Jake punched his shoulder. “You’re going to need practice before you try that, dude.” He stopped at a classroom. “This is where I gotta be. See ya later in English?”
“Yeah.” Sam gave his friend a nod, then ambled off to his next class as students surged around him, hurried on by the warning bell.
His next class was study hall, which was totally lame. He was supposed to fill the time with studying and homework, but instead he ended up bored. He’d tried to change the schedule, to end up in a class with either Jake or Paul, but of course he hadn’t been allowed.
Sam dropped into his seat, and glanced across the room. Adam slouched at a desk, glaring at a comic book. Guess he didn’t care much about study hall either.
Sam thought of what his uncle had said about Adam’s parents.
Sure, Sam felt sorry for the guy, but hey, everyone had problems didn’t they?
Besides, Jake and Paul didn’t think he was such a great guy to hang out with anyhow. And word around the school was that he was the one who had not only pulled the alarm, but had also done the work on Principal Duncan’s car.
Sam spent the next twenty minutes working on his assignment. Then, as he closed his book, he saw Adam glance at the clock. As he stood, their eyes met.
For a split second Sam wondered if that was what he looked like when he first came to school. A bit ticked off, a bit frustrated and a bit lonely. But even as he felt some sympathy for the guy, he thought of the rumors.
If Adam was the one creating all the problems in school, then it was his own fault the only person who would hang out with him was Dale.
Besides, Sam had his own reputation to think about.
Sam waited a few minutes after Adam left, then got up from the desk and quietly left the study hall himself.
His shoes squeaked on the shiny floor, the sound echoing in the quiet of the hallway. Just beyond the doors he heard the murmuring of a teacher’s voice and the scratch of chalk scribbling across a board.
“Sam? Sam Slater?”
His heart sank at the sound of Principal Duncan’s voice. He knew he hadn’t done anything wrong, but he’d spent enough time in Duncan’s office at the beginning of the year to feel an automatic slam of guilt.
He turned and gave the principal his most innocent smile.
“Good afternoon, Principal Duncan. How are you, sir?”
“I’m fine. Just wondering what you’re up to.”
Sam bristled at the implication. “I’m just heading to the library. I was in the study hall.”
Principal Duncan nodded his head.
“Okay. I’m hoping I can verify that.”
Sam fought down his frustration. Why did Principal Duncan want to assume the worst? It wasn’t fair. Sure he’d messed up a bit, but he’d kept his grades up and kept his nose clean the past couple of months.
“Of course you can, sir.” Sam waited a moment while Principal Duncan looked at him, nodded, then turned and walked down the hallway.
As Sam continued to the library, he came around the corner past the chemistry lab in time to see Adam stop at the door of the lab. He looked left, as if checking the hallway. Sam ducked back just as Adam looked in his direction.
Sam waited a moment, then looked around the corner in time to see the door of the lab fall shut.
What was Adam doing in there? Was he going to cause more trouble?
Sam wasn’t sure he should go inside, but he thought of Principal Duncan. If he could catch Adam red-handed, doing something wrong, maybe Principal Duncan wouldn’t think he was such a delinquent.
He opened the door just a hair, listening. He could hear Adam’s shoes. He carefully glanced inside the room and saw Adam bending over a table.
The room was dimly lit by two windows and Sam carefully slipped into the room, careful not to let the door open too wide.
The only noise he heard was the muffled sounds of a teacher talking in the next room and a faint ticking of the classroom clock. He tried to still his breathing. He was in luck. Adam didn’t seem to have heard him.
Adam stopped by a table and pulled a pen out of his pocket. Intent on Adam, Sam ventured farther into the room.
And stumbled over a chair.
It crashed to the ground and Adam spun around. Then seeing who it was, he turned and ran out of the room.
Some kind of spy I am, Sam thought, going over to see what Adam was looking at.
A piece of paper lying beside one of the Bunsen burners caught his attention. A note?
Sam swallowed as he walked closer. But the note was folded up, held down by a pen. The note held one word.
Help.
What was that about?
Sam grabbed the pen, felt a moment of resistance and tugged. And then everything happened at once.
He saw the flare of a match, then a sparkler started blazing just as he heard raised voices. The door was pulled open, Principal Duncan called out his name as the lights went on, and suddenly the room was filled with noxious fumes.
Stink bomb, Sam realized, covering his mouth with his hand as he stumbled toward the door. Adam had been trying to set off a stink bomb.
As Principal Duncan caught his arm, Sam realized he was still holding the pen.
And Principal Duncan was furious.
With him.
CHARLOTTE SHUT OFF her vacuum cleaner, glanced around her tidy house and allowed herself a moment of satisfaction. Bob was in town visiting with his friends, Pete was working in the shop on some project and she was content to catch up on her housework.
She was humming a song to herself when the ringing of the phone broke into the quiet.
Charlotte answered it, glancing at the clock. Hannah said she would call before she came for coffee.
It was Principal Duncan.
And he was calling about Sam.
Twenty minutes later Charlotte sat in a chair across the desk from Principal Duncan.
