Chapter 2 #2
So be it, he told himself and his cat. Better to be the bad guy with a clipboard than the one who had to explain to families why their loved ones weren’t coming home tonight… or any other night.
Working together, he, Ward, and Evan methodically isolated the dangerous circuits and used the thermal camera to root out the remaining hot spots behind the walls in the hallway and office.
Given the age of this wooden building, it was a miracle the fire hadn’t spread beyond the utility hallway, storeroom, and the small back office. The main bar area and dining room had sustained only smoke and water damage, which would still require major renovations, though.
As they worked, Gabriel was taking mental notes for his official report. The violations here weren’t just numerous, they were the kind that could get this place shut down permanently.
∞∞∞
“Crew, you’re clear to stand down. I’m releasing the engines to return to station,” Gabriel announced to the crowd of volunteer firefighters an hour later. “Good work tonight.”
He’d just finished his inspection, verified that all the utilities had been shut off, that no rekindle potential remained, and the structure was now safe enough to hand over to the property owner.
Then he made the official radio call to Dispatch, reporting that the fire was under control and to mark the incident contained at 22:41 hours.
Evan and the others were now busily rolling up the hoses and stowing all their equipment.
The frigid night air tasted clean after the smoky interior, though the scent of burned wood and charred plastic still clung to Gabriel’s gear in an astringent cloud.
“Looks like we got lucky tonight,” Maggie said, removing her helmet.
“Luck had nothing to do with it,” Gabriel replied, more curtly than he intended. “If the wiring in this place had been up to code, there wouldn’t have been a fire at all.”
Maggie glanced toward Kymberlie, who was now speaking to a cluster of her employees. “Poor Kymber. The Hair of the Dog is everything to her.”
“You two are friends?” Gabriel asked, keeping his tone professionally neutral despite his gathering dismay.
“Yeah. I mean, everyone knows everyone in these parts,” Maggie replied. “Her younger sister, Violet, works for me at Cinnamon + Sugar. And The Hair of the Dog is one of the few places folks can go for live music and dancing.”
The unspoken message was clear: Don’t be too hard on her.
Figured as much. In a small town like Bearpaw Ridge, Maggie would know all the other business owners here.
Gabriel felt a twinge of guilt mixed with irritation. This was exactly how things had started back in Granite Gap… the not-so-subtle pressure to look the other way because a business was “important to the town.”
“I don’t shut places down for fun,” he said, more sharply than intended. He turned to tape a bright-orange Unsafe to Occupy notice to the front door. “I do it so we don’t have to carry people out in body bags.”
“Good,” Maggie said, surprising him. “You’re exactly the kind of fire marshal we need.”
With that, she headed toward her pickup, where her mate Cade stood waiting for her.
As he moved around the building taping notices to all the doors and windows, Gabriel had the distinct feeling he’d just passed a test he hadn’t known he was taking.
Now for the fun part.
Taking a deep breath, Gabriel squared his shoulders and looked for Kymberlie.
The earlier crowd had dispersed, leaving just the club’s employees, the fire crew packing up equipment, and Kymberlie.
She stood by the club’s main entrance, her blonde hair escaping from what had once been a neat ponytail, still clutching the blanket around her like a cape.
Even in the harsh floodlights from the fire trucks, with a worried frown etching deep lines between her brows, she was striking. Not conventionally beautiful, perhaps, but arresting—a presence that commanded attention.
His attention. And his cat’s.
Their eyes met as she approached, and Gabriel felt that strange jolt of recognition again. Not that he knew her, but something more primal.
Then he caught her scent and stopped short. My cat’s picked a wolf shifter for its mate? The hell?
Cross-lineage matings had been unheard-of back in Granite Gap. But from what he’d seen in Bearpaw Ridge so far, no one batted an eye at them here.
“Ms. Tringstad?” he asked, bracing himself to deliver the bad news.
“Call me Kymberlie,” she corrected automatically, her eyes never leaving his face. “Um, how bad is it?”
Direct. He could appreciate that, even if the hopeful look in her eyes was killing him right now.
“The fire’s out. Structural damage is minimal, mainly confined to your storeroom, back hallway, and part of your office.” He watched her shoulders relax slightly before adding, “But there are serious code violations throughout the building. Dangerous ones.”
Her posture stiffened again. “What do you mean?”
“Whoever wired your place clearly did a piss-poor job. There’s exposed wiring behind your bar, and overloaded circuits.
And when we pulled the drywall in your storeroom to verify we’d knocked down the fire, we found wiring that was never up to code in the first place.
” Gabriel kept his tone matter-of-fact, not accusatory.
“Have you had any electrical work done since you purchased the building?”
She shook her head, her expression defensive but not hostile. “The previous owner assured me everything was up to code.”
“I see.” Gabriel nodded, unsurprised. He’d heard this story before. “I’ll need to return and carry out a full inspection before I can clear the building for reopening.”
Her gaze shifted to the front door and widened when she read the notice he’d posted.
“You’re shutting me down?” she asked, her eyes wide with dismay.
“Just temporarily,” Gabriel clarified. “Until I can verify the extent of the violations and determine what repairs are needed.”
“And how long will that take?” she demanded.
“The inspection? I can come back first thing tomorrow morning. As for the repairs…” He hesitated, knowing what his answer would mean to her. “That depends on what we find and how quickly you can get licensed contractors in to fix the issues.”
Kymberlie’s gaze swept over her club.
“But I have a major booking tomorrow night,” she protested. “Live band, and the tickets sold out weeks ago. If—if the club’s closed, I’ll have to refund everyone.” He heard the panic in her voice, and his chest squeezed.
Fuck.
He understood the razor-thin margins most places operated on.
“I’m sorry,” he said, and meant it. “But I can’t clear this building for occupancy until I know it’s safe.”
She studied him for a long moment, neither angry nor pleading, just intensely present. “I heard the county had hired a new fire marshal after Charlie Einarsson retired.”
It wasn’t a question.
“Yup, that’s me. Started a couple of months ago.”
“And here you are, already making friends,” she said with a hint of dry humor that surprised him.
Despite himself, Gabriel felt the corner of his mouth twitch upward. “It’s not my job to make friends.”
“Obviously.” She sighed, running a hand through her disheveled hair and loosening more strands from her ponytail. “What time tomorrow?”
“8 a.m. work for you?”
Kymberlie nodded, her gaze shifting back to the building. “I’ll be here. With coffee. I’m gonna need a lot after tonight.”
“At least no one got hurt,” Gabriel told her. “In my line of work, that’s the best possible outcome.”
That got him a weary smile. “You’re right. It could’ve been a whole helluva lot worse.”
Gabriel’s cat wanted to linger and draw out the conversation with her as long as possible. He shut it down ruthlessly.
“See you in the morning.” Gabriel turned away, knowing all hell was likely to break loose when he went back inside tomorrow and conducted a more thorough inspection.