“True,” Rodriguez admitted. “Dessi should be here soon. I’ll let you know what happens.”
“I can’t wait,” I replied dryly, clicking off the phone as I stepped into HERO’s Coffee Bar. I tossed my empty coffee cup in the trash can, eyeing Rhodes by the donut case.
“Did you already get a coffee?” Rhodes asked.
“That? That was just to warm me up for the main event,” I smiled rubbing my hands together. “I definitely still want a cup.”
“Do you want a donut or a sandwich?” Rhodes asked, pointing at the case.
“I hear the maple bacon is to die for,” I grinned. “Nah, I’m good. Just coffee for me.”
“Me too,” Rhodes nodded. “I’d rather have bacon-flavored bacon.”
I ordered an Ethiopian pour over. Rhodes ordered a small brew, black. After I added some half and half to mine, we picked a table near the windows. The blackboard behind Rhodes said, “Don’t hate, caffeinate!” I grinned.
“Ethiopia sure grows some good coffee beans,” I exclaimed, sipping my cup of joe.
“Glad you like it. Cute shop,” he answered, settling into his chair and looked around the place.
“Thanks for the coffee,” I answered. “Did you have a busy night last night?”
“Nah. A few BLS calls. Nothing exciting.” At my raised eyebrow, he added, “Basic Life Support.”
“It must be hard to get up all night long. Like having a baby, but never learning to sleep through the night.”
“You get used to it,” he replied with a shrug. “Although, working with the guys sometimes is like having little kids around.”
I smiled at his answer. It was obvious he cared for his crew.
“So, Mal...Is that short for Mallory?” Rhodes asked.
“Definitely not. My dad wasn’t quite so cruel as to name me Mallory Malone,” I said shaking my head, “But no, it’s just Mal.”
“Okaaaay” Rhodes replied with a questioning eyebrow but decided not to push it. “We’ll stick with Mal, then.”
“So, what do you know about this rash of fires?” I said changing the conversation. “Isn’t it strange that the community center was just the most recent of city-funded programs that has caught on fire?”
“Well, there has definitely been a few,” Rhodes answered, letting the topic lie. He took the lid off his cup and sipped the beautiful brew.
“They are all programs that have been funded in the last year or so. Seems like someone doesn’t want them to succeed,” I provided, pushing my hair behind my ear. “Who would want to sabotage these programs?
“I’m not sure, but it’s a shame, really” Rhodes replied. “The community center was getting good participation. I was hoping it would reduce some of the violence we’ve seen lately. It’s easy for kids to get into trouble when they’re bored and trying to find something to do. Besides, they had some good programs where the kids could get tutoring help or join basketball teams.”
“Doesn’t make sense,” I shook my head. “I can’t think of anyone, short of city gangs, that wouldn’t want that.”
“Right?” Rhodes nodded, leaning back in his chair. “No one was more upset about it than Sully. He’s one of our Assistant Chiefs and he helped get the center up off the ground. He’s very involved with community service and has supported several programs around town. In fact, a few of them are the same ones that were burned. No one would like to get ot the bottom of these fires more than him.”
“Have the fires all been ruled as arson?” I asked, cupping my warm cup and letting the heat creep into my hands.
“Well, I’m not sure if it’s been made public yet, but I can tell you that you’re on the right track,” Rhodes answered, eyebrow raised, giving me my answer. “Why are you interested in the fires, if you aren’t on a case?”
“Well, it’s a problem of mine,” I shrugged. “Curiosity. Once I get a whiff of something suspicious, I have to keep digging at it. Not the best trait in the world, I suppose.”
“I’ve seen worse,” Rhodes said, grinning. “Have you always been like that?”
“Yes, since I was little,” I answered nodding. “My dad was a police officer. I wanted to be like him. Didn’t make it through the academy though. Decided I’d rather be my own boss. So, I got my detective license instead.” I gestured towards him. “What about you? Did you always want to be a firefighter?”
