Chapter Sixteen (Disarm)

Previously, on "Heat":
Ch. 15 (Overjoyed)
-The Rossi men had a boys' night out at Eugi's.
-Joseph's reign as McShuffleboard king climbed to 22 wins.
-Over beer, Nate shared the details of his date with Hannah,
Jake gushed over Jamie and Luke finally admitted that he's
 in love with Lyn.
-This did not come as a surprise to anyone but Luke.
-Luke revealed that he slept with Natalie, but
that chapter is finally closed.
-He admitted to being a witness to the horrid abuse that
Brad went through as a child.
-Luke opened up about what really happened to Lyn and why
he remained friends with Brad after all those years.
-Following Joseph's advice and his brothers' encouragement, Luke
finally mustered up the courage to tell Lyn how he feels.
-That same day, he drove to Appaloosa Plains.
-When he knocked on her door, she didn't answer.
-His intuition told him to go to Hangman's Tree.



Location: Bridgeport Community Fire Department
Date: Saturday, 11/05/2011
Time: 5:10 p.m.

Not too long after Luke left Eugi's, Joseph received a call a phone call from the surviving victim. He left his information with the hospital staff with hopes of hearing from the victim upon release, but he didn't expect it to happen so soon. Leaving Nate and Jake at Eugi's, Joseph rushed to the fire station to change and notify Marley of the news. "Thank you for coming here at such short notice, Alexander," Joseph smiles at the fair-haired, blue-eyed fellow before he turns to his colleague. "This is Marley, our lead investigator."

"Nice to meet you, Alexander." Marley gives him an appreciative nod.

"It's no problem at all. Nice to meet you too, sir. "

"How are you feeling, son?" Joseph asks as he discreetly studies their first witness. He looks to be around Nate's age, but his blonde locks could easily let him pass as Jake's brother, while emanating a calm demeanor present in Luke.  The subtle wrinkles on his gray slacks and  earthy colored dress shirt may be the last thing he wore before the fire. Joseph's heart breaks, knowing he won't have a home to come home to tonight.

"Drained. My lungs hurt." Alexander flashes a disarming smile at the firemen in his presence, hoping to ease their concerns, but his weary eyes carry an unspoken burden, bordering on anguish. It's something beyond the mental and physical aftermath of a traumatic event. It's a sort of emptiness, and Joseph can't quite figure out what it is. But he can sense it. "Other than that, just glad they didn't have to keep me too long."



"I'm glad to hear that." Joseph leans back in his chair in an attempt to focus on the meeting, and not the mysterious inner workings of the young man in front of him. "My son Jake is happy to know that you made it."

"I'm very grateful to him, sir. He saved my life."

"We need you to tell us everything that you remember before and during the fire," Joseph cuts to the heart of the matter, being fully aware that their time is limited. He knows Alexander should be at home recuperating. "Where were you? What did you see?" 

"Gosh, let me think..." Alexander pauses for a moment, his steel-blue eyes shifting, as if the memories are mere flies on the wall, just waiting for their moment to be of use. "I just came home from work so I went upstairs to change. This was around 3:15, 3:20 maybe. I usually don't get home til after five, but I left early. Then I heard a crash, like someone just threw a brick at the window downstairs. Then an explosion. I thought the stove blew up or something. By the time I tried to rush downstairs to see what happened, the living room was on fire and it got really smoky. So I went back upstairs. Then more bricks and more explosions. That's why I was trapped. I didn't have time to escape."

Marley gives Joe a fleeting glance, his eyes sparkling, knowing that this particular lead is closely aligned with what they have proposed---and discovered so far. "Did you see anybody outside?"

"Um...not while I was inside the house, no. I was too scared to go near a window. But when I finally got to the balcony, I did see a car take off."

"What did it look like?" Marley asks, quickly taking notes.

"It all happened so fast, it's hard to tell."

"Take your time, son." Joseph assures, having dealt with many victims in his life, knowing the importance of compassion and patience over pursuit of information. Even Luke fell apart in front of his own father, and he has been trained to handle difficult situations. "I know it's a lot to take in."



"It looked like two men," Alexander continues after searching his thoughts quietly, "The car looked like a black SUV...a Tofunda Wagon maybe? Probably 2009 or 2010."

"You didn't happen to catch the license plate number, did you?" Marley scans through his notes, periodically crossing out a few lines and adding new ones. "Or maybe a bumper sticker or flag? Anything that we can spot." 

"I remember the rear bumper having a white playboy bunny logo and the license plate said 'Boss'."

