Home Fires (10 page)

“It could have been electrical or poor insulation. At this point, we don’t know. We need to find the source of origin.” He focused his gaze sternly on Charles Kendal, who was busy scribbling away on a note pad. “All of that is off the record, understand?”

“Why didn’t you let it burn all the way down? Looks like it’s going to be a loss anyway,” Tommy said.

“Evidence.” Charles looked up from his note pad with a pointed smile. “Right, Officer?”

Mike’s eyes narrowed underneath the white helmet. “Just remember what I said. This conversation is not for publication.”

The smelly, charred remains of the burned-out condos hissed white steam and took center stage. The party atmosphere evaporated as the crowd slowly disbursed.

“Let’s go, Cecilia. I have everything I need for my story.” Charles tucked a protective hand under her arm.

A state police car with swirling blue lights pulled up close beside them.

“There’s the fire marshal. I’ve got to go.” Mike signaled with a weary wave of his fire glove to the tall, heavyset trooper emerging from the vehicle. “Thanks again for dinner,” he added.

“You’re welcome,” Rose said. “Oh, wait. This is yours.” Reluctantly she handed over his fire monitor, loathe to give up that small part of him she’d had tucked close to her heart. “You’ll need this.”

He nodded briefly, then turned and disappeared into the crowd of emergency personnel working the scene.

“Cecilia? Are you coming?”

Rose gave one last helpless glance around for the Judge. But just like Mike, her old friend was lost from sight. He’d been swallowed up in the midst of smelly white steam, black soot, and burly firemen. She blew a heavy, frustrated sigh and turned toward a waiting Charles.

She was running, trying to escape the flames. Surely around the corner she’d find some place to hide—but she smacked into a dead end, ablaze with crackling, fiery red flames. The smoke intensified, gagging her… All the air was gone and she was suffocating. A heavy sensation pressed on her chest.

She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t breathe!

A loud, protracted meow forced her eyes open. Bozo was perched atop her stomach. His yellow eyes gleamed as he watched her come awake. Rose scratched the cat’s head and waited for her heartbeat to return to normal. No fire, no cause for alarm. She was in the bedroom where she’d grown up, safe in her own bed… and it was already past noon! She sat up in dismay. No wonder Bozo had come investigating. She’d slept away the entire morning. The cat had missed his breakfast, but he didn’t intend on missing lunch.

“Come on, buddy, let’s get you something to eat.” Rose threw back the sheet and crawled out of bed. Bozo padded behind her, meowing loud rebukes.

Coffee set to brewing and Bozo’s dish filled with kibble, Rose headed back upstairs for her second shower in less than twelve hours. She stood under the hot needles of water. The taste of soot lingered in her mouth and on her skin. She tilted back her head and scrubbed harder, trying to wash away the acrid stink of smoke. Half a bottle of shampoo later, her hair still smelled. No wonder firemen wore helmets.

The telephone’s shrill ring started as she stepped out of the shower, but Rose ignored it. Whoever it was could leave a message. She wrapped herself in a terry-cloth robe and toweled her hair dry, then ran a brush through the wet, heavy locks before they tangled. She padded down the stairs, headed for the kitchen and the coffee pot. Only after she’d poured her first cup of coffee did she finally punch the replay button on the answering machine.

She recognized Mike’s voice immediately as the message played. How did he manage to sound so alert? From the way things had looked when she and Charles left, Mike must have been up nearly all night working that fire. Maybe how to stay awake was something they taught in fire school.

“
I was hoping to catch you at home. But obviously you’re out and about.
”

Rose smiled. She
had
been out and about… down the hall in the shower trying to rinse the stink from her hair.

“
I’d like to talk to you about last night.
”

Last night? Memories from the evening before flashed through her mind. She’d been having a great time until his fire monitor had gone off. Thank God no one had been hurt. The entire town had turned out to witness the blaze. So many people had been at the fire scene… Charles Kendall, Tommy Gilbert, the Judge.

Rose frowned as her thoughts inadvertently turned to the Judge. She’d been meaning to pay His Honor a visit. The two of them needed to talk. And after last night’s fire, visiting the Judge would top her list of priorities today.

