“Maybe five minutes.”
“Did you know he was coming?”
“No.”
“He was in here alone for a bit before you knew he was here. Maybe no one else knew he was here, either.”
Her eyes widened. “Do you think he did this? But why?” She felt sick. “Just because I broke up with him?”
“People do take revenge for those kinds of things, Shelby. But it might not have been that at all.”
“What else?”
He searched her face, then said quietly, “It could be related to M.B.’s murder.”
“Clay!” Her surprise left in a rush as realization sank in. “You mean, Vince might’ve killed M.B., then come after me?”
“I have to look at all the angles.”
“But he hardly knew her.”
“Are you sure?”
She froze. “No.”
“I want to find out what connections he had to Ms. Perry.”
“She met Vince a couple of times here when she brought over goodies. He took his ambulance to her school and showed the kids around.” Could there have been more between the paramedic and the teacher? Something that might make Vince want to hurt M.B.? Shelby suddenly couldn’t breathe.
“Did you notice if any of the firefighters were in here alone at any other time?”
“You’re scaring me.”
“Did you?”
“Alone?” She thought hard. “Maybe Shepherd.”
Clay nodded. “I’ll check him out, too.”
“We already know he was friends with M.B. We all were.”
“How did he act around her?”
“Flirty, like he does with every woman.”
“We’ve been assuming M.B.’s lover was married, but maybe not.”
“That’s true,” she said slowly, her stomach still in knots. “You really think Shep could’ve had something going with M.B.?”
“We’ll have to find out.”
“You’re making me paranoid, as if Vince weren’t enough,” she muttered.
“Sorry.” His gaze searched her face. “You sure you’re okay?”
She nodded. “Thanks for getting here so fast.”
“I need to talk to your captain, as well as Monroe and Shepherd.”
“Just to see if they saw or heard anything, right?”
There was something in his face.
“You don’t suspect either of them?”
“I suspect everyone until I have a reason not to. I want you to wait for me, then you’re moving to my house.”
“Do you think that’s necessary?”
“I think Tyner would’ve hurt you if your captain hadn’t stepped in. And I’m real suspicious about the timing of Tyner being in the kitchen just before the microwave blew.”
“What do you think caused the explosion?”
“We’ll have to wait for the lab guys to give us a solid answer. Was popcorn the only thing in there?”
“Yes, but that by itself couldn’t cause an explosion.”
“Even if the bag overheated and caught fire?”
“Even then. There has to be a lot of heat and pressure behind an explosion like that. If the bag caught fire, it would burn, but probably not even crack the glass. There had to be some power to make the glass shatter and for the door to blow off,” Shelby explained.
“Power caused by what? An accelerant?”
“Yes. Or maybe a malfunction of some kind.”
“You mean electrical?” Clay looked pensive.
“It’s possible.”
“What about accelerants? What could be used?”
“A piece of metal, maybe?” The growing realization that the incident could’ve been deliberate made her shudder.
“Something big? Small?” he asked.
“Could’ve been as small as a paper clip or a coin.”
“Or flammable liquid inside the bag?”
“Yes, any of those.” Had someone really tried to kill her? Or was the microwave faulty and she had just happened to be using it when it malfunctioned?
“I’ll have the lab guys look at it. From your time together, Tyner knows you eat popcorn every afternoon. He could’ve planted something in the microwave before you tossed in your bag. So could Shepherd.”
“I can’t believe Shep would do something like this.” It was frightening to realize she wasn’t sure about Vince.
“I’m checking them both out anyway. I want you to take a leave of absence until we figure out what’s going on.”
“But I just came back to work today.”
“I know, but if this was an attempt on your life… Until the lab guys tell me this explosion wasn’t deliberate, I don’t want you here. I want you to be somewhere I can control the security.”
His words chilled her. She knew he wouldn’t suggest a move and a leave from work if he didn’t believe it was necessary.
“I want to talk to the crime scene tech. Then I’ll drive you home to get your things.”
She nodded. “I’ll talk to Captain Oliver when he returns.”
“I won’t let anything happen to you, Shelby.”
She met his serious green eyes. She knew he was thinking about Jason, about the accident that he still blamed himself for. Why couldn’t he accept that what had happened to her brother hadn’t been his fault? “I know,” she said quietly.
She didn’t like taking a leave from work. She felt as if she were running away, giving in to a scare tactic; it chafed, but she trusted Clay. If he said he feared for her, then he had a reason. There was probably no place safer for her than his house.
Just before eleven-thirty the next morning, Clay walked into his kitchen from the garage, returning from a domestic dispute call he’d received at 5 a.m. He and Detective Kiley Russell had finally convinced a man holding his estranged wife and two-year-old daughter hostage to let them go. There had been no bloodshed, a major victory in itself.
Erin, the older of his two younger cop sisters, stood at the sink rinsing dishes. She turned when she heard him, her straight, dark hair sliding over one shoulder. Concern shadowed her green eyes, a shade lighter than his. “How’d it go?”
As he moved around the oak dining table, he told her about the outcome and then excused himself to go shower.
“Want me to fix you a sandwich or something? Shelby and I have already eaten.”
“A sandwich would be great. Thanks.”
She nodded, walking over to the refrigerator and opening the door.
“How were things here?” He stopped in the wide, arched doorway leading into the hall.
His sister straightened, bracing a hand on the top of the fridge door. “Fine. She talked a little bit