Keeping Cole's Promise

by Cheryl Harper

  Rebecca nodded and put her hand on the doorknob. Whatever she decided to do, Art wasn’t going to change his mind.

  Distracted by the shock of being on the receiving end of such disapproval, she waded out into the crowded hallway in a fog. When the first student bumped her in a rush to beat the tardy bell, she had to catch her balance against a row of lockers. The cold metal under her hand brought a flash of the time Eric had pinned her.

  “You okay, Miss Lincoln?” Eric Jordan was frozen two feet away, his hand held out as if he was tempted to help but unsure of his next step.

  “Sure, Eric, I’m fine.” She blinked slowly and then said, “What class are you headed to?”

  “English,” Eric said with a grimace. “Paper due on Grapes of Wrath today.”

  “And...did you write it?” she asked, grateful to fall into her usual pattern.

  “I did.” He shook his head. “But doing homework isn’t as much fun as you’d think.” He rolled his eyes.

  “And you read the book? Because watching the movie is cheating.”

  “There’s a movie?” The horror on his face teased a chuckle from Rebecca. Whatever else changed, kids never did.

  “It’s black and white, and the book is always better than the movie.” She lightly touched his arm. “Better get to class. I wouldn’t want to get you into trouble.”

  “No. Don’t need any trouble.” He shifted his backpack. “Are you sure you’re okay? Your face is pretty pale.”

  Rebecca swallowed hard and lifted one hand to her cheek. “I’m a little under the weather.”

  Eric pointed at her. “I wondered where you’ve been. Missed you at the shelter.”

  “Yeah, it’s been a crazy week.” Rebecca sniffed. “But I had a chance to call about the vet tech program. You and your sister and I should tour the campus.”

  He wrinkled his nose. “What for? Can’t afford it.” He took a step back. “Don’t get my sister’s hopes up. Only way for me to help out is to get out of her way. Army will do that, and Debbie can see about her own life. She needs to do that. I can handle basic training, no sweat.” He looked so young as he said it that Rebecca could imagine how Debbie would feel saying goodbye.

  Rebecca shook her head. “You’re her family. She needs you, Eric. Give me a shot. I have friends at STCC who will move mountains.”

  “I’ll think about it,” he said as the bell rang. He raised a hand and trotted down the hall. “See you at the shelter!”

  The reminder that her program was going to be shut down was another punch in the stomach.

  “It’s only temporary,” Rebecca muttered as she dropped into her desk chair and pulled out her list of volunteer spots. She’d have to call every contact and pretend to be cool, calm and collected, or the story about how upset she was would spread through town by the end of the day.

  The frustration and outrage rolled over her again. A lifetime of doing nothing but good for this town and they couldn’t trust her judgment any further than this? Whatever happened, the program she’d been building was in danger and it was so unfair.

  Lincolns didn’t complain when things were unfair, though. Not outwardly. They saved that for trusted friends. Rebecca picked up her cell to text Sarah. Have you seen the paper?

  It was an indication of how bad things were that Sarah immediately answered. No, but the paper’s Facebook page has posted links and tagged us so I’ve read the front-page stories. How bad is it?

  Parents complaining. School board alarmed. Criminals lurking. I’m a bad judge of character. Rebecca rested her head against the chair and studied the small water stain on the ceiling tile.

  The ding of another text got her attention. This will blow over.

  Sarah was right. Eventually, it would, but not today, and Sarah deserved fair warning. Your volunteers won’t be in today. Sorry.

  She hadn’t put her phone down before Sarah answered. I’ve been through worse, but as always, DON’T READ THE COMMENTS.

  For a split second, the urge to log on to Facebook to find out the true extent of the storm was overpowering, but her cell rang. Mom was on the display. There could only be one reason for her mother to be picking up the phone to make a call.

  “Everything’s fine, Mom,” Rebecca said as she answered the call. “Art and I met to make a plan and it’ll all blow over by next week.”

