Vine Street: What Lies on The Rooftops?

By Michael Sanchez

Vine Street: What Lies on the Rooftops? is the second book in the Vine Street series. The story takes place one year later, in the summer of 1979. The young boy that readers met in Book 1 is still having run-ins with the groundskeeper of an old radio station at the ballpark where the boy plays baseball in So

• Language: English
• Publisher: Michael Sanchez
• Release date: Aug 31, 2022
• ISBN: 9798822905023

Michael Sanchez

Michael Sanchez is the author of Vine Street (2018) and Somber Town (2020). His passion is to become a full-time writer of suspense, thriller, and horror. Michael has an MBA and BS in management and an AS in criminal justice. He also enjoys baseball, football, and physical fitness. Michael's inspiration is his mother, who pushed him to be his best self no matter the circumstances

Book preview

H

ere I am standing on the edge of the riverbank behind Point Middle School, contemplating the events which occurred last year. Trying to skip rocks on the dark Delaware River water and gaze at the ripple caused by the impact of the tiny egg-shaped stone. It’s a beautiful sunny day with a little breeze, and the water was calm. You can see the big city from a distance as the large boats traveled from one side of the river close to the big city. The big bridge was busy as always with the multitude of cars moving across, making their way from one side of the bridge to the other. I was thinking of the Summer of 1978 and what a time it was. It started like any other summer before, but this one was special.

I moved to a new neighborhood and made new friends. It was nothing compared to where we used to live. The street was much bigger, and we had more room to play, and the neighborhood kids loved it! It disappointed me in the very beginning my mother had moved out of the old neighborhood, but my mood quickly changed once I saw what the new block had to offer. However, I didn’t expect what was to come regarding the issue with my biggest nightmare. I won, and he lost, and ever since the summer ended, my nightmares had subsided. The dreams were intense, and I thought for sure he was going to get me, but it was just a dream. I’m glad I woke up once the alarm bell went off in the early morning, on a fall day. I had woken up in a sweat, trying to get away from him. It was so surreal and scary!

The school season had started all over again, and things went well throughout the year as I continued to meet new friends, and overcame issues with new enemies, but that is just the way it was. The strong preyed on the weak, and it was up to the weak to improvise once they saw trouble coming, but then again, it wasn’t easy to ignore. School in the small city was brutal, so I learned to adapt. I don’t know what was worse for me, the streets, or the kids at school. Either way, it was another school year ending well.

This year, 1979, and things in the small city were not looking good. The house fires continued to intensify, as the community worried about what was coming next for a small city struggling economically. Work was hard to come by gas was difficult to obtain for those who were lucky to have a job in South Jersey, at least this is the way I saw it or heard about it, but I was still too young to understand what was going on. My main concern is hanging out with my friends, even if I could not travel far from my house. From time to time, I would break the rules more than I should have, but my mother was too busy taking care of my siblings and watching over them to make sure they were safe from danger.

The warning sirens kept going off from a distance, letting everyone know something was going on. I had no clue, but what I did know and observed is every time the siren sounded, you heard the siren of a firetruck following soon after, and boy what a show it was! Everyone appeared to look forward to seeing where the fire trucks were heading to so they could have something to talk about for the day. It was better than buying a newspaper the next day, but then again, people rushed the following day to purchase the local paper to read about what occurred the previous day.

Things were heating up, and people were scared. Entire neighborhoods appeared to be burning down, and the events which occurred the night before Halloween the previous year were awful. Mischief night, they were calling it, and homes were on fire! So, everyone knew what was at stake and were trying their best to be vigilant and protect their families from vandalism or potential arson from those who wished harm. Summer arrived once again, and was going to be a hot one!

My little brother was a year older, a year wiser, and focused more on his entrepreneurial instincts. He loved earning money in one form or another by collecting old soda bottles from famous brands. Everyone knew what that was, and kids all over tried their best to earn some coins to save or play pinball machines at the corner store. Five cents for each bottle collected was a fortune for a kid his age, and he did everything he could to earn every penny. However, he enjoyed making money by hustling and impressing the corner store owner by picking up a broom and sweeping the floor to force the owner to hire him part-time. It was a good hustle, and it worked and made my little brother very happy, if not for a while. We were spending less time together, and I did miss him, but then again, I wanted to make sure he was safe. I would prefer he would stay away, which would give me more opportunity to explore without worrying if I would have to protect myself or him from unwanted harm or danger.

