Firebreak: A Mystery (12 page)

She finally stood and took a long breath. At this time of the evening the creosote and sage opened their pores and the extra moisture in the air caused a pungent, tart smell like no other. The sun was slipping below the horizon line now, trailing a swath of purple and orange across the floor of the desert. It was Josie’s favorite time of the day, when life slowed to nothing, no sound but a few crickets and the wind brushing through the scattered cedar and pi
ñ
on pine.

She began the quarter-mile walk to Dell’s place, ready to take her mind off Dillon.

As she approached the cabin she saw Dell standing through his sheer living room curtains, most likely ready to settle into his chair with a book for the night. She walked up onto the porch, tapped twice on the door, yelled hello, and stepped inside.

Josie knew immediately that something wasn’t right by the look of shock on Dell’s face. She had entered his home the same way as she had hundreds of times before, with just a quick knock and a yell. As Josie registered his expression she sensed motion and turned to see a woman walking out of Dell’s kitchen carrying two glasses of red wine. The awkward moment was quickly made worse as Chester pushed in behind Josie and rushed the woman, causing her to spill wine down the front of her top and onto the floor.

Josie clapped her hands and yelled for Chester, who was as shocked at the stranger in Dell’s home as Josie was. Dell stood silently watching the two women and the dog fuss around each other.

“I’m so sorry. I’m Josie, Dell’s neighbor. I didn’t realize Dell was having company.” She looked at Dell accusingly, as if irritated that he’d not bothered to tell her of his plans.

“That’s quite all right,” the woman said, setting the glasses on the end table beside the couch. Her eyes were wide and she looked at Dell, who seemed unable to speak. The woman was clearly shocked by Josie’s presence. “I’ll just get some water on this and it will be fine.”

She walked down the hallway into the bathroom and Josie looked at Dell, dumbfounded. She’d lived next to Dell for years, and to her knowledge he had never once invited a woman to his house. And this woman seemed to know her way around Dell’s cabin. Josie realized with a start that he was wearing a new pair of jeans and a button-down shirt that she’d never seen and his cowboy boots were clean. He still said nothing and instead looked down at Chester, who was demanding his attention. He avoided looking at her and Josie realized he was more embarrassed to be caught with this woman in his house than Josie was at barging in.

“I’m sorry. I should have knocked. We’ll get out of your way.” Josie walked toward the door and snapped her fingers for Chester. He lumbered over to her, always ready for a walk outside.

“That’s fine,” Dell said, his tone gruff but, Josie thought, also apologetic. “I’ll talk to you later.”

Josie left with Chester at her heels, hoping to get beyond the door before the woman returned in her wine-stained shirt. Dillon was gone and trying to move on with his life, and she couldn’t accept that. Dell had apparently come out of a thirty-something-year rut, and she wasn’t sure she could accept that. She walked down the lane wondering if the common denominator in her various troubled relationships was her.

TEN

The Marfa airport was located on US-90, about forty-five minutes from her home. When she arrived she found the pilot readying the copter and Doug standing twenty feet away, hands in his pockets, looking anxious to get going. Just a few minutes later the low thump of the rotor started and the pilot beckoned them forward. They boarded, belted into the bench in the back, and adjusted their headsets to allow communication with the pilot.

About five miles into the flight the blackened earth suddenly spread out beneath them like seawater, covering everything in its path. The ash appeared painted with long black brushstrokes. What surprised Josie were the stretches of beige grass dotted with scrub and trees untouched by the fire, tiny island oases in the middle of the ravaged land.

The pilot spoke into the headset and turned his head back to look at Josie. “We’re approaching Prentice Canyon Road directly ahead of us. The chief did an excellent job predicting that firebreak. You can see where the trucks were down below. They fought the fire from the flanks and had it about closed off by the time it reached the road.”

Josie looked out her side window and saw exactly what the pilot was referring to. Small fingers of black burned up to the road along Prentice Canyon, but the fire had obviously burned out there.

Doug spoke into the headset. “The wind finally cut us a break. We had the Bomberos de Piedra Lambrada fire squad out of Mexico giving wind and weather patterns throughout the night. They were a huge help.”

