"I fidgeted in nervous anticipation as wisps of smoke started to escape between small fissures in the plywood covering the windows. He checked his computer in vain; I was clean. But that didn't stop him from keeping me there while he grilled me about coming out of an abandoned building at 2:00 a.m. He turned sideways in his seat to look at me and it took every bit of concentration I could muster to make up a story and not be distracted by the smoke that was now billowing out of the second story windows behind him. I remember I told him I was scouting the site for a photography shoot. By the time I was near the end of my story, flickering flashes of yellow were creeping toward the open front door. I knew that as soon as I stopped talking he would turn around and I'd be done for. So I kept talking. Flames began to lick at the upstairs windows, and I kept talking. I was so nervous and excited I thought I would wet my pants. I never looked away from his eyes, even when the flames completely silhouetted his balding head. And still, I kept talking. My story had started to come apart minutes before but I had no choice, but to keep talking. I guess I thought I could keep his attention until the whole building burned to the ground behind him. He must have seen the reflection of yellow flashes in my face or been onto my story about being Rolling Stone's ace photographer and shooting Bruce Springsteen there next week because he broke away from me and turned around slowly in his seat until the burning building was in full view.

'Holy shit!' the cop exclaimed as he threw the car into reverse. He called in the address to the fire department once he had backed half a block away. 'Photographer my ass,' he said, looking at me in the rearview mirror. 'You were starting a fire in there.'

'You don't know that, ' I said.

'I don't have to know. '

'Come on man, they were just gonna tear it down anyway, hell I saved the city money. Do me a favor, mister. Let me go.'

"He looked back at the fire for a full minute. 'Do you a favor,' he said, laughing as he put the car in drive and took off. 'You've got that part backward.'