Chapter 58
DEBBIE
I’ve never committed arson before.
I’ve never even thought about it. I get anxious when I have the flame too high on the stove. I don’t even like to barbecue steaks, much less an entire frat house.
I thought putting things right with Zane would make me feel better.
I thought it would ease the pressure that’s been building up in my head.
But nothing was fixed. I’m glad I was able to help my daughter with her problem, but my own problems were still there.
The house where my life fell apart was quite literally still there.
And then the idea occurred to me that I could burn down Zeta Pi. I could light up that house and let it burn to the ground.
It brought me a sense of peace like something I hadn’t felt in over twenty-five years.
I don’t want anyone to get hurt. That’s why I came here in the middle of the afternoon, when most of the students are likely to be in class.
Part of me feels like the boys at this fraternity deserve whatever is coming to them, but I don’t know that for sure.
Hutch graduated a long time ago, and so did any of his brothers who were protecting him. I don’t want to kill anyone innocent.
Nestled within my purse is a cigarette taped to a book of matches.
Before I leave the fraternity house, I will tell Lennox that I forgot my purse upstairs.
I’ll run to get it, use the lighter on the desk to light the cigarette, and place it in the bed of the boy who owns the lighter.
That’s the best chance to make it look like an accident.
I’ll also lay the cigarette and matches on a couple of pieces of paper.
I had some in my purse just in case, but I also saw a few scraps of paper on the desk, and if I use those, it will be more authentic.
As the cigarette burns down, it will ignite the matches, and they will in turn ignite the paper, and that will ignite the bedsheets.
At that point, the fire will spread quickly.
I’ll be long gone by then.
Lennox leads me back to the first floor, and then he opens the door to the basement. He referred to this as the room where they have their meetings, but it’s clearly also the room where they have their parties. I would recognize that even if I hadn’t been to a party in this very room.
“As you can see, it’s a wide-open space.” He gestures at a few couches pushed against the wall, and there’s even a makeshift stage at the front of the room. “We host a few coffee shop nights here with an open mic. It’s pretty fun.”
“Sounds fun,” I say, barely listening.
He tilts his head. “Do you want to get any photos or anything?”
I don’t want to seem suspicious. He’s giving me the entire tour, and it does probably seem weird that I’m not taking any pictures. “Definitely,” I say. “I’m getting the article written first, but our photographer will be in touch next week for a shoot.”
Lennox accepts this explanation without question. “Oh great.”
I look around the room again, and there are several posters mounted on the walls. My eyes fall on the poster nearest to me. In big block letters, it says, do not leave your drink unattended.
Lennox sees me staring at the poster. “We have that up for parties,” he explains.
I arch an eyebrow. “Oh?”
“Nationwide, the risk of sexual assault is higher at fraternity and sorority parties.” To my surprise, he seems very eager to talk about this touchy subject.
I would have thought a frat brother would avoid it like the plague.
“We take it very seriously here. We don’t have punch bowls, and we encourage female guests to drink from cans or bottles that haven’t been opened yet.
And during parties, we close off the upper floors, so nobody’s getting up to the bedrooms. All partygoers are in a place where we can see them. ”
“But you can’t prevent sexual assault entirely,” I point out.
“Maybe not.” Lennox’s eyes flash. “But I’m president of Zeta Pi, and nothing like that is going to happen in this house while I am in charge. If I ever suspected that one of our brothers was trying to roofie a girl or take advantage, we’d investigate. Anyone who did that…they would be gone.”
He sounds like he means it. Of course, he thinks I’m a reporter and all this is going in an article. What is he supposed to say? Our members roofie girls all the time! It’s so fun! It’s hard to imagine much has changed since I was a student here. Boys are still boys.
But he does have that poster on the wall. And he brought it up without me even having to ask, with solid rules in place that sound…well, real. He sounded furious at the idea of any kind of sexual assault happening under this roof.
“Anyway,” Lennox says, “that concludes the grand tour. I don’t think there’s anything else to show you, but I’m happy to answer any questions if you’d like.”
“No,” I say, “I’ve seen enough.”
We return to the first floor, and he escorts me to the exit. He offers me an endearing grin. “I’d love to see the article when it comes out,” he says. “Will you send us a copy?”
“Absolutely,” I say. “I’ll send it to Zeta Pi, care of Lennox Newberry, like the comic store.”
He laughs. “You got it.”
Then we’re at the front door. It’s now or never. I came here for justice, and this could be my only shot.
“Oh shoot.” I look down at my right arm and shake my head. “Silly me—I forgot my purse upstairs. I think I put it down on a desk when I started feeling a little loopy.”
“Whoops,” Lennox says. “You better go get it. Do you need me to show you upstairs again?”
What a gentleman. But that won’t be necessary. “No. I know exactly where I left it. I’ll just be two minutes.”
“Okay,” he says without even a trace of suspicion. “I’ve got a ton of studying to do for my thermodynamics exam on Monday, so I’m just gonna be on the sofa over here getting back to it.”
Lennox plops down on the sofa, grabbing the heavy textbook and a pack of highlighters. He doesn’t seem the slightest bit concerned with me anymore. After all, I look completely innocent. I probably remind him of his mother.
He’s not even looking at me as I climb the stairs to the second floor.