Chapter 13
Ethan could barely breathe, but that had nothing to do with the smoke he’d inhaled. Someone had set their new SAR base on fire.
And Maggie had been there.
She could have been hurt. Hell, she was wearing a fucking oxygen mask.
He swung his gaze to her in the back of the ambulance, feeling that familiar anger and helplessness crawl around his chest, trying to punch its way out.
Who did this? Why did they do it?
“Hey.”
He turned at Connor’s voice. But it wasn’t only Connor there. The entire team was scattered around the lot beside the building. As well as Ward, his deputies, a firetruck, and an ambulance. Even Ferris had come down.
“She’s okay,” Connor said, voice low. “And thanks to both of you, the fire didn’t spread. It was isolated to that one room.”
Ward laughed from across the lot at something his deputy said, and the sound made Ethan’s teeth grind together. “You know Ward was almost smiling when he got here.” He was happy someone had set the old firehouse ablaze.
Asshole.
Connor scowled. “The guy’s a dick.”
A deputy left the little group, and Ward called out, “Bring me back some apple pie.”
The fucker wasn’t even trying to hide that he didn’t give a shit.
The fury swelled—tight. Hot. And fuck, he couldn’t contain it.
He stormed across the lot.
“Ethan.”
He ignored Connor’s call and stopped in front of Ward, barely restraining himself from grabbing the useless sheriff. “When are you gonna interview your son?”
Ward lifted a brow. “Gerome?”
“Yes, Gerome. The guy who’s been bad-mouthing us all over town.”
Ward cleared his throat and stepped closer. “Son, you better watch what you say right now. That’s my family you’re talking about.”
“And your number-one suspect.”
Ward’s cheeks reddened and he opened his mouth, but before a word could get out, a deputy touched his shoulder and looked at Ethan. “We’ll do our job and question all relevant people.”
Ethan read the name badge—Deputy Eli Cox. “Do you consider Gerome a relevant person?”
When Cox took a second too long to answer, Ferris stepped in, giving Ward a narrowed look. “Yes. His team will question his son. And he will figure out who did this.”
A smug expression crossed Ward’s face.
Ethan turned. It was his only defense to stop from hitting the guy.
Maggie was up and walking away from the ambulance. When he reached her, she touched his arm. “Are you okay?”
Not even close, but this wasn’t about him. “Where’s your oxygen mask?”
“The paramedic cleared me. I’m fine.” She shot her gaze toward Ward, then lowered her voice. “I’m sorry I didn’t see more of the guy who ran.”
Maggie had given her description, and yeah, it wasn’t a lot to go on—black shirt and pants. Around six feet.
“You don’t need to apologize. We’re going to find the guy responsible.” We being him and his team, not Ward.
Maggie shot a glance to her car. “If it’s okay, I’m going to head home.”
“I’ll drive you.”
“No, I feel all right. My chest is just a little tight. Plus, I know you want to talk to the guys and start sorting things out to get the place fixed. If I stay, you’ll only worry about me.”
“If you go, I’ll worry about you.”
Her brows flickered. Then, without any warning, she stepped into his chest and wrapped her arms around him, leaning her head against his body.
He wrapped his own arms around her and tugged her that bit closer. Shit, she felt good. Familiar and soft, like she’d never stopped belonging there. He hadn’t hugged her in years, yet standing here, every one of them disappeared.
“I’m sorry about the fire. But I’m glad you’re okay.” She pulled back. “I’ll see you later, Ethan. If you or your team are hungry, I left pancakes by the door.”
“Text me when you get home so I know you’re safe.”
“K.” She leaned up and pecked his cheek.
He watched her walk to her RAV4, not taking his eyes off her until the car disappeared down the drive.
When he turned back, the ambulance was pulling away, and one of the two deputy vehicles was leaving.
His team moved toward him, all but Ryan, who was talking to the fire chief.
“How was she?” Joel asked.
“She says she’s fine, but she inhaled some smoke. She seemed more worried about me.” It was ridiculous. She’d inhaled smoke. She’d been put in danger coming to see him.
Ryan came to stand with them.
“What did he say?” Ethan asked.
“A glass bottle filled with gasoline and a rag in the top was thrown through the window.”
Zac cursed. “And the little shit did it at night, so we weren’t all here to chase his ass down.”
Ethan looked at Ward again. The sheriff was standing by his patrol car, still laughing with one of his deputies.
“Ward say anything?” Ethan asked.
Ryan’s jaw visibly clicked. “Said he’d follow a lead. Wouldn’t tell me what that lead was. Then said if he didn’t find the guy, justice would come knockin’.”
“I’m going to talk to Gerome tomorrow.”
Tension filled the air at Ethan’s statement before Zac spoke. “You sure that’s a good idea?”
“No. But I’m not sitting around doing nothing.”
Ryan frowned at him. “Want one of us with you?”
Ethan shook his head. “Two or more will be a threat he’ll report to Daddy. Me and him is simply a conversation.”