Mike’s message finished with a polite request to return the call. Rose ignored it and headed back upstairs. She had a busy day in front of her. First she’d swing by the Judge’s office and after that make her daily trek to the hospital. But as for returning Mike’s call? She had no intention of doing so. The fire station was right downtown. Paying a personal visit sounded
much
friendlier.

The Judge’s suite of offices occupied the entire second floor of one of the oldest buildings in downtown James Bay. Rose couldn’t help a small smile as she stopped beneath the sign swinging high above the mahogany door’s imposing entrance.
Harvey John James, Esq., Sole Practitioner, Licensed in Real Estate.
The Judge had always had a touch for the flair of the dramatic. The elegant, gold-embossed sign proclaimed his business title and address with a flourish. He
was
the law firm, as well as owner and proprietor of the building he occupied.

A sudden whoosh of cool air-conditioned comfort filtering from above greeted Rose as she pushed open the front door. Possible scenarios played out in her head as she slowly climbed the plush, carpeted stairs to the Judge’s suite of offices. What would she say when they finally met? Last night’s fire had been a living nightmare and she’d witnessed the devastation with her own eyes. It had to have taken a heavy toll on the Judge. With construction nearly complete, the condos were a total loss. She’d seen his face, haggard and shaken, as he’d spoken with Mike. The Judge had sported every year of his age last night and that scared her. The people she loved were growing older, whether she was there to bear witness or not. Living far away, it was easy not to think about it, but coming home brought a cold dose of reality. Eventually there would come a time when they would all be gone. Her mother, Lil, the Judge. She would be left all alone.

Rose took the few remaining steps with her heart fluttering like the hummingbirds buzzing at the feeder outside her mother’s kitchen window. What in the world was the matter with her? Everyone in her world was very much alive. She forced a deep breath and a thin smile to her face.
Get a grip, Rose
.

Her smile evaporated as her foot hit the top step. The carpet in the spacious reception area was in desperate need of a good vacuuming and the glass coffee table wore a thin coat of dust. Normally the Judge was fastidious when it came to his surroundings. How could he have allowed things to sink into such a state?

And who was the young girl with the blank stare sitting at Judith’s desk? She looked barely out of high school.

“Can I help you?”

“I’d like to see the Judge.”

The girl blinked. “He’s not here.”

“Is Judith available?” The Judge’s longtime legal assistant was a stickler for detail, but she must have taken a long vacation. The office would never have deteriorated like this if Judith were anywhere nearby.

“Who’s Judith?” The girl’s eyebrows scrunched together. “I thought you wanted to see the Judge.”

“I
am
here to see the Judge.”

“Who’s asking?”

“Cecilia Gallagher. I’m an attorney from Grand Rapids.”

“Is this about a case?”

“I’m an old friend,” Rose coolly replied. “When do you expect him back?”

“I really couldn’t say. He just left. He went to see his insurance agent. If you’re a friend of his, then you probably know about that fire last night. I doubt submitting an insurance claim will do him much good, but I suppose he needs the money.” The girl’s voice dropped a notch or two. “My paycheck was two days late last week.”

What kind of people were available for hire nowadays? This girl had no business dissing His Honor. She had no business working in a law firm, or elsewhere, for that matter. Rose held her tongue and anger in check as she fished through her purse for a business card. “Make sure you give this to the Judge.”

The girl’s eyebrows raised. “Arthur, LaCross and Mindel? That’s the biggest law firm in Michigan.” Her face beamed with respect. “You’re welcome to stay if you like. I’ll let you wait in his office. I’m sure he won’t mind.”

Exactly what had the Judge been thinking when he hired this girl? She looked like she couldn’t be trusted to take an order at a fast food restaurant, let alone remember to hand over a business card. Did he really expect this young woman to take Judith’s place, even if only for a few days’ vacation?

“Make sure he knows I stopped by.” Rose hurried down the stairs before she opened her mouth and said something she’d regret. She stepped out into the welcoming afternoon sunshine and gratefully pulled the heavy wooden door shut behind her. A receptionist with a mouth for gossip and an aversion to a dust rag didn’t bode well for the Judge. And wait till Judith got back from her vacation. She would be livid.

“We’re not sure what happened,” Lil confided from her chair at Irene’s bedside. “The Judge told us she retired, but it all seemed rather sudden, if you ask me.”

