Page 67 of Target Acquired
Jesslyn shrugged. “Some days it’s a challenge, other days I feel like a hero.”
“You mean like when you put away that arsonist who was burning down schools?”
“Exactly like that. Although I’m not sure why he thought burning down the schools was going to achieve his goal of overhauling the education system.”
“It was a symbolic act.”
Jesslyn smiled. “It was. He made no secret of the fact that he thought the whole system needed a revamp. I don’t think he meant for anyone to get hurt, but someone died because they chose to work late.” She sighed. “At least he’s behind bars and can’t hurt anyone else.”
“Yes. Amen to that.”
“I’m curious how it’s going for you, working in such a male-dominated arena,” Jesslyn said. She took a sip of her water and tilted her head at Kenzie. “Firefighting is too, but SWAT . . .” She shook her head. “That’s a whole other ball game.”
Kenzie sighed and let Jesslyn turn the conversation back to her while Lainie lit the firepit and James tossed a bag of marshmallows to the newcomer, Detective Nathan Carlisle. New, but not inexperienced. “It’s funny you should ask that. That’s been a hot topic ever since I was accepted.” She broke off a piece of her Hershey bar. She liked s’mores. She also liked plain chocolate just as well. The sugary sweetness coated her tongue. “That was the happiest day of my life.” She glanced at Jesslyn. “The day I got the news I’d be joining the team. Even better than getting into med school.”
Jesslyn laughed. “I can imagine.” Her eyes tracked Nathan, and Kenzie raised a brow that Jesslyn didn’t notice. Then her friend blinked and turned her attention back to Kenzie. “And?”
Hmm . . . that was interesting, but she let it go. “Truthfully, it’s also been the hardest thing I’ve ever done, next to going to my mother’s funeral.”
“Yeah.” Jesslyn frowned. “I know about losing people.”
“Your family,” Kenzie said.
Jesslyn nodded. “It’s the reason I do what I do. My family was murdered and the arsonist never caught.”
“I heard. I’m so sorry.” Kenzie cleared her throat. “I just recently learned my mother’s death may not have been an accident.”
Jesslyn straightened and her gaze sharpened. “What?”
Kenzie summarized, leaving out a lot of the details, but telling enough so Jesslyn had a good picture of the issue. “But we’re not sure. It’s just a theory I’m looking into.”
“Let me know if you need any help. I don’t know what I can do, but if I can do it, I will.”
“Thanks.” She drew in a slow breath. “Now, back to you. Not a lot of female fire marshals out there.”
“No, but I don’t get much grief about it. I’m respected in the field now, but I’ve been doing this a while. You’ll get there, if you’re not already.”
“Oh, I’m not.” She took another bite of chocolate. “I’ve worked my tail off to prove myself, but it just doesn’t seem to matter.”
“You’re not giving up, are you?”
“Well, I can’t say I haven’t thought about it. Sure would be a lot easier, but quitting isn’t in me. And besides, I’m good at it. I enjoy it when we’re all working as a team and”—she thought about Micah and his family—“the rewards are great.”
“You should be proud of yourself. I’m praying that the guys come around and the tension disappears.”
“Thank you.”
“Now, why haven’t you and Cole spoken or even looked at each other since you got here?”
Kenzie groaned. “You noticed that, huh?”
“Hard not to.”
“It’s a long story. We had a little disagreement and are sulking—mostly me—but we’ll both get over it and go back to behaving like adults before too much longer.”
Jesslyn looked amused. Then she took a swig of her water and nodded toward the edge of the dock. “Looks like the polar bear plunge is getting ready to happen.”
“While I’m very comfortable sitting here in my suit with the nice breeze and my warm cover-up,” Kenzie said around another bite of chocolate. She touched her side, feeling the bandage under her suit. “I’m very glad I’m not allowed in the water. It’s cold. It was cold before the sun started going down and it’s even colder now.”