A New Term By Jonah
We're once more at the Norwich City Technology College with Simon. Not that there is any such place. None of the people in any of my stories are real. Many of the places are, though the people attached to them aren't, but none of the schools are real either. There are some things you don't want to inflict on real people or institutions by writing stories about them. Although I invented most of the people in this story, one of them - Garret - is the invention of another author - of Jacob Lion in the United States - as are some characters that only get a mention. I want to thank Jacob for his kind permission to use his characters in my story. If you've enjoyed my previous stories from 'A Letter from America', to 'On Sea and Sand', I hope you'll enjoy this one. if you do enjoy it, please spare a thought for the kind man who published it for you. Nifty doesn't charge you to read these stories, and he doesn't charge us authors either, but it does cost money to publish them. He bears this cost from his own pocket and from donations via https://donate.nifty.org/ . Please consider donating.
Chapter 5
We spent what I considered a pleasant afternoon and watched "the Titfield Thunderbolt" in the evening.
On Wednesday morning it was back to school as usual. Registration was when it all kicked off.
My first concern was that Neil Trent appeared to be absent. I might have been tempted to ask Shawn Peters if he knew anything about it, since he obviously knew Neil better than anyone else did, but that is never a good idea. Searching for a lost sheep and ignoring the ninety-and-nine might work in the Bible, but it doesn't work in a classroom. It gives the ninety-and-nine all sorts of wrong ideas.
I was about to dismiss my class and send them to their first lesson when Grev appeared in the company of two police officers, one of whom said,
"Mr. Ito, PC Drew and this is PC Wilson. I think we have a problem. Were you just about to dismiss your class?"
"Yes, I was."
"Well, can you dismiss them all except Shawn Peters?"
"I can do that", I said, then to the other officer, " That's Peters in the second row next to the window. If you'd like to go over there and stop him from moving while I dismiss the rest."
I turned to the class.
"3SI, you're with Mr. Sutcliffe for maths first two periods. He'll be ready for you since he doesn't have a form to register. Off you go."
As the form moved as one, Shawn made his move. Counting on his classmates to obstruct the policeman, he was on his desk in a flash and pulling at the window catch. PC Wilson was too quick for him. Lynette Holman, who was about to pass Shawn's desk at that moment, saw what was happening and came to an abrupt stop, causing the two boys who were following her to stop and clearing the way for the officer to sieze Shawn's ankle. With a loud cry, the boy sat down abruptly on his desk - one foot still firmly in the grasp of the policeman. PC Wilson sidestepped to allow the last three children to leave the classroom.
"Sorry Shawn, did I hurt you?" said the constable as he helped the boy to his feet. "Never mind! Just go along to the office with PC Drew and the principal. I need to have a word with Mr. Ito."
I waited while the three of them left the room.
I sat at my desk and let PC Wilson take one of the student's chairs in the front row. I didn't ask what was going on since it was obvious that he was about to tell me.
"Quite the little Al Capone is our Shawn," he observed.
"He can be a handful," I agreed.
"Mr. Ito..."
"Simon, please".
"Simon, he isn't a nice person at all", he said sternly. " You'll have noticed that you're missing Neil Trent this morning."
"Oh my God!" I moaned. "What's he done?"
"Neil's in the University Hospital. We found him about quarter past nine in some bushes on that scrubland off Unthank Road. A mother on her way home from taking her kid to school spotted him and called it in. He was naked and gagged with his own socks and tied up with his own trousers and shirt. He'd a fair bit of bruising and lacerations caused, we think, by whipping with brambles. They'd apparently tried to start a fire with the rest of his clothes but they were unable to. Good job or he might have had burns as well. He's in hospital with hyperthermia and shock, but he was able to tell us what happened. He asked me to tell you about it. I'd have done that anyway, but I gather his concern was for one of your boys."
"You said 'they'"
"Three of them. Shawn Peters and two second years. I don't know what will happen to them but it's obvious who the ring-leader is. Are you free this period?"
I nodded.
"I should have 3RFD for RE this period but they haven't turned up so obviously the principal has diverted them somewhere else".
"OK let's go and see how Colin's getting on with Mr. Peters".
What was happening with Shawn Peters was that he was seated facing the principal's desk with his right wrist handcuffed to one of the desk-legs. PC. Drew was seated in Grev's chair. As soon as PC Wilson took up his place next to his colleague Grev quietly moved over to me and nodded toward the outer office. Once outside the door he spoke very quietly.
"Simon, Rufus Doyle and Benjamin Wallace - they're both in 2RL. Charles is taking your RE group in the hall so I can't ask him to do it. Find out from Sylvia where they are this period and get them out of there. Take them to your room and I'll meet you there as soon as I can".
As he disappeared back into his own office, I quickly checked 2RL's timetable. They'd be with Richard Urquhart for Geography so I walked quickly to classroom S4 and slipped in to speak to Richard.
"Richard", I said very quietly, "the police need to speak to two boys in this form urgently. Rufus Doyle and Benjamin Wallace need to come with me".
If he was surprised, he showed no sign of it.
"Doyle, Wallace! Come here please."
A small, blond kid and a slightly pump lad with ginger hair rose from their seats and approached their teacher.
"Go with Mr. Ito now," Richard told them. "Come straight back here when you're done".
Richard was an experienced teacher. He knew that it was unlikely that the boys would be back, but he also knew better than to tell them more than he needed to. That last instruction sowed misinformation.