As the pilot flew farther west, Josie noticed the change in the burn pattern below.

“Check that out,” Doug said, sounding anxious even through the headset. “There’s the Nixes’ house, surrounded by black on all sides though the fire had all but died out across the road.”

Josie nodded. The proof was there. She looked at Doug and hoped the photographs he was taking now would tell the story. The land around the Nixes’ house was charred black, the trees burned almost completely down to the ground. A half-mile away from the house, on all sides, the fire damage was minimal.

“It’s a good thing the wind died down or we could have lost the entire western part of the county,” said Doug.

Josie couldn’t help looking farther westward in the direction of her house, directly in the line of fire.

*   *   *

When the helicopter landed she saw the smoke jumpers standing around by the jump plane. The group of ten or fifteen guys wore rumpled navy-blue Montana Fire and Rescue T-shirts and work boots. They stood around talking, in no hurry to take off. She ran over to check in with Pete. He was standing beside his jumpsuit and a pile of gear, talking with the other guys. He noticed her approaching, waved her over, and gave her a hug.

“I don’t want to keep you,” said Josie. “I just wondered if you’d have an evening free before you head back to Montana.”

“Tonight. I already made plans for us. You free?”

“Oh!”

“We’re working with Doug today, but we’re headed to Big Bend for a practice run with the Mexicans this evening. I want you to come with us.”

“I’d love to watch you guys train. What time are you leaving?”

“Be here at five. Wear jeans and boots. You drive and I’ll ride with you. We’ll follow the van.”

“As long as I can get away from the investigation, I’ll be here.”

*   *   *

At one o’clock that afternoon Josie and Otto sat in their office, discussing the strategy for the questioning as they waited for Billy and Brenda Nix to arrive. While the two were the prime suspects in the murder investigation, she and Otto decided not to interview them separately during their first meeting. Because the couple came back freely to talk with the police, Josie didn’t have to Mirandize them. Once their rights were read the attorneys would be brought in and the conversation would stop. The goal for now was to get as much information as they could before the Nixes clammed up and requested counsel.

When Lou buzzed the intercom to announce the Nixes, Josie went downstairs to greet them. They stood side by side in the waiting area just inside the front door. Billy wore a plaid Western-style shirt, dark blue jeans, and cowboy boots. Josie thought he looked like the country singer Trace Adkins, with the same large build and good ol’ boy stance. Brenda stood next to him wearing white capri pants and a navy-blue short-sleeved top with a silver necklace and matching earrings. Josie thought she looked like a sturdy woman who could handle tragedy in complete control, doling out instructions and maintaining order. Maybe the outsider status she had within her own family had given her a tough fa
ç
ade.

As Josie approached the waiting area, she noticed the marked difference in the couple’s expressions. Billy had the wide-eyed expectant look of one bracing for terrible news. Brenda’s features looked pinched, her mouth forming a stern frown, her eyes small and determined. Billy was imagining the worst while Brenda was already preparing to take care of the aftermath. Josie wondered how many times this dynamic had played out in their marriage.

Josie pushed open the half door separating the waiting area from Lou’s dispatch station. Lou sat behind her computer talking on the phone, paying no attention to the drama. Josie stretched a hand out to Billy first.

“Thanks for coming in, Billy. We’re going to head upstairs where we can sit and talk.” Josie motioned toward the back of the office and then Billy shook her hand and tipped his head but said nothing. He walked past her and Josie stretched her hand out to Brenda. “I don’t believe we’ve met before. I’m chief of police, Josie Gray.”

Brenda shook Josie’s hand. “Pleased to meet you.” Her tone was curt, as if she were meeting a business rival.

Josie led them upstairs to the office where Otto was setting coffee cups in the middle of the conference table. Otto introduced himself and the group briefly discussed the long drive from Austin before settling into chairs around the table. Josie asked if they would mind if she recorded the interview. Neither of the Nixes objected, so she set up the recorder and stated the date, time, location, and people present.

