Shepherd's Crook - 17. Chapter 17

Time passed slowly while Gibby waited for the final bell to ring at the end of the day. He had forgotten to get his books out of his locker before heading to his last class, so he still needed stop and pick up what he would need for homework tonight, which would be wasting more precious time that he needed for rushing for the school bus. He wasn’t happy about having to ride the bus, but at least Jonathan had agreed to let him go into town instead of heading straight home.

With five minutes to go, Gibby packed his belongings into his satchel. Since Tanner never appeared again after lunch, Gibby didn’t know which bus would take him into town. When the bell rang, he bolted out of the classroom and ran to his locker at the opposite end of the building. The halls were crowded and he growled when he got trapped behind a group of kids that stopped to talk.

“C’mon,” He muttered under his breath and slipped through when he saw a crack in the crowd. Gibby reached the top of the staircase and took the stairs two at a time.

“Mrs. Bosley,” Gibby gasped, out of breath from running, when he rushed into the office. The woman was busy sorting papers into the teachers’ mailboxes. She stopped and turned around.

“Yes, Mr. Robinson, may I help you?” She asked cheerfully with a smile on her round face.

“I’m supposed to take the school bus into town, to the library, but I don’t know the bus number, can you tell me which one it is?” Gibby blurted out in one breath, running all of his words together.

The woman giggled. “That would be bus number thirty-three, dear.”

“Thank you,” Gibby shouted as he turned and raced back out of the office. On several occasions, he hadn’t even unlocked his bike before the buses were already driving off. The drivers were quick to get rolling at the end of the day. Scared that he would miss it, Gibby ran a little faster. Reaching the main entrance, Gibby let out a small sigh of relief that the buses were still lined up along the semi-circular drive at the front of the school.

A few stragglers made their way to the idling buses. When he noticed that they weren’t parked in a rational order, Gibby started to panic. The big black numbers painted on side of the first three buses ranged all over the place.

He ran to the next bus and leaned in to get the driver’s attention. “Excuse me, where is bus thirty-three?”

When the old man pointed further up the row as the first bus in the line pulled out, Gibby jumped back and ran towards the bus ahead. His heart pounded. The other kids knew the routine. They’d probably all ridden the same bus their whole lives. Not Gibby. He wasn’t accustomed to racing for a school bus. Back home, he took the subway to school and if he missed that or the city bus, there was always another coming in about seven to ten minutes, depending on the time of day. Out here in the middle of nowhere, if Gibby missed the school bus, he would have to call and tell his dad. It was that or a long walk home, alone.

“Wait!” Gibby hollered just as the driver of bus thirty-three closed her door. He banged his palm on the glass to get the woman’s attention. She opened the door so he could climb inside. “You’re lucky kid, another second and we would have been gone,” She said pointing out the windshield at the other buses already leaving.

“Thanks!” Gibby said as he plopped down into the first empty seat he came to. He glanced down the aisle, not recognizing anyone and didn’t want to venture further back then he had to.

***

“We have trouble,” Amanda said as she grabbed Ethan’s arm swinging him around to face her.

Running his fingers through his dark hair, Ethan clenched his eyes shut and took a deep breath. “I don’t care” He said, looking defeated. With the deep purple rims under his eyes, he looked as if he hadn’t slept in days. His cheeks were sunken and his tight skin was pale.

“Well you had better care because Gibby Robinson fucking knows!”

As she squeezed his arm a flicker of pain flashed over his face. “How could he know?” Ethan hissed. “I haven’t told anyone so unless you’re running your big mouth--”

“Not that you dumbass,” She growled between her teeth, “He knows about us cheating!”

“So?”

“So?” Amanda almost screamed at him. She bit down on her lower lip to keep from slashing him with a long list of verbal assaults. “We can still get kicked out of fucking school. If someone finds out about the cheating, there’s going to be questions, Ethan. Don’t you understand? If they figure that out, they might figure out what happened to Tanner, too!”

Ethan considered what she was saying.

“What are we going to do about it?” He asked.

“First, we have to find out what the freak knows.”

