Wild West - Chapter 2 - Part 14 - 5 minute freewrite challenge

James pulled out a box of matches from his left pocket and looked at Tom. Their eyes met for a split second before James walked inside the house.

He walked over to the nearest window and ripped off the curtains and threw them on the couch. He then took a bunch of 4 or 5 matches out of the box and struck them on fire. He waited patiently for the brittle sticks to ignite in full, then picked up the curtain cloth from the couch and set its end on fire.

He dropped the still burning matches on the couch so they didn't burn his fingers, and held the cloth suspended in the air still, allowing the fire to properly build up. Once a solid foot of the fabric was ablaze, he tucked it under the couch to make sure it would catch fire, and left the house through the front door, closing it without so much as the last look.

Tom was just out the door, smoking, and offered him a puff of his cigarette, that he willingly accepted.

The fire inside the building was building up fast, and they could soon hear the crackling sound of the burning wood.

“Smells a little like cinnamon, don’t you think?” James remarked as he descended the porch and stepped foot on the sand surrounding the house.

“Burnt cinnamon, maybe.”