Fireproof

his jaw clenched against the pain.
    He tugged open a zippered pocket to show them the small blue booklet inside.
    “How many homeless guys do you know carry around their passport?”
    Racine pulled out a pair of latex gloves from her bomber jacket pocket and snapped them on. She slid the passport from the bag and carefully flipped the cover open.
    “Cornell Stamoran. Nice, clean-cut, professional young man. Blond, blue eyed. Suit and tie.”
    “The guy we’re chasing had a beard. Long dirty hair.” Maggie looked at the photo as Racine held it out. “And he looked older.”
    “The backpack might have been dropped in the alley.” Tully turned it over to show them the soot-covered flip side. “Maybe our bearded man found it where Cornell dropped it right before he got his head bashed in.”
    “You think Cornell could be the victim we found inside the building?”
    “We have his address.” Racine tapped the passport closed. “I’ll send a uniform over to see if he’s home. Might be a simple explanation. I’ve gotta get back downtown. I’d rather Ganza processes that.” She pointed to the pack.
    “I’ll get it to him,” Tully said, but kept it on the sidewalk next to him.
    Still, Racine hesitated. “You two gonna be okay?”
    “Of course we’re okay,” Tully snapped.
    “Hey, just checking.”
    The exchange made Maggie smile. She was glad to see someone else was annoyed with that question. But Tully’s forehead was damp with perspiration and it was chilly here in the shadows of the warehouses, the sun already down low in the sky.
    Maggie stood on the sidewalk beside him, watching Racine leave. Neither said anything about the back of her shredded leather jacket. It seemed the perfect symbol for this crazy day.
    “This isn’t some harmless guy who’s been living on the streets.”
    “I don’t think so either,” Tully said.
    “There was someone else down there.”
    “City maintenance?”
    “I don’t think so. He was smashing out lightbulbs.”
    This got his attention. And his concern.
    “Do you know if the tunnels loop around?” she asked.
    “I’m not sure, but it wouldn’t make sense. The purpose is to move water and sewage from point A to point B, not swirl it back around.”
    Maggie took a deep breath of fresh air. That’s what she had thought. “I heard our guy running away in front of me and I followed. But then I heard someone behind me.”
    “I suppose he could have crawled back out onto the street and backtracked. But why come back? And smashing out lightbulbs? Doesn’t sound like someone who’s afraid and running away.”
    “No, it doesn’t.”
    “So who do you think it was?”
    She shrugged. “All I know is that for once I was really glad to hear Racine’s voice bitching at me.”
    This made him smile. “Are you okay?”
    “I’ve got a pain in the neck.” Unconsciously her fingers found the sutures, checking to make sure they were intact. “Are you going to be able to drive with that shoulder?”
    Finally he allowed a grimace. “I think I may have dislocated it. Can you fix it?”
    It had been a long time since the two of them had worked together. She’d forgotten what it was like to have someone covering her backside. Someone who hoped for the same from her.
    “Yes, I can. We need to find someplace for you to sit. You’re too tall for me.” Plus, she failed to add, she didn’t want him falling down if he passed out. “It’s going to hurt like hell.”
    “Already does.” He followed alongside her. “Don’t tell Gwen, okay?”
    Maggie smiled. She was usually the one asking him not to tell Gwen.

CHAPTER 27

    Sam hated riding anywhere with Jeffery. As meticulous as the man was about his physical appearance it certainly didn’t carry over to his car. Before she could even climb in, she had to remove a stack of newspapers from the passenger seat, several empty cups, and a jug labeled “swimming pool cleaner” from the floor. It was disgusting. She shook her head while she readjusted the seat, thinking to herself that Jeffery didn’t even have a swimming pool.
    Of course he didn’t notice any of this. He was primed for their interview, breezing through each security checkpoint without even flinching at the trunk check or the excessive pat-downs or the warden’s snarky comments.
    She had been with Jeffery for every single interview, enduring the body searches that seemed to get more invasive with each visit, with each security check. What bothered