“I don’t know if our secretary explained exactly what happened,” Principal Duncan was saying, his long fingers folded on the desk in front of him. “But setting off a stink bomb in a chemistry lab, you must realize, is extremely serious.”
“Sir, I told you, I didn’t do it,” Sam said, pushing himself forward from the seat he was slouching in beside Charlotte. “It was a setup.”
Charlotte held her hand out to her grandson, signaling him to be quiet. Her confusion mingled with her anger toward her grandson.
“You were caught red-handed,” Principal Duncan was saying. Then he turned to Charlotte. “Which makes one wonder if he was behind some of the other pranks that have been going on.”
“I didn’t have anything to do with any of that,” Sam retorted.
“And how do we know that?” Principal Duncan asked, tapping his pen on the blotter of his desk.
“Sam is not in the habit of lying,” Charlotte said, forcing her voice to become quiet in order to stay above the anger Principal Duncan’s accusation created in her.
Yet, even as she defended her grandson, she thought of his promise to come to church. She had followed Melody’s advice and said nothing to him about it and, to her disappointment, Sam had acted as if he had done nothing wrong.
“Your defense of Sam is honorable, but you must understand, in this situation, I have to act on what I saw.” Principal Duncan shot Sam a quick look. “And I saw him setting off a stink bomb.”
Charlotte couldn’t argue with him. She wasn’t there. Which created a dilemma for her and Bob. She had to believe Sam, but if Principal Duncan said he caught him actually doing what he was accused of, what choice did she have?
Sam looked like he was about to defend himself again, but Charlotte laid her hand on his knee to stop him.
Principal Duncan tapped his pen on his desk, his thin lips pursed. “My first inclination was to put him on probation, given his problems back in September, but I don’t know if that’s always the way to resolve these issues. However, I will let you know this is a stern warning. If he
is caught again, he will be put on probation for sure.”
She gave Principal Duncan a tight nod and got up from her chair. Sam followed.
As she put on her coat, Principal Duncan leaned forward, his hands clasped on his desk.
“We’ve given Sam some leeway because of his circumstances,” he added. “But you do realize we can’t tolerate vandalism.”
“I realize that. And I’m sure Sam does as well.” She gave him a polite smile then left, Sam trailing behind her.
As his office door closed behind her, Charlotte took a moment to gather her thoughts.
“I didn’t do it, Grandma,” Sam said one more time.
Charlotte felt a moment’s compassion for her angry young grandson. She put her hand in the small of his back, suddenly surprised how tall he’d grown since he’d come to the farm.
He was getting older, she thought with a hint of melancholy. She and Bob were still learning about him and he was growing up as it happened.
Please Lord, give me wisdom in how to deal with this, she prayed, pulling in a long, slow breath. Even as the prayer was formulated, she smiled. Here she was, praying outside the high school principal’s office.
Since the children came, she’d been sending up quick prayers from all areas of Bedford. School hallways, diners, street corners, her car.
“I want to believe you,” she said firmly, easing away any doubt he might have. “But I can’t override what Principal Duncan says he saw, or what he decided.”
“It was a setup. I tried to tell him that I saw Adam Grienke in the lab before I went in. Why didn’t he believe that? I mean, we all know that Adam’s been the one causing all the trouble around here.”
Charlotte had heard all the rumblings and the children’s speculation herself, but at the same time she wondered if Lisa felt that Adam was innocent as well.
And she wondered if Sam’s anger was simply a way to deflect suspicion somewhere else.
Her head was tired from trying to balance between what she had heard and what Sam was telling her.
“We’ll let Principal Duncan deal with Adam. For now, you have to go to your next class.” She wanted, more than anything to give him a hug. To tell him that she loved him.
But this was his territory and she knew, from past experience with her own children, that public displays of affection from parents—or grandparents—would only give friends extra fodder for teasing.
She contented herself with a light touch on his arm and a smile that, she hoped, conveyed her love.
“See you at home.”
She caught the faintest movement of one corner of his mouth and a softening in his eyes.
It was enough.
She watched him walk down the hallway, his hands shoved in the pockets of his hoodie.
Please, Lord, let him find his way through this difficult part of his life. Let him find his way to you.
She waited a moment, watching as he stepped into his classroom. Then she strode down the hallway in the opposite direction and turned a corner.
And came face to face with Dana.
She was carrying a cup of coffee in one hand and a stack of papers in the other.
“Mrs. Stevenson. I’m sorry. I didn’t see you.” Dana grew flustered and a blush stained her round cheeks.
Her reaction surprised Charlotte. “That’s okay. I was in a bit of a hurry.”
“Don’t let me keep you,” Dana said, shifting the papers in her hand.
Charlotte was tempted to keep moving, but she caught the hint of pain in Dana’s gaze just before she averted it.
“Are you on a break right now?” Charlotte asked.
Dana nodded, “I was just headed to the teachers’ lounge to catch up on my grading.”
Charlotte clutched her purse closer, questions hovering, waiting to be voiced. But she had no right to ask them so she contented herself with small talk.
“I imagine that’s a never-ending job.”
