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can see, the boat is pretty burned up, but according to the fire chief it looks like someone must have forgotten to close the hatches after refueling. The inside of the boat filled up with fumes and then all it took was a little spark and … kaboom .”
    “But that could have been done on purpose, couldn’t it? What makes you sure it was an accident?” I eyed the charred remains of the boat, a chill running through me as I pictured Evangeline in there somewhere. Had it really been an accident? Given what she’d told me yesterday, that seemed like one heck of a coincidence.
    Hale’s brow ticked up. He glanced over at Tony as if to say ‘look at the know-it-all PI butting in’.
    “We’ve been investigating crime scenes for a few years now,” he said sarcastically, “and we’ve gone over the area pretty good. Haven’t found anything suspicious.”
    “Why was she out on the boat in the middle of the night? Doesn’t that seem odd? What about her husband? What does he say?” I persisted.
    Hale’s eyes darkened. I could tell he was getting tired of my questions. “Why is this your concern?”
    The envelope was burning a hole in my tote bag. Should I tell Hale about Evangeline’s suspicions? It seemed like he was going to be happy as a clam to just put this down to an accident and close the case. It was a lot less work for him. I snuck a look at Tony to see if I could get a read on whether or not he was more inclined to launch an investigation, but he had a poker face on.
    Since Evangeline was dead, I didn’t have to worry about client confidentiality. Confessing to Hale about my real relationship with her might be the only way for her to get justice. And I was all about justice.
    “Okay. I didn’t want to say this before because of client confidentiality and all, but Evangeline came to my office yesterday and wanted to hire me because she suspected her husband was trying to kill her.”
    “Oh, really? So it seems like you might know more about this than you were letting on if you are investigating the husband.”
    “No, not really. Actually, I was going to return her money.”
    “And why is that?”
    He had me there. I was returning the money because I didn’t believe her and I could see it in his eyes that he didn’t believe the husband did it, either.
    I shifted on my feet. “I felt like she wasn’t being straight with me … but now in light of what’s happened, the husband seems pretty suspicious, don’t you think?”
    “No, I don’t think. I look at clues. And so far there aren’t any pointing to the husband. He’s not even home.”
    “He’s not? That seems suspicious right there … I mean, he didn’t notice the fire in his backyard when he got up for work this morning?”
    Hale looked at Tony, who was patiently standing there listening to us argue. “Apparently, the husband wasn’t at home when the fire started, which we figure was around two a.m. Not that this is any of your concern. In fact, I think we can do the job of figuring out what happened fine without your input … and if we come across some evidence of foul play, we’ll be sure to suspect the husband first.”
    And with that, he motioned to Tony and turned around, heading toward the back yard. Tony shot me a sympathetic look and followed him.
    I hated being dismissed like that. I was watching his retreating back, trying to keep my blood from boiling over, when he turned around. “Oh, and Callie?”
    “Yeah?”
    “Sounds like you don’t have a client anymore, so there’s no need to be sticking your nose in the investigation. Right?”
    “Yeah. Right,” I lied. He spun back around and continued on his way. I didn’t like the way he had said that last line. It sounded like a command … or a threat. Either way, I had no intention of following his ‘orders’.
    I felt like I’d let Evangeline Barrows down by not taking her suspicions seriously. I didn’t care what Hale thought. That boat fire had been no accident.