She was probably the biggest-hearted person I would ever meet in my life, this tiny Midwestern woman. She’d never livedanywhere but this small town, and yet she listened and learned and loved as much as she possibly could, no matter what.
I hoped Elliot was right, that she’d decided I was her fourth kid. Because Judy Hart was the mom I’d always dreamed existed, but never in a million years thought I’d know. That unconditional love that you were supposed to have from your family.
She had it, and gave it away in spades.
I knew that even if I never spent another minute with Judy Hart, I was going to remember this night as one of the times I’d felt most loved in my entire life. I had Elliot and Judy and a room full of Nids who had found a mom who loved them for who they were no matter where they came from or what they’d done or failed to do.
28
Elliot Crane
I’m going to spend the night at Henry’s.
Seth Mays
Everything okay?
Haven’t spent much time with him recently.
Okay. I’ll be at home if you need me.
I’d expectedthe happy glow of Thanksgiving to last, but it hadn’t. At all.
Elliot had been surly the next morning, and he clearly wasn’t interested in talking about why. And it hadn’t gotten better the morning after that, either. He’d sullenly gone over to help Henry with something this morning, so I took the opportunity of Elliot being under someone else’s supervision to go in to the office to try to get caught up on paperwork, even though it was a holiday weekend.
I was also not expecting that I’d actually get all four days off—the fact that I’d gotten through Thanksgivingandthe day afterwithout getting called in was, quite frankly, shocking. I’d even texted Lacy the day before to ask if I’d missed something.
She’d taken one accident, and Roger had apparently gotten the next one, so whatever happened third, she told me, was my problem. I couldn’t help but think that if it had been Richmond, I’d have been at my sixth or seventh scene by this point. I wondered if it was because most people went to their families in other towns.
I mean, sure, we’d gone three or four days before without a death or crime scene that needed CSI attendance, but I was used to holidays that were more like Halloween than the average Wednesday night.
I was finishing up my paperwork while alternately stewing about the fact that Elliot—despite claiming otherwise—had to be upset with me about something when my phone rang. I guess the streak was over.
“Mays here,” I answered it, recognizing the number as belonging to Lieutenant Colfax.
“I’m sending you an address,” the orc replied. “Get here.”
I pulledonto a gravel track leading into what looked like a dirt racetrack—the place was clearly closed, and I could immediately see that a fuel tank and what looked like a couple outbuildings were the source of the smoke I’d seen from the highway. There were two trucks there already, plus an ambulance.
I pulled up behind Colfax’s department-issued SUV, wincing as I slid out of the Sheriff’s Department truck. I wondered if maybe there wasn’t a knee brace I could get to help—especially as I trudged over to where Colfax was standing, watching as both trucks pumped water onto a structure that seemed to have beena concessions building at some point in its life. The thing next to it—judging from the smell of disinfectant and burnt urinal cakes—had been the bathrooms.
“How’s the nose feeling?” Colfax asked me.
“Are you asking me if I’m ready to walk around two buildings that now smell like wet burnt everything, as well as food and shit, respectively, to figure out if there was an accelerant used?”
Colfax barked out a laugh. “I like you, Mays. And yes.”
“Not looking forward to it, to be honest,” I replied. “But that’s the job.”
Colfax nodded once. “Good man.” The orc looked over at the buildings, the flames now barely visible, although smoke and steam still roiled from gaps in their roofs. “Get started with as much of the scene as you can with us in the way, and when it’s safe, you can do your sniff-test.”
“I’m going to need light and no fire truck in the way,” I informed the lieutenant. “If you want me to have any hope of finding anything.” I scanned the scene. “Although, to be honest, between the water and the team, I very much doubt I’m going to be able to find anything useful, like tire tracks or footprints.”
Colfax grunted. “So you’re not going to survey the scene?”
“I will,” I replied. “Once they’re done and it’s light out—or someone brings in giant floodlights.”
I hadn’t quite finished my firefighter training—so I was not allowed to touch anything on the trucks or work the hose, just as I wasn’t allowed to actually make the official determination of arson by myself. Colfax’s name would be the one on the form, and I was sure the orc would be tailing me and making sure I knew what I was doing, while also taking advantage of the fact that I knew my way around a crime scene, just in case this was one.
