Sara had cleared her half of the basement and the first 3 floors and was
making her way onto the fourth floor. Not really knowing which apartments
were occupied and which ones were not made it harder to determine if
something suspicious was going on behind a closed door. Then again, that
was why she went into homicide; her dad always told her she was good at
solving problems and puzzles.
As she approached the end of the hall, she heard voices. She quietly crept over to a door that was slightly ajar. The voices were coming from inside the apartment.
"Give it here, man."
"Cut it out. You're gonna make me drop it."
"Then let me have a hit. You've already smoked half of it."
Wonderful, Sara thought. She was looking for an arsonist and she stumbled upon a couple of kids sneaking a joint. As she was getting ready to move on, the Witchblade hissed on her wrist. She suddenly got a vision of the boys fighting over the joint.
In their struggle, the opened containers of beer spill over. The joint is accidentally dropped right into the puddle of alcohol, immediately starting a blaze. In a panic, the boys run out the door, leaving the fire to spread.
************************
Ian cautiously went over every inch of the portion of the basement that he agreed to search. He, too, wanted this day to finally come to an end. The only way to do that was to find the person responsible for setting the building on fire. He was not about to take the chance of passing over the person and having to repeat the day yet again.
Halfway into the basement, Ian saw movement. He quietly crept closer so as not to scare away whoever it was.
As he neared closer, Ian heard the figure angrily mumble to himself as he tried to get his lighter to work.
"I'm not man enough, am I? That punk kid is better in bed than I am? I could never make you happy? We'll see about that, sweetheart."
**************************
Once the vision left her, Sara processed what had been happening on the other side of the door all this time. She didn't need to arrest the kids, but she was going to have to stop them from causing their accidental fire starting.
Pulling out her badge, Sara knocked on the door and walked in. She noticed what appeared to be fresh, tiny scratches on the old doorknob.
Startled, the teens looked up to see Sara walk in. Although they tried to hide it by whispering, Sara could tell they both had different ideas on how to handle the intrusion.
"Busted, Johnny! Let's g--"
"Quiet, Hank. Let me handle this."
Johnny stood up and slowly headed over to Sara. Now on his feet, Sara could tell he was tall for his age. At least 6 feet, if not taller. He was definitely taller than Sara that was for sure. He had super-short, brown hair, the start of a goatee, and tattoos covering both his arms. Aside from the expected jeans and sneakers of a teenager, he sported a black T-shirt advertising some band called Godsmack.
His friend, Hank, was still sitting on the floor. He was also wearing jeans and sneakers, but his shirt displayed another band. This one was called Disturbed. 'Where do these bands come up with their names, anyway?' Sara thought to herself. Sara guessed, based on when the pair was sitting together on the floor, that Hank, when standing, was slightly shorted than his friend. He had almost jet-black hair pulled back in a ponytail and a row of small hoops up the side of his left ear lobe.
Sara's attention was diverted back to Johnny when he asked, "What can I help you with, sweets?"
Who did he think he was kidding? Sara asked him, although she knew the answer by the looks of the empty apartment, "Do you, ah, live here, sir?"
"Ah, yeah, I do. Just haven't gotten my stuff moved in yet."
"Can I see some ID then?" Sara asked as she flashed her badge to him.
Johnny's demeanor quickly grew somber, yet he was not about to admit the entire truth. "I, ah, lost it."
This guy was a real piece of work, Sara thought. "You lost it," she repeated.
"Yeah. Got in a little scuffle with the old lady the other day and she tossed it out the car window."
Nodding to the other guy, Sara asked, "What about your friend? Did his 'old lady' lose his on him, too?"
Turning around briefly to look at Hank, Johnny turned back to Sara and answered, "Nah. He just hasn't gotten a license yet. Bit of a procrastinator and all."
"Uh huh. I see. So, let me get this straight. You live here, but don't have your stuff here yet, and your girlfriend lost your driver's license on you?"
"Yup, that about covers it."
"Do you at least have the key to 'your' apartment here? I'm sure if you do live here you'd have the key with you in order to get in." Sara almost couldn't wait to hear the explanation Johnny would give her about that.
"Yeah, sure, the key to the place…" Johnny searched his pockets for the supposed key. He turned to Hank and asked, "What'd you do with the key, man?"
Hank, not as good a liar as his friend, replied, "Me, I thought you had it?"
Getting fed up with the horse and pony show in front of her, Sara told the pair, "Look, you know and I know that you really don't live here, just like you and I both know that is not a cigarette the two of you are sharing. Now, you can either get outta here and not let me see your faces around here again, or, you can come down with me to the station for possession."
Realizing they were being given a chance to get away, Hank stood up, walked over to Johnny, and said close to his ear, "I think we should just get outta here while she's lettin' us, man."
Nodding his agreement, Johnny looked to Sara and said, "Thank you, officer. Don't worry, you won't see us in this building again."
