Aley Taylor 9100 St. Charles Rock Road St. Louis, MO 63114 (314) 493-6100 taylora550@ritenourschools.org Polaroid Paranoia by Aley Taylor Click. A quick flash blotted out the entire room. Chayton rose out of his squatting position to examine the photo displayed on the screen of his Canon. He nodded in approval before taking twenty more or so shots from different angles. The building he stood in threatened to collapse at any moment but held its breath, almost as if it was allowing him to capture its story one last time. Holes big enough to step into were scattered across every wall. There was a gradient from black to blue that started at the floor. The air smelled of smoke and dust. Everything had evolved into artwork. Footsteps interrupted Chayton’s admiration and without hesitation, he made a fast exit. As he stumbled down a crumbling staircase he could hear someone struggling to follow him. He emerged from the building sweating bullets. Jumping into his car, he escaped with the only thing that mattered. His Canon camera sat safely in the passenger seat. Just as he began to drive away, sirens sounded behind him. Pulling over to the side of the road, Chayton regained his equanimity before the officer reached his …show more content…
But then, we managed to get into the trunk. Want to know what we found?”, she tucked a blond hair behind her ear and grinned. “All of this.” she slapped a manila folder on the table that separated him and flipped it open to reveal its contents. Photo after photo displayed everything he’d stowed in his trunk. “Containers of gasoline, lighters, a shovel, a hammer and a rifle. I guess we got lucky and caught you before you could empty it back at your place huh?”. Before he could respond the officer continued, “Are you familiar with the four police officers whose homes ended up in