The Abduction of Stephanie

Chapter 19

Raven fixes her perfectly straightened hair, applies more of her ruby red lip-gloss and holds her head up high, it will only be a matter of time before she rules this school. She smiles as she walks through the halls of Prince High as all the boys look on, many of them staring at her breasts but that is okay with her, all the attention is making her feel like a celebrity, though no one has asked her for an autograph just yet, and while Agnes might have shunned all the popularity, Raven is living it up.

“Agnes Bumgarner” shouts a voice from the other side of the hall. “Are you Agnes Bumgarner?” “Who wants to know?” says Raven without looking up. “Miss Bumgarner, we would like to have a few words with you.” Raven lifts her chin and sees two men dressed in blue standing before her. “Miss Bumgarner, we are with the Juniata police department and we want to ask you a couple of questions.” “Whatever it is, I didn’t do it. Good day.” Raven spritzes some perfume on her neck, grabs her history book and makes her way towards room 203.

“Miss Bumgarner this will only take a couple of minutes.” “What is this about anyways?” “As you may know, one of your classmates is believed to have been abducted, Stephanie Saunders, we were just wondering if you might have any information regarding her whereabouts or if you can help in any way? “You’re asking the wrong girl. Can I go now?” “Miss Bumgarner, please just bare with us for a couple more minutes.”

“We have reason to believe that you were the last person who saw her the night she disappeared. Is that true?” “Maybe, maybe not. So?” “Miss Bumgarner we know about the incident, about the hazing. “I don’t want to talk about it!” “Miss Bumgarner I know this is difficult but if you could just spare a little bit more of your time we might be able to clear this up and won’t have to bother you anymore.” “Ugh” sighs Raven. “Fine!” “Perhaps there is somewhere more private we could go to talk.”

Raven escorts the two police officers to a vacant room on the other side of the school, the two officers enter first and Raven reluctantly joins them. “Please have a seat Miss Bumgarner, Agnes.” “Don’t call me that. It’s Raven. Agnes was a pathetic excuse for a woman that let people walk all over her. Agnes is no more.” “Ok Raven, I’m officer Preston and this is my partner officer Dibley.” Officer Prescot is a tall man with broad shoulders and a five o’clock shadow. His eyes are sunken in as if he has been up all night working on this case. Dibley is a couple inches shorter and much heavier than Preston, he is balding on the top of his head, but hasn’t gone gray yet.

“Okay officers Princess and Dipshit, what do you want to know? And make it quick, I’m a busy woman.” “Listen Miss Bumgarner, like I said you are believed to be the last person seen with Stephanie Saunders. We also have reason to believe she is one of the girls that hazed you, but you believe that too don’t you?” “I already told you I don’t know anything.” “Miss Bumgarner we can do this the easy way and you can answer our questions here or we will have to take you down to the station.” Raven stares on, not saying a word, watching as Dibley takes a sip of his coffee. Preston does all the talking and Raven doesn’t like his tone. This guy is going to pay.

“So Miss Bumgarner, where were you the night Miss Saunders disappeared?” “I was at the football game. I play tuba in the marching band, at least I used to.” “Was Miss Saunders also there with you?” “Yes. She is a cheerleader. She was there too.” “And did you have any interaction with Miss Saunders that day?” “No, we aren’t friends.” Preston looks down at a yellow legal pad, jotting down what Raven has to say. “And where did you go after the football game?” “I went home.” “Is there anyone that can verify that?” “Yes, my father.” “Miss Bumgarner, we spoke with your father last night and he says you didn’t come home until after midnight and it was a school night.” Agnes would have cracked under this kind of pressure but Raven simply says, “Are we through?”

“Just a few more questions.” Raven rolls her eyes as the officer asks, “Did you like Stephanie Saunders?” “I told you we aren’t friends. In fact I hate that bitch. She made my life hell. I’m glad she’s missing. I hope she stays missing.” “Miss Bumgarner control yourself.” “That girl is pure evil. She made me miserable.” “Miss Bumgarner, do you believe that Stephanie Saunders was present the night you were attacked?” “Yes.” “And were there others with her?” “Yes.” “How many others were there?” “Three.” “Miss Bumgarner I know this is hard for you but I’m going to need to go over the details of that night with me one more time.”

Raven is strong, strong enough and confident enough to keep herself from being bullied, pretty enough to get any boy she ever wants, smart enough to win a Pulitzer Prize, and most of all fearless, until now. That awful night in the woods is not something she ever wants to relive, it’s something she wants to keep in her past like a distant memory, sometimes wishing she would get amnesia so she could forget it ever happened. Her tough outer shell cracking; she fidgets in her chair as she struggles to find the words.

“I was walking home from school that night, it was raining just a little, but the rain didn’t last. I felt someone tapping on my shoulder and the next thing I knew I was grabbed and dragged into the woods.” Raven trembles, trying to be tough, but she’s not tough, deep down she knows she is still that pathetic girl that everyone picked on, deep down she knows she is still Agnes. “It’s okay Miss Bumgarner take your time.” “They…They…” she begins to sob. They took my clothes. They burned them. They almost drowned me in the river and then they tied me up.” “What happened next Miss Bumgarner?” “They took a cucumber and they…and they…stuck it in me.” “All of them or just Stephanie?” “Just Stephanie.” “And how do you know it was Stephanie that did this to you?” “It was her voice, I recognized her voice.”

Raven lies her head down on the table and covers her eyes with her arms as she can feel herself transforming back into Agnes and that’s the last person she wants to be. “Miss Bumgarner is it possible that you had something to do with the disappearance of Miss Saunders?” Preston offers her a tissue and she uses it to dry her tears. “I’ll ask you again Miss Bumgarner, did you have any involvement in the disappearance of Miss Stephanie Saunders?” “No, I did not.” “Miss Bumgarner, you said yourself that you recognized her voice that night in the woods.” “That doesn’t mean anything.” “You just told me that you hated her and wish for her to remain missing, did you not?” “Yes but I didn’t do anything to her.”

Officer Dibley finishes a fresh doughnut like a typical policeman and then begins to question Agnes. “Miss Bumgarner isn’t it true that you wanted revenge on Miss Saunders?” “Yes, wouldn’t you?” Dibley doesn’t answer her rhetorical question; he continues with his interrogation, “You didn’t like Miss Saunders did you Miss Bumgarner?” “No I did not. I already told you that. So what?”

“Miss Bumgarner we have spoken with some of the other students and they say you have been acting very strange since Stephanie has gone missing, changing your appearance, changing your name, and bullying other students. If you asked me you are acting like someone with something to hide, someone who is planning to run, someone who committed a violent crime.” The expression on his face is stone cold. “I didn’t do anything,” says Agnes.

“I’ve got my eye on you Agnes, Raven.” Be strong Raven. You are tough. Raven’s don’t cry.” “We might have some more questions for you in the future. In the mean time, don’t leave town.” Agnes wipes away tears with the palm of her hand, feeling helpless, but still strong enough to keep her father’s secret. “Here’s my card. If you can think of anything else that might be helpful. Give us a call. You can go now.”

CHAPTER 20