Page 51 of Burning Truth

If she could get back to the studio and start scrolling footage, it might knock something loose in her mind.

“Did you tell the detective about this evidence?” Parker asked.

Dan got a strange look on his face, but Severn stepped in. “I became aware of the evidence after I spoke with the detective.”

Addie snorted. Technically, that was true she supposed.

“Well, you’d better let her know we found this just so we don’t get an obstruction charge thrown at us. And maybe they can help identify him.”

Gabbie snorted. “Right...” she drawled. “Already got him, I think.”

A snapshot popped up on the screen, and Addie gasped. Yes, she definitely knew the man. She’d talked to him a few weeks ago... definitely at one of the fires. He wasn’t a firefighter... But he’d been with them. Had it been at the warehouse fire?

“I think he was at the warehouse fire. Gabbie, can you pull up that footage Jake sent you from Java Joy?”

Within seconds, they found the man. He’d been wearing a suit. It was his car that had burned in the front of the warehouse. There was just a glimpse, but Addie recognized him immediately. “Was it Russ? Or Russell?”

Gabbie nodded. “Russell Dunn. He works at the Department of Ohio Emergency Medical Services. He oversees paramedic certifications.”

Severn looked at her incredulously. “Seriously?”

Gabbie nodded. “Yup. He started there six years ago. Oh, hold on...” A smile crossed her mouth, and she glanced at them. “There are several notes in his personnel file. Issues working with women. Well, that explains a lot, doesn’t it?”

Addie frowned. “That doesn’t explain why he’s been doing it, though. He’s supposed to be helping people.”

“Maybe that’s not the job he chose,” Parker murmured. “Gabbie, print that picture off. We need to share our info with CPD. I think we’ve found our arsonist and Addie’s stalker.”

Addie stared up at the man. He was so nondescript. She’d met him and forgotten him within seconds. Had that been the only interaction she’d had with him? Had she missed something vital?

“He was also named in a lawsuit about three years ago,” Gabbie continued. “A woman filed the suit, claiming that Russell had been sexually harassing and stalking her and that the Department of Emergency Services tried to cover it up.”

“She might be a good resource to talk to,” Parker said.

“Hm, she would have been. She won her case and died in an apartment fire six months ago.”

A news article flashed onto the screen from the Columbus Dispatch, and Addie gasped. “I remember that! It was one of my first segments!”

Gabbie tapped a little more, and a Youtube video with Addie’s face popped up. She reported on the tragic loss of life, and even though she hadn’t been in the job long, she could see how much she’d grown in her reporting. She remembered the scene, and the victim’s mother wailing. It had broken her heart. Victoria Sincenze had been loved, and she hadn’t deserved to be murdered.

“Well, that seems incredibly suspicious, doesn’t it,” Dan murmured.

Addie looked at Severn. “If he was getting rid of the woman that accused him...”

“And you were there reporting, that’s the first connection.”

In a way, it was a relief. Now she didn’t have to wonder what she’d done to attract his attention. She’d reported on the last woman that he’d stalked.

“Call Detective Johnson,” Parker said, looking at Severn. “See if she can come down.”

Johnson and Rodrigoweren’t happy. They should have been told about the evidence. But when Severn talked over them to let them know they knew who the arsonist was, they both snapped their mouths shut.

Addie sat slumped in the chair, her arms crossed over her chest. Her eyes were tired, and he knew she was emotionally wrought. So much had happened today. She sat through the meeting, though, and added in commentary when needed.

While they’d waited on the detectives to arrive, Severn had jumped into the shower to de-smoke himself. They had an employee locker room in the back, with toilet stalls and several showers, and he always kept a spare change of clothes at the office. There had been nights when he’d just been too tired to go home, and he’d crashed on the couches out front.

Addie had smiled at him when he’d returned. “Now you won’t make my eyes water,” she’d laughed, and winked at him.

Severn had grinned at her spunk, and nodded, then leaned down to press a kiss to the top of her head. Parker had given him an evil glare when he looked up, but Severn didn’t care. Or rather, he did care, but it wasn’t going to change his mind about her.

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