Chapter Six
Smoke clings to the early morning fog around Bearclaw Lake.
The guys brought Tabitha to the section of lawn where we parked the vehicles.
I crouch down beside the shaking young woman.
They’ve got an oxygen mask on her, and her eyes seem like they're bugging out of her head.
They're the same shade of blue as Sammy’s.
Her brow furrows like she’s on the verge of tears. I need her to calm down because I need straight answers. I take an inhale along with her and lengthen my exhale in the hope she’ll do the same. “Where did Ollie enter the woods?” I ask at the end of the exhale.
She points to a section of forest toward the lake.
“There?” I point in the same direction for confirmation.
She pulls off the mask. “We were camping by the lake.” Her coughing turns into a fit. I stand. I don’t have time for details, and she doesn’t have the breath to give them.
She tugs at the leg of my gear. “Please find him. He was going back to the campsite to get my lucky sweatshirt. The fire happened so quickly.” Her eyes fill with tears. “I love him so much.”
Ollie risked his life for a lucky sweatshirt. Fucking hell. “We’re going to get him, okay? Ollie’s a strong guy.”
I tighten the straps on my mask and head in the direction Tabitha pointed. I’m on full alert, my eyes scanning for Ollie, my ears trained for a human voice and signs of sudden spread from the fire.
The crack of a falling tree stops me in my tracks. It’s ten yards ahead to the right. If Ollie is caught underneath it, I’ve got seconds to pull him out alive.
But he shouldn’t have gone over there if he was headed for the shoreline where they were camping.
But he could’ve gotten lost.
I’ve got one second to decide whether to check if he’s under the tree.
I head to the shoreline where they were camping, trusting that Ollie, who spends most of his days in Bearclaw, didn’t get disoriented.
I scan the section of forest ahead. At eleven o’clock is a crumpled form on the ground. My heart pounds. Every step closer tells me it’s him.
He's doubled over on the ground coughing. I can’t waste my breath trying to communicate through the mask. I haul him over my shoulder. He wheezes in my ear. It sounds like he’s trying to tell me something.
Sorry, Dude. No communication is possible.
Branches fall a few feet behind us. Fuck, the fire is taking out the trees. We’ve got to get to the shoreline. With Ollie struggling for breath into my ear, I run as fast as possible. A whooshing sound has me turning hard to the left.
The sudden torque is too much from my hamstring. Pain sears the back of my leg. “Ollie.” I don’t think I can hold him. The muscle is too weak.
He coughs in my ear.
Fuck it. There’s no stopping. No slowing down. I limp and it hurts so fucking badly. My hip is on fire. My lungs are stretched to capacity.
I break through the trees to the stretch of lawn before the lake. The air is still smoky, but a hell of a lot clearer than inside the forest. I place Ollie on the ground. His face is nearly purple.
I collapse beside him and pull off my mask. “Hang in there, Buddy. I’m going to get someone to bring you a respirator.”
Jesse arrives with the respirator in less than five minutes.
I have to stand to help get Ollie set up.
I rise on my good leg. Breaking each movement of my bad leg into one fraction of a step at a time, I manage to put pressure on it.
The hamstring holds. It’s fucking painful, but it holds. I can get the job done.
Jesse tells me about the progress they've made containing the fire. “It definitely started with the car. The arsonist struck again.”
It was Sammy’s car. Not Tabitha’s. Does it matter? Was the arsonist using the same M.O. as last time? Just use the property to start a fire? If so, why did he wait for the car? He could’ve done it sooner. He could’ve set something on fire besides Sammy’s car?
I hate the direction this is pointing in.
“It’s gonna be a long day,” Jesse says, “but we’ve got a handle on it.” He crouches down beside Ollie. “You ready to get out of here?”
Ollie has been sucking on clean air and watching us go back and forth about the fire. He takes off the mask and points to a pile of camping equipment down the shoreline. “Can I get our stuff?”