“I had an uncle who was a firefighter,” Rhodes smiled softly, running a hand over his shaved head. “I spent a lot of time at the station with him after school. Kept me off the streets. It felt natural for me to test for it after high school. I went to college after I finished at the Fire Academy. I wanted to finish my Fire Science degree.”
“It wasn’t a requirement for the job?” I asked, tilting my head.
“No, not a requirement, but some of us do. If you want to become chief or teach, it helps.”
“So, what was your motivation?”
“I always dreamed of teaching fire science one day. A few years ago, I finished my Certification for Fire Instructor. Maybe when I retire,” He gestured with his cup. “Fire suppression is a young man’s job. Can’t do it forever.”
“No dreams of Fire Chief,” I asked?
“Nah,” Rhodes shook his head. “I’m not a white shirt. I’m happy being the Captain. Just earned that last year. Doubt I’ll go any higher up. Too many politics.”
I definitely understood that. I couldn’t do that either. It was one of the things I liked best about working for myself. I never had to worry about other people’s needs or bargaining. I made all my own decisions.
“So, what does Sully think about all these fires?” I asked. “Doesn’t he think it’s suspicious?”
“I haven’t talked to him about it personally,” Rhodes replied shrugging. “I heard through the grapevine that he was upset about it. Makes sense. He helped get most of them off the ground.”
“Would he be open to discussing it with me?” I asked, hopefully. “I could ask him what he knows about it.”
“He’d talk to you about the different community projects, but I doubt he’d give you any information about the fires themselves.”
I shrugged, I had other avenues to get that info. “So, is it easy to tell if it’s an arson?”
“No, not necessarily,” Rhodes shook his head.
“I thought you said you could tell if accelerant had been used.”
“You can, but that doesn’t mean it was arson. It may have been an accidental spill, or the fire could have spread into an area that had a kerosene lamp or a garage with gasoline.”
“Okay, so how do you know if arson is involved? What do you look for?”
“Often it’s the things that aren’t there,” Rhodes explained. “If there’s a house fire and family pictures are on the wall, it’s less likely it was arson or the fire was done by someone else. If you can tell family photos have been removed, then there’s more chance of arson. Look for valuables, look for things that a family would likely not let burn.”
I nodded my head. That made a lot of sense. It was one of the most important things I learned as a PI. It’s looking around a scene for things that should be there, or things that were missing. I was enjoying the intellectual conversation with another similar profession.
“It’s pretty common for kitchen fires to have started by towels too close to the stove, especially gas stoves,” Rhodes continued.
“Or a grease fire while cooking? I asked.
“Right. Two big problems with grease fires. First, oil rides on water. Water will not put the fire out, it just splashes it everywhere. The other, you get a big breath of grease fire smoke, you can’t breathe. A good lungful of grease smoke and you’re on your knees. It’s wicked,” Rhodes shook his head, smiling slightly.
“You love it, don’t you?” I asked, watching him.
“More than I’d like to admit,” Rhodes grinned, leaning in at me privately. “It’s one thing you have to keep in mind. A good day
for a firefighter is a bad day for someone else. You come out of that fire all charged, and then are expected to look somber for the family outside and sometimes the television crew.”
I smiled at him, “I really appreciate you sharing all this insight with me.” I tossed my hair over my shoulder. “It’s pretty interesting. Like what you said the other day about fires not being all bright. It makes sense when you think about it with the smoke and all. I just never really have.”
“I actually enjoy talking about it. It’s not like the movies make it out to be,” Rhodes laughed. “You often can’t see your hand in front of your face. You can’t see your guys next to you. That’s why you have the speakers in your mask. Can’t hear very well, either. It’s kind of muffled, like you’re underwater. Unless the fire is free burning, then it’s extremely loud and crackling. You come out of the fire, smelling terrible, snot running out of your nose. Definitely not like the movies. The guys aren’t movie star gorgeous, either.”
I liked the look of Rhodes laughing, leaning forward in his chair, conspiratorial. He had such an easy way about him. Comfortable and affable. Although I disagreed with him; I saw those guys at the station. They might not be movie star gorgeous, but they had a rugged look to them that was very attractive. Especially Rhodes. I leaned back in my chair to look at him better.
