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“Not a total loss, but you’re out a kitchen for sure.” I didn’t mention the additional damage from our suppression efforts. “Once we clear the house, we’ll need to investigate to determine the cause of the fire. You’ll need our report for your insurance.”
“How long will that take?”
“I can’t give any estimates on that at this time. We’re going to need to know who had access to the house.”
Foster speared a hand through his wiry gray hair. “Sure. Of course. The last renters left early this morning.”
“You have some names?”
“The registration was to a guy named Lucas Platt. I’d have to pull the records to see who else was supposed to be here with him. Bachelor party. My cleaning crew said they left the place a total wreck.”
“So the cleaning crew has been in since they left?”
“Yeah. Got here this morning around ten, I think.”
“Anybody since then?”
“Not so far as I know.”
“Right. And the name of the cleaners?”
“Caroline and Gabi Carrera.”
I barely held in my jolt of surprise at hearing Caroline’s name. I had to stay focused. There were procedures to follow, and it would be essential that I stick to them exactly.
The fire was out, but it seemed the aftermath was just beginning.
6
Caroline
Unable to shake the itch between my shoulder blades, I scanned the tavern. As it was just after five on a Tuesday, the crowd was more heavily local, though there were still plenty of tourists mixed in. It was those locals who had me ill at ease. After everything that had happened this past week with Chet and Troy, I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop.
How many more scenes would Ed tolerate before he cut me loose? They weren’t my fault. Not exactly. And he’d always been supportive and understanding. But if his business was hurt, I wouldn’t be able to blame him. I needed this job, just like I needed all the other side gigs I could pick up.
I took drink orders for a table of six and headed back for the bar. A familiar figure was perched on a stool toward the end. His sandy hair needed a trim, as did his stubbled cheeks. But he didn’t look too bad, all things considered.
I closed the distance and wrapped an arm around his shoulder in a half hug as I tipped my head to his. “Are you here to raise a glass in memory of your dad, or are you hanging out to keep an eye on me?”
Sawyer’s arm slid around my waist and squeezed. “Is it that obvious?”
“You haven’t been in since the funeral.” Not surprising. More often than not, the whole reason Sawyer had come in had been to retrieve his father from the bar. This place had to be full of memories for him.
“Rios mentioned the trouble you had the past week. We didn’t think it would be a bad thing for one of us to keep an eye out, and he’s tied up on a job.”
It wasn’t the first time my brother had asked one of his friends for an assist. I didn’t mind. All three of them were like other brothers to me. With Ford and Jace gone off to college, that meant Sawyer was the only one left.
He pivoted toward me, and I noted humor mixed with the grief in his eyes. “Though, from what I hear, you’ve got an ally we hadn’t counted on.”
Hoyt. Shit. Had my brother already heard we were “dating” or only about the two confrontations?
Yep, definitely wasn’t touching that one with a ten-foot pole. If Sawyer was here for recon, he wouldn’t be getting more info from me.
I stepped away from him and moved behind the bar. “The situations got handled.” I set glasses beneath the taps and began to fill the order. “What about you? How are you holding up?”
Those lanky shoulders jerked in a shrug. “It’s been two months. I keep expecting to come home and find him nodded off in his recliner with a bottle of Jim Beam on the table.”
With the death of his father, Sawyer was all on his own. His mom had died in childbirth trying to bring a baby girl into the world when he was only seven. The baby hadn’t made it either, and Hank Malone had never recovered from the loss. He’d fallen into the bottle and hadn’t come back out, so Sawyer had been forced to grow up fast. Hank hadn’t been a mean or problematic drunk. Hadn’t been a bad guy. He’d just been utterly heartbroken and hadn’t had the strength to pull himself together for the son who’d remained.
