by Leigh Hutton
Clover noticed, in her peripheral vision, that Sergeant Cross had turned to face her, crossing his arms. But she kept her eyes on Mr. Archibald’s face, her eyebrows rising.
‘We suspected it could have been students who are returning to classes, so we thought it fitting for the sergeant and his officers to continue their investigations into this crime with a locker search this morning.’
Goosebumps raced down Clover’s arms and legs. Her heart rate hit maximum RPM. She gripped the sides of her chair.
Sergeant Cross raised a thick, yellow envelope in front of her face. ‘We found this in your locker, young lady,’ he said, giving the envelope a shake. ‘There are enough cheat sheets and exam proofs in here for a student to graduate Silvertown without ever attending a class or reading a text book. This is serious theft. It’s theft with the intent to sell stolen materials. Profiteering. And my tolerance for all of the above is zilch.’
TWENTY-EIGHT
Clover couldn’t take her eyes off of the folder. So, deadly. Enough to end her life.
‘Cheat materials, to sell, no doubt.’ The contempt in Sergeant Cross’s voice was palpable. ‘But you already knew that, didn’t you?’ He shook his head, chucked the envelope on the desk with a thud. ‘We found this in the bottom of your locker, underneath a pink binder and a zebra-print pencil case, ring a bell?’
Clover sat bolt upright and swung her eyes to Mr. Archibald. But he wouldn’t meet her gaze, just shuffled papers on his desk.
‘Mr. Archibald!’ she said, her voice, frantic. ‘That isn’t mine. I’ve never cheated.’
Sergeant Cross sat back in his chair.
Mr. Archibald looked up. ‘This has come as a serious shock to me, Clover. To think, I had just approved you to be our district’s representative for the Peer Inspire Program.’
Sergeant Cross laughed loudly.
A pain stabbed Clover’s stomach, and she wrapped her arms around herself.
‘I have no idea what I’m going to tell the department now.’ Mr. Archibald shook his head with disappointment. ‘I want to believe you, Clover. You did have, let’s face it, a shaky start to your schooling here, but I’ve seen a real improvement. I know you’re a good kid. But, there it is.’ He waved his hand at the envelope on his desk. ‘Your grades did markedly improve in the second half of last year, about the time that the theft of these things started. The evidence stacks up and is plain to see.’
She stared hard at the envelope, at its sharp corners, and as she did, she snapped. ‘Mr. Archibald!’ she yelled, jumping to her feet, sending her chair flying back to hit the wall. She slapped her hands on the top of the desk, and bent her face down to his.
‘My grades went up, because I worked freaking hard!’ she said. ‘I will be doing those talks for you, for the school, and I’ll tell you why. Because, I don’t cheat! And I would NEVER steal so that I could make money so someone else could cheat! It’s ludicrous! My grades improved because I improved! And that’s precisely one of the messages I’ll have for those kids when I do those talks. Work hard, and you will be rewarded. But maybe I should be re-thinking my message, if this is the thanks I get!’
Outrage ripped through her body like a bushfire. She knew her eyes looked insane, wide open and dry. She had no more tears, all cried out. The worst day of her life. All feelings spent. She slammed her fists on the desk. ‘This is ridiculous! Obviously, somebody’s got it in for me. There’s a bunch of girls who have always had it out for me. Someone must have planted that in my locker.’ She stood back, blinked a few times. ‘I’ve been set up!’
Sergeant Cross scoffed, rocked back in his chair, and raised his eyebrows at Mr. Archibald. ‘They always try to deflect the blame.’
‘The blame!’ Clover screamed. ‘They’re not mine. Let me spell it out for you.’ She waved a finger in the sergeant’s face. ‘N-O-T M-I-N-E.’
‘Clover!’ Mr. Archibald said, standing abruptly. ‘That’s quite enough!’ He rushed around his desk.
Sergeant Cross was rising, one hand on his cuffs.
‘I’m sorry,’ the principal said to the sergeant. ‘She’s clearly distraught. Can this not wait until her parents arrive?’
‘No need to wait.’
Clover turned her head at the sound of her father’s voice. She pulled away from Mr. Archibald, rushing into the outstretched arms of her mother.
‘Now,’ Ernie said, glaring at Sergeant Cross. ‘Would someone like to tell me what’s going on here?’
