Scarlett was still wrapped in Connor’s arms, listening as he and Liam debated theories about the fire, when she first felt it. It was almost nothing at first, like a quiet buzzing sound inside her skull, something you waved away without noticing. But after a few moments, the pressure grew, until it felt like something was burrowing into the back of her head. She turned her head, looking over her shoulder, her body locking up at the sight of her boss standing next to Chief Stone. Their conversation was hushed—too quiet for her to hear any details—but that didn’t make it civil. No, the two men were gesturing wildly, their eyes sharp and faces tight. Even that hadn’t stopped Harrelson from looking over to her every few seconds, disappointment evident on his face. Her stomach clenched. Grief, over-protectiveness, that she knew how to handle. But disappointing the man who had become like a father figure hit her hard.

She couldn’t tear her gaze away from the pair. It was the weirdest sensation. Only the fact she could still hear the rest of their surroundings made Scarlett sure she hadn’t gone suddenly deaf and was failing to hear heated yelling between the pair. What the hell was going on? Her boss clearly knew she was there, but rather than coming over and tearing her a new one, he was instead in an argument with Connor’s boss.

The thought slammed into her. He wouldn’t blame the firehouse for her still being on scene, would he? The thought of Connor and his squad taking the heat for her disobeying orders settled like a boulder in her gut. They’d been nothing but welcoming, and Scarlett would bet that Connor was the only person who even knew she shouldn’t still be there. She was damned if they were going to take the brunt of her boss’s anger in her stead. She twisted in Connor’s grasp and he looked down at her, his eyebrows raised in question. She said nothing, just inclined her head slightly toward the bizarre conversation happening across the road. His expression changed from questioning to concerned as Connor took in the same signals she’d seen, but instead of continuing to watch from a distance, he turned and was striding toward the pair before she’d realized what he had in mind. Scarlett moved quickly, jogging to catch up with his long steps.

“You can’t take her off the investigation.” Scarlett’s eyes widened at Connor’s words, the surprise at his statement echoed on Harrelson’s face. His eyebrows shot up even as Scarlett reached for Connor, grabbing his hand and trying in vain to pull him away. She didn’t know why she bothered. The guy outweighed her by nearly a hundred pounds, and by his stance, wasn’t in the mood to be hustled away from this argument. The heat she’d spotted between the two department heads before was now flashing through Connor’s eyes.

Harrelson’s nostrils flared as he sucked in a breath. His lips flattened into a line, and Scarlett almost expected him to do something ridiculous like bare his teeth, or reach out and punch Connor across the face. She stepped forward, placing herself between them, realizing immediately the ridiculousness of her move. She wasn’t short, but Connor still had several inches on her, and her smaller body barely concealed his bulk. Still, this was her fight, and she’d be damned if she let him take the hit—literally or otherwise. “Captain, I—”

Her boss held up his hand, cutting her off. The man pulled himself up and Scarlett tried to suppress a cringe, waiting for the explosion. She deserved it, really. Despite having what she considered to be an excellent reason, she’d gone against a direct order. Especially with their history, knowing what they’d all been through before with Derek’s death, she’d owed him better than that.

Then again, he’d owed her better, too. This case was important to her; that much would have been obvious to anyone with eyes at their last meeting in Harrelson’s office at the precinct. She was a damn good cop, and he knew exactly how much nailing these bastards meant to her, damn it. He had no right to take her off the case just because it was dangerous, and if he had another reason, he’d yet to voice it. She tried again. “Boss, I really think—”

“Can it, Christensen.” That time, she did flinch. It was rare that the captain called her by her last name only. The man’s manners may be brusque, but he cared for her, in his own way. Had she finally pushed him beyond the point of any special treatment? She didn’t think she cared. As much as it sucked to lose the case, being treated like one of the guys was what she’d been fighting for the entire time. Now she just had to win this argument.

Scarlett’s spine straightened and she took a step closer, but before she could get a word out, all the fight seemed to go out of her boss. Harrelson ran a hand through his hair, looking down at her and shaking his head. “Goddamn it, Scarlett. I told you to stay away from this.” He blew out a breath. “One attempt on your life wasn’t enough?”