“Don’t sell yourself so short,” I gave him a half grin.
Rhodes looked up at me with a slow smile that burned into me with his intense gaze.
Whoa, I thought.
“I sure did enjoy coffee with you. Next time, I’ll cook you dinner, then maybe breakfast.”
I barked out in laughter, eyes sparkling. “You certainly aren’t a shy one.” I liked that about him, though. Always knew where he stood.
“It doesn’t pay to be shy in this world,” Rhodes said, still smiling. “I like you. I’m attracted to you. It’s that simple.”
I respected and liked his honesty. I just wasn’t sure I had room in my life for a relationship. Although I was considering seeing where this went. It’s not like it had to be very serious. “Well, let’s talk about dinner and see where it goes.”
As we were talking about dinner plans next Tuesday night and exchanging numbers, my phone rang.
“Mal,” I answered.
“Hey, Mal, it’s Alex,” came the voice on the other line. I frowned. “Dessi just left. He claims ignorance, like I suspected.”
“Shit,” I replied, rubbing my forehead. “But not surprising.”
“He says he didn’t know about Suzy. That he’s in charge, but he doesn’t control Jeremy’s actions. Even with the second set of books, we don’t have enough to charge him. Dessi didn’t write in any of them, no signature or anything to prove he had anything to do with them.”
“Sounds about right, pinning it all on Jeremy,” I said, my mouth in a thin line. “Like he’s smart enough to set all of that up.”
“Yep. We don’t have anything on him.” Rodriguez replied.
“Yet. Give me time. I’ll see what I can dig up,” I said. I looked over at Rhodes, who was frowning, taking in my part of the conversation.
I hung up the phone. I had to talk to Suzy and see what else we could get on Dessi. I knew they would continue to look for Jeremy, but Suzy had to be careful, in case Jeremy, or Dessi, came for her.
“Everything okay?” Rhodes asked, concerned.
“Yes, just my last case. There’s a few loose ends that need to be tied up,” I replied grabbing my jacket and standing, getting ready to go.
“Well, let me know if there’s anything you need. I can be pretty helpful when I need to be,” he said with a slight wink. He stood and put a hand on my arm. “We still good for dinner on Tuesday?”
“Yes, thanks. I’ll be there,” I smiled back, reaching up to lightly touching his hand. I wasn’t much of a hugger, even when I was close to someone.
I was already planning what to do next, wondering if I even had time for dinner next Tuesday. And maybe I was a little worried I had already started to get in over my head with Rhodes.
Chapter 11
I pulled into the Mennon’s driveway about an hour later, waving at the Sentinel Security guys sitting in the black SUV. It was Wyatt Parker’s guys. I had never worked with them directly on a job, but I knew who they were and had run into them while working jobs.
Six months or so back, we were hired by separate partners on a corporate espionage case. The company was breaking up and the partners were all gathering intel on each other to use as leverage. Wyatt’s team was providing security for a particularly concerned partner who was older and afraid for his wellbeing.
Wyatt and I approached each other after observing each other. Luckily, we were able to work around each other without incident, as the partner I was working for was simply gathering facts on business dealings. Neither had nefarious plans for the other, so we were able to share a bit non-confidential information.
I grinned at the memory of a few late nights waiting in parking lots for partners to leave the office for the day. Wyatt’s team was fun. They had incredible focus on the job, but in between? They were a riot.
I walked over to the driver’s side door to let them know I was there to see Sam and Suzy. He must be a new guy, as I didn’t recognize him from before.
“We know who you are, Malone.” said the burly guy sitting in the driver's seat. “Sam and Suzy said you’re on the safe list. You can go on in, I already notified Wyatt.”
“Sounds good,” I nodded and headed up the drive.
The front door opened and a tall, lean man I knew as Wyatt Parker ushered me in. I wasn’t surprised to see that Wyatt was handling this case personally, as Sam would have insisted on it.
I nodded a hello to Wyatt and glanced in for the Mennons.
