[MacsChick]

After a somewhat busy, hectic week, I'm finally able to bring you the second part. Enjoy!


No Trespassing Part Two
Rated: PG

The next morning, MacGyver was led into a separate cell at the county jail where prisoners could receive visitors. Chuck entered, looking completely exhausted.

“MacGyver,” he said, “Man, am I so glad to see you!”

“Tell me the truth, Chuck,” MacGyver said, glaring at him. “Burning down a brand new construction project to make your point is terrorism. It’s stupid and dangerous. You could have hurt someone. When I said we would protest these guys, I didn’t mean we would destroy property! That’s not the way to make your point!”

“MacGyver,” Chuck said, looking at him in surprise. “How could you think I did this? You sound worse than the cops!”

“Well, then tell me,” MacGyver said, sitting down across from him. “What really did happen out there last night?”

Chuck looked around, suspicious that someone else might be listening in on their conversation. He lowered his voice. “As I told you last night, I got a call from the Howard brothers inviting me out to the construction site. They said they wanted to make amends, you know. They said that maybe we could reach a compromise.”

“And what did you say?”

“Well, as you can imagine, I wasn’t too thrilled about meeting them,” he said, “but I was willing to give it a chance, so I went. That’s when I saw the place go up in flames.”

“Did you see them set fire to it?”

“No, but they had to be the ones, MacGyver. The whole thing was a trap to get me busted so that I would be out of their way.”

MacGyver sighed. “I just can’t believe this, Chuck,” he said.

“What? You can’t believe me? I thought we were friends!”

“Chuck, we are friends. That’s not what I meant. Whoever set fire to that place had to know the risk they were taking. You could have spotted the Howard brothers in the middle of the act, for example.”

“I didn’t have to see them do it to know they did it,” Chuck said angrily.

“Maybe they did,” MacGyver said, “but where’s your proof?”

“That’s what I want you to find out, MacGyver. I want you to follow those guys, see what they’re up to. Snoop around, you know. Investigate. You’re good at that kind of stuff.”

“Well, I can’t let a good friend down,” MacGyver said. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“Thank you so much for getting involved, MacGyver.”

“You’re welcome.” He looked around the barren cell walls. “So Chuck, what have they been saying around here about your case?”

Chuck shrugged. “Not much,” he said glumly, slumping in his chair. “The police seem convinced that I did it, and my lawyer isn’t much help. That’s why I need you, Mac. I appreciate your help.”

“Don’t mention it, Chuck. We’ll get this straightened out, I promise.”

***

“Trying to help out Chuck, aren’t you?” The sheriff of Pine Grove asked MacGyver as he was leaving the jail.

“Well, yes sheriff, I am,” MacGyver said. “I don’t think he could have done this.”

The sheriff grinned and shook his head. “We have a receipt for the gasoline and matches bought at a nearby convenience store,” he said. “It has Chuck’s credit card number and his signature on it. The evidence against him is growing pretty strong.”

“Yeah, well I’d like to see what I find,” MacGyver said. “I believe he’s innocent.”

“Why don’t you let us do the investigating?” The sheriff asked, his eyes growing cold as he stared at MacGyver. “I know he’s your friend, but this is a job for professionals, you know what I mean?”

“Yes sheriff, I understand, but…”

“I don’t like the idea of that new subdivision than anyone else around here does, but Chuck Hayes is a militant. You’d do well by heeding my advice and staying out of our way as we investigate. We’ll tell you what we find.”

MacGyver grinned. “Yes sir,” he said.

***

The first thing MacGyver did was go to every local gas station and ask about Chuck’s alleged purchase of the gasoline and matches. Since the sheriff didn’t give him any names, he had to do all the searching himself. Finally, he came upon the man who claimed to have sold Chuck the gasoline that evening. He was the owner of the store, an elderly man named Jesse.

“It was him all right,” Jesse said. “I’d recognize him anywhere.”

“And you say that you sold him a can of gasoline and a box of matches the night of the fire?” MacGyver asked.

“Without question.”

“What was his demeanor like? Did he seem nervous? Scared? Angry?”

“Nope, he was just pretty calm,” Jesse said. “Actually, he seemed kind of determined, like he knew what he was going to do.”

MacGyver sighed. “Are you sure it was him?” He asked.

“Everyone around here knows Chuck Hayes,” Jesse said, “and they know him well. That’s how it is in these small towns. After living here my whole life, I think I would know his description by now.”

