Page 56 of Fatal Betrayal

"And I'm sorry I overreacted." Joanne said. "Doug is all right. I thought he wasn't talking to me, and it scared me, because he used to do that right after Kyle passed away. It would take him days to get out of a depression so deep he couldn't speak. But he had his earplugs in, and he just wasn't hearing me. I panicked too quickly. With the anniversary tomorrow, I assumed the worst."

"Well, I'm glad he's okay," Cooper said. "That's all that matters."

"He actually seems surprisingly okay," Joanne said. "Doug told me that I need to stop worrying about him, that he's handling things. And I should believe what he says. Anyway, since you're all here, come in and say hello. But don't tell him I called you." She paused. "You can say that Andi wanted to say hi."

Cooper gave his mother an incredulous look. "You think Dad will believe that?"

"Well, you are with her." Joanne gave her son a puzzled look. "Why are you and Andi together? I never thought I would see the two of you in the same space again."

"Andi is an FBI agent. She's investigating the kidnapping of Neil's daughter, Elisa," Cooper said shortly. "Neil asked me to consult on the case."

"Oh, I heard about that on the news this morning. I hope that little girl is all right," Joanne said, fresh worry in her eyes.

"We don't know anything yet," Cooper replied.

Joanne turned to Andi. "I have to say I'm not at all surprised you ended up as an FBI agent. Your father actually mentioned that to me a few years ago."

"I wasn't surprised, either," Monica put in. "You loved to play detective, Andi. You and Cooper used to make me answer the pretend phone for your fake detective agency."

She couldn't help but smile at the reminder. "You were good at that."

"And you were always trying to keep the teachers and the school on their toes," Joanne added. "Your mom used to worry that you would get yourself in trouble."

"I think my mother was more worried about her own problems than what I was doing at school," she said dryly.

"How is your mom?"

"She's good. She remarried and lives in Chicago."

"I heard your father is going to sell his house after all these years," Joanne said.

Now, she was the one who was surprised. "I hadn't heard that."

"Yes. He's been talking to Kim's son, Will, about listing the house."

"Well, it's probably past time for him to leave this neighborhood. I never really understood why he wanted to keep the house anyway."

"You haven't spoken to him then?"

"Not in a long time."

Joanne nodded, understanding in her eyes. "I can still hear the bitter note in your voice, Andi. Your dad broke your heart and your trust a long time ago."

"Yes, he did."

"Well, please come in. Just for a few moments," Joanne pleaded. "It will be a wonderful distraction for Doug and for me." Joanne didn't wait for them to answer, just headed toward the house.

Monica shrugged. "Are you really going to say no to anything she wants this week, Cooper?" she challenged and then moved up the path.

"Doesn't your dad hate me?" she asked Cooper. "Is this a setup? Am I going to step inside, and you'll all finally have a chance to rip me apart?"

"Do you think my family would do that to you? My mom just gave you a hug."

"Which made little sense to me. You've made it clear that you blame me for what happened to Kyle. Do they feel differently?"

He hesitated, then nodded. "Yes, they feel differently. They don't hold you responsible, Andi."

She was seriously shocked. "They don't?"

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