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‘It burned down?’

Jet’s voice pitched up, joining her widened eyes in feigned surprise.

‘It’s all gone.’ Jack Finney sat across the table from her, Chief Jankowski beside him, squeezed into those too-small metal chairs.

‘We’re still waiting on the full report from the fire department,’ the chief said, his chair creaking, sighing, as he leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table. ‘But this is a clear case of arson. An accelerant was used. The whole place would have gone up in minutes.’

The whole place did go up in minutes; Jet knew, she’d been there, stood on the very edge of hell, its heat still prickling in the burn on her hand. Jet eyed it, dropped the hand into her lap, hiding it under the table.

‘Acc-acce –’ she began, couldn’t find the word the chief had used, one she’d lost out the hole in her head.

‘– Gas,’ Jack said, helping her. ‘Someone poured gas all over the first floor, set fire to it.’

‘That’s terrible.’ Jet swallowed. ‘Who would want to burn my dad’s company down?’

‘That’s what we wanted to talk to you about,’ the chief said.

Jet met his gaze. ‘Do you think it’s related to my murder? That it was the same person who burned down Mason Construction? But JJ is in custody, so that means –’

‘– We’re just considering if there’s a connection,’ the chief cut her off. ‘Nothing concrete yet. We wondered if you knew anything that might help us?’

Jet pressed her lips together. ‘No, sorry. I don’t know who would want to do that.’

‘And where were you last night, Jet?’ The chief opened the file on the table, clicked his pen as it hovered over a blank page.

Her chest tightened, heart reacting to the question before she could.

‘I’ve asked a lot of people a similar question the past couple days.’

Not an answer, and not a lie.

The chief clicked his pen twice more. ‘So, you understand why we have to ask it, don’t you?’

‘Sure,’ Jet said. Now she had no choice but to lie. She kept her face blank and her reddened hand in her lap. ‘I was home. Billy’s apartment, I mean. That’s where I’m staying.’

The chief wrote something down.

‘Alone?’

‘No, with Billy.’

‘Billy Finney?’

Jack coughed into his hand.

‘Yes sir,’ Jet answered.

‘All night?’

‘All night.’

The chief glanced over at Jack for a moment, then closed the file.

‘OK. If there’s nothing else you think we should know?’

‘Is there nothing else you think I should know?’ Jet countered.

The chief stared blankly at her.

‘About my case,’ she said. ‘I have about two days to live. Did you forget that?’

‘I didn’t forget, Jet.’ He held the file against his chest. ‘There’s nothing new. JJ Lim has been arrested.’

Jet’s turn to lean forward, only one elbow on the table, the other hanging lifeless by her side. ‘Are you going to charge him? Doesn’t the fire change things?’

Jack answered instead.

‘Detective Ecker is interviewing him again now. He hasn’t confessed yet, but we believe the prosecutor will move forward without a confession.’ His eyes hooked onto hers. ‘We will get him, don’t worry. I made you a promise.’

‘Thank you, Sergeant Finney,’ the chief said, standing up. Not a real thank you, a warning disguised as one.

The chief gestured toward the exit and Jet took the hint, getting to her feet. But she blinked and the door doubled before her eyes, another world intruding over theirs, Jack’s hand – twice – grasping the handle, holding it open for her, two ways to go, one of them not real.

‘Thank you,’ Jet said to him, not a warning, just a thanks as she stumbled through.

Outside in the rec-rece-re-re – ah, fuck off, the waiting room, Billy and Jet’s parents sat, well, waiting. Another doubled man behind them all too: Gerry Clay.

Billy jumped up, but Mom reached Jet first, folding her into a hug that Jet couldn’t return, because her arms were pinned down, and one didn’t work anyway.

‘It’s just awful, isn’t it,’ Dianne said, voice breathy in Jet’s hair before she pulled away. ‘We wanted to be the ones to tell you.’

‘I’m sorry, Dad.’ Jet’s eyes found him, struggling up from his chair, hand pressed to his side, to his kidneys, a wince of deep pain on his face. ‘Must be hard for you. You spent your whole life building that place.’

‘We’re insured,’ he said, hiding the pain in his voice. ‘We can come back from this. I’m just glad nobody got hurt.’

Jet found Billy’s eyes and she found his. Hazel and blue. One blink and a thousand silent words.

‘Does Luke know?’ Jet asked, looking between her parents.

‘He was the one who called me, in the middle of the night,’ Dad said, a yellow tinge to his skin but gray under the eyes, betraying his lack of sleep. ‘He won’t leave the scene. Been there all night. Your mom took him some breakfast, but he won’t leave. Just staring at it.’

‘Don’t know why,’ Dianne sniffed, a self-conscious glance back at Billy and Gerry, at the non-Masons in earshot.

‘I do,’ Jet said, taking Luke’s side, even though she couldn’t remember the last time he took hers. ‘All his dreams, gone up in smoke. Literally.’

Jet studied her dad’s face for any sign of the truth. Because the company was never going to be Luke’s anyway, whether it burned down or not.

He didn’t react, only Dianne did, pressing her fingers to her temples. ‘I’ve got such a headache.’

Jet rolled her eyes. ‘I’m sure it’s worse than mine too.’

‘What did they ask you?’ Dad hissed, hand to his kidneys again. ‘Is it related? Was it something to do with JJ? He has a brother, doesn’t he? Do you think –’

‘– I don’t know anything,’ Jet cut across him. ‘Maybe it was the same person who killed me, maybe it was someone else.’

‘Well, Gerry might be able to help with that,’ Dianne said curtly, bringing him in.

