Rumors

by Phil M. Williams

  Gwen pursed her lips. “Mr. Barnett has a lot of enemies in this town, but he also has a lot of friends, and they’ll continue to attack unless we fix it. We can fix this without anybody knowing what you did and without you getting into trouble.”

  Ashlee paused for a beat. “I didn’t do anything.”

  “You and I both know that’s not true, and so do all those people who keep attacking you. It’ll never go away unless we fix it.”

  Ashlee was quiet.

  “Ashlee?” Gwen said through the door. “We can fix this for everyone. Your mom doesn’t have to know.”

  Ashlee opened the door. She stood in her socks, wearing jeans and a fleece, her dark hair hanging to chest level. Her nose was red-tipped, her eyes black-circled. “You got five minutes.” She stepped aside from the threshold.

  Gwen entered the trailer. A faint garbage smell hung in the air. She followed Ashlee to the living room and the couch. Plastic cups and dirty plates littered the coffee table. Ashlee slumped onto one end of the couch. Gwen sat on the edge of the other end, the folder in her lap.

  “How are you gonna fix all my problems?” Ashlee asked, her eyes narrowed.

  “I need you to tell the truth to four people,” Gwen said.

  “I’ve been telling the truth.”

  Gwen took a cleansing breath and deadpanned, “Let’s cut the bullshit.”

  Ashlee crossed her arms over her chest.

  “I could leave up those nasty posts about you. The ones that talk about your lying and your promiscuity. Some of them were incredibly detailed. I’d be mortified if I were you.”

  “I can’t say what you want me to say.”

  “Because you’d be in big trouble, right?”

  Ashlee dropped her arms to her lap and stared at her hands. “I just can’t.”

  “What if I could guarantee that you won’t get into trouble?”

  Ashlee looked at Gwen, her eyes unblinking. “But, if I tell anyone, they’ll tell the whole town, and it’ll be even worse for me.”

  “What if I could guarantee that they won’t talk?”

  “How?”

  Gwen opened the manila folder, grabbed the top page, and held it up to Ashlee. “We’ll make them sign nondisclosure agreements, which means, if they tell anyone what you say, you can sue them.”

  Ashlee pursed her lips. “What about Rick? He can still tell everyone.”

  Gwen pointed to the signature and name at the bottom of the agreement. “Mr. Barnett already signed.” Gwen made sure Ashlee got a good look at Rick’s name and then put the form back in the folder. “Of course, I’m not giving you this unless you do as I ask. And you’re right. If you don’t do as I ask, Mr. Barnett is free to tell the truth.”

  “He’s just one person.”

  “One thing that Mr. Barnett loves about being a football coach is the relationships he has with all his players. He’s been coaching for thirteen years. He’s probably coached close to a thousand kids. That’s a lot of loyal young men who are upset about what happened to their coach. Now that Mr. Barnett’s been fired, what’s to stop him from telling everyone he knows?”

  Ashlee looked at the carpet, no longer making eye contact with Gwen.

  “In fact, he doesn’t have much choice really, unless he wants everyone to think he’s a child molester. What if someone lied and said you molested a little boy? Would you just let them lie about you, or would you tell everyone the truth?”

  Ashlee was unresponsive.

  “Ashlee?”

  She turned her head toward Gwen. Her eyes were glassy. Almost in a whisper, she asked, “Who do I have to tell?”

  “Dr. Matthews, two school board members, … and your father.”

  CHAPTER 133

  Rick and Options

  A towel over his shoulder, Rick cracked eggs into a bowl, tossing the eggshells in the trash. He wanted to make Gwen a nice breakfast. It was the least he could do after what she’d done for him—all the pieces she’d put together on such short notice to make it work. All for him. She’d managed to get two board members, plus Dr. Matthews, and Ashlee’s father in a room to listen to Ashlee tell the truth with the protection of nondisclosure agreements. Rick had signed one too, but what did he care? He hadn’t planned on talking about it anyway. He could weather the gossip, especially if this resulted in his record being wiped clean and his reinstatement. That hinged on another hearing. That was why Dr. Matthews had been there. He had the power to call a hearing. The two board members were there to make sure the vote went Rick’s and Gwen’s way, if they got that hearing. Gwen figured they had four of the nine board members already, so she picked two of the five naysayers, hoping Ashlee’s testimony would sway them. Technically, she only needed one to turn for a majority, but you never know. They might still vote against, so she included two, figuring at least one would turn.

