Caught in the Flames

Chapter One Hundred Twenty-One

As always, none of this is mine. I'm just the perv who want to make our beloved Twilight characters swear, drink, and go at it like horny rabbits. This story will be a combination of love, suspense, some violence and steamy, sweaty sex.

Chapter 121

BPOV

Edward and I stayed curled up in the living room after our conversation about getting protection. He just held me. I snuggled against his muscular body, idly twisting the strings of his hoodie. I was so tired from all of the emotions traveling through me. I hated James and my mother. Their involvement was circumstantial at best, but the reality is that they were the brain-thrusts who were possibly behind all of these fires. I was scared for Edward. He lost his home because of a brutal and destructive fire. Who was next? Alice? Esme? Any one of my friends and family could be the next target in their disgusting game.

The doorbell rang and Edward got up from his seat. I followed him, pulling my hair up into a messy bun. Opening the door, we saw two men standing on the front steps. One was older with inquisitive brown eyes and salt and pepper hair. He had a cocky sneer on his face and I knew you couldn't fuck with him. The other guy was a touch taller with friendly blue eyes and an amiable smile. He seemed more relaxed. "Are you with the Intelligence Unit?" Edward asked.

"Yes, sir," replied the older man. His voice was very raspy. I wanted to hand him a cough drop. "I'm Sergeant Hank Voight and this is Detective Jay Halsted. May we come in?"

"Of course," Edward said, moving to the side. The two men walked in, stopping in the foyer. "I'm Lieutenant Edward Cullen from the Chicago Fire Department and this is my fiancée, Isabella Swan."

"Nice to meet you," Detective Halsted said, smiling at both of us. "And congratulations on your engagement."

"Thank you," I said, moving to stand next to Edward. My fiancé wrapped his arm around my waist, holding me close to his body. "Would either of you like a cup of coffee?"

"That would be lovely, Ms. Swan," Sergeant Voight replied, nodding slightly. We walked back to the kitchen and I poured us all some coffee. Settling into the kitchen table, I sat next to Edward, my nerves taking hold in my stomach. "Now, let's start first with the fire in your home, Lieutenant."

"Call me Edward," he replied. "I'm on paid administrative leave for the time being."

"Okay," Sergeant Voight nodded. "I got the preliminary report from the arson investigator and battalion chief. On our way over, we also received a phone call from the ME, identifying the body in your condo."

"Who was it?" I asked.

"Laurent Mitchell," Detective Halsted replied. "At least that's what the dental records said. You may have known him by a different name. He stole the identity of a former fire fighter in Fort Lauderdale. He worked at your fire house, Edward. I believe, he was under your command." He pushed a picture toward Edward and my fiancé growled.

"He wasn't a fire fighter?" I asked.

"Technically, no. He went through the training but his psych evaluation caused him to not get his assignment," Sergeant Voight explained. "He was preoccupied with fire and was a pyromaniac, really."

"On my crew, I had someone who was not trained to do the job?" Edward snarled, barely above a whisper. "How did he get past all of the background checks?"

"His paperwork was amazing. They were forgeries, which were linked back to a company in Jacksonville, Dwyer Consolidated," Detective Halsted said, looking at his notes. I gasped. "Are you okay, Ms. Swan?"

"That's Phil's company," I said, my eyes wide and gripping Edward's arm. He took my hands in his, his brow furrowing in anger and frustration. "He's married to my mother." She was involved.

Oh God ...

"We'll come back to that," Sergeant Voight said, pointing to the notes in front of Detective Halsted. "Edward, we believe that Laurent, who worked for you, made a copy of your keys while you were on shift. We spoke with the security guard and someone accessed the building, using your code, the night your condo burnt down. We dusted the keypad, but there were too many prints to get any sort of clear impression. It was clear that Laurent and his accomplice used the garage to gain access to your condo complex. At the insistence of Chicago Police Department, all of the residents got new codes and they changed the locks to all common area doors. Even though the keys say 'Do Not Duplicate' on them, doesn't mean that some asshole from a hardware store won't duplicate it."

"This is from your building management," Detective Halsted said, handing Edward an envelope. "It should have your new common area key and your new code. Though, I suspect you will not be needing it for a while."

"I'm going to need it to sell the place after I get the money from the insurance to fix it," Edward said. "Thank you."

"Now, how did you know that Laurent had his papers forged at Dwyer Consolidated?" I asked.

"That company is a front," Sergeant Voight explained. "Money laundering, forgery, fraud, human trafficking ... the list goes on and on. The company has a signature in its forgeries and one of our experts recognized it."

"Why is the company still open?" Edward asked, his jaw clenched tightly.

"That is up to the Feds. They are trying to bring down an entire ring of companies like Dwyer Consolidated. Now, you said that your mother is married to Phil Dwyer?" Voight barked. I nodded. "Any other known associates to him?"

"James Dasher. He's my ex-boyfriend and I think that both he and my mother are linked to these fires," I squeaked out.

"Do you have a picture of James?" Detective Halsted asked. I nodded, getting my cell phone and finding a picture of him online. "This is James."

"Then, your guess that he is linked to the fires is correct. We saw him and Laurent ride up the elevator the night in question. James gave Laurent a pill just as he exited the elevator on your floor. An hour later, according to the security footage, James left using the stairwell. We're trying to see how he got to Chicago, but he could have flown in on forged identification," Voight said. "We figured out the who, but the why is alluding us and the how is a mystery, too."

A/N: So, James is connected. Can we say that he's a moron for not realizing that there would be security cameras in an upscale building like Edward's? Or perhaps, he wants to be caught? Or instill fear into Bella? He's getting closer and closer. And Dwyer Consolidated ... that's some nasty shit. Just saying. Do you think Renee knows? Or the brain behind it all? Now, to be honest, Dwyer Consolidated is not going to be a big part of this story. It will all come together at the end.

Up next will be Edward's conversation with the cops about protection and moving in with Bella. Leave me some!