Into the Flames

by Multi-Author

  “Keep it down, guy. We don’t want to broadcast this.”

  “So, here’s the thing. Is this plan common knowledge?”

  “Of course not.” Noah flapped a hand at him. “If word gets out before they’re ready, property owners will jack the prices higher than the Hemisphere Tower.”

  The two men looked at each other for a long, heavy moment.

  “Some people have been very clever here,” Jeff said at last. “It burns my ass to think a cop is involved.”

  “Here are some questions for you.” Noah pointed at him. “One. How did they find the right cop to tap for this? Two. How did they know about this long range plan? And three, who is going to do all the legal maneuvering necessary to cover their tracks and negotiate with the new developers?”

  Jeff chewed on a bite of enchilada, his forehead creased in thought.

  “I hate to say this, but there’s a cop or two I know can be bought, although they’re so obvious you should probably write them off.”

  “You’re right. It’s the ones who don’t come readily to mind I’m interested in. This is going to take a lot more digging because it’s obvious a great deal of planning and a lot of money went into it.”

  “Watch yourself,” Jeff warned. “If these guys get wind you are on to them, they’ll do anything to protect what they’ve got going on. Why don’t you let me nose around a little. Listen to cop shop talk.”

  “You don’t expect them to discuss it where people can hear them, do you?” Noah wanted to know.

  “Please. I didn’t make detective because I have no brains. Trust me. I’m a trained investigator. Let me investigate.”

  “Okay,” Noah agreed at last. He paused and took a long swallow of his drink. “Here comes the hard part.”

  “Uh-oh. I have a feeling I’m not gonna like this.”

  “You won’t, especially considering our earlier conversation.”

  “Spill it.”

  “I need to find a way to get Randi off this case. This is a situation where she could easily get hurt.”

  “Jesus, guy, do you never learn?” Jeff raked his fingers through his short hair. “Enough already.”

  “I can’t help it. I want to keep her safe from these people.”

  “Did we not just have a discussion about this?” Jeff demanded. “Randi will be royally pissed if you try to talk her into stepping back. This is one time you have to suck it up.”

  “But these people are treacherous,” he reminded his friend. “With this much money involved, anything goes.”

  “She’s not going to put herself in harm’s way,” Jeff insisted. “The best thing you can do is figure out who this is as fast as you can so this can be wrapped up.” He signaled for the check. “Let’s keep in frequent contact. I want to make sure you don’t get screwed over.”

  “My man, I could not have said it better myself.” He studied Noah across the table. “I’ll see what I can find out. You figure out how to cement your relationship with the beautiful Randi.”

  * * *

  While the lab began new tests on the samples she’d taken to them that morning, Randi decided, before going back to diagraming, she would head to city hall. She had not said anything to Dan, wanting to look into this before she laid it out there, just in case she was chasing a wild hair. However, it had suddenly occurred to her that if she dug around in the zoning commission and the tax collector’s office, she might find another thread to pull in this situation that had her thoroughly stumped. And she did not like being stumped.

  Every one of the owner reps she and Dan had questioned, either separately or together, had been polite and anxious to resolve the matter, but there was something about their attitude. It seemed to be the same with everyone, and she couldn’t for the life of her figure out what it was that bothered her. They did everything right. Maybe too right.

  Funny how some of the best pieces of information dropped into your life by the oddest sets of circumstances. Randi was well aware of the large part luck played in solving cases like this. After Dan dropped her back at the firehouse, she left to do a couple quick errands and stopped at a convenience store for gas and coffee. The man in line in front of her at the cash register looked familiar, and it drove her nuts that she couldn’t remember who he was. Back in her car, driving on the interstate, it finally clicked into place. She didn’t know his name, but she recalled he was a city engineer.

  A month ago, she’d been at city hall, waiting for an elevator, and he’d been standing there talking in low tones to another man. She was blessed with unusually acute hearing, so pieces of their conversation had drifted to her. He was telling the man about a major redevelopment project already three years in the planning, and cautioning him not to mention anything. It was all still ultra secret, until it was time for the initial announcement. Not, the man said, until all the land had been acquired.

  When she saw him today, it had triggered the incident hidden deep in her memory bank until she was able to pull it out. She immediately hustled over to city hall and spent a couple hours, digging through information. Each fact she uncovered only angered and shocked her even more. Then she called a friend of hers who could dig up anything about anybody, told him what she wanted, and waited for him to call her back. She was appalled at how callous some people could be, and how totally devious.

  When she had as many of the facts together as she could, she went back to her car and sat in the parking lot while she texted Noah. She wanted to run this past him before she tried to follow the trail any further. It was kind of like one of his stories, and he’d have a better analysis of it than she would. He’d also be a lot more objective about it than Dan and come at it from a different angle. Besides, some little something wiggling in her sensors told her to leave Dan out of it for the moment. Not that she thought he’d be involved. That was too absurd. But he had some reason she couldn’t figure out for wanting to lock this whole thing away. She needed to get Noah’s take on this badly. They might not have seen each other for six years, but they still had a connection, and she trusted him more than any other human being.

