Firefly Mountain by Christine DePetrillo

Author:Christine DePetrillo [DePetrillo, Christine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance
Published: 2015-08-25T16:00:00+00:00

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Patrick didn’t like the churning in his stomach, the constant rolling. Battling that blaze had felt too much like trying to get his sisters out of their burning home. Like if he didn’t stop the fire, he’d be hurting someone important to him. He’d be hurting Gini. When had she become important? Probably the moment he’d touched his lips to hers. Now he’d had her taut ass in his hands too, and the pull toward her had increased to a perilous level.

He pulled off his gear and left it in the hands of one of the fighters to bring back to the station. His T-shirt and jeans were sweat-soaked, but they were all he had. Running a hand through his hair and accepting a towel from one of the EMTs on the scene, he fixed himself up as best he could. He stopped at his truck for his investigation kit, and was beside Gini, Mason, and Midas in front of the bookstore within a couple of minutes. Huge spotlights had been set up so artificial daylight illuminated the wreckage.

“Shall we?” Mason asked. He let Patrick and Midas go first.

“Look for the candle,” Patrick said. “That’s our best clue that it’s the same perpetrator. Midas, venez.”

They traveled in three different directions. Mason to the left, Patrick and Midas straight, and Gini to the right toward her studio wall. Gini began snapping pictures, capturing the carnage on film.

After a few moments of silent searching, Mason yelled, “I found it here, guys.”

Gini and Patrick joined Mason by the service door at the back of the bookstore. He shined his flashlight into a narrow closet. On the floor beneath the charred remains of shelving was a banana yellow gob of wax.

“Sentez, Midas.” Patrick pointed to the ground near the wax.

Midas slapped his nose to the ground and sniffed along what was an invisible line to the humans in the store. He barked when he got to the end of the line, retraced the trail, and barked again. Patrick kneeled and ran a finger over a spot Midas kept pawing at.

“Gasoline,” Patrick said.

“Why don’t we smell it in here?” Gini asked.

“It’s just a thin drizzle. Didn’t need much of it with all these books for fuel. Same at the barn at Meadow Cliff. Hay is super combustible all on its own.” Patrick returned to the closet. “Gini, get some shots of that.” He moved out of the way then added, “Please.”

Gini smirked and bent to get a clear shot of the candle remains. After shooting from several angles, she stepped back. “All set.”

“May I?” Patrick held up an evidence bag from his kit.

“Absolutely,” Mason said. “We’ve got quite a collection going.”

Gini squeezed Mason’s shoulder. “It’s another piece of the puzzle, Mason. You’ll figure it all out.”

He pulled away to investigate other areas of the store.

Patrick reached a gloved hand into the blackened closet and picked up the wax blob. He waved it under his nose and inhaled.

“That one scented too?” Gini asked.

“Yes, but I don’t know what it is.

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