Page 173 of Still Bruised
They stared at him, looking completely lost and confused.
“You remember that Jude owns a butcher shop, right?”
They both nodded.
Foster chuckled. “He’s got this massive commercial meat grinderanda bunch of bone saws.”
“So?” Jeff asked.
“After I tell him what you two just told me, he might start itching to use them.” He smiled at them. “If you don’t make it right, I might let him.”
The pair cocked their heads, incredulous.
Well, it worked to spook Rick. Maybe I’m just not as ominous as Jude is.
“You know there’s a statute of limitations with the bullying laws. Five years for the more serious ones,” Mario said. “We might be dumb, but we’re not dumb enough to admit we were accessories to a crime without having checked if we could get arrested.”
Foster shook his head. “How about you just do the right thing,” Foster said before muttering,“For once.”
“We are sorry for our part in things,” Jeff said. “And we’ll tell Jude that. As far as getting creative—we’ll have to think about that one.”
Foster didn’t hold out hope they’d do more than apologize, but at least he knew it was Rick who’d made the threats. Not that knowing made anything better—but it confirmed doubts.
A few minutes later, he had an armful of soda cans and water, along with a stack of Solo cups, and made his way back to the table.
“Have you heard about Rick?” Foster asked the table.
“No,” Jude said, rolling his eyes. “Please tell me he’s not here.”
“No. He’s not. He’s in jail,” Foster said, grinning. “And you’re not going to believe how he got there.”
32
Jude’s jaw dropped when Foster told him the news.“He was fucking Coach O’Brien?”
“I wonder how long that has been going on,” Roan said.
“Possibly high school,” Cary said.
All eyes turned in Cary’s direction.
Cary shrugged. “I was in the office a lot with Coach during football season. There were times… where it seemed like there was more to their player-coach relationship. I’m not saying they were doing it then, because I don’t know for certain, but there were times when something weird was in the air where I wondered.”
“I can’t believe Coach would’ve done that with a student,” Foster said. “I was on that team for three years, and he never did anything inappropriate. He never gave me the predatory vibe, either.”
“I’m not saying anything happened while Rick was a student,” Cary said. “I’m just saying I wouldn’t be surprised if it did. Theywere too comfortable around one another when they thought they were alone.”
“Oof,” Jude said. “Well, silver-lining, Rick’s not going to be here tonight because he’s in jail.”
Foster tapped his red cup against Jude’s.
Jude drained half his cup before looking around the room. “You know, the only people I care about from high school are sitting at this table. How long are we staying at this thing?” He lifted the plastic cup. “I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t a shitty junior high dance for adults.”
Cary chuckled beside him. “It’s a five year. The next one will be better.”
“Huh?”Jude said, frowning.
“They had the ten-year in a hotel ballroom. There was liquor and a decent buffet. The twentieth will be like that,” Cary replied. “The reunions that end in five get the gym and no booze. That’s why there are so few people here.”
