“You know what I mean.”
Mick suspected, anyway, having guessed the moment he’d been called to the principal’s office. A few crew members had prepared him to expect that summons from by-the-book Kenny Davison as well.
“Do you mean my statement on the newspaper’s website?”
“Of course, that’s what I’m talking about. I recognize that we brought you in with little preparation and a less than rigorous background check, but you need to know that the Mount Isabel Village Council, to which you report, won’t tolerate anyone causing hysteria among our residents.”
As the man spoke, color climbed his pale neck, his volume increasing with each word. Mick might have mentioned that sixteen suspicious fires in two months probably had caused more panic in the community than a quote that hadn’t made it to the newspaper’s weekly print issue yet, but he didn’t want to cause the manager’s head to explode.
“It was a simple statement, sir,” he said, hoping they could both be reasonable.
“What I’m saying is you weren’t supposed to be making a statement at all. Mount BelFest, our community’s main festival, is less than four months from now, and the new director doesn’t need you adding to the negative publicity.” He stopped and swallowed visibly. “More than that, you didn’t have the authority.”
Mick lifted his chin and squinted at him, questions whirling through his thoughts. Shouldn’t the community’s top priority have been bringing the suspects to justice? “I was under the impression that I was hired as Mount Isabel fire chief,” he said instead of asking that.
Davison sat straighter in his seat. “That is correct, but because of lingering questions at Station 1 and the rash of recent arson fires, the council has determined that all official statements will come from the Public Safety Office. That plan has been in place since the former chief…”
Though the man’s words trailed away, Mick got the idea. The gag order made sense now. No one wanted information to be free-flowing, with so much suspicion hanging over Station 1. And as the new guy, he would be bound by these tighter constraints.
“In addition to being a model for public and private partnerships in southeast Michigan, Mount Isabel is a village based on order. Our leaders follow chains of commands and specific protocols.” Davison leaned forward and looked down his nose at Mick. “I don’t know what type of rules you adhered to at your former station, but—”
“Same,” he interjected before the local leader could defame some honest and hardworking men and women with his assumptions. He could have reminded Davison that they’d broken Mount Isabel’s protocols with the council’s superseding gag order but chose not to mention it. Yet. He needed to get a better read on the village manager first.
“Since I wasn’t informed about the council’s change, I hope you can overlook my mistake.” He folded his hands in his lap like a student trying to pull one over on the principal. “I’ll be more careful to seek guidance in the future.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” Davison said, though Mick had made no commitment to avoid speaking to the press.
He found it too entertaining watching the village manager sweat. The council could easily determine who’d dropped the ball in informing the new fire chief about the change. All arrows would point to the man sitting across from him.
“This explains a lot about the recent articles I’ve read.” He’d seen official quotes before, but these unattributed statements managed to be both drier than the newsprint they were printed on and missing most facts.
Davison tilted his head. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, nothing. I’ve just been trying to catch up on the media response to the fires as I read all the official reports.”
“So glad you’re updating yourself on the recent incidents, but remember that the fire investigator, the police department and the county prosecutor will be the ones in charge should any of the cases move to arrest.”
The other man crossed his arms and settled back in his fancy executive chair. Though he’d encouraged Mick to get up to speed on the events over the past few months, he’d been careful to remind him to stay in his lane.
“I’d hoped my statement would assist those investigators. Still do,” he said evenly. “Pyromaniacs love to keep tabs on their work, so I’m sure he or she has read the article.”
“We don’t know that.”
“Maybe not, but if I’m right, it could help draw out the suspects, which wouldreassurethe community rather than cause hysteria.’” He smiled as he repeated the man’s own words.
“Of course.” Davison shifted in his chair. “But the statement’s impact will be dependent on whether it was an accurate reflection of the crime scene evidence or whether the details were exaggerated to make headlines. That’s why—”
“All official statements must come from the Public Safety Office,” Mick finished for him. “I see now.”
He saw, all right. Probably more than the manager had intended to reveal. First, Davison cared more about covering his own ass than stopping the arsonists. And since when were officials required to tell the truth in statements? He’d worked alongside enough law enforcement officers to know that they regularly distributed incomplete information to the press to shake up suspects.
His most interesting discovery, though, was that Davison hadn’t been told about the gas can investigators had recovered at the scene. At least part of this meeting was his attempt to get Mick to spill the details. Good luck with that. If the manager wanted the information, he could request an official report once the fire investigator completed it. Just like anyone else.
Why was Davison so interested in this fire, anyway? Did he know something more about it, or was someone else relying onhimfor information?
Gooseflesh peppered Mick’s arms beneath his coat sleeves as he recalled that first conversation with Rachel. She’d practically laughed at his face when he’d suggested that the authorities wanted to uncover the truth. He still didn’t have enough information to say that her brother had been set up as well, but he suspected that on her first point, Rachel had guessed right.
“Don’t worry. It’s quality evidence.” Mick knew he shouldn’t say more, but he couldn’t resist. “The situation will be clearer after the Public Safety Office releases its next statement.”
