Page 47 of The Flame Game

If Audrey had been involved with the batch of gorgon dust production, which seemed obvious to me, considering she’d become a gorgon and had been found with a batch, how did she relate to Chief Morrison? More importantly, how did Chief Morrison tie into the gorgon dust problem?

Considering Morrison was likely guilty of aiding and abetting gorgons into kidnapping a police officer, how was he tied to the rabies problem?

I worried Audrey’s activities might give me the clues I needed. I returned to her financials and filtered out all transactions from New York and focused on when she left the state.

Sure enough, I found several trips that took her through Vermont, Maine, and Massachusetts.

“Your ex-wife is quite the character,” I told my husband.

“Yes, I had figured that out, which was why I asked for your help divorcing her. I really should have just tipped off an incubus. That would have done the trick.”

I spied an exit sign with a gas station ahead, and I pointed at it. “Stop there, because I do not want you to crash the rental.”

“That doesn’t sound promising. Did you find something?”

“I think so.”

The exit led to a full-fledged rest center with several restaurants, enough gas and diesel to make a life-time supply of homemade napalm, and a visitor’s center, one that was miraculously open. “Oh! We should get stuffed animals for the kids, then we’ll talk.”

“Sure.” He parked, and I shoved my laptop into my bag, and hurried for the gift shop in case it was about to close. I searched for presents for our kids, debating how best to break the news to Quinn.

They had stuffed cindercorns, and I stared at them with wide eyes, my mouth hanging open.

Quinn spotted them, laughed, and reached up to take two off the shelf, and then he retrieved two more, which he handed to me. “Two for the whelps, two for the twins, and I should get two for us so we can play with the kids.”

He did just that, and after a moment of thought, he grabbed the remaining stock.

“That’s too many.”

“It’s not enough. I’ve been warned, Bailey. We’re the kind of parents who will inevitably have more kids because we love children. And two are for us.”

So much for sane purchases. I pointed at the white unicorns on the neighboring shelf. “Grab a few of those, and we should get new travel mugs.”

On his way to the register, he snagged a black and red blanket to add to the pile. “You’ll get cold.”

“While true, you’re being excessive again.”

“Leave me to my excessive ways, woman. Go grab some candy and some jerky so you can appease your carnivorous ways.”

Giggling, I obeyed, joining him at the register and adding to the pile. While he paid for everything, I headed for the bathroom so I wouldn’t be bothering him in thirty minutes, taking the time to tame my hair and pretend I wasn’t a hot mess of a woman.

When I emerged, he waited for me burdened with a ridiculous number of bags.

“You bought more stuff, didn’t you?” I accused, wondering how we’d make it all fit in the SUV.

“Maybe.”

“You’re crazy, Quinn.” He’d be angry within five minutes, so I didn’t complain about spending extra money, settling with taking some of the bags from him and helping him carry everything.

To my amazement, it all fit in the vehicle with room to spare.

“This is a pretty good pitch for buying an SUV,” my husband admitted.

“We should do that. Buy an SUV, that is. If we need a break from the investigation because of frustration, we can shop for one.”

Quinn got behind the wheel. “All right, my beautiful babbling brook. What has you so nervous you didn’t mind spending extra money in the gift shop?”

“Busted,” I admitted, getting into my seat and digging out my laptop. “I followed the money and found a few coincidences I don’t like very much. And at some point, the coincidences stack up to the point where is it really a coincidence?”