Page 82 of Fire Fight

“Trey,” Lane confirmed, pulling out his phone to shoot a text to our brother.

Glancing up and down the alley, I mentally mapped any potential escape routes the perp could’ve used. Mozzy’s was in the middle of the block damn near dead in the center of what was considered city limits, which didn’t provide a lot of immediate cover. But…

“I can hear your mind working,” Lane said, tossing me a smirk. “What’re you thinking?”

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?” I teased.

“Quit being a pain in my ass and tell me.”

“This alley runs all the way through town, perpendicular to Cassia, right?” I started, naming the main street all of these businesses faced. “At this time of night, the perp wouldn’t be able to shuffle onto Cassia and blend in with the foot traffic. And people don’t normally walk down alleys in the dark. Which means…”

Lane jerked his head to the other side of the alley, where residential homes began to mingle with the businesses, where the street lights became fewer and farther between. “They had tohave gone that way. They could’ve snuck through yards until they were far enough away to book it.”

“Exactly.”

“Deputies!” he shouted over the commotion, and the five guys he had on scene all turned his way. “Set up a canvas. I want a five by five block radius on the south side of Cassia, and the same to the north. Ask residents if they saw or heard anything suspicious.”

Murmurs of “you got it boss” floated back to us as his deputies set off in different directions to carry out his orders.

“What do you need from me?” I asked my brother.

“Nothing else right now.” With a glance back at the fire crew still working the scene, he settled a hand on my shoulder and steered me away. When we reached my truck, he added, “Have you had a chance to look at the case file?” I nodded. “Anything jump out at you?”

“You mean other than the fact that the women are all white, brunette, and in their late teens or early twenties?”

Lane blinked slowly, processing that information.

“Sounds an awful lot like a profile.”

“Seems like something your brethren should’ve figured out sooner.”

The corners of his mouth turned down, the skin around his eyes tightening—whether in anger or shame, I didn’t know.

“Not gonna lie to you, little bro. My predecessors were…lazy, for lack of a better word. This killer lay dormant for long enough stretches that things would go cold before the next strike, and they didn’t work hard to keep the fire burning, if you know what I mean.”

“That’s not going to be the case with you.”

He didn’t treat it like a question because it wasn’t one. If nothing else, Lane was a hell of a cop, and I knew he’d run down every possible lead and keep turning over rocks until somethingcrawled out. That, and I’d be on his ass every day, not letting him forget.

“Aspen doesn’t exactly fit,” he said after a moment.

“She’s white and brunette,” I pointed out. “Her age doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. Hell, her physical appearance doesn’t really either if you think about it.”

We all knew why Aspen was targeted, and it had everything to do withwhyshe was here, not who she was or what she looked like.

“No, I suppose not.” He squeezed his eyes shut and popped them open, and I noticed for the first time how exhausted he looked. This case had to be taking its toll on his department, and I probably could take it a little easier on him. “Well, keep her safe, and let me know if anything else sticks out.”

With a salute, I left.

But instead of heading home, I went to the fire station, unsurprised to find Chief Madden’s personal vehicle parked out front.

At nearly ten p.m., those not currently out on the call ambled around, clearly getting ready to catch some shut eye. I nodded at everyone I passed as I beelined for Chief’s office.

“What’re you doing here, Lawless?” he asked when I appeared in the doorway.

“Just came from the dumpster scene.”

“And?”