  Can u tlk?

  Yes. What’s up?

  I have new info on fires. Urgent. Meet?

  Instead of another text, her phone rang, and his name came up on the screen.

  “You could have just texted me,” she said, grinning, “I wanted to tell you—”

  “Where are you right now?” When she told him, he said, “Go home. I’ll meet you there.”

  “But I have to—”

  “Now,” he snapped, and disconnected the call.

  Well, all righty then, Mr. High Handed. It appeared Noah Cutler hadn’t changed that much at all. She cursed him steadily and colorfully as she headed toward her house. She debated telling Dan she’d be away from her office for a while. They had planned to meet there shortly. But Noah just sounded so, so…what? Well, whatever it was, she’d give him a damn piece of her mind.

  He was waiting for her in his rental car when she pulled into her driveway and hit the garage door opener. She was barely out of her own car and heading toward the door to the house when he was right next to her, his hand at her elbow.

  “Inside,” he said, his voice still gruff and sharp.

  “Noah, what the hell?” She opened the door, and then they were inside.

  He urged her over to the couch. “Sit. We have to talk. I want you to tell me whatever it is you found out and don’t leave out one single detail.”

  She sat because it was easier than fighting with him and stared at him. Tension lined his face, more than she’d ever seen before. “Noah, what is this all about? And why are you ordering me around? And why did we have to meet here? We could have gone for coffee and talked.”

  “Because I don’t want to be overheard.” He rubbed his jaw. “I wanted to tell you this right away, but I also wanted to wait until I had definitive information. I can’t accuse someone without at least a se
mblance of proof.”

  “And now?” she asked.

  “I’m going to share what I have with the arson investigator—you—because I trust your judgment, your analysis, and your intuition.”

  The warmth that curled through her at his words had nothing to do with fire and everything to do with his admitted respect for her job. Thank you, Noah.

  He began pacing back and forth in front of her, rubbing his neck, a muscle twitching in his jawline.

  “Tell me everything,” he said. “And just this once, please do not give me a hard time.”

  Now, she was getting nervous.

  “Will you please tell me what the fuck is going on?”

  “Okay, okay. Geez.” She took a deep breath and told him her story, including what had led her to it to begin with. “So that’s it,” she finished. “I know you do all these complicated exposure stories, so I thought I could bounce it off you. Then you could tell me if I’m crazy.”

  “Do not pursue it. Period.” He blew out a long breath. “Do. Not.”

  “Not your call. First, you say you want me to have the information, and then you tell me to back off?” She wanted to spit nails. “What the hell is up with that?”

  “Randi.” He held out his hands in a helpless gesture. “Please.”

  “Please what?” Now, she was getting madder. “Are you going to tell me what’s got that bug up your ass and why you think you can dictate to me? This is my case. I only wanted to know if you think my idea is crazy or far out or whatever.”

  “Fine. Okay.” He pulled himself together with obvious effort. “You’re pretty damn sharp,” he said. “You know that?”

  “You sound like you’re surprised.” She didn’t know whether to thank him or smack him.

  “Not at all.” He gave her a halfhearted grin. “I love your brains. And you really hit the nail on the head. Let me tell you what I’m working on, and it fits right in with what you’ve got.”

  She sat there and listened while he laid out his own research for her and explained where the threads he’d tugged had led him.

  “Why are you just telling me this now?” She had to work to control her anger. “I’m the investigator. Don’t you think I should have known about this?”

  “Because until now, it was just supposition on my part,” he explained. “I wanted to have something concrete to give you. You can understand that, right? Not giving you false leads?”

  “I guess,” she said in a grudging tone of voice.

  “These people are dangerous, Randi,” he told her when he finished. “They don’t mind killing people to get what they want.”

  “But no one died in the fires,” she reminded him.

  “Because they chose empty buildings. None of these apartment complexes were fully leased.”

  “There were people in the secondary buildings that partially burned,” she reminded him.

  “An unfortunate situation,” he told her. “Luckily for them, they got out in time. But I don’t think these greedy bastards would have cared one way or another.”

  “The accelerants used had very low flashpoints. Ignition would have been instantaneous.”

  They just looked at each other for a very long minute.

  “I have to tell someone,” she said at last.

  “No.” He shook his head. “No, you can’t do that. My source tells me a cop is involved.”

  “God.” Randi felt sudden nausea. Was it anyone she knew? She couldn’t imagine that as a possibility. Still, she guessed it couldn’t be eliminated.

  “I need your help,” Noah said, crouching down before her. “Will you give it to me?”

  “Noah, I have to talk to my boss. My partner. I can’t keep this to myself.” She could see him straining for control at her words.

  “You can’t tell anyone yet. We have no idea who’s involved. Which is why I need your help.”

  “But what can I do?” She twisted her hands together. Her simple fire investigation had apparently reached its flashpoint.

  “I need copies of your reports on this. Jeff is getting me copies of Dan Kessler’s reports, but I need both sets.” He squeezed her hands. “Please, Randi. I really need you to do this.”

