Colby's jaw ticked, a muscle jumping beneath his beard.
"When I finally left him and moved into the inn full-time, he was livid," she continued."Absolutely furious.He'd been so sure I'd sell, take the money, invest it in something 'smart' that he could manage for me.When I chose the house over his plans, he told me I'd never make it.That I'd come crawling back inside a year, begging him to fix the mess I'd made."Her voice dropped."I didn't.That probably made it worse."
"Does he know your insurance situation?"Colby asked, keeping his tone even despite the anger building behind his ribs.
"Of course he does."She pitched her voice into a clipped imitation, the words coming out sharp and condescending."'Let me look at your policy, Sabrina.Someone has to make sure you don't make emotional decisions.'He went over every line when I renewed.He knows exactly what I'm covered for, exactly what the payout would be, exactly what my options are."
"And he's already tried to make you feel like the fire's your fault," Colby said."Spinning it before anyone even asks."
She nodded, her shoulders hunching like she was trying to make herself smaller."If he set it, that puts him on the same list as the developers.Money and control.Two of his favorite things."
Colby thought about the man he'd seen on the sidewalk, leaning against the building like he owned the whole block.That easy smile aimed at the barista.The expensive jacket, the good shoes, the air of someone who'd never been told no in a way that stuck.
"He's on Diaz's list," Colby said."That matters.She's not going to let him slide just because he's got a good smile and knows how to work a room."
Sabrina looked away, toward the window, toward the light that didn't care about any of this."Then there's the third thing she said.Strangers.People who came through the inn that I turned away or who left angry."
He frowned."How often did that happen?"
"More than you'd think," she said."We only had so many rooms.Summer festivals, wedding weekends, holiday rushes...I couldn't house everyone who wanted a bed.Most people understood.They'd shrug, ask if I knew anywhere else in town with availability, and wish me well.Some didn't take it that gracefully."
"Anybody stand out?"he asked."Someone who got really angry?Not just disappointed, but actively hostile?"
She stared at some point past his shoulder, sifting through years of memories, faces blurring together."There was a couple last fall who got loud when I couldn't fit them in.But they were drunk.Came back the next morning to apologize and buy breakfast."She paused."There was a man about two years ago who told me I'd 'regret this' when I wouldn't bump another guest to make room for him.Something about how he was more important than whoever was in the room he wanted.I wrote his name down at the time and then forgot about it when nothing happened."
"You have records?Guest ledgers?"
Her laugh was brittle."Had.The guest ledgers are all ash now.Along with everything else."
He nodded slowly."Right."
Sabrina let out a rough breath, her whole body seeming to deflate."I hate this.This feeling.Like I have to look over my shoulder in my own town again.Like anyone I pass on the street might be the person who decided to burn down my life."
Again.
He heard the way she said it.Quiet.Tired.Weighted with years of looking over her shoulder at a different threat, one who wore good suits and counted her glasses.
He reached over and covered her hand with his."You're not on your own this time."
"I know."Her fingers curled around his, holding on like he was the only solid thing in a world that kept shifting beneath her feet."I just...I don't want to spend the rest of my life jumping at shadows and suspecting everyone who ever rang my doorbell."
"You won't," he said."But until Diaz has a name and a case she can make stick, we stay careful.That's not paranoia.That's smart."
Her gaze flicked up to meet his."Careful, as in...you wrapping me in bubble wrap and locking me in a closet?"
"Careful as in me doing what I'm good at."He lifted their joined hands, pressed his thumb along the back of hers in slow, soothing strokes."I can't control what Gavin does or doesn't do.I can't undo whatever some angry guest might have decided.But I can control this house.I can make it harder for anyone to get close without us knowing."
She squinted at him."That sounds like a very Colby way of saying 'I'm about to overdo it.'"
He stood, tugging her gently up with him."Come on.Let me show you what I'm thinking."
He walked the perimeter of the small house with her, room by room, pointing out the features and flaws he'd cataloged in his head since he first signed the papers.The deadbolt on the front door was solid, recently replaced.The latch on the back door was older but functional.He tested each window in sequence, checking how smoothly they moved, whether the locks engaged properly.
Most of them cooperated.The one in the spare room, the room she'd been sleeping in, stuck halfway open and refused to budge further.
"That's not great," he muttered, forcing it closed with more effort than should have been necessary.
"I'll live," she said, watching him work.
