Page 46 of Scorched Secrets

Once Mitch had placed his order, he turned the conversation to business. “I’m glad you’re finished eating because I heard from the ME on the way over. He’s working on the autopsy, cause of death is obviously the bullet wound in his temple, but we won’t have the full tox screen for thirty days.”

“Why so long?” Colin asked. “Can’t he put a rush on it?”

“Toxicology screens take time,” Faye said. “Especially in a case where they have no idea what, if anything, has been ingested.”

“She’s right,” Mitch agreed. “Even with a rush on it, a month is the best they can do. I spoke to the detective who caught the case; it’s your brother, Tarin.”

Colin nodded. “What did Tare say?”

“He’s being super cautious, unwilling to give his opinion one way or the other until all the forensics are back.”

Again, Colin wasn’t surprised. Tarin had made a call about a suicide five years ago that had ended up being a homicide. His brother wasn’t about to make the same mistake again. “How long will that take?”

“At least until tomorrow, maybe Monday.” Mitch sighed. “The only thing he would commit to is that the handwriting on the note looks to be a match to other documents found at the house. However, Tarin said Daniel could have written it under duress.”

Great, so they basically knew nothing more than they had earlier that morning. “Okay, I guess we’ll have to wait to see what Tarin comes up with.”

“Yeah. Between that and the lack of credit card charges, we don’t have much to work with.” Mitch eyed him over the rim of his cup. “You mentioned setting a trap for this guy. I have to tell you, Chief Kimble isn’t on board with that idea.”

Colin frowned. “Did you assure him this trap would not place Faye in harm’s way? That we don’t have many options to find this guy unless we do something significant to draw him out?”

“I did.” Mitch glanced over at Faye seated beside him. “You may need to call your dad again. I think my bringing up the plan rattled him.”

“I will, but I agree with Colin.” She stared into her empty coffee cup. “We need to do something. How much longer does he think we should sit around and wait for someone to find this guy?”

Mitch lifted his hands in surrender. “Hey, don’t shoot the messenger. I’m on your side.”

Colin wished Mitch hadn’t broached the chief until they had nailed down a possible plan. He leaned forward, propping his elbows on the table. “First, we need to stop at a phone store and get a replacement for the one Faye left behind in the motel. Then we need to head over to the American Lodge to talk to Gary.”

Mitch nodded slowly. “You’re thinking Gary can set up a decoy room with Faye’s phone to draw the arsonist out of hiding.”

“Exactly.” His brother Rhy had tried something similar several months ago when his wife Devon had been in harm’s way. Devon hadn’t been his wife at the time, but that hadn’t stopped his brother from putting his life on the line for her. And now they were married and expecting their first child together. God worked in mysterious ways.

“That might work,” Mitch said.

“Gary installed security cameras outside the motel. Rhy saw them back in January when he tried to set a trap there.”

“What happened?” Faye asked. “Did the ruse work?”

“The guy Rhy was trying to draw out saw the cameras and took off.” He shrugged. “So no, it didn’t work. The same thing could happen this time too. Unless we can come up with a way to hide the cameras to avoid detection.”

“Security cameras, huh?” Mitch pondered that for a moment. “I like it, Colin. And I know Gary pretty well. He’ll jump at the chance to help us catch this guy.”

“If he has any empty rooms to spare. It’s summer, and a weekend too.” Colin shrugged. “We might have to wait until Sunday night, but I figure it’s worth a trip over there to talk to him. The sooner we come up with a plan, the sooner we can set it up.”

“But where am I going to be while this trap is set?” Faye asked.

He hesitated, knowing she wouldn’t like it. “You’ll need to stay with your dad and Claire in Brookland, Faye. Leave the American Lodge to me, Mitch, and Aiden.”

She frowned. “I don’t like that idea.”

He’d known she wouldn’t, but that was too darn bad. Because he made a promise to her father to keep her safe.

And he wasn’t about to break that vow.

Chapter Eleven

“The reason I haven’t gone to my father’s house since this nightmare began is because I don’t want to put his wife or my sister in danger. That hasn’t changed.” Faye tilted her chin stubbornly. “I’m sure you and Mitch can figure out some way to have me be in the room too.”

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