Four-Alarm Blaze [Southern Heat 4], page 1
part #4 of Southern Heat Series
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Southern Heat 4
Four-Alarm Blaze
Years after losing her boyfriend in a tragic house fire, Los Angeles native Nina Taylor becomes a driven, dedicated arson investigator. Accepting a position with the Melville County Police Department, she moves to Louisiana to leave the past behind and further her career. A few months later, a demented arsonist decides to transform Melville into his own personal playground.
With leads running cold, the fire investigation suddenly turns into a deadly game of cat and mouse for the beautiful, accomplished Nina, prompting her to enlist the help of two drop-dead gorgeous firefighters, Logan Brock and Kyle Rogers. The instant attraction between the threesome grows ever hotter as Logan and Kyle assist Nina in slowly unraveling the mystery behind the destructive fires, but the closer they get to the truth, the more dangerous the game becomes.
Will the love that Logan and Kyle possess for Nina be strong enough to save her from the clutches of a vengeful pyromaniac? Witness passion burning white-hot in a four-alarm blaze!
Genre: Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre, Romantic Suspense
Length: 31,311 words
FOUR-ALARM BLAZE
Southern Heat 4
Alexa Aaby
MENAGE AMOUR
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Ménage Amour
FOUR-ALARM BLAZE
Copyright © 2014 by Alexa Aaby
E-book ISBN: 978-1-63258-694-0
First E-book Publication: December 2014
Cover design by Harris Channing
All art and logo copyright © 2014 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Letter to Readers
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DEDICATION
As always, here’s to you, my readers. Enjoy the continuing journey, and thank you for all of your support.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
About the Author
FOUR-ALARM BLAZE
Southern Heat 4
ALEXA AABY
Copyright © 2014
Chapter One
It was 9:15 p.m. on Wednesday, October 22 when Arson Investigator Nina Taylor pulled her storm-blue Nissan Altima up to the scene of the latest house fire in the county of Melville, Louisiana. On what would have been an otherwise typically peaceful night, everything about the latest blaze made it eerily untypical. Over the past five weeks, the county had been hit with a half-dozen suspicious fires. This was number seven.
Nina’s work hadn’t kept her this busy since she’d relocated from the west coast. Because Melville was literally becoming a hot spot for arson activity, the crime spree demanded her full attention. And although she was up for the challenge, the case was keeping her working into the wee hours of the night.
Melville was a small town, with a population of just over ten thousand residents. There had never been such an outbreak of unsolved fires in the town’s 450 year history. All evidence pointed to an arsonist who had chosen the county as his playground. It was up to Nina to bring his playtime to an end.
After seizing the opportunity to interview some of the surrounding neighbors and a few curious bystanders, she headed over to examine the burned down property. As soon as she stepped onto the pavement in front of the gutted three-story home on Peyton Lane, the five-foot-six-inch twenty-eight-year-old was met by the town’s fire chief, authoritative, burly Harold Moore. He wasted no time tearing into her with his no-nonsense attitude and thick Louisiana accent.
“Ms. Taylor, pardon my French, but the asshole responsible for this shit has got to be caught. Thank God the Archers are out of town visiting family in Baton Rouge.” Pointing his sausage-like index finger in her direction, he asked, “Did you know there were three children living in that house with their parents? Five lives were at stake tonight. How many more will be up for grabs before we catch this maniac? These fires are unprecedented. What the hell is going on around here?”
Tossing her long, shiny black hair to her back, Nina felt her temperature begin to rise. It was nothing new. The chief had had that effect on her since the second blaze broke out in town. As annoying as it was for her to hear his impassioned complaints, she knew he was right in steering his frustration her way.
It was her job to put an end to the mayhem that had managed to infectiously penetrate the normally tranquil southern town. She knew it was only a matter of time before the arsonist would claim his first victim. The responsibility rested upon her shoulders to find him and put him away. In spite of that, the chief’s persistence was making her feel quite agitated. It caused her mind to slip into the past.
