“It’s not nice to eavesdrop, Tarah.”

Tarah, who had been listening intently outside her husband, Robert’s hospital room, whirled around in surprise. She’d thought all the off duty police officers had finally cleared out to give the family some privacy. Guess not. There stood Officer Brown, grinning in amusement.

“I wasn’t exactly eavesdropping,” Tarah whispered with a brief glance at the partially open door.

“No? What would you call it?” Officer Brown inquired curiously. “Robert and Shelley do not know you are out here listening, do they?”

“Well, not exactly,” Tarah admitted, “but it is not like they are whispering either,” she hurriedly pointed out in an effort to explain away her actions.

Officer Brown folded his arms and leaned back against the wall and stared at her in silence for a long moment before replying.

“That should tell you something,Tarah. They are not trying to hide their conversation and as you pointed out, they aren’t particularly bothered with who hears them. The open door bares that out.” Fixing Tarah with a steady, kind gaze, he continued in a serious tone. “Could it be because they are not doing anything wrong?

Yes, Shelley and Robert share a past and have a kid together, so, of course, he is going to want them protected to. That’s just the bare facts. Do yourself and everyone else around you a favor and don’t look for trouble where there is none! Seriously, Tarah, you should not feel threatened by their past relationship. Neither one of them has given any indication that they intend to rekindle it. Leave it alone,” Officer Brown said bluntly. “You knew he was going to insist that Shelley and Christopher stay at the house with you and Trent while we look for the shooter. That’s just common sense. It is extremely unlikely that the shooter will return to the scene of the crime to try again. Not to mention, he’s got to know we would be watching the place. So, your house is the ideal place for all of you to wait this out. I know Robert went over all this with you earlier but it bears repeating. He won’t be released until tomorrow or the next day, as you know. This will be one less concern for Robert to deal with from his hospital bed,provided you cooperate.” Officer Brown paused for breath before proceeding.