Passions of arson Matilde Oliveira PaSSiONS OF arson The scent of charred wood and metal filled the air, mingling with the damp earth beneath her boots. This wasn’t just another fire. Matilde Oliveira Ovi ebooks are available in Ovi/Ovi eBookshelves pages and they are for free. If somebody tries to sell you an Ovi book please contact us immediately. For details, contact: ovimagazine@yahoo.com No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior permission of the writer or the above publisher of this book An Ovi eBooks Publication 2025 Ovi eBookPublications - All material is copyright of the Ovi eBooks Publications & the writer C Passions of arson Passions of arson Matilde Oliveira Matilde Oliveira An Ovi eBooks Publication 2025 Ovi eBookPublications - All material is copyright of the Ovi eBooks Publications & the writer C Passions of arson T he rain had turned to a light drizzle, mist swirling in the amber glow of the streetlights as Olivia Hale stood at the edge of the smol- dering ruins. The scent of charred wood and metal filled the air, mingling with the damp earth beneath her boots. This wasn’t just another fire. This one had been deliberate, meticulous in its execution. Some- one was out there, setting these historic buildings ablaze with a pattern too intentional to ignore. Olivia ran a hand through her soaked hair, frus- tration simmering beneath her calm exterior. She’d been an arson investigator long enough to know that a serial arsonist rarely stayed in the shadows for long. The first fire had been a small one in a vacant ware- Matilde Oliveira house, easily dismissed as an accident. The second had been a high-end restaurant, then a library, and now this. The fire that had consumed the town’s oldest mu- seum wasn’t just a tragedy; it was a message. But the question was what did the firebug want? Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps behind her. She didn’t need to turn to know who it was. The scent of tobacco and leather, com- bined with the heaviness of his presence, told her that Ethan Maddox had arrived. The ex-firefighter had become a recluse after a tragic accident that had left him broken, both phys- ically and emotionally. He’d turned his back on the department, on the people he used to save, and now worked in isolation, avoiding the world as much as possible. But when Olivia had called him for help, he had agreed. “Did they get everything?” His voice was low, almost a growl, as he joined her at the edge of the wreckage, his gaze scanning the destruction. “Not everything,” Olivia replied, her voice steady despite the cold tightness in her chest. “But it’s clear. Passions of arson We’re dealing with someone who knows what they’re doing.” He nodded, his jaw clenched in thought. “Fire’s a beast,” he said softly, his eyes distant. “But it can be tamed. Whoever did this is playing with it like it’s nothing.” Olivia glanced up at him, noting the flicker of something darker in his eyes. Something about this case hit too close to home for him. He met her gaze, and for a moment, their eyes locked. There was something undeniable between them—an attraction that neither could deny, though they both fought it. She was professional, focused on her work. And he was... Ethan. But there was a pull, a spark whenever they were in the same room. As the last of the smoke faded into the night, she knew one thing for certain: this fire would bring them both closer to the truth. And, in the process, it might just ignite something neither of them was ready for. Matilde Oliveira I. The rain had been falling steadily for hours, soft and persistent, turning the streets of the city into a slick maze of lights and shadows. Inside her dimly lit office, Olivia Hale sat hunched over her desk, the flickering glow of her desk lamp the only source of light in the otherwise dark room. Her fingers were stained with ink, and the corners of her eyes were heavy from lack of sleep, but the case wouldn’t let her rest. Not yet. The fire, this last one, had been a monster, devour- ing the heart of one of the city’s most treasured his- toric buildings. As an arson investigator, Olivia had seen the aftermath of countless fires, but this one felt different. It wasn’t just destruction. It was deliberate, personal. The burned ruins whispered a story she couldn’t quite hear. Passions of arson She sifted through the evidence laid out before her: shards of glass, a few bent nails, fragments of scorched wood, and scorch marks on the stone. Each piece told a part of the story, but none of them seemed to connect. The pattern was off. Random. And yet, it wasn’t. There was something here she couldn’t see. Something elusive. The frustration gnawed at her. “Doesn’t make sense,” she muttered to herself, her brow furrowed in concentration as she flipped through the case file. The last of the smoke from the ruins still lingered in her mind, a reminder that there was a dangerous mind at work behind the flames. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to pull the pieces together, but her focus was shattered by the sound of the door creaking open behind her. She didn’t have to look to know who it was. She could feel him, the shift in the air, the weight of his presence before he even spoke. “Still not talking?” His voice was low, laced with a hint of humor that had always been a welcome relief during their time working together. But tonight, it sounded different. The humor was there, yes, but be- neath it, an undercurrent of something darker, more serious. Something she couldn’t quite place. Matilde Oliveira She glanced up, meeting his eyes as he stood in the doorway, filling it completely with his broad frame. Ethan Maddox. Ex-firefighter. A man who, like the flames he had fought for years, was impossible to tame. Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of him. Ethan was tall, rugged, with the kind of presence that drew people in without effort. His jaw was sharp, his ex- pression unreadable, but there was always a flicker of warmth in those dark eyes, a warmth that was reserved only for those closest to him. And though he wasn’t the type to show it, Olivia could sense that the job was wearing on him. The man who had once saved lives was now haunted by them. “There’s something off about all of this, Ethan.” Her voice was steady, but the words felt like lead in her mouth. “The fires... they’re connected, I know it, but the pattern is... random. And I can’t figure out why these specific buildings. Why history?” Ethan didn’t answer immediately. He crossed the room, his heavy boots making soft thuds against the floor, until he was standing at her side. His gaze fell to the papers in front of her, his eyes scanning the scattered details of the case file. She felt the heat of his presence even before he spoke. Passions of arson “You think it’s personal?” His voice was close now, lower than usual, and something about it sent a shiv- er down her spine. She nodded, tapping her pen against the edge of the desk, her mind racing. “It has to be. These fires are too targeted. Someone’s out to destroy pieces of our past. History, Ethan. They’re burning it down, piece by piece.” He exhaled slowly, his breath brushing against the back of her neck, sending a chill down her spine despite the warmth in the room. “Or maybe they’re sending a message.” The words hung in the air like smoke, thick and heavy. She turned toward him, her heartbeat quick- ening at how close he was. Her breath caught in her throat as she met his eyes—dark, unreadable, but with an intensity that made her pulse flutter. “What message?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper, fighting to keep it steady. Ethan didn’t step back. Instead, he moved even closer, his body a wall of heat, and for the briefest of moments, Olivia felt herself drawn toward him, against her will. The scent of smoke and leather clung Matilde Oliveira to him, familiar and oddly comforting. Her fingers twitched, wanting to touch, to feel more of him. But she fought the impulse. She had a job to do. “Maybe the message is about the people trying to protect the past,” he said softly, his words like a ca- ress, but there was something beneath them. Some- thing that felt... personal. Her heart thudded in her chest. She swallowed, but the lump in her throat wouldn’t go away. “You’re talking about me?” His gaze deepened, and the air between them seemed to crackle with electricity. His voice dropped even lower, barely a murmur. “Not just you.” The words were simple, but they hit her like a punch. She could feel his presence all around her now, his warmth sinking into her skin, and suddenly, the room felt too small. Too intimate. “I’m talking about both of us,” he added, his voice thick with something that she couldn’t quite name. The tension between them was unbearable, thick as smoke, and just as consuming. Olivia could feel the heat building, could feel the draw that neither of them could deny, even as they both tried to ignore Passions of arson it. She knew that feeling, that undeniable connection that stirred to life whenever they were near. But she had never let it break through. Not until now. Before she could respond, there was a sharp knock at the door. Olivia jumped, startled by the intrusion, and the moment between them shattered like glass. She turned, almost reluctantly, to face the door. A uniformed officer stood there, his eyes wide with urgency. “We’ve found something,” he said, his voice strained. “You need to see this.” Olivia exhaled sharply, pushing her chair back as she stood. The case had just taken a turn—she could feel it in the pit of her stomach. Without saying another word, she grabbed her jacket and moved toward the door. Ethan was al- ready on his feet, his body moving with the fluidi- ty of someone accustomed to high-stakes situations. She could feel his gaze on her, heavy, but when she looked up, his expression was unreadable, his jaw clenched. But something had changed. Something had shift- ed between them, and as she caught his eye, she saw it. A spark. A question. A promise. Matilde Oliveira She turned and walked out of the room, knowing that the fire between them, like the fires they were hunting, was far from over. The night stretched out before them, full of danger and passion, and neither of them was ready to stop it. Passions of arson II. The low hum of the city buzzed around Olivia Hale as she walked through the shadowed streets, her heels tapping against the wet pavement. She pulled her coat tighter against the chill in the air, her thoughts swirling, the investigation, the case ever present. It had been weeks since the first fire, and still, no closer to answers. Each burned building, each tragic ruin, was a puzzle missing pieces, and the only thing that kept her going was the feeling of something creeping just out of reach. The connection between her and Ethan Maddox had shifted in the last few days, changing from a working partnership into something... deeper. There was a weight to every glance, a crackle of electricity in every word exchanged. She could feel it when he was near