For the First Time
By Leah Cason

He found himself looking down at the man,
for the first time in his life.
The man, 
his father.
He watched him who caused him a great deal of  pain.

Anger slowly built inside him,
as he remembered everything that happened.
All the memories can flooding back in.
He could feel the marks that his father left on his body,
like they were freshly made.
With a small grin he let his anger out.
“You only acknowledged me when your hand was inches from my face, So here’s me acknowledging you.”
The statues of the people watched his every move,
The impact of the casket lid connecting with the casket was loud,
ringing through the air.
connecting his foot with the side of it  the casket.
He turned around and smiled to the crowd.
Shock and horror clouded their faces, ,
as the casket loudly hit the ground..

The son set off away from the casket,
not wanting to be there anymore.
He moved fast,
all the way to his car.

He sped off down the road,
he ran.
Just like the last time.
Leaving a cloud of dust and smoke in his path.
For the first time he felt like he could leave,
he felt that he came out on top.
‘time to show the world,’ he thought to himself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~

BOOM.
London, W6 rang with the sound of thunder.
The dust mixed with the air,
and rocks smacked the earth.

People screamed,
loud and crazed.
People  running frantic,
all around the scene of the crime,
looking for answers that they didn’t have.
That no one had.

There he was,
The man who did this.

This chaos was his doing,
and it went just as planned. .
He watched the cops look for the answers,
Answers that they needed,
and couldn’t find.

He heard the cops ask about caustalites,
as the detective sat there and smoked.

No caustlilities,
no evidence,
no motive.  that they can see.
They will soon find the reason that he did what he did.

That’s where they were wrong,
He had a reason,
a movitive.
For the first time.
They were just not looking hard enough,

For the first time,
they still had things that they needed to learn.

For the Last Time
By Cara Schultz

The gloom of the day
Fit perfectly with the group of solemn faces.
Past the line of badges,
Chief Inspector Benson
Watched as Junior drove away,
Leaves flying off the car.
It was the last time,
That Benson would see his old partner.
Now,
His face looks towards
The core of the earth,
His back turned away
From the events of this world~
“Good riddance.”
Benson turned his back on the mourners.
It is-
The Last Time.
~ ~ ~

The rain fell quickly into the charred crater.
Yellow and black tape, red and blue lights, surround it.
Inspector Benson,
Drew in the vapors and released the smoke.
He continued to do so until there was only the butt of the cigarette left.
“I am sorry, Sir, I didn’t know you were here.”
“Are there any casualties, Sergeant?”
“No, Sir, no casualties. We searched the area and we couldn’t find any evidence either.”
The area was a void, except for  the  mailbox of the former building still stood; the flag positioned upright. A few yards away, Benson glanced at the officer.
“You said the building that stood here was a library?”
“Yes, Sir, but it has been abandoned for over ten years.”
“Have someone check the mailbox, Sergeant.”
“Sir?”
“Think about it, Sergeant. How on earth did a bomb blow up a building but not a mailbox? ”
The sergeant breath was heavy when he came back to Inspector Benson’s side. “What does it say, Sergeant?”
“‘did Ja Cee?’ With the ‘j’ and the ‘c’ capitalized.”
“Interesting. Well, I guess the bomber used the mailbox here to serve it’s purpose-
For the Last Time.”

All in a Days Work
By Leah Cason

Cowering in the corner,
afraid of what was to come.
Every night,
More bruises marked  his boyish skin.

He came into the boy’s room,

Ready to kill,
ready to leave more marks on the boy’s body.

After a while the boy just took it,
he didn’t care anymore.
There was nothing he could do

But this time,
he wanted it to be different,
so he hid.

In the corner,
his bed hid him from the door.
He heard footsteps,
“Where are you boy?”
The voice came loud and clear,
he was really close to the Junior’s room..

It was the voice of his beloved father
That’s what made it so scary. .
He hated it,
he wanted out.

There was nothing he could do,
if his father came into the dark room,
he was sure to be found.
It was only a matter of time.
Fear crept in-
he started to shake.

The door flew open,
bringing \him out of his thoughts.
There was a shadow in the door frame,
hovering there.
“You can’t hide, I know you’re in here.”
He stepped foot into the room,
making the floor creak lightly with each step.
Each time the man look a step,
a chill ran up his spine.

It was a matter of time before he was found,
He hid his face in his knees and waited.
Thats all he could do,
that is all he knew how to do.