Dana shook her head even as a smile flitted over her lips. “I’m glad we met. I want to let you know how hard Sam has been working in my class. We haven’t had many assignments lately, but he’s done a great job on the ones we’ve had. He has the makings of a good writer.”
“That’s encouraging.” And just what Charlotte needed to hear after talking to the principal.
“He did an interesting essay on working on the farm. It seems that he and Pete get along very well.”
Charlotte nodded slowly, wondering again at Dana’s heightened color.
“How is Pete doing?” Dana asked.
Though she sounded casual, Charlotte caught an underlying tone in Dana’s voice. And the faint hurt in her voice was the impetus Charlotte needed to speak out.
“Pete doesn’t seem to be very happy these days.”
“I was surprised to see him in church,” Dana replied.
So was Charlotte. And equally surprised to see him sitting with Miss Grienke. “It’s been a little while.”
Dana gave Charlotte a halfhearted smile. “He told me that church is just for people who are concerned about what others think.” She stopped there and pressed her lips together. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”
“Don’t worry. He told me the same thing not too long ago.” Charlotte paused, remembering when and where Pete had told her. “I think it was shortly after a date with you.”
Dana glanced away, as if remembering herself.
Charlotte took a huge chance and pressed on, her concern for her son and her caring for this lovely young woman pushing her past her own boundaries. “It’s none of my business, of course, but I’m wondering why you and Pete haven’t been spending time together lately. Did something happen?”
Dana sighed and gave Charlotte a wistful smile. “We had a strong … disagreement.”
“Was it about church?”
Dana nodded, looking away. “I was wondering why he didn’t come more often so I asked him. He gave me a noncommittal reply that I challenged.”
Good for you, Charlotte thought. “In what way?”
“I merely said that it’s important, as a Christian, to belong to a community. And I challenged him to come more often. Then he got angry and told me he didn’t believe in church, but he wouldn’t give me a reason …” Dana let her voice trail off, as if remembering hurt too much.
“Should I talk to him?”
Dana shook her head. “Please don’t. And don’t tell him I told you this. I shouldn’t have said anything. But it’s just—” Dana stopped there and blew out a sigh. “It’s just that I like Pete and—” She shrugged. “Anyway. Thanks for listening.”
“I won’t say anything to him,” Charlotte assured the young woman.
But she sure had a few questions for her son. How could he deliberately choose to come to church for Miss Grienke and not for Dana?
She simply didn’t understand.
“I better get going. My coffee is getting cold,” Dana said with a light laugh. “And goodness knows I need all the caffeine I can get to stay alert while I’m marking.”
“All right. You take care, Dana. Hope to see you soon,” Charlotte said, hoping the young woman caught the warmth in her voice.
But as Dana walked away, Charlotte found herself praying yet again.
Praying that Pete would have a change of heart and, if not, praying that she could learn to care for Miss Grienke in the same way she had come to care for Dana.
Chapter Twenty
I’ll have some more spuds if there’s any left.” Pete glanced down the table to the bowl sitting in front of Charlotte.
As she passed it down, she tried to catch his eye, but he was looking across the table at Sam, who was picking at his roast beef.
“So, mister, heard you had a big day today?” he said to his nephew. “Heard you got into a bit of trouble, you rebellious young teenager, you.”
Sam shoved his fork into a piece of roast, his expression clearly showing his opinion of his “big day.”
“Do I need to make a sign? I didn’t do it,” Sam retorted. He dropped his fork and sat back in his chair, arms folded tightly across his chest. “I got framed by that lousy Adam Grienke. He’s the one who set it all up.”
“How do you know it was Adam?” Pete asked, his eyes narrowing.
“I saw him sneaking around the lab. So I followed him in and found the setup for the stink bomb. But Principal Duncan kept talking about the tip he’d gotten from some weasel that a stink bomb was going to go off in the lab. I just happened to be in the wrong place.”
“Did you tell Principal Duncan about Adam?” Pete asked, spooning more potatoes onto his plate.
“I told the truth. I saw him go into the lab.”
“I’m wondering, if you followed him, how he would have had time to set it all up?” Pete mused.
“I saw him go inside just a couple of seconds before I went in.”
“Could someone else have set it up?”
Sam shoved his hand through his hair in exasperation. “Why are you taking his side? Everyone in school knows he’s the one who’s been doing all this stuff.”
“I’m not taking his side. I believe you. I’m just wondering if something else isn’t going on,” Pete said.
Emily held up her hands. “Puhleeze, can the defense rest until after supper?”
“I think that’s an excellent suggestion,” Bob put in, laying his fork and knife across his plate. He was finished. “Christopher, did you find that bridle I asked you to look for?”
“It was in the shed, behind a saddle blanket that fell on the floor. I put it back up on the rail.”
“That’s my boy,” Bob said with a wink of approval.
Christopher turned to Sam. “Can you help me with my school project after dishes?” he asked.
“With that video?”
“That’d be cool.”
“Can I help?” Emily put in, looking animated.
Christopher nodded, his smile growing and Charlotte felt a moment of contentment. Christopher had felt left out last week, but it looked as if that too had passed. And it also looked like he was going to get the help he wanted on his project.
An Abundance of Blessings Page 17