Stupid, lucky sweatshirt. I test out my hamstring with a few steps. The initial shock of pain has eased. The hamstring didn’t tear, but it came damn close. “I’ll get it.”
There are half a dozen cars in Sammy’s driveway. I pull behind the one at the end. In the passenger seat, Tabitha is sound asleep. “We’re here,” I say gently and shut off the engine.
It’s almost noon. Tabitha got the all-clear to head home after being checked at the Bearclaw Pass Health Center. Ollie is still there. Chief asked if I’d take Tabitha home and brief Sammy on what we knew about the arson.
I wish I had better news. She texted earlier to ask how I was doing. I texted back to tell her I was bringing Tabitha home and would give her details of the fire.
Tabitha sits up in her seat. “Thanks so much for bringing me home.”
“It’s my pleasure.”
By the time we’re out of the Telluride, the family is heading toward us. Sammy and Lara walk alongside a man who’s twenty years older and several inches taller than I am. Mark, her ex? Her dad? Her mom Ellen and two other women engulf Tabitha in big hugs.
“Thanks for bringing Tabitha home safely.” Sammy's brow furrows as she gazes up at me. “Mom and Dad are going to take Lara back to their place, along with everyone else, so we can talk about the fire.”
She glances over at the house. A guy stands on the porch watching us. I’m guessing it’s Mark.
I can practically smell the country club from here. He’s got on a neat sweater vest and dark jeans. He’s not smiling, not frowning. Calm and controlled, he takes in the scene. If he blinks, I miss it. This is a man who believes in his authority.
Sammy’s mom pulls me into a hug. “Thank you for everything. I want to hear all about what happened, but we need to take Lara back to our place.”
“I understand.”
Sammy and I walk toward the house while everyone else leaves in an enormous SUV.
“Mark’s here,” Sammy says. “I think it’s best if he hears everything.”
He’s still standing on the porch like he owns the place. My muscles flex like I’m bracing for a fight, which sends a shot of pain through my bad hip. I take the few stairs up to the porch and hold out my hand. “You must be Mark.”
“I am. And you’re the fireman?”
“Brady Wilkinson. I’m part of the fire brigade.”
He shakes my hand with the firm businessman’s grip, and I give it right back. “I heard you used to play for the Sharks.”
“I did a while back.”
“We’re fans,” he says blandly, studying me like I’m the one person he’ll never trust. “What can you tell us about the fire?”
“I can tell you everything I know.”
“Let’s chat inside,” Sammy says and steps through the front door.
Mark and I stand there, sizing each other up. Who follows Sammy first? Or who tells the other guy to go ahead? Who’s in control?
I wait.
Mark nods at the door for me to go first.
I enter. It’s a stalemate.
Sammy takes the seat opposite me at the kitchen table. Mark sits at the end. I talk directly to Sammy. I can’t look at Mark. Our horns are already locked, and I need to stay calm and focused.
I tell her about the car fire and the spread into the woods. I talk about doing aerial drops and cutting down hazardous trees. I let her know the property took a hit. But we’re reasonably sure we’ve stopped the spread.
“The fire was no accident. We think it's time you assume the arsonist is coming after you. He had plenty of opportunities to set a fire before Tabitha left your car there. But he waited. You can’t dismiss it as a coincidence.”
“That’s it, then,” Mark says. “You and Lara need to leave. It’s not safe here.”
Sammy sighs, her gaze directed to the woods behind the house.
Mark glares at me. “Do any of your people have any idea who this guy is? And why he’s going after Sammy?”
I shake my head.
Sammy folds her hands on the table. “If this guy is after me, why hasn’t he struck here? At this house?”
I shrug. “We don’t know how he operates. We’re trying to keep you safe, and the safest thing you can do is assume he’s after you.”
Sammy holds my gaze. “But you don’t have any direct evidence.”
