[The next morning at Bately High School. In the parking lot of the school. The "DBD" clique are standing together talking. Other kids walk by, but none stop to speak them. Off at the edge of the parking lot Det. Jenson and Det. Borden are getting out of their Police cruiser.]
Jamal: The cops here. Look at them looking at us.
Liya: They can look at me all they want. I'm sexy as hell, and I got my tat showing. [Turns
Around and shows them her tattoo it reads "Death Before Dishonor" with red roses
Around it. She has on a backless shirt.]
Renee: You can't wear that. So, they only go see it before and after school.
Liya: So? It's still sexier than yours.
Renee: You wish that shit. They can see mines all day everyday. [On her arm there are the
Words "Death Before Dishonor" with vines around it]
[The rest of the kids start showing off their tattoos]
Brandon: Y'all do this like every week. We know what they look like. We got 'em together. Besides, mine's the best anyway.
[Bell rings]
Renee: Ramon, you gotta get your stuff out my locker.
Ramon: Alright.
[They walk into the school, blending in with the other students. Det. Jenson and Det. Borden walk into the building also. ]
[In the school. In the principal's office. Det. Borden is talking to his secretary]
Det. Borden: We need to talk to the principal.
Lady: About?
Det . Jenson: May we speak to him? [Pulls out his badge, shows her, and puts it back in his
Pocket]
Lady: Follow me. [walks them back to an office and shown them in. Walks back to the front]
[In the principal personal office. Det. Jenson and Det. Borden sit down in the chairs Across from the principal]
Principal: What can I help you with?
Det. Borden: We need information on six of your students.
Principal: What kind of information and which students?
[Det. Jenson names the "DBD" clique members]
Principal: Not much I can tell you about those six. They're not in here much, except for tardies and things like that.
Det. Jenson: No behavioral problems?
Principal: None. All make decent grades. They're pretty much under the radar. Why those six?
Det. Borden: They're involved with a case we're investigating.
Principal: What kind of case?
Det. Borden: There was a murder a few weeks back, maybe you read about it or seen it on the news, a man—
Principal: Was found beaten and shot to death in his apartment. And you think these kids had something to do with it?
Det. Jenson: They're our prime suspects, sir.
Principal: You think those kids murdered somebody?
Det. Borden: With all due respect, sir, we just told you that. All we need now is your permission
to search their lockers.
Principal: Fine, but you're not going to find anything.
Det. Jenson: I know. We're going to find everything we need to make a formal arrest.
[10 minutes later at Ramon's locker. A janitor is opening his locker and the Detectives are standing by with the principal]
Det. Borden: [Looking in] Books and [pulls out a pair of tennis shoes] shoes.
Det. Jenson: What's that? [points to a small photo hanging out a notebook]
[Det. Borden pulls the photo out]
Det. Borden: Just what we needed. [shows Det. Jenson and the principal the photo of
The "DBD" clique showing off their tattoos] Let's pull them out of class.
Principal: I'm sorry, but I can't allow that. You won't arrest any of my students while they're on school ground.
Det. Borden: Do you know who we are?
Det. Jenson: We'll do it after school. Shame them.
Principal: Did you hear what I said? You will not arrest any of my—
Det. Borden: We heard you. And we said we'll get them after school. As soon as they walk off campus.
Principal: Fine. Is that all you needed from me?
Det. Borden. Yes. [Places the picture in his pocket and closes the locker] Thank you for your
Time.
Principal: [walks away followed by the janitor]
Det. Jenson: This might just be the easiest case for us to close.
Det. Borden: When you say might that means you have doubt. There is no doubt. This will be the easiest case for us to close.
[After school at Ramon's locker. He's standing in front of it looking in. The rest of them Walk up]
Jamal: Hurry your black ass up. We got things to do.
Ramon: Y'all went in my locker
Brandon: No.
Jamal: No.
[The girls shake their heads 'no']
Ramon: Somebody went in my locker.
Renee: Well, it wasn't us. They take something?
Ramon: [Lifts up a book and shakes it] The picture I had of us showing off our tats. [puts the
back and closes his locker]
Liya: Are we leaving now?
Dantrella: I got stuff to do.
Ramon: Let's go then.
[They walk out the door talking and laughing]
[Outide the school. The "DBD" clique is walking. There are Parked on the opposite side of where they're walking.]
Dantrella: How much money y'all got?
Renee: Why?
[As soon as they step out of the school parking lot, the doors on the cars open]
Police: [Pulls out his gun] Freeze!
Dantrella: 'Cause I—
Police2: "He said Freeze"!
Ramon: They talking to us?
Police3: Put your bags down!
Renee: What—
Police: Put your bags down!
[The "DBD" clique puts their book bags on the ground]
[Det. Borden and Det. Jenson walk up, by now people have started to crowd around and talk]
Det. Jenson: [walks up to Ramon and puts his hands behind his back] Ramon Taylor, you're under—
Ramon: What the fuck?!
Det. Jenson: Under arrest for the murder of David Lee Rhoden. You have the right to remain silent. You have the right to an attorney. If you can not afford an attorney one will be appointed to you. Do you understand these rights as I have given them to you?
Ramon: [shocked] Yeah.
[The other policemen arrest the other five and place all six into separate vehicles]
YOU ARE READING
Death Before Dishonor
General FictionWords to live and die by. Now it seems like it's being put to the test. Who will break? Who will who will fold? Who believes in the words with their entire soul? Find out if death before dishonor is more than just a tattoo. (I wrote this when I w...
