Chapter 10

TEN

EVERYTHING WAS different now. Lahela sat in her parked car looking at the home that once made her feel welcomed and safe. A home that she’d believed was full of promises and potential.

Now ... all she saw was the fire and fear. Oh, and the police officer standing watch over the possible crime scene.

When the nightmares wouldn’t let her sleep, she had sat up in bed and began grading papers and working on this week’s teaching schedule. By six, she couldn’t take it anymore and decided to get up, shower, and get ready for church even though she attended the late service at eleven.

The conversation with Captain Riser last night had her feeling restless. He seemed skeptical about Mr. Dunn’s theory of spontaneous ignition and mentioned the possibility of an electrical fire caused by the string lights on the railing, but there was something in his explanation that told her he wasn’t buying that theory either.

Emotion burned the back of her eyes. How had her life become so ... chaotic? Ever since her little brother died, everything in life just felt harder. Like she was always holding her breath, waiting for the next wave to roll and toss her in the ocean of life.

Movement caught her attention, and she spotted Mr. Dunn walking across the street toward her. Lahela picked up her guilt offerings and got out of her car.

“Oh, Mr. Dunn, how are your hands?” It was a silly question when she saw the bandage wrapped around his left hand and the angry red marks on his right forearm. Nope. The Shipleys’ donuts and coffee weren’t going to be enough to ease the guilt that had been haunting her all night. “Mr. Dunn, I’m so, so sorry.”

“What are you apologizing for? This wasn’t your fault.” The words were a familiar echo of Briggs’s from the night before, but they didn’t squelch the ache in her chest that yes, this might very well be my fault. “I saw the flames and came to warn you, but then...” Mr. Dunn’s teary gaze moved to what was left of his gift to her. “I thought maybe if I could put the fire out ... I wish I’d been able to get here sooner.”

Lahela’s heart twisted inside her chest. This is my fault. And no apology or glazed donuts were going to make it better, but she didn’t know what else to do. “I wasn’t sure how you’d be feeling this morning, so I brought you breakfast.”

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“Should we go to your porch?” Her own porch looked so empty and sad now. Even though she’d had the rockers there for only a day, they had filled the space in a way that made it feel like home.

At his porch, they sat on two chairs, and she set the bag of donuts on a small table but paused when she held out his coffee. “Can you hold this?”

“My right hand isn’t so bad.” But he couldn’t hide the slight wince when he took the coffee from her. “I’m sorry you were forced out of your home. Is the damage bad?”

“Captain Riser said it could’ve been worse.” Lahela felt bad for saying so when she looked at the wounds on Mr. Dunn’s hands. “He’s got an arson investigator coming over sometime today to determine the cause of the fire.”

Mr. Dunn’s eyes widened. “An investigator?”

Lahela didn’t want to go into all the details behind the suspicion. No reason to freak her neighbor out more than necessary. “Yes, and they might come by here to talk to you, is that okay?”

“Yes, of course.” He set the coffee on the table. “Lahela, I will pay for all of the damage.”

“Oh, no, that’s not what this is about.” She sat forward on the chair. “They’re doing their job. If this was an accident”—she prayed it was—“my insurance will cover everything.”

Mr. Dunn looked ready to argue, but the happy trilling noise coming from her cell phone stopped him. Last night, when she couldn’t sleep, she gave all her contacts a special ringtone, so she’d know it was them calling. She silenced Daphne’s call before sending a quick text that she was okay and would see her soon.

“You don’t want to answer that?”

“No, it’s my friend checking on me.” She rose to her feet. “We’re meeting up at church.”

“Are you coming back?”

Mr. Dunn’s question felt like he knew where her thoughts had gone. She glanced over at her sweet house. It appeared as lonely as she felt inside. “I hope to, but...”

“You don’t have to be scared, Lahela.” Mr. Dunn looked around the neighborhood. “We take care of our own. Rosemary was at my door first thing this morning, concerned about you. She’s probably already forming a neighborhood watch team. We’ll make sure nothing like this happens to you again.”

“I appreciate that, Mr. Dunn, but the last thing I want is for anyone else to get hurt.”

“We feel the same way about you.” His lips pressed together for a second and his eyes turned glassy again. “In case you haven’t noticed, we’re not a bunch of spring chickens. It’s been nice having someone not collecting social security living here. You’re like our daughter and we want to make sure you feel safe.”

Lahela blinked back tears. “Thank you, Mr. Dunn.”

Homesickness set in as she drove away from her neighborhood. Many of her neighbors had first welcomed her with baked goods, tips about Miracle Springs—including a little gossip—and always waved whenever they saw her. She didn’t want to leave them, but if Mr. Dunn or anyone else was harmed again because of her ... she’d never recover from the weight of it all.