The Way Back Home

by Barbara Freethy

  “Call nine-one-one,” Gabe told her, grabbing her arm.

  She battled against his grip. “Let me go.”

  “We need help. Make the call. Is there a hose somewhere?”

  She waved toward the side of the yard as she pulled out her phone and called for help. Gabe had found the hose, so she ran to get the fire extinguisher from the kitchen.

  As she entered the house, she stumbled over a barking and excited Sadie. “It’s okay,” she told the dog, then yelled for her father and Justin, but no one answered. She grabbed the fire extinguisher from the kitchen, gave Sadie a reassuring pat, and headed out of the house.

  She heard sirens as she ran down the hill. Thank God the fire department was only a few miles away. Gabe was spraying water on the flames leaping out of the boatyard, which seemed to be the center of the fire. He waved her away as she moved past him, yelling at her to stay back, but she had no intention of standing around and doing nothing while her business was burning to the ground.

  Her eyes burned as she breathed in the smoke, but she pushed past the discomfort, turning the fire extinguisher on the edge of flames closest to her. Within minutes, the extinguisher was done, and the fire was still burning too fast for their meager efforts.

  She dropped the extinguisher on the grass and backed up, relieved to see the fire department on the scene. Within minutes, they were on top of the fire.

  One of the guys told her to get back, but she was so mesmerized by the fire that she couldn’t move. Then Gabe grabbed her arm and pulled her up onto the lawn until they were far enough away that she could breathe again. He put his arm around her shoulders, holding her tight. She glanced up at him, seeing the hard set of his jaw, the anger in his eyes, and it was only then that she began to realize what was really going on.

  “Oh, my God,” she muttered, feeling suddenly sick. “You don’t think this was an accident, do you?”

  “We don’t know yet,” he said, but there was no conviction to his words.

  “I think we do,” she muttered, watching the firemen attack the flames.

  For sixty years, Hayden River Adventures had been housed in that building. They’d launched thousands of river trips off the pier. All of their equipment was in that boatyard, and it was going up in flames.

  “I need to call my father,” she said. “I need to tell Keith to keep Justin at his house. I don’t want him to see this. I don’t want him to be afraid.” But as she made an attempt to move, her head began to spin.

  Gabe pulled her up against his chest. “One step at a time. You’re in shock.”

  “I don’t know what to do.”

  “What you just said,” he replied. “We’ll make the calls. And then we’ll make a plan.”

  “A plan to do what? Someone is working really hard to make sure we don’t go back on the river.”

  “That doesn’t mean they get to win.”

  “They’ve already won,” she said despairingly.

  He shook his head. “No, they haven’t. We’re not done fighting. We just need to regroup, Alicia. Why don’t you go into the house and make your calls?”

  “I don’t know what to tell my dad. Should I act like it’s some random incident, or should I tell him what’s been going on?”

  “You should be honest with him.”

  “But he’s been hurt. He’s had a hard year. You don’t know the kind of pain he’s had to live through.”

  “I know you love him, and you’ve been protecting him ever since the accident. But he needs to know. And frankly, he needs you to respect him enough to let him know. This is his business, too.”

  His words sank in, and she knew he was right. She had been protecting her father, because she’d come so close to losing him, and she’d wanted to make his recovery as easy as possible. But she couldn’t hide the truth anymore.

  Unfortunately, before she could make the call, a car pulled up next to the house. It wasn’t her father. It was Keith, Justin, and David. They all broke into a run as they crossed the grass.

  Keith reached them first. “Alicia, are you all right?”

  He gave her an odd look, and she realized that she was still holding Gabe’s hands. She abruptly let go and stepped back. “I’m fine. The fire started in the boatyard. I was just about to call you.”

  “What happened, Mom?” Justin asked.

  “I don’t know yet, honey. I’m waiting for the firemen to tell me. Why don’t you and David go into the house? Sadie is going crazy in there by herself. And it’s too smoky out here, anyway.”

