I turned back to Fred.
“Who told you to lie?”
“My mom.”
“What did she want you to lie about?” “My dad hates her. I do, too. She asked me to lie. Adults aren’t supposed to do that. It’s bull. My dad would kill me if I lied.”
“Must be something pretty important.” Snivel. Wipe.
“I’m supposed to lie about you.”
Alarm bells began to clang in my head. Over the past few days a cardiologist would have had a field day with my heart rate.
“About what?”
“They told me I’d never have to worry about grades again. I dunno. I didn’t want to come here today, but I had to. My dad said I had to come here for tutoring. I dunno what to do. I gotta have that note signed by you every day. I can’t tell my dad.”
“Tell him what?”
“What they told me to say.”
“What did they tell you to say?”
He sniveled and gulped and looked away. His voice was barely audible as he said, “They told me I should say that you showed me porn on the Internet. That you tried to get me to go home with you. That you talked about sex. You never talk about nothin’ but grammar in here. Grammar sucks. No offense.” He met my eyes for a moment, then glanced away. “And that you tried to do stuff.”
“To whom were you supposed to tell this?” I asked.
“I dunno. They were gonna set it up. I dunno. Reporters. Or the cops. Or somebody. I thought about it, but I ain’t lyin’ for those assholes. I’m supposed to learn somethin’. You taught me stuff I never learned before. I gotta know this stuff. I gotta get a real grade. I’m never gettin’ into college if I don’t know this stuff. It’s probly too late, but I gotta try. Lyin’s for shit. Oh, sorry.”
I ignored the expletive. I was reeling. I eased over to my desk, got the edge behind me, and sat gingerly.
“You said ´they.’ Were there other people besides your mom?”
“Old Lady Towne. Sorry. Mrs. Towne, and Mrs. Spandrel, and a couple others.”
“When did they ask you this?”
“My mom talked to me last night. Today, I got called to the office. This time there were four of them, Spandrel, Towne, Benson, and Graniento. They said they’d talked to my mom. They put a lot of pressure on me. They made a lot of promises. They were going to transfer me to Benson’s class. The kids make fun of him. He doesn’t know stuff. Not like you do. I had him for class as a sophomore. Nobody ever even listened to him. Are you gonna be in trouble?”
I said, “I have nothing to fear from the truth.”
“Am I going to be in trouble?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
I said, “Fred, you have nothing to fear from the truth.”
“What do I do?”
I had the same question. I wasn’t sure what I should do next for myself, but Fred had to be helped. That I could take care of.
I asked, “Do you want to leave?”
“No. I’ve got that stupid history paper. It’s due tomorrow. If I don’t get it in I’ll flunk.”
“If you’re uncomfortable, I’ll get someone else to watch you.”
“Uncomfortable about what?”
While he got up to get his work, I called Mr. Zileski. When I finished, he said, “Bullshit. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“Do you want me to get someone else to watch him?”
“What the hell for? You haven’t done anything wrong.”
I handed the phone to Fred so he could talk to his dad. Fred gave a series of yeps, then said, “I’ll get it done.” He pushed the button to disconnect and gave the phone back to me. He began writing his paper.
I called Scott. His phone was off, which meant he was still in a meeting. I left a message to call me.
I called my lawyer and left a message on his voice mail.
I tried to call Frank Rohde. He was out. I called Detective Gault, who said, “Doesn’t sound like that has anything to do with murder.”
“It’s another lie about me.”
He assured me he’d check into it. I wanted him to rush over and arrest people.
Then I sat down and stared out the window, drummed my fingers on the desktop, and tried not to begin slamming objects around the room. I didn’t want to leave Fred in this state, or I’d have walked down to Meg. I certainly wasn’t going to talk to Meg about Fred in front of the boy. Fred simply picked up his daily folder and got to work. Habit can be a good thing. He sniffled on occasion and barely looked up at me. My mind raced and swirled. Baseless false accusations.
