“I didn’t really keep them, you know? It was more like my friend just left them. He’s scared. His cousin is really scared. I’m scared. What are we gonna do?”
Ike stood and stretched and took another gulp of coffee. “Are you going to school?”
What else would I do on this Friday morning? “Sure. I’m already late.”
“Go to school. I’ll go watch the courthouse. I’ll figure out something and I’ll text you later.”
“Thanks, Ike. You’re the greatest.”
“Don’t know about that.”
Theo walked into homeroom five minutes late, but Mr. Mount was in a good mood and the class had not exactly come to order. When he saw Theo, he pulled him aside and said, “Say, Theo, I was thinking that you could give us an update on the trial. Later, during Government.”
The last thing Theo wanted to do was talk about the trial, but he could not say no to Mr. Mount. Plus, Mr. Mount was known to be a bit slack with his class preparations on Fridays, and he needed Theo to help fill in the gaps.
“Sure,” Theo said.
“Thanks. Just an update, fifteen minutes or so. It goes to the jury today, right?”
“Probably so.”
Theo took his seat. Mr. Mount tapped his desk, then called the roll. Announcements were made, the usual homeroom routine. When the bell for first period rang, the boys headed for the door. A classmate named Woody followed Theo into the hall and grabbed him near the lockers. One look at his face, and Theo knew something was wrong.
“Theo, I need some help,” Woody said quietly while glancing around. Woody’s home life was chaotic. His parents were on their second or third marriages and there wasn’t much supervision there. He played the electric guitar in a bad garage band, was already smoking, dressed like a runaway, and was rumored to have a small tattoo on his rear end. Theo, like the rest of the boys, was curious about the tattoo, but had no desire to confirm the rumor. In spite of all these distractions, Woody maintained a B average.
“What’s up?” Theo asked. He really wanted to inform Woody that this was a terrible time to ask for free legal advice. Theo had too much on his mind.
“You can keep this quiet, right?” Woody asked.
“Of course.” Great. Just what Theo needed. Another secret.
Hallie walked by, slowed for a second, flashed a comely smile at Theo, but realized he was busy. She disappeared.
“My brother got arrested last night, Theo,” Woody said, and his eyes were wet. “The police came to the house after midnight, took him away in handcuffs. It was terrible. He’s in jail.”
“What’s the charge?”
“Drugs. Possession of pot, maybe distribution.”
“There’s a big difference between possession and distribution.”
“Can you help us?”
“I doubt it. How old is he?”
“Seventeen.”
Theo knew the brother by reputation, and it was not a good one. “First offense?” Theo asked, though he suspected the answer was no.
“He got busted for possession last year, his first. Slap on the wrist.”
“Your parents need to hire a lawyer, Woody. It’s that simple.”
“Nothing’s simple. My parents don’t have the money, and if they did they wouldn’t spend it on a lawyer. There’s a war in my house, Theo. Kids against parents, and nobody’s taking prisoners. My stepfather has been fighting with my brother over the drug thing, and he’s promised a thousand times he will not get involved when the cops bust him.”
The bell rang. The hall was empty.
Theo said, “Okay, catch me at recess. I don’t have much advice, but I’ll do what I can.”
“Thanks, Theo.”
They hustled into Madame Monique’s class. Theo took his seat, opened his backpack, and realized he had not done his homework. At that moment, he really didn’t care. At that moment, he was thankful he lived in a quiet and cozy home with great parents who seldom raised their voices. Poor Woody.
Then, he thought about the gloves.
Chapter 15
Halfway through Geometry, with Miss Garman still dropping hints about a quiz, and with Theo staring at the wall and trying to stay awake, the intercom above the door squawked and startled the class.
“Miss Garman, is Theo Boone in class?” It was the shrieking voice of Miss Gloria, the school’s longtime secretary.
“He is,” Miss Garman responded.
“Please send him down. He needs to check out.”
Theo grabbed his things, stuffed them into his backpack, and as he was hustling toward the door Miss Garman said, “If we have a quiz, Theo, you can make it up on Monday.”
Well, thanks for nothing, Theo thought, but instead he said, “Can’t wait.”
“Have a nice weekend, Theo,” she said.
“You too.”
He was in the hall before he took a breath and wondered who was checking him out, and for what reason. Maybe his mother had grown concerned about his red eyes and tired face and she had decided to take him to the doctor. Probably not. She was not one to overreact, and as a general rule she did not call the doctor until Theo was half dead. Maybe his father was having second thoughts and had decided to allow Theo to watch the last day of the trial. Probably not. Woods Boone was, as always, in another world
.
Maybe it was something far worse. Some way, somehow, somebody had snitched on him and the police were waiting with a search warrant to find the gloves. The secrets would come out and he, Theo Boone, would find himself in serious trouble.
He slowed his pace. Where the hallway turned, he peeked through a large window and caught a glimpse of the front of the school. No police cars. Nothing to indicate trouble. He kept walking, even slower.
Ike was waiting. He was chatting with Miss Gloria when Theo entered the front office.
“This man says he’s your uncle,” Miss Gloria said with a smile.
“I’m afraid so,” Theo said.
“And you have to go to a funeral over in Weeksburg?”
Ike was saying Come on, Come on with his eyes. Theo hesitated just for a second, then nodded and said, “I hate funerals.”
“And you won’t be coming back?” she said, reaching for a clipboard.
“No, the funeral is at one thirty,” Ike said. “It’ll kill the day.”
“Sign here,” she said.
Theo signed and they left the office. Ike’s car was a Triumph Spitfire, a two-seater, at least thirty years old and far less than perfectly maintained. Like everything else in Ike’s life, it was barely hanging together and lucky to be running.
They were a block from the school before Theo spoke. “A funeral, huh? I like it.”
“It worked.”
“And where are we going?”
“You’ve come to me for help. My advice is that we go to the offices of Boone and Boone, get your parents in a room, and tell them everything.”
Theo took a deep breath. He couldn’t argue. The issues involved were too complicated for him.
They surprised Elsa when they barged in the front door. She jumped to her feet and said, “Is something wrong?”
“Good morning, Elsa,” Ike said. “You look exotic as always.” She was wearing an orange sweater the color of a pumpkin with matching glasses and lipstick.
She ignored Ike, looked at Theo, and said, “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here for the funeral,” Theo said, and began walking toward the library.
“Could you please round up Woods and Marcella?” Ike said. “We need to have a family meeting in the library.”
Normally Elsa would have balked at being told what to do, but she knew this was serious. Luckily, Mrs. Boone was in her office, alone, and Mr. Boone was upstairs shoving paper around his desk. They hurried into the library, one after the other, and as soon as Ike closed the door Mrs. Boone looked at Theo and said, “Are you okay?” Mr. Boone looked at Theo and said, “What’s going on here? Why aren’t you in school?”
“Relax,” Ike said. “Let’s all have a seat and discuss matters.” They sat down, both parents eyeing Theo as if he’d committed a crime.
“Now,” Ike continued, “Let me go first, then I’ll shut up and Theo can talk. On Wednesday, just two days ago, Theo had a chat with one of his friends at school. This chat led to another chat, and in the course of these conversations Theo came across some information that could have a dramatic impact on the trial of Mr. Pete Duffy. In short, there’s a witness out there, a witness no one knows