by Amy Briggs
“Agreed. Guess it’s gonna be a late night,” he said.
“And this is why we are both single,” I laughed.
“Seriously. I’m not coming in tomorrow until at least after lunchtime. I’m exhausted,” he laughed as he informed me. How convenient for me, I thought.
“Works for me,” was all I said.
As I settled in for the twenty-minute ride back to the station, our police radio informed us we would be heading somewhere else. Another fire. Fires do happen from time to time that are not worthy of a full investigation, obviously, so I was hoping there was a reason we were being called back out of our way.
“Ok, well, off we go to the other side of town then, I guess.” Kevin flipped on our low profile emergency lights so we could get there faster.
“Here’s the game plan. I’ll talk to the chief, while you look for our perp in the crowd if there is one, which I assume there will be. Deal?”
“Yea, works for me. Do we have any idea what kind of fire it is?”
“Nope. I heard the same thing you did on the radio,” I gave him a sideways look for assuming I had some kind of psychic ability to know more than what we were both just told.
“Oh, yea. Duh,” he chuckled.
We arrived on the scene, and what we found was actually what appeared to be an abandoned building engulfed in flames. As we got out of the car, we could once again feel the heat, and I wondered why anyone would want to be a firefighter in Florida. Seriously, it was so hot, and the fire just added insult to it. I made my way over to Brian, who was in civilian clothes with his coat and fire helmet on. He was standing with Fire Marshal Bill and another firefighter, who appeared to be running command of this scene, but I didn’t know him.
“Chief, what have you got here?” I interrupted the trio.
“Detective Cruise. I’m sorry to have to see you under these circumstances so soon, but it appears we have another large fire. And while nothing suspicious has been uncovered yet, we felt that calling you in sooner rather than later would be wise,” he informed me.
“You did the right thing,” I replied. I turned to the man I didn’t know. “I’m Detective Isabel Cruise. Are you in charge of this scene today?”
“Uh, yes. I guess I am. I’m Lieutenant David Dorner. I work the C shift at Station 23.” He turned to Brian. “Sir, if you’d like to take command?”
“No, Dorner, I would not like to take command. This one is yours. There appears to be no possible victims, and I’d like to get home to my woman at some point before the sun comes up. It’ll be your treat tonight.” Turning to me again, he said, “Detective, let’s take a walk with Bill here.” He motioned for the fire marshal to join us, and we walked away from the area set up for command of the incident.
“So what do you think, Fire Marshal?” I asked.
“You can call me Bill.” I nodded. “I think it’s too many real fires in two days. Other than that, motive and shit is your game, not mine. I collect evidence and tell you what caused the fire. Until the fire is out in this case, not much I can surmise by looking at it. So far, I don’t see any common threads between the fires other than that I believe the accelerant in all of them is gasoline, but I have to have the lab confirm that, of course.”
“Ok. Did you find anything else of note at the other scenes?” I asked.
“No, I did not. The only one that had any salvageable evidence was the garage, because of the fire resistant paint, and then the holes in the cabinets you found over at the apartment complex.”
“Alright. Well, our plan is to start interviewing people who may have seen something, and we intend to start with your list of witnesses from your report, so I’ll be by tomorrow for a copy of that.” I motioned to Brian.
He was looking at something on his phone, and his face dropped.
“Brian, what is it?”
“There’s a call at my mother’s house. There’s some kind of fire. I gotta go!” And with that, he ran to his truck and took off down the road with his emergency lights on.
I searched the crowd for Kevin, and when I saw him, I screamed out to him, “Connor! We gotta go! RIGHT NOW!” When he stopped in his tracks and ran to meet me at the car, I hopped in the driver’s seat and took off in the direction Brian had.
“What’s going on?” he panted, catching his breath from running.
“There’s a fire at the chief’s mother’s house. I’m starting to think this is personal. Look up her address. I have no idea where it is. This is just the direction he went.”