“I told you, Lil, how Harvey chooses to run his business is none of
our
business,” Irene said as she plucked a chocolate from the box on her lap. Her eyebrows pushed together in a warning frown. “Besides, I never much cared for Judith anyway. Remember how hoity-toity she could be? Maybe the Judge got tired of her attitude. Or maybe she asked for another raise.”

“Ha! I’ll bet that was it. You know how tight he is with his money.” Lil nodded knowingly at Rose, perched carefully on a knockoff designer chair of stiff blue vinyl at the end of Irene’s bed. “What do you think, honey? You deal with employment issues every day in that law firm of yours. Do you think Judith quit, or was she fired?”

Rose pondered Lil’s question with a heavy heart. Whatever had happened, Judith definitely was gone. Had she disappeared for good? She could run the Judge’s practice with her eyes shut. And someone needed to do something fast before the Judge’s clientele deserted him in a cloud of dust.

“I think the Judge is going to have a lot to think about in the next few months,” Rose finally offered.

Lil nodded sagely. “And that condo fire didn’t help. Taking care of that is going to set him back a pretty penny. He was hoping to rent those condos soon.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it too much,” Irene replied. “Knowing the Judge, he has plenty of insurance. He’s always been savvy when it comes to money matters.”

“Savvy?” Lil hooted. “More like a tightwad, if you ask me.”

The Judge a tightwad? Absolutely not. Rose struggled to keep her composure as she felt the heat rise in her face. Lil had no business criticizing the Judge. After everything he’d been through—especially last night—he deserved their entire support.

“I think you’re a little off the mark,” Rose said. “The Judge is a wonderful man—”

“I never said he wasn’t.” Lil glanced at Rose with a patient look. “Honey, when are you going to stop looking at him through the eyes of a six-year-old? I know you think the man is a saint, and he is a good man, I’ll grant you that. But that’s exactly what he is… a man. He’s had quite the life, as your mother and I both know. We’ve been right there as witnesses.” Her eyebrows lifted slightly. “Oh, the stories we could tell. Isn’t that right, Irene?”

“What do you think? Crème or nougat?” Gingerly Irene plucked another chocolate from the box and held it up for careful scrutiny.

“For heaven’s sake, Irene, I don’t know how you can eat those things. They’re so fattening.” Lil rolled her eyes and turned back to Rose. “I hear you were at the fire last night. Since when have you started chasing fire trucks?”

Rose coughed, hoping to hide the quick blush. “I only ended up out there by accident.”

Irene dropped her chocolate and stared wide-eyed at Rose. “You were in an accident? Were you hurt?”

“I’m fine, Mom. And I wasn’t in an accident. I was having dinner with a friend and his monitor went off.”

“Firemen have monitors.” Lil’s green eyes glittered like emeralds. “This wouldn’t have anything to do with that cute fireman we saw the other day, would it?”

Irene reverently popped a chocolate in her mouth and regarded Rose with a placid smile. “What fireman?”

Lil sighed. “For heaven’s sake, Irene, I think the pain meds have gone to your head. Remember that nice young man you told me about? The one who rescued you and Cecilia Rose when your car caught fire?”

“The car was
not
on fire,” Rose firmly replied.

Irene’s face wore a bemused look. “Oh, him. Yes, now I remember. He was rather cute.”

“You’re both making too much out of this,” Rose said. “We merely went out for dinner. It wasn’t a date.”

“You had dinner with a man and you think it wasn’t a date? No wonder you’re almost thirty years old and still not married. What is it with you young people?” Lil’s eyes gleamed with mischief. “You might not be dating yet, but mark my words, honey… you soon will be. That fireman is going to ask you out. Just wait and see.”

“Cecilia Rose doesn’t need you telling her what to do,” Irene said, then winced as the machine hooked up against her knee kicked in for another steady spin of flexing.

Rose came to her feet. Now would be the perfect time to leave. Her mother looked as if she could use the rest, while she herself could use a rest from any more questions. Plus, she still had one more stop to make. The fire department was five minutes away.

“I’ll be back tonight.” Rose brushed a quick kiss against Irene’s cheek. “I’ll stop after dinner and bring you the paper.”