* * *
Ialready ranat least one red light. I didn't care. I was losing my mind with worry. My hands were clammy on the wheel and sweat was beading at my brow. I still had five blocks to go, but traffic was backed up.
I gritted my teeth. I needed to calm down. I took my own advice that I gave Nick back at the fire station and inhaled deeply, but it wasn’t enough. I needed a distraction.
I twisted up the volume knob on the radio.
“… anniversary of that terrible forest fire last year, isn’t it?”
My eyes widened. I turned the volume up higher.
“Yeah, it is, that was such a bad incident. If I remember, it took the firefighters a few days to put the whole thing out.”
“Now, there was some controversy about that, wasn’t there? That some people suspected arson but others were saying it was just an out-of-control cooking fire by the folks living there?”
“Yes, now – for our viewers who might not remember, what Diane means is there weresupposedlya clan of bear shifters – or werebears, is another common term – living in that forest.But, when the fire cleared up, there was no sign of any human life leftover.”
“Well, can you really say ‘human life’, Don?”
“That’s another part of the controversy, Diane, people are saying, is it really arson if the – if the individuals living there aren’t fully human?”
My blood boiled. I almost wanted to shut the radio off, but I exhaled and tried to keep my cool.
“Well, now hold on. It’s still arson to set a forest on fire, whether or not anyone lives there, there’s still trees and animals and all that – ”
“I think we’re getting off topic, here. Anyway, since itisthe anniversary of that incident, do you think there’s going to be any repeats or, maybe, copycat type of situations, Diane?”
“It’s a possibility, considering the perpetrators – if there were any, depends on which story you believe – were never found, so we don’t know what the motive is. Maybe it was just troublemaking but, you know, Don, there’s been a few fires in town lately, you know that right?”
“That old building on Queen, that one?”
“Yes! That one, exactly. It’s been on fire twice now, and with it being so close to the date of that big forest fire – I don’t know, there might be a connection there.”
My heart pounded. My grip on the steering wheel was even clammier than before. As I turned onto Queen street, I half expected a huge black cloud of smoke billowing into the air. I let out a breath when the old building stood where it was; charred and abandoned.
The car sped down the street. I spotted Nick and slowed down. He stepped out of the car and jogged towards me.
“Hey, you made it,” he said, panting.
“Any sign of Liam?” I asked. But Nick shook his head.
“I’ve been here since I called you, but I haven’t seen him.” He paused. “I’m worried he might be inside, but I didn’t want to go in and check because ofthem.”
“Who isthem?” I growled. Nick’s mouth tightened as he gestured his head towards a loose group of black cars with tinted windows lined up along the curb.
Furrowing my brows, I gripped the car door hard. “Who are they?”
“Guys who paid the bail,” Nick muttered.
“Is the arsonist with them now?”
“Dunno. He was apparently just as clueless as we are. Never met those guys in his life, he said.”
“Something’s not right,” I muttered. “I have a bad feeling.”
Nick nodded. “I don’t like it either.”
I paused. “Do you know what today is?”
