Hot Water

by Maggie Toussaint

  Laurie Ann followed his logic to a point. “Except James Brown didn’t have a driver’s license.”

  “We don’t know how he fits in yet. The arsonist didn’t plan to kill my partner either. It was a crime of opportunity. Perhaps the same is true of Brown. He could have been in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

  She parked beside the ashy rubble at the road’s end. “Wait here while I sweep the perimeter.”

  “Shouldn’t you call for back up?”

  She opened her glove box, took out her Glock, and gave it to him. “This is my spare gun. Know how to use it?”

  He nodded, clenching his fingers around the grip.

  “Consider me backed up.”

  With that, she headed into the woods, tracking clockwise around the burn site. The shooter had been in the treeline for concealment. About halfway around, she found something. A trampled down area, freshly broken branches, and a spent casing. She used an ink pen to pick up the casing, and then tucked it in an evidence bag. She studied the woods behind her. Found another casing.

  Someone had stood here, watching Wyatt. They’d taken two shots. Judging by the broken branches, they’d exited the area at a fast clip. She followed the trail. About fifty yards in, she found what she needed—a fresh shoeprint. She snapped several pictures of the indentation with her camera phone. For one image, she placed her pocket-sized notebook adjacent to the impression to make sure there was no doubt of the scale.

  She returned to the squad car and retrieved her evidence kit from the trunk. “Got something.”

  His eyebrows rose as she placed the box on her car hood.

  “Spent bullet casings and a shoeprint. The shooter stood about five feet in the treeline there.” She pointed toward the tallest pine. “He hurried out of there, and possibly hurried in there too. Lots of broken branches marking his passage.”

  “Can we get a police dog to track him?”

  “We can. I’ll call Kieran now. Fred’s the best scent dog in three counties.”

  “You’re all right, Dinterman. This is a good break. He’s making mistakes.”

  “He shot at you. It was nearly game over.”

  “Trust me, I haven’t forgotten.”

  Chapter 23

  Wyatt rested his weight on an upside down five-gallon bucket in the ashes. His arm throbbed. He’d been lucky. He knew that. But the cold fire in his gut fueled his resolve. The arsonist was on the ropes. He knew Wyatt was after him. He knew Wyatt was building a case. He’d fled the scene for now, but he hadn’t gone far. He had to know what Wyatt knew.

  “You all right, Mr. North?” Officer Calucci asked.

  Laurie Ann had sweet-talked this guy into babysitting him while she trekked through the woods with her friend Kieran and his scent dog. Wyatt hoped the arsonist didn’t take aim at his cop.

  His cop?

  Where did that come from?

  Strange how the mind worked under pressure. He shifted on the bucket, the scent of charred wood filling his head. “I’m fine. I needed a moment. It’s been a crazy morning.”

  “I can continue the search alone if you’d like to wait in the squad car.”

  “I can do it. Thanks.” No way would he be sidelined by a kid. “There aren’t too many places that key could be. I was standing right here when I heard the shot. My truck was parked over there by the road. I ran straight to it for cover. The key must be between the two locations.”

  “I’ll keep looking, sir.”

  Wyatt studied his soot-blackened hands and then gazed at the treeline, his thoughts racing. He’d cheated death again. Years ago, his mother had joked that he had nine lives, but he didn’t feel much like joking today. He felt every day of his age and a couple more, besides.

  There were other jobs he could do.

  Not that he’d ever wanted another job, but he could work in a less hazardous field, like that teaching position the feds kept offering him. For the first time, he wasn’t repelled by the idea. In fact, teaching sounded like good sense.

  Laurie Ann jogged out of the woods. He rose to meet her, hoping she’d found evidence he could use to catch the guy. The gun would be good. Fingerprints on the gun would be even better.

  Her face lit with animation. “The path ended near the trailer park. We found grassy ruts where someone could conceal a car. The scent trail ebbed at the road.”

  “Makes sense.” If the shooter’s car was elsewhere, no wonder Wyatt hadn’t seen a parked vehicle on Spyglass Lane.

