All I could do was stand there and watch it burn. His house and every last thing he owned was engulfed in flames. That piece of shit deserved it. I did everything I could to bring out the good in him and kill the monster, but I could have gotten myself killed. I’m still not sure how I’m not dead already. I almost died a few times.

The longer I stood there the more anxious I was. His house was burning and I wanted him to burn with the damn thing. I didn’t see him run out of a door or jump out of a window. Hell, there was no way of knowing at this point.

The neighbors crowded in the less-than-suburban street. Most of them were in their pajamas, others still in the clothes they wore during the day. Everyone was in shock asking more questions than necessary. I heard reverberating screams of “Call 911!”. The responders were already on their way though.

The neighbors to the right and left knew what kind of man Cole was. They could hear us screaming at each other when we got into it, but they would pretend to mind their business anyway. The neighbor to the left is Cole’s single best friend Dylan. He lives life like he was still in his mid-twenties. The house to the right is occupied by an older married couple, Jan and Gus. They kept to themselves mostly.

I could hear sirens roaring as all the emergency responders approached. Three cop cars threaded their way through the crowd of people and other emergency vehicles. They parked and stepped out in unison—it was oddly theatrical.

As I stood there growing more anxious I heard a deep voice call out my name. It was Officer Barry. He towered over me. We had become well acquainted throughout whatever I had with Cole. At some point I began to feel drawn to him, he was safe.

“Veda?!”

I turned with my head tilted toward the ground. I couldn’t look him in the face because be both knew what happened.

“What happened Veda?”

The firemen were hooking up their water supply and preparing the hose while the other two officers were controlling the crowd. They heard Barry call me out by name and began to stare in confusion. Then the murmurs and the side eyes towards me started.

“Like you don’t already know Barry. . .”

I wasn’t sure why he was pretending that he didn’t know exactly what happened. Barry was the one who told me to do it. He said that was the only way I would ever be free of Cole. No matter how many times I left, he could still find me. I just pray he was still in there.

“I don’t know Veda, so why don’t you tell me!”

I just stood there in a daze. That asshole ‘Officer Barry’ set me up. Shit. . .

“I knew all along that this is how it would end.”