Narrative

//It's amazing, how one tiny object can destroy so much//, James thought as he sat on the charred porch of what remained of his house. //At least everyone got out unhurt.// By this, James meant his parents. He hadn't seen them much recently. They had been at the insurance agency a lot. The memory of the dreadful event burned in his mind as if it happened yesterday. On March 9, only a week ago, everything was fine. His family had more than enough money due to their successful growing season, James had plenty of friends at his small local high school, and his grades were stellar with the highest honors. However, his family's business competitor had to ruin everything. The manager at Lenny's Local Apple Farm, Lenny Goodman was a greedy and cranky old white man with no hair, wrinkly skin, a constant scowl on his face, and a slight limp in his walk. James knew Lenny had lit the match that had burned everything James had grown to love over the years, even though there was no evidence in support of James' theory. But the cops and detectives weren't there that night. They didn't hear Lenny's '72 Mustang speed away from his house when he woke to the smell of smoke in his room. They didn't run around the house desperately looking for his dog and parents. They didn't shed tears of despair as his house burned. They didn't... “Hey, James.” James's best friend Brad said with a sympathetic look on his face. “I just wanted to check in, see if you wanted to hang later this week.” “Yea, that would be great, thanks.” James replied in a dull tone. “Wait, your dad is a cop, right?” “Yup, what about him...?” Brad asked. James motioned him closer and whispered in his ear. “I think old man Lenny guy at his apple farm burned my house and farm. Actually, I'm positive. I heard him drive away, and I think that if your dad can find some sort of evidence, I could prove he started the fire.” “I'll ask him, but no promises. He's been really busy lately.” Brad replied. “Thanks so much. So you wanna get some pizza or something tomorrow?” James asked. “Definitely. Just come to my house; I'll pay for both of us. See you Friday.” Brad said and walked away, not waiting for any kind of protest from James.

The next day, James found himself looking for anything that remained intact from the fire. After finding a few old toys he used to play with, James got bored and decided to pay a visit to old man Lenny's farm. It took him 10 minutes by bike to reach the small, worn-down house that belonged to Lenny. James wasn't sure what to do when he got there, but he didn't see a car in the driveway so he decided to snoop around. As he entered through the open window, he faintly smelled smoke lingering in the house. Did old man Lenny smoke? James had never seen him smoke, but it was possible. He decided to check the laundry room to see if it was the clothes giving off the smell. As he strode into the laundry room the smell became stronger, and James noticed a pair of dirty clothes on the ground. He gave the shirt a good whiff and gagged, clumsily bumping a cabinet and knocking over a container of laundry detergent. That smell was definitely not from cigarettes, it had to be from the fire. In addition, the shirt was singed right below the collar. This was the kind of evidence James needed. He took the shirt and prepared to climb out the window, when he heard the distinct sound of Lenny's '72 Mustang pulling into the driveway. //Of course, its just my luck that now he comes home,// James thought. He darted around the house in search of a hiding spot, the smoky shirt still in his hand. He quickly found a closet down the hall from the laundry room and jumped in. A few seconds later old man Lenny opened the front door and strode in the house with groceries in his hand. He went to the kitchen to put the groceries down, then went straight to the laundry room. James heard Lenny's scowl from across the hall. “What a mess. I pay those cleaning ladies way too much.” Lenny said. James breathed a sigh of relief. The old man didn't know he was here. “Wait a second...where is my shirt?” James looked down and swore at his own stupidity, the smoky T-shirt still in his hand. “Someone has been here.” Lenny continued. He rushed out of the laundry room and down the hall, right past where James was hiding. James didn't know what Lenny was doing, but he didn't plan to stay around and find out. He opened the closet and crept down the hallway, slowly going for the window he entered through. Suddenly, James heard a thump and a strange click, like a shotgun being loaded. //Screw it, I am out of here!// James thought, and make a break for the window. Clearly old man Lenny heard him, because he heard a cry and footsteps behind him. James jumped out the window without a second thought, got his bike, and pedaled away as fast as he could, not looking back.

James pedaled nearly eight miles away from the domain of old man Lenny to the police department. By the time James got there he was exhausted, and was greeted by the police chief himself. “Hey there, James. You look like you just saw a ghost. Are you alright?” The chief asked. “I...just...ran...and...jumped...and got out...wait....repeat the question....please?” James panted. “Are you alright?” The chief repeated, slightly confused. With slightly more breath, James replied. “Yes, for now. But I have something really important, and you need to hear me out and not judge.” Not waiting for a response, James continued, “Ok, so on the night of the fire, when the fire alarm started to go off, I woke up and heard a car drive away. This car sounded very similar to old man Lenny's Mustang, so today I went to his house and I smelled some smoke so I checked some of the rooms, including the laundry room, and found this.” James held up the shirt. “I know he wears this shirt a lot and it smells like smoke and is singed right below the collar. He had to have started the fire. See, smell the shirt and you'll see.” The police chief smelled the shirt and frowned. “You're right, it does smell like smoke. We'll do a proper investigation on this, but it will take a while. In the meantime, don't get into any trouble.” The chief said. James breathed a sigh of relief. They actually believed him! “Wait a minute.” The chief continued with a troubled look on his face. “You said you went to his house and took this shirt. Correct?” James could see where this was headed. “Well yes, but only because I knew it was him! I-” But the chief didn't want to hear it. He cut him off by saying, “James, you stole this shirt, and broke into Lenny's house. That's two crimes in itself, and possibly a few others that we don't know about. I know your situation is tough. I get it. But you're going to have to stay here overnight. I'll let you decide if you want to tell your parents or not. You can call them, and then come with me.” James's heart sunk. He picked up the phone, and called his dad's number. The call went to voicemail, so he decided to leave a message. “Hey Dad. I'm sleeping over at Brad's house tonight. I have my bike here, so you don't need to worry about picking me up. Have a good night. Love you, Dad.” He hung up the phone and followed the chief. He went down a hallway and eventually into an open white room with a bed, toilet, and table. Not what he expected, but it would do. “We can play some cards if you want until you go to bed, since we're the only ones here.” The chief kindly offered. “Sure, that would be great.” James replied. They played a multitude of card games over the course of a few hours, and eventually the chief left him to sleep.

