Sarah Benadine is Dead

Chapter XIX, Part I

***Warning: this chapter contains mentions of racism.***

Between the day Shannon Malone, Caleb Vance, Dexter Bradbury, Ginger Beaumont, Jared Wilkins, and Ollie O'Brien spent in the cemetery and the final three deaths of the school year, there was a short reprieve. May was well on its way now, and it seemed that everything was working towards a peak. Clifford Dent was revisiting every single lead pertaining to Sarah Benadine's case. Horace Strickland and the rest of the police department were attempting to find the answers to the other cases of the year. Jackie Gordon was on the verge of disappearing. Norberta Benadine had not told anyone about the note she'd found, too nervous to say anything until she knew for sure the note was from Jackie. Briargate was bustling with the people Howard Nesbitt had promised, investigators in their own right, hunting whatever was causing all the panic in town. Patience Lea was trying to keep a hold on her school as well as the nervous parents, many of whom were in contact with her with increasing frequency as the days went by. Tuly Lewis was in the infirmary far more than usual, reporting light-headedness and nausea. But for a short while, there was a stagnant undercurrent in Clearwater, as if nothing was happening at all.

That made Dexter Bradbury nervous. He knew better than anyone that appearances can be deceiving. There is always a calm before the storm.

Caleb told them about his encounter with Dean Procter and Vince Masterson in the library. Out of all of them, Ginger was the least surprised. "If anything, I'm surprised this didn't come sooner," she said, all of them gathered at one of the tables in the dining room, actually present for the lunch meal for once. "My brother's been hassled by Dean's older brother for years. He's kinda...you know." She shrugged and made a vague gesture with her hands that Dexter didn't quite understand. "He goes after Stacie Rothschild too 'cause she's Jewish."

"He's pretty bad, isn't he?" Caleb asked. They had all heard whispers about the things Darryl Procter had done, but none but Ginger had seen his handiwork firsthand.

Ginger grimaced. "He gave my brother a black eye, bloody nose, and fat lip one time. For no reason other than...well..."

Caleb nodded solemnly. He dragged one hand restlessly across the table.

"Most people just...stay out of his way," Ginger continued. "From what I've heard, he doesn't always have a reason for what he does. Just gets angry. But he's...pretty violent most of the time."

"Dean never used to be," Caleb said quietly.

"But he is now," Jared said. He nodded at Caleb. "It was the same when he gave me that bloody nose. He just seemed...different. I don't know. Worse."

"Yeah," Caleb agreed.

"At least Stephanie just sticks to insults," Ginger said under her breath, sounding rather nonplussed. Dexter shot her a half-hearted smile, and the ghost of a reflection appeared on her lips.

"Did you guys hear?" Jared asked quietly as conversation lulled. "When...when we had Diefenbaker's class outside the other day...people are saying they found Lester Ames. Or...parts of him."

"Ugh." Ginger winced.

"Where did you hear that?" Ollie asked.

"Jimmy," Jared said with a shrug.

"That'd explain why Howard Nesbitt was here that day," Caleb said. "Him and some other people from the Administration have been at the school a lot lately. Lots of students have seen them. I saw them myself the other day."