I turned about and left the room, leaving the two boys to follow me. I walked briskly enough to ensure that they needed to occasionally run to keep up. That discouraged them from asking questions until they arrived in my classroom.
"Take a seat boys", I said, holding the door open for them when we arrived. I deliberately remained outside in the corridor so that they still couldn't talk to me. Through the small window in the door I could see that they had taken seats in the front row of desks but on opposite sides of the room.
At the far end of the corridor I could see the principal approaching. I slowed him down with a handsignal and turned back to the window. Blondie had forsaken his seat and gone to talk to his compatriot by the window. He had his back to me and was blocking the other boy's view of the door. I turned the handle quietly and stepped inside, knowing that Grev was only a step behind me.
We both caught a few whispered words before Grev snapped,
"Wallace, go and sit down".
Blondie scurried back to his seat as Grev perched himself on the edge of my desk. I remained by the door.
"Why were you two late for school this morning?" Grev fired at them.
"It wasn't us Sir. It was Peters," said the plump boy.
"Shut up!" hissed the blond boy urgently.
"Peters?" said Grev. "Shawn Peters?"
There was a silence.
"When it comes to court, Rufus", said Grev, his voice dripping magnanimity, "I'll be sure to tell the judge that you volunteered his name without us asking. He'll be bound to take that into account when sentencing you".
The boy looked so terrified that I doubted whether his friend groaning, "you idiot", had any effect whatever.
It was my turn.
"You know that Trent is in hospital", I said.
That was unlikely to be true. They had no way of knowing it, but I pressed on as if they had.
"And you know that, if he dies, there'll be a murder charge to be answered and there's no use in denying that you were there".
"We weren't", said Wallace suddenly.
"I wasn't throwing you a lifeline Ben", I told him, "because I haven't got one to throw. Shawn Peters is bad news, but you needn't worry about him. Whatever happens, he's likely to be out of circulation for a very long time. You two have done something so criminally stupid that there isn't a lot of hope for either of you, but we'll do what we can; and the Police, so long as you're up front with them, will do what they can for you. Do you both understand that?"
"Sir", they muttered, almost in unison.
PC Wilson appeared in the doorway.
"The school secretary said I'd find you two here".
He turned to the boys.
"Rufus Doyle?" he asked abruptly.
"Sir", muttered the boy.
"And Ben Wallace?"
Ben bowed his head in a gesture of confirmation.
"Good", said the officer. "Then we'd all better adjourn to the principal's office".
Grev opened his mouth to say something but the policeman cut him off.
"Peters is on his way to cool his heels in a police cell. You won't be seeing him back here - ever, if we have our way".
He ushered the boys out and we followed him to Grev's office.
A sergeant was seated behind Grev's desk with PC Drew in attendance.
"Mr. Kennedy", said the sergeant, "Sergeant Pope, from North Earlham. Can you and PC Wilson wait with Ben in the outer office? PC Drew and I need to talk to Rufus. It might be as well if Mr. Ito stays".
"Actually", Grev said, "I might need Mr. Ito. He is Trent's form-master and we could do with somebody popping up to the hospital. Unless you have somebody there".
No,I haven't", replied the sergeant. "That sounds like a good idea".
Since I had nothing left to do at the college, I was happy to drive to the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital where I assumed that Trent would be in the accident unit.
I approached reception and asked if Neil Trent had been brought in.
"Are you a relative?" asked the busy looking lady behind the desk.
"I'm his form-teacher at school," I told her. "He was attacked on the way to school".
"I'm sorry, but I can only give information about patients to relatives".
"I didn't ask for information. I only asked if you have him".
"And I told you that I can't tell you".
"You already did tell me", I replied. "You wouldn't have asked me if I was a relative if he wasn't here".
She looked at me as if she would like to do me an injury and then decided, instead, to ask for assistance".
"Doctor Woods..." she called.
"Hallo Simon" said Dave Woods. "What brings you here?"
"One of my boys was brought in this morning after a bad attack on his way to school".
"You mean Neil", he replied. "Come this way".
"Doctor I..."
"Thanks Margaret, I've got it now".
We repaired to the small office that Ross and I had been in a year earlier.
"Now", said Dave, seating himself behind his desk, "I can't take you up to the ward. She'd certainly prevent that. It wouldn't be a good idea anyway, since the boy's father is there and the school isn't flavour of the month with him".
"He never got to school", I said, " so there wasn't much we could do about it".
"I don't think that would cut much ice. What is it you need to know?"
"His chance of recovery would be a good start. The police are dealing with the culprits now, but they could do with knowing whether they could be looking at a murder charge".
Dave sucked air through his teeth.
"Wow!" he said. "You don't pull your punches do you? The answer is that they could, but we're obviously hoping they won't".
"So Neil isn't out of danger?"
"He came in here with hypothermia, which we treated immediately. He had lost some blood, which didn't help, and had the beginnings of frostbite in one of his toes, which we believe we have saved. He is currently very weak and drifting in and out of consciousness. We've stabilised his body temperature but he has a long way to go yet. He has also suffered mental trauma and shock. Either of those could be killers".
"So there isn't any good news?"
"The good news is that the police got to him in time - we hope. Another ten minutes and he'd have been dead on arrival. If those young thugs don't face a murder charge, it won't be their fault".
It was after dinner time when I reported all this back to Grev. The police had vacated his office but it looked as if the deputy principal would end up taking my lessons all day. By the time I collected Barry at the end of lessons, I was exhausted. I had to drive round to St. Oswalds to collect Philip. I was glad that Garret was doing dinner.