My way of making money was to collect copper wiring from the electric lines found in the old, abandoned buildings and wrap the wire on a stick to keep the wire wrapped tight! It was dangerous to venture into those old, abandoned buildings, but I feared not. What scared me were those giant rats with big, red eyes trying to attack me for trespassing. I guess they were not too happy to see someone who did not resemble them or have a typical appearance, but it didn’t matter. Those nasty things were very territorial and would fight and destroy each other if given a reason. So, I would bring with me the big stick to battle it out for supremacy. The struggles I had with those rodents were epic, but there was no one to witness the onslaught caused by my wicked bat to keep the rodents at bay! I had won the battles, but other times I had to run for my life because those hairy-looking things with sharp teeth and long claws were relentless at trying to get at me! Their red eyes appeared to glow in the dark the angrier they got, and the loud hissing convinced me it was time to exit the building. It was either them or me. I knew when I was outnumbered and did not hesitate to leave when the going was good, but sometimes I had to battle with those rodents to give me a fighting chance.

There were other crazy things I did like, walking into those buildings with walls almost completely knocked out from one side to the other with a beam or two keeping the foundation together. I didn’t realize the kids from around the way were knocking away the walls brick by brick, from the interior using sledgehammers to knock big holes into the walls until finally, they were able to knock the wall out until they were able to see daylight from the inside. It didn’t make sense to me, but that’s what I heard. The neighborhood kids did not realize ceilings tend to give way when there is nothing to support it. Eventually, the more you knock away, the weaker the foundation gets. Tell it to the poor kid who lost his life getting his kick’s out of it. At least that’s what I heard! I would never do something so reckless, but I was stupid enough to see it happen. What was I thinking? I guess I wasn’t thinking at all, but it looked like fun at the time, but now looking back, it wasn’t such a bright idea after all. Anyway, just part of my summer fun, and it was only the beginning.

The 10th of June, and things were heating up in South Jersey. People appeared to be going crazy. At least that’s what I heard. I was too busy caring about myself, but the neighborhood certainly enjoyed reading about the gossip written in the local Spanish and English newspapers. They enjoyed making fun of others’ misery. I guess it was a way to divert all the trouble occurring in their neck of the woods, but it was tough to ignore what was happening around the way, and in other parts of the city. You see, kids were losing their lives to drugs and being placed in jail because of the ever-present gang life. It wasn’t easy to ignore. Mother always said, If you see trouble walk to the other side of the street! Easier said than done because the bad guys always knew you were showing fear, which gave them the incentive to go after you because they knew then they could take your heart. An expression used quite a bit at the time. The alleyways were the best way to get away from those who wished to cause harm. They were like a giant maze taking you from one part of the block to another without venturing out to the sidewalk to be seen.

Yep, there can be some scary moments even when you’re close to home living in a small city. At the end of the street, a three-story building with a fire escape looked harmless in appearance. I had never seen a fire escape before and was curious to find out what was on the third floor. The building was abandoned and boarded up, but I noticed the door leading to the third floor had not been secured, or someone had intentionally taken the boards down to gain entry. There was never any sign of anyone entering or exiting the building. So, I wanted to take the opportunity to explore and see what I could find inside the building. Of course, this was something my mother would disapprove of, and I would never hear the end of it if she found out I was inside this ominous-looking building. Menacing to others, but I didn’t see it that way. It was just another place to explore. The only problem is I couldn’t get on the fire escape due to a giant anvil at the end of the ladder. This was to keep the ladder in a fixed position away from anyone’s ability to climb it. Knowing me this would only be a temporary setback because my curiosity would get the best of me. Curiosity motivates me more to explore and face challenges which made me who I was, even if I knew my mother would disapprove. For the time being, I had to let go of the idea of finding a way to climb the fire escape but make no mistake I will mount it and find out what was on the third floor.

As I started to walk away, I took one last glance at the fire escape and thought I saw someone enter the third floor from the fire escape, but I think my imagination was getting the best of me. There was no possible way anyone could get up the stairs that fast without being noticed, and even so, without having the ability to get a hold of the ladder from its current position. Yep, had to be my imagination because I would have seen someone trying to get up there. Anyhow, I ignored it and went on my way, but I still felt someone was watching me from the third floor of the abandoned building and turned around to take one last look. There was no one there. Just my imagination! Anyhow, away I went toward the train tracks about another block away from my house where none of my friends would dare to explore. There were rumors kids were missing from the train tracks over the years as they walked about minding their business, and this is the reason why parents would tell their children to stay away from the train tracks. I guess they had a good idea to do so. The rumor was a few kids lost their limbs climbing onto the boxcars to slip off and lose their legs as the freight car ran over their body parts. Must have been a gruesome sight, but that was the word in the street. They lost a leg or arm because they tried to climb on while the freight car was moving. Never a good idea, but some of them I’m sure felt they had what it took to outrun the freight car while in action. This was known as the superman syndrome, but unfortunately, this was not the case.

