“Do you want to come over later, so we can talk?” Cindy asked.
“Jason won’t mind?” Tessa liked Cindy’s husband, but felt like an intruder when she was alone with the two of them. She’d never met a tighter couple. A part of her was jealous, but the other part believed her best friend deserved the happiness.
“Are you kidding? Either he’ll be working on cleanup or he’ll be exhausted. You know what they say. ‘Those who can, do; those who volunteer, do more.’ That’s Jason. He’s working until he drops. Come over, and we can have some wine after dinner.”
* * *
The sound of barking woke Kalin. Several seconds passed before she remembered she was at home and not at the Motel 8. She rolled over to nudge Ben, but he wasn’t in bed with her. She turned the clock radio so she could read the digits. A few minutes after midnight. Where was he? She rubbed sleep out of her eyes and went to find Chica.
Chica stood on her hind legs. Her front paws rested on the living room windowsill. Kalin put her hand on Chica’s back. “What do you see?”
Kalin went to the front hall and turned on the outside light. She surveyed the area but didn’t see anything.
Chica continued to bark and bolted to the side window.
“Settle down.” Kalin grabbed Chica’s collar and pulled her back into the living room. Her conversation with her boss came back to her. He’d said she wasn’t the target of arson, but what if she was?
She phoned Ben. “Where are you?”
“At the firehall. What’s up?”
“Can you come home?”
“Sure. Is something wrong?”
“Not really. Chica’s barking at something outside.”
“I’m on my way. I’ll be there in five minutes.”
Kalin stuffed her feet underneath her legs and bunched herself in the corner of the leather couch. She pulled her pajama top tight around her chest. No one could enter the room without her seeing them first.
She got up, retrieved the fireplace poker and returned to the couch. She was being over sensitive. She shouldn’t have called Ben. But what if someone did have it in for her?
Chica growled.
“I wish you could talk. What is it you smell?”
Kalin fingered her cell. Being afraid wasn’t her style. She should call Ben back and tell him not to come home, but she couldn’t make her fingers tap his number.
She sat frozen on the couch until she heard his key in the door. “Ben?”
“It’s me. Are you okay?”
Chica rushed to Ben but sidestepped him and tried for the front door. Ben managed to close it before she got out. He dropped his keys on the side table and kicked off his hiking boots. “There’s probably an animal outside.”
Kalin went to Ben and hugged him, folding into the comfort of his chest. His maroon sweatshirt was soft against her skin and smelled like fabric softener. “I hate being afraid.”
Ben chuckled. “I know you do.”
“Don’t laugh. This isn’t funny.”
Ben pressed his cheek against the side of her head. “You’re having a hard time because you think you always have to be tough. It’s okay to lean on me. You are going to marry me after all.”
“What if someone was trying to get at us, or me, when they started the fire? We could have been the intended target. Someone I fired might be angry enough. Maybe we should talk with Constable Miller.”
“I don’t think so. I’m sure the fire had nothing to do with us.”
“You don’t think someone was outside?”
“You know Chica. This isn’t the first time she’s barked at something. We could go out and check.” Ben wiggled his eyebrows.
Kalin laughed. “You’re using your signature move to get my mind off being afraid.”
“Is it working?”
“You know it.” Kalin pulled her pajama top off and ran past Ben and out the back door.
He followed, unzipping his jeans and trying to run at the same time.
Kalin dropped her pajama bottoms and threw them at Ben. They landed on his head, and he tossed them aside. She flipped the lid off the hot tub and got in. She turned the submerged lights to red and sunk to her chin.
Ben’s body glowed in the red light as he stepped over the edge and into the steaming water.
“You have no idea how sexy you are.” Kalin opened her arms to him, and he slid on top of her.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Ben fidgeted in the RCMP interview room. Constable Miller had been cagey on the phone when he asked Ben to come in, saying he wanted to talk with him about the fire. Ben was nervous but unable to explain why. He rolled the cuffs of his sleeves past his elbows and rested his forearms on the table.
Half the resort smoldered. The other half remained untouched. Ben wanted to be at Stone Mountain working on cleanup, not sitting in an empty room doing nothing. If Miller took much longer, Ben would get up and leave. There couldn’t be a law against that. He had things to do. He hadn’t seen Kalin enough in the last few days and this was a waste of time.
He lifted his cell off the table and checked the time. He’d had enough of waiting. He glared at the one-way glass and made up his mind. He stood, and at the same moment, the door opened.
Miller walked in carrying two cups of coffee. His equipment belt hung around his trim waist. His biceps bulged against his uniform shirt. His Kevlar vest protected his back and chest. “How are you doing?”
“Tired. I don’t have time for this.” Ben was a senior ski patroller during the winter and operated his own fly fishing business throughout the summer. The fire would decrease his business if the number of guests at the resort dwindled. He hadn’t hired a replacement guide to take Nora’s place for the summer and decided not to until he was sure the volume of business would support the extra person. That meant he’d have to get ready on his own. He needed to get out of here and back to work.