He read me the directions, and we hauled ass to get there. When we arrived just a short ten minutes later, we pulled up to a beautiful older home with a wraparound porch. In the driveway in front of the house was a vehicle completely engulfed in flames. Brian’s truck was parked in the front yard, neighbors were coming out of their homes, and I could hear sirens from the fire trucks making their way off in the distance. It was pure chaos.
“I’m going to go find Brian! See if our guy is here anywhere!” I ran toward the house, calling out for Brian. Several cars showed up and parked on the street, but what caught my eye was Matt rolling up at top speed, screeching to a halt in the grass next to Brian’s truck. I stopped, not sure where to run suddenly. I watched as he jumped out of his truck and ran toward the front door right by me, so I ran in after him.
“Mama!” he yelled, running inside.
“We’re in here!” Brian yelled from the front room off to the side of the entrance of the house. Thus far, I hadn’t said anything at all, but I scurried after Matt to the front room.
“What the hell happened?” Matt yelled, out of breath. A need to calm him washed over me, and I had to remind myself I was there for work.
“Did you see anything?” I finally spoke to the older woman. She was beautiful and looked up at me from the couch she was sitting on with the same green eyes her boys had.
“You must be detective Cruise?” she asked me, visibly shaken by what was happening.
“Yes, ma’am, I am. Can you tell me what happened?” I asked.
“Hold on one minute!” Matt snapped at me. “Mama, are you ok?”
“Matthew, calm down. I am fine. My car, however, is most certainly not ok at all, it seems.” She smirked and looked up at Brian, who had his arm around his mother in a comforting way. Matt was not amused at all, but Brian and I did share a little grin over her comment.
Taken aback by Matt’s tone with me, I shifted my weight uncomfortably. “I’m sorry, ma’am. I’m glad you’re ok. If you don’t mind, can you tell me exactly what happened as best as you can remember?”
Matt paced angrily back and forth across the room but didn’t acknowledge me in any way. I had a job to do, and he was just going to have to let me do it, whether he liked it or not.
“Of course, dear. And you can call me Catherine. My name is Catherine Cavanaugh. As you can see, my boys are a little wound up this evening. My apologies, dear.” I smiled at her and sat down in the chair next to her before I nodded for her to keep going. “I was just reading here in the front room and having a nightcap when I heard glass breaking outside. I went over to the window and saw a shadow of a man throw something onto the back seat of my car. Then, before it even registered with me, the entire car was completely engulfed in flames. I dialed 911 and then called the boys, since I knew they would hear about it. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a good look at the man, other than to say he was tall and rather thin. Other than that, I’m afraid I don’t have much to add. I’m sorry, dear.” She sounded disappointed.
“No need to apologize. You did exactly the right things. Which direction did the man run away in?”
“He ran east, toward the woods,” she pointed.
“Ok, great. Mrs. Cavanaugh,” she looked at me to correct me. “Catherine, does anyone here smoke?” She smiled at my recognition of her request.
“No, dear, no one here has smoked since my ex-husband, and that was over twenty years ago. Why do you ask?” She was confuse
d, and with good reason.
“I’m just checking all angles, ma’am. I don’t have any more questions, so I’m going to leave you with your boys for now, but another officer will be in shortly to get your official statement, if that’s alright?”
“Of course, dear. Whatever you need.”
Brian looked up at me from the couch and asked the million-dollar question. “Isabel, do you have any leads on this? Now it feels personal. First it’s three fires on my shift, then a pointless abandoned building fire, which feels like a distraction while my mom’s car gets lit up? Something fucked up is happening here.”
“Brian Patrick! Language!” His mother smacked his chest.
“Sorry, mama.” He rolled his eyes in my direction.
I grinned at the exchange and took in a deep breath. “Brian, I’ll be honest with you. I have some evidence that links the fires together, but it’s not conclusive yet, and I don’t have any suspects. If you think it’s personal, and I’m leaning toward agreeing with you after tonight, we need to sit down and go over who would hold a grudge against you or the fire department. None of the loose ends we’ve been chasing led to any personal connection until this fire.” I was just as disappointed as they all looked. “Also, if you’re concerned about the safety of your family, I can have a patrol assigned for the next couple of days to watch the house, if that helps.”
