We each shook our heads in response to Don’s question. He knew we hadn’t as the investigators down at the department had taken over the investigation. And they’d only inform our captain, and possibly Don on a need to know basis.
“The department heads tell you anymore about it?”
Don nodded his response to me. “I’ve been looking at the pictures in my phone. They wouldn’t let me see the official images they took. I even went down to the department to speak with the lead investigator. He’s a lazy son of a bitch. Says the fucking fire was probably started by nothing more than carelessness. I showed him the newspaper ashes we found up the stairs. He said it was probably one of us who tracked it through the house.”
“That’s bullshit,” I snarled.
“Exactly. I had to ask one of the ladies in forensics their take on it.”
“Personal friend of yours?” Corey questioned, smirking.
Don responded with a cocky grin of his own, letting that be his answer.
“What she tell you?” Corey asked.
“Said her guess was that we were correct.” He looked over at me. “She thinks someone placed newspaper in front of the fireplace and removed the gate. The husband said whenever his wife set the fireplace shealwaysmade sure to put the gate up to prevent sparks from escaping.”
“He’s sure?” Eric spoke up.
Don nodded. “Yeah. When they were first married, she made that mistake once and nearly caught their couch on fire. Ever since she was adamant about using a gate, especially since they had children. She didn’t start that fire due to a careless accident.”
A solemn feeling fell into the pit of my stomach. Nothing was sitting right about this situation. Nothing at all, and I wasn’t liking any of the conclusions coming up in my mind. The only good thing to come out of all of this was that the family was doing okay. The mother and children had suffered some smoke inhalation and had to remain in the hospital for a few days, but had been discharged and were on their way back to being one hundred percent.
“Keep us updated on all this.Unofficially,”Eric stressed.
“I plan to.” There was a heaviness in Don’s voice. As if the worst of this was yet to come. I’d heard the same tension and stress in my commanding officer’s voice right before a tough mission. Something big was coming and chances were high that it was about to land right in Rescue Four’s lap. The first image that sprang to mind was Michelle’s. A calmness settled over me because I had that sense that as long as she was okay, I was okay.
****
Michelle
“What now?” I asked, exasperated, as I glanced down at my cell phone in my hand. It was the last person I wanted to speak to.
“Gabriel, why do you keep calling me?”
“I’m a paying client. This is the service your company provides to your clients? Maybe I should speak with Nancy about my poor treatment by one of her top event planners at Save the Date.”
I pushed out a breath through my mouth and pinched the bridge of my nose, closing my eyes. I abhorred the arrogant tone in his voice. It had turned me on at one point in time but now it only served to make the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.
“That’s not necessary, Gabriel. How can I help you?” My voice was much more patient that time around, but still filled with contempt. I hated him and he knew it.
“That’s more like it. I’m calling to see how the planning is coming for the firm’s banquet.”
I rolled my eyes. He’d been calling every day this week with the same question. Sometimes calling up to three times a day. And always on my cell phone, never on my office line.
“It’s going well,” I answered as calmly as I could. “I’ve finalized the location.”
“Great, I’d like to see it.”
My eyes popped wide. “We discussed the location would be the hotel. You said that was fine.”
“Yes, and now I’m saying I want to see it.”
I pushed out another deep breath. “When would you like to see it, Gabriel?” I wasn’t going to argue with him about this. I’d come to realize that with Gabriel just giving him what he wanted was the quickest way to get rid of him.
“So formal all of a sudden.”
I bit my tongue to keep from lashing out.
