Page 16 of The Heat is On

Thanks, man.“It’s not me, dude.”

“It’s Eugene March, the guy I told you about last night,” US Marshal Stevie said.

“Uh, there’s no one here named Eugene.”

Stevie frowned, and she seemed to be sorting through that information until, “Right— He’s going by Clancy Smythe.”

“The professor?”

She frowned at that. “Yeah.He’s murdered three people, along with a few other charges. Like rape.”

Rio froze, her words landing like hands around his neck. Murderer. Rapist.

What had Perkins got them into?

“Let’s keep March’s list of charges on the d-low,” Tucker said. “I don’t want to freak out the team. But how soon can you get him off my line?”

“As soon as I can get a chopper in here.”

Rio cast a look at the sky, at the smoke and clouds hovering, and his heart sank. It might be a long night.

Tucker might have come to the same conclusion because his mouth tightened to a grim line. He used his Pulaski to help him hike down to the fire line, the blaze still fighting for life.

Rio stayed close enough to help him, although he’d probably just get himself into trouble if he did. He’d clearly been put back in criminal category.

“How’d you get here?” Tucker asked the marshal.

“I rode my dirt bike.”

They knew each other somehow, although Rio didn’t pick up from where, and then it didn’t matter because Archer ran up to him, fisted his collar. “Where’d you go?”

Rio caught Archer’s wrist. “Let. Go.” He was just a little tired of being manhandled by authority types. Especially when he was the only one here who wasactuallyauthority.

Except perhaps Miss US Marshal over there, who was eying Professor Smythe like she might have to draw her weapon.

Which, by the way, needed an upgrade. Why wasn’t she armed with something that actually might have a little say-so, like a Glock?

And she’d driven in on a dirt bike? Yeah, somebody wasn’t telling the whole truth, and it wasn’t just him.

“He was in trouble. I helped,” Rio said. Archer let him go and Rio picked up his shovel.

The fire had coughed out, gray smoke peeling in layers from the burned front. Over the ridge, the main fire still consumed the forested area, but had died out along the line of water dropped by the chopper.

It looked like they might be safely back in their cells by midnight.

“Let’s start mopping up!” Tucker said, casting a look at Rio. He couldn’t read it, and maybe he didn’t want to. “Turn over the soil along the line and make sure the fire’s out.”

Rio dug in.

And that’s when he heard the voice behind him. Bright, panicked, passionate, it made him turn and watch.

“Tucker! I’m so glad you’re okay!”

A woman launched herself into Tucker’s arms.

Well, not exactly in his arms, because he didn’t exactly hug her back, but she latched on around his neck and didn’t let go.

If a woman like that threw herself in his arms, you bet he wouldn’t just stand there or lamely wrap one arm around her.