“And how do you plan on doing that?” Ethan waited for her to fill him in on her idea.

An evil grin curled her perfect pink lips, “I think I can come up with a way to make Gibby talk and if he knows too much…we eliminate the threat.”

***

The bus ride was short. Unsure of where the next stop was going to be, when Gibby noticed the surrounding buildings and that they were less than a block from the Police Station, he got up and made his way to the front of the bus.

“Can you let me off here?” He asked the driver. She glanced up at him and shook her head. “Sorry, I can’t make any unscheduled stops, but the next bus stop is only another block away.” She smiled at Gibby.

A few minutes later, she hit the brakes and opened the door so he and another girl could get off. The girl wasn’t old enough to be in any of Gibby’s classes. Without a second glance, she skipped her way up the street as Gibby backtracked towards the Police Station.

“Jeez, I never thought you would get here,” Tanner said when Gibby opened the door to walk inside. He had gotten so used to the ghost boy popping in on him all the time that he didn’t jump anymore.

“Where the hell have you been?” Gibby kept his voice low to avoid suspicion.

Tanner shrugged his shoulders as his eyes cast down to the floor. Gibby had seen that look before and knew that Tanner had been with his family. They were devastated by his death. He was trying to make this easier for them, but he couldn’t. There was nothing Tanner could do to take away their pain.

“Hey man,” Gibby whispered, “I’m sorry.” Twisting his fingers together, Gibby let out a worried sigh. “What if this doesn’t work--”

“It will,” Tanner interrupted Gibby as he crossed his arms over his chest with a huff.

“But…what if it doesn’t? What if they don’t believe me? What will we do then?” Gibby’s brown eyes filled with worry. “Amanda has everyone fooled, what if she tricks the police, too?”

The muscles flexed in Tanner’s jaw as he shook his blond head, “No, not this time, babe. We’re going to make sure that Amanda and Ethan pay for what they have done.” Tanner was confident, but Gibby was still hesitant if their plan was going to work.

Gibby gave Tanner a weak smile. “I hope you’re right.”

The inside of the Police Station was empty. There wasn’t anyone in the waiting area. The only person around was a petite woman with short black hair sitting behind the reception desk. She looked up and smiled when Gibby approached the desk. “May I help you?” The woman noticed Gibby, but she didn’t see Tanner standing beside him.

“Yes,” Gibby nervously fidgeted with a colorful braided string tied to the strap of his satchel. “I need to speak to Officer Blackfeather.”

The woman quickly inspected his clothes and his demeanor, assessing the situation for any hidden dangers that Gibby might impose. “Is he expecting you?” She asked.

Gibby shook his head. “No, but it’s really important that I speak to him. I called yesterday and was told that he would be in today.” Just for good measure, he gave her his most innocent puppy dog eyes and added, “Please?”

“Your name?”

“Gibson Robinson.”

“Are you Dr. Robinson’s son?” She quickly asked him. Gibby felt his face flush red under her intense scrutiny. It was too late now, she knew who he was. In a small town like Shepherd’s Crook everyone knew each other and the woman had probably already known who Gibby was, by process of elimination, the very moment he walked through the door.

“Okay, wait here,” She said before disappearing down a hallway that led to the back of the building.

“Do you think my dad is going to find out that I was here?” Gibby whispered to Tanner.

“Don’t worry about that right now,” Tanner said slipping his hand into Gibby’s and gently squeezed. “All that matters is the police knowing the truth.”

“Mr. Robinson,” The woman called his name from the doorway, startling Gibby and making him jump, “You can come on back, Officer Blackfeather will see you now.”

Rounding the large reception desk, Gibby wove his way between two very neat and tidy desks. The receptionist led him down the hallway to the last office, which was the biggest of the private offices in the back of the building. She opened the door and ushered Gibby inside.

“Hello, Gibby. Please come in and take a seat,” The officer said, pointing to the big leather chairs in front of his desk. Gibby and Tanner both quickly sat down. “So, what can I do for you, today?”

