Page 128 of Axe Backwards
Camden and the other EMT on scene gently got me settled with a blanket and an oxygen mask.
Aside from being a bit lightheaded, I was fine. But Noah was fussing over me. He was far more concerned with my well-being than his home and belongings, which had literally gone up in flames.
He wouldn’t leave my side. He sat on the back bumper of the ambulance with me, wearing a matching oxygen mask and draped in a blanket like mine. His care included some bandaging on his arms and legs for the burns he sustained while rescuing me and sweeping the rest of the building. Every minute or so, he’d squeeze my hand, as if to remind himself that I was still here.
The blaze had spread to the post office next door before the firefighters could get it under control. My heart cracked wide open as I watched them battle the flames. This was all my fault.
I’d never been as terrified as I was when I woke to find flames licking across the floor of my apartment.
After the absolute humiliation at the bar, I’d put on my pj’s, taken a melatonin, and gone to bed. It was only when I heard a cracking sound that I woke up.
Drowsy and disoriented, I’d stumbled into the living area. With no clear path to the door, I’d pushed the table against the kitchen window so I could climb out, but it wouldn’t budge.
I’d opened it the other day, desperate for a bit of a breeze when I was making pasta, so there was no reasonable explanation for why it was jammed.
As a crowd of neighbors gathered, shame washed through me. Between the incident tonight and the fire, I wasn’t sure the citizens of Lovewell would be interested in having me around.
Noah sat next to me, a steady, silent presence. Thank God Tess was at his mother’s. Just the thought that she could have been in danger made me sick with panic.
Officer Fielder, who was talking to Chief Mitchell, turned and strode our way. He had basic questions for us. Thankfully, Noah took the helm and answered most of them. He went through the details of being up listening to a podcast and smelling smoke, then rushing down to my apartment. With each word, my heart raced faster and my stomach roiled more violently. How could this have happened?
“The door was barricaded when you came down the stairs?” Officer Fielder asked again.
“Not barricaded.” Noah sighed. “Someone had jammed it. I couldn’t tell with all the smoke, so I went in with an axe.”
The police officer raised his brows.
“Someone was trying to hurt Victoria,” he gritted out, his free hand balled into a fist on his lap. “You need to find this motherfucker.”
Officer Fielder held up his pen. “Once I have the details, son, we can take the next steps.”
“She was trapped in her apartment. Someone deliberately set a fire,” Noah shouted, his chest heaving.
I put my hand on his arm and lowered my oxygen mask.
“My windows wouldn’t open, either. And the fire ripped right through the kitchen. Someone set it deliberately.”
My stomach sank as details started coming together. Could Denis have been responsible? He was an entitled jerk, but he didn’t have it in him to hurt someone like this, did he? I easily could have been killed. Noah too.
“Ma’am, have you been the recipient of any threats lately?”
“Yes,” I said softly.
Noah put his arm around me, giving me his strength.
“I received several threats from Denis Huxley.”
Officer Fielder’s eyes bulged.
“He threatened me earlier tonight. At the Moose.”
Jaw flexed, he scribbled in his notepad. “Why?”
“Business conflicts.” I left it at that for now, not knowing how much I should reveal. I needed Parker to help navigate this. I’d been trying to help, trying to do the right thing, and I’d almost lost my life.
“He has been harassing Victoria for a while,” Noah growled. “I have no doubt he’s the one who did this.”
The police officer hummed noncommittally, his attention fixed on his notebook.