Once they were gone, Sara made her way back to Nottingham to let him know she found the cause and took care of it.
***************************
Ian had to act fast. It would not be long before the man in front of him succeeded in getting his lighter to work.
Ian also knew this was not as most of the assignments Mr. Irons sent him on. Sara would not hesitate to place him under arrest if he took, what she would call, drastic measures.
Sara came up behind Nottingham and looked over in the direction of his gaze. When she realized what Nottingham was starting at, she leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Well? What are you waiting for, Nottingham? An engraved invitation?" In all the time she had known the freak, he usually took care of a problem right away. Had he been hiding out of sight of the suspect this entire time?
In a flash, Ian turned around, slightly startled at the sudden noise in his ear. Once he realized it was only Sara, he quietly explained, "I was merely devising my strategy with you in mind. It would be difficult to explain to your fellow officers how you were able to use excessive force on a man his size."
Sara briefly mulled over his reply before whispering back, "OK, you gotta point there. But I'm here now so why don't I just go over there and arrest him and you can be my back-up plan?"
Sara slowly walked over to the man crouched before a pile of newspapers in various crumpled forms. He was trying to light one in his hand, but, fortunately for Sara and Nottingham, his lighter was giving him problems.
Standing directly behind the would-be arsonist, Sara cleared her throat and informed him, "Excuse me, sir, if you're trying to do what I think you're trying to do then…you're under arrest."
It was then that the man's lighter decided to work, setting fire to the crumpled newspaper in his hand. Startled by Sara's intrusion, the man did not release it soon enough. His shirtsleeve quickly caught on fire. Screaming in pain, the man dropped the burning paper, right onto the pile at his feet. Within seconds, a small blaze formed.
Sara acted on reflex. Reaching a hand in Nottingham's direction, she ordered, "Quick, Nottingham, your coat!"
Nottingham immediately understood and pulled off his overcoat. He handed it to Sara as he made his way to the small fire on the floor and stomped it out with his boots. Sara wrapped Nottingham's overcoat around the victim and extinguished the flames on his arm.
Once the fires were put out, the wanna-be arsonist angrily glared up at Sara, "You bitch! You nearly killed me!" Stunned for a moment at the accusation, Sara mentally recovered and retorted, "Are you kidding? I just saved your lousy ass, pal."
Still not happy with the situation, the man opened his mouth to further insult Sara. Not in the mood to hear anymore, Sara declared, "Oh, I don't have time for this crap," leaned over, and punched him hard enough to knock him unconscious.
"I am proud of the both of you."
Sara and Nottingham both looked to see where the voice came from. They instantly found it. A man with scraggly blond hair and a few wrinkles stood before them.
As she approached the end of the hall, she heard voices. She quietly crept over to a door that was slightly ajar. The voices were coming from inside the apartment.
"Give it here, man."
"Cut it out. You're gonna make me drop it."
"Then let me have a hit. You've already smoked half of it."
Wonderful, Sara thought. She was looking for an arsonist and she stumbled upon a couple of kids sneaking a joint. As she was getting ready to move on, the Witchblade hissed on her wrist. She suddenly got a vision of the boys fighting over the joint.
In their struggle, the opened containers of beer spill over. The joint is accidentally dropped right into the puddle of alcohol, immediately starting a blaze. In a panic, the boys run out the door, leaving the fire to spread.
************************
Ian cautiously went over every inch of the portion of the basement that he agreed to search. He, too, wanted this day to finally come to an end. The only way to do that was to find the person responsible for setting the building on fire. He was not about to take the chance of passing over the person and having to repeat the day yet again.
Halfway into the basement, Ian saw movement. He quietly crept closer so as not to scare away whoever it was.
As he neared closer, Ian heard the figure angrily mumble to himself as he tried to get his lighter to work.
"I'm not man enough, am I? That punk kid is better in bed than I am? I could never make you happy? We'll see about that, sweetheart."
**************************
Once the vision left her, Sara processed what had been happening on the other side of the door all this time. She didn't need to arrest the kids, but she was going to have to stop them from causing their accidental fire starting.
Pulling out her badge, Sara knocked on the door and walked in. She noticed what appeared to be fresh, tiny scratches on the old doorknob.
Startled, the teens looked up to see Sara walk in. Although they tried to hide it by whispering, Sara could tell they both had different ideas on how to handle the intrusion.
"Busted, Johnny! Let's g--"
"Quiet, Hank. Let me handle this."
Johnny stood up and slowly headed over to Sara. Now on his feet, Sara could tell he was tall for his age. At least 6 feet, if not taller. He was definitely taller than Sara that was for sure. He had super-short, brown hair, the start of a goatee, and tattoos covering both his arms. Aside from the expected jeans and sneakers of a teenager, he sported a black T-shirt advertising some band called Godsmack.