James had the same dream as every other night in that week. A horrible fire unfolding in his mind, over and over again. James heard a car loudly speeding away, and the floor fell beneath him. He didn't feel the pain of the fall, but he couldn't call out for help. He felt powerless, and mute. The dream always ended the same way. As he lay there, unable move or call out, a large beam would always fall and wake him violently.

James woke up sweaty and screaming. The police chief fed him a breakfast sandwich and let him leave. James was walking home when he realized he hadn't talked to his dad in a while. //Maybe I should tell him what's going and he could help me,// James thought. His dad was most likely in his office, one of the only rooms in their house that hadn't been destroyed. Even the apple fields were destroyed, leaving the family business crippled.

When James got home, he went into his dad's office and found him looking through old family photos, some of which slightly burned on the edges. When James entered, his dad slowly raised his gaze and smiled sadly. James cleared his throat and spoke. “Hey dad, can I ask you a question?” James asked. “Sure, son. What is it?” James's dad replied. “Do you think old man Lenny started the fire that burned down our house and the farm?” James questioned. “Well, what would make you think that?” James's dad countered. “It's kind of a long story...” James replied. “I have plenty of time. Have a seat, James.” James's dad said, and James took a seat. “Ok, so on the night of the fire, I woke up just before the alarm went off and heard Lenny's Mustang speeding away. It could've been a coincidence, but I didn't think so. So yesterday I went to his house and looked around because I was positive it was him. I checked the laundry room. There was one pair of dirty clothes on the ground, so I picked the shirt up, smelled it, and almost threw up. That was how bad and smoky the smell was. I took the shirt to the police chief, and I told him everything and gave him the shirt. He believed me, but apparently I committed a few crimes by going into his house and taking the shirt. So, last night, I slept at the police station, not Brad's house. But the good thing is he said he was going to start an investigation. I'm sorry I lied about the sleepover.” James explained. “I'm a little disappointed you lied about the sleepover, but other than that I'm proud of you. You stood for what you believed and took action. As a matter of fact, we should go talk to Lenny and see if he has any clue what's going on.” James's dad stated confidently. Without waiting for a reply, James's dad put his coat and shoes on and strode out the door. James followed without a word the whole way. The thing about his dad was that he was a do-it-yourself kind of guy, and was very headstrong. Once his mind was set on something, he wasn't going to change his mind.

They arrived at Lenny's house nearly 20 minutes later. James's dad knocked on the door, and old man Lenny opened the door moments later. “Come in, have a seat...” Lenny said, even though he clearly didn't want them to. “Would you like a drink, Mr. Landel?” Lenny asked James's dad. “No, thank you.” James's dad answered. Lenny went into the kitchen and took a beer out of the fridge. When he returned, James's dad went straight to the point. “Ok, //Lenny//, we have reason to believe that you started the fire that burned down our house and farm because you wanted to be the most successful apple business. What have you got to say about that?” “What I have to say probably won't surprise you, since you already guessed it. So what, I wanted to be number 1. I didn't want anybody to get hurt, but since you now know my secret, I'm afraid there is no other option.” Lenny said coldly. James heard a click like the one he had heard yesterday. He had a gun. He did the first thing that came to mind. “Dad, get down! He's got a gun!” James shouted, but it was too late. The gun was drawn in a split second, and before James could blink Lenny aimed the gun and shot his dad. “NO!” James screamed, and in another split second Lenny turned and shot James, hitting his arm. James went into a raging frenzy, lunged at Lenny, and kicked his hand. The gun skittered away. When Lenny went for it, James jumped on Lenny's back and flipped him over. He put all his effort into every punch, showering blows onto the mans' face over and over again. He hit Lenny until his hand was bloody and throbbing. He could only imagine what Lenny would feel like when he woke up. That is, if he ever woke up. Now there were two unconscious bodies on the floor. Wait, his dad! He ran over to his dads' body and checked for a pulse. It was faint, but there. James felt lightheaded. He took his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed 911. He heard the operator talking, but couldn't make out the words. He tried to talk, but only a moan came out. He dropped the phone, and everything faded out.

James woke in the hospital, with a blurry face looming before him. The nurse told him he'd been out for a day, and it seemed correct because of the light shining through the window of his room. His dad was in the room next to his. His gun shot had left him in critical condition, piercing nothing vital but almost a major artery. The doctors said he was lucky to be alive. On the second day of his hospital experience, the police chief decided to pay him a visit. Clearly he was relieved to see that James was okay. “Hey James, I was just stopping by to see how you were doing. If it means anything to you, you beat the crap out of Lenny but he was well enough to make an immediate court date yesterday. He has been charged with many criminal offenses, including arson, attempted murder, and illegal possession of a firearm. Your farm and house will be rebuilt with Lenny's money, and your life can return to normal. I wanted to tell you that what you and your dad did was completely idiotic but it took balls, so I have a lot of respect for you now. And by the way, I believed you the whole time.” The police chief said. James was so tired that he just nodded and after the police chief left he thought about his words. Maybe the chief was right, life would return to normal. The same house, same farm, same school, same friends. James really hoped that statement was true.