I rolled my eyes.
“You’re allowed to go see her, but not a word. Not a single word about anything I said.”
“Hey, what happens in Vegas. Right?” He backed away, throwing up his hands.
The captain walked in, clapping his hands, the fire marshal following.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I need your full attention.” The captain made eye contact with several jumpers. “I’m not going to mince words, guys. What you did was heroic and the city council, the university, and the entire town owe you a debt of gratitude. However, we still have what appears to be an arsonist on the loose. The police and the fire department are on close watch, the police building an investigation, but I thought you’d want to hear from our fire marshal as to the findings. Jane, the floor is yours.”
Jane was a no-nonsense woman, an older lady who could crawl in the trenches without hesitation yet had no issue sliding into a suit and heels to tackle the council members. That much I’d heard from the guys, a glowing representation if you ask me.
She sighed as she moved closer to the group, who surrounded her in a semi-circle. She did the same thing as the captain, purposely making eye contact. She landed her gaze on me and Axe, nodding when she did.
“You all deserve a round of applause.” She put her hands together, clapping enthusiastically. We all did. This was what it felt like to be a team. When the applause died down, she took a deep breath. “There is no doubt what happened was arson. From the reports of the first group of firefighters, they detected a stench that could only be kerosene, which is what I suspected was used in several other fires.”
“Including at the Monroe ranch?” I asked.
The marshal seemed surprised. “Yes. Which is why the city remains on alert. While you might not believe this, the wind actually did us a favor. We believe the school was the intended target. There were several crude explosives found surrounding the campus that were thankfully defused. They were only foundby luck. And a suspicious person was run off by campus security.”
“They matched the explosives on the Monroe property. Right?”
Jane seemed… irritated. “I’m not making that conclusion as of right now. Several more tests need to be run.”
“But you believe they are the same.”
Her sigh was heavy. “Yes, Viper. I do.”
A quiet murmur flowed through the jumpers.
“Any idea about the person’s identity?” Rock asked.
She shook her head. “Other than from what the guard told the police, which was that it appeared to be a man in a ballcap.”
“A green ballcap with a picture of a dog?”
My question startled her. “I don’t know, Mr. Locke. Why? Do you have some information that might prove helpful? It appears you’re very close to this case.” She glanced at the captain and I could tell they’d had a ‘chat.’
I felt all eyes on me, but Rock nodded as if standing behind my crazy ideas. “Maybe. I’m new to the area, but from what I’ve seen, since kerosene is used by many campers, the product could have been purchased at the sporting goods store that was burned down. Correct? My guess is the explosives weren’t mentioned in the press so as to try and trap the arsonist.”
“Yes, but that connection has already been checked, the police going through purchases around the date of all recent fires,” she countered, but her smile was meant for me alone.
“Then there’s another connection that the police are missing.” While I hadn’t intended on taking over the conversation, I needed the information.
“Alright. What are you thinking?”
“The arsonist feels he or she is a victim of something that happened in his or her past.”
She looked at the captain, who seemed surprised. The fire marshal smiled, only wider this time. “Now, I’m very curious. Go on.”
I shifted from foot to foot, uncertain what I was suggesting made a lot of sense, but I’d come to certain conclusions based on two nights of limited sleep while holding Grace in my arms. The fires were definitely a revenge situation. Sure, amateurs used kerosene because it was easy to purchase without raising eyebrows. But it also fueled a burning need deep within so that when the rage exploded, the person responsible could easily satisfy and calm the beast inside.
No pun intended.
And I knew the hunger better than most.
“Whoever this person is, my thought is that he has a list he’s going down of people who wronged him. Likely from years ago.”
“This man in a ballcap,” the captain offered.
