Page 12 of Taming His Honeydoll
The closer he got to Bevier the more tense he became. So many questions racing through his mind. Did she have other children? Did she have another man she was interested in? Would he have to take her to court to ensure custody rights and visits? Most of all, did she still have any feelings left for him—if she’d actually had any besides infatuation? She’d said she loved him once in the heat of passion, maybe he should have taken her more seriously. He was, without a doubt, the biggest fool for letting her go in the first place.
He paused at the stoplight, his heart racing. She’d been so beautiful the night they’d spent together. Her tanned and toned body had glowed like fine silk in the moonlight from his apartment window. Her long, honey-blond hair had spread across his pillows like strands of golden light. Her big brown eyes were doe soft and beseeching him to love her. Resistance had been futile and he’d given in against his better judgment. When the car horn behind him suddenly blared he jumped, realizing the light was green. He shook himself out of his daydream.
“Keep your pants on,” he muttered to the driver behind him, who flipped him off as he spun out around him and raced down the street. He was suddenly aware of sirens blaring around him and he pulled over to the curb to let the firetrucks wail past him. Sirens always made him shiver. They meant someone was having a really bad day.
Finally, when they cleared, he pulled back into the street and his GPS directed him to turn onto Lantern Street. Thick black smoke was billowing above the treetops before he shot around the next corner and into the 2100 block of Fairview. From there he was blocked off. He parked and stepped out of his truck. His heart beat erratically when he realized the right side of the street were the even numbers, and the house on fire was the third house in. 2102...2104...2106.
There was no doubt it was Emma’s house that was on fire.
He ran up to the yellow tape where people were gathering and tried to duck under but a fireman stopped him.
“You can’t come any closer, sir,” the young man said.
“I know the woman that lives there,” Sawyer replied frantically.
“There’s no one in the house, sir, that’s been verified,” he replied. “But you can give information to the police over there—they are taking eyewitness reports.” He pointed to a tall gangly officer dressed in dark blue with long sleeves and a notebook in his hand.
Sawyer slumped in relief, then headed over to the policeman. “Are you sure no one was inside?” He asked anxiously. “Do you know how the fire started?”
The policeman looked him over suspiciously. “Do you know the residents that live here?”
Sawyer nodded. “Emma Tremaine is an old friend of mine but I haven’t seen her for a long time. I was just hoping to catch her today now that I’m back in town. The firemen said there wasn’t anyone inside, thank God.”
The policeman relaxed when Sawyer dropped Emma’s name. “We are making efforts to reach Miss Tremaine now, but we won’t know the cause of the fire until the fire chief makes his declaration. However, it’s looking like arson,” he added, dropping his sunglasses down to reveal kindly blue eyes. “You didn’t hear that from me though. If she’s a friend of yours, you might take some precautions for her safety just to be on the safe side.”
“I’ll do that,” Sawyer replied with a nod. “Thank you for telling me.” Arson? What the hell? He watched the fire as the young officer punched in some numbers on his cell phone.
***
EMMA WAS HAVING A HARDtime breathing. This was a situation she hadn’t seen coming.
Marlene wanted Levi.
She pinched the bridge of her nose and forced herself to take some deep breaths. First her house, now her baby, could this day get any worse? When her phone rang suddenly, she picked it up with trembling fingers. It was the Bevier Police Department. A sinking feeling of dread invaded her stomach. She punched the button and cautiously lifted the phone to her ear.
“Yes?” She managed to croak, her nerves making her skin prickle.
“Emma Tremaine?
“This is she.”
“I’m Officer Ben Dugite. Are you still living at 2106 Fairview?”
“Yes, that’s my home address,” she replied uneasily.
“I’m afraid your house is on fire.”
Darkness closed in on Emma, stealing all the light away as she tried to cope with the ugliness that continued to creep up on her like a Friday the 13thmovie or something. First Marlene’s threats and now her house was on fire. The phone slipped from her fingers as she slid sideways in the seat.
“Emma! Emma!”
Someone was calling her name and pulling on her. In the background she could hear a furious male voice taking someone to task.
“You should never have given her shocking news over the phone like that,” the voice rebuked. “I’ll be calling your supervisor.”
The voice was familiar, as was the female voice calling her name, but she couldn’t quite place them. It was as if she were wading through deep, gooey mud, unable to get anywhere and something was after her. Fear clogged her throat as she realized who it was. “Marlene,” she whispered, “go away, Marlene.”
“Who is Marlene, Emma?”
