Sweet as Honey (Aster Valley 2)

I quickly did as he asked and waited for him in the small parking area behind the shop.

“And you are?” the investigator asked, pulling down his mask.

“Sam Rigby.”

He seemed to relax before introducing himself as the state fire investigator and handing me his card. “Dirk Bromley. We’ll be here most of the day completing our investigation. We’d like to ask Mr. Sweet some questions. Do you know if he’ll be stopping by today or if we should plan to interview him at his residence?”

“He’s at his farm today. He runs part of his business from there, too.”

He nodded. “We’ll head over to talk to him after lunch.”

I texted Truman to make sure the plan was okay with him and then gave the investigator the farm’s address. Dirk said I was welcome to begin boarding up the place, and when I asked if there was anything of value inside, he said that was something he’d only be able to discuss with Truman. He indicated that a sheriff’s deputy would remain at the property until it was appropriately secured. That didn’t ease my mind until I recognized the deputy Truman had described as the man who’d taken his statement the other day.

I hesitated for a few moments before finally deciding to give him further information. “If you determine it was arson, you need to know that Truman has an active harasser.”

The man’s eyes widened only slightly before he resumed his professional expression. “Can you give me the person’s name and the particular details of this harassment?”

I summarized it as much as possible and told him that if the fire was set deliberately, it was most likely done by Patrick Stanner, which was tricky considering his relationship to the county sheriff.

The investigator nodded, but I could see I’d given him information he’d rather not have had. It made the situation much trickier.

“And does Mr. Sweet still have the note left at his house?” he asked.

“Yes. I’ll make sure you get a chance to see it when you come by for the interview.”

He nodded and reentered the building while I continued on to Mikey and Tiller’s place to shower, dress, and swap out vehicles again.

Tiller and Mikey came with me to board up the shop, but rather than do the heavy lifting, Mikey took the opportunity to wander up and down the street and pop his head into most of the shops to chat up the owners. He was unassuming and social enough to put people at ease right away, and most everyone already knew him as “that famous footballer’s boyfriend” anyway.

When he returned to the shop, he’d amassed a ton of helpful information.

“Bearwood Realty has had their sign vandalized five times this year. They don’t pay into the pension fund. They assumed the vandalism was done by pranksters. The coffee shop hasn’t had any problems at all. They don’t pay into the pension fund, but Yasmin’s brother is the sheriff’s department accountant. Oh, and Dr. Allan’s vet clinic doesn’t pay either, but his mother is the receptionist at the sheriff’s department. Small towns, am I right? What else?”

He took a minute to think about it while I got even angrier on Truman’s behalf.

“Bolo’s Market pays into the fund. When their alarm gets tripped, they get incredible response rates from the department, so they said they’re never stopping their payments.” Mikey sighed. “This place is fucked-up.”

“I wonder what the mayor’s involvement is,” I said. “How does the county sheriff’s department get away with running this town like it’s their own?”

Movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention, and I realized I’d said that in hearing distance from Deputy Stone.

Fuck.

The man politely looked away, but it was clear he’d heard. Was he going to go back and tell the sheriff what I’d said?

I thought about confronting him about the situation, but that would put him in a position where he couldn’t simply forget what he’d just overheard. And, damn, did I want him to forget.

Had I just put an even bigger target on Truman’s head?

“I’ve got to get back to the farm,” I said, tossing my tools in the back of their SUV. “I don’t want him to sit through the investigator’s interview with just Barney for support.”

Mikey asked what was going on with Barney. “I really thought they were an item.”

“No idea,” I admitted. “At first I thought they were dating. Then Truman said they weren’t. Not sure the old man’s gotten the message.”

“It’s creepy,” Tiller muttered as he closed the hatch.

Mikey shrugged. “I mean, it’s not creepy because of the age difference, really. But I agree it’s a little creepy because Truman never shows the slightest bit of romantic or sexual interest in Barney, yet Barney seems to think they’re an item. And they were, at least at one point. Why would Truman date someone he was that uncomfortable with?”