Lies and shit. I would take care of Fred, and then adults were going to answer questions.
Mr. Zileski worked half an hour away. He was there in less time than that. Fred saw his dad and began to cry.
Mr. Zileski put a hand on the boy’s shoulder and said, “Tell me the story.”
Fred did.
When he finished, Mr. Zileski said, “I’m so sorry to have brought this on you, Mr. Mason. Is there anything I can do to make things right?”
I said, “I think taking care of Fred and seeing that he’s okay will be enough.”
“My wife is a shit,” Mr. Zileski said. “I keep trying to get full custody. Fred will be old enough soon to just leave that bitch.”
Fred said, “I don’t want to talk to anybody. Am I going to have to talk to the police?”
I said, “What they did is criminal.”
Fred said, “The stuff they wanted me to lie about would have sent you to prison. That’s sick.”
Mr. Zileski said to me, “There must be something you can do. How about your union? There’s gotta be rules against that kind of thing. You must be able to sue the bitch.”
I said, “I’ll work on it. Fred, you did the right thing. Thanks.”
“Are you guys mad at me?”
I said, “I’m not.”
Mr. Zileski said, “You didn’t lie in the face of terrible pressure. I’m proud of you. I’m going to confront your goddamn mother.”
“Please don’t,” Fred said. “It won’t do any good. She’ll just lie. That’s what she always does, lies. She’ll tell any lie to get her way. She lies to me all the time. She lies about you, Dad.”
“Got that right,” Mr. Zileski said. “She lied her way through the divorce proceedings. Luckily, I had a great lawyer. After this, I’ll get full custody. He can visit her in prison.” He turned to me. “This isn’t over. I will do what I can to bring that woman down. You don’t try to destroy a person’s life. No one gets to get away with that. Are you okay?”
I said, “I don’t know.”
Mr. Zileski said, “If I can be of any help, call me.”
They left.
45
My name, my career, my job, and my reputation had been saved by a kid’s honesty. I felt vulnerable and sick. And the adults were going to pay. And they were going to pay bigtime. I didn’t know how yet. I called Scott. He’d just gotten out of his meeting.
When I heard his voice, I began to cry. Comfort, safety, someone who loved me.
“What’s wrong?” he asked. I felt his concern and caring wash over me.
I got myself under control and told him Fred’s story. He said, “Hold on. Stay calm. I’ll be there. Call our attorney. You’re okay. You’ll be fine. I’m on my way. I love you. Go see Meg. Stay with her until I get there.” He reassured me over and over until he was confident that I’d pulled myself together. He said, “I’ll be stuck in traffic, so it will take me longer than usual. I wish I was there now. I’ll be there as soon as I can. I love you. I’ll be right there.”
After talking to him, I was calmer and didn’t need tissues for the moment.
As I hung up, once again my classroom door crashed open. It had been through a lot of that lately. Meg burst in. In one hand she swung her cane wildly. The fingers of her other hand clutched Basil Milovec’s left ear. I liked Meg and no question this looked important, but I’d just been through someth
ing shattering.
Milovec squawked and said, “Quit that.” He flailed at her with his arms. She twisted his ear with one hand, whacked his shin with the cane, and shoved him forward. When they reached my desk, Meg took one look at me and said, “What’s wrong? Do you want me to dump this piece of trash?”
I said, “I’ll tell you about it when we’re finished.”
She nodded, then asked, “Where are the cops?”
I said, “They were downstairs earlier.”
Meg said, “We’re going to have a little chat with them.” Again she hit his shin with the cane.
“Ow, that hurts.”
“Good,” Meg said.
“What’s up?” I asked.
“This is the person who told the cops you were outside the supply room at 4:45.”
My anger flamed instantly to fury.
I snapped, “You lying sack of shit.”
He snarled, “You can’t prove anything.”
I said, “Why?”
He said, “Fuck you.”
