Chapter 7 - The Arsonist's Threat
I stare at the photo of Marcus holding a red gasoline canister in my living room. My house contains every memory, every heirloom, and all the cash I had saved for Lily's future. "He's going to destroy everything," I whisper, tears finally spilling down my cheeks. Grandpa looks at the screen and smiles a cold, terrifying smile. "Let him burn it," he says calmly. I look at him like he has lost his mind. "That house is heavily insured, and I own the policy," Grandpa explains. He taps the screen of his tablet, bringing up the security cameras again. "But Marcus doesn't know that the ventilation system is equipped with fire-suppressant halon gas." We watch the live feed as Marcus strikes a match and tosses it onto the gasoline-soaked rug. The flames erupt instantly, climbing toward the ceiling. But before the fire can spread, the ceiling vents blast a thick, white chemical cloud into the room. The fire is extinguished in less than three seconds. Marcus begins to cough violently, choking on the fire-retardant gas. My mother screams as the chemical foam ruins her expensive designer clothes. They scramble toward the front door, desperate to escape the suffocating cloud. But the smart locks Grandpa engaged are still holding strong. They are trapped inside a toxic, foamy nightmare of their own making. Then, the live feed suddenly cuts to black. A completely unknown voice echoes through my phone's speaker. "Did you really think it would be this easy, Meredith?"
