Page 61 of Protecting the White Bear

“I’m game. What can I do to help?” Monica asked.

“You just relax. The more you rest, the better your injuries will be,” Andy said.

“Yeah, Andy and I have got this. Just like we always do when we have get-togethers.”

“I think it’s great that you guys cook. My dad does too.”

“Our dad taught us at a young age,” Ben said. "That’s partly because we were learning to help run the tavern and assist our parents, uncle, and aunt since they were co-owners.”

Then Monica got a call and answered it.

Andy glanced at her, wondering if it was Pierre again, and maybe they could track him down.

“Yes. Oh. Well, darn it anyway. Thanks. Talk later.” She shook her head at Andy. “That was my boss. He said that once they got the okay to track Pierce’s phone, they located it in the back of a pickup truck headed to Canada.”

“And he wasn’t in the truck.” Andy knew that before long, Pierre would either turn his phone off or ditch it. He chopped up mushrooms while Ben was slicing the onions.

“Nope. The agents questioned the driver, and he said he didn’t know whose phone it was. He told them he had stopped to eat lunch at a restaurant in White Bear. But it had been about three hours since he had left the restaurant.”

“So Pierre’s probably not in White Bear any longer,” Andy said. “I can’t believe he was still here when he called you that first time.”

“Yeah, me either.”

After Andy finished browning the hamburger, he and Ben tossed in the vegetables, tomato sauce, and seasonings and began cooking it.

“Wine?” Ben asked.

“Not for me. I’m taking medicine so I can’t drink any. But you guys go ahead.”

“What about you?” Ben asked Andy.

“Sure, a glass would be fine with dinner.” Andy winked at Monica. “He’s still hopeful you might ditch me for him.”

She smiled.

“Well,” Ben said, “we can’t let the good ones get away.”

“I agree.” Andy finished cooking the noodles. “Is everyone ready for dinner?"

“I am. I think I’m making up for all the exercise we got yesterday!” She joined them at the table while Ben dished up garlic toast. “Hmm, this looks great.”

Andy served spaghetti. Ben got glasses of water for everyone and then poured glasses of wine for Andy and himself. Andy handed Monica the container of Parmesan cheese, and she sprinkled it on her spaghetti and then passed it to Ben.

“So, what’s your next step with this kidnapping business? I’m sure Andy’s eager to help you find these guys.” Ben bit into his garlic bread with a crunch.

“Well,”—Monica wound her spaghetti around her fork—“until these guys are caught, I want to find where they are and have them arrested. I will continue working on this unless I get another case once I’m off leave.”

Ben glanced at Andy. “Well, I’ll have to return to work in six more days, but when I’m off, I’ll work with Monica on her case,” Andy said.

“If you need help with anything, you know I’ll assist you. This spaghetti is so good, if I do say so myself,” Ben said.

Andy and Monica laughed. Monica told them, “The spaghetti and the garlic toast are great.”

Andy agreed. “Thanks for the offer of assistance, Ben. If we need your help, we’ll let you know.”

“You know I’ll be right on it.”

After dinner, they had chocolate cheesecake for dessert and decaf coffee. Andy was glad Monica liked something Ben enjoyed, though they were big on berry and honey desserts.

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