Caught in the Flames

Chapter Eighty-Six

As always, none of this is mine. I'm just the perv who want to make our beloved Twilight characters swear, drink, and go at it like horny rabbits. This story will be a combination of love, suspense, some violence and steamy, sweaty sex.

On with it!

Chapter Eighty-Six

EPOV

I was sitting on the edge of my rig, water dripping down my face from the bottle I poured over my head. I was in shock over this fire. Any fire where you lose someone, an innocent victim, it's harrowing. But to have the deceased be the accelerant, covered head to toe in gasoline?

We struck the fire quickly and there were very few injuries other than the fatality. Some minor smoke inhalation and sprained limbs from the evacuation of the high rise. Once we got into the office and began our investigation, we found the source of the fire located in the rear. In one of the corner offices, there were the remains of a human, burnt to a crisp from being doused in gasoline and someone lighting a match. The remains were so badly burnt that we couldn't identify who it was, if they were male or female or if they even worked in the location we found them. The room that the body was located was an unoccupied office of Gold Coast Realty.

"Lieutenant Cullen," called Garrett.

I heaved my body off the rig and walked to where Garrett was speaking with the arson investigator, a police detective, Emmett and one of the employees of Gold Coast Realty. From his three thousand dollar suit, I assumed it was the owner of the realty office. "We may have an idea of who was in that office," Emmett said sadly. "Mr. Riley?"

"Most of my agents were out giving showings or prepping locations," Mr. Riley replied. "There was one that requested the morning off due to some invitation only thing that a client of hers was hosting in her new retail space. Victoria Monroe was working at the office this morning before heading to the grand opening to White Swan WebDesigns. Victoria may be the body in that office..." He clasped his fist to his lips, shaken up by the revelation.

"Did Ms. Monroe have any appointments this morning?" Garrett asked. "Any reason why she would be in the office?"

"You'd have to ask her PA," Mr. Riley answered, gesturing to a petite brunette with a pixie haircut and thick glasses. "Mae, did Victoria have any appointments before she left for that opening?"

Mae fumbled with a Blackberry, her eyes filled with tears. Scrolling through the calendar, she nodded. "I received a phone call last night just as I was leaving. A Paul Kellar requested an early meeting with Victoria, first thing. The appointment was scheduled for eight this morning. When I got in at half past, Victoria was already in the conference room with Mr. Kellar."

"Do you see Mr. Kellar among the people who were evacuated?" Garrett asked.

Mae shook her head. "I didn't see him at all. I only saw the back of his head when he followed Victoria toward the abandoned office," she shrugged.

"Wasn't Paul Kellar the name of that guy who set fires to churches and homes in Seattle?" Emmett questioned. "He's in jail for his crimes, right?"

I looked at my best friend. He was oddly addicted to reading about all of the sickos who started fires and arsonists. He had a library of all of the famous fires and the people who started them in his home. The arson investigator, a weasel-like man named Roland, pulled out his phone and tapped the name into a search engine. "You're right," Roland said. "Paul Kellar was responsible for seventy fires and three deaths in the 80s and 90s. Whoever Ms. Monroe met with must have been the person who started this. Obviously, his name is a pseudonym. I doubt they released the real Paul Kellar. He was sentenced to ninety-nine years in prison."

"Could you describe him?" the detective, Detective Lake, asked.

"Like I said, I only saw the back of his head and that was only for a fleeting moment. He was about as tall as Lieutenant McCarty but not as big. And I think he had blondish hair?" Mae offered, wrinkling her nose. Then, her eyes widened behind her thick glasses. "Did that man do this?"

"We don't know, Mae," Mr. Riley said, ushering her away.

"We need to gather everyone's statement," Detective Lake said curtly. "Anyone in your office needs to come down to the station so we could find out who this Mr. Kellar is." He also looked up at the high rise, his lips mashed into a thin line. "We also need to identify the body in that office." With a harsh sigh, he tugged on his hair. "Though, I have a sneaking suspicion that it's Victoria Monroe."

A/N: Just so you know, Paul Kellar was a real arsonist in Seattle. The sick research I did to find out...I'll post what I read on my blog if you're curious. Leave me some!!