Adam Blake - 64. Chapter 64

“James, have we received anything from the trustees concerning the auction?”

“No, there is a letter from Ambassador Damon, it’s on top of your correspondence. You also have several letters from parents.”

“Thanks, I have two interviews this week. One is a doctor for the Medical vacancy and the other is a chef for the Chef vacancy.”

“I thought Ms. Wilson was running the kitchen.”

“I offered her the chef’s job, she said no.”

I opened the Ambassador’s letter. It started with pleasantries and then a statement or two concerning the pantry. ‘The Trustees felt that since the school paid for these items, they should be the recipients of this wealth. Be aware and forwarned.

At dinner, I decided to put my army in to do battle. “I have a question for you Knights and I would like to know your answers. If someone found a treasure in a special secret room, and the treasure was paid for by the citizens of this town, how would you divide the wealth? Would you give it to the leaders or would you divide it among the villagers?”

James looked at me and mouthed ‘army’.

The discussion started, and the questions, "Did the wealth originally come from the citizens, or was it a small group or perhaps one man?"

“From the citizens”

I listened as they discussed it, Jasper said, “According to our oath, it should go to the citizens.”

That was all it took. Johnny looked at me, “You found a treasure didn’t you?”

“In a way, but not in money”

Now a game of twenty questions, “Was it the food we saw the boys bring to the kitchen.”

“No, that food will be used in the kitchen.”

“Did the food come from the treasure room?”

“Yes”

“And there is more treasure in the room, but it isn’t food?”

“Yes”

Then Lawrence, “Is it alcohol or a form of alcohol like wine?”

“Yes”

“Who are the people that want it” Now the boys were talking among themselves.

“James. ask the kitchen staff to leave the food a little longer.” I listened. I was amazed at their deductive powers. The older boys led the discussions, but the younger boys asked good questions.

One of the younger boys asked who owns the school?

Lawrence answered, “The school is supported by our parents. Several men founded the school, which means they paid for the building, but our parents pay the salaries and upkeep.”

“Then since they are owners, they should share in the wealth.”

“Who would stop them?”

“Knights, I must leave you. I have an interview for a new Medical doctor. James, you can stay here and answer any question these Knights have.”

I went back to my office and answered the mail. I smiled as I thought of greedy trustees.

I had received a quote for the installation of computers. In reading the quote they had the option of using a landline service provider or a satellite system. With the boys being from all over, I thought a satellite system was best. I put the quote aside for James to look it over.

The rest of the mail didn’t look interesting, so I set it aside while I began answering the parents' letters. James did return laughing, “Your army is on the march.”

“What happened?”

“You know that Lawrence is very smart. He knows a lot about the school, I think his dad was one of the major contributors. He simply stated that it takes a lot of money to operate this school, we enjoy a free room, free food, and the opportunity to explore our educational interests. Any money that can be found will come back to us.”

“Smart man that general.”

“He isn’t the only one, Ralph told them about you taking him to the doctor and paying for it. Richard told them you paid for the medals and the coins for the machines.”

“And then what happened.”

“Do you realize how much those kids adore you, if you told them to take arms and secure the school they would. They all know about the cheaters, as they call them, they know where you are coming from. Their parents are reading your book and feeding the information to them. You have a powerful army.”

“I learned something in high school, I tutored the jocks, when a jock did well everyone accused him of being tutored, he denied it and I supported him because he was right. In a lot of situations, a person would take the credit even if it wasn’t earned. But I got respect from the jocks, and from that, I got respect from a lot of other students. If you put the other guy first, he will pull you along. It’s a matter of choosing between right and wrong even if you aren’t number one. We are doing a lot for those kids that they will remember forever. The Oath is theirs now."