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Dougie - Present Day
Dougie rubbed his neck as his eyes blinked open. Why did his neck feel like he was back in the army sleeping on cots? His bed was normally more comfortable than this. As the room came into focus though, he realized he wasn’t in his bed. He wasn’t even at his place. And then the events from the night before flooded back into his head. The perfect date, the perfect kiss, had ended in disaster when they’d received word that Holly’s restaurant was on fire. She’d been distraught, and he’d offered to come inside with her and ended up staying on her couch.
Rolling his neck to loosen the kinks, he stretched and sat up. There was no sound from Holly’s room, so she was probably still sleeping. He’d have to wake her soon so they could go give her formal statement, but he could make her coffee and breakfast first.
Though nowhere near the chef she was, he’d learned to be self-sufficient in the army, and, finding some eggs, bread, and bacon, he began frying up breakfast. As the bacon sizzled, he started the coffee and leaned against the counter to think. He still believed Frederick was the most likely suspect behind the arson. The woman behind the harassment that he’d spoken with a few days earlier was misguided, but she didn’t seem like someone who could do this. Of course, there could be others in her group who were, but that just didn’t feel right to Dougie, and he’d learned to trust his instincts a long time ago. So, that left Frederick. Dougie would have to see if he could find out where the man had scurried off to after leaving town.
When the breakfast was ready, Dougie loaded up a plate and made his way to Holly’s room. The lights were still off when he pushed open the door, but there was enough sun peeking through the dark curtains to see that Holly was still in bed. “Hey, sleepyhead,” he said, forcing a cheerfulness he didn’t feel into his voice. He needed to be strong for Holly, but fear had a strong grip on him. If someone could burn down her restaurant, what would keep them from coming after her at home? He wouldn’t be able to be with her twenty-four seven, though the urge to protect her by running away with her pulsed through him. He’d have to enlist the help of their friends. Perhaps between all of them, someone could have an eye on her at all times. “I’ve got breakfast.”
“I don’t want any.” The monotone timbre of her voice pulled at his heart. She’d lost everything she’d worked so hard for, so he could understand her sadness, but he would make sure whoever was responsible was brought to justice.
“I know it’s hard, but you have to eat. We need to get to the station to give your formal statement.”
She lowered the covers from her face and looked at him. “Why? I don’t know who could have done this and I doubt the police will ever find them.”
“Not with that attitude they won’t.” He set the plate on her nightstand and sat on the edge of her bed. “It seems dark right now, but I promise you there will be a light at the end of this tunnel. You just have to keep the faith.”
Holly snorted. “Faith is what got me here. If I hadn’t attended that prayer walk, the harassment would never have happened, my customers wouldn’t have left, and I might still have a restaurant to go to today.”
Dougie sighed and shook his head. “You don’t know that. We don’t even know if that woman or anyone in her group is responsible for the fire, and we won’t know until the police investigate it. But they can’t do their jobs if you don’t help them, so it’s time to stop wallowing for now, eat some breakfast, and get dressed. I’m going to give you half an hour and if you’re not dressed by then, I’m calling Merribeth to come over here and do it for you.” Pushing himself off her bed, he left the room, shutting the door behind him, and returned to the kitchen. He didn’t know if tough love was the best way to deal with the situation, but it was the only thing he could think of at the moment.
He was placing his plate in the sink when Holly appeared twenty minutes later. She still looked haggard and emotionally drained, but she was upright and dressed. “Okay, I’m here. No need to call the cavalry on me,” she said.
Dougie crossed the room to take her in his arms. She stiffened at first, but he could feel her body begin to relax as he held her close. “The cavalry is here for you whenever you need us.” His hands rubbed her back, but he wanted to tilt her face to his and claim her lips again. Unfortunately, he knew now was not the right time, not with her head focused on the restaurant. Pushing back his desire, he pulled back from her slightly. “Now, let’s go see if we can get who did this.” He placed a quick kiss on her head before taking her hand and leading the way to his car.