Gibby suddenly felt sick. His stomach did somersaults sitting here in the police station. Fighting the bitter taste of bile rising in the back of his throat, Gibby reached into his satchel and pulled out a wad of little papers. “I have information about Tanner Mitchell’s murder,” He blurted out as he dumped the handful across the officer’s desk.

Officer Blackfeather looked confused. He flipped through the innocent seeming papers before glaring back up at Gibby. “What is this?” He demanded. The man’s dark eyes were hard to read.

“T-t-those are t-t-test answers,” Gibby nervously stuttered.

“It’s okay, babe, just take a deep breath. They need to know the truth.” Tanner set his hand on top of Gibby’s hand clutching the arm of the chair. The electric tingles on his skin felt good and reassuring. It was familiar. Gibby closed his eyes and took a long drawn out breath like Tanner told him, before facing the officer again.

Gibby straightened his shoulders and looked the policeman in the eyes. “Tanner Mitchell told me that he and several of his friends have been cheating on their tests and quizzes for the last few years. If you flip them over, you’ll see that he wrote the dates and classes on the backs of each cheat sheet.”

The officer picked up a handful of papers and turned them over. The tiny sheets held a variety of information. The fronts were neatly typed answers with multiple choice letter, fill in the blanks, several true/false answers, and even a few quick hints to complete any written questions, but the back is what really interested the lawman. “Is this Tanner’s handwriting?”

“Yes sir,” Gibby croaked keeping his eyes fixed on the man.

“How did you get them?” Officer Blackfeather narrowed in on Gibby.

“Tanner told me where to find them--”

“The Mitchell kid is dead,” Gibby flinched when the officer raised his voice.

“He told me before he died!” That was a lie. Gibby’s heart raced. He wanted to tell the officer the truth, but he and Tanner had rehearsed every scenario that the officer could come up with.

Gibby nervously licked his lips, but it didn’t help. His face was hot and his mouth was so dry it was hard to form his words. “Officer Blackfeather, I know that my dad and I just moved here, but Tanner and I were friends. We were lab partners in science class…and had become friends outside of school, too. He was nice to me…he was the only person in Shepherd’s Crook who’s been nice to me since we arrived.” Taking a calming breath, Gibby continued, “Tanner told me that he thought he was in danger after he pissed off the leader of the school’s little cheating club when he announced that he wanted out.”

“Club? You mean there’s a lot more than just one or two student cheating in Shepherd’s Crook?” The officer looked astonished. Shepherd’s Crook didn’t have all of the problems of a big city; at least they didn’t until Tanner Mitchell was murdered. It had been over twenty years since their last homicide.

Gibby nodded his head.

“You have to tell him, Gib,” Tanner encouraged him to tell the officer what he knew.

“Amanda Grady is the mastermind behind the cheating. I’m sure if you search Principal Grady’s computers you’ll find a template that matches the answer sheets she’s been making for her friends for years.”

“Who else is involved in this?” Officer Blackfeather’s voice was cold and hard. It was time for the truth to come out.

Closing his eyes, Gibby didn’t want to see the man’s reaction when he told him the names of the other students involved. “Besides Amanda, Ethan Conroy, Mike and Mark Butler, Bethany Miller...and…and…”

“And?” The officer bellowed making Gibby flinch in his chair.

“Sunshine Blackfeather,” Gibby whispered the last name, but the officer already knew the last student named would be his daughter.

“Are you sure?” Officer Blackfeather clenched his jaw while he spoke through his teeth.

Nodding his head, Gibby told him he was sure. “Tanner wanted out. He even told me himself. When he confronted Amanda and told her that he didn’t want to cheat anymore, he said that she went crazy, accusing him of trying to get the rest of them in trouble. Amanda Grady is dangerous and she was determined to keep Tanner quiet by any means necessary.”

Soooo, the truth is out...will it finally set Tanner free?
(I couldn't help but add my school experiance from my bus riding days! I missed the bus almost everyday. This chapter should be dedicated to my bus driver Jerry   )
Let me know what you think. http://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/34479-shepherds-crook/page__st__75#entry375774
KC