Tyler glared at Uncle Bill. “You searched my place.” It wasn’t a question.

“I have a warrant.” Wearing a grim expression, Uncle Bill took the document out of his pocket, put it on the dining table, and rose to his feet. “And I need you to come with me to answer some questions.”

Mary’s stomach felt like she’d swallowed an indigestible lump of lead, cold and heavy.

“Asshole!” Bogey was perched on the stand on top of his cage, busily shelling an almond that he held in one scaly foot. Uncle Bill must have let him out and given him a treat.

“On what grounds?” Tyler crossed his arms over his chest, and Mary sensed a volcanic stew of rage just under the surface.

“On suspicion of arson,” Uncle Bill said, sounding regretful.

“Wait, you actually believe the bullshit that asshole Zack was spouting?” Tyler exploded incredulously.

“We’ve got evidence linking you to the fire at Hawkins Hardware. That means I had probable cause to search your place and to bring you in for questioning.”

“What evidence? I’m innocent!” Tyler snarled, taking a step towards Uncle Bill.

Mary lunged for her mate and threw her arms around him.

Uncle Bill looked at them and sighed. “Mary, for what it’s worth, I’m sorry. I didn’t want to believe Tyler’s an arsonist, but I can’t ignore evidence.”

“Like what?” Tyler demanded. “What do you have?”

Mary felt the rage vibrating through her mate.

“Tyler, please don’t do anything stupid,” she begged.

“Son, I just want you to come down to the station and answer a few questions,” Uncle Bill said, raising a placating hand. “I’m sure we can clear up any misunderstandings if you just tell me your side.”

Oh, for goodness sake, that’s the oldest interrogation technique in the police handbook.

“Tyler, don’t talk to anyone until I can get hold of Mark and hire him as your defense attorney.”

“Mary,” her uncle said in a warning tone. “Don’t interfere.”

She glared at him. “If you’re going to arrest him, then my mate is invoking his right to remain silent and to have counsel present when he does talk to you. Isn’t that right, Tyler?”

He had stiffened with surprise when she began to talk, but he recovered quickly. “Yeah, that’s right. I want my lawyer present when you interrogate me.”

“Interrogation? What interrogation? Stop being so dramatic, you two,” Uncle Bill said, sounding exasperated. “I just need Tyler to answer a few questions so that I can clear him.”

You mean you want to ask him questions until you can get a confession out of him.

Mary had been a cop long enough to have conducted her share of suspect interrogations. She wasn’t going to let her mate—whom she knew to be innocent—fall into that trap.

“So does that mean he’s free to decline your request for an interview?” Mary challenged her uncle.

Uncle Bill sighed. “No. I’m placing him under arrest.”

“In that case, Mary, I’d appreciate it if you contacted Mark,” Tyler said, crossing his arms. He looked coldly at Uncle Bill. “And I’m not answering any of your questions until he arrives.”

Mary sensed that her mate was still angry, but he was no longer teetering on the edge of an explosion. No, he was in control now, and his body language promised that he was going to use his anger to be extremely uncooperative.

Good.

“I’ll phone him right away,” she promised, releasing her hold on Tyler. “No matter the temptation, don’t try to explain yourself until he gets there. And don’t sign any paperwork, got it?”

“Whose side are you on, Mary?” Uncle Bill asked, with the same note of exasperation in his voice. “If Tyler’s innocent, he doesn’t need a lawyer.”

“Everyone needs a lawyer when they’re being questioned by the police. You know that as well as I do,” she shot back. “And I’m on my mate’s side. I know he didn’t set those fires, and so do you.”

She was angry and frightened enough not to care if Uncle Bill was angry at her for advising Tyler. Her mate needed all the help he could get right now.

Uncle Bill didn’t answer. Instead, he motioned Tyler towards the door. “Let’s go.”

Mary threw her arms around Tyler’s neck and kissed him with desperate passion, which he returned.

When they broke the kiss, he said, “Take care of Bogey, will you?”

“I’ll make sure he’s okay,” she promised.

She’d have to search online for parrot care tips, but she was determined that her mate wouldn’t have to worry about his pet.

“C’mon, Tyler. Time to go,” her uncle said.

He put a hand on Tyler’s shoulder and steered him towards the front door.

Mary felt a brief moment of gratitude that her uncle wasn’t going to put her mate in handcuffs.

As the front door closed behind them, she heard Uncle Bill reciting the Miranda warning to Tyler. A few moments later, she heard the doors of the police SUV slam.

“I’m sorry! I love you!” Bogey called frantically from his perch as the engine started and the headlights came on. “I’m sorry! I love you!”

Mary stumbled over to the living room windows in time to see the SUV pull away from the curb and disappear down the street.

Her stomach churned with shock, grief, and frustration, and she doubled over at a sudden spasm of nausea. She turned and sprinted for the bathroom, barely reaching it in time before she threw up violently.

Mary knelt on the cool, hard marble tiles of the bathroom floor for a long time, alternating between sobbing and throwing up as her world crashed in around her like a burning house.

In the space of a week, she had lost everything that she cared about…her house, her mate, and now, her future.

When she finally rose to her feet a long time later, she felt hollow with grief and rage.

“That’s it, girl,” she said to herself, feeling the emptiness of the house like a weight on her soul. “Time to stop falling to pieces. I need to find a way to fix this.”