The Castaway Hotel - 7 - 14. Chapter 14 - Unfounded Allegations

Although, everyone was relieved when they saw the four boys behind us, the euphoria didn’t last long. It ended when Frankie stepped forward and broke the news to me.

“Dad, you aren’t going to be happy when you go into the house.”

“Why not?” I asked him, wondering what was wrong.

“While you were at the courthouse for the bail hearing, the police showed up with a search warrant and literally tore the house apart,” he explained. “They threw things everywhere, looking for evidence from the crime, and they really trashed the place.”

“Let’s go see what happened,” I told him, because I wanted to see how bad it actually was. “Did they take anything with them?”

“Just some of their clothes, but nothing else. They also searched the Grand Am and the Suburban, and they even sprayed some stuff inside both vehicles. I think they were looking for traces of blood, but I don’t think they found what they were looking for. They weren’t exactly happy when they left.”

“Yeah, well it was nice of them to wait until they figured Jake and I would be away at the bail hearing,” I spat out. I wasn’t happy at the way this had been handled, especially after I saw the extent of what they had done to my home. However, I also knew there was probably very little I could do about it, even if I wanted to.

I did take some pictures, before I directed the boys to start cleaning the various rooms up, and then Jake and I took care of some of the other parts of the house. Once we finished putting the house back into a somewhat respectable condition, I called Mr. Gouldin to notify him about what had happened.

Mr. Gouldin was incensed that this had been done while we were in court and promised to bring it up, the first chance he got. He thought the detective was way out of line with the way he was handling things and felt he might possibly seek some form of disciplinary action against him later, win or lose.

Once I got off the phone with the lawyer, the questions began, as everyone wanted to know the details about what had happened in court. Jake and the others had refused to say anything until I had finished my call, so after we filled them in about what had taken place, I suggested it was time to turn in and get some sleep. It had been a long day and I was sure we were all exhausted, especially those who had gone through the worst of this ordeal.

After the others had gone upstairs, I kept Brandon behind for a few minutes, so I could fill him in concerning my conversation with his parents. He immediately informed me he had been considering not telling them about this, but after hearing what they had said, he thanked me for calling them and agreed it was probably best that they knew. He then gave me a hug, before he went to join Danny, and also told me he loved me. I told him I loved him too, and then he disappeared up the stairs, before I went to join Jake for the evening.

Sunday morning I got up early, but I waited a while before I started rousing the boys to get ready for church. They all seemed to be dragging and I got the impression none of them wanted to go, but I insisted we attend, to show everyone we had nothing to hide. Once they understood what I was doing, they moved with a little more purpose and soon we were ready to go.

Prior to leaving the house, I told everyone I would like each of them to say an extra prayer today and ask God to show us a way to get the boys out of this mess. Even though we all knew they weren’t guilty of what they had been charged with, it seemed the District Attorney’s Office was determined to prove they were, so we needed something besides our word to prove this wasn’t the case. Other than discrediting their witness, none of us knew exactly what that might be. I was beginning to think we’d need a minor miracle to make sure none of them were convicted.

It was kind of ironic that the sermon this morning was about the trials of Job, because last night I had been drawing analogies between what he had endured and what our family had been going through. I had been thinking about how God had tested Job, to see if he would turn against him, and then I thought about all we had gone through. I reflected on how we had lost Cody and Brent, Kevin’s medical problems, nearly losing Cole and Graham to their mother, not to mention nearly losing all of the boys because of the accusations made during that fiasco, the current problem with my older children and now this.

Sometimes, I wondered if God was testing me too, to see how strong my faith was. It’s easy to believe in God when things are going well, but quite another thing when problems arise. It’s so easy to blame God, or anyone else for that matter, for the problems in life, but it’s hard to trust His judgment and believe what happened is part of a greater plan. It’s not easy to find a reason for what happened, especially when we cannot appreciate or understand what those reasons were.

