“Yeah and if this is the bomber, we might be walking into a trap. He’d know for sure we’d be called in again.” Kane pulled out his weapon and checked the clip. “It could be three propane tanks exploding but until we’re sure, we should take all necessary precautions.”
“Yeah, my thoughts exactly.” Jenna shrugged off the concern, she had a team of professionals around her. “What about taking the chopper?”
“Yeah, I thought about that too but Carter said it will take longer to prepare the chopper than it will take me to drive, if we all ride in the Beast.” Kane met her gaze. “I’ll go and make sure we have everything we need packed in the truck. We’ll need Zorro, so I’ll leave Duke here to save room.” He turned and headed for the door.
Jenna glanced around at her team as they all climbed into the Beast. All wore liquid Kevlar vests, helmets, and com packs. Taking the extra precaution against an unknown threat might save a life, although if they tripped an IED they’d be toast. She turned to Carter. “Do you worry about sending Zorro in to look for explosives?”
“Of course, I do.” Carter attached his seatbelt and patted Kane on the shoulder. “Go, we need to be there yesterday.” He looked back at Jenna as Kane swung the Beast around and headed down the long driveway. “It’s not a case of, ‘the dog will get blown up first and protect us.’” He snorted. “We’re a highly trained team, but he smells what my eyes miss. I’ve seen him discover IEDs hidden in places many would have overlooked. He’s very smart, he won’t walk into a situation and he won’t allow me to do so either.”
Surprised by his passion, Jenna nodded. “Good to know.”
They went through the gates and Kane hit the winding blacktop. Once they’d blown through town, he took the on-ramp to the highway and punched the gas, throwing Jenna back in her seat with the force of acceleration. She relaxed the moment she caught sight of Kane’s determined grimace. His truck was like another limb and she had complete confidence in his ability to drive at hair-raising speeds. Lights flashing and siren wailing they sped along the highway leaving the tall pines of Stanton Forest far behind them. The Beast passed vehicles so fast, they became indistinguishable shapes with lights. They hit the long curving stretch through the lowlands and groups of industrial buildings loomed up like dark lumps in the distance. The mood inside the vehicle was somber, everyone deep in their own thoughts. It was as if they were all heading out on a combat mission and making plans on how to survive.
As they rounded a long curve in the road, Jenna tried to center her mind on anything else but blackened burned bodies and had a flashback to the night in the middle of winter when she’d first met Kane. He’d appeared out of the freezing cold night to rescue her from an upturned cruiser on this very stretch of highway and she’d stuck her Glock in his face. She grinned into the night at the memory. He could have disarmed her and broken her neck in seconds but he’d called her ma’am, and then been so darn polite, she’d thought him too good to be true. Dealing with an overprotective ex-sniper with more baggage than a freight train had been an experience but she’d never regretted one single day.
As they left Black Rock Falls county, the ranches on the outskirts of Blackwater, some with lights blazing in the windows, came into view. They passed through a small forest and came out on a long straight stretch of highway. In the distance a red glow lit up the sky. “Oh, that doesn’t look good.”
“I think that’s Wolfe up ahead.” Kane lifted his chin but his eyes remained fixed on the road. “We’ve made good time, he left well before us.”
“I’m sure glad we caught up with him.” Carter leaned forward and peered at the glowing sky. “It’s not safe to go near that place. The fire department called out the Black Rock Falls fire chief the moment the explosions went off, so it’s possible the Black Rock Falls Fire Department is here as well. They’ll know to keep clear.”
The idea of her local fire department getting there before Jenna concerned her. “They should have called us first. We needed to be on scene from the get-go.”
“You’re asking a lot from a deputy who is used to following orders, Jenna.” Kane flicked her a glance. “Think about it, his sheriff has just been blown to hell and he wouldn’t have the contacts the sheriff had on hand. His first priority would have been to evacuate the neighbors and stop the fire spreading. His volunteer fire department would have panicked. I’m guessing they needed assistance so the fire chief would be the logical person to call. When he arrived, I’m guessing he called the Louan sheriff, as he’s just dealt with a similar situation and Crenshaw told him to call the FBI. That’s why we had the delay.”
“He followed procedure.” Carter sighed. “Let’s just hope no one has tried to be a hero and ended up spread over half the town.”
Huffing out an annoyed sigh, Jenna looked at Kane. “I know the deputy followed procedure; I meant the fire chief. He was fully aware we’re involved in a similar case out of Louan and should have called us before he left for Blackwater. He’s irresponsible. One mistake I’d overlook, but two? Not a chance in hell.”
“You go straight for the jugular, don’t you, Jenna?” Carter barked a laugh. “I would too. If he has a problem with you, he could have called me. I gave him my card.”
“Well, we can deal with him later.” Kane slowed the Beast to the same speed as Wolfe’s van.
Jenna snorted. She didn’t like the fire chief’s attitude toward her. “Oh, I intend to.”
Forty-One
The smell of the burning wood filled the cab, and smoke swirled around them rising in great plumes and moving across the blacktop in a slow procession. Ahead flames reached for the sky like red and orange dancers with waving outstretched arms. The trees around the house had burst into flames and firetrucks, set well back from the blaze pounded them with jets of water in what looked like an insurmountable battle. The water boiled and hissed, sending out great clouds of steam but the fire had escaped. It roared like an angry lion determined to tear everything in its path to shreds. The recent dry spell had desiccated the undergrowth to kindling making it a perfect medium to spread the flames. Horrified, Jenna stared in disbelief. Inside the raging inferno that was once a family home, Sheriff Buzz Stuart and his wife Cathy had perished. She turned to Carter. “You can’t send Zorro in there.”
“I’m not a fool, Jenna.” Carter peered over her shoulder at the blaze.
“How close do you need to get?” Kane slowed to a crawl. “It’s getting hot in here already.”
“Not close at all, keep well back. We’ll need to access our equipment and a have a safe place to rest up if necessary.” Carter pointed to an open area of plowed land, where Wolfe had just parked his van. “Follow Wolfe. It looks safer, dirt and no trees to catch fire.”
“Good choice.” Kane headed to the field and drove through the open gate. “The wind is heading in the other direction as well.” He turned the truck around and stared out the windshield. “I thought you said the fire chief was on scene?” He indicated toward the road. “That’s his truck heading our way now.”