She grinned, her stand firm. “Never, sir. Not when the assholes are still out there.”

He jerked his head toward the fire. “You think it’s the same perps, then?”

Scarlett shook her head. “Not think, sir. I know it. We found evidence connecting this blaze with another fire already, and I bet if we dig further, we’ll find more.”

This time, it was Harrelson’s turn to look surprised. His eyes moved down to where one of her hands was still locked with Connor’s, his big hand enfolding hers entirely within his grasp and gripping tightly. “We?” the captain asked.

Scarlett refused to let go or budge an inch on her stance. “Yes, we. Connor and everyone else here at 81 have been instrumental in the progress we’ve made so far.” She looked back at the scene, Connor releasing her hand as she moved to point out Liam.

The arson investigator was standing where they’d found the fragments that had nearly stopped her heart just a short while ago. Had it really only been about half an hour? The find had shocked her to her core, but she was already back on track and ready to nail whoever the hell was bombing Monroe for shits and giggles. If there was a motive, she’d love to find it, but so far there’d been no connection between the fires, save for the newly found physical evidence that gave them their first provable link. Just her gut, and the circumstantial link between Officer Ellis and the chemicals needed. At best, she could prove lazy police work and failure to follow up properly on the reports. She still didn’t have the proof that the fires were caused by TATP. Until today, there hadn’t even been enough evidence to prove the damn things were the result of bombs rather than a standard case of arson, or even accidental. God, the first blaze had been written off as an accidental explosion from a home-based drug lab.

Everywhere she reached, there were tiny little pieces, but trying to put them together to make a complete picture was still out of reach. The whole thing was making her crazy. She took in a breath. Like they had with Liam, it was time to lay it out for her boss. Everything.

Scarlett crossed her arms across her chest, gripping her biceps and digging her fingers in. Was it some vague attempt at self-preservation? She didn’t care. It helped the churning in her gut as she laid it all out for Harrelson and Chief Stone. The weird-ass organization in the basement of the very first fire, the chemical residues found at the others, then the brand stamped into the metal piece. It had been part of an explosion, that much was obvious from looking at it, once Connor’s trained eye had shown her what to look for. What they hadn’t known until that morning was whether the metal had come from a direct result of the industrial park fire, or something else.

Finding the remnants of the pipe bomb had given them their answer. Someone was intentionally setting the fires, testing home-made bombs, and they were using her town to do it. “I’m not backing down, sir.” She shook her head. “Not even on your orders. Not when there might be someone on the inside orchestrating this entire thing.”

His eyes narrowed at her statement, and Scarlett shared what she’d found out about Ellis in the mounds of paperwork still sitting her kitchen table. Harrelson’s mouth slackened at first, and he rocked back on his feet before he found his composure again. He glanced around the scene, his gaze alert and his jaw set. “You’re sure?”

She nodded. “I don’t think he’s the ringleader, but he’s involved. My gut’s screaming it.”

His eyes flashed, and his fists tightened before Harrelson finally nodded. “Okay. Stay on the case.” His gaze sharpened. “Unofficially only. As far as anyone else is concerned, you’re on leave. You report direct to me, Christensen. Is that clear?”

She nodded quickly. “Crystal, Captain.”

His head jerked in response. “Good.” Harrelson’s gaze turned to Seth, who was still standing directly behind her. She smiled. Connor had let her handle her boss on her own, but now his attentions had moved to Connor, his hands moved back to grip her hips, pulling her toward him. Connor was leaving absolutely no doubt in Harrelson’s mind where his loyalties lay. A grim smile formed on the captain’s face. “Keep her safe, McClellan. I’m counting on you.”

Connor nodded, and he took her hand, his grip tightening. His eyes burned, and Scarlett was sure if they weren’t standing right in front of both their direct department heads, she would have found herself backed up against Engine 81, his tongue thrusting into her mouth as Connor showed her exactly how personally he’d be taking her protection. Instead, he reached forward and shook Harrelson’s hand. “She won’t be out of my sight.”