Murder of a Small-Town Honey

'Like what?'

Lloyd turned red and muttered, 'They played games, sex games.'

She took a few steps and sat. Lloyd must have thought this was a good idea because he sank into the adjoining chair.

'This is terrible, of course, and I'm sure many of those kids will need to see a counselor, but I'm still not clear on how this relates to school.' Skye crossed her legs. 'You're aware that the school is required to provide counseling ser­vices only if the emotional problem directly impacts a child's ability to learn?'

He sighed. 'Yes, I know, and so far it hasn't impaired their learning, if we strictly interpret the law. On the other hand, word has gotten out about this, and since school has started, Travis has been beaten up every day by angry brothers and cousins of the girls involved.'

'Let me see if I have a correct picture of what's been oc­curring.' Skye jotted a few notes on her pad. 'Travis's par­ents no doubt are denying that anything took place this summer, while demanding we do something to protect their poor innocent baby boy. Right?'

Lloyd nodded.

'Calls are coming in from the other parents wanting to know why we haven't expelled this demon from hell.' Skye looked at Lloyd for confirmation.

He nodded once again.

'So—we need to think of something that will satisfy both sides.'

'Precisely. What do you suggest?'

'Has DCFS been called? We have to report any suspi­cion of abuse or neglect, and it sounds as if Travis may have abused the other children or the Idells may be guilty of neglect by not having provided adequate supervision for Travis. Although, I must admit, I've never quite understood what criteria the Department of Children and Family Ser­vices uses. Regardless, we are mandated to report.'

'The parents of one of the girls involved called DCFS a couple of days ago. Her mother got suspicious when the girl cried every time she was made to undress. Her parents finally got her to tell them what was wrong. That's how this all got started. Once the DCFS started interviewing the var­ious kids, everyone in town knew something was up. News around here spreads like a heat rash in summer.' Lloyd's leg jiggled like a Slinky.

Skye considered their options until Lloyd's fidgeting drove her to speak. 'Okay, I have a recommendation, but it's going to cost the school some money.'

Lloyd grimaced. 'Let's hear it.'

'We make arrangements to home-teach young Mr. Idell until either the excitement dies down or DCFS makes some kind of move.' Skye persisted before Lloyd could interrupt her. 'By providing a home teacher we kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. We satisfy the Idells that we're pro­tecting Travis from the children who are beating him up, and we appease the other parents by removing him, tem­porarily, from his alleged victims.'

After a moment of thought, Lloyd got up. 'This could work. How long do you think we'll have to pay for a home teacher?'

'That depends on a lot of things. Such as what DCFS decides to do and on what time schedule. I don't think I know the Idells. When did they move to Scumble River? Are they fairly affluent?'

'They relocated here about five or six years ago, I'd say they're comfortable. Both parents work in Chicago. With the ninety-minute commute each way they're hardly ever home. I think they do something with the stock exchange, and Travis is their only child.'

'One of two things could happen. They may eventually become convinced that Travis did the things he's accused of and get him some professional help. Or they might re­main in denial, decide the whole town is against them, and put Travis in a private school.' Skye underlined something she had written.

'So, how long do you think this will take?' Lloyd bounced from one foot to the other.

It was Skye's turn to sigh. 'This is only a guess, but I'd say a semester would be the longest these circumstances could last without something happening to change the situ­ation.'

Abruptly Lloyd ushered her out the door. 'Fine. I'll check with the superintendent and get back to you if we need another option.'

Finding herself staring at the closed door, she noticed it was oak with a small black nameplate on it: LLOYD STARK,

PRINCIPAL.

She thought, Principal what? Boor?

Skye wasn't able to leave school until after five, having once again missed lunch. If this continued she'd have to find some sort of food she could eat during the five minutes it took to walk from one appointment to the next. The PPS meeting had lasted past three, and before she could get out of the room, the Idells had arrived. She'd spent two hours trying to work through the issues surrounding Travis's be­havior but made little progress.

During a brief break in the conference, she had stolen a few minutes and telephoned her mother to ask if Vince planned on closing the shop for the day. May told Skye that Vince had said he'd be at work the next morning, whether he still had customers or not.

Pulling into Great Expectations about five-fifteen, Skye found the parking lot empty.

Vince was sitting on a stool behind the counter drinking a Coke and reading the Chicago Tribune when Skye came through the door.

He got up and came around to hug her. 'Sis, I didn't kill her.'

'I know.' Skye fought the lump gathering in the back of her throat. 'Let's sit down.'

They settled once again in the plastic-covered chairs by the shampoo sinks and Skye asked gently, 'Did most peo­ple show up for their appointments?'

'Yes. I was surprised, but there was just the normal number of no-shows.'

Skye crossed her legs. 'Good. Maybe that means the town's behind you. I suppose they all wanted to ask you questions, though.'

'Oh, yeah, but that's pretty normal in this business. I told everyone I wasn't allowed to discuss it.'

'That was a good idea.'

'I was thinking of changing our double date to Friday. Both Mike and Abby said that was okay. Can you make it then?' Trailing his fingers along the basin, Vince avoided looking Skye in the eye.

'Sure, but maybe we should wait until this is all over.'

'No. I want to go out. It will help take my mind off things.' Vince continued to appear fascinated with the sink's enamel finish.

'When's your next customer scheduled?'

'Not until six, and that's the last appointment of the day,' Vince said, relief evident in his voice.

'Then we have time to talk. What did you think of Loretta?'

'She was amazing, but then so were you and Mom. How did you know what to do?'

'I'm not sure, but ever since all this happened I've been relying on my memories of old TV shows to tell me how to act. I know I watched a lot of television as a kid, but it must have made a greater impact than I ever realized. Every time I get into a jam lately I've done what I've seen them do on TV. I think this latest one was Perry Mason.' Skye had had little time for television since she'd left Scumble River, so her points of reference were somewhat dated.

'You should've seen Mom,' Vince said. 'Wally and a couple of his men showed up at my apartment around ten. The news was just coming on. They told me they had a search warrant and were bringing me in for questioning. It took them about forty-five minutes to tear my place apart, then they put me in the back of the squad car and took me to the station. Mom must have gotten to work just a little while before they brought me in, because she wasn't even sitting down yet. She started crying right away, but that

didn't slow her down at all. She was on the phone to you before they even got me all the way upstairs.'

'Did they have time to ask you anything before Mom stopped you?' Skye posed the question she had been wor­ried about since last night.

'No. Wally was still getting coffee when Mom pushed her way into the room and told me not to say anything.'

'If Mom was with you from the time I talked to her until Loretta appeared, how did Dad get there?'

'Mom used the phone in the interrogation room. Wally was so stunned by her actions I think she could have taken me home before he would have thought to object.' Vince grabbed a magazine from the stand and started