51: The Series

51: The Beginning Chapter 12

Not being in the office had been driving Lindsay crazy. The department had been updating her every shift, usually by at least one dispatcher on duty calling or a deputy stopping by. Cat had been calling at 8 a.m., noon, and 4 p.m., almost on the dot, to ensure Lindsay knew everything that took place during the day shift. Little Bob had also stopped by the house daily to inform her of everything just in case Cat had forgotten something. Big Bob and Andy had both stopped by once per shift at different times. That way, they were in different areas of the county and were better able to respond to any calls that would come in. Max had been stopping by between 7:30 a.m. and 8 a.m. to fill her in on the night shift.

Wren had taken her phone and was answering for her for the first few hours of her being home. He had also managed to convince her doctor to make a house call and make sure she had not been seriously injured. She was glad she had taken a couple of days off to rest and heal. While her head no longer hurt, she was still a little sore but was much better than she had been.

She was the only one at home then and had decided to get up and try to do a few things around the house, like fold some towels. She quickly decided that her bruises still had not healed enough for that and went into the living room to watch television. She was walking into the room when she saw Crook waiting for her on the couch with his tail wagging. Just as she sat down, there was a knock at the door. She looked toward the door and could see that it was Little Bob.

“Come in,” she called to him.

Little Bob came in and joined her in the living room. “Hey, Lindsay, it’s good to see you up and around. I’ve got to say, though, that side of your face is still looking pretty green,” Little Bob told her, referring to the healing bruise on the side of her face.

“I can handle the color. I’m just glad it doesn’t hurt the way it did,” Lindsay told him as he sat at the other end of the couch.

Crook scooted over next to him, leaned against him, and licked the end of Little Bob’s nose as soon as he looked down at him.

Little Bob laughed, “Your dog is weird.”

“Of course, he is. That is why he fits in with this family so well,” Lindsay said, reaching over and rubbing Crook's head. "So, what's going on?"

“There was a strange situation this morning. I told Cat not to call you because I thought I should tell you about it face-to-face. An Agent Cooper showed up and started asking everyone a lot of questions. I answered a few of them, then told him he needed to leave,” Little Bob told her. “He told Cat he wanted to go through your office, and she told him where he could go unless he had a warrant, which he did not have. He wanted every file of every odd call that the department had ever responded to, even before you took over. I know that Wren is the one who normally handles all the more unusual things that really don’t fit what we can do, so I called him and let him know too. I hope that’s OK. I just really didn’t know what else to do.”

“The way you guys handled that is fine. If they don’t have a warrant, they don’t get anything, and thank you for calling Wren. If you remember, Agent Cooper is the one who was at the department the day Wren got back and was asking me questions and insinuating that Wren was giving me information that I should not be given,” Lindsay said.

“So what you are saying is basically that this guy is a colossal jerk and is by far overreaching his boundaries and authority,” Little Bob summed up.

“You got it,” she said.

“OK. Well, I just wanted to make sure you knew what was going on. I will get out of your hair. Do you need any help with anything before I go?” Little Bob asked.

“Thank you, Bob, but I’m fine,” Lindsay said.

Little Bob walked to the door and turned around. “Crook, you take care of your mommy,” he said, looking at the dog. Crook wagged his tail and gave a single woof as an answer. Little Bob laughed and left the house.

Lindsay almost wished she did not know about Agent Cooper showing up at the sheriff’s department when she was not there. She knew that she was going to be thinking about it until Wren got home and she could ask him some questions. Lindsay decided to go back to her plan of watching television. Maybe she would be able to get that visit out of her head for a while. She lay down on the couch with Crook beside her, turned on the TV, and began looking for something to watch.

-

Lindsay woke up with a start when Wren touched her shoulder.

“I’m sorry, babe. I didn’t mean to scare you,” Wren said.

“That’s OK. What happened with Agent Cooper, and what was he doing at my department?” Lindsay asked him.

“Agent Cooper has been taken care of. That is all you need to know,” Wren told her.

“That answer is good enough for me.”

“I got Chinese for dinner tonight. Sound good?” Wren asked.

“That sounds amazing, and I am starving. What time is it anyway?” asked Lindsay.

“It is after six o’clock. How long were you asleep?”

“I can honestly say I don’t know. You and Dillon let me sleep this morning, and I woke up sometime around noon. Then Little Bob stopped by and filled me in on the Agent Cooper fiasco. I lay down with Crook to watch something just after Little Bob left, and you just woke me up a few minutes ago. So probably long enough that I won’t sleep tonight with my luck,” Lindsay told him.

“If that happens, I will stay up with you. I have taken tomorrow off. So don’t even think about going to work tomorrow. I have our whole day planned. It includes movie and TV show marathons, lying around, and junk food,” Wren told her with a smile.

“That sounds perfect. Now, let’s eat. I’m getting hungrier by the minute. I will grab Dillon and get our plates ready while you change your clothes,” she said to Wren as she stood up and kissed him.

By the time Wren had changed into his sweats, Lindsay had already made a plate for him piled with his favorites. They decided to eat in the living room and watch a movie. It surprised both of them that Dillon sat with them, ate his dinner, and even watched the movie. When the movie ended, it was still early, but Lindsay was ready to go back to bed. Before she could say anything, Dillon spoke.

“Hey, Mom, if it is OK with Wren, do you mind if he and I play some video games here in the living room?” he asked.

Lindsay was a little surprised. Wren and Dillon did not play video games together often, and when they did, it was usually in Dillon’s room.

“It’s fine with me as long as all your homework is done. Remember you have school tomorrow, so don’t stay up too late,” Lindsay answered him.

“Thank you,” Dillon said as he jumped up and hugged her, then ran down the hall to his room.

“You know he is going to kick my butt as usual,” Wren said, smiling and putting his arm around her.

“Oh, I know he will, and it’s good for you. It keeps you humble,” Lindsay said, smiling at him. She leaned over and kissed him.

“Ewwww. Gross, you two,” Dillon said as he came back in, carrying one of his gaming systems.

Wren and Lindsay both laughed.

“I think I am going to go to bed early. You two have fun and remember, don’t stay up too late,” Lindsay said as she got up from the couch and walked into the bedroom, closely followed by Crook.

It did not take Lindsay long to begin to doze off. As she did, she could hear Dillon and Wren talking about school in between sudden outbursts related to the battles they were having. She listened to an owl not far from the bedroom, and, of course, she could hear Crook's quiet snoring as he slept on Wren’s side of the bed. She briefly wondered how Wren felt about moving the dog before he could go to bed, but that thought did not last long before she was asleep.