Trial by Fire (23 page)

“You had to know I’d be informed about the arson murders from the start. A horrible crime like that doesn’t go unnoticed, especially a repeat offense in one particular sector.”

He nodded, the hole widening. “Yes, sir.”

“Then tell me, son, why the blazing hell I had to find out about this limp-dick bastard threatening you from a homicide detective? From a
stranger
?”

He stared at Bentley, at a loss. The man was furious. And hurt. “Because I haven’t actually been threatened—”

“Don’t piss up my leg, boy,” he hissed, glancing toward the kitchen, where his wife was praising the crab dip. “You should’ve come to me from the start. I should’ve been the first person to know that you were being targeted by a deranged killer.”

“I’m sorry, sir.” Heaving a deep breath, he steeled himself. “I breached protocol by keeping it from you. I’ll be in your office first thing tomorrow—”

“This has nothing to do with protocol, goddammit! You’re my
son
.” He clamped one big palm on Howard’s shoulder and squeezed, fingers biting into his skin through his shirt. “You and Georgie are the only family I’ve got, don’t you get it, kid? Losing either of you . . .” Bentley choked, visibly struggling to control his emotions.

Oh, God. This was precisely the scene he’d hoped to avoid, though he was stupid to believe he could have. Seeing solid, iron-willed Bentley Mitchell so undone came as a shock to his system. Lines of stress creased his forehead and bracketed his mouth, making the still-handsome man appear ten years older. He’d have been worried no matter who spilled the beans or when, but Howard felt responsible.

“I never meant to keep this from you,” he murmured. “I hoped the first photo was a sick joke. And when he left the second one Tuesday night . . . Jesus. I was going to tell you and Georgie. I didn’t want to ruin your birthday, that’s all.” Scant defense, but a truthful one.

“Christ almighty, you’re as thickheaded as I am.” Dropping his hands, he studied his son, his expression a mixture of exasperation and pride. “I don’t give a shit about my birthday; I care about you. Don’t leave me out of the loop again.”

“I’m getting a lot of that.” All told, he’d gotten off pretty easy with Bentley. “Georgie doesn’t know?”

“No, but I’ll tell her after tonight. Dammit, she’s been looking forward to the party all week, mostly missing you.”

“She’ll be ticked at both of us.”

“Naw, just at me.” The older man shook his head, a rueful smile touching his lips. “She worships the ground you walk on.”

“What on earth are you two whispering about out there?”

Georgie’s accusing demand from the kitchen made them jump guiltily. Her husband recovered first.

“Stuff going on at work, petunia,” he soothed. “I’ll catch you up later.”

“Humph! Today is your day to relax, O Great Chief, so put office politics on the back burner, grab your beer, and sit on the deck with me. The weather’s beautiful! ”

“Coming,” he called. Turning to Howard, he raised his brows, pinning the younger man with his best Do Not Fuck with Me look. “We’ll finish discussing this later.”

Oh, goody.
“Yes, sir.”

Saved by the doorbell. Bentley ambled into the kitchen and out of sight while Howard answered the door, glad for the brief respite. The chief could smell a lie at a thousand paces, and he’d actually tried to keep the situation under wraps. Idiot.

The morose cloud hanging over his head vanished as Eve, Zack, and Tommy blew inside, wrestling a large wrapped gift. Safety in numbers. Security in friends. The trio was laughing at some wisecrack Skyler had apparently made, because Eve was smacking their youngest teammate on his flat belly.

“You sexist piglet!” She was nearly doubled over with laughter. “A grade-A pig in training, barely out of diapers!”

Leering, Skyler performed a perfect, rude Michael Jackson grab on his crotch. “Hey, I got your piglet hanging, baby. Try this on for size and we’ll get your obvious confusion cleared right up for you, sweet thang.”

“Ha! When I’m into pimple-faced teenagers, I’ll let you know,
baby.
” Spinning to greet her host, she clapped Howard on the shoulder. “House looks super, Six-Pack. Thanks for having us.”

Behind her back, Tommy splayed a hand on his chest and mouthed
love me.
Oh, boy. Just what the team needed. A twenty-three-year-old walking gland with the hots for Evie, even though Howard knew the kid’s lust was unrequited.