  “Did you find your key?”

  She sounded so earnest, so hopeful. “No. We’ve looked all over out here.”

  “Hmm.” Laurie Ann gazed at the tall pine and back to the rubble. She took four or five steps and bent down. When she stood, the key was in her hand. “This it?”

  “How’d you do that?” His voice sounded rougher than he meant it. But still. He’d looked for the key for fifteen minutes. She’d spent less than a minute here and found it.

  She shrugged. “Don’t take it too hard. The sun came out from behind a cloud, and I happened to see a glint. Let’s get you to the EMS office in Mossy Bog and then grab some lunch.”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  She turned to the uniformed officer. “Thanks, Calucci. I owe you one.”

  Calucci looked like he wanted to say something. Instead, he nodded, turned on his heel, and departed.

  “He doesn’t know what to make of you,” Wyatt observed.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You’re a better cop than he is.”

  “I’ve been at this longer. I should be better.”

  “You’ll always be a better cop than he is. You have a passion for the truth. He’s in it for the glory.”

  Laurie Ann’s eyes narrowed. “Sounds like you’ve been trying to figure me out.”

  He raised his dirty hands in surrender. His left arm wouldn’t cooperate, and he couldn’t quite hide the stab of pain. “Guilty.”

  “What am I going to do with you, North? You almost got yourself killed today.”

  “We’re getting to this guy. He feels the heat, and he doesn’t like it.”

  “The point is to catch your arsonist without getting hurt. You’re making me look bad.”

  He caught the note of humor in her voice as he eased into the passenger seat. “I’ll try my best not to wreck your promotion, but I don’t know what the arsonist’s next move will be. At least we learned he’s still here.”

  She revved the engine and backed up. “Still got my spare gun?”

  “I put it in your glove box when the other cop showed up. Didn’t want him to shoot me.”

  “Keep it while you’re here. If I get called out again, I’d feel better if you had a gun. This arsonist is playing for keeps.”

  “I’ll think about it.”

  “Do that. And don’t be such a man about this.”

  “You don’t want me beating my chest and doing a Tarzan yell?”

  “Be the smart guy I know you are. Don’t make a move without me unless you have the gun.”

  “Let’s change the subject, shall we?” It was bad enough she’d been told he was delicate. He didn’t want her to think he was a brute either. “If someone was harvesting the copper pipes from the restaurant, was James Brown involved or was he in the wrong place? How did he end up dead?”

  “Easy. Someone coshed his head and set the fire.”

  “We already knew that. Why was Brown there?”

  “Maybe the Foxworths can help when they arrive tomorrow.”

  “I bet they’ve already filed for the insurance money.”

  “Probably,” she said.

  Two large dogs of indeterminate breed sat at the end of a dirt road abutting the highway. Laurie Ann slowed and moved into the opposite lane to give them space. He liked the way she adjusted mid-stream as if whatever came along wasn’t any big deal. His sisters would have slammed on brakes and tried to find the dogs’ home. And they’d be talking about the lost and abandoned
dogs for days. Laurie Ann was definitely a different breed of female.

  “Those dogs live there,” she said as if reading his thoughts.

  He nodded. Yep. She could think circles around him.

  He leaned back against the headrest, wishing he were sitting in his recliner at home. With the sun shining in the window and the vibration from the road, he must have dozed off. The next thing he knew, they were stopped at Sheryl’s Diner. The EMS truck was parked under an old oak bearded with clumps of Spanish moss.

  “Are we going to interrupt their dinner?” he asked.

  “Nah. Leighton and Roberta have been here an hour and a half easy. They like to hang out here because Sheryl’s got the best iced tea in town. Wait here a minute, and I’ll get one of them to come out and doctor you up.”

  He hoped they had something for a headache. Leaning back into the seat, he closed his eyes and slipped into a dream of him and Laurie Ann. Kissing. She rubbed against him like a cat, and he was reaching for her to make sure this was real when the car door opened. He blinked at the sudden shift to reality.

