Read Online Hell's Kitchen by Jeffery Deaver - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Jeffery Deaver
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He’s the fat man on the third floor. Sneely. Then this one goes to Landmark Preservation. Pretty Ms. Grunwald with the cat. A receptionist. She gets the Irish Cream. As you probably guessed.”
Greasing gears.
Or maybe clogging them.
The man nestled the bottles among his sporting papers and left the office. Pellam saw him pause outside to light a cigarette then continue toward the subway.
Bailey said, “The A.D.A., Ms. Koepel, asked for a postponement of Ettie’s arraignment. I agreed.”
Pellam shook his head. “But she’ll have to stay in jail longer.”
“True. But I think it’s worth it to keep the bitch happy.” His head dropped toward the chipped mug he held. “Koepel’s a madwoman. But then there’s a lot of pressure to catch the firebug. Things’re getting worse. Did you hear?”
“Hear what?” Pellam asked.
“There was another fire this morning.”
“Another one?”
“A loft. It wasn’t too far from here, matter of fact. Destroyed two floors. Three dead. Looked like it was a gas explosion but they found traces of our boy’s special brew—gas, fuel oil and soap. And one of the victims was bound and gagged.” Bailey shoved a limp Post toward Pellam. He glanced at the picture of a burnt-out building.
“Jesus.” Pellam had scouted for a lot of action adventure films. Most of the spectacular explosions on screen, supposedly C4 or TNT or dynamite, were actually containers of gasoline-soaked sawdust, carefully assembled by the arms master on the set. Everybody kept far back when he rigged the charges. And stuntmen who thought nothing about free-fall gags from twenty stories up were damn cautious around fire.
Bailey looked over his notes. “Now, what’ve I found, what’ve I found? . . . God damn air conditioner! Jiggle that switch. It’s the compressor. Jiggle it. Did it go on?”
Pellam jiggled. No response from the dusty old unit. Bailey grumbled something inaudible over the throbbing motor. He pulled a fax off his desk. “The prelim arson report about Ettie’s building. Getting it cost most of your money. I made a copy for you. Read it and weep.”
Privileged and Confidential
MEMORANDUM
From: Supervising Fire Marshal Henry Lomax
To: Lois Koepel, Esq., Assistant District Attorney
Re: Preliminary findings, Fire of Suspicious Origin, 458 W. Three-six street
At 9:58 p.m. on August tenth, a call was received from box 598 on Tenth Avenue regarding a fire at the458 W. Three-six street. A 911 was received at 10:02 p.m., regarding same. Ladder company Three Eight responded to the first alarm assignment and the captain at the scene concluded that because of the gravity of the fire and the presence of injuries a second alarm assignment was needed. This assignment went out at 10:17 p.m.
Present at the blaze were Two Six Truck, Three Three Truck, Four Eight Engine, One Six Engine, and One Seven Ladder. Lines were run immediately, and water was laid down on the three top floors. Access to the premises was gained by entry through the third floor and the building was successfully evacuated.
The captain on the scene concluded that the flames had so weakened the top floors that access through the bulkhead on the roof was inadvisable, and pulled the firefighters back. Shortly thereafter the roof and top two floors collapsed.
The fire was finally knocked down at 11:02 p.m. and all units took up at 12:30 a.m.
The captain requested a fire marshal because certain observations about the fire suggested it was of suspicious origins.
I arrived at 1 a.m. and began my investigation.
I concluded that the point of origin was the basement of the building. Spalling on the brick and melted aluminum confirmed this. I observed that the basement windows had been broken outward not due to heat fracturing but due to being struck with an object of some sort, possibly to provide better oxygen supply to feed the fire. This is consistent with witnesses’ observations that the flames did not have a bluish
Greasing gears.
Or maybe clogging them.
The man nestled the bottles among his sporting papers and left the office. Pellam saw him pause outside to light a cigarette then continue toward the subway.
Bailey said, “The A.D.A., Ms. Koepel, asked for a postponement of Ettie’s arraignment. I agreed.”
Pellam shook his head. “But she’ll have to stay in jail longer.”
“True. But I think it’s worth it to keep the bitch happy.” His head dropped toward the chipped mug he held. “Koepel’s a madwoman. But then there’s a lot of pressure to catch the firebug. Things’re getting worse. Did you hear?”
“Hear what?” Pellam asked.
“There was another fire this morning.”
“Another one?”
“A loft. It wasn’t too far from here, matter of fact. Destroyed two floors. Three dead. Looked like it was a gas explosion but they found traces of our boy’s special brew—gas, fuel oil and soap. And one of the victims was bound and gagged.” Bailey shoved a limp Post toward Pellam. He glanced at the picture of a burnt-out building.
“Jesus.” Pellam had scouted for a lot of action adventure films. Most of the spectacular explosions on screen, supposedly C4 or TNT or dynamite, were actually containers of gasoline-soaked sawdust, carefully assembled by the arms master on the set. Everybody kept far back when he rigged the charges. And stuntmen who thought nothing about free-fall gags from twenty stories up were damn cautious around fire.
Bailey looked over his notes. “Now, what’ve I found, what’ve I found? . . . God damn air conditioner! Jiggle that switch. It’s the compressor. Jiggle it. Did it go on?”
Pellam jiggled. No response from the dusty old unit. Bailey grumbled something inaudible over the throbbing motor. He pulled a fax off his desk. “The prelim arson report about Ettie’s building. Getting it cost most of your money. I made a copy for you. Read it and weep.”
Privileged and Confidential
MEMORANDUM
From: Supervising Fire Marshal Henry Lomax
To: Lois Koepel, Esq., Assistant District Attorney
Re: Preliminary findings, Fire of Suspicious Origin, 458 W. Three-six street
At 9:58 p.m. on August tenth, a call was received from box 598 on Tenth Avenue regarding a fire at the458 W. Three-six street. A 911 was received at 10:02 p.m., regarding same. Ladder company Three Eight responded to the first alarm assignment and the captain at the scene concluded that because of the gravity of the fire and the presence of injuries a second alarm assignment was needed. This assignment went out at 10:17 p.m.
Present at the blaze were Two Six Truck, Three Three Truck, Four Eight Engine, One Six Engine, and One Seven Ladder. Lines were run immediately, and water was laid down on the three top floors. Access to the premises was gained by entry through the third floor and the building was successfully evacuated.
The captain on the scene concluded that the flames had so weakened the top floors that access through the bulkhead on the roof was inadvisable, and pulled the firefighters back. Shortly thereafter the roof and top two floors collapsed.
The fire was finally knocked down at 11:02 p.m. and all units took up at 12:30 a.m.
The captain requested a fire marshal because certain observations about the fire suggested it was of suspicious origins.
I arrived at 1 a.m. and began my investigation.
I concluded that the point of origin was the basement of the building. Spalling on the brick and melted aluminum confirmed this. I observed that the basement windows had been broken outward not due to heat fracturing but due to being struck with an object of some sort, possibly to provide better oxygen supply to feed the fire. This is consistent with witnesses’ observations that the flames did not have a bluish
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