Free A Perfect Life: A Novel by Danielle Steel Page B

won’t happen.” Charlie loved working withBlaise. They were a great team. “Just relax, and go take care of your kid.”
    “Thank you,” she said, and hung up, and then dialed the school. She asked for the headmaster to make sure that they had someone with Salima who would be able to comfort her until Blaise arrived. He explained to Blaise what had happened.
    “We still can’t believe it. She was dead in four hours. She was fine yesterday. They said meningitis is like that. Now we’re worried about an epidemic.” He sounded panicked, and so was Blaise, for Salima.
    “What are you going to do?” Blaise asked in a strained voice. She was worried about Salima now, living so closely with her. What if she had been exposed and died too? Blaise felt sick thinking about it. Salima was the only person in the world she loved. And she knew enough about bacterial meningitis, which Abby had died of, to know that you could get it from an infected person coughing or sneezing.
    “I don’t know yet. We’ll talk about it when you get here. I’m meeting with someone from the board of health in an hour.” He had just come from telling Abby’s mother that her daughter died. It had been a nightmarish day for the entire school, but for Salima most of all, they both knew.
    “I’ll be there as fast as I can.” She told him what she had said to Salima, and then she flew out the door. She passed Mark in the hall and told him where she was going and why.
    “Oh my God” was all he could think of to say, looking shocked. “Is there anything I can do?” She shook her head and raced past him. She was in the elevator within seconds and across the lobby.She found Tully outside and had him drive her home, where she threw some clothes into a bag, and then he took her to her garage and helped her get her bag in the car.
    “You need to calm down before you start driving,” he told her sternly. “You’ll kill yourself getting there if you don’t.”
    “I’ll be fine,” she said, but didn’t look it. And three minutes later she was on the road, weaving through traffic toward the East River to drive north.
    She drove as fast as she could all the way. She fully expected to be stopped by the police, but she wasn’t. And she was at Caldwell two and a half hours later. She went straight to the cottage, where Salima was crying uncontrollably, and Blaise took her in her arms and held her while she sobbed. All she could do was hug her and make soothing sounds. There was nothing to say, no way to make it better, and worst of all, no way to bring Abby back. Salima sounded as though her heart were broken. And eventually Blaise put her to bed. One of the school monitors Blaise knew only slightly was with her, and Blaise sat on her bed and held her hand until Salima fell asleep. And as soon as she did, Blaise went to find Eric, the headmaster, in the main building where he lived. He looked devastated when he greeted Blaise, and she could see that he had been crying too.
    “We’re closing the school. Tomorrow,” he said with an ominous look, as Blaise stared at him, in shock yet again.
    “Forever?” He shook his head in answer. He was running out of words.
    “The board of health recommends that we close for sixty to ninety days, depending on whether or not we get any new cases.We have to send everyone home. It’s dangerous for any of us to be here. We were all exposed to Abby. We notified everyone an hour ago. Several of the parents have already picked their children up. I’m expecting a dozen more tonight. The rest are leaving in the morning. Above all, we want to avoid an epidemic.”
    “What will happen to the kids?” Blaise asked in a shaking voice.
    “We’re going to send as many monitors home with them as we can. But I have a problem, Blaise,” he said, eyeing her squarely. He had always been honest with her, for the past eleven years, and she considered him a friend. “None of the monitors who’d be suitable for Salima can