Page 2 of Innocence

“But why? Sterling was gonna help me with grounders,” he said, pouting. He looked outside to see the sun shining. It was windy, but that didn’t matter.

“Buddy, Sterling is in jail. They think he killed a woman.” There was a knock on the door, and his father answered, seeing Harry’s best friends, Warren and Edith.

“He didn’t do it!” yelled Edith.

“Hold on, Edith. This isn’t something that kids should get involved in.”

“But, Mr. Willis, he didn’t do it. We rode our bikes back to the park to ask Sterling a question. The lady was walking to him all bloody. We saw him call the police, and we saw him hold her.”

“What else did you see?” he asked the children.

“We saw two men come through the gate behind him,” said Harry. “He hit Sterling over the head with a bat.”

“And you left? You didn’t think to tell us?” asked his father.

“You and Mom weren’t here when I got home. Heidi was with Samantha in her room and didn’t want me to bother her. I just thought he would be okay. He’s big and strong. Nothing hurts Sterling.”

“We left ‘cause we heard the police coming,” said Edith. “We thought everything would be okay.”

“Alright, you three. Sit down. Let’s hear this again.”

CHAPTER TWO

“So, mon frére, how are the bison?” smirked Miller.

“Seriously. That’s how we’re starting the morning. Fine. Fuck all of you,” smirked Gaspar. “Actually, the bison are fine.”

“Bucky is happy in his new surroundings,” said Trak. They all turned, not hearing him enter the room. The man was a walking ghost.

“Bucky? You named him Bucky? What happens if we get a beaver? I mean, shit, the obvious name for a beaver is Bucky,” frowned Gaspar. Trak just stared at him.

“Why is that obvious? You’re profiling the beaver,” he said with a straight face. The entire room erupted in laughter.

“Fine. Bucky is the male bison. And the three females?”

“Betty, Veronica, and Midge.” Gaspar could only stare at him, wondering if he was awake or not.

“Got it.Bucky, Betty, Veronica, and Midge. And does Bucky have a favorite?” he frowned. Sniff just laughed, shaking his head at the men.

“We’re not sure yet. He seems to have feelings for them all, but the women are being picky. Hopefully, we’ll have an entire herd in a few years.”

“Alvin likes them very much. He says they are regal,” said Trak.

“Of course he does. I mean, why wouldn’t an alligator think four bison are regal? Surely, he was raised right,” Gaspar said with heavy sarcasm.

“Can we focus, children?” smiled Nine. “The last case could not have ended any better. We saved those that we could, and Calvin, Vic, Damon, and April are doing extremely well on their own. Matthew gave them a vehicle so they could get around. April is doing beautifully in school and would like to get a degree in teaching eventually.”

“That’s a strange mix, those three seniors with her,” said Jean. “I think for them, it’s like having a daughter they never had with them. The harder thing for all of them is learning technology. We tried to give them phones that are basic and simple, but the men couldn’t understand why they weren’t connected to the walls.”

“I can’t imagine,” said Antoine. “Think about all the technology that’s happened in the last ten years alone. Technology here because of G.R.I.P. is even more advanced. They have to feel overwhelmed.”

“Well, the good news is that Calla and the team are visiting three times a week to talk to them and work through anything they need. She said they’ve been incredibly open and honest. It’s like teaching children,” said Baptiste.

“Angel, Gibbie, Antoine, Bull, and Jazz,” said Ian. “Great job on the security for the art exhibit. I understand we had no big issues other than one protestor who didn’t like an exhibit that was a piece of indigenous art, using skins and fur.”

“All in all, it was pretty quiet,” said Bull. “I have to say, seeing the artwork from our own people was amazing. I mean, I knew what Ela, Cass, and Shay were doing, but I guess I didn’t pay a lot of attention to it. Those pieces were unbelievable.”

“Cass had a painting that sold for two hundred thousand,” smiled Angel. “It was beautiful. Went to some big corporation in New York who wanted it for their offices in Manhattan.”

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