Head: The boys a liar. John never came to me with such thing.
Inspector: Don’t mess me about. I haven’t got the time. I’m busy as it is without you and your school wasting my time, faffing around.
Head: OK then well yes, John did come to me with the wallet but I thought the boys were playing around. By the way he told me that the boys gave it to me, he never found it.
Inspector: ……. And…..
Head: Well…… I told him that it was a most unfortunate accident and boys were just making stories. I suspected that the boys had found it a few days after the accident, lying near the area where he had fell and I arranged for the wallet to be passed on to the next of kin.
Inspector: Didn’t it ever cross your mind that boys were involved in the death of Pelham, somehow or the other?
Head: You said murder earlier.
Inspector: (Quite angrily) I’m warning you. Answer my question.
Head: No.
Inspector: Not even after John showed you the wallet.
Head: No. I know the boys in my school very well and I am absolute certain that none of them would do anything that involves murder. None of my boys are murderers.
Inspector: what makes you say that you know the boys very well. Boys from Lower Five B tell me that you’ve never inspected their class and the way they are being taught. They even tell me that you didn’t even give their new teacher a mentor. Half of things about the school he learnt from the boys and better still a schoolmaster I meant on the corridor tells me that you don’t even know how to run the school. They say you educate teachers to spoon-feed the boys and that there is no such thing as ‘independence’ in the school.
Head: ….. (Pauses……. Searching for words)
Inspector: Anyway getting to the point you said that none of the boys in your school would dream about murder, so what have you got to say regarding the fact that Wittering has committed suicide, which is, I think, linked to murder?
Head: Well… there would be a few exceptions… There’s got to be one or two… Wittering was the dumb one.
Inspector: NO. That’s where you’re wrong. He wasn’t dumb or stupid or anything along those lines. He was only dyslexic and we wouldn’t be here having this conversation if you had given him a tiny bit of support- but no we’re too busy. Busy with what? Busy with saving the so-called reputation of the school.
(Pause)
Inspector: I’ve had enough of your lies. I may need to question you later on and maybe then you can give me better answers. Miss Gammell…… if you could call John Ebony please…. Thank you.
(John enters)
John: You called me.
Inspector: Yes I did. Please sit down…. I would just like to question you on a few things involving the deaths or should I say murders of Mr Pelham and one of your students Basil.
John: Hmmm. That’s ok. You may start.
Inspector: No better still you start. You tell me what you know and then I’ll tell you what I need to know.
John: erm…….
Inspector:…… By the way no lies. I know many things already.
John: Well…. You may already know that Lower Five B claim to have pushed Mr Pelham off the cliff which has resulted in his death.
Inspector: Yes……
John: They told me on my first day here. For some reason I wasn’t given an assistant and I was all alone with boys I had never seen. We got a bit off track and then from one thing to another they made their confession. And like any other grown adult I didn’t believe them at first… but the next day, they put Pelham’s wallet in my desk. I took it to the headmaster and he practically told me to keep my nose out of things that weren’t my business. So I returned to the class and then after a bit I finally realised that they had in fact killed Pelham.
Inspector: How come you never showed the wallet to the police?
John: I did request the Head to show it to the police but he ignored me and I personally felt that as I didn’t have much evidence it was no use showing it to the police.
Inspector: Interesting……. What about Wittering?
John: Wittering? I simply don’t believe it. It’s news to me.
Inspector: In the letter he seems to infer that you were present while he was being bullied.
John: Does he?
Inspector: ‘They were on me worse than ever, even with the new master there’
Inspector: And were you?
John: Was I where?
Inspector: With them when they bullying Wittering?
John: Oh I don’t know.
Inspector: Tell me.
John: I did tell them to stop but they couldn’t. It was like they were addicted to bullying Wittering. They even used to do it when Pelham was there.
Inspector: You were the teacher. You could do anything. You could’ve given them a good bumming. The power was in your hands.
John: No it wasn’t.
Inspector: You aren’t telling me the boys bullied you as well.
