Chase spotted a small tube rolling down the sidewalk and hurried after it. “I’ll have them done soon,” he answered, stopping the runaway canister with his foot. He refused to promise tomorrow to anyone, even the chief. If he could buy a couple more days, he could solve this the right way. He crouched down to pick up the tube and nearly dropped the grocery bag. It was a black lipstick case with the same crocodile patterns and double heart emblem etched into the silver strip.
“Can I have that back?” Crissy held out an open palm impatiently.
As Chase handed it over, most of the missing pieces seemed to fall into place. Henry hadn’t started the fires.Crissyhad. But his only chance to prove it was now tucked into her purse. He couldn’t go to the chief and demand they search Crissy’s purse. Even if they could, the coincidence would mean nothing to them. It wasn’t evidence enough to prove her guilt. “Your insurance adjuster head back to Anchorage yet?”
Crissy raised an eyebrow at him, but only briefly. “He decided to stick around after Friday night. Says he’ll be on his way after you finish the investigation reports. Can’t imagine what’s taking you so long. Heard they caught the hitchhiker near Girdwood. I already told Ryder we don’t want to press charges or anything. An accident is an accident.”
“Just being thorough,” Chase said. “Have a nice day, Crissy.”
“Chase?”
He stopped at the front of his truck and turned back. “Yeah?”
“If you have any more questions, come to me. Henry’s mind is slipping. After these fires, it just seems to be getting worse. I think it’s an early onset of Alzheimer’s.”
Not a chance he believed her, but he gave her a nod and hopped in his truck.
Chase’s first impulse was to call Laurel about the lipstick. Had it not been for her, he never would’ve paid such careful attention. He would’ve handed the lipstick tube back to Crissy and never made the connection. Because of Laurel, he was ninety-five percent certain that Crissy started the fires to collect the insurance money.
Instead of Laurel, he called Ryder.
“I don’t have the dollar amount yet,” Ryder said before Chase could get in a word. “I’ll get it tomorrow, even if I have to have Liam fly me up to Anchorage. Happy?”
“I think I know who’s responsible. Crissy—”
“Stop right there.” Ryder let out a loud sigh that sounded like a gust of wind through the phone. “Chase, you know I’ll always have your back, right? Which means if I think you’re overstaying your welcome in conspiracy-ville, I’m going to tell you.”
“You think I’m wrong.”
“I think you’re not thinking straight because of this whole deal with Laurel.”
If he and Ryder hadn’t been best friends for the better part of two decades, he might think Ryder was in on this whole thing. But that theorydidmake him sound as if he’d booked a one-way ticket to conspiracy-ville. “Just do me a favor?” Chase relented. “Find out the number tomorrow before I have to sign off on those reports?”
“I’ve been calling three times a day.”
Odd, considering Granger claimed his boss was bothering him constantly. Chase almost said as much, but he didn’t want to give Ryder yet another reason to think he’d lost his marbles. In a way, he thought he understood what Henry was going through. “I’ll touch base with you tomorrow.”
“Stay out of trouble, okay?”
Ending the call, Chase headed across town to the Evans’ residence.
Stomach in knots, he parked along the street and made the long, steep walk up their driveway. Thelog mansion, as many called it, was one of the biggest homes in town. One Laurel’s family had owned for three decades or more. There were enough bedrooms for all the Evans siblings to visit and not share a room or need a couch. They’d spent the first couple weeks after their honeymoon in that house while they waited on their own to close. He missed the days when he was openly accepted as one of the family.
His last Sunday family dinner here had been more than five years ago. They’d been ridiculously excited about the baby, the puppy they were going to adopt, and the nursery they had just painted. Twice Laurel almost slipped and made the announcement early, but they’d agreed to wait until the second trimester.
Little did they know their child would never make it that far along.
Ignoring the impulse to turn heel and run, Chase knocked on the door, hoping either Haylee or Cody would answer the door.
But it was Marc.
“What are you doing here?” Marc growled at him, their brief alliance from the night of the fire already up in smoke.
“Is that Chase?” Haylee’s voice called before she wedged her way between Marc and the door. “Hey, you made it!” She pushed the door open as she shoved Marc back with her petite frame. “Marc,Iinvited him.”
“Why?”
“Knock it off,” Haylee snapped at him, her narrowed glare successfully chasing off her oldest brother. “Sorry about that. I didn’t tell anyone you were coming. Didn’t want to scare offyou know who. Plan can’t work if she isn’t here.”
