Shrugging, I wasn’t certain if they were taking me seriously. “Yeah, maybe.”
“Then why did he wait so long?” She placed her hand on her hip, studying me intently.
“I don’t know. Maybe he left town. Maybe something else sparked his fury,” I answered.
She lifted her eyebrows, nodding again. “Excellent observation skills.”
While she continued with her presentation, providing tips of what we as basic citizens could look for in our off time, I was thinking about everything I’d discovered so far.
Which wasn’t much.
“That’s it,” the captain said several minutes later. “Now, go have some fun tonight at Ziggy’s. The celebration being held there is for everyone. All of you, because you’re a team and you worked together. That’s how we save lives. Just don’t have too much fun. And you never know, I might join you for a drink or two.” He grinned and a couple of jumpers whistled.
As I turned away, a hand was placed on my arm. “Viper. Do you mind stepping into the captain’s office with us?” Jane had a smile on her face.
“Sure.” I followed them in, the captain closing the door.
Jane turned to face me, taking a few seconds before she spoke. “You have someone in mind. Don’t you? This guy in a ballcap.”
“I don’t know if it’s my place to say.”
“If you have any information, you need to share. I’ll be frank with you. The police are at a dead end. Now, I haven’t provided my full report on what happened on Friday, but I doubt they’ll be able to make any real headway. If you have anything to add, it’s worth looking at.” Her face was hopeful.
Exhaling, I yanked out my phone. “Grace Monroe, the Monroes’ daughter, believes she’s been followed for weeks after returning home. Including the other day. I ran after the people and to the road leading from her property. I didn’t see the vehicle, but I did get a picture of fresh tracks made by their tires.”
I showed them the picture.
“There’s more. I also have a photo of a license plate of a guy I have a bad feeling about. I know. He was wearing a green ballcap with an emblem of a dog. That might be a coincidence, but he was hanging around Grace and there’s just something about him that bothers me. He also wasn’t thrilled I was there either. Maybe the photographs will help solve a puzzle. The arsonist has a beef with people. This isn’t just about torching buildings. He is enraged about something.”
She looked me in the eyes. “Send those pictures to me. I don’t know if they’ll make a difference to Chief Taylor, but at this point, any lead might provide another.”
I debated something else. “I also have a name.”
“Now, you have me curious.”
When I mentioned the person that my gut was telling me had something to do with the fires, I noticed two seconds of a shared look.
The kind of look indicating prior knowledge.
Or something even more dangerous.
CHAPTER 26
Grace
Cleaning.
Boxing.
Changing my life for the better.
While the horrible terror regarding the fire and almost losing Viper lingered in almost every thought, the near tragedy had also urged me to continue reshaping my life. I was the master of my world and I’d allowed some asshole to drive me into complacency and fear.
Never again.
If Viper’s experience had taught me anything, it was that life was short.
Maybe that’s why after I’d come home, I’d decided to tackle a few items in my father’s office. If I was going to continue using the space as a combination art studio and office for the clinic, I needed drawer space.