“A burned down B&B and a torched car should be evidence enough,” Mark says. “Dammit, Sammy. You’re a target and that makes Lara a target, too.” He drums his fingers on the table. “You’re both coming back to LA with me. Tomorrow.”
Sammy looks at him like he’s crazy. “No, we’re not. Mom and Dad will stay here with us. Or we’ll stay at their place. No one has made a direct threat against me. This has to do with the property.”
“That’s dangerous thinking. I need you two to come back with me. It’s not safe here.” The way he talks to Sammy like she's a child makes me want to lay him out with a fist. But, fuck, he’s right. She needs to be rational.
“We’ve been safe here. Both fires both took place at the B&B.”
“I get it,” he says, leaning back and nodding like he’s solved the puzzle. “You don’t want to come back to LA because of Gabriella. You can’t accept that we’re two adults with feelings for one another.”
Sammy gasps. “How dare you. You think I’d stay here and expose Lara to danger to avoid seeing you and Gabriella acting like boyfriend and girlfriend?” The venom in her voice is admirable.
“Yeah, I do.” Mark gives her a cocky smile.
I’ve got a few questions about the Gabriella situation, but if I stay here another minute, there’s a very real possibility of introducing my fist to Mark’s nose. I stand. “I’m heading out now. Sammy, feel free to be in touch with any questions you might have.”
She stands. “Wait. I’ll see you to your car.”
If Sammy and I were legit friends, I’d have a few parting words for Mark. But we’re not there. So I settle for a threatening glare. “I hope you have a safe trip back to LA. If you've got questions about the fire or the progress of the investigation, ask Sammy. She'll answer them.”
Mark smirks. “I’ll let her know if I have any.”
Outside, the sun has dipped behind the Baretooth Mountains. There’s a part of me that’s very satisfied to hear Mark’s got a girlfriend and Sammy’s seeing his true colors.
It means if she moves back to LA, it wouldn't be for asshole Mark. It’d be for her safety. And it might be the best thing for her.
“I’m sorry you had to hear all that about Mark and Gabriella,” Sammy says as we descend the porch steps.
“It’s none of my business.”
We stop next to the Telluride. “I got a text yesterday from one of my friends, one of my best friends. Or she was. We lived a block away in Manhattan Beach. Now she and Mark are seeing each other. She sent me the text before he told me. It’s been a mess.
” Sammy bites down on her lip. “Honestly, I’d expect that kind of thing from him. But not from her.”
“That must’ve been horrible.”
She folds her arms. “I’m going to send Lara back to LA with Mark. She’ll get a week in LA to catch up with her friends and her grandparents. I’ll do some soul-searching about the retreat. She’s my everything. I don’t want anything to happen to her.” Tears form in Sammy’s eyes.
“That means protecting yourself, too. She needs you.”
Sammy nods. “I’ve got a lot of thinking to do.
I’m sorry tonight is out for drinks at Winkles.
” She brightens like she’s come up with an idea.
“But how about Italian night at Pines Diner tomorrow? I never do well when Lara goes to Mark’s.
Honestly, I know I’m being selfish. But I could use the company. ”
“Sure,” I say without hesitation. “Italian night is one of my favorites.”
“Yeah?” She smiles, and I get warm all over. It’s the first smile I’ve seen from her today. I didn’t realize how good it’d make me feel.
“Great, then. I’ll see you tomorrow.” It occurs to me that Sammy no longer has a car. “Should I pick you up?”
“That’s probably a good idea.” She laughs dryly.
“How about seven?”
“Sounds good.”
I barely notice the pain through my hamstring as I get into the car. I wave goodbye before pulling out of her driveway.
Damn, I’m psyched for tomorrow. But I can’t let myself get carried away. Sammy might be the next one heading to LA.
For her to stay, she needs to feel safe in Whispering Pines. That means the police need to figure out who set the fires at Bearclaw Lake. For her sake, and for all our sakes, that person needs to be found.
Nature alone gives us dozens of wildfires each year. We can’t have some asshole madman adding even one more.