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Scolding worked. She accepted the phone and answered the call. He listened long enough to assure himself she’d engaged, then he gave her shoulder a squeeze and strode to where one of his deputies stood motioning for him.
The rest of the morning passed in a blur. More onlookers arrived, including most of the bakery employees. His deputies managed the crowd while Nelson’s men put down the fire. Walk-throughs confirmed the building had been empty, which was a blessing of the early hour and the holiday. The unit next door to the bakery sustained some damage—mostly smoke and water—but the bakery itself was a total loss.
He was wrapping up a call with the desk deputy at the station when he turned to see Chief Nelson headed toward him, carrying a clipboard and talking to Lauralie.
“…appreciate you giving us your statement.”
“I’m sorry I don’t have much to tell. Any other morning I’d have been in the kitchen by five-thirty, but we were closed due to the holiday.”
Nelson offered the clipboard to Booker. “We’ll call that a lucky break, since it means we’re dealing with damage to property only, and not people.”
Booker skimmed the chief’s notes containing the preliminary information for the fire report—which didn’t set forth anything he didn’t already know—and handed the board back. “Any word on the cause of the fire?”
“Officially? No.” Nelson shook his head. “The fire investigator will determine origin and cause, but it will take some time for them to work their magic.”
“Unofficially?” Booker pressed because Nelson had been on the job a long time. The guy knew how to read a structure fire.
The older man glanced toward the building. “Based on the thermal pattern on the back wall, I’d say electrical.”
“What happens now?” she asked. “Do I get some sort of report from you and submit it to my insurance company, or…?”
“You can get a copy of the incident report in a few days, but don’t wait for that. Call your insurer today and give them notice of the claim. Who’s your carrier?”
She named the company, and Booker watched a barely perceptible wince tighten Nelson’s lips.
“What?” Apparently Lauralie noticed, too.
“I hear they offer competitive rates,” the chief said diplomatically.
“That’s why I went with them. Please don’t tell me they’re about to go bankrupt or something, because I need the insurance money to pay back my business loan.”
“No, no. They’re solvent, as far as I know,” Nelson replied, “and it’s not my place to rate the carriers…”
“But?”
The man rocked back on his heels and squinted at the sky for a moment. “They’re not known for processing claims quickly, and they like their loopholes. You’ll want to stay on top of the adjudicator and the investigation. Don’t give them any reason to drag things out.”
Laurie closed her eyes and groaned. Booker rested his hand along the back of her neck and gently kneaded the tense muscles there.
“Okay. Good to know. I appreciate the tip.” She drew in a breath and refocused on Nelson. “I know it’s New Year’s Day, and I’m not the only case in your investigator’s workload, but about how long do you think it will take to complete the investigation?”
“Our investigation? Maybe thirty days, assuming the lab isn’t backed up.”
“Holy shit. Thirty days, seriously?”
“And that’s just our investigation. Regardless of our findings, your carrier will conduct a separate investigation. They’ll have an independent firm come out and inspect the scene, gather their own evidence, and probably do their own analysis using their own forensic experts. If they identify a product failure or maintenance issue as the cause of the fire, they’ll have to notify those parties, and give them the opportunity to inspect the scene too.”
“Oh my God. How long is that going to take?”
“Stay on top of them,” was all Nelson said.
“Great,” she murmured, and shoved her fists deep into the front pocket of her hoodie. The tension in the fabric mirrored the tension in her body. Booker watched her chew her lip and do some mental calculations. It didn’t take long and her expression told him the answer was a big, fat, You. Are. Fucked. As soon as they were alone, he’d get the specifics and figure out how to help. The trick wasn’t coming up with money—he had plenty—the trick was getting her to accept it.
“Can I go in and—”
“No.” Booker responded, even though he knew she’d directed the question to Nelson. Protocol prevented anyone except emergency personnel from accessing the scene until the investigators were done, but even more important, he wasn’t letting her wander through a burned-out, potentially unstable structure.
Her indignant gaze swung his way, and her hands flew from the pocket of her sweatshirt to her hips. “It’s my property in there. I might be able to salvage some things.”