  A concerned brown face bobbed a few inches from his. “You done wore him out, Laurie Ann. This poor fella was sound asleep in your car.”

  He glanced over the woman to see Laurie Ann nodding at him. “Roberta, this is Wyatt North, an arson investigator from Atlanta. He has a scrape on his arm. I thought you could take a look at it.”

  “Sure thing, hon,” Roberta said. “Come on over to my chariot, Mr. Tall, Dark, and Injured.”

  Wyatt blinked against the sunlight. After that powernap he felt better, as if he’d reset and was ready to go again. His stomach growled, and he looked hopefully toward the restaurant.

  Roberta laughed. “You came to the right place for lunch. Ms. Sheryl’s cream pies are to die for. How’d you hurt your arm?”

  “I was out at the Pirate’s Cove looking through the rubble,” Wyatt said. “I had a fall and noticed the scrape later.”

  Laurie Ann studied him with her serious cop eyes from under the brim of her hat.

  Was she wondering why he’d omitted the getting shot part? He didn’t want to deal with the red tape of a gunshot wound today. He especially didn’t want to deal with Aunt Barbara.

  “I heard a shots fired call go out on the radio. Good thing you weren’t hit.” Roberta opened his shirt and gently tugged the sleeve down his arm. “This doesn’t look too bad. You don’t need stitches, only a bit of TLC.”

  She dabbed something cold and biting in the creased skin and covered the raw area with a bandage. “If that gets red or irritated, see a doctor. You should see one anyway to get a booster on your tetanus shot if you haven’t had one recently.”

  She winked at him. “Those falls against sharp metal objects aren’t good for your health. Best to avoid this type of incident in the future.”

  Roberta handed Wyatt and Laurie Ann damp cloths to clean their soot-smudged hands.

  Wyatt pulled his shirt back on, buttoned it. His skirting the truth hadn’t fooled Roberta, but she was willing to go along with his version of the incident. “Thanks. We done?”

  Roberta shined a light in his eyes and had him follow it around until she nodded. “Looks like you’ll do, hotshot. Try to be a little more careful next time. Our Laurie Ann isn’t used to guys falling for her.”

  Laurie Ann blushed, and Roberta laughed as if she’d heard the funniest joke in the world. Wyatt decided the joke was on him. He hadn’t fallen because of Laurie Ann. He’d ducked to get out of the way of a bullet.

  If he hadn’t twisted instinctively when he dropped, his arm wouldn’t have been in the way of the bullet. His chest was the target.

  The arsonist wanted him dead.

  Chapter 24

  Laurie Ann puttered around her yard, snipping here, weeding there. After the eventful morning, Wyatt had set up his computer in her dining room. When his mother had phoned a few minutes ago, she’d stepped outside to give him privacy.

  Not that he’d asked, but she would have expected the courtesy if the situation were reversed. What must it be like to be related to the President? Would legions of elite soldiers descend on her place and spirit him away to safety?

  Wyatt didn’t act like he was entitled to better security, but maybe his family thought so. She groaned. Would she get reprimanded for his brush with death today?

  One thing was certain. He looked right sitting at her table. A long time ago, she’d asked her dad how he knew her mom was the woman for him. He’d said she looked right in his world. That comment had mystified her for years, but she finally understood. It didn’t have anything to do with appearance. Instead, she was responding to the image of Wyatt using her things. His hand on her coffee mug. His shoes by her door. His smile as he washed the dishes.

  Given the fact that someone had taken a shot at him, she wouldn’t allow him to return to the hotel tonight. With their chemistry, the evening had the potential to become intimate. Did she want that? He’d been up front about wanting her. He’d also said he was lousy at relationships. If they got involved, it would be painful when he left.

  What she wouldn’t give for a sister right now. She’d love to voice her thoughts and fears. Instead, they swirled endlessly around in her head. She was too picky. Life was passing her by. She didn’t take chances. With Wyatt, she had a chance at experiencing passion.

  But she had to think about her career.

  Would being a great cop sustain her for the rest of her life?

  Should she sacrifice in one area to achieve success in another?

