Sarah Benadine is Dead

Chapter X, Part I

***Just as a warning: this chapter contains a brief mention of racism and language some may find offensive***

Over a month passed before the seven people who found Dougie Wein's skull and clothes talked about it with each other. It seems impossible to think; with so unbelievable a discovery and so terrible a fright between them, one might assume they wouldn't stop talking about it for over a month. But then some traumatic experiences beg not to be relived. They were still young children after all, eleven and twelve years old. There was much to provide distraction, such as classes and schoolwork, the upcoming holidays and the consequential letting out of school, other friends and classmates, and all the little things that matter only to children of that age. They had each recited their story alone to police; that was enough.

In the end, it was not intentional but rather incidental that the seven of them ended up alone together again with a reason to discuss what they had seen. Once again, depending on your personal outlook, you may view this as fate or coincidence, but regardless of that, the Saturday after Briargate reopened after the Christmas holidays, Shannon Malone, Caleb Vance, Allison Groves, Ollie O'Brien, Ginger Beaumont, Jared Wilkins, and Dexter Bradbury were all brought together again because of Charlie Mouser and the six bullies that terrorized all kids around their age.

There were four children that received the worst treatment from the six of them: Arthur Mann, Charlie Mouser, Jared Wilkins, and Caleb Vance. The fatty, the four-eyed freak, the spasmoid, and the Negro. In those early days, the girls were still mostly harmless. Stephanie Procter, Pearl Horne, and Karen Bonner hurled insults like rocks, but had yet to lay a hand on anyone. It was the boys who were the real problem: Vince Masterson, built like a grizzly bear and just as friendly; Dean Procter, who looked an angel with his fine blonde hair and blue eyes just like his twin but broke Charlie Mouser's glasses more often than he took a shower; and Quintus Zima, the one, the only.

Despite Vince and Dean's liberal use of their fists, anyone targeted by Vince, Dean, and Quintus would've said that Quintus scared them the most. He was more like the girls in terms of violence, rarely causing physical harm to anyone. But Quintus Zima was more than meaningless violence. Undoubtedly, he was the leader of the group, and everyone else acted at his orders. He was smart, very smart, and had a certain charm about him. He could seem completely harmless one moment and treacherously dangerous the next. This was a boy who could see anyone's secrets, it seemed sometimes. He could figure out anything about anyone, and he would use his information as he pleased. Quintus Zima wasn't likely to beat anyone up, but no one would've been surprised if he found a way to ruin someone's life.

That day in early January, 1956 was the first of two times Shannon Malone and her friends would face off against Quintus Zima and his. This first one was more stable and controlled than the second would be, but it would serve almost like a bad omen. It was the first any of the girls of Quintus's group would bring physical harm to anyone. It was the first hint to how Quintus and his gang would end up.

As it so happened, it started the same way the second fight would: Caleb Vance came to Charlie Mouser's defense. Caleb and Allison were out in town, something most Briargate students did on the weekend. Even in the bitter January cold, it was better than being cooped up in the school. They'd agreed to meet Shannon on Main. They hadn't seen her much lately; they'd both gone home for the holidays. They'd just spotted her across the street when a more pressing issue called their attention. A few blocks down from where Shannon stood, Quintus and his gang had congregated in front of the drugstore, flanking Charlie Mouser. Dean had Charlie's glasses raised in one hand and, being a particularly tall boy, kept them out of reach. A kiddie trick, no doubt, but it seemed to be amusing him. Charlie only made half-hearted attempts to grab for them, looking more and more like he may walk off without them. He probably would have if he could've been sure he wouldn't walk right into a car.