Nina was all too familiar with the type of personal tragedy arson often brought with it. It was the reason she still bore the deep, second-degree burn on her left upper forearm. Still, she was the lucky one. The career she had chosen stemmed from the loss of her fiancé and soul mate, Justin Clark, seven years ago.
The fire, which broke out in the Los Angeles County apartment complex where they lived, had ultimately cost him his life. On the day of the tragedy, Nina arrived home after working a half-day shift at her job as a supervisor for a local telecommunications company.
Justin had not gone into work that day. Instead, he called out. Getting some additional rest that morning, he awaited Nina’s return. The couple had planned on spending a romantic, leisurely day at home in bed before going out for dinner later that night.
When Nina pulled into the complex, she saw smoke pouring from the roof of their building. Filled with unspeakable panic, she quickly made her way inside and reached Justin just as the roof of their top-floor apartment collapsed, bringing a flaming slab of wood down onto her arm. She was terrified, but fearing for their lives, Nina managed to drag his limp body down four flights of stairs and out of the building to the grounds below. She immediately administered CPR to Justin, but it was too late. Just as the fire crew and paramedics arrived, he managed to whisper “I love you” to her a second before he succumbed to smoke inhalation, cradled in her loving arms.
On that day, a piece of Nina died, too. Slipping deeply into a state of perpetual depression, she quickly lost her zest for life. Closing herself off from the outside world ultimately forced her employer to terminate her. After five months of living on unemployment benefits, Nina began to yearn for her old self to return. Regaining her inner strength, she realized that while she couldn’t save Justin, she had to make an earnest effort to save herself. She knew it was what he would have wanted her to do.
Because she had lost the love of her life to arson, she became determined to honor Justin’s memory in the most productive way that sh
Reliving the event opened old wounds, but Nina maintained control of her emotions. She responded to the chief’s questions in a reassuring tone. “The arson unit is close to cracking this one. Believe me, I understand your frustration. It’s been a nightmare of an investigation, but hopefully, it’s one that will be coming to a close real soon.”
Chief Moore began grinding his teeth. He stared into her light-brown eyes with a distinct frown covering his forehead. “Listen, this is my town to protect. While you and the other investigators are running around chasing down leads, my men and I are putting out these damned fires, hoping that nobody gets gravely injured or killed. This is bullshit, Nina. You need to find this jerk, and find him now!”
“Harold, we are doing everything within our power to find the person or persons responsible,” Nina replied calmly. “You know we’re short-staffed. We’re working as fast and thoroughly as we possibly can.”
“It’s not enough!” the chief shouted. “We’ve got to end this shit now!”
“Well, if you have any suggestions, I’m more than happy to hear them,” she said in a distinctly reserved tone of voice.
He realized he needed to turn it down a couple of notches, so he attempted to match her professional demeanor. Forcing a smile, he said, “As a matter of fact, I do. Why don’t you come down to the station tomorrow morning? Since you’re short on bodies, I think I can be of help. I’ll see you in the morning, Nina.”
“See you then,” she answered, walking up the steps of the house, stooping under the crime scene tape.
Inside the property, the burned remnants of the family’s life there together lay in ruins. As Nina examined the various rooms throughout the house, she determined the fire’s point of origin was the completely charred master bedroom. From there, it spread across the entire first floor, working its way throughout the rest of the house. After she collected samples of some of the burned materials to test for the presence of accelerants, which she could clearly detect by smell, she photographed and video-recorded the crime scene.
After Nina conducted her personal investigation, she walked toward the main door. Before stepping outside, she turned around in the doorway and whispered, “You bastard, I’m going to find you and when I do, I’m going to put you away for a very long time.”
* * * *
Being true to her word, Nina arrived at Firehouse 42 at 9:00 a.m. the following morning. Making her way to Chief Moore’s office, she stepped inside, wearing a navy blue pencil skirt, a white-fitted, button-down shirt, and a pair of leather pumps that matched her skirt perfectly. She carried a dark blue leather purse and a tablet. Her silky black hair was pulled back in a sophisticated bun at the back of her head. She wore a pair of designer glasses to assist with her near-sightedness.
