Vertical Burn - Earl Emerson [54]
Not knowing Finney and fearing the worst, Diana had followed him up the various stairwells in the three-story house and then through a hole cut in the roof. There was no doubt Finney could make life difficult for the two rookies, who were nervously awaiting his arrival. Sizing them up, he spoke in a low voice devoid of emotion, “Next time you throw something off a roof, think big. Skip the lieutenants and captains. Go for a chief.”
It was the sort of dry wit Finney and the rest of the men on Ladder 1 were famous for.
When the meeting finally broke up, just before lunchtime, Diana waited in the lobby.
Robert Kub and G. A. Montgomery emerged from the meeting room, Kub stopping to give her a hug. Montgomery, who had made a studied practice of ignoring her since her first day in the department, continued walking as if he hadn’t seen her.
Kub, on the other hand, flirted with any female who didn’t have a mustache and some who did. “Strange meeting,” he said. “That poor old woman.”
As they spoke, Gary Sadler bumped against Diana’s shoulder and almost knocked her over. He tried to pretend it was an accident, but he wasn’t much of an actor. She’d expected rudeness, had hoped for indifference, but outright hostility was a shock. Not many people were even aware that they knew each other, and Diana preferred to keep it that way.
“Hey,” Kub said, as Sadler walked away. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“Let it go,” Diana said.
“That was awful goddamn rough.”
“Forget it. Not to change the subject or anything, but I don’t understand why you and G. A. came to this little soirée.”
Kub’s eyes followed Sadler out of the room, and then he looked away evasively. “Needed to talk to the entry team.”
A group of firefighters from Engine 11 and Ladder 7 walked past, and one or two stopped to say hello. Then Finney appeared from a bank of phone booths down the hall. “Hello, John.”
Finney nodded to Diana and then looked at Kub. “Robert, you get any leads on that fire yet?”
A pair of firefighters came by and slapped Finney on the back. “Great save. Congratulations.”
“Thanks.”
Kub gave Finney a beleaguered look. “You mean any other leads?”
“Yeah.”
Diana realized something complex was transpiring between these two but didn’t know what it was. They were quiet for several moments, outwaiting each other, the tension building. Finally, Diana said, “Was she living in that vacant house? The old woman?”
“According to the neighbors,” Kub said, “nobody’s lived there for the last eight years. No telling where she was sleeping. We had a witness once, rode buses all day and spent her nights at Sea-Tac. Always dressed up so people thought she was waiting for a plane. Nobody bothers you at the airport. Maybe she was living at the airport.” Kub gave a little wave and left.
Diana took a deep breath. She was aware that since the fire on Riverside Drive her relationship with John Finney had changed. She’d proved herself to him, and there would be no more questions between them. She’d been thinking about this in a casual sense for the past two days, but now that he was in front of her, she plunged ahead. “John, you might think this is an awkward question, and it is, I guess, but are you seeing anybody?”
He looked as if he were trying to remember, then smiled. “Not right now.”
“I feel silly even asking. I talked to Baxter, and he said the last he knew you were dating some college professor, but he didn’t know if that was still happening.”
“A community college English teacher. Her old boyfriend showed up.”
“Sorry.”
“Tell you the truth, I was kind of relieved.”
“The reason I ask is I’m involved in the department’s homeless children’s charity, and we’re giving a costume ball on Halloween. I have tickets, and I’d like you to be my date.”
He took a deep breath, and for a moment she thought he was trying to compose a turndown. “That sounds like a lot of fun. I’ll