  His cell phone chimed as he whisked the eggs. Rick set the bowl on the counter, grabbed his cell, checked the number, and swiped right. “Good morning, Mr. Ziegler.”

  “Good morning, Rick. I just got off the phone with Virgil Matthews.”

  Rick smiled to himself, knowing what was coming. “What did he have to say?”

  “Is Gwen with you?”

  As if on cue, Gwen padded from the bedroom, rubbing her eyes, her hair disheveled.

  “She just walked into the room,” Rick said.

  “Please put me on Speaker,” Mr. Ziegler replied. “She should hear this.”

  Rick put the phone on Speaker and set it on the kitchen table. “You’re on Speaker.” Rick looked to Gwen. “It’s Mr. Ziegler. He has news.”

  “Hi, Mr. Ziegler,” Gwen said, sitting next to Rick.

  “Good morning, Gwen,” Mr. Ziegler replied. “I have good news. I received a call from Matthews this morning. They’ve offered us a deal. The school district’s willing to let you both resign, and they’ll give both of you back pay from the date you were let go until now, and they’ll cover your legal fees. The alternative is to have another hearing to try for reinstatement. Of course, you both are free to make your own decisions. What you decide doesn’t have to be in agreement. If one of you wants the hearing, but the other would prefer to settle, that’s entirely up to you.”

  “We understand,” Gwen said.

  “The catch is, the hearing would be tonight,” Mr. Ziegler said.

  “Tonight?”

  “Yes, tonight. Also, both of the options come with a contingency that you’ll make a statement encouraging the students and specifically the football team to end their strike and to play in the state championship game tomorrow.”

  “What if the kids don’t listen?” Rick asked.

  “Matthews is pretty confident that they will. The bottom line is, the school district wants this all to go away. I think Matthews and some of the school board members are regretting that they listened to Janet Wilcox, and now they’re worried about getting sued or being thrown under the bus by the press. The community’s up in arms about the football game. We have the upper hand, but we can’t delay. They want an answer by noon today.”

  “If we’re reinstated, would that mean I’m also reinstated as the head football coach?”

  “I asked Matthews about that, and, if you’re reinstated, they do want you to resume your duties as the head football coach, but it is not a requirement.”

  “Can we talk about it and call you back?” Gwen asked.

  “Of course,” Mr. Ziegler replied. “One more thing. If you choose the hearing, I’d like to get Victor Moretti up here. I don’t wanna be blindsided like last time.”

  “It’s really short notice.”

  “I know, but I don’t wanna leave anything to chance.”

  “I’ll call him if we decide to have the hearing.”

  “Give me a call as soon as you two make a decision.”

  “Thanks, Mr. Ziegler. We’ll call you back.” Rick disconnected the call and smiled at Gwen.

  “Do you still want to leave?” she aske
d, turning in her chair to face Rick.

  He shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe not.”

  “Janet will still be there, trying to ruin us.”

  “I don’t wanna leave because of her. That’s what she wants. Besides, I don’t think she has the influence she once did. She’s burned a lot of bridges.”

  Gwen pursed her lips. “What about the rumors? This admission by Ashlee isn’t public. People will still think these awful things about us.”

  Rick shook his head. “Not necessarily. NDA or not, I know those school board members. They couldn’t keep a secret to save their life. And, to be honest, I don’t give a shit what these people think about me. I care about my team. I care about my students, and I care about you. The kids know us. They don’t believe this bullshit for a second. Otherwise they wouldn’t’ve stuck their necks out for us.”

  “I want to move on from my past. I don’t know if I can do that here.”

