“Oh, yeah. There are two other arson detectives that are throwing a little help our way. A few of the open cases are tied into gangs and there is a combined federal task force that will investigate those. That takes some of the pressure off of us.”
As they made their way into a rundown neighborhood, he began to doubt his decision to have her ride along. The dark brick buildings rising on either side of the street gave off an ominous visage, and while he had never felt fearful for himself, with her in the vehicle everything was different. Glancing to the side, he asked, “Are you sure about this? I can tell Jonas that I’ve got to drop you off first—”
“Sean, I’ll be fine. You go do what you need to do, and I’ll be right here waiting when you’re finished.”
“You can see this isn’t a great neighborhood, Harper. You’ve got to stay in the car. Since this area is an active crime scene, there’ll be plenty of police around. I promise I’d never do anything to put you in harm’s way.”
She twisted around in the seat, offering a smile that gave him encouragement. Reaching across the space, she laid her hand on his arm. “I know that. I promise to stay right here.” Giving his arm a little squeeze, she added, “And when it’s all done, we can go back to your house.”
The weight on his chest eased and he leaned across the console to place a soft kiss on her lips. “I’m going to hold you to that, babe.”
Arriving at the scene, he pulled close to one of the police vehicles, gave her hand a squeeze, and climbed out. Standing for a moment, he viewed the scene in front of him, lit by the emergency vehicles. The neighborhood, like so many in Hope City consisted of brick rowhouses. In this neighborhood, many were uninhabited and condemned due to missing roofs, missing windows, and if he had to guess, missing floors. At first glance, it appeared the fire started on an end unit, gutting not only the two-story structure, but the one next to it had some damage before the fire department was able to subdue the flames.
The patrolman on duty had set up crowd control, keeping eager eyes from coming closer and possibly destroying evidence. As he ducked under the yellow tape, he looked to the side of the building, seeing Jonas in conversation with the Fire Department’s Officer. Moving directly to them, he offered a chin lift to Jonas and shook FD Officer Manas’ hand. “Jonas. Bart.”
“We called you in after determining suspected arson,” Bart said, wiping his forehead with a handkerchief, trying to rid his face of the sweat and soot clinging to him. “But there’s more.”
Shooting a glance to Jonas, Sean’s chest clenched. “A body?”
The two men nodded, and Jonas said, “I haven’t seen it. Bart said that it could be from smoke inhalation and from an initial look, he said it could be a homeless person who took up residence in the abandoned townhouses to try to beat the cold. I told them we’d take the lead on the fire, but homicide would be called in if the medical examiner makes that determination.”
Nodding, he jerked his head toward the building. “Can we go in?”
“The building on the end does not have a stable floor, but the second townhouse was less affected by the fire. The body is on the first floor toward the back.”
“Medical examiner?”
“Forensic Investigator is already in there,” Jonas said. “It’s the new one… Natalie.”
Turning to the chief, he offered a chin lift. “Thanks for everything. Let us know when we can get into the first unit.”
With another handshake and nod, they left the FD Officer and walked around the destroyed end unit to the back of the building. The scent of charred wood and smoke filled his nostrils.
“First impressions… I don’t think this was a cover-up for a murder,” Jonas said.
Nodding, Sean agreed. “This end unit was where the fire started. Chances are the arsonist had no idea there was somebody sleeping inside the next townhouse.” The two men stopped and walked closer to the first unit, their perceptive gazes cataloging the scene. “I suppose he could have been murdered, dumped next door, and then the fire started in the first unit to throw us off the trail.”
There were police officers at the back of the building patrolling the perimeter of the crime