  As the boys went into the house, Keith moved closer to her, and Gabe walked down the hill to talk to one of the firemen.

  Keith put his arm around her. “You’re cold. You’re shaking. You should go inside, too.”

  “I will. I just want to make sure the fire is out, that it’s not going to spread.”

  “It looks like it’s just about out. At least your house is okay.”

  “I’m grateful for that.”

  “You have no idea how it started?”

  “No,” she said with a shake of her head. “But my gut tells me that someone set the fire.”

  “What?” he asked in shock. “Are you serious?”

  “How else could it start?”

  “I don’t know, but arson is a big accusation.”

  “You know how many people don’t want us to reopen the business.”

  “I do, but I can’t believe anyone would try to burn the place down.”

  Was he right? Had she been letting Gabe’s cynicism take over her thinking? But Keith didn’t know about the cut fuel line or the fact that Kenny Barber had been wandering around the yard the night before with a flashlight. She really hoped Kenny wasn’t responsible for this. But even if he wasn’t, whoever had done it was probably someone she knew, and that thought stung.

  “I need to call my father,” she said. “There’s a good chance we’ve lost pretty much everything.”

  “Maybe you will have to give up the business,” Keith said.

  As she stared at the smoldering remains down the hill, a wave of anger ran through her. “I don’t know about that.”

  “It’s going to cost a lot to replace everything.”

  “We have some insurance.”

  “Will it be enough?”

  “I don’t know, but it’s one thing to quit a business and another thing to have someone try to rip it out from under you.”

  Keith’s brows knit in a worried frown. “If someone set this fire on purpose, then maybe you should back off. Do you really need this kind of trouble in your life?”

  “No, but it’s here, and I have to deal with it. Great, here comes my dad,” she said with a sigh as her father and Bill made their way across the lawn.

  “What the hell is this?” her father bellowed, shock in his face. “Why didn’t you call me, Alicia?”

  “I was just about to. It’s almost out.”

  “Where’s Justin?”

  “He’s in the house. He’s all right, and so is Sadie.”

  Her father took off before she was finished, hobbling on his cane as quickly as he could down the hill. Gabe intercepted him, for which she was grateful. She didn’t need her father yelling at the firemen until the fire was out.

  Bill shook his head. “I heard the sirens earlier but never imagined they were coming here. When we saw the smoke from down the road, your father almost had a heart attack.”

  “I know the feeling,” she said.

  “I’m glad everyone is okay and that it’s not the house,” Bill said.

  “Me, too.”

  “This shouldn’t have happened.” He muttered the words below his breath, but Alicia heard them.

  “It sounds like you’re not that surprised,” she said.

  Bill’s head swung back around. “I told your dad earlier that I was having second thoughts about encouraging him to relaunch the river tours. I thought folks would have gotten over their bad feelings by now, but I don’t think they
have.”

  “You think someone set this fire?”

  “I sure hope not, Alicia.” He paused. “I’m going to get back to town. You let me know what you need to rebuild or repair. I’ll give you as much of a discount as I can.”

  “Thanks, Bill. I appreciate it.”

  “Why don’t we go inside?” Keith suggested. “Let your father deal with something for a change.”

  “I can’t. I need to know what happened. You can go in.”

  He frowned but finally nodded. “I’ll wait inside with the boys until you come back.”

  She gave him a thankful smile. “I really appreciate that.”

  “No problem.”

  After Keith left, she walked down the hill. Her father and Gabe were already talking with Blain Colley, a fireman who had been one of Rob’s closest friends.

  “Hey, Alicia,” he said with compassion. “I was just telling your dad that we found a gas can and some rags. Your father said you don’t keep gas in the yard.”

  “No, we don’t.”

  “It looks like it was probably arson.”

  Her heart sank. “What will happen now?”

  “We’ll see if we can pick up any clues to identify the arsonist, but I have to warn you that it’s unlikely we’ll find anything.”