The train tracks were not the place to be, and was the first time I visited the site on my own. I know many of my friends would advise me not to do so, especially with its history. Either way, I went. My curiosity could not keep me away. The mysterious lure of it all was just too much to keep me out, even if danger signs were all over the place. My friends would think I was crazy, but I was independent, and it wouldn’t matter to me what they thought. I was going to do it, no matter what.

I walked the track for hours trying to find something, not really knowing what to look for. I kept looking everywhere, trying to see if I could find anything to draw my attention, but it never happened. The tracks ended. At the end of the train tracks were large concrete blocks of all shapes and sizes, as if someone had purposely dumped the concrete there. Maybe so, but there were visible signs buildings once stood in the vicinity. What happened to those buildings? I don’t know, but one structure caught my eye from a distance! A nice red brick building with some kind of painting, or something at the very top of the building, which looked like a clock, and it was nice! Anyhow, there I was standing in front of the large rubble of rocks at my disposal. I enjoyed playing with rocks and throwing them at others defiantly, was a joy.

You see the kids in the neighborhood enjoyed rock fighting because there was nothing else to do unless we made basketball hoops out of those old bicycle rims or the orange plastic milk crates. This used to take us forever, to cut a hole large enough for a basketball to go through, but got old quick, especially when you don’t have the proper tools. Anyway, I had no idea I was living so close to the river. I could see the river from a distance, but it was close enough for me, so I decided to take a walk to the river, farther than I expected, and in an area, I have never been to before. It was nothing compared to the way it was at Point Park. You see, back on the riverbank behind the park were a lot of trees concealing the river from view, but this was different. I could see everything across the river and the scene was fascinating!

Back to the present day, and here I am skipping rocks on the river and remembering how things transpired during the summer of 1978, followed by events which occurred throughout the following school year, and now starting all over again this summer season. What happens throughout the summer is beyond me. I’ve already been involved in some crazy things and the city is already experiencing hard times, but this was only the beginning. Hopefully, he will not show up this summer in my dreams because I don’t know if I can handle another summer running away from him!

The day went without a hitch, but what made my day was finding my old friend Gabriel, who just appeared out of nowhere. I tried to locate him this past school year, but he was nowhere to be found. I learned he was attending another middle school in the city and was living with his grandparents on the outskirts of the city, far enough to keep us apart! I guess his story made sense. Anyhow, I was too busy trying to make it through another school year, so I had too many other things to worry about. The day was beautiful and sunny with a little breeze sneaking through, so I was able to enjoy it. I don’t like the heat much, so it was perfect for me. The day ended like every other day, sitting in the living room watching the sitcoms of the day. No air conditioner though because my mother could not afford it, but comfortable enough to deal with I guess, maybe because my siblings and I were too preoccupied watching our favorite shows.

The television guide was our favorite book to read because it provided a list of all the shows for the day, but it became almost a routine fighting over it with my siblings to get dibs over who would have control over the television set for the evening. Mom soon put a stop to it when she would sit down to watch her favorite Spanish soap operas. We knew then it was time to head to our bedrooms for the night even if we had objections. Fighting to get to the bathroom was always a challenge, but my brother and I were never in a rush to get to the shower. However, mom made sure there wouldn’t be a problem because her loud shouting could be heard clear as a bell from downstairs. We knew it had to get done whether we wanted to or not. One by one, we took our turns using the bathroom, but it felt like forever. By the time it was my turn, the water coming from the shower was cold, which made me rush and hurry up to get out of there. I hated cold showers, but that’s just the way it was.

I was so happy the day went well as I was ready for bed. My brother and I were no longer sharing the bedroom. It now belonged to me alone. I don’t know if this was a good thing or a bad thing because I did miss talking to him for a bit. Mom had decided I should have the bedroom to myself. Fine with me! My eyes were getting heavy. Sleep was taking over, and slowly my eyes closed, as the neighborhood dogs could be heard barking, and the sound of sirens coming from the fire trucks were as active through the night just as they were during the day. It didn’t bother me though. I was able to block the sound while I fell asleep. I guess because it was the norm and my body had adjusted to all the ruckus happening outside of the safety of my bedroom. Slowly, my mind started to shut down. Minutes felt like hours when suddenly I heard a strange sound coming from my bedroom window. The sound startled me, and quickly opened my eyes to look in the direction of the bedroom window. There was nothing there, so I paid no mind and quickly shut my eyes once more. Once again, I heard a funny sound coming from the direction of the window and opened my eyes once more to see what the sound was. Nothing was there, but something was knocking on the window. What could it be? Was it happening again? Was it he once more haunting my dreams once again? This is not how I wanted my summer to go. I got up and investigate