As I sat listening to the sermon, I noted how Job never let his faith in God falter and in the end his faith was rewarded. Although I had never considered blaming God for our woes or even thought about not attending services any more, I’m still not sure I can honestly say it’s because my faith is strong. It’s mostly just who I am and that I find a solace and peace in knowing there’s someone greater supporting me. I also believe my family needs the reassurance our faith gives us and it has helped us through many rough times. Now, I merely sat and listened to the rest of the sermon, while silently praying God would pull us out of this mess too, as he had helped us deal with the earlier situations I’d mentioned.

After the service, several people stopped us and mentioned they’d heard about the boys being arrested. They then offered their support and said they’d offer prayers to help see us through this. They also assured us they believed the boys would be vindicated and emphasized their belief my boys weren’t capable of such brutality. We thanked each of them for their kind words and then headed out for brunch at our favorite restaurant.

This outing wasn’t our usual light-hearted Sunday brunch. The boys with the legal problems were still down about their experience the previous day and the rest of us were trying to think of something that would get them out of this mess. After we got our food, but before we began to eat, I made the family join me as I said grace. After thanking God for the food and blessings, I asked Him to guide us through this problem and help clear the boys of the crime with which they’d been falsely accused. Everyone gave a resounding ‘Amen’ when I finished, which caused a few of the neighboring tables to turn and look at us, but no one gave any sort of negative response to our actions. Now, we ate quietly, since no one felt like talking or had much to say.

When we got back home, the boys went off to be on their own, so I went to the computer to check my email. I suspected my inbox would probably be full, since we’d been away for a month, and I wasn’t disappointed when I opened it. The first thing I noticed was that there were a whole bunch of emails from Nick, so I quickly opened the oldest first, so I could read them in the order he wrote them.

Hey Pop,

Things are going super down here and I’m making lots of new friends. I get along great with my host brothers too and we’ve had loads of fun. Don’t worry. I’m using the stuff you sent with me, but just with them. They’ve never done anything with anyone else, so they’re safe, but I could use more. Do you think you could send me a package with everything I need in it? You know what I mean. It seems to go really fast when you’re having a good time. ;-)

How’s everybody back home? I hope everything is good and everyone’s doing fine. I bet they’re not having as much fun as I am though. Hehehe. My host family took me to Sao Paulo and that’s a huge city, but there are a ton of street kids there. I really feel bad for them, because they have a terrible life. My host brothers told me those kids spend most of their time sniffing glue and stealing. They don’t live to be very old either, cuz the glue destroys their brains or someone ends up killing them, because the storeowners get tired of them stealing things all the time. It’s awful. I wish we could open up a Castaway Hotel here and give them a safe place to live.

Well, I hope to hear from you soon. Love and miss ya all.

Nick

Well, Nick’s email told me he was as sexually active, as I had assumed, and that I’d better get more condoms and lube shipped out to him as quickly as I could. At least he’s only messing around with his host brothers, whom he claims haven’t done anything with others. Not only that, but at least he’s using protection. Even though it isn’t foolproof, he is taking precautions and not being completely reckless. Now, I opened the next email, which arrived the following week.

Hi Pop,

Why haven’t I heard from you? Is something wrong? I hope everyone is fine and that’s not the reason I haven’t heard from you. I thought you’d at least send me an email by now.

I hope you’re sending me that stuff soon, cuz I’m nearly out. I even tried to call you Sunday, and all I got was the answering machine. Where were you? Please call me when you can. You have the phone number here and I need to hear you tell me everything is fine and you’re not mad at me. Or is there some other reason you haven’t contacted me? I hope not.

Love ya all,
Nick

Maybe I should run to the store and pick that stuff up and send it overnight express. I don’t want him to be tempted to try stuff without using protection, but I’ll read his other emails first, to see what else he has to say. The next email was dated almost a week after the previous one.

Pop,

I still haven’t heard from you. Why not? Is everything okay there? I hope no one is sick or hurt.

I really need that stuff and soon. Man, what’s going on and where have you been? I used the calling card to call again, but only got the answering machine. I hope everything is okay there. Will you please let me know as soon as you can? I’m getting really worried about all of you.

