with a planning period to watch my class, but the period is almost over.” She stood.
“Sofia…” Ian stood with her. “About that night.” There was no need to specify which. She seemed to blush at the thought of it. “Would you, well, keep it to yourself? Now that we know who each other is, I mean?”
Sofia rolled her eyes. She was so youthful looking she could have been one of her students. “What, you really think I’m going to mention to Gavin that I had a one-night stand with his father?” She held his gaze, hers unflinching. “You don’t need to worry about that. We can both pretend we only met today. All the same, stranger, I’m going to need your number for me to report results after I’ve run my tests,” she finished.
They swapped contact info and then she was gone, in a swish of a glossy ponytail and tip-tap of pretty shoes, only a few seconds before a gurney was wheeled in.
Ian stood aside for the staff to do their jobs. “Is he okay? I’m his father,” he told the doctor, who looked from him to Gavin with some skepticism. Understandable, since Gavin had gotten his facial features from his mom. While he’d inherited Ian’s eye and hair color, Gavin’s eyes were currently closed in a sedated sleep and his hair was dyed a weird shade of blue. But eventually, the doctor seemed to take him at his word and assured him Gavin would be fine.
“We’d like to keep him overnight for observations, given his medical history of seizures,” the doctor said, tapping something on his iPad.
“Yes, of course, Doctor. Whatever’s necessary for my son. Is it okay to use my phone?”
He stepped out of the room to call Allison, not looking forward to the conversation. What the hell time was it in Germany? Allison had been living in Frankfurt with her new husband, Wolf, for the past month while they waited on his visa for the States. Rather than uproot him from school, Gavin had moved in with Ian. And only a month later, this.
