Page 34 of Right in Front of You

I nodded and shot out the door, following my father and a few other firefighters. Every minute that passed counted. I jumped into my father’s old car and turned the ignition. The engine coughed like an old hack but didn’t disappoint. In the distance, smoke was rising up over the horizon, and a skin-crawling sensation passed through me.

The blaze from an old abandoned barn was shooting flames up to the sky. The firefighters on duty must have arrived moments before us because they were rolling out fire hoses.

“What can I do to help?” I asked my father.

“The grass is dry at the back. Start digging a trench. We don’t want the fire to spread.”

I grabbed a spare shovel and ran around the barn to the back. Heat radiated toward me as I pushed the spade into the ground. Flames rose from the rooftop just as the hose was turned on at the front. A couple of men joined me at the back, and we made quick progress. I moved closer to the woods. Sweat was pouring down my back, and by the time I reached the edge of the forest, the flames were beginning to lower as well. I set the spade aside and noticed a red canister thrown away in the bushes.

“Shit.”

The smell of gas filled the air. It didn’t take me long to realize that someone had lit the barn on purpose. I followed a trail of freshly used tissues and ventured further into the woods until I heard a shuffle.

“Hello? Is anyone there?” I called out, and received a small sniffle in return. “Molly?”

She pulled her hand underneath her nose. Her eyes were swollen, and she looked like she’d been crying. I ran up to her and took her into my arms. “Molly, what are you doing here? I thought you were going to the clinic. What’s the matter?”

I took her hands and lifted them to my mouth to plant a comforting kiss on her palms, but stopped short as an intense smell of fuel hit my nose.

Her mouth opened, but she didn’t utter a word.

“What is this?” I asked.

She bit her lip down, and kept it there.

“You did this?” I asked.

She kept silent.

“Answer me, Molly. Did you set the barn on fire?” This time, my voice echoed back.

“I… I…. No. I didn’t.” She shook her head.

I took a few steps to her left, where a lighter had been dropped. “What’s this?” I picked up the orange lighter and showed it to her. She shrugged her shoulders and whispered, “I don’t know.”

“I don’t believe you.”

But Molly simply pulled in another sniffle. Her eyes filled with more tears, but she forced them back. “They’ll match the fuel from your hands to that in the barn.” I added.

She blinked once more, pearl-sized drops rolling down her cheeks, and looked me in the eye with resentment. “Fine. I did it.”

“Why?”

She shut her eyes for a moment. Her face slowly transformed into someone else’s, someone I’d never seen before.

“For the same reason that I cut my wrists. I’m sick, okay? I do these crazy things from time to time. Why do you think it’s so hard for me to come back to town? I don’t have happy and colorful childhood memories, the way you do. Not the kind you do or anyone does. I can’t help it when I come back. All these emotions take over, and I didn’t take my medication today because I was in hurry to get to Nick’s funeral.”

“We all have problems, Molly. Wait – what medications?”

“I’m getting help, but it’s not always easy.” Her gaze skidded from one side to the other, which made me pause.

“What kind of help?” I asked.

“At the hospital. Are you going to tell them?”

Was she expecting me not to? Because I wasn’t sure that I could. This was wrong. All of it. Her motive was stupid for setting a damn barn on fire. Something inside me nagged that I had to tell Captain Clark the truth. I had to tell someone. But was this the truth?

“Don’t ask me to hide this. You know how I feel about arson.”

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