Sergeant Cross took a step towards them. ‘Calm down, Sir.’
‘No. Now, why is my daughter so upset?’
‘Mom.’ Clover nuzzled into the sleeve of her mother’s polo shirt. ‘It’s terrible,’ she said, sobbing. ‘They’re saying that’s mine . ’
‘What?’ Ernie stepped around Leslie so he could see the envelope. ‘What is it?’
‘Stolen goods, Mr. Kassedy, cheat sheets and test proofs we found in your daughter’s locker during a search.’
‘That’s ridiculous. Clover doesn’t cheat.’
Clover pulled from Leslie’s arms, then spun, to face Mr. Archibald. ‘That’s what I told them!’
‘Could we all just please sit down,’ Mr. Archibald said, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow.
‘No way,’ Ernie said. ‘This is insane. My daughter has never and would never do that. Honey,’ she melted into his familiar arms, hoping they were strong enough to hold together her crumbling world. ‘Clover.’ He held her face in his hands. ‘Tell me how this could have happened.’
She attempted to speak, but was choked by her sobs. Her body heaved when she finally got the words out, ‘Somebody’s set me up!’
‘Now, just settle down,’ Leslie said.
Ernie let her go. Leslie wrapped an arm around Clover’s shoulders as she scowled at Sergeant Cross.
‘Constable Cross, is it?’ Ernie asked.
‘Sergeant, Mr. Kassedy.’
‘Right, well, you have obviously made a big mistake here. Did you find the envelope yourself ? Are you positive it was Clover’s locker where it was found?’
Sergeant Cross sighed, tapping his foot impatiently. ‘Constable Harding was the one who found them. She’s one of my best.’
April Harding! ‘She hates me!’ Clover yelled, remembering the tall, sharp-eyed girl who graduated Silvertown High the year she started. A girl even nastier than her younger sister, Darleen.
Sergeant Cross laughed. ‘She is a constable of the highest calibre, she would never let personal feelings infringe on an investigation.’
‘Dad. Seriously, she was so mean to me.’
Ernie held up a hand. She fell silent.
Ernie glanced out the open window, stared for a moment, as if milling something over in his mind, then shook his head. ‘Clover,’ he said finally. ‘You girls seem to share everything. Your clothes, makeup, God knows what else. Did anyone else have the combination to your locker?’
Her breathing slowed as she processed his words. When the fire of her rage receded just enough for the engine of her mind to shift back into gear, she could practically hear the click in her brain.
Other people do have the combo to my locker, she thought. Sydney does, for one. And so does … Sera.
‘The little cow!’ Clover yelled.
‘Now, Miss Kassedy,’ Mr. Archibald said from behind his desk, where he had retreated upon the arrival of her parents. ‘I really must remind you that you are in the presence of an officer of the law.’
‘That bitch!’
‘Who?’ Ernie pushed past Leslie, grabbed Clover by the shoulders. ‘Who’s the bitch?’
‘Sera,’ she hissed. ‘It was Sera. She’s got the combo to my locker.’
Ernie nodded knowingly. ‘You two had that falling out.’
‘When she stabbed me in the back, just as she’s done now!’
She took a deep breath and trained her eyes on Mr. Archibald, slouched behind his desk, biting at his nails. ‘I know what’s happened here, Mr. Ar
chibald,’ she said as calmly as she could manage. ‘My ex-best friend, Sera Gordon she knew the combo to my locker. She planted the cheat sheets, because …
I bet she was mad at me for not forgiving her. I even saw her, earlier today.’ But she couldn’t continue, not with the image of the skeleton of a girl in the canteen, her dead, but hopeful eyes. The girl she had turned away. Then a thought struck Clover, one that she immediately shoved back to the pointless place it had come from. It’s partly your fault. If you’d gone to her this morning, forgiven her, none of this would have happened.
‘Well that’s all fine and dandy, young lady,’ Sergeant Cross said. ‘But the evidence right now points exclusively to you. I am willing to question this Miss Gordon, but right now I am going to have to take you down to the station to get your formal statement, and charge you with theft, among other charges.’
Ernie jumped in front of Clover. ‘That’s not going to happen, sergeant. It’s obvious what’s happened here.’