“There you are junior.
Come here.”
He paused and glared at the small boy,
“Now.”
Venom dripped from his voice.
The boy looked up,
just as the hand was coming down.

------
He came back to reality,
and looked at the boy sitting across from him.
It was a dimly lit room, and his eyes had to adjust.
“You really want me to help you?”
He looked at the boy,
and waited for an answer.
“Yes, sir. I don’t want to be there anymore.”
The boy couldn’t look him in the eyes
“Alright. I will do everything I can.”

The counselor smiled at the boy,
but he was not present in the office.
His thoughts were somewhere else-
where only the darkness could reach.

-----
He was watching-
everything was going as planned.
The house blew up.
The parents were inside-
bonus.

Waiting-
To See what the cops will do.
They were talking to witnesses,
trying to get information on what happened.

He thought that blowing up the house-
would take away the pain.
It was still there on the inside,
in a cage that he build for himself.

He was brought out of his thoughts when he heard screaming.
His eyes flashed to the left-
there was that kid again.
The kid he was trying to help,
the kid he did help.
Running,
yelling.
He was going to tell the Inspector just like he had thought.
He even thought ahead,
and solved the problem.

He sat back,
Not being able to keep the smile off his face.
There was a large crowd of people coming,
and the boy was right where he needed to be.

A bang rippled through the air.
Blood spattered the pavement.
The bomber gave a small chuckle-
watching the boy hit the ground

The police were chasing the man-
the man who was at fault-
the man who was paid to take the shot.
While the real killer,
was there in the background.
.

“All in a day’s work.”
He clapped his hands soundlessly.
He turned his back to the crime scene,
walking away. .
That smile plastered on his face,
“All in a day’s work.”

At the End of the Day
By Cara Schultz

“Benson! If you don’t solve this case, not only will you lose your job, I will personally make sure you go to jail!”
“Superintendent Collins, we are-”
“I don’t want to hear your excuses, just solve it. Even though it happened twenty years ago, doesn’t mean you get to get away with it now.”
“I know, Sir.”
“Good, no go do your job, the right way this time.”
“He doesn’t know the worst thing I have done.”

~ ~ ~
“Look at what he has done to you. You have to turn him in.”
“He is my partner, honey.”
“So? He is a drunk and a crooked cop. Why are you even protecting him?”
Benson glared at his coffee mug, trying to forget his wife, who was standing at the sink.
“Because it is none of our business.”
“None of our business? How about you go up to his son and tell him that? Well, if you won’t do something I will.”
Benson watched as his wife left the house, not knowing it was the last time he would see her.

~ ~ ~
Knock,
Knock.
The window rolls down to show Benson closing his phone.
“So the Bomber blew up a house this time, huh? Any casualties?”
“A middle aged couple died in the bombing. We think they had a kid, but he was probably at school at the time of the bombing. And, Sir, the mailbox survived and it had another note in it. But this can’t be the same guy, Sir, it doesn’t make sense, why a house?”
“What does the note say, Sergeant?”
“‘Appointment made, Cee Ja tomorrow.’ The ‘c’ and the ‘j’ are capitalized again.”
“Sergeant, after we find out who the owners were of the house, look at their records to find out who has the initials of J.C. or C.J that they have come in contact with.” Benson pulled out a cigarette and lit it, waiting for the Sergeant to respond.
“Sir-”
“He blew up my parents!” A kid ran up to the Inspector and Sergeant, rapidly stuttering his words as he tried to catch his breath.
“Slow down, kid. Who did?”
“The Coun-” A sound of thunder cracked and the result of the bolt sprouted from the boy’s chest-
Right where his heart was.
“-at the sch-school.” The Killer continued to walk away, as if no one was there. Revolver in hand, the Killer’s gait was natural, as if he didn’t just kill someone. Some officers pounced on the Killer, throwing him into the back of one of the cars.
“Poor kid, Sergeant, would you make sure he gets taken back to the coroner’s office safely?”
“Of course, Sir, are you going home?”
“Yep, I have to go make sure my teenage daughter isn’t up to trouble.”
Driving away,
He thought about how all of his problems were solved,
Or were they?
Who knew-
At the End of the Day.

Where were you?
By Leah Cason

The scared boy ran to the only place he knew he was safe.
The only people that would listen when he called.
For most it was home-
but for him it was the counselor’s office at his school.  

