Swell (Complete)

Chapter Thirty-Six (Part One)

"As the walls crashed down I felt it slip away,
Cause I went to hell and back just to be where I am today."

....

Dodge sat in his office with a heavy weight on his shoulders.
He had felt prepared and ready with a plan when he'd entered the room that morning, but now as he heard the noisy kids at recess, he felt helpless.
Nothing in any of the school records of the Taylor teens even suggested they were dangerous; none of them had even been in a fight before Iain had tackled Tom.
There wasn't even a remote history of violence.
All three excelled in their own areas; Tom at sports and physical education subjects, Will in music and social sciences and Marti in 2D Art and legal studies.
In her last school she had even been featured in an exhibition at a local gallery, for both drawing and photography.
Wheeler Falls High didn't have a photography class; did Marti miss it?
How could he figure out if any of them were a danger to his baby cousin?
Would it be obvious if he tried to hold interviews with them each? Could he do it under the guise of career counselling, or even making sure they were adjusting, and could settle back in after the death?
Surely the last ideas were plausible.
Dodge agonised over the idea and what kind of questions he could ask until the bell for recess finishing sounded. It surprised him and he dropped his pen on his desk, it rolled to the floor and he pushed his chair back from his desk and took a deep breath before retrieving it.
It was decided; he would protect his cousin by pretending to check on the Taylor teens when they returned to school.

It felt strange driving back into Wheeler Falls after the funeral of a young girl, the conversations with Debbie, and the nightmares that had caused her restless sleep during the night left her drained.
School had started already, when they past the block the school was on Adora could see kids out for recess.
It was a cool, but sunny day and the ocean was a beautiful teal colour.
Part of her fawned over the idea of being out to sea, away from the fear and danger, away from grief and confusion, but dark clouds over the horizon made her look ahead to the Esplanade as she remembered how the sky had looked the day of Dodge's 30th.
"I'll go to the station after I drop you off." Debbie broke the silence between them and all she could do was nod.
If Tom couldn't remember as he swore, then Debbie confessing to the police wouldn't really do much.
"Ok." Was all Adora could mutter in the passenger seat. They passed the closed bakery and she worried about Will and Marti.
Even though they were all cleared as suspects in Elissa's murder, did they have their own suspect list?
Was a suspect list something Adora should me coming up with for her own fears?
Gus?
Tom?
Was there really anyone else she could even imagine as a suspect in Brett's attack?
Whoever killed Elissa, because of the doll.
Someone who knew about her struggle with grief and depression.
Somebody who knew about her scars.
"Adora, we're here. Are you OK?" Debbie's hand landed gently on her arm and Adora breathed in sharply as she realised they were out the front of the Escape.
"Tired." Was all she managed vocally as she nodded. "Thanks, Deb."
Anne was already opening the door and hurrying out to the car. She pulled the passenger door open, with enough force to nearly take it off it's hinges and started wrapping Adora in her arms.
"You idiot." She kissed Adora's forehead and stroked her head.
Debbie's hand left her arm and Adora struggled to undo her seatbelt around her Mum's arms.
"Mum, I'm fine." She stumbled out of the seat and further into her mother's protective grasp.
"What were you thinking?" Anne pulled herself back and put her warm hands on Adora's cheeks.
"I was thinking my friends needed me, and I needed them."
Debbie put Adora's bag beside the hugging woman and said a quiet goodbye before she drove away.
Adora suddenly felt heavy as she and her mother stood outside the front doors of their home.
"Adora, I really need you to be more careful." Her mum's hazel eyes were teary and Adora realised for the first time exactly how scared her mother had been.
"I'm sorry, Mum." Anne pulled her back into her arms and held tightly.
They stood still in the embrace for a while before Anne finally took a deep breath and pulled back.
"Let's get you inside, I'll show you where we put the cameras up." Anne picked up Adora's bag and took her hand, leading her inside and past the step where the doll had been left.