“I don’t need anyone hanging around watching my house all day. That’s annoying,” Catherine chimed in.
Finally, Matt stopped pacing and looked at his mother. “Mama, what is annoying is having your mother’s car torched in her driveway, and her not taking it seriously. It’s very serious. That could have caught the house on fire with you in it. You realize that, don’t you?”
“Listen here, young man. I know how fires start. I’ve listened to the two of you, and Jack and Jo for that matter, for over fifteen years, so pipe down. I’m still your mother, and I’ll still be making the decisions about my life, thank you very much.” She took a sip of amber liquid in front of her. Whiskey, I guessed. “I’ll cut you a deal, Matthew. Why don’t you get your truck off of my front yard, and then you can sleep in your old room and protect your mother. How about that?”
“What about me?” Brian asked, suddenly sounding like a child.
“What about you? You need to go home and protect your woman. If someone is out for you, or me, or one of us personally, you need to be taking care of Josephine, and you cannot be two places at once. Matthew can stay with me until we have this sorted out a little better.” I observed how the matriarch of the family kept those boys in line, and I was truly in awe of her power over them. She was a smart cookie. “Brian, you can also get that monster truck of yours off my lawn, and when all this calms down, you can both fix the grass I’m sure you ruined.” She took another sip of her drink, ending the discussion. It was all I could do to keep from laughing out loud. She was my hero.
“Isabel, will you stay here with mama while we move our monster trucks off the lawn and check on the crew outside who put the fire out?” Brian asked me.
“Of course, I will,” I smiled and sat back down. Still not making eye contact with me, Matt walked out first, Brian following him, leaving Catherine and me alone.
“You’re such a tiny thing to be a detective. Do you enjoy it?” she asked me.
Thinking for a moment, I replied, “Honestly, it’s my calling. I was absolutely meant to do this job, and I thank God every day for the opportunity to help other people and to put the bad guys away.” I meant that. I loved my job.
“I’m so sorry for the way Matthew was acting. He’s had a rough day, apparently, and those boys worry about me more than they need to.”
“No reason at all to apologize. I know Matt from work a bit, and he’s had a rough couple of days. They all have. It’s sweet how he protects you and wants to take care of you,” I said softly. Catherine took my hand and gave it a squeeze just as Matt walked back in. He seemed to have relaxed a little bit.
“The fire is out. Obviously, the car is totaled. It was fully involved when we got here before the fire department ever had a chance to put it out. I’ll help you get it handled or whatever you need, mama.” He glanced in my direction and shuffled his feet before speaking to me directly. “Isabel, I’m sorry I snapped at you. I’m a little emotional at the moment and worried about my family.”
“Cavanaugh, you have nothing to apologize for.” I stood up, Catherine rising with me. Leaning forward to give her a hug, I said, “We’re going to catch this guy. I promise.” She gave me a hug that was so warm and inviting it could prevent wars. I didn’t want to let go. Finishing it with a big squeeze, she let me go, and I made my way for the door.
“I’ll walk you out, Isabel,” Matt said as he held the screen door open for me. I walked past him out to the porch, pausing to look up at him. His eyes were full of worry, and in that moment, I felt myself soften. I wanted to hug him. He needed someone to take care of him too, and I wanted to be that person.
“I’m going to catch this guy, Matt,” was all I said.
Running his hands through his light hair and taking a huge sigh, he looked across the yard to the driveway, where the burned-out car was still smoking. “I know you will, but I’m worried, Izzy.”
“What are you worried about exactly? Talk to me.” I folded my arms over my chest and looked into those magnificent green eyes, getting lost for a moment.