  Why couldn’t she be a top-notch investigator and still have a personal life? Where was it written that women had to choose between career and family? Those archaic days were long gone. She wanted it all.

  “You going to cut that shrub to the ground?” Wyatt asked.

  She shrieked at the sound of his voice. “You snuck up on me.”

  His devilish grin surprised her. “I did.”

  She noted his color had evened out after eating and working on his computer. The effects of being shot must have worn off. “I bet you gave your sisters fits.”

  “I might have.”

  “Is everything okay at home?”

  “They’re fine. Mom was checking on me.”

  “Lucky you.” Laurie Ann glanced down and saw that she had cut the lantana to the ground. Good thing it was a perennial. It would come back bigger than ever. She gathered up her clippings and carried them over to her new compost pile.

  “It doesn’t feel so lucky to have them hovering over me,” he said. “I wish they’d accept the fact I can take care of myself.”

  She brushed off her hands and turned to face him. Wyatt was temptingly close. Her heart did a funny leap. “I have the same problem with my dad.”

  How dull, talking about families when she wanted to take action, when she wanted to leap into an affair with Wyatt, when she wanted to rip his clothes off.

  If you envision it, you can make it happen.

  She’d heard that at a vision-boarding seminar she’d attended.

  Why not?

  In her mind, she reached for his shirt and unbuttoned it.

  Chapter 25

  Wyatt wondered about Laurie Ann’s mysterious expression. In a few short days, she’d gone from stranger to friend, and it wasn’t enough. She was no longer a cop or a job. She was Laurie Ann, a person with feelings, with a family, and with a large heart. Her caring for others was such an integral part of her make-up.

  Self-conscious about staring, he glanced at her sweet-smelling flowers. Her three-legged dog sniffed his way through the blossoms. “It’s peaceful back here,” he said to fill the silence. “I see why you enjoy living in the woods.”

  “My grandmother always had flowers. Those big azaleas over there are older than I am.”

  “I see pear trees, two figs, a lemon tree, and a grape arbor by the old fence.”

  “I added the lemon tree. Nothing like ripe lemons right off the tree.”
>
  “With such a green thumb, I’m surprised you don’t have a vegetable garden.”

  “I tried, but there were so many weeds, it became a chore. I do have a soft spot for flowers, though. One day, I’ll have more time for a vegetable garden.” She turned to face him. “Enough about me. How about you? Did you finish your work?”

  “I’m running some searches. I’ve been cross-checking the historical fires here with the new state database.”

  “You think the arsonist lives here?”

  “I think he spends time here. Maybe he’s someone’s grandson that visits frequently. Maybe he owns a fishing cabin. I can’t say yet.”

  “How many suspects are you talking about?”

  “I started with ten suspects, but I’ll be lucky if five of them amount to anything.”

  Her eyes danced with interest. “It could take a while to track down ten murder suspects.”

  He edged closer to her, filling his lungs with her heady scent. “It could take a while to find an arsonist.”

  She released a husky laugh and closed the remaining inches between them. Her eyes never left his face. “As you know, my assets are totally at your disposal.”

  Birds chirped. A light breeze stirred strands of her sun-kissed hair. His gaze narrowed to the lower lip she was chewing. He had to be reading her right. Please, dear God, let this be her green light.

  “Are you flirting with me, Dinterman?”

  “What if I am?” Her brows arched to match her sassy tone. “Whatcha gonna do about it?”

  He tipped her chin up and brushed her lips with his. A soft sound in the back of her throat sent him over the edge. Desire fanned into a full three-alarm blaze. His hands stroked her spine, his fingers slid through her silky hair. His thoughts fogged. He wouldn’t be satisfied with a kiss this time. He wanted to feel the slide of her smooth skin against his.

  With regret, he pulled back from the kiss, his pulse thundering. He gazed into the depths of her luminous eyes. “You sure?”

  “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”

  He fought for a breath. “I don’t know what this is between us or where it’s going, but I feel so close to you, so connected. I want to touch you all over.”