Part 3
For weeks after Michael Cole’s arrest, Tess still defended him.
That disturbed her family more than almost anything else.
She was safe.
The door was no longer locked.
Michael was in custody.
Yet when therapists questioned her, Tess repeatedly described him as her rescuer.
Her mother tried once.
“Tess, he kidnapped you.”
Tess shook her head violently.
“No.”
“He locked you underground.”
“To keep me safe.”
“From what?”
Tess looked toward the hospital window.
“The people in the canyon.”
Her mother started crying.
Nobody pushed after that.
Doctors understood something important.
