It killed me watching him take it on the chin, but I had to respect his decision.
When I pulled up out front of Jolie’s house, I used the numeric keypad code to let myself in. I’d noticed John’s car out front of their parents’ house on my way down the ranch drive and wondered if the Walkers were watching John and Beth’s kids too.
When I entered the house, I made my way back to the room Walker had indicated and found the pair of shoes he said were most current. After taking a quick snap with my phone to make sure I got the size right and didn’t forget it, I quickly let myself back out of the house and keyed in the code again to lock the door behind me.
Just as I was hopping into my vehicle and smiling to myself about how cute Tisha’s collection of toy horses spread out all over the family room was, I could have sworn I smelled smoke. I made my way around the outside perimeter of the house trying to follow the smell to the origin before calling it in. Sure enough, there was a pile of dry debris smoldering up next to the foundation of the home. It was almost like someone had deliberately raked a pile of dry leaves and branches from the nearby stand of trees over to the side of the house and then dropped a live flame on it.
It was small enough that I was able to quickly douse it with a nearby garden hose before it spread, but I really did wonder how the hell it had started.
I dialed in to work and got Chief Paige on the line. “Hey, Chief. I was running a personal errand and put out a little brushfire in someone’s back yard. I’m not sure, but my gut says someone deliberately started it… Is this something I should worry about or…”
“Whose backyard?”
“Jolie Walker. She lives in the smaller house at the Walker ranch.”
“I’m not doing anything right now, so I’ll come take a look. It’s pretty dry these days. I mean, it’s not out of the realm of possibility it could have started the way brushfires always do.”
“It’s in the shade, sir. I agree it’s unlikely it would be arson, but I’d feel better if I wasn’t the only pair of eyes on it.”
“Be there in ten.”
I hung up and dialed Walker.
“Sheriff Walker,” he said in the voice that could make me come six ways from Sunday.
“Hey, it’s me.”
“Well, hello there, hot stuff. Did you find what you needed at the house?”
“Yeah, I did. She’s a size four. But I also found a little brushfire out back.”
“What?”
“Evan’s on his way over to take a look. It’s a little strange.”
“Is it still burning?” His voice went from flirty to serious in a nanosecond.
“No, no. I put it out easily with the hose. It’s fine. It’s just… I don’t know, Seth. Something’s off about it. It’s like someone deliberately piled up dry tinder right up next to the house and then set fire to it.”
“I’m on my way,” he said in a rush.
“Baby, stop. It’s fine. There’s no rush. Please don’t kill yourself on your way here, okay?”
“You gonna stay there and wait for me?”
“Yeah. I’ll be here.”
I heard a car crunch across gravel out front and went to greet the chief. But when I got around the side of the house, it was John’s car that had pulled up.
“What’s going on?” he asked. The man I’d known since I was a little boy eyed me like I was a bank robber.
“I came to check on something and noticed a little brushfire out back,” I said, pissed at myself for sounding so defensive. “I put it out. It’s fine.”
More tires on gravel. We both turned to see Chief Paige’s big HFD vehicle picking its way down the driveway.
“If it’s fine, why’s the damned fire chief here?” he accused.
“Just protocol,” I lied. The man was being an asshole. If Jolie didn’t have a problem with me stopping by the house when she wasn’t there, I didn’t see why John should.
Evan got out of his vehicle and greeted John with a big smile. “Hey, John. How’s it going? I heard the insurance business booms in the summer when the lake house rentals and sales pick up. Are the tourists keeping you busy?”
Chief Paige was known for being a big personality around town, someone who knew everyone and always made a point to say hello. John fell under his spell the same as everyone else.
“Hey, Chief. Sure, things are fine. How about you?”
“Just making sure Lieutenant Wilde here is following procedure by making sure a brushfire is completely doused before leaving the scene. I’m sure it’s fine.”
John looked from me to the chief before making his way back to his vehicle. “Well, I’ll see you two later. I’ll let Jolie know what’s going on when I get back to the office.” That last part was clearly aimed at me.