Page 36 of Cole's Joy
CHAPTER 14
The next evening,after Lois let Cole in, she finished putting their dinner on the table while Cole laughed and played with Tim. He washed his hands and pulled her chair out for her before he settled at the table.
“It’s not much,” Lois said as she passed him the plate of hamburgers she’d cooked on her indoor grill. “Most of it is leftovers from yesterday’s party, and I just did up the hamburgers.”
“It’s fine,” Cole said with a grin. “As long as I didn’t have to cook it, it’s fine.”
“How does that work out with the three of you men living together?”
“We all take turns,” Cole said as he put his hamburger together, and dished up some salad and beans. He shook his head with a chuckle. “Ducky tends to throw stuff in the crockpot and let it cook together all day. You know, a roast, vegetables, spices, but his idea of spices is salt and pepper, that’s it.” He laughed at her wrinkled nose. “Clem loves breakfast foods, so he cooks that meal, along with pasta dishes, so we’re either eating spaghetti, or goulash, but for some reason never lasagna.”
“And you? What do you cook?”
“Salads like this and the other white meat.” He laughed as he shook his head. “Chicken, pork chops, the mashed potatoes with gravy, vegetables not cooking in the crockpot all day. I’ve even done stir-fry a few times. I learned to cook when I lived in Wyoming. I had the manager’s cabin all to myself, and sometimes I didn’t want to step on the employees toes by demanding they feed me, so I learned to cook by myself. At first I got a few pointers from Mrs. A. and she gave me several cookbooks. Later on, when YouTube became a thing, I learned more.” They made small talk as they ate, and he helped her clean up. When it was time to take Tim out, Lois showed him the fenced-in area and went back to make sure everything was done for the night. Not wanting a cup of coffee so late at night, but wanting something hot, she started the tea kettle on the stove and got out a cup and her favorite tea bag. She didn’t know whether it shocked her or not when Cole returned with Tim and asked for a cup of the same thing. They ended up settling back at the table and Lois studied him intently.
“What is it? You look like you have something to say.”
“I do, but I wanted to wait until we finished eating.”
“Is it bad news? Is something wrong?” Before she could panic, he gripped her hands in his and brought them to his lips to kiss her knuckles. He looked directly into her eyes and shook his head. “Everything, everyone is fine, no need to panic. Yet.”
“What do you mean, yet?”
Cole drew in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. He still held one of her hands, took a sip of his tea, and looked at her directly. “As I was leaving the barn earlier, Officer Gerard called.”
“Which one was he?”
“He had the female partner.”
“Got it. What did he have to say?”
“He said I didn’t have to worry, but he did warn me that this might not be over.” He rubbed the back of his neck and shook hishead sadly. “Because they witnessed Susan, that’s the woman’s name, Susan Mallory, try to hit you, they arrested her for assault. They took her to the station and booked her. As she sat in the holding cell, they ran her prints and started making phone calls. I’m only repeating what he told me.”
“Okay, I understand. What happened? She didn’t hurt herself, did she?”
“No, after they ran her prints, and found out she had a record for the same thing she did to us, they took her into interrogation, except when they questioned her, they had their department shrink sit in on the interview.”
“Oh my,” Lois said in shock, and though she liked holding his hand, she removed hers from his and sat back in her chair. She pointed between them. “It’s not that I don’t want the contact, but I think I’m going to need to brace myself for what’s coming next.”
“Yeah, I get that, and you probably will. Anyway, I can’t have all the details of the case, but it turns out that Susan has a history of mental problems.” He shook his head sadly. “This is what I was told, again, it’s not all of it. Susan Mallory has assaulted men like me on the street, accusing us of being her father, and owing her and her mother money. She’s done this fifteen times in the last five years.”
“Holy crap, has she sought mental help?”
“Off and on, she was released from a mental institute six months ago because she went off her meds and actually used a knife on the last person she accused of being her father. He pressed charges.”
“I know this isn’t a laughing matter, but that woman has serious daddy issues.”
“Yes, and because of her record, that’s why the department shrink was called in. He sent her away for a seventy-two-hour observation in the mental ward at the local hospital. They willobserve her, get her back on her medication, and try to get to the bottom of why she’s attacking men like me. Luckily, I had you to defend me, and I know I could have handled myself, but I was in too much shock to respond quickly. Thank you for being there with me and helping me.”
“No problem, I was happy to do it. I know you probably don’t know, but what happens when the seventy-two hours are up?”
“Officer Gerard said he’d call me to let me know if they keep her, or if she’s released. He did tell me to warn you that if she’s released, then he doesn’t know if she knows where we live, but we should be diligent about our own safety.”
“Okay, I told Laurie and Lorissa what happened, then the others yesterday before you arrived. Laurie suggested putting up outside security cameras on our three homes, and Erin agreed, but she also said that she wanted them put up over at New Double. She specifically said she trusted you and Clem, but you couldn’t look out for Ducky twenty-four-seven. Duane’s going to look into getting them set up. It won’t be in the next seventy-two hours, but they’re working on it. It’s added to the list.” She was happy her comment made him smile.
“Good, now, can you promise me to keep your SUV locked, as well as your house?”
“I will do the best I can,” she said, and smiled as he shook his head.