His friend, Hank, was still sitting on the floor. He was also wearing jeans and sneakers, but his shirt displayed another band. This one was called Disturbed. 'Where do these bands come up with their names, anyway?' Sara thought to herself. Sara guessed, based on when the pair was sitting together on the floor, that Hank, when standing, was slightly shorted than his friend. He had almost jet-black hair pulled back in a ponytail and a row of small hoops up the side of his left ear lobe.
Sara's attention was diverted back to Johnny when he asked, "What can I help you with, sweets?"
Who did he think he was kidding? Sara asked him, although she knew the answer by the looks of the empty apartment, "Do you, ah, live here, sir?"
"Ah, yeah, I do. Just haven't gotten my stuff moved in yet."
"Can I see some ID then?" Sara asked as she flashed her badge to him.
Johnny's demeanor quickly grew somber, yet he was not about to admit the entire truth. "I, ah, lost it."
This guy was a real piece of work, Sara thought. "You lost it," she repeated.
"Yeah. Got in a little scuffle with the old lady the other day and she tossed it out the car window."
Nodding to the other guy, Sara asked, "What about your friend? Did his 'old lady' lose his on him, too?"
Turning around briefly to look at Hank, Johnny turned back to Sara and answered, "Nah. He just hasn't gotten a license yet. Bit of a procrastinator and all."
"Uh huh. I see. So, let me get this straight. You live here, but don't have your stuff here yet, and your girlfriend lost your driver's license on you?"
"Yup, that about covers it."
"Do you at least have the key to 'your' apartment here? I'm sure if you do live here you'd have the key with you in order to get in." Sara almost couldn't wait to hear the explanation Johnny would give her about that.
"Yeah, sure, the key to the place…" Johnny searched his pockets for the supposed key. He turned to Hank and asked, "What'd you do with the key, man?"
Hank, not as good a liar as his friend, replied, "Me, I thought you had it?"
Getting fed up with the horse and pony show in front of her, Sara told the pair, "Look, you know and I know that you really don't live here, just like you and I both know that is not a cigarette the two of you are sharing. Now, you can either get outta here and not let me see your faces around here again, or, you can come down with me to the station for possession."
Realizing they were being given a chance to get away, Hank stood up, walked over to Johnny, and said close to his ear, "I think we should just get outta here while she's lettin' us, man."
Nodding his agreement, Johnny looked to Sara and said, "Thank you, officer. Don't worry, you won't see us in this building again."
Once they were gone, Sara made her way back to Nottingham to let him know she found the cause and took care of it.
***************************
Ian had to act fast. It would not be long before the man in front of him succeeded in getting his lighter to work.
Ian also knew this was not as most of the assignments Mr. Irons sent him on. Sara would not hesitate to place him under arrest if he took, what she would call, drastic measures.
Sara came up behind Nottingham and looked over in the direction of his gaze. When she realized what Nottingham was starting at, she leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Well? What are you waiting for, Nottingham? An engraved invitation?" In all the time she had known the freak, he usually took care of a problem right away. Had he been hiding out of sight of the suspect this entire time?
In a flash, Ian turned around, slightly startled at the sudden noise in his ear. Once he realized it was only Sara, he quietly explained, "I was merely devising my strategy with you in mind. It would be difficult to explain to your fellow officers how you were able to use excessive force on a man his size."
Sara briefly mulled over his reply before whispering back, "OK, you gotta point there. But I'm here now so why don't I just go over there and arrest him and you can be my back-up plan?"
Sara slowly walked over to the man crouched before a pile of newspapers in various crumpled forms. He was trying to light one in his hand, but, fortunately for Sara and Nottingham, his lighter was giving him problems.
Standing directly behind the would-be arsonist, Sara cleared her throat and informed him, "Excuse me, sir, if you're trying to do what I think you're trying to do then…you're under arrest."
It was then that the man's lighter decided to work, setting fire to the crumpled newspaper in his hand. Startled by Sara's intrusion, the man did not release it soon enough. His shirtsleeve quickly caught on fire. Screaming in pain, the man dropped the burning paper, right onto the pile at his feet. Within seconds, a small blaze formed.
Sara acted on reflex. Reaching a hand in Nottingham's direction, she ordered, "Quick, Nottingham, your coat!"
Nottingham immediately understood and pulled off his overcoat. He handed it to Sara as he made his way to the small fire on the floor and stomped it out with his boots. Sara wrapped Nottingham's overcoat around the victim and extinguished the flames on his arm.
Once the fires were put out, the wanna-be arsonist angrily glared up at Sara, "You bitch! You nearly killed me!" Stunned for a moment at the accusation, Sara mentally recovered and retorted, "Are you kidding? I just saved your lousy ass, pal."
Still not happy with the situation, the man opened his mouth to further insult Sara. Not in the mood to hear anymore, Sara declared, "Oh, I don't have time for this crap," leaned over, and punched him hard enough to knock him unconscious.
"I am proud of the both of you."
Sara and Nottingham both looked to see where the voice came from. They instantly found it. A man with scraggly blond hair and a few wrinkles stood before them.