FEATURED STORY
When she returned to class, her students were solving math problems from their textbooks. In the corner, Mr. Castille tutored multiplication tables to a small group of children.
She whispered, “Can we talk?”
“During recess.”
She looked at the clock, and nodded.
***
An hour later an aide took over her third grade class to escort children to the restroom. Allison descended the steps and around the bend
to the VP office.
Brett’s office used to be a storage closet. The VP sat squeezed behind an old brown desk in a chair that creaked with every move.
“She’s such a bitch!” Allison screeched.
“Quiet! Or we’ll both be on the street. And in this rain, it’s not such a good idea.”
“She said I had no business moving into my new apartment. Said I was better off living in Sherman Oaks. She even docked me twelve
minutes sick-leave for being late.”
“Typical.” Brett leaned against his seat and stroked his goatee. “I’ll see what I can do. But don’t expect much. She’s within her rights to dock
you. As to the housing comment, it’s your word against hers. She’ll deny it in a committee review.”
Allison blew out some air, like a weight lifter trying to heft more pounds than she could press. She stomped to the door, and asked, “Could
we do lunch?”
“Sure.”
***
This wasn’t the first complaint against Dr. Judd since she started this job over a year ago. An obvious laundry list of problems existed. Few
teachers liked it when Judd took over their classes. She was rude. She was autocratic, and thought the school was her private property.
A fifth grade teacher, Sue Kaplan, complained about the principal to Brett on her first day as VP. They stood at the back of the Fire Department assembly when Ms Kaplan said, “Dr. Judd took over my class today. I hate when she does that.”
“Most teachers are delighted to have time to plan lessons, relax, or make needed phone calls. What’s the problem?”
“At first I thought it great. But when I returned to class, thirty-two frightened ten-year-olds sat numbly.”
“What do you mean?”
“Travis, Shelly, Jason, and the entire Pain-In-the-Ass lineup. You know, all my PIA’s. They were sitting at their seats with glassy eyes. It was
actually a pleasure to see this. But my GATE kids were crying hysterically. My brightest students were mush. Jan, my spelling whiz kid, stood
over my desk puking her guts out. And the rest wandered around the room aimlessly. At the end of the day, I confronted Judd.”
“What did you say?” Brett asked.
“I thought I’d start with the positive. So I asked, ‘How did you get my lows to be so quiet?’ You know what she said?”
Brett’s eyebrows rose and his brow creased.
“She told them a spooky story.”
Brett snickered. “What did the kids say?”
“First, I took the class outside for a break. When they settled down and were ready to talk, no one volunteered information.”
“Did you speak to any of the kids privately?”
“Sure. I asked Jan how she felt. And she told me she was fine. She gave me one of those kid looks that says, ‘Why are you even asking?’ I
don’t think she remembered anything.”
4
Genesis Science Fiction Magazine Winter 2015