‘I’m sorry, sir,’ he said, taking his handcuffs off his belt. ‘But that’s exactly what’s going to happen. The materials were found in Clover’s locker. If the school had surveillance cameras, then maybe we could verify Clover’s story about this second person. I will question Miss Gordon, but unless she admits to the crime, or someone else comes forward with some new information, which, I might add, is very unlikely, Clover will be charged, and face court and her due punishment.’
‘You’ve got to be kidding!’ Clover yelled. ‘You’re gonna charge me! Mom!’ She spun, searching for her mother. ‘Mom! What does this mean?’
Leslie lurched forward, pulled Clover against her chest, then to her side, and stood up straight, eye-to-eye with Sergeant Cross. ‘If you think I am going to let you ruin my daughter’s life, you are seriously mistaken,’ she said. ‘She can’t have a criminal record, she is only seventeen!’
‘A criminal record!’ Clover screeched. She looked up into Leslie’s worried, blue eyes, and was struck by an overwhelming sense of relief, and happiness, to have her mother there, defending her. ‘I can’t have a criminal record. How will I go to the World’s!’
This realisation sent a shock wave through Clover, a shock with enough force to shatter a recently erected wall, a wall within her mind, which she’d begun forging as she grappled with Dallas’s ultimatum. Clover felt physically lighter as each brick of the wall fell away, exposing her innermost desire.
Her feelings for Dallas were still present, but were not as strong as her dreams for the World Championships, for a life as a professional racer, for adventure and travel and seeing the world. With these thoughts came a memory from the airport in Orlando, after she’d landed for the race. The image of Steph and Tuck dirt bike Ken and Barbie laughing with all of their racer friends. And at that moment, Clover realised, this was her ideal. The perfect couple. Who she wanted to be. ‘I have to go to the World’s!’
‘Clover! That’s enough!’ Ernie grabbed her by the wrists.
‘Dad, you can’t let them do this. It was Sera! Sera!’ She shook with sobs, fell forward, her head in her hands.
Just then her ears pricked at the sound of footsteps across the carpeted floor. And Mr. Archibald’s frantic voice, ‘Wait outside!’ The door creaked. ‘This is a very bad time!’
Two bodies moved in to the room.
TWENTY-NINE
A beautiful, athletic blonde woman, familiar to her from somewhere, was striding towards them. Mr. Archibald rushed up to the woman. ‘Mrs. Gordon!’ The principal pleaded. ‘Please! Can you come back later?’
‘Mrs. Gordon?’ Clover heard her father say. ‘As in, Sera Gordon?’
‘Yes,’ the blonde woman said. ‘Hi, Mr. Kassedy, Mrs. Kassedy. I don’t think we’ve met.’ She extended a hand to Ernie.
Clover glanced up at her father, who studied the woman intently, before accepting her hand. Then the sliver of a figure behind Mrs. Gordon caught her eye. And Sera stepped out from behind her mother.
Sera’s face was sunken, even more so than Clover remembered from earlier in the day. She had a cut above her eye, spilling blood down her white face. Her jeans, torn and red from cuts, hung loosely from an absence of flesh.
‘We’re sorry to intrude, Mr. Archibald,’ Sera’s mother said. ‘But Sera insisted we come here straightaway. She has something to say.’
‘I did it,’ Sera said, throwing back her hood. Dull matted strands of straw-like hair fell about her cheeks. ‘I planted the envelope in Clover’s locker.’
Clover blinked. She could not believe what she’d just heard.
Sera looked straight into Clover’s eyes. ‘I did it. I knew the combo and I hid it in there. I’m sorry.’ Her eyes lit again, with the same flare of hope that Clover had seen in the canteen. ‘It was dumb, I know, I was just jealous. Angry at you for not seeing that I needed your help, and for going away.’
The word help burned at Clover’s heart.
‘I’m sick.’ Sera bit her bottom lip, and then her mother moved towards her, pulling her into the safety of her arms.
‘Sera’s been very brave, Sergeant Cross,’ Mrs. Gordon said. ‘But she’s weak. You can come to the hospital later to get a statement and do everything you need to do. But I have to get her there now. I found her collapsed in our driveway.’
Sergeant Cross removed his hat, lowering his head. ‘Of course.’
Clover tried to stand, but Ernie tightened his grip of her shoulders. ‘It’s okay, Dad,’ she said, smiling up at him. ‘I’m okay.’