He was terrified,
not knowing that else to do-.
He ran into the office,
tears running down his face.
“You have to help me, I have no where else to go.”
He paused and looked at the counselor,
“He hits me. Make it stop. You have to help me.”

The counselor looked at him,
despair present in his eyes.
“There is nothing we can do.”

“There has to be.”
The boy began crying again,
not knowing what else to do.
He ran out of the office,
off to his first hour class..
They watched him leave,
once he was out of of sight,
they looked at each other.

“Is he telling us the truth?”
the principal asked looking from the door to the counselor.
“I have no idea.” The counselor responded,
shaking his head.
-------------------
He walked into the school,
moving smoothly through the crowd.
His eyes smiled-
he was in a good mood.

He made the appointment,
and was going to talk to the boy.
He helped him-
made his life easier.
“Stop. Counselor-
can we have a word with you.”
The Principal looked at him,
unease present in his eyes. 

He was going to run,
but he didn’t need too.
He turned around and nodded,
“Of course sir.”
He said and walked into the office.

“Do you know this boy?”
The school board asked,
showing him the picture.

“Yes, he came to me yesterday.”
The counselor looked at the photo-
nodding slightly.

“He was in the same family place as you were as a child.”
It was blunt-
and it made the Counselor cringe.
Pain shot up through his spine-
he looked up.

“Yes. I was there when he needed someone,
when you said you couldn’t be.”
He paused and looked at every person in the room,
“Where were you when I needed you?”

“Counselor, we told you.
There was nothing we could do at the time.”
They looked at each other,
a grave look on their faces.

The counselor stood up,
“Thats what you told the kid as well.
And I found a way to help him.”
He turned his back to his boss,
and strode out of the room.

He walked out of the school,
he had things that he had to do.
BOOM.
Rocks shattered back down to the earth,
and he walked away feeling proud.

Here I Am
By Cara Schultz

“Hey Dad, what are you doing up this early?”
“I am looking at the police reports and school employee records for the bombing case.”
“The bombing case, but I thought that was solved?”
“I don’t think it is. The boy said something about a person at his school blew up his parents in the house. And the suspect we brought in had no connections to the boy or the school.”
“This is why they made you Inspector, Dad. Well, I will see you later.”
“Katherine Benson where are you going at this time in the morning?”
“Nowhere, I am going back to bed, I just couldn’t sleep and was going to get some fresh air.” Katherine’s feet didn’t make a sound when she headed up the stairs.
“Uh huh, you act so much like your mother did.”
“So I have been told. Good night, Dad.”
Looking at the reports, he focused on the case instead of the consequences that might occur if he doesn’t solve it.
“I guess you will do almost anything for a partner when you are young.”

~ ~ ~

“Hello, Jr., how are you?”
Jamison Cohna Jr. gazed at him blankly,
Not willing to say a word.
“Jamison Cohna Jr., why don’t you say hello to my partner?”
Jamison,
Junior’s father,
Leaned against the wall,
As if it were his crutch.
“Hello, Jami-”
Jamison grabbed his son’s shirt, lifting him up from his chair.
“Drunk, again.” Benson gaze moved around the room,
Trying to find the only reason he came here.
“Jamison, where is the package?”
“In the closet by the bathroom.”
“Thanks.” Sergeant Benson walked to the closet,
Taking the package,
He allowed himself on brief sniff-
Ignoring the cries from Junior in the background.
“Well, I am going to get going. Thanks again.”
“Yep, enjoy the A-Bombs, Benson. See you at work tomorrow.”
Sergeant Benson focused on the rattles of his keys
Instead of the cries of Junior-
And the sounds of bottles breaking.
Breathing in the cold air,
Benson got into his car-
Pushing the images away from his mind.
“It’s none of your business.”

