Page 57 of Scorched Secrets

“I’ll be fine.” His gaze was somber as he glanced back at the fire. “We need the keys to the boat.”

“Keys.” She stared at him blankly. The fire was spreading, smoke rising and making her cough. It was almost like being in the restrooms at the park. “I don’t know where they are.”

“I have them.” Aiden held up the boat key dangling from a small bright-yellow flotation device. “Noticed where they were kept earlier.”

“Great. Let’s go.” Colin put his uninjured arm around her as Aiden led the way through the patio doors. The fresh air was a blessing, and she took several deep breaths to clear her lungs. She couldn’t understand how any smoker willingly filled their lungs with smoke. Her throat felt as if it were on fire from being abused these past few days.

Aiden didn’t hesitate to lead the way down to the lakeshore. The rental boat was still up in the lift, but Aiden seemed to know what to do. He deftly lowered the boat into the water, then jumped inside to man the wheel.

“Hurry,” Colin urged, holding out his hand so she could step up. “We need to be out of here before the arsonist investigates our escape route.”

Imagining what would happen if another firebomb was tossed into the boat had her quickly climbing inside. She’d only been on this boat once two years ago, but she trusted both of these Finnegans with her life. With only one good hand, Colin released the ties and pushed the boat backward, out of the lift.

Aiden started the engine and shifted into reverse. Moments later, Colin dropped into the seat across from her, distributing their weight evenly as Aiden turned the wheel so they could head out across the water. Despite the no wake after dusk rule, Aiden pushed the throttle forward, picking up speed to put as much distance between them and the lake house as possible.

She looked back over her shoulder at the fire that was raging inside the rental property. Numbly she realized this had been a bad decision. Not only had they been found, but this house would likely be destroyed much as her personal home had been.

A dark figure ran down toward the lake. The arsonist! She grabbed Colin’s arm. “There he is!”

Colin turned to see the figure in black standing near the boat lift. As if sensing their gaze, the arsonist quickly turned and ran back up to the side of the house.

“Aiden, we need to go back.” Colin gestured with his uninjured arm. “He’s getting away.”

“We’re not going back,” Aiden said flatly. “We’re armed, but we have no idea what sort of firepower he has at his fingertips. We’re not taking that risk.”

“I guess you’re right.” Colin sounded dejected. “Just before the first firebomb crashed through the window, I noticed a sedan parked several yards down the road. I’m sure the arsonist is gone by now.”

“If he was smart, he would be,” Aiden agreed. “Do you have your phone? Call 911 to report the fire and the arsonist.”

“Will do.” Colin quickly made the call, urging caution to those responding to the fire in case the arsonist was still hanging around nearby. When he finished, he sighed heavily. “I hope we’re not putting anyone else in danger.”

“Not us, the arsonist,” Aiden corrected.

Colin grimaced but didn’t say anything more.

“I want to know how we’re going to catch this guy.” She glanced between the two Finnegans as they raced to the other side of the lake. “He seems to constantly be one step ahead of us. And I really don’t understand how he found us here.”

“I’ve been thinking about that too.” Colin shook his head. “The only answer I can come up with is that your father must have talked about this rental property to other members within the firefighting family. I never heard anything about it, but someone must have known to search for you here.”

She found that horrifying. “I don’t know why my dad would talk about it.”

“Me either,” Aiden agreed. “But he may not have bothered to keep it a secret.”

She thought it more likely Claire had bragged about it, but that didn’t explain how the arsonist had known.

“We’ll have to think through how we set the trap at the American Lodge,” Colin said slowly. “Using the phone to draw him out is good, but how will we prevent him from just tossing more firebombs through the window like he did here?”

“That’s a good point.” Aiden shrugged. “I think we’ll need to keep the room empty and have more firefighting backup readily available.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t risk burning down the motel,” she felt compelled to point out. “It’s Gary’s livelihood.”

“You’re right about that. We’ll have to think of something else.” Colin’s voice was subdued. “Maybe we can find a place that we can set up as fireproof ahead of time. Or at least minimize the potential fire damage.”

There was a long silence as they digested that thought. Finally, Aiden spoke. “If we hadn’t taken turns being on watch for trouble, I don’t think we’d have been able to escape so quickly. Not without being seriously injured.”

“You’re right, Aiden. God was with us tonight.” Her gaze landed on Colin’s arm. He’d been hurt, but she understood the outcome could have been so much worse.

Aiden pulled back on the throttle as he reached the public boat launch. He pulled over to the side of a pier, and Colin threw a line around one of the posts, drawing them in.

---