meant the six family members that died in a house fire four days before Alicia disappeared. âIt does?â
âStatistically speaking, yes. Thereâs no evidence of arson in the Burke fire, but itâs the third fire in two months that killed the entire family. Statistically, the chance of a house going up and killing everyone is slim. Itâs less than a fifty-percent chance that everyone is home. Cut it down drastically that not one of six people gets out alive. Then whittle it to nothing that it happens three times in two months.â
A chill went down Ukiahâs back. âSo, whatâs the connection to Alicia?â
âThree hundred and fifty people died in Umatilla County last year. Three hundred and thirty-five were natural causes. Only ten were killed by accident during the whole year. Thatâs an average year. In the last two months, twenty people have died in fires, four people have drowned, six peoplehave died in nonwitnessed, single-car accidents, and five hikers have vanished without a trace. Alicia is just the most recent one. If the hikers are all dead, then thatâs thirty-five people in an eight-week span.â
The numbers stunned him. He could see why the deaths were alarming, but not why they pointed to a connection between all of them. âWhy do you say that the shooting links it?â
âDo you know how many homicides we have a year?â
âI wouldnât think many.â
âIn a good year, none. In a bad year, one. So, statistically, thereâs a connection.â
He looked at her.
âListen to the details,â she urged him. âThe Colesâ house burned down on July thirdâeight dead. A fire in a trash can, seemingly started by a cigarette butt, spread to some fireworks, and the whole house went up. July nineteenthâthe propane grill sitting on a wooden front porch takes out the Watsonsâ house. Six dead and the family dog. August nineteenthâthe Burkesâ house. Six dead. Cause this time: an apparent toaster meltdown. Nothingâs the same, right?â
He nodded, not sure where she was leading.
âAll fires started after midnight.â She ticked the points off with her fingers. âAll family members were found dead in their beds or bedrooms. And the kicker, all family members had missed work, school, doctor appointments, et cetera, the day of the fire. No one had seen or talked to them the day they died.â
âAll twenty?â
âAll thirty-five people, actually, with maybe the exception of Alicia, who had been seen the morning she disappeared. And a large number of them hadnât been seen for two or three days prior to the fire: Kids were off school for summer, some of the homemaker mothers didnât have appointments to miss, or one of the adults wasnât employed.â
âWhy âmaybeâ for Alicia?â
âIf she was killed Monday, then she was seen the morning she died. If she died Tuesday or Wednesday, then no one saw her the day of her death.â
âWe have to assume sheâs still alive.â
Sam glanced at him in surprise. âDespite the shooting?â
âThere are reasons why my shooting might not be related to Aliciaâs disappearance,â Ukiah stalled, and then changed the subject. âDo you think these people are killed and put into their beds and the house burned down to cover the murders?â
Sam shrugged, sighing. âSo far the autopsies donât show any cause of death beyond smoke inhalation and massive burns. The firefighters say that some of the victims obviously woke up enough to try to escape but never made it to safety.â
She saw that he was finishing the third meal and indicated a nearby trash bin. âWant me to toss the papers?â
âSure, thanks.â
She strolled over to the trash bin, stuffed the bag in, and turned. She looked past the car, swore, and started for Ukiah at a trot. Even
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