Miller pursed his lips and took his time sitting. He was thirty-five and beginning to grey around his temples. A hint of wrinkles settled around his dark amber eyes. He sipped his coffee, then sighed. “Did you start the fire?”
“What?”
Miller fixed his gaze on Ben and didn’t blink.
“You’re serious?” Ben’s jaw dropped and remained open.
Miller nodded.
“Why are you asking that?”
“I’d like an answer.”
“I did not. Tell me why you’re asking.”
“We found two empty gas cans on the site where your new home is being built.”
“It’s a construction site. I’m sure that’s common.” Ben thought back to standing with Kalin and Pete Chambers at the building site, remembering the burn pattern. It nagged at him, and now he understood why. The fire had burned from the center of the house out. If the site had been in the path of the forest fire, the fire would have started on one side and burned through to the other, just like the rest of the buildings. Any doubt he’d had about arson disappeared.
“With your fingerprints on them.”
“You kept my fingerprints from last year? Are you allowed to use them?” A skier with the potential to make the Olympic team had been murdered not long after Ben had an altercation with him, and Ben had been on the initial suspect list. He hated the memory.
Miller remained silent, sipped his coffee and held eye contact.
Ben didn’t care if his fingerprints had been used. He let out a long sigh to express his frustration. “I don’t remember seeing any gas cans at the site, but I could have moved one out of my way or something. I went to the site every day. You know me.”
“True.”
“Wait a minute. My truck was robbed a few days before the fire. A bunch of stuff sitting in the bed went missing. It was just junk, so I didn’t think anything of it. A couple of gas cans were in the back, but they were empty. I hadn’t touched them in weeks. The last time we used one of the cans, Kalin and I took the ATV to the Dragon’s Bowl. You think someone set me up?�
�
Always a patient man, Miller waited.
“How come the cans didn’t melt in the fire?”
Miller smiled. “Observant. They were found at the side of the site. Whoever started the fire must have tossed them there.”
“Don’t you think if I’d started it, I would have made sure the cans burned too? I think it was a setup. Did you bring me in to find out if someone has it in for me? You don’t really think I did this.”
“I had to ask. Just in case. You and Kalin need to think about why someone wanted it to look like you started the fire. Any ideas?”
“No, and I don’t want to encourage Kalin. She’ll get way more involved than she should.” Kalin had taken on security last year, and her job had put her in danger. After almost losing her last winter, Ben wanted her to quit her job. He’d never said anything, knowing she loved what she did, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t dream. He had no intention of telling her she had every right to be spooked last night, giving her fuel to get more involved.
Ben slid the chair away from Miller and stood. The chair wobbled but didn’t fall over. “Anything else?”
“No. Let me know if you think of anything relevant.”
* * *
Kalin strolled along Main Street, wondering what to buy Nora now she knew the baby was a boy. Holden had one toy store, and if she couldn’t find anything there, she’d mail order a gift. Her slim-fitting denim shorts, cut just above her knees, and a short-sleeved blouse made her feel as if she were wearing a parka indoors. She wished she’d put her hair in a ponytail instead of leaving it to rest damp against the back of her neck.
She ambled by the deli and happened to glance inside. Pete Chambers and Susan Reed stood beside a table hosting the rest of the Reed family, Nora and Ethan.
Kalin hadn’t had the chance to speak with Nora about Ethan’s father yet, but by the look of the scene inside, Ian was the dad. She hoped Nora was happy about the outcome. Even through the window, she could tell the group was tense. Most of the other diners gawked at the Reeds. Nora sat tall and proud. Good for you. Nora was petite, but she could hold her own with almost anyone.
Kalin entered the toy store. She had no experience buying baby gifts, but wanted to find something meaningful Nora would remember. She didn’t want something that would get lost in the array of gifts Nora had already received.
She stood in front of a shelf full of wooden toys and sighed. Ethan wouldn’t be able to play with any of the toys for a long time.
Cindy Tober approached Kalin from the side. “Hey. Having problems?”
“Yeah. You know Nora Cummings? She had a boy, and I want to find something special, but I have no idea what.”
Cindy meandered through the aisle in front of Kalin. Her feminine butt cheeks peeked from below the hem of her shorts and a butterfly tattoo hovered just above her beltline on the small of her back, visible because she wore a cropped T-shirt.
“Who are you buying for?” Kalin asked.
“Jason’s niece. She’ll be seven in a week.”
“Has the fire affected how much Jason is working?”
“Pete Chambers told Jason once the insurance is sorted, there’ll be a ton of rebuilding to do. For now, Jason’s working on a site that survived the fire.”
Kalin checked to see that no one was listening to their conversation. In a small town there was always the risk someone she knew stood nearby. “Did Jason say much about what happened in the fire, with Ben I mean?”
“What did Ben tell you?”
“Nothing. He won’t talk to me.”
“That’s not a good sign. I don’t know if I should say anything, if he hasn’t.”
“I know the gist. About the floor collapsing. Some of the others let me know. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have found out. I guess Jason was quite the hero.”
Cindy blushed. “I think so. How does Ben seem to you?”
“He hasn’t been sleeping well, but during the day he’s fine.”
