Checkered Flag by Chris Fabry

them.
    “What’s up?” Jamie said as she walked over.
    “Do you know where Tim is?” her dad said, his face grim.
    “No. He takes the bus home.”
    The officer tipped his hat and crossed his arms in front of him. “Jamie, I’ve admired your driving. Think I’ll be admiring it even more in the years to come.”
    “Thanks,” she said. “What’s this all about?”
    The officer took a deep breath. “Did Tim seem himself this morning when you drove to school?”
    Jamie pursed her lips. “He was pretty quiet. Of course, he doesn’t say much to begin with. . . .” Shethought a moment. “He did get squirrelly about the news report we heard on the radio.”
    “What report was that?” her dad said.
    “The Devalon garage fire. He seemed really interested in it.”
    The reaction of all three was immediate. Her dad shook his head, the officer nodded, and Kellen closed his eyes and tipped his head back, like his favorite team had just lost the Super Bowl by a last-second field goal.
    “What?” Jamie said.
    “They think Tim might have been involved in the fire,” her dad said.
    “That’s crazy!” Jamie said. “Tim wouldn’t do anything like that.”
    “That’s not what your brother says,” the officer said.
    “Tell her,” her dad said to Kellen.
    Kellen looked like he had sold his favorite horse to a dog food factory. “Tim was talking during the race about Devalon, saying some wild stuff. I don’t think he’s capable of hurting a flea—”
    “What did he say?” Jamie said.
    “Something about making sure Devalon didn’t win and getting stuck in his car or something dumb like that. He was just kidding around—he didn’t mean anything by it.”
    “Yeah, well, here he comes,” Jamie’s dad said.
    Tim walked past the squad car, taking a good look at the exhaust and (Jamie thought) imagining what the engine looked like. He walked tentatively, like an animal going to slaughter.
    “Tim, this is Officer Dunham,” her dad said. “You have any idea why he’s here?”
    “Should I?” Tim said.
    “Were you at the Devalon racing complex last night?” the officer said.
    Tim hesitated. “I might have driven Kellen’s bike over that way.” He glanced at Kellen. “I didn’t think you’d mind.”
    “No problem,” Kellen said.
    “Did you go on their property?”
    Tim looked away and put his hands in his pockets.
    “Maybe we should get legal counsel on this,” Jamie’s dad said.
    “No, it’s okay,” Tim said. “I’ll tell you what happened. I went over there and climbed the fence. That’s when I saw the fire inside, and as I was about to call 911, the fire trucks got there and I took off. I was scared somebody would pin the thing on me.”
    Officer Dunham stared at him. “And you expect us to believe you didn’t start the fire.”
    “It was burning when I got there, sir.”
    “Why did you go there?” the officer said.
    Tim put his toe in the dust, and he looked to Jamie like a little kid who had forgotten his fishing pole at the Boy Scout campout. He looked at Jamie’s dad and searched for words. “It’s kind of personal.”
    “Trying to burn down a garage complex is kind of personal—don’t you think?” the officer said.
    “I didn’t burn anything,” Tim said.
    Jamie’s dad searched Tim’s face. “Son, I think we’re going to need more than that. There must have been some reason you went over there that late. Why can’t you tell us?”
    “I got a phone call,” Tim said haltingly. “I don’t know who it was. They just gave me the address, and I rode over there.”
    “Must’ve been someone pretty important,” Officer Dunham said.
    “Yeah,” Tim said.
    “A girlfriend of yours?” the officer said.
    Jamie studied her dad, who studied Tim. It was almost like he could see right through him.
    “Officer, let me talk with Tim,” her dad said. “You want us to come down to the station with you?”
    The officer took off his hat, showing a huge bald spot, and