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Shock punched me in the gut. The house had been alight when we’d left. I hadn’t noticed any sprinklers.
Then again, I hadn’t been looking for them either. It hadn’t even crossed my mind when I’d been hopped up on adrenaline and revenge.
“The owner walked out a little on the soggy side, and with a few repairs for some minor damage, but otherwise I’m sure you’ll be glad to know he was one-hundred-percent fine.”
This disappointment that hit me like a truck was shocking. So much for taking my power back. I silently consoled myself with the fact it wasn’t a completely wasted effort. Hugh knew now that I meant business. If I was willing to burn a man alive, I clearly wasn’t playing.
There was at least some power in that knowledge.
I mirrored Richardson’s posture, arms folded, head held high. “Like Riva said, we were at their place. I’m glad to hear whoever’s property caught fire was spared the heartache of losing someone. I know what it feels like to have someone you loved killed and the police be too useless to do anything about it. Wouldn’t wish that on anyone.”
Richardson leaned in, stiffening at my insults. “Troy Hugh called you out by name as a person who would want him dead, Rebel.”
“Did you ask why?” I asked with so much fake sugar it could give the man a cavity.
“I did. He said you’re obsessed with him. You’ve been stalking him, hanging around his place of work, leaving photos of yourself in his car.”
I snorted at that. “Did he just?”
His fingers slid to the white card with the threatening note, picking it up.
I snatched it from his grasp, but it was too late.
His eyebrow raised. “Who are you writing such delightful messages to?”
“Actually, someone left that one in the mailbox for me. Maybe you should ask your friend, Hugh, about that?”
He tapped his short, blunt nails on the countertop before pushing off and moving toward the door. “Seems like you’ve made yourself some enemies, Miss. Kemp. Might want to think about coming into the station and confessing everything you know. We can’t help you if we don’t know what’s going on.”
Vaughn followed hot on his heels, clearly wanting the man out of our home.
Richardson saluted Vaughn, fake sincerity in his smirk, and Vaughn slammed the door closed behind him.
Riva had her hand over her heart. She slumped against the counter. “What on earth? That man was incredibly rude and completely out of line. I’ll report him.”
“Don’t bother,” I told her. “His superiors were the ones who trained him. They won’t be any better.”
Vaughn stormed back from the doorway and snatched the card out of my hand. He paled when he looked down at it. “What is this? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I literally saw it minutes before your mom and Detective Dickhead got here. I didn’t have a chance.”
The lines on his forehead were taut with anguish. “You think it was Hugh?”
I shrugged, knowing Riva was right there so I needed to be careful what I said. I didn’t want to implicate her in any of this. Right now, she hadn’t lied for me. We had gone to her place for dinner last night, even if we hadn’t stayed long or eaten anything. I wanted to keep her out of it. It was bad enough I’d dragged her son into this mess; I didn’t want to add any of his other family members. “Who else would it be? He clearly thinks I tried to kill him and he’s trying to scare me.”
Vaughn’s expression morphed into concern. “Is it working?”
“No,” I bluffed, with a fake laugh that was mostly for Riva’s benefit because I knew Vaughn would see right through it.
I took the card from his fingers and crumpled it into a ball before tossing it in the bin. “I refuse to be scared, Vaughn. It’s not who I am.”
Except I was. Because Hugh had laid down the gauntlet again. I’d thought I’d had the upper hand, and now I was right back at the beginning.
I didn’t think I had it in me to make a second attempt at cold-blooded murder.
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KIAN