and fixed her gaze on the arson investigator.
“In a vacant house with no electricity, fires don’t start by accident, especially if the fire was concentrated the way you describe. That raises a red flag for me as an investigator.” He narrowed his eyes. “Do you remember smelling anything unusual at that location?”
She thought about it a long moment, delving into the horror of last night. When she didn’t answer right away, Ray leaned closer.
“Sam? What are you thinking? Just spit it out. Say the first thing that comes to mind.”
“I smelled something”—she wrinkled her nose—“medicinal. But I couldn’t place it.”
“Could it have been rubbing alcohol?” Collins asked. “Or some other household product?”
“Yeah, it could have been. Why?”
“The dogs in our K–9 unit are trained to detect certain types of petroleum-based accelerants, but not the entire range of flammable household products.” He shook his head, his face grim. “Isopropyl alcohol is water soluble and can be washed away. No trace evidence left behind. If your firebug used rubbing alcohol or some other similar product to set that blaze, then I’m afraid we’ll never prove it.”
“Don’t you have other ways to test…for the presence of rubbing alcohol, at least?” she asked.
“Dogs can smell the smallest unit of measure better than our electronic detectors can quantify,” Collins explained. “In short, if the dogs fail, then we don’t have much. Plus our K–9 unit is only a tool in our investigation. We confirm anything the dogs find with trace analysis from the crime lab. But in this case, that didn’t happen. We’re still talking to possible witnesses, but I’m afraid arson is a long shot.”
The captain got to his feet. “That’s all I’ve got, but I’ll call if that changes.”
“It is what it is, Joe.” Ray stood and shook the man’s hand. “Thanks for coming.”
“Anytime,” Collins said as he gripped Sam’s hand.
After the arson investigator left, Sam stood and stared out the window, disappointment setting in. Ray shut the conference-room door to give them privacy.
“What now?” he asked, his voice low. “We got nothing on Sal Pinzolo. I can still work Jake under the radar of his lawyer if you want. But with Pinzolo on the loose, I know you must be concerned for Jessie.”
“Yeah, I am. Real concerned.”
Harper was free to go, and Jess was very satisfied with that even though Mandy’s murder case was far from over. Despite the uncertainty in the police investigation, she was pleased that her trip home would include a stop at the hospital with good news for Seth. She couldn’t wait to deliver it personally. But as they stepped outside heading for their cars, Alexa surprised her.
“So tell me. Is Seth seeing anyone?”
“What?” She shot her a sideways glance, wrapping her head around the abrupt question. “He’s a little young, isn’t he?”
“Young for what? And are we talking about the same man?” Her friend laughed. “Besides, young is the whole point. You have to admit there’s something about a younger lover that appeals to…an experienced woman. There’s no pretense. There’s only need. And don’t you think he’s gorgeous with a capital G?”
“I hadn’t noticed,” she lied.
“Then you haven’t staked a claim, right? Because if you’re interested in him, I’ll back off. He’s all yours.”
“No…no claim.” A pang of jealousy hit hard, confusing her. “But you don’t live here. Why would you…?”
“I’m not talking about setting up house. I just want to…have a little taste.” The woman smiled, her eyes glazing over as if she were somewhere else. And Jess had a pretty good notion where.
“TMI, my friend.” She raised a hand. “Whatever you two decide to do is none of my business.”
But as she came to the blue van—still disturbed by their conversation and her reaction to it—she noticed that her vehicle had a flat tire.
“What the hell…?” She walked around the van and corrected her count to two flat tires. And with only one spare, that meant she had a bigger problem.
“Oh, wow. Not good,” Alexa commiserated, dropping to a knee for a better look. “I’ve got my rental around the corner. I can give you a lift wherever you need to go to get this fixed.”
“Why me?” She shook her head and knelt beside her friend.
But a voice coming from behind brought Jess to her feet.
“Maybe because you don’t know how to mind your own business. You’re thickheaded. And unlucky things can happen to stupid people.”
She turned to see Sal Pinzolo leaning against a brick wall near an alley. A broad-shouldered mammoth, the guy blocked the sun when he stepped closer. He had cleaned up since the fire, but no one could wash away the smell of mean. And with him here, she knew one thing.
Her flat tires were no accident.
Her mind reeled with what to say, and anger got the better of her. Being a woman who’d eaten tough for breakfast ever since she was a kid, Jess didn’t hesitate to go for his jugular.
“What’s so special about you, Sal? I mean, really.” She eyed him up and down. “Without Beladi, who the hell are you? You’re just hired muscle. That’s it.”
Pinzolo glared at her, his eye twitching. This time she took his facial tic as a sign she had hit her target dead center and kept going.
“And news flash, stud, you’re not as young as you used to be. I sure hope you have a retirement plan.” She stopped and narrowed her eyes, hitting on a different tack. “Or did Jake ruin that for you?”
When he didn’t ask what she meant and kept his silence, she kept talking.
“I bet you two had your own 401(k) plan operating under Beladi’s radar. And you covered it up…kept the big boss in the dark. Now
She let her mouth run and had thrown out anything she knew would rile the guy. But when she alluded to him and Jake working together—without his boss’s knowledge—Sal’s facial tic got worse. And her speculation made sense, even if she had made it up on the fly. She had stumbled on the truth but had no proof to back it up, only Sal’s unexpected reaction.
“You got a big mouth. And you don’t know what you’re talkin’ about. That asshole killed two hookers. That would have shamed my boss. He’s got pride. And I was only protecting his interests.”
“Oh…the drug dealer? In his organization, I thought murder would be grounds for promotion.” She smiled and placed her hand over her heart. “But sorry, Sal. I didn’t realize you were so sensitive. I’d hate to besmirch your employer’s sterling reputation.”
“You’re a regular smart-ass, but the cops got nothin’, and neither do you. Jake killed those whores. End of story. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll let it go.”
“That sounds like a threat, Sal.”
“Whatever works for you, bitch,” he spat.
When Alexa closed ranks, Pinzolo nudged his chin in challenge and waved her on.
“You got somethin’ to say?” he asked.
Alexa smiled with a slow easy curve to her lips.
“Yeah, indulge me,” she replied in a low, throaty voice. “You see, I made you a promise when we met…when I warned
“Sounds like trash talk, but you’re on my list, blondie.” He grinned. “You better have eyes in the back of your head.”
“Oh I do, Sal.” She smiled and cocked her head. “And please…make me number one. I tend to be an overachiever.”
By the look of Sal’s pulsing facial tic, her cavalier attitude really pissed him off—no doubt exactly what Alexa had in mind. Bullies always expected to dish it out, but never knew how to take it. Pinzolo was no different. And being confronted by women had probably never happened to him before.
“Be careful what you ask for.” Pinzolo pointed at Alexa, then glared at Jess before he walked away, an iron- fisted hulking load of badass.
She knew big talking was a weapon in her arsenal—a pure defense mechanism. Her bluster made it look as if she weren’t afraid of the bastard, but Jess knew the man posed a real threat. And it wouldn’t end here.
“Flaunting is a highly unattractive quality, don’t you think?” Alexa stared at the man as he turned a corner.