Sam and Suzy were sitting at the kitchen table, going over some paperwork.
“Hi, Mal!” Suzy said standing to hug me.
“Hey, Suzy, Sam.” I said, helpless but to be wrapped up in Suzy’s hug. She was such a warm, friendly soul. I was oddly fond of her and very glad her fate wasn’t as Dessi ordered. “Has Rodriguez called?”
“Yes, he filled us in on Dessi and Jeremy’s car.” Sam said. “Surely they’ll find Jeremy eventually. I mean, he can’t hide forever.”
I shrugged, “Hard to say. Criminals don’t exactly run in the same circles as normal citizens.”
Sam plunked back down in his chair, clearly frustrated that Jeremy was still out there, a potential threat to Suzy.
Satisfied that the Mennons were safe, Wyatt moved back to the front room to where one of his team was going over a screen showing what I assumed was a feed of various camera angles outside the house. I couldn’t remember the man’s name, Brian or Ben or something.
“What are we going to do, Mal?” Sam asked. “Can I hire you to find out more information on Dessi?”
“Sam, I don’t think I could leave this case unresolved,” I confided. “The problem is, I’m not sure if we’ll be able to find dirt on Dessi. But, you can be sure I’ll try.” I sat down in the chair Suzy offered.
“Suzy, can you think of anything you directly saw or heard Dessi do?” I centered my gaze on her.
“Well, not really, Mal,” Suzy replied, frowning. “I never actually heard him on the phone. I saw his name come up on Jeremy’s phone once or twice, but then he’d leave the room to talk.” Suzy scrunched up her face remembering. “He’d come back in all mad or worried, going on and on about what Dessi said, but I never actually heard Dessi speak.”
“Okay,” I nodded, trying to think outside the box. “What about any information you might have heard that Dessi wouldn’t want us to know? Some kind of criminal activity that you knew happened. Something we could look into for incriminating evidence, even unrelated to you.”
Suzy’s eyes searched the table while her mind raced to find a shred of information. “Well...I remember Jeremy talking about Dessi fixing the horse races,” Suzy paused, thinking. “Jere
my mentioned something about a horse that Dessi was testing a new drug on, maybe? He was running some big bets for special clients on the horse.”
I leaned in, “Suzy. That may work.” I tried not to get too excited, but this was promising. “Any idea what the drug was, the doctor he was getting it from or the name of the horse? Any of that information could get us a solid lead.”
“It might not have been a drug. It might have been some kind of procedure or something. I don’t know. All I remember is that they said the horse was fixed up. But I do know the horse’s name; It was ‘Stand Up and Dance’. I remember because I was helping Jeremy add up the bets, figure the odds and tally the wins,” Suzy winked at me. “That part was kinda fun.”
Suzy was a morbid woman. I shook my head, eyeing her incredulously. I had a real lead, though. Something I could look into. A plan started to form in my head.
Meanwhile, in a small, cozy and gaudily-decorated apartment,
“What in the world are you talking about?” Shelly started to get loud. “You’re crazy! Marco must be taking money!”
Peter ran his hand through his hair and tried to calm down. “Shelly, I know it was you. Knock it off.” He stood up and walked to Shelly. “Don’t blame Marco for this! He’s just a kid. You’re taking money from Mantovani’s.”
Shelly quit screeching when she realized Peter wasn’t going to buy her story. “This is all your fault, you know,” she said pointing. “I really didn’t even have a choice. I don’t have enough money for even the mere basics!”
“Basics?” Peter said surprised. “What are you talking about? You get a decent paycheck and I take care of groceries. I never argue when you go clothes shopping. It’s true that we have a budget for expendables, but it’s more than enough for new clothes and any other basics you need.”
“More than enough? Are you crazy?” Shelly was starting to screech again. “It’s barely enough for clothes, not to mention any new jewelry or hair or nail maintenance. It wouldn’t last most women a week!” Shelly started pacing and shaking her hands around. “I’m practically living like a nun! Or, or Mother Theresa!”
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