"Good. At least we'll know what to look for. Whoever owns that car must think highly of himself...and the ladies." Marley's sarcastic comment causes a ripple of chuckles in the room, bringing a lightheartedness into an otherwise serious meeting. Taking advantage of this moment, he continues, "We have reason to believe that the house you've living in is a target, along with two other properties. We didn't find any bricks, but pieces of a bottle bomb in your living room. This is what they threw at the windows and what may have caused the fire to accelerate so fast. The perimeter of the foundation and siding also had traces of gasoline."

Alexander's eyes widen in surprise. 

"Can you think of a reason why someone would want to burn your house like this?" Joseph asks.

"My brother has been getting these threats lately but he never called the cops. He wouldn't tell me anything."

The word "threat" prompts Marley to put his notebook down and scan Alexander's face in urgency. "Where's your brother? We need to speak to him." 

"He didn't make it..."

"Disarm you 
With a smile
And leave you like 
They left me here
To wither in denial
The bitterness of one 
Who's left alone
Ooh, the years burn"



Location: Pruit Realty, Inc.
Time: 5:35 p.m.

"What? What do you mean dead?" Laslo's eyebrows bunch up in exasperation as he stares at the clock, knowing he shouldn't have answered his cell phone. This is the Saturday that he reserved for the special woman in his life---despite the 70+ hours he puts in every week---just to maintain his six figure commission every month. With just a high school diploma under his belt, Laslo learned 20 years ago that real estate is about sales skills and knowing your competition---if you ever want to survive in this cutthroat field. The wholesome, honest approach wasn't enough to support his wife and daughter.

"We just found out today." 

"First, you tell me there were victims. Now you tell me one of them's dead??" He can feel his blood boil as it slowly travels to his brain, giving him a throbbing migraine at his temples. He just had a private meeting about this, reminding these two men that he didn't want victims involved. Goddamn it! I should have just done it myself! It's bad enough that an arson case has already been opened with Joseph Rossi closely following their trail. If this comes back to Laslo, it will jeopardize the firm again---and he could face multiple charges, including homicide. "Who is it? Is it Vincent?"

"We don't know yet. We didn't expect anyone to be home yesterday."

"I hired you because you're a professional. I expected you to have the knowledge and common sense to carry out my request. Did I make a mistake?"

"No, Mr. Pruit."

"I used to be
A little boy
So old in my shoes
And what I choose 
Is my voice"



"Were there any witnesses?" Laslo tries to retain a shred of hope. Even if evidence of arson is found, it's very difficult to pinpoint a suspect, let alone charge someone, if there are no witnesses. In situations where a physical property is a target of crime, suspects usually wait until there are no witnesses present to carry out their plan. 

"There was someone on the balcony when we left but I don't think he saw us."

"You think or you know? You better know." If there's one thing he has no patience for, it's lack of follow-through. He despises it in his employees, and he certainly despises it in people whom he's counting on to do the dirty work for him---especially when he pays them a significant amount of money. Wishy-washiness doesn't close deals, keep a business running, destroy the competition or garner respect (fear, preferably, in his case). 

"I'm pretty sure."

"I don't care how you do your job, just do it right," Laslo lowers his voice as soon as the door opens, especially when she enters. Shit. She's here. He forgot to tell her he was running late. "Make sure it doesn't come back to me."

"Yes, sir."

"I gotta go. You better find out if it's Vincent." Smiling and motioning for her to come closer, he whispers on the phone, "And take care of this mess."

"Yes, sir."



The sight of his girl's beautiful face, framed with rich mahogany hair, brightens his mood--- temporarily helping him forget larger problems at hand. Had it not been for Hannah, his greed should have landed him in prison years ago with the onslaught of embezzlement and tax evasion charges. This fear of losing Hannah forced him to invest in expensive lawyers, leading to the dismissal of all charges, and a clean trail for his firm.

Her presence seems to be the only thing that kept him from spiralling completely into a life of crime, especially after his wife left and took nearly a quarter of his income for child support. Smiling, he pulls her close and whispers, "Hello pumpkin."

"Hi, daddy!" Hannah's ocean blue eyes glisten in excitement as the faint aroma of cigarettes and Old Spice linger on her nose, a trait that she always associates with her father.

"Sorry, I was just finishing up a contract. Ready for dinner?"

"Yes, I'm starving."

"What's a boy 
Supposed to do?
The killer in me
Is the killer in you
My love"

*Copyright 2013 Lyn C.S.*
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"Disarm" by The Smashing Pumpkins
Video by: SmashingPumpkinsVEVO