  “What’s to stop someone at the next school from dredging up your past? At least here it’s old news.”

  Gwen nodded. “I suppose that’s true.” She paused for a beat. “Let’s say, for argument’s sake, that we have another hearing, and we’re reinstated. Then what? We just go back to work like nothing happened?”

  “No.” Rick took both of her hands in his. “We go back to work with a rededicated purpose. We’re there for the kids, period.”

  CHAPTER 134

  Janet and Dr. Matthews

  Dr. Virgil Matthews sat across from Janet at her desk. He was tall and thin, in his sixties, with a ruddy complexion. “We’re having an emergency hearing tonight at seven to revote on reinstatement.”

  “How many times do we have to go through this?”

  “There’s new evidence. I can’t say what, because I’ve signed an NDA, but I think we made a huge mistake firing them in the first place. We’re lucky they’re not interested in suing the district.”

  Janet glared at her boss. “It’s a huge mistake to give them another hearing.”

  He glared right back. “At this point, I don’t care what you think. You’re lucky you still have a job, and, if I find evidence that you framed Gwen or Rick, I will terminate your employment immediately.”

  “If you do that, you and this school district will be in for the fight of your lives.”

  “You’ve made that abundantly clear. Rest assured, if we let you go, we’ll have our bases covered, and we’ll be more than ready for any legal action you bring. I suggest from now on that you keep your mouth shut and do your job.” Dr. Matthews stood from his chair. “I better not hear about you lobbying the board.”

  CHAPTER 135

  Gwen and Victor Moretti

  The library was packed; this time more students attended. The nine school board members, plus Dr. Matthews and Solicitor Burks, listened from their seats at the long table. Victor Moretti stood at the podium, a stocky, swarthy man in his mid-forties. He wore a denim button-down shirt with Victor in cursive etched over the right breast pocket and Vic’s Plumbing on the other.

  “My name’s Victor Moretti. I was the jury foreman on the trial that acquitted Emory Jackson of raping Gwen Townsend.” He paused, letting the audience digest that mouthful. “Actually, we didn’t really acquit him. It was a hung jury. The evidence was clear that Gwen Townsend was telling the truth. She’d been roughed up pretty badly and the rapist left DNA evidence. Eleven of us voted to convict, but one juror refused. Her name was Regina Trufant. We tried to convince her, but she wouldn’t budge, so the judge declared a mistrial, and the court didn’t bother to retry the case. The Jacksons were everywhere, talking to the media about how Emory was framed because he was black, how the system’s rigged against black people. That might be true, but it wasn’t true in this case. Gwen’s husband, Brian, must’ve snapped after seeing all this in the media. To be honest, if someone did that to my wife, then went around proclaiming their innocence to the world, I would’ve done the same thing.”

  Victor paused, surveying the audience. “After the mistrial, I found out why Regina Trufant refused to listen to reason and evidence. She was a member of a black supremacy group called the BLF or the Black Liberation Front. She still is a member as far as I know. I’m gonna read you a quote from something she wrote.” Victor read from the paper on the podium. “Melanin enables black skin to capture light and to hold it in its memory mode, which reveals that blackness converts light into knowledge. Melanin directly communicates with cosmic energy. White people are recessive genetic defects who do not have the capability to be empathetic. Because of their white skin, they are not able to capture and to retain God’s light. This is why, throughout history, they’ve committed genocide after genocide against people of color. White people should be wiped off the face of the Earth for the betterment of mankind.”

  Victor looked up from his paper and surveyed the audience again. “I don’t have a lot of regrets in my life. I have a wonderful wife, great kids, and a good business. My biggest regret in life is that we didn’t convict Emory Jackson. If we’d done that, if we’d done our job, Gwen’s husband wouldn’t have killed Emory. Not only did we deprive her of justice, we helped take away her husband from her too.” Victor turned his gaze to the school board. “It doesn’t surprise me that Gwen Townsend risked her own life for her students. What does surprise me is that she was fired for it. You people should be ashamed of yourselves. I hope you can redeem yourselves tonight.” Victor walked back to the audience, welcomed by a thunderous applause.