~ ~ ~
“Wait, J.C., that is it!”
“Dad, have you been up this whole time?”
“Yes, yes, Katherine. I have to make a phone call, go get ready or something.”
“Good morning to you too, Dad. I will just go make your lunch.”
Inspector Benson dialed the Sergeant on his phone.
“Sergeant? The Killer who shot the boy? He isn’t the bomber, Jamison Cohna Jr. is.”
“Well, if it really is him, he just bombed the kid’s school.”
“Really? What did the note say this time?”
“‘Ja Could have listened the first time.’ The ‘j’ and the ‘c’ are capitalized again. May I ask, Sir, how did you figure out it was him?”
“He has the initials J.C., plus, he was the counselor at the school where the kid attended. I am assuming, of course, that the kid was trying to say, ‘The counselor, at the school.’ And he had the same family problems as a kid.”
“But what would trigger him to do all of this?”
“I believe it is because of his father’s recent death. The man who once restrained him, is no longer here.”
“Why didn’t anyone do anything?”
“There wasn’t any proof, Sergeant. Nobody saw him abuse his son; his wife died from cancer, but that was before we think he started to abuse his son. But it doesn’t matter anymore, now that he is dead; all except to his son, of course.”
“I’m sorry, Sir.”
“Don’t be, my old partner was a corrupt oaf.”
Inspector Benson gazed out of the window, watching people walk in the rain.
“Anyway, I’m on my way, Sergeant, I just want to make sure he didn’t leave anything else behind at the school bombing.”
“All right, Sir.”
Benson’s hands were full as he struggled to get into his car.
Phone,
Keys,
Lunch-
It was all too much.
“I remember Junior at the funeral, after he kicked Jamison’s casket into the hole.”

~ ~ ~
“I remember you,
Bottle in hand,
Whispering-
‘Where are you, Jr.? Don’t you want to say hello to you father?
Come on now-
Where are you?’”
Jamison Cohna Jr. was solid as stone-
As he stared at his father’s upside down coffin.
“Well, here I am,
Father.
Here I Am.”

No Longer Running
By Leah Cason

He had to sit there-
as watch the horror unfold in front of him.
He was being watched.
Watched by the one being prosecuted-
the one who caused him the most pain.

“I am safe,
everything is going to be okay.”
He had to tell himself over
and over again.

“Jury, have you reached a decision.”
The judge said,
pounding his gavel.

“Yes.”
The spokesman for the jury stood up and looked at the crowd.
His was a solid nothing-
no emotion got through.
However his eyes gave him away.
He was sad it was going the way it did.
“The verdict is not guilty.” 

The boy sat in the pews,
and looked at the man.
He had an evil smile on his face,
and the boy looked down.
Fear slowly crept into the boy.

He wanted to run-
hide,
and pray that he would be safe.
But he had no where to go,
no one to run to.

---------
He looked at the courthouse one last time.
Everything that had happened,
every memory that was shed.
It all was going to be gone-
for good this time.
He could only run for so long,
before it caught up to him.
But no longer,
he was not running any more.

He pulled the button out of his pocket,
and smirked.
With one hand,
he lightly tapped the button causing it to go off.

The other hand had to not move,
it would be important later.

BOOM.
He watched the place shatter in a million peices.
It felt like it hit him,
just as hard as it hit the building.

He glanced around and could hear the cops on their way.
It was only a matter of time,
they would get there and see what happened.

He had two choices,
run again-
stay hidden and live another day.
Or stay here-
where they can see him.
“Let them find me,
and I will tell them
what they did wrong.”

He chose the second option.
He thought it was poetic,
let them find their nightmare,
where he can find his-
one of his.

He carefully took a piece of paper out of his pocket,
with his free hand.
There was a lot to be done.
he gently rubbed the smooth button on his left hand.
“This is going to be the grand finale.”

Waiting for the Last Sign
By Cara Schultz

“Sir, I wouldn’t head to the school if I were you. Jamison Cohna Jr. blew up West London Magistrates Court.”
“Okay, I am turning around right now. Sergeant, was there a note left behind?”
“No, Sir.”
“What?”
“He is standing where the Courthouse use to be, strapped with C-4, and holding a sign.”
“What does the sign say?”
“We don’t know, Sir, the sign is too small to read. And if we try to approach him, he screams that he is going to detonate the C-4. It looks like he has enough explosives destroy everything all the way to River Thames, Sir.”
“That is three miles, are you sure?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Right, Sergeant, I am on my way.”

