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“Yes, she will.”
“Where were you last night?”
“I was at my grandmother’s most of the evening, along with my fiancé. We got home and spent some time together, then when I went into the kitchen for some juice and a snack, I saw the flames out the window.” I shuddered. “Are you sure it’s arson?”
“I can’t give you a definitive answer now, but I will tell you this—if it wasn’t…then I have no explanation.” He pulled out a sheath of photos and handed me a couple. In the pictures, I could clearly see the metal poppet and a shiver raced through me.
“That’s a fire poppet. I’ve never seen an actual one before, but I’ve seen pictures.” I examined every aspect of the picture. “Where did you find it?”
“We found it in what I assume is the pantry.” He was watching me closely. “When did you move?”
“I moved into Killian’s house about six weeks ago. I’ve been over to spot-clean the place, and then I rented it to Ari, my best friend, and told her to do what she wanted to make it the first-rate salon she deserves.” I stopped. “Wait, there’s something familiar about this…an energy that I havefeltbefore.” I closed my eyes, trying to sort through what could be triggering my memory. Then, I saw it—the mural that had been painted on the wall of my secret room by the Covenant of Chaos. The energy behind it was the same emanating from the photo.
“Crap, I may know who targeted my house,” I said, opening my eyes.
“Who?”
I started to answer, then, once again, stopped. I had no clue who among the citizens of Moonshadow Bay were affiliated with the Covenant of Chaos. We knew that there was still a nest of the vipers here in town, but we didn’t know who had aligned with the chaotic group. Could I trust him? Could I trust Captain Wentworth? I had to give him some answer, now that I’d said I recognized the energy. I hesitated, praying for an interruption.
For once, the universe was listening to me. An alarm went off and Wentworth dropped his pencil. His phone was at his ear before I could even speak.
“Where? Oh hell, yes, I’m on my way.” He was on his feet before he could pocket his phone. “I have to go. House fire—chimney caught fire. Happens far too often. We’ll talk later.” He thrust his jacket on and was out the door of his office as I called out a goodbye.
I glanced at my phone. It was eleven forty-five and I had a date with Daya at one. I decided to call my grandmother and tell her what I had found out. But I’d do it from my car, not from here. Shouldering my purse, I headed out the door, wondering what had factored into me becoming a target.
CHAPTEREIGHT
As I navigated to the parking lot, which was seriously icing over, my mind raced. I wanted to be wrong, but I knew that I wasn’t. As soon as I slid into the driver’s seat, shut the door, and turned the key in the ignition so I could heat up the car, I plugged Jerica into the hands-free device and said, “Jerica, call Rowan.”
Rowan picked up on the third ring. “January? Are you all right? I just saw the news and they mentioned that your house caught on fire! Why didn’t you call me?”
“It was late and there was so much chaos that I couldn’t even think straight.” I looked over my shoulder to see if the way was clear. People around western Washington usually weren’t good drivers in the snow and, as careful as I tried to be, I didn’t count myself out of that demographic.
“What happened?”
“After we got home, we spent some time relaxing, and then I went in the kitchen to get some juice and I saw the flames through the window. So I called the fire department. Nobody was hurt, but the house has damage,” I said. “I have no clue how much it will take to fix. It wasn’t as bad as it could be, but it wasn’t superficial. Ari’s going to be out some money too. But there’s something I need to tell you—I need your advice on.”
“Will you promise to call me immediately if something like this happens again?” Rowan didn’t sound pleased. In fact, I was grateful she wasn’t standing right in front of me.
“I promise. Now, the fire marshal found evidence of arson—a magical fire poppet.”
“Any clue who might have planted it?”
“Yeah, though I didn’t tell him because…” I paused, then explained how the energy off the picture of the poppet had reminded me of the mural in my secret room. “I swear, it’s the same energy from the Covenant of Chaos mural. Given what you told me last night, I’m guessing that I’ve suddenly become a target, and I don’t know why.”
“What kept you from telling the fire marshal about it?” Rowan asked.
“I don’t know. I think I’m coming to realize that we don’t necessarily know who people really are, unless they’re close friends. As I started to tell him, I felt some warning bell. I doubt if he’s connected with the Covenant of Chaos, but the reality is that he might say something in front of somebody who is. I’m learning the value of discretion,” I said.
“That’s an important lesson, and you’re absolutely correct. We don’t know who might be involved, and that makes everyone a potential danger. If he asks later, say that you don’t remember. Plead a migraine if you have to. If the Covenant of Chaosistargeting you, then we have to find out the reason. I’ll call Marquette Sanders up in Terameth Lake. She might have some ideas. Meanwhile, be careful. Don’t take any chances.” Rowan sounded worried. “I’ll call you when I find out anything more.”
As she signed off, I glanced at the dashboard clock. It was twelve-fifteen. I had forty-five minutes until lunch with Daya. I decided to stop down at the Lace & Leather, a lingerie shop. Flo Johansen was the owner, and she was at least eighty years old. She was also human, but she had a spicy sense of humor.
“Hey, Flo!” I pushed through the door. There were no other customers in the shop, so I hustled up to the counter.
Flo looked up and smiled. She was in one of her classic linen pantsuits—an olive pair of palazzo pants with a matching one-button blazer. I thought the outfit might be Anne Klein, but I wasn’t up on labels enough to know for sure. But Flo had the same pantsuit in at least five colors, and that was almost all I’d ever seen her in since I was young and my mother brought me with her when she was shopping for panties and bras. Flo had been in her prime back then, but she still looked snazzy and she was as vocal as ever.
“January! It’s good to see you. How are you, dear?” Flo had always liked me. When I was a girl, she gave me packets of M&Ms when I came in with my mother. “How are the headaches?”