Meg said, “Follow us. We’re going to the police.” She began to prod her captive toward the door.
I said, “Wait.”
Meg stopped.
I said, “The cops already know he told them.”
Meg said, “They don’t know he made it up.
” “Hold on,” I said. They waited.
Here was a chance to get information. I said, “We know he lied. Maybe he’ll give us information in exchange for not going to the police.”
Milovec said, “Fuck you.”
I said, “Meg, what happened?”
She said, “Not more than ten minutes ago, I heard this dirt-bag as he passed by the library. He was plotting and planning with someone I could not see. He was talking about the police investigation and about duping Tom into helping the suckups. He then said he was the one who lied to the police about you being at the storage room earlier. Then whoever he was talking to laughed and agreed that it was a perfect plan.”
Milovec snarled, “I said no such thing.”
Meg said, “I know what I heard.”
“Who was I talking to?” Milovec asked.
Meg said, “I didn’t see. I thought it was a woman’s voice, but I’m not sure. We’ll go to the police. Everyone in the school will be questioned before you can warn them. That person will confirm they were with you. They won’t know they need to lie. And you need a witness to say that isn’t what you said.”
Milovec said, “And I’ll say you’re making this up because he’s your friend.”
“Oh,” Meg said, “perhaps in the excitement, I’ve forgotten. When I heard what you were plotting, I made a call.” She took out her cell phone and spoke into it. “Georgette, if you could step in, please.”
The classroom door opened and Georgette Constantine walked in. “Did I forget to mention?” Meg asked. “I have a witness who heard everything.”
Georgette smiled. “Mr. Milovec said that he was glad Tom was being set up and that he was making it up about Tom being outside the storeroom at 4:45.”
Milovec’s face turned red. He said, “I’m leaving.”
I said, “And we’ll go straight to the police.”
He hesitated. “You can’t make me talk.”
Meg said, “We will tell the police you lied. They will find out who was with you in the hall. That person won’t know there’s a need to conceal that you were together.”
I was thinking fast. I said, “Milovec, I don’t like you, and the police will probably find out you were lying, but maybe they won’t. We’ll agree to keep quiet if you give us some information.”
“I’m not talking to you people.”
Meg said, “Lying to the police and impeding an investigation is a crime. You’re in deep shit, you fool.”
I said, “Let’s all sit down.” I held in my anger. Here was the possibility of real answers. Finally, there would be a break in the monolithic suckup faction. Somebody had made the mistake of blabbing, and witnesses had heard. Now, he might break under pressure and betray all the conspirators’ secrets.
Georgette said, “I’ve got to get back to the office. Let me know what happens.” Meg and I thanked her for her help. She left.
Milovec said, “I’ll talk, but I’m not talking with a witness present. I’ve got to see all cell phones. No tape players can be plugged in. We need to sit away from the intercom so we can’t be overheard. I’ve got to see the librarian walking across the parking lot and getting into her car. I’ll talk, but you’ll get no proof on me. It won’t do you any good, but I’ll talk.”
Meg said, “You comfortable being alone with him?”
“If he doesn’t talk,” I said, “he knows I’ll call you, and we’ll get Georgette, and we’ll all go straight to the police.”
Milovec and I watched Meg stride across the parking lot in the fading light. We saw her car lights go on. We saw her pull out. Both Milovec and I checked the hallway to make sure no one was lurking. I figured he might try and bolt, but he didn’t. We returned to the corner of the classroom farthest away from the intercom. We sat in kids’ desks. I made sure I sat so that I could watch him and the door. We each placed our cell phone on a desk next to us.
Milovec said, “What if I talk, and you still go to the police?”
I said, “You know my reputation. I always keep faith. Does anyone else know about your affairs?”
“No.”
“I’ve never told. You know I’ll keep my word to take you to the police. And at this point, I’m not sure how much of a choice you have.” He was on the edge of the precipice between being ratted out for obstructing a police investigation and trusting me. “What the fuck was going on?” I asked.