Chief Moore was seated behind his executive-style walnut desk. Seated in front of him were two extremely good-looking men. Like the chief, they were also dressed in firemen uniforms consisting of tan T-shirts, embossed with the station’s insignia, and black trousers.
“Ah, Ms. Taylor, come in. I’m glad you could make it,” the chief said.
“Good morning, Chief Moore. I’m happy to be here,” she replied.
“Ms. Taylor, I’d like to introduce you to two of my best men, Logan Brock and Kyle Rogers.”
As the two men stood up to greet her, Nina felt like she had been hit by a freight train. Logan was the epitome of handsome. He was six-foot-two-inches tall with dark hair and piercing blue eyes. Kyle was an inch taller. His hair was light brown, and his eyes were jade green. They were built like two mighty warriors, riddled with muscles. When they both smiled at her, extending handshakes, she suddenly felt weak in her knees. They began to tremble slightly.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Taylor,” Logan said in a deep voice that revealed his even-toned Southern accent. He shook her hand, displaying a flawlessly white smile.
“We’re here to help you in any way we can,” Kyle added. He sounded somewhat similar to his partner with a dimpled smile just as bright. He shook her hand firmly.
All of a sudden, Nina’s heart began beating wildly with amorous intent. It hadn’t done that since before she lost the love of her life. Losing Justin the way she did left her scarred, not only physically but mentally as well. She hadn’t been able to heal enough psychologically to form a lasting relationship with another man since. In fact, it didn’t take her long to figure out that burying herself in her work was a convenient way to avoid the dating scene all together. It had worked like a charm until now.
She began to feel a bit out of sorts, as if the chief was introducing her on a blind date. It seemed silly that a simple meeting would elicit such an emotion in her. Nina knew that, so she tried to mentally check her emotions, wondering how not one but two men could have evoked such a reaction within her in a matter of a few seconds. She managed to get hold of herself, knowing how important first impressions were.
“I’m so thankful you’re both willing to lend a hand in this investigation. I welcome your help. So far, this has been a quite puzzling case,” she said.
“I know your roots stem back to L.A., Nina. It’s the reason why I’ve selected Logan and Kyle to assist you. They’re both born and raised right here in Melville, and when it comes to fire investigation, their forensic talents are second to none. I’m sure their expertise is exactly what you need to help close this case quickly,” Chief Moore assured her.
After nervously moving her tongue behind her pearly white teeth, Nina smiled back at them. “Well, if you two are half as good as the chief makes you out to be, I’m confident that we’ll bring the arsonist to justice in no time.”
“Oh, I can assure you we are that good,” Logan told her with confidence. “We take our work very seriously, Ms. Taylor.”
“Please, call me Nina,” she responded.
“Whoever’s responsible for this series of fires, I promise you we’ll find them and find them fast,” Kyle added.
Nina nodded her head in agreement. “This has created a major disruption for a lot of townsfolk. It’s high time the residents of Melville get back to sleeping peacefully at night.”
“I can’t imagine you’ve been able to get a good night’s rest since all this started,” Logan commented.
“Does it show?” Nina asked, taking a seat in the chair next to Kyle.
“No, you look mighty fine to me,” Logan answered as he settled back into his seat again.
Kyle stared at her briefly. “I couldn’t have said it better myself.”
“Thank you both, but the truth is this case is the toughest I’ve run across since I moved here six months ago. I haven’t had a full eight hours of rest in the past month,” Nina explained.
“Then we’ll just have to nab this nut and get life back to normal for everyone’s sake,” Logan told her, sounding genuinely concerned.
His smile distracted her momentarily. The physical attraction she felt for the two men was fighting for dominance. Not wanting any of them to notice that she was off her game, she had to create a quick diversion, so she turned on her tablet. “I’ve brought along some crime scene photos to help you guys get up to speed.”
“We’re quite familiar with the fires. What exactly are we looking for, Nina?” Chief Moore asked.
“All of the blazes started in the master bedrooms. It’s somewhat telling but at the same time puzzling that the perpetrator would choose to set each fire in the same location,” she said.