  “Hello. I’m fine. Yes, the weather here is lovely.” Her mother’s exasperated sigh was crystal clear. Cell reception was good wherever she was golfing. “Didn’t anyone ever teach you how to answer the phone?”

  Annoyance wasn’t a new thing when Rebecca talked to her mother, but allowing herself to feel it was. “You’re busy. I’m drowning. Who called you?” There was no way the Holly Heights newspaper had made it to Florida by mail today.

  “Dinah called. I knew it was bad news. That’s the only time she pulls me back into the loop. I swear, she loves gossip so much she’s forgotten how little she liked me when we were neighbors,” her mother said. Dinah had taught her daughter, Cece, everything she knew, so the next generation of Holly Heights could continue the tradition.

  Rebecca bit her tongue to swallow her immediate answer but decided to go with it. “Then why are you paying any attention to her?”

  “I don’t, not unless it includes my children.” Her mother drew out the word. “What have you done? Started an affair with a robber or something?”

  Rebecca closed her eyes and considered hanging up the phone. She didn’t have the energy for this.

  “I did what you taught me to do, Mom. I gave a man the help he needed.” Never mind that her friends had to force her to do that much. The outcome was the same. “He’s doing a great job.”

  “Well, then, keep up the important work,” her mother replied.

  “Even if my boss is telling me not to and the town’s in an uproar?” Rebecca frowned at the phone. Was her mother encouraging her to go against the town, to stand with Cole? No way.

  “You have a good brain and a better heart. Your father and I worked hard to make sure of that.” Her mother cleared her throat. “We worried so much about Daniel and look at him now. He’s found his calling. We miss him, but we wouldn’t change his life, even though we were sure he’d made the worst mistake there was, burning bridges at the hospital.”

  Rebecca traced a finger in the dust on the bookshelf beside her desk as she tried to follow her mother’s train of thought.

  “This time, with you, we’re going to trust you.”

  Rebecca squeezed her eyes shut. Of course. This time she wanted her mother to lay out the proper plan of attack, one that would make everyone happy. And this time her mother let go.

  “Even if that means this...man changes everything.”

  Rebecca could hear the worry in her mother’s voice.

  “We know who you are. If you say he’s worth the trust, then...”

  Her mother’s long sigh was so familiar Rebecca sighed too.

  “I can’t wait to see you.”

  That last part was heartfelt, even if the rest of it might have been uttered through clenched teeth.

  “Me, too, Mom.” Rebecca would give almost anything to have her mother close even though she’d celebrated the fact that Florida was so far away. That was how it went.

  “Okay, get back to work. Love you, Bex.” Her mother ended the call and Rebecca set the phone down slowly.

  At this point, she had a decision. She could follow Arturo’s orders and lie low until everything calmed down. Or... Rebecca picked up the phone, ready to dial the first parent on her list. One quick flash of Cole’s face when he’d explained how her suspicions about him and the robbery had only confirmed his opinion of people, including her, was all it took to hang up the phone.

  Her other option? Sticking her neck out for what she
knew was right.

  Rebecca studied her file of volunteer applications and assignments and closed the cover. This time, she couldn’t write a check or smooth things over. There was no doubt in her mind that everyone else was wrong.

  Instead of a bad day calling parents and pretending she understood, she was going to hand over her file to Art, come back to her office and do the rest of her job as well as she could. The principal’s day would get a bit worse, but she wasn’t going to give in this time. Thanks to Cole, she’d learned that real caring led to hard decisions. Luckily, the right thing was easy to determine this time.

  The only question was what her next step would be in the fight to save her program.

  * * *

  THE FIRST CLUE Cole had that something was wrong came Thursday afternoon when he walked inside after cleaning the play yard. Since the weather was beautiful, he’d done his best to spend as much time as he could outside working on the pens he was building for Les. Winter in southeast Texas was unpredictable. The cool temperatures could hold for months, summer could return with a vengeance or a freak snowstorm could bury the place.

