Chapter 26_ You Lie

He followed the officers to the police car. Or to be plain, he wheeled himself to follow the officers to the police car. He had to be helped into his car while his wheelchair ended up in the booth.

In about a few minutes, they were in the precinct and he was surprised when he was lead to the sheriff's office straight.

Was Sheriff Blair calling him up for the investigation so soon after telling him earlier that it would be about the following week. That lying son of a bitch! He couldn't help but curse under his breath. Swearing was the only weapon he had and he knew how to use it well too.

A knock, then a salute followed and afterwards, the officer herded him inside.

His mouth was agape and his hold on the handle of his wheelchair tightened. Was there some kind of banquet going on in the Sheriff's office for the other half of burnt haven's owner which he had witnessed went to Old Mrs. John's building plus some people he recognized should be a part of Old Mrs. John' family were present in the Sheriff's office. The burnt haven owners occupying the seats while Old Mrs. John's family stood.

Those dominant bastards. He could already picture them sitting even before the Sheriff offered. What mattered and bothered him was that all eyes were settled upon him and as he wheeled himself further in the most slowest pace he could fathom, he was already putting the pieces together.

He wasn't called here regarding his accident. These two families were in a brawl and the burnt haven owners had probably put him forward as a witness.

He would soon find out, " Sheriff Blair" he forced a smile, ignoring the other figures in the office.

" LSR boy, sorry for calling you out so late" Sheriff Blair had his ugly smile that always made LSR wondered if he would swallow his hair when his overgrown mustache finally entered it.

" You see these folks, they came to report a case you seem to witness" the sheriff continued.

LSR already knew what he wanted to say but allowed himself relax and not be forward. Not that he had the intention of speaking in a room full of people who were gawking on him as if they had been anticipating devouring his whole being.

When the Sheriff hadn't continued his speech as if he was waiting for a kind of validation from LSR that he was attentive, LSR forced himself to give a nod.

Sheriff Blair nodded in return, an unnecessary movement in LSR's terms. " I want to ask boy, did you go to the burnt haven tonight?"

" Yes, I did" came LSR's prompt reply.

Sheriff Blair seemed to have his hand on a covert device. He was recording the conversation, LSR noted.

Not a thing you won't expect from the cops.

" Tell me" Sheriff Blair began then pause to rephrase " Tell us the events that followed"

LSR breathed before commencing, he knew what happened in the burnt haven was weird and complicated. " I was invited over for dinner by the burnt haven owners shortly after you left this afternoon however, by the time I arrived at their door, I met Old Mrs. John there" he was saying but the protest from the burnt haven owners cut him short.

" You lie!"

" This is a liar, not a witness!" they hollered.

Sheriff Blair staggered up from his sitting position again, dragging the swivel chair on the marbel floor once more. Without saying a thing to end the protest from Old Mrs. John's family he went to the door and barked out an order. " Somebody get these crowd away from my office. I want just Asher in here with me!" he said and so, two officers came in and led the rest of the people who were now quiet out including burnt haven owners.

Satisfied with the decorum that now prevailed, Sheriff Blair urged LSR to continue. " Go on" he said.

He had no idea why the members of old Mrs. John's family called him a liar but he decided to continue his speech. " Old Mrs. John was standing there with a pack of fried chicken which she ordered them as a neighborly gift then she left and we resumed to have dinner but in the course of having dinner, a man from the burnt haven owners who was the only one who had eaten the fried chicken which was formerly tossed into the bin by one of them slumped on the floor and started to foam in the mouth" he rushed his words, happy to finish dropping his words and eager to go back home.

"Same thing the burnt haven owners said" Sheriff Blair who had his hands under his chin commented, looking puzzled now.

One thing the Sheriff liked about LSR's statement was the fact that he had not jumped to conclusion about the facts. The boy was wise, courage was the only thing he lacked.

The Sheriff was about to order for LSR to be taken back home when a knock came from the door then, it slightly parted. An officer strained his neck from the opened space. " One of them says he brought the tapes" the officer presented to the Sheriff who ordered for the man to be led in immediately.

Now, LSR's curiosity was aroused and the urge to go home disappeared as he saw one out of Old Mrs. John's two sons walked in holding a camcorder in one hand.

Sheriff Blair who was as confused regarding the case was equally eager to see the contents of the camcorder.

" There is a tape here that carries the recording of the little party we had for Thanksgiving today from 7 pm to 9 p.m. When we heard their knocks on our door" the man presented and began to work on the camcorder, switching to the tape he had mentioned.

Sheriff Blair presented a query before even watching the content at all. " Did you have Thanksgiving dinner in December eh?"

That was true, who does Thanksgiving in December?

"As I said, it took some time for mutual agreement to settle upon this date to come to see mother because she always insisted on a full family visit. We made this day our Thanksgiving day since we couldn't come see her for the actual Thanksgiving but we always recorded each year's Thanksgiving and they don't always fall on the actual dates. We have our families to tend to. Just assume we have chosen our own personal date for Thanksgiving and watch the recording, please?" he demanded, frustration and impatience evident in his tone.

" You mean assume y'all were having your own personal party in your mother's apartment named Thanksgiving?" came Sheriff Blair's most absurd statement.

Really so not necessary, that statement! LSR growled within himself.

Maybe his growl was what made Sheriff Blair look up his way. " You better not be lying to me, boy," the Sheriff said as he began to watch the recording.

LSR closed the distance between them and found himself straining his neck to take a peek.

"It is for two hours indeed. 7 to 9 p.m as mentioned" He heard the Sheriff declare. " And there is old bouncing Mrs. John playing with the kids and merrying with her family" then, he sighed and turned to LSR with a displeased look. " How much did those bloody newcomers pay you to lie?" he demanded and LSR shone his eyes in amazement.

Lie?

He did witness what he said he witnessed and he recognized Old Mrs. John as much as he recognized the day and night. " I told no lies and I wasn't paid a dime by the burnt haven owners too!" he protested, what the hell was happening?

" Do you know the punishment for giving false testimony?" Sheriff Blair relaxed in his seat and smirked at LSR. " 7 to 14 years in the least and probably life imprisonment if any harm was done" he spelled.

If nothing at all, LSR's heart began to pound. Was he jinxed maybe?

Why was he getting from one trouble to the other? He had told no lies and only said what he witnessed. Oh, Zakariah was going to be so mad at him, so very mad.

" Wait! Ask Duncan, he was there too!" he shouted, surprised at the pitch of his own voice. It came higher than he intended.

Before Sheriff Blair could even talk, the son of Old Mrs. John countered him. " If they could bribe you to lie, they could do that to this Duncan or whoever you or they claim as witnesses" he spat, the disgust in his tone barely hard to miss.

Ah, he needed another element. Something that could not be bribed and that could not lie.

Then, he remembered, the one thing that can proclaim his innocence, and maybe if they were innocent too, burnt haven owners.