Free Sidekicks by Linda Palmer Page A

Detective Simms opened his mouth to speak to us, a female spirit that was almost fully materialized slipped out of the room via the wall and stood in the hallway. My startled gaze clashed with hers. I knew she saw me. I'd never seen a ghost so...fresh, I guess. I realized that she had an Asian look about her and wore a hospital gown. The bandages on her neck and bruises everywhere else gave me an impression of brutality and pain. The moment she began to fade from view, I registered the silently flashing alarm lights, mounted high on the corridor walls. Nurses and orderlies came running from everywhere, obliterating my concentration. The detective and the guard cop both startled violently and charged into the room along with everyone else.
    Cooper and I exchanged a look and got out of there. By the time we reached his truck, I was an emotional mess and not just because I'd seen the ghost of a woman who'd just died. The session with Dalton lingered with me, too.
    For that reason, Cooper didn't drive me straight home, instead heading back to Sonic. Without ordering anything, we sat in his truck for a while to regroup.
    "Thanks for telling Dalton about his lab work," I said. "I'm so glad you picked up on that."
    "Couldn't have him stressing over nothing."
    "You saw that poor woman in the hallway, right?"
    "I did."
    "Did you sense the brutality around her?"
    "It was hard to miss."
    "I'll bet Detective Simms was there because she was an attempted homicide."
    "Attempted? I think it was a done deal."
    "Oh yeah. Of course." With a shudder, I abruptly changed the subject. "Heard from your mom today?"
    "Nope."
    Didn't like the sound of that. "Did you try to call her?"
    "Nope."
    "Oh, Cooper. What are you going to do?"
    "I'm going to take it a day at a time. The phone works both ways, you know. And meanwhile, I'm hoping Dad will eventually forgive me for shutting him out all these years and drop by again with some advice. So far, though, nothing."
    "Did I tell you he told me not to give up on you?"
    "What! When?"
    "Nick brought him by." I gave Cooper the details.
    "Was he okay?"
    "He was fine and loves you more than ever, so I'm thinking he'll definitely hang out with you if you'll let him. Not sure what's holding him back now, but I'll ask if Nick brings him around again."
    "Thanks."
    "We should probably leave now." I pulled down the mirror on the passenger side visor. "Do I look okay? Don't want to worry them."
    "Baby, you have no idea."
    That brought a smile to my face. "I want to help Mom with dinner. We're making lasagna. You do eat Italian, don't you?"
    "If I'm going to love a Tagliaro, I'd better."
    He had that right.
    When we got to my house, Mom greeted Cooper with the biggest hug ever. Since she was so worried about him, she overcompensated. I could tell that her gushing embarrassed him and quickly sent her back to the kitchen, from which wafted some amazing smells.
    After settling Cooper on the couch and handing him the remote, I joined her at the stove. I noticed that she'd abandoned her usual at-home attire of jeans and a sweatshirt, going with nice pants and button-up blouse she didn't tuck in. She even had on flats.
    Was that for Cooper's sake? I liked that it might be. "What can I do?"
    "Set the table for starters. Use the good stuff."
    Pleased by the implication, I did just that, choosing our nicest china to make my guy feel extra special. My efforts did not go unnoticed by my dad once he got home, and of course he commented on the table, now perfectly set with our best silver and four crystal glasses. A low bouquet of fresh fall flowers sat right in the middle, complementing the color of the tablecloth and napkins and giving the room a festive touch.
    Cooper sat across from me at our table for four. As we ate, Mom and Dad kept the conversation flowing, both carefully avoiding any mention of sidekicks and home life except for a couple of pointed questions at the beginning of the meal.
    "So you're staying with Marty