Kent Conwell - Tony Boudreaux 06 - Extracurricular Murder Read Online Free PDF Page B

with him.” Her gaze swept over me, and a wicked smile
curled her lips. “Nothing special, but he was okay.”
    I felt my ears burn. The naughty little grin playing across her
Sunday School teacher’s lips broadened, as if enjoying my discomfort. “George tried to do more than he was capable.”
    Momentarily confused, I couldn’t decide if she were talking
about his prowess or his business ambitions. “According to my
notes,” I mumbled, flipping through the pages and changing the
subject, “there was a reception after the meeting. Were you
there?”
    She shrugged. “No. I went up to my room to get some work
taken care of. I hate wasting time standing around and visiting
with others. Then Dorothy showed up ””
    “And she left at nine-thirty.”
    “A little after, with the other teachers.”

    “The Medical Examiner figures Holderman died somewhere
between nine and nine-thirty. I think that’s when a teacher
named Perry Jacobs found him.”
    “Yeah.” She dropped her gaze. “I was working on basketball
plays when I heard Perry shout. I ran out into the hall. He was
standing in his doorway a couple rooms down, staring into his
room. “
    “Then what?”
    “When he saw me, he ran for the stairs.”
    Whoa. Someone running down the stairs? Here was a small
item that had not been covered in the initial interrogation. I
played dumb, which really wasn’t all that difficult. “I don’t
think I remember seeing anything about that in the police
report.”
    “Probably not. Perry figured it was just his imagination. I
don’t guess he saw any sense in mentioning it “
    “Then what?”
    “Then I ran into Perry’s room and saw George draped over
the desk.”
    “Over the desk?”
    Her tanned face crumpled into a grimace. “Yeah. On his
back. And”-she hesitated, closed her eyes, swallowed hard,
and blurted out-“a knife in his chest.”
    “What about Perry Jacobs?”
    “I ran after him, and met him coming back up the stairs.”
    “Where had he gone?”
    She raised an eyebrow. “He said he thought he saw someone run around the corner and down the stairs. When he got
down there, all he found was Harper Weems. Harp hadn’t seen
anyone. “
    “Who is Harper Weems?”
    “Harp? He teaches English and is the school photographer.
Nice guy. Physically challenged. He has to use a wheelchair.
He’s paralyzed from the waist down. But he’s always trying to
help the kids. Very conscientious teacher.”

    I arched an eyebrow.
    She continued. “Not just with school business, but with their
other problems also.” She shook her head. “He’s a good man.
And a good man is hard to find nowadays. I asked him once why
he didn’t request a room in the new wing designed for the handicapped, but he’d been in that old room ever since he began
teaching and didn’t want to leave.” She arched an eyebrow skeptically. “He claimed he liked the ambiance of the older wing.
Said it helped bring literature to life. He’s sort of romantic that
way. You know, like a lot of English teachers.”
    As an ex-English teacher, I shifted uncomfortably in my
chair. “He’d been to PTA also, huh?”
    “I told you, everyone had to go. The cops just talked to him
because he was in his room downstairs. I suppose they talked
to anyone who was around.”
    I jotted a few notations, then scanned my notes. “Just a couple of more questions, Kim. Your pen, the one Holderman gave
you. How did it end up in Jacobs’ room?”
    “Beats me. Probably Perry needed a pen and grabbed one off
my desk. I keep a pen and pencil box on my desk in case a student needs one during class. A couple of times, Perry borrowed
some. He might have borrowed that one.”
    She made sense. I remembered my teaching days. Pretty much
the way she said it. Pencils on the desk for forgetful kids. I closed
my notebook. “I appreciate your time, Kim. I guess that’s about
it. ” I hesitated, then out of curiosity, commented, “I