took her maps out of her file and placed them on the desk. “There’s a problem.”
“No, don’t give me problems.” McLain groaned. “Not when you’ve just given me the closest thing we’ve ever had to a breakthrough in this damn case.”
Hollie pointed to the two maps. “This is a map showing the location of every Incinerator fire. This one shows every place Beast has toured. The two match up every time...except for recently.” She pulled in a breath. Now for the hard part. “The last three Incinerator fires were set in towns that were not the location of a Beast tour.”
McLain muttered a curse under her breath. “Why have you brought me this if you’ve already disproved your own theory?”
“Because there is another link.” Hollie drew her electronic tablet from its case. “I reasoned that the Beast link was too strong to be overlooked.” She brought an image of the band up on the screen. “This guy is the lead singer, Khan. He got married recently and the birth of his baby daughter twelve months ago coincided with the band’s decision to take a break from touring. During that time, the other members of the group have done some solo projects.”
Sensing McLain’s impatience, she played a brief recording of the group. On the screen, dense smoke rolled like fog from the stage. Within it, colored strobe lights danced in time with the drumbeat. Giant LED screens at the rear of the stage projected alternating images of roaring fire, close-ups of snarling animals and Beast’s logo, a stylized symbol resembling three entwined number sixes. At the side of the stage, explosions went off at random intervals, shooting orange flames high into the night sky.
Beast was a fire-storming force of nature, but McLain appeared unimpressed. “Why do I need to see this?”
“I want you to look at this guy.” Hollie zoomed in on the front of the stage. Tall and muscular with his dark red hair drawn back into a ponytail, the man she indicated was all burning drama and flickering movement. Even on a screen, it was clear that the air around him sizzled into life as he timed the sweeping arc of his hand on the guitar to the explosions at the side of the stage. As they watched, he gestured in the manner of a conjurer, igniting a flickering blue blaze along the front of the stage.
“Looks like he enjoys playing with fire. Who is he?”
Hollie ended the recording. “Torque. Lead guitar.”
The reason I wanted that Beast ticket. It was hard to explain her feelings about a man she had never met. Luckily, she didn’t think McLain would require the additional information.
“You can match him to the other three Incinerator locations?”
Hollie nodded, withdrawing a third map from her file. “I tracked each individual member of Beast to find out what they have been doing during the past twelve months. Torque did a solo tour of small venues around the Midwest. We wondered why the Incinerator had changed his targets from big cities to small towns? It’s because Torque did.”
McLain leaned back in her chair, gazing at the ceiling for a moment or two. “You know what this means?”
Hollie nodded miserably. She was one step ahead of McLain. She’d already made the connection her boss was about to voice.
“We either have a crazed fan who is setting these fires as a tribute to his favorite, fiery rock star...”
“Or Torque is the Incinerator.”
* * *
There were things Torque missed about touring with Beast. He enjoyed traveling. Since distance was meaningless to him, he particularly relished journeying across continents and oceans, although he found conventional means of reaching his destination restrictive. After twelve months of seeing his bandmates only occasionally, he could honestly say he was missing them. Even though they could collectively, and individually, bring him to a point where it felt like his head was about to explode, they were his friends. Too much alpha-maleness in one place was usually the problem. On their tour bus Beast was a cocktail of testosterone and shifter genes that meant one wrong look, or a word out of place, and the vehicle was in a constant state of near combustion.
Strangely, it was Torque, the fieriest member of the group when performing, who often acted as the peacemaker offstage. Alongside Ged Taverner, their manager, Torque could defuse a situation with his calm manner and quiet good humor. When Khan, the lead singer, and Diablo, the drummer, were engaged in one of their snarling exchanges, most people stood back. Torque was the one who got between them and made them back down. That was probably something to do with shifter hierarchy.
There were plenty of things he didn’t miss about being on the road. Torque hated being at the mercy of someone else’s schedule, and touring felt like the ultimate restriction on his freedom. Food was always a problem when the band was on tour, both in terms of quality and quantity. Torque ate meat, and plenty of it. Well-done red meat. Everywhere he went, it was the same story. It didn’t matter what country he was in, or what the establishment was. There was always an assumption that he would want salad, or bread, or some other trimming. The only accompaniment he wanted with his meat was more meat. Flame-grilled until it was black. No one ever understood that.
The other disadvantage to touring was the lack of privacy. There had been a time in the past when confidentiality wasn’t an issue, when finding wide-open spaces away from prying eyes was easier. Now, of course, technology presented its own set of problems, taking surveillance to a whole new level. It meant he had to constantly stay one step ahead. But Torque was an expert at keeping secrets. He had been doing it for a very long time.
Unlike some of his bandmates, Torque had no problem with the rock-star lifestyle. Late nights? Parties? Groupies? He could handle anything fame threw his way. Yes, there were aspects of his life he didn’t care to share with his fans, but he had learned how to strike a balance. And having billions of dollars at his disposal...well, that helped him maintain the life he wanted. It helped a lot.
He thought about that as he stood at the edge of his private beach, looking out across Pleasant Bay. When they weren’t touring, the other members of Beast were based in New York, close to their recording studio. Torque owned an apartment in Manhattan, but this was his home. It had nothing to do with the celebrity lifestyle and everything to do with his personal needs. He didn’t want glamour. This tucked-away, luxury Maine property had a perfect addition for anyone seeking the sort of isolation Torque needed. From where he was standing now, he could just about see the outline of his own secluded island.
Maybe it was thinking about his bandmates that had done it, but he was feeling restless. Having his own retreat was all very well. It was here when he needed it, but on this particular evening, his need for company was stronger than the desire for solitude. It was a short walk into the town of Addison, and the regulars in the Pleasant Bay Bar didn’t get starstruck by the presence of one of the world’s most famous men. A few were fans and asked about tours and forthcoming albums. Others clearly had no idea who he was...and didn’t care. Torque found this as refreshing as the beer.
The route from his house into town was one of his favorite walks. The dramatic coastline, with its craggy rocks and wild waves, was on one side and soaring pine forests on the other. It was a landscape from another time, making Torque think of days gone by. Of knights and maidens and heroic deeds. When humans looked beyond the veil of possibility and believed in magic.
It was still early and the Pleasant Bay Bar was quiet. The contrast as he walked from sunlight into shade made him blink. His eyes were extraordinarily sensitive, but they took a moment to adjust. The background music was a
