Murder Is Secondary Read Online Free PDF Page A

surprisingly, they were students. Susan opted to stay in her car until the incident concluded. She had her cell phone in her hand in case the situation deteriorated. Both drivers got out and confronted each other. She recognized the Chevy driver. It was Danny Trapani, Peyton’s boyfriend. She could tell the two drivers were screaming just by observing their body language. Danny grabbed the other driver by the neck and started repeatedly punching him in the face. Susan immediately called the front office.
    By the time the principal and security officers came out, the Honda Civic driver was unconscious on the ground. The security officer took Danny away while the principal waited with the unconscious boy for the ambulance to come.
    Susan got out of the car and told the principal what she had witnessed. Apparently this was not the first incident of violence in which Danny had been involved. Susan remembered what Janet had told her about Danny having a parole officer and wondered again how a smart girl like Peyton could possibly have gotten involved with a boy like this. Did he make Peyton feel safe? Did he provide a sense of security? Protection? Maybe protection from Amber?
    When she entered the school, Susan saw Danny sitting in front of the principal’s office. Then she watched Joey Martin come through the office. He had a seat next to Danny and appeared to be comforting him. He gave him a pat on the shoulder and was speaking too softly for Susan to hear what he was saying. Joey was one of those ‘good boys.’ Why would he be acting so friendly to this hoodlum? Eventually,Joey left, and Susan watched as the principal opened his door. The security officer came out and brought Danny into the office. Susan knew this wouldn’t be an easy day for Danny Trapani.
    On the way to the media center, Susan saw Julie Martin in the hallway.
    “Did you hear the ambulance out there?” said Julie. “I wonder what happened this morning.”
    “I saw the whole thing,” said Susan. “Danny Trapani and another boy had an incident of road rage in front of the school. Danny punched the other boy until he fell unconscious.”
    “Not again. Poor Danny just can’t keep himself out of trouble. Such a shame. He was the sweetest little boy. He and Joey played on the same Little League team for years. Back then, Danny was a good student and always a smile on his face.” The students were passing to their next class and the halls were fairly crowded. Suddenly, Julie froze for a moment as if she’d seen or heard something unusual.
    “What’s wrong, Julie?” asked Susan.
    “Did you see a grown man scoot around the corner with that crowd of kids? He doesn’t belong here.”
    “What did he look like? Are you sure he wasn’t a student?”
    “I didn’t see his face, but he was wearing business attire. Neither students nor teachers dress like that around this school.”
    “Should we call security?”
    “Maybe it was just a substitute that I haven’t seen before. If he’s new to the school he may have dressed to make a good impression or something.”
    “So back to the Danny story. What happened? Why is he so different now?”
    “His Mom got sick––cancer. She struggled for a long time but it finally beat her. Joey was devastated. They were very close––you know how little boys adore their moms. Anyway, his Dad just couldn’t cope with her death. He got into drugs, started drinking heavily. He’s in and out of rehab still.” Julie looked at her watch. “Gotta go. I have a class waiting for me.”
    As Susan was entering the media center, Carolina was exiting.
    “Hey, Mrs. W. Did you hear about the commotion this morning?”
    “Hey, sweetie. Yes, I saw it with my own eyes.”
    “That Danny is always in trouble. The kid he beat up is Amber’s new boyfriend. He and Amber have been bullying Peyton Myers something fierce. Of course, Danny is Peyton’s boyfriend, and anyone who knows Danny knows he’s all about loyalty. I’m