Fire from the Rock

Sylvia, Rachel, and Mr. And Mrs. Zucker all make it out of the fire alive. Sylvia worries because they cannot find Miss Lillie. Sylvia suffers from shock. She listens to the voices in the gathering crowd of onlookers as they speculate on what happened and why. Both Black and white people make up the growing crowd of spectators. Some voices express concern about the loss of property, some express concern for Miss Lillie, but most of the voices talk about how Zucker supports integration. Mr. Crandall, whose neighboring shop was untouched by flames, tries to tell Mr. Zucker that he didn’t have anything to do with the incident. When Mr. Zucker dismisses him, Crandall makes clear that he does not like Jews. Sylvia seeks comfort with the Zuckers while waiting for what will happen next.

The Zuckers thank Sylvia for saving Rachel’s life, but Sylvia insists she is no hero. The police interview the Zuckers but see nothing alarming or connected about the previous racist slurs and swastikas on their storefront and this fire. Sylvia’s family arrives. The police interrogate her, and she tells them she saw the brown Oxford shoes with the taps. Everyone knows those are Mr. Crandall’s shoes. The police confront Crandall, he yells, then they come back and accuse Sylvia of trying to make them arrest an innocent man. Miss Lillie drives up to the scene to the relief of her son, Calvin. She was out delivering flowers at the time of the fire. Sylvia knows she will be in big trouble for telling the truth about seeing those shoes, but the police tell her she saw Crandall coming in to see if everyone was alright and that he is a hero. Sylvia writes in her diary that she felt very close to death today. She took a shower and cried because she “knows the truth” (180).