  The complete silence in the dog room was unusual. At this time of day, there should be at least three volunteers giggling over one dog or another while they brushed or fed or worked on basic commands. It had taken a few weeks to get the pattern down, but Thursday was always a busy day around here for Rebecca’s students.

  But today, nothing. Not even a chirpy hum from Shelly, who was happier cleaning litter boxes than any human had a right to be.

  The small trickle of unease that crept through his brain reminded him of other times when he’d felt the same. In prison, the premonition had more to do with keeping his guard up, but it was the same gut feeling that something he didn’t like was lurking.

  Don’t be so melodramatic. If you can weather a break-in and police investigation, whatever this is can be fixed, too.

  Eric hustled past on his way to the trash can.

  “Sure is quiet today,” Cole said as he washed his hands.

  Eric didn’t meet his eyes but shook his head. “Yeah. Soon as I finish with Les, I’ll see if Shelly needs me to scoop outside or something.”

  Cole wasn’t sure why he expected Eric to know any more than he did, but the unease was building. “Think I’m off tomorrow. You want a game?”

  “Yeah, but after the shelter closes. Les says they’ll be shorthanded. Asked me to make sure I was coming in. Like it’s important or something.”

  Eric tried to pretend it wasn’t that big a deal, but Cole imagined how he might have felt when he was a kid if someone he admired had asked him for a favor. His opinion of himself would have grown.

  “Cool. I’ll just...” He had no idea what he’d be doing in the morning. If he didn’t find something, he’d obsess over the upcoming trip to Travis. He knew it was important for Sarah to see the training firsthand. He wasn’t sure how he’d gotten roped in to returning to that place voluntarily.

  Eric waited for him to fill in the blank. “You could come in. Sounds like the volunteer situation is not good.” Eric frowned. “I mean, from what I’ve picked up. And when I saw Ms. Lincoln, she did not look well. Don’t think she’ll be in today, either.”

  “Sick? How?” Cole asked.

  “Real pale.” Eric shrugged.

  Sarah would know what was wrong. He’d demand answers. First, he needed more info on whatever else was going on. Cole knew he shouldn’t encourage the kid to eavesdrop. It was a bad habit that adults should discourage. In this case, he needed to know. “What have you heard? Where is everyone?”

  “The volunteer program is on hold for a month while they review the process,” Eric explained. “That’s what Sarah said, real slow and real loud like she meant it in a sarcastic way. Shelly and Les asked her to repeat it twice before she stormed off. No volunteers from the school.”

  Cole wiped his hands on a paper towel as he considered that. There was no way Rebecca would ever halt her program voluntarily. She was passionate about it, so much so that she’d forced him to get off his couch and do something to help the kids. What was going on?

  “That’s all I know, man. I gotta get in there. Les is removing stitches from the cat that came in last week.” Eric hung his head. “Cats are the worst. It’s the claws.”

  The chug of EW’s truck trickled down the hallway, so Cole headed for the front, but he paused beside Sarah’s office door. It was closed. That was unusual, too. He waved at EW through the window as he checked the parking lot for Will Barnes’s truck. When he saw Rebecca’s car, he knew who was in the office with Sarah.

  Cole quickly tapped on the door, his ear pressed against the wood to see if he could hear anything.

  “Come in,” Sarah called. She was moving around the desk as if she’d been sitting next to Rebecca when he knocked.

  “Are you gone for the weekend?” she asked brightly as she reached into her desk drawer to pull out his check. “I’ve got this ready, but I’m glad you stopped in to say goodbye for the day.” She offered him the check.

  Cole reluctantly took it and folded it once down the middle before he shoved it in his front pocket. He wasn’t sure exactly how to get the conversation started, but one look at Rebecca’s pale face convinced him that didn’t matter.