He furrowed his brow, maintaining pressure.
She nodded her head, smiled again.
He let her stand.
For the first time since the devastation of Dallas’s words, Clover felt powerful. She opened her arms, stepping towards a quivering Sera, and smiled warmly at Mrs. Gordon, who immediately stepped back.
Tears rolled from Sera’s eyes as Clover wrapped her arms around her bony shoulders. ‘Oh my God, Sera, you’re so thin,’ she whispered, holding her closer.
The flame of life had re-kindled in Sera’s brown eyes. ‘I’m sorry, Clover.’
‘It’s okay,’ Clover said. ‘I was a bitch. I should have talked to you sooner, it was wrong to stay mad. I’m so sorry.’
‘I deserved it. I’ve been out of control, and now I’ve ruined my life.’
‘No, Sera. I think you’ve just found it.’
‘If you call living spending at least the next four months in hospital, then, yeah, I’m doing great.’
Clover smiled, and let her forehead rest against Sera’s. ‘It’s getting healthy. You’ll be okay. They’ll fix you up, good as new.’
‘Too bad they can’t erase what I’ve done.’
‘I’ll be there for you, every step of the way.’
‘No. You won’t. I’ve ruined my life, and nearly ruined yours. I don’t want you to make the same mistakes.’
Clover stared into her friend’s eyes, confused.
‘I’m sorry I wasn’t supportive before, Clover. I was too afraid of losing you. But I see now. We can always be friends, but you need to follow your dreams. You need to go.’ She smiled, but a tear ran down her cheek. Mrs. Gordon stepped gently between them.
‘C’mon, Sera,’ she said. ‘We should go.’ She turned to Clover. ‘Thank you,’ she said genuinely. ‘We’ll be at the Denver West Medical Centre, whenever you’d like to come visit.’
Afterwards, Clover found her phone at the bottom of her handbag, and, ignoring the messages from Sydney, let her finger fall on Dallas’s name. She knew the answer to his question, and there was no point waiting around to tell him. The thought of calling him occurred to her, but she brushed it away. Hearing his voice would make it impossible. After all, it was he who was doing this to her. Her fingers started to shake, and suddenly, as she typed out the words to the text she knew she had to write, the desolate chill of being alone crept up through her bones, settling over her heart. As soon as she pressed ‘Send,’ she would no longer be the girlfri
end of Dallas Cash. No more ‘perfect’ high school boyfriend, what every girl desired. Wouldn’t be anyone, except for Clover Kassedy. Just her, on her own.
When Clover finished typing the message to Dallas, she paused, to re-read it, just once …
Dallas, I can’t believe you don’t support me. I love you, but I’m going to the World’s. Guess that means we’re over. Love you always … Clover xo.
She stabbed at ‘Send’, and then got out of Messages and turned her phone off. She could feel her own frailty, the possibility of shattering, but she couldn’t let it happen, couldn’t let him get to her, convince her she was wrong.
I am me and I am strong.
She needed to stay away from Dallas Cash, the guy who’d tried to kill her dreams, the one who’d forced her to make the most devastating decision of her life.
Clover wiped her eyes, and swallowed back the lump in her throat. She dropped her phone into the zippered pouch in the side of her handbag, where she kept her most precious things. When something hard and cold stabbed her finger, she pulled out the bracelet, with the little silver heart, that Dallas had given her for Christmas. The bracelet was beautiful, she couldn’t help but think, a token of our love …
She shoved the bracelet back into the pouch and zipped it shut.
Just two weeks until the World’s, she told herself.
She hardly made it out of Silvertown before she had to pull over. It felt wrong, having a present from Dallas on board. So she pulled a U-turn, and drove the short distance to Clearview Lake. She walked down to the bank, through the tall grass.
The mountain peaks stood strong and wise around her, giving her strength. She slipped the bracelet from her pocket and raised her arm, ready to throw it into the lake. But something stopped her. Her fingers refused to let go. It didn’t feel right, to just throw it away.
Clover dropped her head and turned back to her truck. Even though the sun was still lingering, warm on her bare arms, she shivered and slipped her hands into the pockets of her jacket … Not my jacket. She was still wearing Dallas’s. Clover knew what to do. She whipped off the team jacket, pushed the bracelet deep into one of its pockets, jumped into her truck and drove as fast as she could to the Cash farm.