MacGyver looked around the store. “What about your security camera?” He asked. “Maybe it shows footage of him in the store that night that I could take a look at to verify that it was him.”

Jesse shrugged. “I don’t have a security camera,” he said.

MacGyver looked at him. “Then you’d be about the only convenience store in America that doesn’t,” he said.

Jesse smiled. “I don’t need a security camera in my store, not up here. This isn’t Los Angeles, after all. This is a safe community. As I said before, everyone around here pretty much knows everyone else,” he said.

“Right,” MacGyver said. He thought back to the time when Chuck called him that evening. It had been a little after nine. “What time did Chuck come in here?” He asked.

“I’d say around 8:30,” Jesse said.

MacGyver’s hopes deflated. He was hoping to hear some overlap or inconsistency in the time Chuck supposedly made the purchase and when the fires began, but a half hour before they started gave him plenty of time. Besides that, the new subdivision building site was only a short distance away. Things were starting to appear bleak for his friend. He didn’t want to believe he was involved, but all he had heard so far from this witness seemed to point directly to him as the perpetrator.

“Thank you for your time,” he said.

***

Tom and Mark Howard were parked across the street from Jesse’s convenience store in their construction fleet truck, watching as MacGyver left.

“I’m telling you, I don’t like this,” Tom said. “He could be on to us.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Mark said. “We paid off Jesse. He told this guy just what we wanted him to.”

“Still, this man is Chuck’s friend. He won’t stop until he clears him.”

Mark turned to look at his brother. “Listen,” he said, “if we keep this thing as tightly under wraps as we have so far, all evidence will still point to Chuck, no matter how deep this guy digs. Eventually, he’ll have to admit his friend did it and give up and go home. Now come on, we’re supposed to meet the fire investigators at the site.” He buckled his seat belt.

“Are you still sure it was such a good idea to burn our dad’s project? It’s going to cost us a lot of time, not to mention money, to bring the whole thing back on line again,” Tom said.

“It was the only way to get Chuck off our backs,” Mark said. “He’s a troublemaker, and he was costing us a lot more time and money by trying to delay this thing. Besides, we’re insured, and if the charges are brought against Chuck for arson and sabotage, I’m sure they’ll make him pay restitution for the damage he caused. We’ll be fine.”

“How did Dad take the news when you called him and told him about it?” Tom asked.

Mark sighed. “Obviously, he’s not happy, but at least he knows there is a perfect suspect—the local agitator.” He grinned.

“Is he coming out to look at the site?” Tom asked, his voice shaking slightly from nervousness.

“No, he’s too busy at the corporate office.”

“Oh, good.”

Mark noticed how uptight his brother looked. “Hey, what are you so nervous about?” He asked.

“What if Dad finds out we did this?” Tom asked. “I mean, there’s always a chance this thing could…”

“There’s no chance,” Mark said. “Every base is covered. There is nothing that could link that fire to us, nothing. Everything points to Chuck, as I said. I made sure of that. Relax, Tom. We’re in the clear.”

Tom nodded, even though a part of him still wasn’t so sure. Mark started the engine and they drove away.

***

Mark and Tom Howard weren’t the only ones returning to the fire site. MacGyver also decided to revisit the place and see what he could find there. After all, it was where everything started. He parked his jeep near the taped off boundary and examined the extent of the damage. In the light of day, it looked even more horrific and devastating than the glowing blaze did at night. The firefighters managed to successfully extinguish all the flames, leaving behind a wasteland of charred remains that were still smoking slightly. MacGyver pulled out his binoculars so he could get a closer look, and as he did so, he saw the Howard brothers and the lead fire investigator in the distance, talking. They were approaching the area where he stood, so he waited and listened to what they were saying when they came within earshot.

“There’s no question about it,” the investigator said. “We found traces of accelerant all over the buildings.”

“Gasoline, right?” Mark asked.

“Yes.”

“Did you find anything else?” Tom asked, doing his best to appear calm yet appalled at the damage at the same time.

“No other chemicals were detected, except for those involved in the construction process.”

Mark glanced at his brother as if to reassure him that they still appeared clean in the eyes of the investigator. “So, it was a simple, clear-cut case of arson,” he said.

“It would appear that way,” the investigator said. “I’ll have to run a few more tests to make sure.”

Tom glanced at Mark anxiously, but Mark’s expression remained calm and confident.

“I appreciate it, sir,” he said. “Let us know if you find anything else.”