He said, “We should have had someone go with me to rat on you, but we thought it would look odd if two people hadn’t come forward.”
I said, “And you couldn’t find someone else to lie so blatantly.”
“We tried,” Milovec said.
At least someone had a conscience.
I said, “With whom did you plan the lie about where I was?” I tend to get grammatically rigid when I’m angry.
He wiped his hands on his black jeans.
“You can’t tell anyone I told. They’ll kill me if this gets out.”
“Who will kill you?” I asked.
He blanched. “I didn’t mean kill me dead. I meant it metaphorically. If I tell you, I’m betraying them.”
“You tried to get me convicted of murder.”
“Yeah, well, you’re a–”
I said, “It won’t take long to call the police.”
“Fine.” He drew a deep breath. He loosened his tie and undid the collar of his white shirt. He said, “We met at a bar both last Thursday and Friday nights. That’s when we planned everything.”
“Who is we?” I asked.
“Bochka, Spandrel, Pinyon, Schaven, Graniento, Towne. All of us.”
“What was the plan?”
“To get you accused of murder. To get you fired.” I said, “You weren’t worried that one of them might be a murderer?”
“We figured one of the old guard did it.”
“Who was pushing that notion?” I asked.
“Nobody was pushing it. It was logical.”
“But accuse me of sexual abuse?”
“You know about that?”
“Obviously.”
“We were ready to do whatever it took.”
Blind fury swept through me. He made his statements so calmly and almost without concern. My conscience, my love for Scott, his love for me, my parents’ training, my sense of self–I’m not sure what it was that kept me in my seat and kept me from hurting him. I don’t know if I could have killed him. At that moment I frightened myself.
“That’s easy for you?” I asked.
“This is a fight. We do whatever we can. You do whatever you can.” I almost thought I saw a smirk on his face. Was he enjoying my discomfort? I rubbed my hand acr
oss my face and focused. I’d get the information from this son of a bitch. Added to what we had from Fred, it was possible I could bring all these people down. That would bring intense satisfaction.
I said, “Were you part of their sexual trysts?”
“No. I haven’t dated anyone from Grover Cleveland since, well, since the women I told you about. I’m going to be married soon to a woman I went to college with. I went out with these guys. I never had sex with any of them.”
I said, “But you’re always talked about as the stud of the staff.”
“I am a stud. I just don’t screw anybody from here, not anymore.”
“Were Eberson and Spandrel having an affair?” “They were just having fun.” “Peter, too?” I asked.
“I guess he had sex with them, but he was supposed to be a lousy lover. Had a small dick, too, according to Spandrel.”
“Did the husbands know?”
“Not until the murder. Mabel told us that her husband walked out on her over the weekend. Took the kids.”
“Nobody believed in being faithful?” I asked.
“I’m not responsible for their behavior. We were having fun. Something you guys know nothing about.”
I said, “Perhaps we have a different definition of fun. Who else was screwing whom?”
“That’s it, as far as I know. It’s only three people. Out of a whole staff of nearly fifty, counting administrators and members of the department, that’s not a lot, is it?”
I had no idea.
I said, “Why was Spandrel fighting with Graniento at the football game Friday night?”
“That was nothing.”
“What?” I demanded.
Milovec said, “Spandrel wanted to add your boyfriend in the plot. Graniento told her no, that everything was getting too convoluted. When you weren’t arrested Friday after what I told the cops, we knew we needed to take more action.”
“Why do all this?” I asked.
“First, everybody dislikes you. Second, you’re the heart of the old guard.”
“I never say anything.”
He said, “You don’t have to. Your silences are deafening.
When you don’t support our causes, the other side has more confidence. Whoever you do speak up for, or whenever, they listen to you. They don’t listen to us. You had to go. And you’re gay. And none of the administrators like that. Bochka hates you. Hates you. We worked out the final details that Friday night after the game.”
Schooled in Murder Page 21