Page 20 of Counter Attack

“Gram, I need protein, not biscuits and gravy.”

If she ate everything her grandmother cooked, she’d spend her day working off calories instead of getting stronger. Notthat a stronger body would get her back to active duty anytime soon. While Alex had been cleared by Internal Affairs, she still had the department psychologist to contend with.

She’d driven into Chattanooga yesterday to see Dr. Hudson, expecting a one-and-done deal, but the doctor pointed out this was Alex’s second shooting-related death in two years. She wanted Alex to come in once a week for the next month before she would even think about releasing her to active duty.

She understood Dr. Hudson’s insistence that she go through the sessions—the weight of taking a life, even to keep the other person from harming someone, weighed heavily on her. Even now Alex struggled with Phillip Denton’s death. It’d been suicide-by-cop.

Briefly she closed her eyes, the memory of pleading with Denton to put his gun down as fresh as yesterday. Instead, he’d raised his gun, that turned out to be unloaded, and pointed it at Alex as she dropped to the ground and fired.

There was a light tap at her bedroom door before her grandmother opened it and came into the room.

“Good. You’re done.” Gram’s tone indicated Alex was spending way too much time working out.

Alex made sure her hand didn’t shake as she set the empty Yeti on her dresser. “Yes, ma’am. Everything okay?”

Gram didn’t normally visit her room; instead, she waited for Alex to find her in the kitchen or her sewing room.

“I suppose.” She frowned. “Have you noticed that your grandfather...”

“Hasn’t been feeling up to par?” Alex finished for her. “I have. Has he been to the doctor?”

“The old fool won’t admit anything is wrong, so of course he hasn’t made an appointment with his doctor. I thought maybe if you said something to him, he’d go see the doc.”

“I’ll see what I can do, but anytime I ask if he’s feeling okay, his standard reply is ‘I’m fine.’”

“Asking him to make an appointment with Doc won’t hurt. What time is Nathan picking you up for your date?” Gram wiggled her eyebrows.

“It’s not that kind of date—I’m mostly going because I want to test my strength.” The outing that would take up most of the afternoon should let her know where she stood in her rehab. “Besides, we’re just friends, and it’s never going to be anything more.”

“Be careful what you say never to,” Gram said. “You don’t know what God has in store.”

“I seriously doubt God has given much thought to my dating life.”

“Alexis Judith Stone, you know better than that. God cares about every aspect of our lives.”

“I know.” Alex hugged her grandmother. “But it’s just that the few men I’ve dated since college didn’t quite measure up.”

“Maybe because you were comparing them to Nathan,” she said with a knowing grin. “And regardless of what kind of date it is, I’ve made a snack to take with you.”

“Thank you.” She kissed her grandmother’s cheek. “That was so sweet of you, and Nathan will be very happy about it, especially if you included those brownies he loves.”

“You sure know a lot about him.”

“Gram.” Alex made the name two syllables. “It’s bad enough that your friends at church are trying to play matchmaker, don’t you join them.”

“You never said what time Nathan was picking you up.”

“Noonish. We have to be at the railroad station by two and it takes about an hour to get there, but we have to park and all that good stuff.”

“So you’ll eat lunch before you leave?”

Alex checked her watch. Ten thirty. She wouldn’t be hungry but knew better than to try to get out of the house without eating something. “I’ll eat a scoop of your chicken salad on lettuce before I leave.”

“I’ll fix it for you.”

Alex bit back an exasperated sigh. Her grandmother was hovering, her way of expressing love. Alexis didn’t necessarily want her to change, but sometimes it smothered her. “Sure. I’ll come to the kitchen as soon as I shower and dress.”

Gram smoothed a strand of hair behind Alex’s ear, then hugged her. “I’m glad to see you improving, and I hope we can keep you in Pearl Springs another month, at least.”

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