“I will,” the investigator said. “I have to return to help my men clean up the site.”

“How long do you think it will be before we can start building again?” Tom asked.

“Hard to tell at this point,” the investigator said. “It could be anywhere from six weeks to several months. We’ll try to clear it as quickly as possible.”

Tom looked at Mark, alarmed, but once again Mark shrugged his concern off as nothing. “Thank you, Chief,” he said.

The head investigator turned and began walking back to the fire crew, who were digging up the burnt ground and studying the blackened structures.

“Did you hear that? We can’t be set back by several months to a year!” Tom said.

“I told you to relax, Tom,” Mark said. “Things will work out fine.”

As the two men walked, they didn’t notice MacGyver standing there until they reached the police tape.

“What do you think you’re doing here?” Tom asked. “This is a crime scene!”

“Well, I didn’t cross the tape,” MacGyver said, “so I don’t think I’m breaking any laws, here.”

“What do you want?” Mark asked.

“I’m just looking around,” MacGyver said.

“You’re Chuck’s friend, aren’t you? I recognize you from the café,” Mark said. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m trying to help him,” MacGyver said.

Tom snorted. “Yeah, good luck,” he said. “The man’s a firebug. Look what he did to our dad’s project! It’s completely ruined! He’s lucky he didn’t start a forest fire or get someone killed!”

MacGyver noticed the level of agitation in Tom’s voice and in his jerky movements as he spoke. His odd behavior gave some credence to Chuck’s theory that the Howard brothers were the actual perpetrators. Still, he didn’t have any hard, credible evidence yet. He figured that Tom could even just be upset about the destruction and all the delays it would cause.

“Believe me, I don’t condone this,” he said. “If Chuck did it, I would be very disappointed, but I don’t think he did it. I’m still trying to find out what actually happened.”

“You heard the investigator,” Mark said, staring at MacGyver. “A clear case of someone using gasoline to start the fire. Gasoline was found in the trunk of Chuck’s car. Kind of a strong coincidence, isn’t it?”

“I suppose so,” MacGyver said. He had to admit again to himself that things weren’t looking good in Chuck’s favor. The convenience store owner claiming he saw Chuck purchase the gasoline and matches, the credit card receipt for that purchase using Chuck’s account number and signature…evidence was mounting against him at every turn. “I guess I’d just like to learn more and hear more from Chuck’s version of events.”

“Well, you do that,” Mark said, “but you’re probably not going to hear anything but lies. Your friend Chuck has been out to smear us and this project from day one.”

“That’s right,” Tom said. “From what I can tell, he had an obvious motive for what he did.”

“It’s not looking promising, I know,” MacGyver said. “I still would like to give him the benefit of the doubt and the chance to defend himself.”

“Look, I know he’s your friend,” Mark said, “but try not to let that cloud your judgment.”

“I know he was against your project from the beginning,” MacGyver said. “Don’t let that cloud your judgment, either. In my book, he’s innocent until proven guilty.”

“Maybe,” Mark said, “but you have to admit the evidence is pretty strong. There is every indication that he did this so far.”

MacGyver narrowed his eyes at him. “You seem pretty sure,” he said.

Mark smiled. “Well, so do you…uh…”

“MacGyver.”

“MacGyver. Why don’t we just agree to disagree at this point, and go our separate ways? When the case builds and the verdict comes in, we’ll see who’s right, then,” Mark said.

MacGyver nodded and smiled. “Maybe we will,” he said. “I’ll see you gentlemen later.” He turned and got in his jeep.

“Why did you talk to him like that?” Tom asked, watching as MacGyver drove away from the site, his jeep disappearing over the rugged hills.

“What was I supposed to do, Tom? Threaten him? There is nothing wrong with keeping this civil for now, is there?”

“Yeah, but you heard him! I don’t think he’s going to give up on trying to prove that Chuck is innocent!”

“He sounds like a true friend,” Mark said, “but he’ll give up eventually. He’ll have to. As I said, the evidence we’ve built against Chuck is solid. He’ll have to see that sooner or later.”

“What if he doesn’t?” Tom asked. “What if he does find some way to prove that Chuck didn’t do this and that we did?”

Mark smiled. “I don’t think it will come to that,” he said, “but if it does, well…we’ll just have to find some other inventive way to get rid of him, too, now won’t we?”

To be continued…

[trtlsoup]

Ahh, the suspense continues!

Good chapter...