Half an hour later, they sat in an interrogation room with the female officer from the night before whose name was Officer Dana Shelby. “So, you two were at dinner when you got the call.”
“Yes, we were in Graham at Rocksalt, the new barbecue restaurant.” Holly tapped a finger on the table as she answered, but her voice was robotic and emotionless.
Officer Shelby scribbled on a notepad. “And what time did you leave your restaurant?”
“It was close to seven,” Dougie said when Holly looked at him. “I picked her up just after seven.”
“And who was at your restaurant when you left?”
Holly rubbed her forehead as if the questions were giving her a headache. “Ashley was there. She’s my manager, and Pierre, my chef. Oh, and Mandy somebody-or-other who works across the street at the bakery was there borrowing some sugar when we left.”
Officer Shelby’s brow lifted. “You don’t know her last name?”
“No, she’s new and it was the first time I’d seen her, but Ashley said it I think, and Becca would know for sure.”
“New to town? Do you know when she arrived?”
“I don’t. You don’t actually think she could have done it, do you? What reason would she have? I don’t even know her.”
“Probably not, but we need to look at everything. Someone new to town could have a motive we haven’t considered.”
Holly huffed. “Well, in that case, you better add my father’s PR rep. She came into town a few days ago, wanting me to publicly apologize for attending the prayer walk. She didn’t seem happy when I told her I wouldn’t.”
“Do you think your father would have your restaurant burned down?” Officer Shelby asked, the lifting of her eyebrows hinting at her disbelief.
“I think her actual words were something like ‘don’t say I didn’t warn you.’ My father is the Mayor of New York in the middle of a re-election year, and I brought him bad puiblicity, bad enough that he sent his PR rep down. Would he hire someone to burn it down? I don’t know, but believe me, he certainly isn’t losing any sleep that it happened.”
Officer Shelby shook her head, but she wrote down the information anyway. Then she turned her attention to Dougie. “You said you spoke with the woman who posted the pictures of Holly?”
Dougie nodded. “Yeah, Lenora Shank. She’s not innocent by any means, but I didn’t get the vibe that she was capable of this. You should look into her anyway and anyone who might be associated with her. She didn’t reveal the names of her friends, but I doubt she did all the flyers and phone calls herself.”
Officer Shelby scribbled down the woman’s name. “Is there anyone else you can think of?”
Dougie looked to Holly. Now was the time to mention Frederick, but would she?
Holly took a deep breath and sighed. “There might be one more. A few months ago, I was engaged to a man who turned out to be a con artist. He stole money from me and the restaurant. I broke it off, but didn’t involve the police because I just wanted him out of my life. I can’t imagine him doing this, but I suppose he should be checked out just in case. His name is Frederick Dagwood, but I have no idea where he went when he left Courage.”
“That’s okay, we can do some research to see if we find him. He wasn’t on the insurance policy was he?”
Holly shook her head. “No, he asked, but I didn’t feel comfortable doing that before we got married.”
“Very smart of you.” Officer Shelby put down her pen and folded her hands. “I’m very sorry about your restaurant, Ms. Bingman, but I promise you that we will investigate this thoroughly.”
Holly smiled, but it was small, resigned as if more from habit than belief that they would accomplish anything. “Thank you. Do you need anything else?”
“Not at the moment. I’ll call you if we do and you call me if you get any more calls or threats, even if they seem harmless.”
“I will.” Holly shook the officer’s hand and Dougie followed suit, thanking the woman. She seemed competent, but he couldn’t help wishing he was on this case so he could make sure everything possible was being done.
“I need to run home and shower before work,” Dougie said as they climbed into his car. “Do you want me to take you home or somewhere else?”
Holly sighed. “Home is fine. I need to call the insurance company and get the claim started anyway.”
Dougie grabbed her hand and squeezed. “It’s going to be okay, Holly. I promise.” He just hoped he wasn’t making a promise he couldn’t keep.
