Witness to His Own Death

He burned my sister alive, so I made him witness his own death. Leah,

11, still believed the moon followed her home and tucked her stuffed rabbit

in at night. She picked wildflowers, even if they had ants, and trusted everyone—until

Brandon, the 15-year-old boy three houses down, showed her cruelty.

He laughed too loud, threw rocks at strays, and tormented others. No one stopped him—not teachers,

not his parents. One day Leah passed his yard. He called her over. They said it was

an accident, that gasoline burns fast. But I saw the matchbook, the grin in the

video, her screams. She survived two days, wrapped in gauze,