~ ~ ~
Tick. Tick. Tick.
Ashes fell onto the table with the ticks of the clock as Inspector Benson visited his old friend. His drunk partner was sniffing Cocaine powder, even though he was already high off it. Benson stood to put the butt of his cigarette in the ashtray.
“Would you get me a drink, Benson, since you are over there?”
“Of course.”  Pouring another drink, Benson mixed a different kind of powder into it.
“Benson, what is that you mixing into my drink?”
“It’s a new drug around the street, I thought you might want to try it.”
“Are you sure it is safe?”
“Yes, I have tried it myself.”
“Ha, knowing you, I am sure you have. Why don’t you have some with me?”
“I can’t, I have work. Remember what happened last time?”
“Yeah, those were the best of times.”
Setting the drink on the table, Benson went to the window and lit another cigarette; watching his partner down the drink in his hand. “It won’t be long now.” 
Tick. Tick.
Benson followed the drops as they ran down the window, waiting for the sign.
“Benson, help me, my heart-”
Inspector Benson turned to see his old partner stumble to the ground, clutching his arm. “Sorry, partner, I can’t, I have to go to work.”
“Benson. If you don’t-”
“You will what? Take a loved one from me? I think you already did that.” Benson stepped over his partner while putting on his coat. “Besides, you can’t do anything, you are paralyzed. And if you scream, nobody will come running to help, because they are use to hear screaming from this house.
Tick.
“Anyway, have a good day, partner.” Benson walked out of the door already starting to wait for the last sign.
Ding, dong.
Ding, dong.
Ding, dong.

~ ~ ~

Inspector Benson locked his car door and walked towards the sergeant.
“Hey, Katherine, it’s your Dad. I know you are in school right now, I just saw that you called, sorry I didn’t answer; I have been busy. So yeah, I love you and have a great day, Katherine.”
Inspector Benson nodded at the Sergeant but kept moving towards Junior, holding the sign:
“Don’t Ja Cee, you were wrong; he was guilty… I was guilty.” 
“Inspector, what are you doing?” The sergeant gazes at him curiously.
“Waiting for the Last Sign.”

‘Til Death Due Us Part
By Leah Cason

He watches Inspector Benson walk down from the top of the crater,
Slowly but with a purpose. 
The bomber had a wicked smile,
knowing what was going to happen.

His hands got fidgety,
and he wanted to jump to the final breath.
He knew it was not time,
and he had to wait.
There was something that he was missing,
but what,
he would soon find out.

He looked down at the piece of paper,
it was time.
Now or never.

“So you found me.”
He watched Benson carefully make his way to the center of the crater.
“Yes, I did.”
Benson said watching him just as closely.

“You do realize this is all your fault.”
J.C. paused and watched the Inspector’s face change.
“All the lives that were lost,
they are all because of you.”

Benson blinked but said nothing.
So J.C. spoke up again-
anger present in his voice.

“You could have helped me,
you could have said something,
anything would have been better-
better than the nothing that I got.”

Benson could have stopped the pain that he felt,
he could have stopped the fear that Jamison was forced to deal with.
However he chose not too,
he had other things on his mind.

Tears began to fall steadily down his face.
“You could have helped me,
you could have been there.
But you weren’t,
you didn’t care.”
Jamison paused and looked at the man before him,
“Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

He pushes the button,
Click.
Click.
Click.
Beep….

“You now have twenty seconds.”
Jamison Cohna Jr. smiles,
“I will no longer be a constant reminder of my father, he’s dead, and so am I.”

Zero-
By Cara Schultz

“You now have twenty seconds.” Junior stood tall, but his shadow still shows the little, terrified boy.
Benson, holding his cigarette, watches Junior stand like stone, unmoving. The Chief Inspector releases the smoke from his mouth, letting it mix with the cold fall air.
Fifteen…
“Nothing?”
The sounds coming from Junior sound like the cries of an animal.
“Sometimes silence is the best answer.”
“Like the time you turned your back on me for drugs?”
“Or like the time you killed a boy for the sake of this game of yours.”
Ten…
“You’re not sorry?”
“No. At the end of the day, that wasn’t the worst thing your father did.”
“Oh, yeah, like what?”
“Junior looks surprise, he didn’t calculate this, I guess.”
Five…
“He killed my wife.”
Four…
Junior’s cackle echoes through the crater. “Why would he do a thing like that?”
“Because she was willing to speak for you, when I wouldn’t.”
Three…
“Why didn’t you-”
“I did, but it took years to plan. If I did it right away, it would have been easy to figure it out. I decided to wait until he was older and I had a clear head.”
Benson looked at him coolly, “Poor kid, he may be in his twenties, but he still thinks he is the only one messed up because of his father.”
Two..
“I killed your father.”
Silence.
“So, in the end, you did help me.”
One.
Benson small nod, caused Junior to fall to his knees, laughing for a joy that no one could take away now. Benson waited, letting every exhale of smoke scream for the end. “I have gotten what I deserve, but I had to wait so long for it. And now, it is finally here.”
Zero-