I love you,
Nick

Well, his emails were getting shorter, more to the point and his tone might even be considered a little frantic. I’ll just read the last one and send him a reply. Then I’ll go buy what he needs and ship the items to him. Wait, I can’t do that. It’s Sunday and there’s no place open to do that today, so I’ll have to wait and do it tomorrow. I’ll send him his reply via email and then call him a little later, so I can explain everything in person. Okay, let’s just see what his final email has to say.

Pop,

What is going on? Have you disowned me or something? I need that stuff big time and I want to know if anything is wrong. Please contact me somehow.

I do love ya all,
Nick

Wow, I have to send that kid a reply and ease his concerns.

Nick,

I’m sorry I haven’t been around to answer your emails or calls, but we just got back from vacation. We were gone a month, but I thought I’d told you about that. I will call you in a little while and explain everything, but I’ll also get the items you requested and ship them overnight tomorrow (Monday). Please forgive me for my tardiness in responding, but we’ll discuss this more when we talk on the phone.

We all love you too,
Pop

I hoped that would suffice and get him to stop worrying. I planned to call him shortly, but I felt I needed to talk to the four boys first, to see if I could ease their concerns. I went to Pat’s room first, but he wasn’t there, so I went to Danny’s room and found all four of them sitting around talking. I didn’t even have to ask how they were doing, since I could read the worried expressions etched on their faces.

“Hey, guys, I’m glad you’re all here,” I announced, as I walked in to the room. “I wanted to talk to you, to see how you were holding up.” They looked up at me and their eyes expressed the pain and worry they were feeling.

“Look, guys,” I continued, “we’re going to get through this. I promise. You didn’t do what they’re saying and we will make sure you are cleared of all charges. I will spend every penny I have to defend you, if I have to, so please try to relax. It’s going to be all right.”

“We know you’ll do everything you can, Dad,” Danny answered, “but it’s hard not to worry, especially after what’s happened so far. We know we didn’t do anything wrong, so we didn’t think we’d get charged either, but we did.”

“Yeah, and it seems like the cops want to pin this on us,” Shannon added. “They didn’t want to hear the truth or what we had to say. All they wanted was for us to admit we did it and why.”

“That’s true, Pop,” Brandon added. “They didn’t want to hear we didn’t go out that day or that the four of us had never been out together in ages. They kept asking about why we did that to him and if we thought we were going to get away with it.”

“You mean the police questioned you again, without your lawyer?” I asked, totally incensed.

“They tried, but none of us would say a word,” Pat assured me. “This time they took us one at a time, but we’ve talked about it and none of us told them anything.”

“It doesn’t matter,” I fumed. “I’m going to tell Mr. Gouldin about this too and I hope he can use it to end this crap.”

“Dad, the police already have us convicted,” Pat stated, while giving me a look that told me he was very worried about this fact.

“Well, it’s a good thing they don’t decide your guilt or innocence then,” I countered. “I’m confident that once all the facts are in, it will prove you boys had nothing to do with this and things will go back to normal.”

“They won’t ever go back to normal after this, Dad,” Danny responded. “After being booked and spending time in jail, I don’t think I’ll ever be the same again. Man, I’ll do anything to stay away from ever having to go through that again and I hear prison is ten times worse.”

“Yes, I’m sure it is,” I sympathized, “but you won’t have to worry about that. Let’s just get through this and I know nothing like this will happen to any of you again in the future.”

“I hope not,” Brandon added. “Once is more than enough.” The others quickly agreed.

“I’ll have to ask Frankie why he wants to be a cop,” Pat added. “It’s not a job I’d want and I hope he doesn’t turn out to be like Detective James, or I’ll disown him as a brother.”

“I don’t think you’ll have to worry about that,” I informed him. “I think Frankie will bring his compassion and humanity with him, especially since he had his own share of run-ins with the legal system, when he was younger.”

The boys eventually agreed with my reasoning and then I left them alone. I hoped I was successful in allaying their fears, but I would continue to keep an eye on them. Hopefully, they will begin to perk up a little, now that they’re back home.