“I appreciate you coming in today,” she said. “As you know, the wildfire that swept through Arroyo County has caused a great deal of damage to Artemis. Downtown was spared but the northeastern part of the county was hit hard. The fire reached the west side and died out. Unfortunately, your house wasn’t spared. The fire chief and the fire marshal are working as fast and as carefully as they can to assess damage and get people back to their homes, but safety is first priority.”

“Can you tell us anything about the damage?” Brenda asked.

“I’m sorry. At this time we don’t have enough information to do that. To begin, I’d like you to start by telling us about the evacuation. When did you leave, what route did you take, and so on.”

Billy glanced at Brenda, who spoke first, looking directly at Josie. “We’d been listening off and on to the public-radio station about the fire up north. Then Hank called Sunday afternoon and gave us an update on the evacuation. Billy and I talked it over and decided we should go ahead and leave before it got too late.”

“Is Hank a close friend to you and Billy?” Josie asked.

“Yes, he’s a good friend. He takes care of his musicians. He was calling everyone, the bands, regulars at the bar, just letting people know what was going on. The Hell-Bent ended up the gathering place for everyone. It was far enough out of the fire’s path that we were all hoping it would remain safe.”

“What time did you decide to leave town?” Josie asked.

“Hank called about noon. We finally decided to pack up at about two and left around five that evening.”

“Did you pack many belongings?”

Brenda glanced at Billy as if passing off the baton.

“We mostly grabbed the instruments, the guitars and amps,” he said. “We got them and some suitcases packed for a couple days away. We were worried but I never thought it would actually come through our area. You just never figure it’ll happen to you.”

“When you left at five, where did you go?” Josie asked.

“We went to the Hell-Bent to pick up my guitar. She’s my favorite. An old Fender I’ve had for twenty years. I couldn’t leave without her.”

“Who did you talk to at the bar?”

Billy drew his eyebrows together as if questioning her motives. “Why’s that matter?”

“We’ll get to that,” Josie said. “Right now I’m just gathering information from as many sources as I can find.”

“For a wildfire?” Brenda asked.

“We’ll get to that shortly. Let’s stick to the evacuation. Tell me what happened when you left the house that evening.”

Josie glanced at Otto, who was sitting quietly across from Brenda with his hands folded on a legal pad in front of him. His expression was kind and nonjudgmental. He hadn’t picked up his pen since they sat down, signaling that it was a friendly conversation, not an interrogation.

“We drove straight to the Hell-Bent when we left home,” Brenda said. “I saw Yvonne Ferrario and sat down to talk with her while Billy went back to the dressing room.”

Josie looked at Billy and he continued. “I told Hank I was going to grab my guitar and he sent Angela back to unlock the door. We just talked a minute about the fire and how awful it all was. Then we left. I found Brenda talking to Yvonne and we left the bar by about six.”

“Where did you go after that?” she asked.

“We drove to Austin,” he said.

“Why not stay in Presidio or somewhere closer?”

“Billy’s been playing the bars in Austin,” Brenda said. “We had to leave home anyway, it made sense to drive on to Austin. Check in with the bar owners and book a few gigs.”

“What hotel did you stay at?”

“The Hampton Inn. Downtown. We stopped at Gilly’s for an hour or so to have a drink before we checked in.”

Josie deliberately avoided asking how they paid for the bill. She would track down credit card receipts later. For now, she just wanted a basic time frame. As she requested more specific information, the Nixes would most likely feel threatened, and the details would dry up.

“Do you know roughly what time you arrived in Austin?”

“It was one in the morning,” Billy said. “I remember because the bars close at two. We drove by the Hampton and could tell there were rooms available. The parking lot wasn’t full so we just drove on to Gilly’s. We checked into the hotel sometime after two.”

“Did you book any gigs while you were there?”

“Billy talked with a couple bar owners.” Brenda glanced at him as if requesting confirmation but didn’t wait for him to speak. “He went to the Baker’s Dozen and Mick and Eddy’s yesterday. And, we both met with the owner of the Sage. We booked a few dates in November.”

“Did you talk to anyone from Artemis before you returned my call yesterday?” Josie asked.

Brenda looked surprised. “No.” She turned to Billy. “Did you?”