Page 74 of Hot Zone
“Now that, I remember. What about the other two?” I pointed at a skinny kid who couldn’t have been much over the minimum age to sign up and another guy who was a little older and quite a bit heavier.
She pointed at the young kid. “I know him. Ricky Andrews. He couldn’t handle the physical requirements.”
“Okay, I remember that. He ended up joining the Navy, I think.”
“That’s right.” She nodded. “Last I heard, he was stationed in Yokosuka, Japan. He married one of my daughter’s friends, and they have a baby.”
“So not him then. Who does that leave?”
“Donovan Michaels.”
“Hmm, Donovan Michaels. That name sounds familiar.” I leaned down and took a closer look.
She pulled up his details and shook her head. “I’m not surprised. He was dismissed from the program at your recommendation because he failed to pass his SCBA certification.”
“Fuck, I remember him now. Thought he knew everything because his father was a firefighter, but no amount of knowledge can fix claustrophobia.”
“That’s true, and if you can’t wear the safety gear, you can’t fight fires.”
“No, but you can start them,” I said.
“You think it’s him?”
“If it’s him, he’s lost probably forty pounds. The guy on the security cameras is scrawny.” There was something niggling in the back of my mind. Like I was missing something important.“It’s been at least three years. I suppose he could have lost some weight.”
Donovan. Donovan, where are you?“Did you find him onFacebookorInstagram?”
“No, he has an oldFacebook, but he hasn’t posted anything in a couple of years. But there are a bunch of people posting condolences from about six months ago. Looks like his father died.”
“Well, there’s a potential trigger.” I stared at the photo and tried to imagine him thinner and a few years older. “I swear I’ve seen him somewhere recently. I just don’t know where.”
“Seen who recently?” Fox stuck his head around the corner.
“This guy right here. Donovan Michaels.”
“He a firefighter?”
“No, he washed out early on.”
“Ahh.” Fox nodded his head. “Let me guess, you’re the one who booted him?”
“Yep.”
“I don’t know him, but I’ll see if we can find him.”
“Did you get the broken pictures we left up front?” I asked.
“I did. We’ll check them for prints, but I’m pretty sure our guy was wearing gloves.”
“Sorry, Syd. I know I came to help you clean up, but I think I’m gonna go with Fox and see if we can figure this out.”
“Sure thing, Sam.” She handed Fox the photo. “You’ll catch him.”
“That’s the plan,” he said. “Have you had lunch, Chief?”
“I haven’t. Want to stop and grab something?”
“Yeah, I’m craving some wings at The Dog.”