Once I got back downstairs, I decided to call Nick’s host family in Brazil, so I could speak with him. “Ola,” the voice at the other end answered. I knew I wouldn’t be able to communicate in their language, so I just said whom I wanted.

“Nick, por favor.” The other person began shouting something, and I could hear quite a bit of commotion in the background, before Nick came to the phone.

“Ola.”

“Nick, it’s Pop.”

“Pop! Where the heck have you been? Didn’t you get my emails?” He sounded very excited and confused.

“Yes, Nick. I finally got them,” I replied. “Didn’t you get my email?”

“When did you send it?” he asked.

“Earlier today,” I told him.

“No, I haven’t been online since Friday,” he admitted.

“Okay, then let me explain what happened,” I suggested. “We went away on vacation and were gone for four weeks. I just opened your emails earlier today. I’m sorry if I forgot to tell you we were going. Originally, I had cancelled the plans when Cody got sick, but after he passed away, I felt we all needed to get away, so I put everything back into motion.”

“Oh, okay, but I was really worried something was wrong. I wanted to call Uncle Steve or Aunt Sally, but I didn’t bring their phone numbers with me. The only thing was, I figured if something were really wrong, someone would have called to let me know. I was still worried though. In fact, I was even a little scared about why you weren’t answering me. If I didn’t hear from you soon, I was going to call my parents and ask them to get a hold of you.”

“Nick, I’m sorry I put you through all that,” I commiserated.

“S’ok, as long as I know everything’s all right now,” he replied. “How about the stuff I need… the condoms and lube. Did you send that?”

“Not yet,” I answered. “As I said, I just opened your emails today and no place is open to ship it out until tomorrow. I will pick everything up and send it overnight delivery as soon as I can. Is that okay?”

“Yeah, that’s fine,” he agreed, while sounding relieved.

“Nick, you had a lot of stuff when you left,” I countered. “Remember, we talked about you abstaining from sex while you were down there, so do you think you might be overdoing it a bit?”

“Well, maybe a little,” he agreed, with a giggle, “but the guys here are hot and they don’t mind doing everything with me. I’m being safe, Pop, so I hope you don’t mind.”

“I take it you’re talking about your host brothers?” I asked, to clarify what he had said.

“Them and a few other friends,” he responded.

“Nick!” I nearly screamed. “That’s not abstaining from sex. You can’t be sure you won’t pick anything up from them.”

“Yes, I can,” he countered. “They’re all like my host brothers and none of them have done anything with anyone else, at least until I got them all started. Now, we only do it with each other.”

“And you’re positive they are being honest about having no other sexual partners,” I pressed.

“You’d believe me if you saw how dumb they were about things at first,” he claimed. “They were all virgins, except for jerking off.” He laughed after telling me this.

“Well as long as you are certain they are being honest and no one is messing around with anyone outside of your group,” I compromised. “I will send what you want tomorrow, but in the future try to keep your dick in your pants more often.” He merely laughed at my warning.

“Okay, I’ll try, but it’s not easy,” he confessed. “My host brothers are really hot and they’re willing to go all the time.” He laughed again.

“That may be,” I reasoned, “but I don’t want you taking unnecessary chances.”

“I try not to,” he answered, “and I’ll only do things with the guys I fool around with now. Okay?”

“It’s a start,” I told him, “but there are some other things I need to discuss with you too.”

Even though Nick was prepared to listen to me drone on about his sexual proclivities, I switched topics and explained what had happened to Danny, Pat, Brandon and Shannon. I gave him all the information I could and he was very concerned. He asked many questions, hoping he could help, so I wasn’t surprised when he asked to speak with each of them. I called them to the phone, one at a time, and gave them a chance to discuss this in person. It also gave Nick an opportunity to tell each one that he believed in him and supported his legal battle.

Nick’s final conversation was with Shannon. They had been having a relationship before he left and I thought Shannon might be the one to break Nick of his wandering ways. However, from what Nick had just told me, that didn’t appear to be happening.