Because
she
had it bad for
Sean.

The recipe for a full-scale disaster.

“My pleasure, Evie. Beer’s out back, and so’s my folks,” he said, a note of collective warning in his tone.

Zack grinned. “Code for ‘We have to behave ourselves around Georgie.’ Bummer.”

Howard grinned back. The idea of Zack Knight raising any kind of hell struck him as funny. “Poor lady’s got her hands full enough with the chief, don’t you think?”

“Damned straight,” Zack agreed, shrugging off his jacket. “Where do you want to put the present?”

“I’ll take it outside on the deck with mine. Toss everyone’s jackets in my spare bedroom, would you?” Hoisting the heavy box, he grunted. “Christ, what’s in here?”

“That new set of golf clubs you said the chief has been eyeballing,” Eve said, handing Knight her purse and jacket. “All three shifts chipped in a few bucks.”

Their thoughtfulness and generosity touched him. “That’s really great of you guys. Man, he’s going to love these.”

“What’d you get him?” Tommy asked, as he and Eve followed Howard through the kitchen.

“Nope, it’s a secret. You gotta wait.”

Tommy snatched a chip, crunched down. “Must be sweet.”

“It is, trust me.” To the tune of a healthy dent in his savings, but the expression on Bentley’s face would make the extravagance worthwhile.

Outside, Howard settled their present next to his while the Chief took a swig from his longneck and grumbled about everyone ignoring his no-gifts rule. Of course, he was full of shit, so they ignored the grumbling, as well.

“What’s a birthday without the bling, right, Einstein? ” Tommy saluted Zack with his beer bottle and threw an arm around his shoulder as their friend joined them from inside.

Howard noted how Knight’s cheerful smile seemed to freeze on his face. What was that about? The reference to his near-genius brain—which Knight worked overtime to downplay at all costs—or to birthdays?

Zack’s response sounded forced. “Right you are. Somebody hand me a Diet Coke, will you? I’m pulling double D’s for my buddies here.”

Meaning he was the designated driver of the trio. Good, dependable Zack. Someone ought to keep a clear head, but it seemed Zack always got stuck playing chauffeur, errand boy, confidant. Yet he’d never lost his smile.

Until recently. Knight looked . . . tired. Disheartened. Could be his imagination, this weird impression that the light in the younger man’s blue eyes had been extinguished when nobody was looking. That the man standing there with a stiff set to his shoulders and hollows grooving his cheeks wasn’t the quiet, gentle, happy soul they’d taken for granted.

Some of the chief’s cronies from administration arrived along with their wives, interrupting his concern, though he silently vowed to make time to talk to Zack at the first opportunity.

The party became lively as more guests arrived, most of them old friends from the teams at the two stations where Bentley had served as a firefighter in the trenches. The rest were guys from Station Five who’d become personally acquainted with their boss through Howard. A couple of the knuckleheads simply never passed on a chance to drink for free.

Things were running smoothly, everyone laughing and having a ball, snacking on chips, dip, and shrimp cocktail. Not a single hitch—until he spied Sean weaving through the guests, accepting surprised but happy greetings. Shaking hands, eyes glassy and too bright, laughter a bit too loud.

Tanner hadn’t attended a social function since the death of his family. Truthfully, no one had expected him to show at this one. God himself only knew what chemical fortification the man had used to endure his first public appearance in almost a year, but despite his promise to Howard, he was definitely drunk or high. For Sean’s sake, Howard prayed nobody noticed, especially the chief. What in hell was the fool thinking? He wasn’t, simple as that. Hard to think with a bloody, gaping hole where your heart used to be.

With a sigh of resignation, he went to light the grill, keeping a wary eye on Sean. A man losing it in private was one thing, but for the boys to see their captain totally wasted was way into goat-fuck territory. He couldn’t let that go down.

Julian arrived with his usual annoying flair, grinning like a cat with telltale feathers on his muzzle. “Hey,
amigos
! Where are all the lonely, single
mamacitas
hiding?”

Amazing. The guy kept Carmelita in the wings and still possessed the stamina to cruise the ladies.