  “And you don’t think Jeff should take this to his lieutenant? Or, better yet, how about if I bring Dan in on this. It’s his case, after all. And mine. You can ask him for the reports yourself.”

  “I’d rather not.” He looked away from her.

  “You don’t think Dan is involved, do you? Damn, Noah, I’ve worked with the man for two years. I’d know if anything was going on.”

  “Maybe. Maybe not. Will you please, just this once, do what I ask and not argue?”

  She glared at him, anger twisting inside her. “I suppose the next thing you’re going to say is I should ask off the case.”

  She steeled herself for his answer, trying to ignore the anguish in his eyes. “If I thought you’d do it, I would. It scares me shitless that you ever put yourself in harm’s way.”

  She didn’t know whether to laugh, cry, or punch him a good one.

  “Noah, I could take a job as an admin and break my neck falling down a flight of stairs. I could work with computers, get in my car to go home and get killed on the interstate. Everything has inherent danger. So you think I like it when you go haring off around the world in places no sane person would be found in? And if you say that’s different, I really will punch you.”

  “Randi,” he began helplessly.

  “Please, Noah. Show me that you respect not only my job but my ability to do it safely. Can you do that?”

  She could see in his eyes, now the color of dark, bitter chocolate, the battle he was waging with himself. Finally, the fight seemed to go out of him. “Okay. But you can’t stop me from worrying about you.”

  “Same goes. And I promise to always be ultra careful. Now, give Jeff a call, and let’s get this show on the road.

  Chapter Seven

  Randi insisted she go back to the firehouse right then to copy her reports onto a thumb drive.

  “I really want to go with you,” he said, “but I know how odd that would look. Just get back here fast and safe.”

  “I will. I promise.”

  “I’ll get on Jeff as soon as you’re gone.”

  “I wish you’d at least let me bring Captain MacNeill in on this,” she told him. “If he’s crooked, I really will quit my job.”

  “I totally understand, but no. Not yet.”

  “Noah, please listen.” She was so torn in this situation. “I’m the investigator. You’re the reporter. This is my job. It’s what I do for a living. Are we back to you refusing to accept that, even after admitting how well I do it?”

  “No. This is your case all the way. But can you just hold off until we have all the pieces in place?” He gave her a half-hearted grin. “Pretend I’m one of your snitches and you just need to get everything I know.”

  She sighed. “I hate this but okay. As long as you understand this is still my investigation.”

  “Agreed. So, can this just be between us for the moment?”

  Finally, she nodded. “As long as you know I’m not happy with it.”

  “Understood.” He looked at his watch. “How long will it take you?”

  She wrinkled her forehead in thought. “It shouldn’t take me long. If I don’t get waylaid for anything, I’ll be back here in two hours.”

  “I’ll let Jeff know. And, if you see your partner, make up some kind of excuse why you have to take a few hours off. Can you do that?”

  “I’ll think of something.”

  It bothered her that he was suspicious of Dan, but she chalked that up to plain old jealousy. Male penis envy, even when there was no basis for it. That had to be it. She’d worked with Dan for two years. Outside of the fact that he kept hitting on her now and then, something she figured had become habit by now, he’d never given her a reason to distrust
him.

  There weren’t too many people around when she got to her desk. Good. She slid a thumb drive into the port on her computer and began copying the files. She had just finished and slipped it into her purse when her cell rang. She flinched when she saw Dan’s name on the screen.

  “What’s up?” she asked.

  “I wondered if you’d finished running whatever errands you were off to and if you’d heard anything from the lab again.”

  Was that tension in his voice, or was she now imagining things? This was Dan, for god’s sake. “No to both of your questions. I asked the lab to let me know the minute they were finished, no matter how late it was. I’ll call you as soon as they do.”

  “How about meeting me for a cup of coffee? You sounded a little tense earlier. Something on this case I should know about?”

  “No.” She kept her voice as even as possible. “If there was, I’d tell you. Listen, Dan, I’ve got to run. I have something personal to take care of real quick. I’ll catch you later, okay?”

  There was a long moment of silence. She didn’t want to even think about what might be going through his mind.

  “Okay. Let’s touch base later for sure.”

  “You got it.”

  Jeff was already at her house when she got back. He and Noah were sitting at her dining room table, laptops open.

  “Hey, Randi.” Jeff’s lips kicked up in a halfhearted grin. “Looks like we got ourselves a nasty problem here.”

  “Seems so,” she agreed. She took the thumb drive out of her pocket and handed it to Noah. “Here they are. All of them.”

  “Good. Jeff got copies of Dan’s, so let’s go through each of them and see if anything sticks out. Even if it’s something that should be there but isn’t.”

  Going over the reports was a painstaking, arduous task. Randi interpreted for them anything they didn’t understand. She was stunned and sickened to discover how much was missing from the reports Dan had turned in.

  “I don’t understand.” She sat back in her chair and raked her hair away from her face. “Didn’t he think anyone would ever compare these?”

  Jeff shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe he figured he could fake it. That your captain and his lieutenant wouldn’t compare what you guys turned in.”