Now, that person was gone, just like everyone else who had cared in her life. She was once again, all alone.
The darkness was back, awakened once again after so long of a reprieve. Its gloriously dark tentacles reached out, consuming, overwhelming once again. Changing, twisting the mind. Splitting it in two as it had once before, long ago.
The smell of smoke hinted at its return. The sight of flames tickled and teased it from its hiding. Over the past ten years, nothing had allowed it its freedom, until it had seen the bright red of Raven Brooks’ red locks once more.
Now, thanks to her return, the monster was finally free, and it was only a matter of time before someone paid the price.
Chapter Two
Where there is smoke there is fire
“What in the hell do you think you’re doing?” Cade Stone stormed across the yard and stomped on the pile of papers and dead plants, extinguishing the small flames his neighbor, Bobby Robert—yes, that was really the man’s name—had started.
“Hey!” The middle-aged man pushed him. “What the hell.” Bobby shoved him again. “Why’d you go and do that?”
“Bobby, I know you’re smarter than to light a fire when we’re under restrictions.” Cade stomped on the pile again to make his point.
“Well, shit.” Bobby sighed and wiped a dirty handkerchief over his face. “I was going to stand right here. Got my water hose and all.” The man motioned to the hose, which wasn’t even hooked up to the water spigot.
“Don’t test my patience,” he warned the man. “Now clean this mess up. Trash day is tomorrow.” He motioned to the garbage can sitting at the end of Bobby’s drive.
Jumping into his truck, he whistled for his dog, Blue, to follow him.
The old bloodhound took his time getting up and stretching before he hobbled from his spot on the front porch and climbed into the truck with him.
“Thanks for joining me today,” he told the dog, who rolled his eyes at him. “Don’t give me that look.” He started the truck and headed into town. “Listen, if you don’t give me attitude, you might get some cookies.” The dog’s ears perked up, as much as the droopy things could. “You’d think you’d be more enthusiastic to come to work with me. Man’s best friend and all.” Blue laid his head down in his lap and looked up at him with big begging eyes. “Yeah, yeah, we’ll stop off and get you some cookies,” he agreed, causing Blue’s tail to wag frantically.
He parked in front of Upper Crust Bakery and let Blue follow him inside. Even though the building was newer, built after the fire, the bakery had been a staple in the town his entire life. This was the case with most of the other businesses in Cannon Falls. The ones that had stuck around and rebuilt, that was.
The old Cannon Falls Diner was the only building downtown that hadn’t burned to the ground. That business, along with a little over a hundred homes, was all that had remained after that summer day. The day the town had lost thirty residents, including his younger brother.
“Morning, Cade,” Dawn Highett, owner of the bakery, greeted him when he walked in. “How’s Blue this morning?” The blonde woman, who was a few years younger than him, bent down and scratched his dog on the head. Blue, who wasn’t a fool and knew who had the cookies, laid his head on Dawn’s knee.
“Morning, Dawn.” Cade walked over and helped himself to the self-serve coffee.
“Will you be bringing in donuts for the crew this morning?” Dawn asked, giving Blue a few cookies from her apron.
“You know it,” he said, adding creamer to his coffee. “I’ve already extinguished one fire this morning,” he said. He walked over to the counter and waited until Dawn finished washing her hands before helping him pick out two dozen donuts for his men.
He’d been tempted to ask Dawn out at one point. The pretty blonde had always been friendly to him, and he liked how nice she was to Blue. But then he’d found out that she had a live-in girlfriend.
It wasn’t as if he’d been desperate for dates over the years since he’d returned to his hometown. And since he’d become fire marshal, he’d decided to keep his focus on his career. Blue took up a lot of his time as well.
“Oh?” she asked, glancing over her shoulder. “What happened?”
“Bobby.” He said the man’s name, as if that explained everything.
Dawn rolled her eyes. “Seriously?” She chuckled. “I swear, some people should be banned from buying matches.”
He chuckled and started pointing at the donuts he wanted for his team.
“So, you heard the latest rumors?” she asked as she carefully placed donuts in the pink bakery boxes.
“Rumors?” he asked, pointing to the green-clover-covered sugar cakes. “About?”
“Raven Brooks is back in town,” Dawn said as she filled the box. He froze in place. “Or so Tommy Andrews has been saying all over town.”
“Raven?” He felt his blood start to boil. “Where is she staying?”
Dawn glanced up at him, no doubt because of his stern tone.
“As far as I know, she’s staying at the resort.” She gave a little shrug and walked over to ring him up. “Her family still owns the place, after all.”
“Right.” He paid Dawn and mentally rearranged his day to add a visit to the resort. He’d been waiting ten long years to talk to Raven Brooks. Ten long years that he’d spent without his brother, Reggie.
Now the day had finally come to question the person responsible for his loss and the losses of so many others.
After dropping the sugary breakfast off at the firehouse, he and Blue headed up to the massive resort that hung along the hillside overlooking Cannon Falls. He’d been to the place so many times over the years, as he was responsible for certifying and enforcing the fire code for the entire town, including the resort.
However, this time when he parked and stepped outside, he had only one goal in mind. Finding and questioning Raven Brooks.
He could vaguely remember his younger brother’s high school girlfriend. He had at one point received a photo of the two of them at a school dance. Since Cade had been away at college most of his brother’s senior year of school, he hadn’t been around when his brother had been dating the girl.
He did, however, remember seeing the young redhead around long before then. After all, Cannon Falls had always been a small town, even before the fire that ravaged the place, destroying so many lives.
Snapping his fingers, he had Blue lying down just outside the doors. He knew the dog would remain there until he returned.
Stepping into the lobby, he glanced around. Over the years, he’d watched the decay of the once-elite resort that had housed thousands and thousands of wealthy families.
But he knew that it wasn’t the fire ten years ago that had caused the resort’s decline. No, he knew all too well the problems behind its demise.
“Morning.” He smiled at Christina.
“Marshal.” The young woman beamed up at him. “I didn’t know we were having another inspection today.”
He leaned on the counter and tried for charm. After all, he didn’t quite know how to go about demanding to see Raven Brooks. Technically, he had no jurisdiction over a case that had been closed more than a decade ago.