Yet despite the trouble staring him in the face, she knew Seth was more worried about his father. If he could have refused treatment to take care of Max, he would have done it; but CPD had already made the call, and Harper wouldn’t have his say.
“If it helps, I can take care of your father, see that he gets home.” Alexa smiled at Seth. “Looks like you’ll have your hands full.”
He looked up in surprise as if he was seeing her for the first time. His dark eyes took her in and held her in place, rooted where she stood. His good looks were stunning up close. Add boyish charm to his innocent sex appeal, and Seth Harper fascinated her, especially when she realized that she’d been holding her breath. No wonder Jessie had become so attached to him.
“That would be great.” He fixed his gaze on her, working magical powers he probably didn’t know he had. “He’s at the Golden Palms Villa Nursing Home. I’ll get you the address…and thanks. They’re probably real worried about him by now. I’ll call to let them know you’re bringing him.”
“And you better give me your keys to the van,” she added. “Jessie will need her wheels. Preferably a vehicle not reported as stolen.” When he looked confused, she added, “It’s…complicated.”
“Yeah…well, I’m not exactly in the mood for complicated.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. “You’ve been a good friend to Jessie. She could use one.”
He slumped against the door of the ambulance, looking exhausted. When he winced in pain, she took it as a sign for her to leave him alone. A real pity.
“Well…I’ll make sure she gets these.” She jingled the keys in her hand. “You take care of yourself.” She reached out a hand and touched his face. The gesture surprised him, but when he looked at her, he smiled.
“Yeah, sure.” He nodded. “And thanks…Alexa.”
With Sam at his side, Ray escorted Jake in cuffs to a waiting officer, who took the man into custody. Breathing in the night air had revived her, but not half as much as seeing Ray up close and feeling his hand at the small of her back. Considering what had nearly happened, she felt lucky to be alive. And although having someone take care of her now wasn’t entirely necessary, it did feel damned good to let go—just this once.
“From his ID, he’s Jake Culver. Get him checked by the paramedic before we take him for a ride,” he told the officer, then pointed a finger at her. “And you’re next. No argument.”
“Yes, sir.” She saluted.
“Detective Garza?” An officer from the tactical team waved Ray over to another squad car. And Sam came along, not wanting to let him out of her sight.
“Thought you should know,” the cop said. “We found a guy on the premises. He claims not to know anything about what happened in there, but he was behaving suspiciously so we’re bringing him in for questioning. He’s got no ID and was not in a sharing mood.”
Sam leaned down to get a better look into the vehicle and a cop flipped on an interior light. She squinted into the backseat, but smiled and shook her head at the man who avoided her eyes.
“That’s Sal Pinzolo.” She stood and told Ray and the other officer. “He’s muscle for Nadir Beladi, a major drug dealer who runs hookers, too. Jessie thought the guy might have something to do with Mandy Vincent’s murder and gave me his driver’s license to run.”
“What?” Ray asked. “How…never mind.”
He narrowed his eyes and smirked—probably realizing that she’d been keeping secrets on Harper’s case—her attempt to edge him out on their bet.
“Yeah, and he might have been the guy who tried to kill me inside, but I can’t swear to that. I was pretty messed up, not seein’ real clear.” She winced. “But if the fire crew finds charred remains inside, then I’d have serious doubts about who I saw. We’ll have to wait and see.”
“That son of a bitch,” Ray cursed, and glared at Pinzolo. “Are you sure you can’t ID the bastard?”
“Sorry. Wish I could.” She sighed. “But if I know Jessie, she probably has some theories on what happened. I’ll bring her in tomorrow…see if she learned anything from Jake while they were locked up. Alexa, too.”
“Good idea. We’ll get a chance to sweat these guys during interrogation.” He stroked her hair but turned toward the other cop. “Keep this joker separated from the guy I arrested, especially at the station house. I don’t want him playing intimidation head games.”
But when Jake got into the back of the next police cruiser, the interior light came on, and the bartender got a good look at the man in the next vehicle. Pinzolo glared back. Sam knew by the look on Jake’s face that Pinzolo had delivered his message without using a word.
“Too late.” She nudged her head and Ray caught Pinzolo staring at Jake. “I’d say the damage is done.”
“We’ll see about that,” he assured her. “If this asshole is involved, we’ll get them talking.”
She had faith in Ray. He was a solid interrogator. But Beladi and Pinzolo had evaded the DA for a reason. Once they lawyered up, it would be business as usual. And Jake didn’t have the backbone to be more than an expendable pawn in their game. If it turned out any other way, she’d be surprised.
She had her mind on the job when Ray took her hand to lead her to a paramedic. He was taking charge of her well-being, and she was happy to let him. But having Ray holding her hand made it difficult to suppress a smile, even though she gave it her best shot.
And failed miserably.
Jess found it hard to turn away—the fire mesmerized her. It had become addictive, with an unrelenting pull, similar to the torturous hold Danny Ray Millstone had had on her…until now.
A part of her wanted to watch the bastard’s place burn to ashes with no remnants left except for the scars she would always carry, both inside and out. Fire crews had moved in to control the blaze, but the old mansion had fallen. It would no longer stand as an affront to the life she’d made.
“Alexa made sure Max got home okay.” Sam interrupted her melancholy moment. “And she gave me the van keys that she got from Harper.” She handed her the keys. “I’d say she’s been a nice addition to your circle of friends.”
Jess took a deep breath, unable to look away from the dying blaze.
“Yeah. I agree,” she said. “And I might have to rethink how I feel about Ray Garza. The guy’s growing on me…like a tumor, Harper would say.”
Jess tried to smile, but her heart wasn’t in it. Her thoughts still plagued her.
“Can you come by the station house tomorrow?” Sam asked. “We’ll need your statement…see if you can help us piece this together. Sal Pinzolo was arrested on the property.”
“What?”
“He claims not to know anything about what happened, but anyone connected to a guy like Beladi has his own agenda.”
“Yeah, especially that mean bastard.” She crossed her arms, and added, “Jake had a lot to say in there. If he’s smart, he’ll keep talking. And Harper could use the help.”
Jess thought of the implications of Pinzolo getting caught red-handed on Millstone’s property. He could have come to kill Jake on the orders of Beladi and set up the dumb jerk for the murders to throw suspicion off his employer. And someone had started the fire and locked them in that room with the door bolted shut from the outside.
Adding Pinzolo to the equation—killer turned arsonist—gave her theory a certain plausible ring. But that left her wondering about motive. Had Jake told her the truth about having a side business that Mandy found out about? Did Beladi and Pinzolo uncover the enterprise that Jake ran under their noses and come for their pound of flesh? And who had been the brains behind framing Harper?
She had a feeling the case would hinge on what the bartender had to say. Surely, Jake would see that telling the cops what really happened was his best insurance to stay alive, even if he had to implicate himself. If he served up Beladi on a platter to the DA, he might get an offer of witness protection and start a new life somewhere else. She didn’t like the idea that Jake could get off scot-free, but that option was the lesser of two evils.
Men like Beladi and Pinzolo had to be stopped.
“You want to stay with me tonight?” Sam offered. “I don’t want you to be alone…not after what happened.”
“No…I’ll be okay.” She glanced at Sam. “Besides, you might get lucky. I saw how Ray looked at you. And from where I stood, the feeling looked mutual.”
They watched the fire in silence. Jess knew Sam had her own demons, that had started the day her life