“Be careful,” Connor said.
“Always am.”
Maggie was exhausted. And her chest hurt, and the what-ifs of the night were sitting on her like an impossible weight.
What if Ethan had been in the room with the fire? What if that person hadn’t gone to the old firehouse with the intention of simply starting a fire? What if they’d gone with the intention of directly hurting him or his team?
She rubbed a hand over her chest, the ache thrumming throughout her body.
When she pulled up in front of Polly’s house, she didn’t immediately get out. Instead, she took a moment to sit and breathe through the millions of emotions inside her. Someone hated Ethan and his team being here enough to set fire to their worksite. Was it Gerome? One of his friends? Someone else?
There were too many unanswered questions.
With a sigh, she forced herself out of the car.
Coughing immediately overwhelmed her. The paramedic said she’d be coughing for a while.
He’d suggested she could spend the evening in the local hospital to use the oxygen masks, but she couldn’t think of anything worse.
So when he’d said it was probably unnecessary, she’d jumped at coming home.
As she stepped inside the apartment, her phone lit up with a text.
Ethan: You get home okay?
Maggie: I did. Have you left?
Ethan: Not yet. But I will. How’s your breathing?
Maggie: Absolutely fine.
Well, it wasn’t absolutely fine, but it could be worse.
Ethan: Good. Get some rest, Maggie.
Maggie: You too.
She dropped her cell to the couch, one thing on her mind—a shower. A long, hot, steaming shower to wash away the smoke and everything else the evening had brought.
In the bathroom, she stripped off and stepped under the stream of warm water, a hum slipping from her lips. There was something about a shower after a shitty day that was always so good. She closed her eyes and tipped her face up, letting the water run down her chest.
She reached for her bodywash, only to stop.
It wasn’t there.
She frowned and scanned the floor of the shower, in case she’d left it there. She hadn’t. She checked the counter outside the cubicle. It wasn’t anywhere.
Her warm skin suddenly chilled, a knot forming in her belly.
It had been there this morning, on the ledge designed to hold it. Had Polly taken it? No. She’d said she wouldn’t come into her apartment without her.
So where was it?
A sick feeling began to churn in her belly, but she shoved it down.
Because it wasn’t happening again. It couldn’t be. How would they have even gotten in? The door to the apartment had been locked and nothing was broken.
But that was exactly how it had been in LA too.
Quickly, she stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel. Once it was wrapped tightly around her body, she grabbed her toothbrush, but when she reached for her toothpaste, she froze a second time.
Like her bodywash, it was gone.
What the hell?
The creaking of a floorboard outside the bathroom had Maggie gasping and spinning. Was someone in her apartment? The same person who’d taken her things?
Her heart began to pound, loud, rib-hitting strikes that made her body shake.
And she didn’t have her phone, so she had no way of calling for help.
Shit. What did she do? Stay in here?
No. The lock was flimsy at best. One good shoulder hit and they’d be in. She needed a weapon. She scanned the tiny bathroom. There was nothing in here.
Her gaze landed on her antiperspirant spray. It was all she had. It would work. She could make it work.
Quickly, she lifted it and inched toward the door. No part of her wanted to open it, but she also didn’t want to wait here like a sitting duck. Heck, the old firehouse had already been set alight. If someone did that here in her apartment, she’d be screwed.
One deep breath and she yanked the door open, ready to spray the intruder, when she stopped.
“Polly?”
Polly froze in her pacing and looked at her. “Maggie! Thank God.” She flung her arms around her shoulders. “Don’t ever text me about a fire and not answer my calls again!”
Maggie sagged. No one had broken into her apartment. She was safe. Safe and tired. No, exhausted. A bone-deep, could-barely-stand kind of exhausted.
When Polly leaned back, she frowned at the antiperspirant bottle like she was only just seeing it. “What’s with the deodorant?”
“I thought you were you an intruder.”
“Why would you think that?”
“Um, because I heard someone in here.”
“I knocked and you didn’t answer. I was worried because of the fire and knew you were home because I saw your car.”
“I was also scared because…” She hated saying this out loud. “Things have started going missing again.”
Polly paled. “No.”
“Yes.”
“What?”
“My bodywash and toothpaste.” She lifted a shoulder. “There might be more. I haven’t checked.”
“Was your door unlocked when you got home?”
“No. They could have picked the lock though.”
“Do you want to call Ward?”
“I should call the station. They’ll probably laugh at me because there’s no evidence of a break-in.”
“We still need to report it.” Polly frowned. “What about Ethan?”
She was shaking her head before Polly finished speaking. “No. He’s got enough to deal with tonight.” That was an understatement. He’d looked like he wanted to kill someone after the fire.
“Okay. I’ll help you pack a bag and you can stay in the house with me. I wanted you there anyway, but you went on and on about wanting me to keep my space, but hello, why would I want space from my best friend?”
“Are you sure?”
Polly rolled her eyes and grabbed Maggie’s bag from beneath the bed. “I’ll start packing, you call the station.”