Nick and Shannon talked for over twice as long as Nick spoke with any of the others and I could tell they were discussing more than just Shannon’s legal woes. I wasn’t sure if Nick had confessed his sexual escapades, but I did hear Shannon tell him he loved him. All in all, it was quite an emotional sequence of conversations for everyone involved, but I think it was needed and helped to reassure both Nick and the others.

Before the phone call concluded, I spoke briefly with Nick again and promised I’d call him the following weekend. I also told him he could talk to any of the others at that time, if he wished, so he thanked me. He also made me swear I’d keep him informed about what was happening to those who had been charged, so I assured him I would. Before we hung up, he also reminded me to send his special package and then thanked me for everything. We said good-bye, knowing we both felt a little better.

The next day, once I got back from running a few errands, which included sending out Nick’s package, I received a phone call from Mr. Gouldin. He informed me the boys’ preliminary hearing would be held on Wednesday, in front of the same DJ and in the same courtroom, so no surprises there. Even though this was basically just another formality, the boys became very nervous when I passed the message along.

The rest of that day and the next passed very slowly. I did everything I could to reassure the boys everything would be fine, but nothing seemed to work. A pall fell over the house and everyone became very morose. Each of them was worried about how this was going to turn out.

When Wednesday came, I saw to it that everyone dressed as if they were going to church. To show our family’s unity, I also allowed all the boys to go this time. Mark was the only one missing, because he didn’t have any more time he could take off from work. He did express his support before he left for the bank and apologized for not being able to join us. The boys told him they understood and said they’d fill him in about what happened later.

We met Mr. Gouldin at the courthouse and followed him into the courtroom. We took our places and then waited for the case to be called.

“Docket numbers 14319 through 14322, defendants Daniel Edward Currie, Brandon Patrick O’Hara, Patrick Alan Currie and Shannon Michael McCarthy have been charged with one count each of second-degree simple assault and one count each of first-degree aggravated assault.”

“Your honor,” our lawyer spoke up, “when did the felony charge of aggravated assault get added? When my clients were arrested and during the bail hearing, these young men were only being charged with a misdemeanor charge, simple assault, and you refused to allow the charge to be amended.”

“I did for that hearing,” the judge responded, “so we’ll ask the District Attorney to shed some light on this matter.” We all looked over at the other table and waited for an answer.

“Your Honor, the charge of aggravated assault was meant to be included, but my office wanted to verify the facts first, before formally including it.”

“Your Honor,” our lawyer responded, “the charge of simple assault covers what allegedly happened in this case and the charge of aggravated assault doesn’t apply. The prosecutor is merely adding that charge for leverage, but has nothing to support its inclusion.”

“Mr. Stone,” the judge began, “do you have a response to that?”

“Yes, Your Honor. The simple assault charge was made because the defendants inflicted bodily injury with a deadly weapon,” he began. “The aggravated assault charge was included after various doctors verified the extent of the damage done to the victim. The defendants inflicted EXTREME bodily injury upon the person they assaulted and showed an extreme indifference to the value of human life.”

“Well, Mr. Gouldin,” the judge began, “it appears the District Attorney’s office is acting well within its legal jurisdiction and the charges do coincide with the severity of this crime. So how do the defendants plead?” Our lawyer whispered to the boys, and then Danny spoke up first.

“Not guilty, Your Honor,” Danny stated, forcefully.

“Not guilty, sir,” Pat followed.

“Definitely not guilty,” Brandon added.

“Not guilty,” Shannon finished.

The prosecutor, acting on behalf on the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, put on its case for the District Justice of the Peace. It was his job to establish probable cause, by showing the charged crimes had been committed and these defendants had participated in the crime.

Once the District Attorney had presented his case, it was the DJ’s job to determine if a jury could convict the defendants of the crimes charged with the Commonwealth’s evidence. It was not the DJ’s job to decide if the evidence is believable, only that it was sufficient to procure a conviction. Therefore, after listening to the District Attorney’s case, the DJ bound the boys over for trial. Unfortunately, our problems weren’t over yet.