  “What’s wrong? What’s going on around here?” Was he about to get fired? What would he do if that was the case? And why would they fire him? Had the police turned up something else? Impossible.

  “Oh, nothing for you to worry about. We’re having a...setback with the high school’s volunteer program, but Rebecca will straighten everything out. Until then, we’ll all be doing a few more hours here and there.” Sarah waved her hand breezily. “I warned Shelly she was getting soft. This will be good.”

  “Do you need me to come in tomorrow? I can work no charge.” Cole scratched his temple and studied Rebecca’s face again. She wasn’t meeting his eyes. That was for the best.

  He’d told her exactly what he’d thought about her doubts. Why should he be sad that she got the message loud and clear? Nothing made sense, but he hated the tight line of her mouth and the fact that she was avoiding him. He’d gotten used to her direct stare and the way she’d go toe-to-toe with him.

  “No extra hours.” Sarah sat down and picked up a pen. “We’ll cover this weekend. I may add a few hours next week if that’s all right.” She tapped the calendar. “And Tuesday, when we head to Austin to visit the prison, Shelly will have her hands full.” Sarah bit her lips. “Will could stop in that day...” She scribbled a note and seemed to forget he was still standing there.

  Cole opened his mouth to make a reasonable argument about why it was better for him to work at the shelter instead of visiting the prison program. “Shelly could—”

  “You’re going. You’re on the list. Shelly is not.” Sarah pointed at him. “That’s final.”

  Cole decided to take her at her word and go, but Rebecca’s silence was a worry. “What’s happened with the volunteers?” He wanted to turn to face Rebecca directly, but more than that, he wanted to be let in on the problem without insisting. Like a real member of the shelter team. “I can handle the truth, whatever it is.”

  Neither one of them answered, but Sarah fiddled with the edge of a folded newspaper. Cole eased forward to pick it up. “So it’s the interview. With the reporter. I told you it was a bad idea,” he muttered, and shot an irritated look at Rebecca. Instead of firing back at him as he hoped, she folded her hands together in a tight knot.

  Uneasy, Cole scanned the front page. At first, he thought it was an okay story about the adoption event. A bit light on all the feel-good aspects like the fashion show, but the reporter had included the fund-raising amount and the number of animals that now had homes. Then he unfolded the paper.

  “Guess they need an insid
e source at the police department, since I’ve already been cleared of this.” Cole folded the paper and dropped it on Sarah’s desk. “Is that the problem with the volunteer program? I don’t get it.”

  “I didn’t get it, either,” Sarah muttered.

  “Lots of parents are upset that we’ve got kids working here at the shelter and now they’re questioning all my placements.” Rebecca shrugged to try to convince him that she didn’t care. He wasn’t buying it. “The principal ordered me to suspend the program for the time being. I refused, so he did it himself. Long story short, no volunteers until this is sorted out.”

  “I’ve got one more person starting tomorrow who’s been referred from Judge Overmeyer’s office for court-ordered community service—” Sarah sighed loudly “—but it will be difficult to cover all the kids. And that may be more fuel on the fire.” Then she clasped her hands and smiled brightly. “Luckily, I’ve worked here when the town of Holly Heights was convinced a devil was in charge of this place and stayed far away. The animals will never know and eventually the head bogeyman in charge will figure out Plan C or D or whatever we’re on. Count on it. Until then, we’ll postpone the plans to open the second wall of kennels and the play yard.”

  Rebecca pressed her hand to her forehead but didn’t say anything. Cole wasn’t sure what they expected from him, but he couldn’t stay quiet. “You don’t need to keep me on, then, do you? Without the expansion, I mean.” The dread that hit him was unexpected, but without this job, he was going to be facing a long line of days. “I should give you my notice.”

  Both of them immediately straightened in their seats. “No.” They spoke in unison, and it had the effect of a shout.

  Cole held up both hands. “Listen, I don’t want to cause the shelter any trouble. If that’s what I’m doing, I need to go.”