  “So they can just burn down our building, and nothing happens?”

  “Let’s take it one step at a time,” he said diplomatically. “I’ll talk to Ronnie tomorrow, too, tell him what we found.”

  “You can also tell him that Kenny Barber was out here last night with a flashlight and some lame story about looking for a backpack,” Gabe put in.

  Blain looked from Gabe to Alicia. “That true?”

  “Yes. He claimed he was looking for something he left behind.” She hated to think Kenny had done this, but he was the last person who’d been in the yard.

  “I’ll pass that on to the chief,” Blain said. “We’re going to stay here a bit longer, make sure everything is out.”

  “Thanks, Blain.”

  “I can’t believe they took it this far,” her father said. “Who’s they?” Gabe asked. “Do you have any specific ideas?”

  “Wild River Tours. They have to be behind this. They want our runs. We weren’t backing down, so they tried to ruin us. But they’re not going to succeed. This is just a setback. I’ve come back from worse than this.” He turned to Gabe. “You’ll help, right?”

  “Whatever I can do,” Gabe said quietly.

  “We’ll start in the morning,” her father said. “I’m going inside.”

  Alicia waited until her father was out of earshot to say, “I wish you’d try to discourage him instead of supporting him.”

  “Right now, he seems like he needs some support.”

  She let out a sigh. “You’re right. He’s shaken up, and this isn’t the time to fight with him. But tomorrow—”

  “Will be here soon enough,” Gabe said. “You should go inside, too. It’s cold. I’ll wait out here until they’re done. I’ll make sure they do everything they’re supposed to do.”

  “You’re a good man to have around in a crisis.”

  “You were pretty impressive yourself. You jumped right into action.”

  “I’m used to taking care of myself and my family.”

  “Someone needs to take care of you.” He paused, his gaze a bit distant. “Isn’t Keith waiting for you at the house?”

  She started. “Yes, he is.” She turned to leave, then looked back at him. “Thanks, Gabe. Maybe this won’t look so bad in the morning.”

  Gabe stared at the still-smoking wreckage as the sun crept up into the sky. He’d spent the night in a chair on Alicia’s porch, watching over the yard long after the firemen had left and the Haydens had gone to bed. He’d let them down. He should have realized after the incident with Alicia’s car that there was going to be more trouble. Hell, he should have understood the depth of the problem when he’d gotten into a fight with Russell Farr on his second day in town. But he’d fucked up. And now Alicia’s business was in ruins, and her life wasn’t too far behind.

  He was supposed to be helping the Haydens save their business, not standing by idly while it burned to the ground. Well, that stopped today.

  Getting up with a groan and a stretch, he walked down the hill to what was left of their office building and deck. The wall closest to the yard was gone, but three-quarters of the building still stood, although there was a huge hole in the roof. Someone had stretched yellow tape across the door to caution anyone about entering what was probably an unsound structure. He kicked open the door and peered over the tape. It was dark inside. He could see the metal filing cabinets on the far wall, along with a desk that appeared to be intact, although the room had been battered with fire and water. He doubted that they’d be able to salvage much.

  A snap of twigs brought his head around. Alicia was barreling down the hill, wearing boots over brown leggings and a thick, oversized cream-colored sweater. Her long blond hair flew out behind her as she moved quickly toward him. It was barely seven, but he wasn’t surprised to see her up so early. He doubted that she’d gotten much sleep, either.

  She climbed the stairs to the deck, stopping a few feet away from him, shaking her head as she stared at the devastation. “I was hoping it was all a nightmare.” She let out a breath as her gaze moved across his face. She frowned. “Were you out here all night?”

  “I was on the porch,” he admitted, running a hand over his stubbled jaw. He needed a shower and a shave.

  “You didn’t have to do that. I’m sure whoever set the fire didn’t stick around to see it burn.”

  “I wouldn’t be so sure of that. Arsonists often like to enjoy the show. It’s part of the adrenaline rush.”

