A Winter Wedding(77)
She frowned as she surveyed the damage. The front of the building had lost its roof, part of one wall and both windows. With the jagged and charred edges remaining, that section of the plant looked like the gaping maw of a monster, ready to take a bite out of any unwary passerby. The flames that danced behind the opening served as its devilish eyes. But at least there were plenty of firemen.
Knowing that Kyle had hurried over on his own before anyone else could get there made her anxious. This was a much bigger fire than she’d expected. But the first man she asked told her the building had been cleared of people and pointed her toward a solitary figure who stood off to one side, hands jammed in his pockets as he watched the water from the firefighters’ hoses damage what the fire itself hadn’t already burned beyond recognition.
“Are you okay?” she asked when she reached him.
He combed his fingers through his hair but continued to stare at his burning plant. “Yeah.”
She wasn’t convinced. “The good thing is no one was hurt,” she said, trying to make him feel better. “That’s what’s most important. If this had broken out during the day when all your employees were inside, who knows—”
“Broken out?” He bit off each word as if he could barely speak for the stiffness of his jaw. “It didn’t start on its own.”
“It could have. I’ve heard of—”
“No. That isn’t what happened.”
Lourdes felt her jaw drop. “You’re saying someone set this on purpose? That it was...arson?”
His eyes narrowed. “I wouldn’t be surprised. The timing’s suspicious, what with the threats Noelle’s been making. And I’m pretty sure I saw her here earlier.”
Lourdes looked more carefully at all the people who’d gathered. Some were probably friends or family of the firefighters. Others had very likely followed the trucks. Certain people did that sort of thing. But the firefighters definitely had an audience—much to the displeasure of the three police officers who were trying to keep them from getting too close to the burning plant.
“Surely Noelle wouldn’t go this far,” she said. “You told me yourself that she’d be unlikely to do anything seriously harmful. And destroying your plant—that’s serious.”
He heaved a sigh. “Maybe it was an accident. Warren could’ve been smoking over here instead of at his place. He could’ve tossed a butt where he shouldn’t have. But that Honda I saw...”
“It was Noelle’s car?” Lourdes asked. “Noelle drives a Honda?”
“Yes.”
“When did you notice it?”
“Right after the first wave of firefighters arrived.”
“Are you sure it wasn’t another one of the men, coming to help? Or that Noelle wasn’t dropping someone off?”
“I’m positive. She didn’t stop long enough to let anyone out. Besides, that car’s old and distinctive. I don’t think I’d confuse it. She pulled in, circled around the parking lot and then got the hell out. The sight of her gave me the creeps—made me feel like she was coming back to survey what she’d done. As if she was excited about it.”
It was hard to believe someone would go that far, but Lourdes knew it happened occasionally. “Are there any security cameras that might tell you what happened?”
“No, there’s never been any need for that sort of thing. I’ve never even considered it.”
“Still, if this is arson, they should be able to tell once they get the fire out, and things cool off.”
He didn’t respond. He just kept staring at the plant as though seeing it go up in smoke was so terrible he couldn’t look away.
“You have insurance, don’t you?”
“I do, of course, but this will be a serious disruption to my business. And who knows whether the insurance company will step up the way they should. Insurance companies are notorious for doing everything possible to reject a claim or make some exception or other.”
She wished she could offer him more consolation. “I’m sorry, Kyle. I feel awful about this.”
“It’s cold out. You should go home,” he said.
“You’re worried about me being cold? I’m the one who’s wearing a coat—your coat. Here, you take it. That sweatshirt can’t be doing much to protect you from this wind.”
He waved her off. “Keep it. I can’t feel anything.”
She folded her arms to protect her hands from the biting wind. “If it’s her, if it is Noelle, she’ll be in real trouble. Maliciously setting a fire is a felony, isn’t it?”
“I don’t know about anywhere else, but it is in California. If she’s convicted, she’ll go to prison.” He shook his head. “She’s so used to getting away with all the shit she does. People around here have been putting up with her bad behavior for years. Her family’s been doing it her whole life. But maybe she’s finally gone too far.”
*
It took the firefighters more than two hours to put out the fire and make sure everything was properly soaked. Kyle was numb by the time it was over. He sent a text to Morgan. He knew she turned off her cell at night and wouldn’t get his message until morning, but he didn’t want to call the house and wake her. Morning would be soon enough for her to receive the bad news. She could try to get word to the rest of his employees then, at least as many as she could catch, so they wouldn’t drive in to the plant for nothing.