Three dark police cars drove in a tight line ahead of us, their emergency lights off but their tires hissing steadily on the fresh gravel.

I sat in the back seat with Theodore buckled into his car seat beside me.

He was chewing on the corner of his blue wool blanket, his fever completely gone now that he was warm and dry in the heated car.

“Detective Miller has the emergency court order signed by Judge Hayes,” Pendelton said from the front passenger seat.

“Christopher can’t turn us away or claim trespassing at the gate.”

“What if Dr.