Cindy examined a stuffed animal as if it interested her. She had the look of a woman who wanted to say something, but didn’t know if she should. She didn’t gossip, and Kalin admired that about her.
“Is there something I should know?” Kalin prodded.
“Did Ben say anything about being up a ladder after the floor collapsed?”
Kalin’s stomach tightened. “No.”
“Jason said he thought at one point Ben froze. He was above Jason on the ladder holding a chainsaw, and he stopped moving. Jason had to yell at him a few times to get his attention.”
“Did he talk to Ben about it?”
“He said unless Ben brings it up, he won’t. You know how guys are.”
“I’m getting the feeling the firefighters want me to do something about it,” Kalin said.
“They care about Ben. They want to make sure he’s okay.”
“But none of them want to talk to him about it either. Ben doesn’t like to discuss what he thinks is a weakness. He’s used to being the tough guy.”
“Sort of like you.” Cindy hip-checked Kalin.
“If he doesn’t start sleeping well soon, I’ll talk to him. He might get over this on his own.”
Cindy held up a hand-sewn quilt made by a British Columbian artist one valley west. “How about this?”
She’d found the perfect gift for Ethan.
* * *
Had Pete known who was in the Wild Game Deli, he would have taken Susan somewhere else for lunch, but he hadn’t, so they waited in line inside the entrance, discussing what to eat.
Along with wild game, the deli served bean sprouts and other such nonsense to the frou-frou crowd. Pete had grown up on beef and didn’t understand vegetarians. Who in their right mind would eat vegetables all the time? At least Susan ate game. Bison was their favorite. Odd to have a favorite with someone again. He’d grilled bison the first night she came for dinner and had been delighted and impressed she’d enjoyed the meal.
Tessa Weber rushed up, said hello to Pete, grabbed a couple of menus and over her shoulder said, “This way, please.”
Without waiting to see if they were following, she took off toward the back of the deli. The aroma of fresh bread, baked on site, wafted through the room, making Pete’s stomach growl in response.
“You know her?” Susan asked.
Pete winked. “Are you jealous?”
“Maybe. Maybe not.”
Pete pulled out a seat for Susan, but she wasn’t behind him. The family at the next table stopped talking and stared at her. A hush had fallen, and apparently he was the last to notice. He didn’t think it was her designer suit and matching stilettos, her manicured nails or freshly highlighted hair that captured their attention. She was beautiful, but that’s not what interested the other patrons.
Gavin, Ian and Melanie Reed sat together with Nora Cummings and her baby. Their lunches covered the table, but none of them were eating. Ian’s hand had stopped, holding a fork midway to his mouth. Pink circles filled his cheeks, turning his freckles orange.
As the president of the largest employer in the area, Gavin Reed’s well-known face attracted attention. A family dispute in public would create juicy gossip for a small town. Kalin walked by on the sidewalk outside the deli and glanced inside. A fish tank. They lived in a fish tank.
Susan recovered, and motioned for Pete to join her.
“You know my ex, Gavin.”
Pete nodded, and Gavin nodded back at him.
“This is my daughter, Melanie, and my son, Ian.”
“Hello,” Pete said and thought how totally inadequate that was. He had no idea how to handle this. What should he say to the children of the woman he was dating?
“Mom.” Ian stood and faced Susan. “This is Nora and Ethan.”
Susan ignored Ian and kept her eyes on Gavin. Ian sat.
“He’s a handsome boy,” Pete said to Nora, and she beamed at him, clearly proud of Ethan. He had the sudden urge to pick up the baby. Many years had passed
since he’d held one, and he pushed the ache of missing his daughter deep within himself.
“Isn’t this cozy?” Susan said to Gavin.
“Susan, please,” Gavin said.
“Why don’t we get take out?” Pete suggested. The others were halfway through their lunch, and Pete didn’t want to endure the awkwardness of sitting next to them. “It’s warm outside. Let’s eat in the park.”
“I’m not leaving just because my husband, ex I should say, is having lunch with my children. If they’re uncomfortable, that’s their problem. Besides if there’s some kind of family discussion going on, I should be included.”
Pete didn’t like the anger in her voice but could sympathize with her. Six months ago, her husband had left her. He felt the tension between Susan and Gavin but didn’t understand how a family could break apart after twenty years together. He would have given anything for the chance to see his wife and daughter one last time before they died.
“What’s she doing eating with the family?” Susan pointed at Nora. “Is she your new best friend forever?” she asked Melanie.
The nastiness surprised Pete. The divorce couldn’t be Melanie’s fault.
Melanie shook her head and started to stand. “Mom. We’re just having lunch.”
“If she’s not with you, then what’s she doing here?” Susan stared at Ian. Her gaze drifted to Nora and Ethan. Pete could almost see the light bulb flash in her head.
“Ian?” Susan said.
Ian poked the tines of his fork into the table.
Nora put her hand over his in support. “You should tell her.”
“Tell me what?”
Pete gently maneuvered Susan, trying to get her to move to the door. The other patrons weren’t even pretending not to listen. “Maybe we should go outside.”
Blaze (A Stone Mountain Mystery Book 2) Page 6