Gerry rose to his feet, Jet’s eyes snapping to him. ‘What do you mean?’ she asked the room, waiting for the answer, because it was a waiting room after all.

‘Don’t know about that.’ Gerry shuffled over. ‘It’s just Owen. He was flying his drone last night. Heard the sirens, got curious.’

Fuck, it had been a drone Jet saw, against the whirling column of smoke. But had the drone seen them back? Jet caught Billy again, over Gerry’s shoulder.

‘Oh,’ she said, that mock-surprise back in her eyes, plastered over the shock. ‘Did he manage to record anything?’

Gerry inhaled. ‘The building was already collapsed by the time he got it there, only just beat the fire department. Couldn’t see a lot through the smoke.

’ He paused. ‘We’ve watched it a few times, can’t see anything important, nobody coming or going.

But maybe the police will spot something we can’t see.

I’ve got the footage, thought it might be helpful. ’

Too fucking helpful, fuck sake, Gerry.

‘Thank you,’ Jet said, clearing her throat. ‘But the footage doesn’t show anybody, right? Who might have started the fire?’

‘Not that I can see.’

So, Billy and Jet were in the clear, but so was whoever tried to burn them to death, and no leads as to who it could have been. Only JJ was ruled out, and the two of them.

‘I know,’ Gerry said. He must have read her face as disappointment. ‘But I think I know who did this.’

Everyone in the room turned to him, waiting again.

Jet and Billy waited a little harder.

‘Yes?’ Jet snapped, spooling her left hand impatiently.

Gerry glanced over at Dianne.

‘Dianne, did you tell the cops? About the cat thing?’

Dianne sparked back into life, running a hand through her hair, taking her right arm for granted.

‘Don’t be ridiculous,’ she said, almost a laugh, but it hissed too much around the edges. ‘Nothing to do with that.’

‘You sure?’ Gerry asked. ‘Someone says they hate Mason Construction, and your family. Threatens you. And now the premises get burned down.’

‘That was a long time ago, Gerry. It was just a prank. It’s not relevant.’

‘What’s he talking about?’ Jet’s eyes zeroed in on her mom. ‘Mom?’

‘Oh, it’s nothing, Jet.’

‘Doesn’t sound like nothing. If there’s someone who hates the company, hates our family, that means they could be a suspect not just for the fire, but the person who killed me.’

Dianne blinked. ‘JJ is the one who –’

‘– What’s the cat thing?’

‘It doesn’t matter, Jet.’ Mom doubled down, already taking up two outlines, splitting into more.

‘Gerry!’ Jet pressed him instead. ‘What’s the cat thing? And remember, I only have two days to live so it’d be really great if we could stop wasting time.’

Gerry swallowed, the lump in his throat moving up and down with it.

‘It was –’ he began.

‘– It was nothing,’ Dianne cut him off. ‘Just a harmless prank by someone who hijacked one of our Town Hall meetings, during citizens’ comments.’

Jet pushed out her chin. ‘Dressed as a cat?’ she asked.

‘No,’ Mom said. ‘The meetings are online, on Zoom.’

‘It was a filter thing,’ Gerry added. ‘To hide his identity. And he distorted his voice too. Was actually kind of creepy. That was my Halloween costume this year. Doesn’t seem so funny anymore, if he’s the one who set the fire.’

‘You never told me about this,’ Dad said, finding his voice.

‘Because it’s not relevant,’ Mom replied. ‘It was a harmless prank and we’ve all forgotten about it.’

Apart from Gerry. Apart from her mom too, hands tucked behind her back, balled into fists, telltale knuckles pushing through the skin.

‘When was this?’ Jet asked both of them, either of them.

Gerry looked up, searched the ceiling and his mind for the answer. ‘Maybe a year ago. Or less.’

‘Thank you, Gerry,’ Dianne clipped.

‘Do you still have the recording of the meeting?’

‘Well, yes,’ Gerry said. ‘Everyone does. All the village trustee Zoom recordings are posted online on the town website, along with a transcript of the minutes –’

‘– Yes, thank you, Gerry,’ Dianne shot him down.

Gerry continued mumbling, something about ‘transparency of democracy.’

Dianne turned away. ‘Look, there’s Sergeant Finney now. Jack,’ she called, ‘Gerry has something he needs to show you. About the fire.’

Gerry’s shoulders slumped. Just wait until he finds out how much Luke ripped him off over marble countertops. Maybe he’d be happy that someone else already burned it down.

He shuffled away, dismissed, clearing the path between Billy and Jet. Another thousand words in the blink of an eye.

And a new lead.

For someone who might have started the fire.

Someone who might have smashed Jet’s head in with a hammer.

‘Come on,’ Jet said to him, but he was already coming, truck keys trailing from his finger, his liquid eyes on her. Jet’s heart picked up, not in the bad way, not fight-or-flight, actually just flying, side by side with Billy, a new electricity thrumming under her skin, sidestepping her right arm.

Somehow, Billy could tell. ‘Are you excited?’ He smiled down at her.

‘Aren’t you?’ she whispered.

‘Where are you going?’ Dianne called just before they reached the door.

Jet turned back. ‘Home,’ she said. ‘Billy’s.’

Mom released her balled-up hands. ‘C-come home for dinner?’ She shrank as she said it, eyes heavy and swimming. ‘We won’t have many more chances, for the family to be together and …’

Jet softened, an ache in her chest that hurt her in small ways, not like the one inside her head.

‘Tomorrow,’ she said. ‘I promise.’ And she meant it.

Mom brightened, almost a smile, not quite making it. ‘Tomorrow,’ she said, accepting Jet’s promise … just. ‘Why, what are you doing tonight?’

‘Watching cat videos.’