  “But this wasn’t just a run-of-the-mill arsonist.”

  “No, this was personal, another reason someone might stick around or come back.”

  “So you sat up all night watching over us?”

  He shrugged his shoulders. “It wasn’t a big deal. I don’t sleep that much, anyway.”

  “And you made a promise,” she said quietly. “But I don’t think Rob expected to send you into this mess.”

  “Actually, I think he did. That’s why he was so desperate for me to agree to come.”

  “He was desperate?” she asked, homing in on his words with a sharp gaze. “You didn’t say that before.”

  He swallowed hard, seeing the fear in Rob’s eyes, feeling the plea in the strength of Rob’s hand in his. Rob had stayed alive to get that promise, but he couldn’t tell Alicia that. He just hoped she couldn’t see it in his face, because she was looking at him very intently. He tried to think of something he could say that would satisfy her.

  “You made that promise to him just before he died, not when he wrote the letter,” she said, breaking into the tense silence. “He knew what was happening.”

  “Yeah, he knew.”

  Tears filled her eyes. “But when you made the promise, he felt better, didn’t he?”

  He had to fight hard to hang on to his own composure. He hadn’t cried in more than twenty years, not when his mother had died or his father had abandoned him, not when any of his friends had died, not when he’d taken a bullet to the hip, not even when Rob had taken his last breath, but now …

  He cleared his throat and managed to look Alicia straight in the eyes. He needed to tell her this. “Rob smiled, and then he closed his eyes.”

  “Oh, God.” She put a hand to her mouth, her lips trembling, tears sliding down her cheeks.

  He pulled her into his arms as she cried, her tears soaking through his shirt. He stroked her back, wanting to comfort her, but nothing he could say would take her pain away. So he just held her until the storm passed.

  Finally, she lifted her ravaged face to his and wiped her eyes with her sleeve. “I’m sorry for falling apart on you. I’m glad you told me. I know it doesn’t seem like it, but it makes me happy to know that Rob was
at peace with your promise. Thank you for giving him that.”

  “It was the least I could do.”

  “I didn’t tell Rob much about what was going on here. I didn’t want to worry him. But I guess he read between the lines. He was always good at that.”

  “Some of his other friends in town probably shared things with him that you didn’t.”

  “That’s true.” She looked over at him. “I never really thought much about who else he was in contact with.” She glanced toward the burned-out building. “I’d like to take a look inside and see if anything escaped the fire. Although the worst has already happened. Even if we can salvage some paperwork or some files, our rafting equipment is gone, including the two new rafts we picked up yesterday.”

  “Did your father have anything to say last night?”

  “He ranted and raved and drank half a bottle of Scotch and then ranted and raved some more, swearing he was not giving up. He would not be forced out of a business that he’d spent his entire life building. I’ve never seen him so angry. And he’s going to have a hell of a hangover this morning.”

  “Did you tell him about your car?”

  “No, and I think I’ll hold off on that. The fire was a much bigger warning shot. If that doesn’t stop him from wanting to reopen the business, my cut fuel line won’t even register.” She paused. “I wonder if this is the end, though.”

  “That probably depends on how you react. But whoever is doing this hasn’t gotten caught yet, and the acts are escalating. You have two choices: surrender or fight.”

  “I want another choice. One that doesn’t sound like war.”

  “This is war, Alicia. You just don’t know who your enemy is, and that’s the most difficult kind of war to win.”

  “I have a child, Gabe. Whatever I do affects Justin. I have to be careful.”

  “I agree. It might be smart to walk away, close down the business.”

  “But then I’d be letting the person who did this win, and that’s unthinkable.”

  He saw the conflict in her eyes. “I understand.”

  “What would you do?”

  “I would fight, but I don’t have a kid, or a father who’s still disabled—or a dog,” he added as Sadie came running down the hill to greet him. He leaned over to pet her as she jumped up, licking his hand, his face, whatever she could reach.