  Many people spoke up for Gwen and Rick that night. The fear that had kept many supporters at bay had dissipated. Word had gotten out that Janet was losing her grip on the school board and consequently losing some of her power. The opinion of the community had also turned in Gwen’s and Rick’s favor. Unlike the first hearing, the speakers were overwhelmingly in support of their reinstatement. Jamar and a few students spoke, pledging to end the strike if Gwen and Rick were reinstated. Lewis and a handful of teachers spoke, along with a dozen parents and community members. Ashlee Miles wasn’t there. Gwen had heard from Lewis that she went to live with her father. Janet Wilcox and Rachel Kreider weren’t in their usual seats, but nobody seemed to care.

  At the end of the public comments, Cliff Osborn asked each board member for a comment. They all declined, even Heather Miles. The vote was anticlimactic. Eight for reinstatement. The one negative vote came from Heather Miles, who received a torrent of boos from the audience after she voted. She was red-faced as she stormed from the library.

  “Good riddance,” someone from the audience shouted.

  “Don’t let the door hit you on the ass,” another person said.

  Cliff waited for the boos to subside before he said, “Gwen Townsend and Rick Barnett are reinstated effective immediately.”

  The crowd erupted, people standing and clapping and cheering.

  CHAPTER 136

  Rick’s Back

  The day after the hearing, Rick drove his truck toward school. Gwen was still at her apartment. They didn’t have to work until Monday, but Rick had a pregame meeting with the team, and he had someone to confront. Fortunately, the district had only hired long-term substitutes for their classes, so Rick and Gwen could return, almost as if they’d never left. The long-term subs would finish off their contracts, subbing elsewhere as needed.

  Rick yawned. He’d been up late last night, going over film of North Columbia High School. They were big, fast, and physical. Rick worried about his team’s lack of preparation, given that they hadn’t practiced all week. Rick parked in the teacher’s lot and stepped from his truck. It was cloudy, the cold wind biting his nose and ears. He walked to the side door and keyed himself into the school. Rick wasn’t sure if his scan card would work, but apparently they’d already reactivated it.

  The hallways were quiet, faint murmurings coming from behind the classroom doors. Rick checked his watch. He still had an hour before the pregame meeting. Rick stopped at a classroom door and knocked. Bob
Schneider appeared at the window, his eyes widening. He opened the door, blocking entry with his big body.

  “Hey, … Rick. I didn’t think you’d be back till Monday.”

  “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

  Bob stepped back, allowing Rick to enter. His classroom was empty. Rick knew it was his planning period. Rick shut the door behind them.

  “What do you want?” Bob asked, standing near the door, his chin held high, and his barrel chest puffed up.

  “I wanted to talk about the football team and your employment as a coach,” Rick replied.

  “I’ve been thinkin’ about it too. I might be able to offer you the defensive coordinator job next season, if you wanna come back.”

  Rick shook his head. “This isn’t about me. This is about you.”

  Bob shrugged his shoulders. “That’s the best I can do. What more do you want from me?”

  “You’re fired, Bob.”

  Bob’s eyes widened; he creased his brows. “You can’t fire me. You’re not the coach anymore.”

  “I’ve been reinstated as a teacher here but also as the head football coach. You were the interim coach.”

  “Hold on a second. This isn’t right.” He walked to the classroom phone on the wall. “I’m gonna call Janet.”

  Rick blew out a breath. “Still on the wrong side, huh?”

  Bob picked up the receiver. He pressed the keys unnecessarily hard, glancing from the phone to Rick and back again.

  “There’s not a damn thing she can do about it.” Rick said this matter-of-factly and without emotion.

  Bob still made the call. After a brief hold he said, “Principal Wilcox, it’s Bob Schneider.” He listened for a moment. “I have Rick Barnett here telling me that I’m no longer the head coach.” He listened again. “That can’t be right.” He paused, his face reddening. “Sorry. Of course.” Bob put the phone back on the receiver and turned to Rick. “You won’t win without me.”