“Far from you and your STDs, scumbag,” rumbled John Valentine from B-shift.

The two commenced to bullshitting with each other, drawing snickers from the knot of guys surrounding them. All in good fun. Val seemed to like Salvatore okay, another zinger in a day full of surprises.
Would you looky there. Jules finally made a buddy.
Wonders never ceased. Now, if only the little turd would make an effort with his own team.

Finished lighting the grill, he heard Clay exclaim, “Holy shit, who are the babes?”

Even before Howard looked up, he knew which cuties had drawn the appreciative gaze of every hot-blooded male in the vicinity. Kat and a woman he assumed to be her sister were hovering on the deck, glancing around uncertainly, exchanging warm hellos with an army of curious strangers. Kat added a small gift bag to the growing number of presents on the table, and pride swelled in his chest. She didn’t even know Bentley, but that hadn’t stopped her from honoring him.

Kat’s sister topped her in height by several inches. Tall and willowy, she held herself with regal poise. Her stance spoke of a woman used to being the center of attention, completely comfortable in her own skin. But there was nothing abrasive about her demeanor. Quite the contrary. Her large eyes were tilted up slightly at the corners, her wide, brilliant smile honest and inclusive of everyone around them. Straight, white-blond hair tumbled unbound down the back of her blouse nearly to the waist of her neat chocolate brown slacks.

Grace. What a perfect name for such a beautiful, ethereal woman. Oh, her sleek, stunning corporate looks couldn’t hold a candle to Kat’s voluptuous curves and pretty, fresh-faced innocence, but she’d certainly snagged her share of admirers.

As he strode to greet the ladies, he couldn’t help but notice the poleaxed expression on Julian’s face as he gazed across the yard at Kat’s sister. Drink suspended halfway to his lips, Salvatore stared at her as though he’d never seen a true lady in his life, nor one so gorgeous. Probably never had.

Stick your hand in that tigress’s cage and see what you get, lover boy.
Looked as though his warning to Jules to stay clear of Grace poofed to mist within two seconds of her arrival. Salvatore’s tough luck. The idea of Jules meeting his match and limping away with a few bleeding arteries for his efforts brightened Howard’s day considerably.

Reaching the only woman he had eyes for, he wrapped Kat in a huge hug, holding her for a few seconds longer than necessary. Then, just in case any of these horny bozos hadn’t received the message, he tipped her chin up and lowered his head. Captured her mouth and gave her the most sensuous kiss he dared in mixed company.

“Dang, Six-Pack,” one of the guys joked. “At least wait until everyone goes home before you round third base.”

Hoots and catcalls ensued. Belatedly, he recalled Bentley and Georgie lounging nearby and broke the kiss, cheeks flaming. Lord, the woman made him lose all common sense.

Kat cleared her throat and gave an embarrassed giggle. “Well. I missed you too, Lieutenant.” Waving a hand at her companion, she struggled to regain her composure. “Um, this is my sister, Grace McKenna. Grace, this is my . . . this is Howard Paxton.”

Ah. Dating rule number two: Before exposure to family and friends, figure out what the heck you’re supposed to call one another. Right behind number one, practice safe sex.

Grace intervened like a pro, smoothing over the uncomfortable moment. “It’s so nice to meet you, Lieutenant Paxton.” She smiled, holding out her hand. “Kat has told me so much about you. I’m sure your ears have been positively scorching.”

“Howard, please.” He took her hand, intending to give her a light squeeze, but she surprised him by gripping him in a handshake as firm and strong as any man’s.

She nodded. “Howard, thank you for inviting me.”

What a great combination for some lucky guy. Regal and beautiful, yet straightforward and confident. On the spot, he decided he liked Grace. “My pleasure. These guys can be a rowdy bunch, but they’re basically harmless. Enjoy yourself.”

“Oh, I intend to,” she assured him, violet eyes sparkling. “It’s been a horrid week in court, and I’m due for some fun.”

“Can I get you something? Beer or wine?”

“A glass of Chardonnay would be fantastic. I see there’s a bottle already open—”

“I’ll get it,” a low, masculine voice interrupted from nowhere. “White it is,
querida.
Shall we?”