Page 47 of From the Flames
“Wow,” Evelyn whispered.
“Yeah. He’s spending the next couple of days at his home, and I’m staying away. The dogs miss him, and the kids always ask me when Uncle Kevin is going to come to read them stories before bed. They adore him, and so do I. I hate it when he’s not at the house with me. Sleeping alone really sucks, and yet I’m worried….”
“You and Kevin have plenty of time to make long-term decisions. You don’t need to rush, even if the kids ask you about him every night. You need to take things at your own pace.”
Willy nodded. “I’m so damned proud of him for doing this, and scared as hell at the same time. But all I keep telling myself is that he will be okay and that he knows what he’s doing. I figure the kids and I will have movie night and maybe even make a tent in the living room with the dogs.” And with the distraction, he could try not to worry too much.
Chapter 16
KEVIN LAYawake, listening for any sound that shouldn’t be there. Carter was in one of the other rooms, and the entire fire department as well as the police were on alert. The thing was, he had already tired of this routine. It has been two days since the announcement, and nothing had happened. He really had thought that some sort of action would be forthcoming. Instead, there had been nothing, and he was beginning to get nervous that he’d misread the situation.
“Have you heard or seen anything?” Carter asked as he passed outside the door.
“No,” Kevin told him. “There has been no alert on any of the motion sensors in the yard or along the sides of the house. Maybe they saw through us and didn’t take the bait.”
“I’m beginning to wonder myself,” Carter told him. “I’ve been going through all the known employees of Kraft and Hobson, trying to see if anyone jumps out at me, and nothing has. I mean, there are some sketchy characters on the payroll, but no one with a history of arson. Most of what I found was petty-type crime and a few guys who are on parole. But if they try anything, they’ll be back behind bars.”
Kevin got out of bed. “Do you want coffee or something to drink? I was going to try to rest, but it isn’t happening.”
“Sure. But I think we should look as quiet and dark as possible, so don’t turn on any lights, and try to stay away from the windows.” It was after midnight, and they were hoping that someone would try something so they could get their hands on them and find out once and for all what the hell all this was about.
“I got it.” He went downstairs to the kitchen, started the coffee maker, and grabbed a couple of mugs. He poured the coffee once it was done and returned upstairs to give a mug to Carter. Then he went to his room, leaving the door open and sitting on the side of the bed, trying not to wonder when something would happen.
“With this type of thing, the waiting is always the hardest part. It can sometimes get under your skin. You have to be patient and drink plenty of coffee. Go on to bed and get some rest. If anything happens, I’ll get you up right away. There’s no sense in both of us sitting up all night if nothing is going to happen.” Carter left, and Kevin drank his coffee and then got back in bed.
He thought about calling Willy, but it was awfully late, and he was likely in bed, right where he should be. He did send him a text that he was thinking of him and missing him. Fortunately he didn’t get a response, which probably meant he was asleep.
Kevin was about to set his phone aside when dots appeared in the chat window. He waited for the message to come through.
There is someone outside the house. I don’t know who they are, but I saw a shadow move across the curtains. Benjamin just raced into my bedroom and is growling like crazy.
Kevin jumped out of bed. “Carter, get someone over to Willy’s. There’s someone outside his place.”
“On it,” Carter said as Kevin pulled on his pants. “Don’t think about going anywhere,” he added.
“But I need to get over there,” Kevin told him as he pulled on his shirt.
“It could be a diversionintendedto get you over there. We stay here. Red is going to check it out with another unit. The fire department is being alerted just in case. So we stay here and see if they try anything.” Carter hurried toward him. “Onerules of the stakeout is you don’t leave your post. Stick with the assignment.”
Kevin wanted to protest, but Carter held up his hand as he talked on the phone.
“What’s happening?” Kevin said frantically, ready to race to the door as Carter went silent. He shook his head and listened a little more.
“Red is almost there. The other unit arrived, and someone jumped the fence out of the backyard. They are giving chase….” He continued to listen and then smiled. “Kit has the suspect in custody,” he reported.
“Good. Is there anyone else?”
Carter shook his head. “They don’t believe so, but they’re going to search just in case.”
Kevin called Willy, who answered immediately. “They got someone, and the dogs are going nuts. At least they aren’t barking, but they’re pacing through the house, and there are enough flashing lights to wake the entire neighborhood.”
“So you and the kids are okay? It’s quiet here so far. Carter says I need to stay here and stick to my post.”
“Yes, you do. One of the officers needs to speak to me. I’ll call you back in a little while.” Willy sounded confident. Kevin, on the other hand, was a nervous wreck. He shoved his phone in his pocket and went downstairs, cautiously peeking out without moving the curtains. The front of the house was quiet, with no one moving. Next he checked the side and then the backyard, both of which were quiet.
“Nothing else right now. They have searched around the house and found no one else,” Carter explained.
“I’m wondering if this is it or if they were just trying to scare us,” Kevin said.