“I’m worried someone is going to get hurt. These fires are clearly not random, but they’re getting scarier. We train for this, and we know what to do, but setting an apartment building on fire? People could have been home. That garage fire could have been a HAZMAT incident. This car could’ve caught my mom’s whole house on fire. I’m fucking concerned for the people I love,” he confessed to me.
I pursed my lips, contemplating what to say. “So far, no one has gotten hurt. I’ve got some evidence to take to the lab tonight, and you’re going to stay here with your mom. Brian will look after Jo. I’m going to catch this guy. It’s what I do, Matt.”
He tilted his head to the side in thought. “Who’s going to protect you, Isabel? Who’s going to make sure you’re safe?”
I was taken aback by his question. “I don’t need anyone to protect me, Matt. I’ll be fine. My job is to make sure you’re all safe.” Not knowing how to answer a question like that, it was all I could think to say. I looked over to see my partner waiting for me at our car, so I tried to think of something else to say but was at a loss.
“I think someone should be looking after you too,” he said quietly.
“Listen.” I leaned in a little closer so I could speak more quietly. “I’m going to be fine. Take care of your mom, and let’s take a rain check on lunch tomorrow while we get this thing under control, ok?”
Scrunching his face at me, he replied, “Only because I’m going to stay here with my mom. How about you make yourself free tomorrow night for some one-on-one time with yours truly? It’s been a rough couple of days. I have an idea I think you’ll enjoy.” He was grinning then, pleased with whatever idea he’d come up with on the fly.
“Are you asking me on a date, Cavanaugh?” I definitely didn’t want to do that. I wasn’t ready for that.
“Not a date. Time set aside just for me and you, is all. No different than lunch, but I’m picking a slightly different activity. An appointment, if you will.”
“You have me intrigued. Since I like you bossy, I’m going to let you get away with it.” I was flirting at that point and needed to stop it, because he was turning me on with his charm and those fucking eyes.
“I know you like me bossy, babe. I’ll see you tomorrow night. I’ll text you the details later, Detective,” he whispered. “Don’t even think about trying to bail either; I know where you keep your toys.” That he whispered so barely audible I could hardly hear it, especially over the sound of my own heart beating out of my chest. Goddamn, he was so fucking hot, and in the middle of this chaos a
nd shit storm going on, I had soaked panties and an aching desire for him.
Shaking myself of his spell, I straightened myself back up and pretended to be professional again. “Ok, Cavanaugh, we’ll be in touch.”
As I walked away to the car, I could hear him say, “Yes, yes, we will.”
“Let’s get all this shit back to the lab. What a night,” Kevin said as we got in the car.
“Yea, for real. Fingers fucking crossed that’s it for today. I need some sleep. Let’s keep our day off tomorrow unless we get something from the lab? I have some shit I’d like to do, and I’d love to actually get some sleep too.”
“You got a deal. I’m fucking over this investigation already. I talked to the chief outside, and he thinks it might be personal. I’m starting to think he might be right.”
Sighing, I replied. “I think so too. We just have to figure out the motive, and we’ll find this guy. I know we’re close though, and he’s got to fuck up soon. They always do.”
“Yea, they always do.”
We dropped the evidence bags from earlier in the day off at the lab, got them logged into evidence, and did all the paperwork associated with the lab, then called it a night. I went home to crash, and I’m sure Kevin did the same.
I was fucking drained.
After Isabel left, I went back inside to hang out with my mom. I couldn’t believe she wasn’t more scared or worried about this. Someone came to her home, where she lived by herself, and intentionally torched her car. I was losing my mind over it.
“Mama, are you sure you’re ok?” I sat down on the couch next to her and put my head in my hands. I was so frustrated.
“Matthew, I’m fine. It’s just a car. If someone wanted to do something worse, they most certainly could have. I’m sure that detective will figure out who it was, and we’ll be able to move on and forget all about this. I’m far more concerned with the stress on your face, my love.” She reached over and rubbed my back like she used to when I was little and didn’t feel well.
