For Megan, it had been because a selfish bastard wanted to control those weaker than himself. For today’s victim, it was because a group of radicals wanted to save the environment. They might talk passionate, even selfless rhetoric, but under it all they were selfish bastards, too. Seemed to be a common theme.

He wondered if they’d known the girl was there. He hoped not. Still he hoped Olivia found them, and quickly. He hoped they went to prison for a very long time.

The ball that had slid into his hand had been their signature. He typed glass ball and environmental arson into Google and settled back to read.

He found an article on the group known as SPOT, then another. He found the account of how an innocent woman had died twelve years before, during the last fire for which they’d claimed responsibility, and his heart chilled. Surely they didn’t know the girl was there last night. He thought about the guard, shot through the heart. That had been no accident. The arsonists were no idealists. They were murderers.

David found a link to a man recognized if not as the leader, then as their inspiration. Preston Moss. He’d been a university philosophy professor. Hadn’t been heard from in twelve years. But before Moss had disappeared, he’d been prolific in his writing.

Someone had captured Moss’s articles on a Web site. Reading Moss’s words, David could almost hear the man’s voice ringing in his mind.

“David? You here, boy?”

Abruptly David jerked his eyes from his laptop screen, blinking to refocus on his front door, which was opening. Glenn Redman stuck his head in. “David?”

“Yeah, Glenn, I’m here. Come in.”

Glenn did, frowning. “I knocked three times. I saw your truck outside, so I knew you were here. You okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

David’s mind was still caught up in the stirring words of Preston Moss. Stirring and frightening, the barely veiled advocation of violence to make their voices heard if arson did not succeed. David rubbed his palm over his chest. His heart was still beating hard.

“I was reading,” he said distractedly, then blinked again. “What do you need?”

Glenn’s frown deepened. “You tell me. You left me a note.” He produced it from his pocket, the sight instantly bringing David back to the present.

“Right. I knocked earlier, but thought you might be resting.” Propping his laptop on the arm of his chair, he brought one of the kitchen chairs into the living room, motioning for Glenn to sit in the easy chair. “I wanted to talk to you about what you told my mom today.”

Glenn’s eyes narrowed. “Which thing?”

The way he said it had David’s brows shooting up. “About me catching the ball in that condo fire.”

“Oh, that.” Glenn’s frown eased, making David wonder what else Glenn had told his mother. “Heard it was a hell of a save.”

“It was. And it turned out to be important. The cops don’t want us talking about it.”

“To who?”

“Well, to the press for sure, but to each other, also. Loose lips and all that.”

“All right.” The older man regarded him steadily. “You’re looking pretty clean behind the ears. Sunday clothes. You going out tonight?”

David’s cheeks warmed. He’d hoped he didn’t look that obvious. “Yeah.” He returned the old man’s stare. “You’re looking pretty clean yourself, old man.”

“I was thinking your mama might like to see the town, but if you two got plans…”

David wasn’t sure if he should laugh or frown. “You got designs on my mom?”

“No,” Glenn said forcefully. Indignantly, even. “I just thought she might like to… Never mind.” He struggled to get out of the deep chair and David waved him back.

“Sit. I’m not going out with my mother tonight. She’s out shopping.”

“You’re leaving her alone, her first night here?”

“Just for a little while.” Maybe. He was afraid to hope for longer than a little while with Olivia. “Where did you want to take her?”

Glenn shrugged, embarrassed. “Dooley’s maybe. They got good wings.”

David shook his head. “My mom’s better than a place with big-breasted waitresses. Besides, you changed your shirt and shaved. That calls for something special.”

“Like I can afford anything special,” Glenn groused. David shook his head again, saying nothing, and Glenn blew out a frustrated breath. “Martino’s has tablecloths.”

David chuckled at his discomfort. “She’d like that. And you might see Lacey from 2A. Martino hired her. You like my mother or something?”

Glenn’s cheeks went red. “She’s a nice lady. Back off, boy.”

“It’s just that… she doesn’t date.” It was true, he realized. “Not since my dad.”

“How long ago did your dad pass?”

“I was eighteen, so eighteen years ago. She was so strong, never complained. She was always there for us. I guess I never thought of her ever… dating again.”

“It’s just Martino’s,” Glenn said in an overly patient voice. “I’m not gonna marry her.”

David looked at him, slyly now. “She’s awful pretty, my mama.”

“Don’t make me get out of this chair, Hunter.”

“Like you could without a winch. Just be nice to her, okay? She’s a good person.”

“That I could tell, straight off.” Glenn cleared his throat. “So where are you going?”

It was David’s turn to fidget in his chair. “Your cabin.”

“Dressed like that? You even spit shined your Sunday shoes.”

“I don’t spit. I have to talk to someone about something that happened a while ago.”

“What’s her name?”

He sighed. “Olivia.”

Glenn’s brows went up. “The one you slept with and whose sister you slept with? I also have ears like a bat. Just so you know.”

David closed his eyes. “I didn’t sleep with either of them. I think.”

“You think? You think?”

“That’s what I said.” And he’d said too much. “What time is it, anyway?”

Glenn glanced at the computer screen. “Ten to six.” Then he squinted, looking closer. He looked up, his eyes gone angry. “Why are you reading about Preston Moss?”

David leaned forward. “You know Moss?”

“Not personally. I remember him. They left a glass globe at each of their fires,” Glenn said slowly. “That ball you caught today. The cops think Moss is back?”

“They don’t know,” David said. “They’re trying to keep it out of the news.”

“I can see why. This guy was bad, Davy. He wore this veneer of sincerity, but in the end, he was just a thug.” His voice trembled. “No more than a thug.”

“What happened, Glenn?”

Glenn closed the laptop. “They talk about the woman who died, who fell asleep in that building and couldn’t get out. How she was charred black. They don’t talk about the firefighters who were hurt trying to knock that fire down. The building went up, taking the buildings on both sides. We were lucky we knocked it down as quick as we did.”

“Who was hurt?” David asked, and saw pain flicker in Glenn’s eyes.

“Two young guys. One is scarred to this day. The other’s forty and pulls an oxygen tank behind him like he chain-smoked for fifty years. They got caught inside. Ran out of air. Both of ’em nearly died. It was big news when it happened, but now… just one of those historical footnotes. That poor lady died, and we were really sorry about that. But we lost two good men that day. And Preston Moss just disappears. Lousy coward.”

“Lousy coward who could really stir up a crowd.”

“That he could. I can’t believe he’s back.”

“Maybe he’s not. But I need you to keep quiet on this. Not a word, Glenn.”

Glenn pursed his lips. “All right.”

The outer door downstairs slammed. “David?”

David jumped to his feet and looked down the stairs to the entryway where his mother stood, arms laden with grocery bags. “I’ll get those, Ma.” He tossed a look over his shoulder. “And you mind your Ps and Qs, old man. She’s my mom.” He jogged down the stairs and took the bags from her hands. “You gonna feed an army?”