Chapter 17 - FIRE AT THE STORAGE UNITBy the time firefighters opened the unit, the flames had been contained to two rows of cardboard boxes. Nobody was hurt. But the paper inside had been deliberately soaked with an accelerant, investigators said, and most of it was charred.
I watched from behind the barrier as black water ran beneath the door.
"Please tell me something survived," I said to Chen.
"We're collecting everything we can."
She pointed to a fireproof document pouch recovered from beneath a metal shelf. Its outer fabric was damaged, but some contents remained legible: photocopies of deed drafts, bank transfer instructions, and an unsigned agreement listing a shell company as the purchaser.
Carlos arrived at the station with his lawyer that afternoon. I wasn't allowed in the interview, and I was grateful for that. If I'd seen his face, I didn't trust myself not to say something I'd regret.
Hours later Chen gave me what she could share. Carlos acknowledged arranging document signatures with Bell. He said Lorena controlled the deposit account. He claimed she had told him the house was already hers because I had promised it to her.
"That's a lie," I said.
"We have independent records suggesting it isn't true," Chen replied. "His account is one part of the investigation."
There was more. A storage-facility camera showed a woman in a gray hooded sweatshirt leaving before the smoke appeared. Her face was unclear, but her vehicle matched Lorena's.
Then a traffic camera caught that vehicle entering the bus station lot.
Chen left to coordinate with officers there. I went home to Mom.
We were eating soup at the kitchen table when the phone rang.
May you like
Chen's voice was low and urgent.
"Daniel, we've located Lorena. But she's telling officers she has one final piece of evidence against you."
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