Hunter's Quest

Chapter Ten

He stared at the crystal dangling from her rearview mirror again, studying it as though he wished it could provide answers to his questions. The fingers of his right hand clenched and unclenched occasionally.

They approached the fork in the road mentioned by the directions. Once past it, she counted mailboxes and turned into the driveway at the third one. A modest brick ranch house lay directly ahead.

A man of about Jason's age answered the door. Jason asked if he was the owner of the store that had burned and when the man confirmed it, he identified himself as Special Agent Jason Hunter from the State Bureau of Investigation. He said he wanted to ask a few questions about the fire.

"Can I see some ID? I'm sorry to be so suspicious, but I have reason."

Jason nodded. "I understand, believe me." He pulled out a wallet with badge and I.D. card. He must've picked them up from his room when he changed clothes. Kristie couldn't see it well, but a close inspection of the card satisfied the other man.

Their host's wariness lessened but didn't go away, and when he smiled at them, it didn't wipe out an air of exhaustion or discouragement either. "Special Agent Hunter, come in. The shop was really Rita's project." A woman in her late twenties joined them in a comfortable den. Her dark eyes looked red as though she'd been crying or possibly hadn't slept.

"Rita, this is Special Agent Hunter from the SBI. He wants to ask us some questions about the fire, since it's similar to some of the others. By the way, I'm Dan Pelham," he said to Jason.

"Jason, please. He introduced Kristie, and then turned to Rita Pelham. "I truly am sorry about your shop. And I'm sorry to be intruding on what I know is a difficult time for you."

Rita nodded, taking a seat on the sofa and waving them into a pair of chairs facing it. "You only need to be sorry if you're part of the problem and not part of the solution," she answered. Dan moved over and sat next to his wife.

"I plan to be part of the solution," Jason affirmed. "What do you think happened to the store?"

Dan slipped an arm around his wife's shoulders, offering support and solace. She closed her eyes for a moment and said, "I don't know for sure."

"Do you think it was an accident? A hot plate left on or frayed wires?"

Rita drew a long breath and said, "No. There was no hot plate or even a coffeemaker. And Dan rewired the place a year ago."

Dan shot her a quick, worried look and she met his gaze with a determined expression. "I'm not messing around here. This is too big. And he doesn't report to the sheriff. In fact, the SBI investigates other law enforcement agencies, isn't that right, Agent Hunter?"

"That is one of our functions, yes, and, no, I don't report to the local sheriff. I'm sorry I can't tell you any more than that about an ongoing investigation, but I can guarantee you I want to help, not cause more problems for you. Why are you so sure it wasn't an accident?"

"We're very careful," Dan answered. "Practically compulsive about safety. Rita locked up last night at five as she usually does. She always takes a last look around the place just before she goes. There was nothing out of the ordinary. The smoke alarm hadn't gone off, and there were no odd smells or sounds. Twenty minutes later the whole place is on fire. What does that suggest to you?"

"It could still be a short in the electrical system," Jason suggested.

Dan shook his head. "I'm an electrician. I did the rewiring myself and went over it with a fine-tooth comb. It was sound." He shifted and grimaced. "Besides, electrical fires rarely blaze up and engulf a structure as quickly as that. There should have been enough smoke before it got to that point to set off the alarm. It didn't."