her, the magnetic pull, the unspoken ten- sion. But neither of them had acted on it. Not yet. Matilde Oliveira They had a job to do. They had a killer to catch. But as Olivia stepped into the quiet café where they’d agreed to meet, the air felt thick. Her breath caught when she saw Ethan sitting by the window, his broad shoulders hunched over a cup of coffee, eyes distant, locked on the street outside. His dark hair was tousled from the day’s work, and there was an unmistakable weariness in his expression, as though the weight of everything was finally catching up to him. When he noticed her, a flash of something ....relief? passed over his face, but it was gone just as quickly. He gave her a small nod, gesturing to the chair across from him. “Busy day?” she asked, settling into the seat, care- ful not to let their knees touch under the table. But it was a near thing. “You could say that,” Ethan replied, his voice a gravelly whisper that made her pulse spike. “These fires ...they’re not just fires, Olivia. They’re... person- al.” His gaze flickered to her, then quickly back to the window, as though looking at the streets outside could somehow shield him from the truth. Passions of arson “How do you mean?” she asked, her fingers curling around the edge of her coffee cup, the warmth of it grounding her, but her eyes never leaving his. Ethan’s jaw clenched, the muscles in his neck tight. “Every fire, every building... it’s like it’s taking a piece of me with it. I used to save these places, Olivia. I used to be the one running into the smoke, putting out the flames. Now, I’m watching it all burn.” There was a vulnerability in his words, something raw, and it reached her more than she expected. She leaned forward, meeting his eyes, and in that mo- ment, she could see the struggle behind them, years of battling fires, but also years of battling himself. Ethan had always been the quiet, steady force beside her. Strong, reliable, but never allowing anyone to get too close. But this... this was different. She could see the cracks. “You’re not alone in this, Ethan,” she said softly, the weight of her words pressing down on them both. “I’m right here, you don’t have to carry it all on your own.” The words hung in the air between them like a Matilde Oliveira promise, and for the first time in weeks, Ethan didn’t pull away. Instead, he reached across the table, his large, calloused hand sliding over hers in an unex- pected but welcome gesture. His skin was warm, a contrast to the cold of the night outside, and Olivia’s breath caught at the simple contact. “I don’t want to be alone,” he murmured, his voice thick with emotion. “Not with this. Not with you.” The room seemed to shrink, the noise of the café fading into the background as their eyes locked. The connection that had been building between them over the past few weeks suddenly felt like an unde- niable force. Olivia could feel it in the depths of her soul, the pull of something more than just partner- ship. It was a fierce, undeniable current of need and understanding. Before she could respond, before she could even process the sudden rush of desire that flooded her veins, her phone rang, slicing through the moment like a shard of ice. Olivia’s heart skipped a beat as she pulled the phone from her pocket, the screen lighting up with an un- known number. She glanced at Ethan, his hand still resting on hers, his eyes never leaving her face. Passions of arson “Looks like we’ve got a lead,” she said, her voice tinged with reluctance. Ethan’s hand dropped from hers, but his eyes lin- gered on her for a heartbeat longer than necessary. “Let’s go.” They stood at the same time, moving in sync, the tension between them still crackling in the air. As they exited the café, the cool night air hit them like a gust of wind, but neither of them was bothered by it. They were both consumed with the weight of the case, and with the weight of what had passed be- tween them. The drive to the scene was quiet, the only sound the hum of the car’s engine as Ethan navigated the familiar streets with practiced ease. Olivia’s thoughts were scattered, torn between the case and the heat that had flared to life between them just moments ago. The need to catch the person behind the fires was still her priority, but the closer they got to the site, the more the fire inside her grew, uncontrollable, impossible to ignore. They arrived at the scene, a building that had once been an architectural masterpiece but now sat in ru- ins, charred and broken. The smell of smoke still lin- Matilde Oliveira gered in the air, mixing with the scent of wet earth and ash. Olivia could feel the tension in the air, thick as the smoke that had once consumed this place. “Anything new?” Ethan asked, his voice low, his eyes scanning the area. “Not much,” one of the officers replied. “But we found something odd. It’s like the fire was started from the inside, not the outside.” Olivia’s heart skipped a beat. “Inside?” “Yeah,” the officer said, handing her a charred piece of paper, barely recognizable. But it was enough. Enough to know that the pattern was shifting again. Ethan’s gaze flickered to Olivia, and without a word, they both moved toward the building, their steps synchronized, the tension between them still palpable. The door was still warm to the touch, a faint em- ber still smoldering beneath the ash. Olivia felt Ethan close behind her, his presence grounding her, but it also made her acutely aware of the proximity between them, how close they were. How close she wanted them to be.