The blame game had begun. Kevin, of course, denied everything. They started pointing fingers at each other, a chaotic mess of accusations.
I added fuel to the fire. “Did Kevin make you
extort money from your classmates too? Explain where you got the money to pay these guys.” I pulled a sheet of paper from my bag.
“Mr. Henderson, I have a list of students who
were extorted by Mark and Kevin. You can ask
them yourselves.”
Mark’s face turned even whiter. My plan was
working perfectly. I smirked down at him,
kneeling on the ground. He looked up at me, a
flicker of understanding in his eyes. He realized
it was a setup.
I’d had my friend alert the principal and Mr.
Henderson while I was following Ashley. I hadn’t
anticipated the confession, I’d figured he’d just
く
9:58
try to get some kind of petty revenge for me
ignoring him. But this was even better.
34
Because of the megaphone, news of the
incident spread through the school like wildfire.
And since everyone involved was already on
Principal Thompson’s radar, he decided to
make an example of them. He called in every
parent. Including Mark’s.
Me? I was praised in front of the entire school
my quick thinking, for standing up to the
ullies, for alerting the authorities. I’d
successfully distanced myself from the whole
mess.
In the principal’s office, I saw Mark’s father for
the first time. He wore faded blue work clothes,
his face weathered and tanned, his back bent
with a large hump. His hair was unkempt, his
clothes covered in dust, like he’d rushed
straight from a construction site.
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1200
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He walked in and immediately tell to his knees
in front of Mr. Henderson, kowtowing
repeatedly. The picture of a humble, simple
man.
I stood back, watching this man, the man who had murdered my father, with cold detachment. This “humble” man had stabbed my father eighteen times, yet escaped justice because of his supposed mental illness.
I took a step back as my parents arrived, looking bewildered by the scene. My dad,
sensing my fear, squeezed my shoulder. “Don’t
worry, Sarah. We’re here. We’ll take care of
this.”
I nodded. I wasn’t afraid. This time would be
different.
Mr. Henderson looked uncomfortable. “Mr.
Miller, please get up. We called you here to
discuss Mark’s behavior, not to…”
<
9:58
34)
Mark’s father looked up, then at Mark. Without
a word, he kicked his son, sending him
sprawling to the floor. “Tell me what this little bastard did,” he growled. “I’ll teach him a
lesson.”
Throughout the whole ordeal, Mark remained
silent, head down, not even flinching as his
father assaulted him.
“Mr. Miller, calm down!” Mr. Henderson
intervened. He then explained what had
happened in the woods.
Mark’s father listened, then turned his gaze on
- me. It was the same unsettling look Mark often
gave me. “All this… for a girl?” he muttered.
“My boy’s got game. Getting with a pretty thing
like this at school. He’ll have no problem finding
a wife.”
