He had to convince the boy that he was a friend of the family. Not a stranger to be wary of. And really, in this day and age of social media, was anyone a stranger? Everyone was a friend of a friend, or a follower, or someone who liked your TikTok clip.

In the distance, Daniela turned to her home. He pulled away from the curb, making sure to drive casually even though his hammering heart told him to floor it and get to the kid before he reached his home.

Nathan walked unusually fast. Usually the boy would walk at a snail’s pace, stopping to appreciate a bug scuttling on the sidewalk or to pick up a leaf that drew his attention. But now he practically ran home.

Did the kid know?

CHAPTER 6

Nathan hurried home as fast as he could, his mind intent on reaching the bathroom. He’d needed to pee for over an hour, but he hated asking to go during class, especially when Mrs. Covington was teaching. She always frowned when pupils asked to go to the bathroom, like it made her angry that they couldn’t hold it in. And then he’d had to hurry to the school bus. The ride home had been an increasing nightmare with every bump making him squirm uncomfortably.

But now, finally, he was almost home.

“Hey, Nathan.”

The voice startled him. He turned to face the street. A man had pulled up in a white car, the passenger window open. He smiled, his expression friendly. Nathan squinted at him, trying to figure out who he was. One of their neighbors, maybe?

“Hello,” he said politely.

The man laughed. “You don’t recognize me, do you?” he asked. “I’m Gabi’s friend.”

Now that he said it, maybe Nathan had seen this guy with Gabi one time. Gabi had lots of friends, and she worked with a lot of people, especially in the past year. This was probably one of them. Yeah, he was definitely one of them. “Oh right, I remember you now.”

“Gabi sent me. We’re preparing a surprise party for your mom for tomorrow. You’re in charge of the decorations. Gabi said you have a crazy talent for drawing.”

Nathan smiled, embarrassed. He loved drawing, and he really thought he drew well, but he was always shy about showing his pictures to people. “Yeah, I’m not bad.”

“Great! So get in. We need to pick up some candles on the way. I can’t wait to see her trying to fit forty-five candles on the cake, right?”

Nathan had a pang of unease. Get in? Sure, this guy was Gabi’s friend, but Nathan didn’t know him so well. It was probably best to go home and ask Gabi about it. “I need to ask Gabi first.”

“Gabi is already there. She asked me to pick you up. We’re eating McDonald’s.” He raised a McDonald’s takeout bag to the window. “Your favorite, right? Gabi said to get you a Happy Meal with a burger and absolutely no vegetables.”

Nathan relaxed. His favorite meal. And right now, thinking of the burger inside, he felt his mouth watering. “Thanks! I just want to go home for a minute, I have to use the bathroom.”

“If your mom sees you, it’ll ruin the surprise,” the man said, opening the passenger door. “Get in, we’ll stop at a gas station, use their restroom.”

“Okay.” Nathan stepped over to the car and then paused. “Wait.”

The smile on the man’s face faded. He glanced at the rearview mirror. “What is it?”

“Gabi said we’d get those candles shaped like numbers this time,” Nathan said. “So we don’t need to fit all the candles on the cake.”

“Oh yeah!” The man smiled again. “But in case you and I don’t find any, we’ll get regular candles, right?”

“Right.” Nathan slid inside the car. He hoped the man would drive slowly, because the bumps really made him want to pee.

“Buckle up!” The man grinned at him.

And they drove away.

CHAPTER 7

The sounds of Samantha’s violin greeted Abby even before she climbed the front steps of her home. She sighed wearily as she twisted the key in the lock. Her head pounded, and she’d hoped for a quiet and soothing evening nursing a cup of warm tea. But quiet did not characterize Sam’s music, and frankly, neither did soothing.

When she pushed open the door, she could also hear the background music to Sam’s violin—a fast-paced drumbeat and high-pitched electronic vocals. Abby tossed her bag on the dresser by the door and shouted, “Kids, I’m home!”

Ben appeared almost instantly, running at her full speed, his dark eyes sparkling with joy. Abby crouched, opening her arms to enfold her son in a hug. Her smile wavered as she noticed the creature held in Ben’s palm—Jeepers, his pet tarantula. But it was too late to do anything about it; son and spider both sank deep into her arms. She lowered her face into Ben’s smooth honey-blond hair.

“Hey, Mommy,” Ben chirped.

“Hi, hon,” she said, glancing at his palm to make sure Jeepers’s furry limbs weren’t touching her. “How was your day?”

“It was okay. Sam said she’s gonna squash Jeepers.” He sounded deeply offended. “You need to tell her not to.”

“Did you take Jeepers to her room again?”

“No! I just let him walk on the table for a bit.”

“The kitchen table?” Abby asked faintly, standing up. “I don’t want it walking on the kitchen table, Ben.”