John: No………
Inspector: Well………
John: (quickly) Theythreatenedtokillmywife.
Inspector: What?
John: They threatened to kill my wife.
Inspector: Never.
John: She told me just now that the other day Terhew and Lipstrob came to our house. I wasn’t in and as they were leaving a knife slipped out of Terhew’s sleeve.
Inspector: When was this?
John: It was the day after Terhew threatened to kill my wife. It’s clear that they went to kill her but for some reason they didn’t.
Inspector: Is that why you never took this case any further.
John: Well everything was getting at me. I couldn’t figure out who their leader was. Who was giving them all these ideas? I couldn’t tell because they all work very well together as a unit and I also felt like I was going mad. I was drowned with all these thoughts. It was driving me crazy and was also affecting my social life.
By the way I don’t believe this letter. Wittering surely couldn’t have done it. He can’t cope with such things.
Inspector: OK OK thank you for your help. Time is running fast and I haven’t yet finished my investigation. However….. My friend (a slight pause as the subject changes)….. Your reasons above do not justify that you allowed bullying and gambling in the class. Some boys also tell me that you never teached them anything and you arranged for them to change their exam marks.
John: They did that themselves. It was part of their Modus Vivendi.
Inspector: You can explain that later. I haven’t got much time left. I need to question one last boy from your class. Name the cleverest.
John: Joe Cuthbun
Inspector: Miss Gammell if you could call Joe Cuthbun from Lower Five B for me please. Thank you.
(John leaves and Cuthbun enters.)
Inspector: Are you Joe Cuthbun?
Cuthbun: Well my full name is Ian Joseph David Cuthbun. But yes that’s what they call me.
Inspector: No need for all that rubbish. I haven’t got the time to mess around. Now answer me quickly and truthfully. Don’t waste my time.
Cuthbun: I can’t answer quickly and truthfully. I’m not that clever. I can only do one at a time.
Inspector: Oh shut up. Tell me, Cuthbun. Whose idea was it?
Cuthbun: About what?
Inspector: Mr Pelham.
Cuthbun: What about him?
Inspector: Answer me.
Cuthbun: What’s the question?
Inspector: Who first thought of killing Mr Pelham?
Cuthbun: I don’t know, sir.
Inspector: Somebody must have thought of it.
Cuthbun: Yes, sir, I suppose they must.
Inspector: Was it Wittering?
Cuthbun: Wittering? Hahahhhahah You must be joking.
Inspector: What do you mean?
Cuthbun: Wittering would never dream of doing it.
Inspector: Here read this. (The Inspector pulls out the letter and hands it to Cuthbun)
As Cuthbun reads the letter the look on his face gradually changes until it is red.
Cuthbun: You are joking aren’t ya?
Inspector: I’m afraid I don’t believe in jokes.
Cuthbun: Oh my god this cannot be true. We only bullied him for a joke. We didn’t expect him to go and kill himself and what’s this about Pelham. Its all lies, it was Tehew’s idea.
Inspector: What?
Cuthbun: Nothing. I’ve said nothing okay.
Inspector: Terhew’s idea was it. I’ll see. Thank you Cuthbun. Questioning you has been a great help. Thank you.
(As Cuthbun leaves the room the Inspector looks deep in thought)
Scene 31
(The Inspector has questioned the people he needs to question. He has gone over his findings and has called the Head, John and Terhew to the office.)
Inspector: After some severe questioning I have come to a conclusion that some of you may have to face criminal charges.
(Everybody is shocked)
Terhew: Criminal charges? - What for?
Head: You are joking aren’t you?
(The Inspector ignores the responses)
Inspector: At first I had a slight suspicion that Lower Five B had been in some sort of way involved with the death of Mr Pelham but now I am totally convinced that they had murdered him. A close source says that the whole idea was Terhew’s and therefore I will take Terhew with me to the station and question him further. I suspect that he will have to stand trial for attempted murder and if he can give me other names then they will also have to stand trial for murder.
Terhew: Attempted murder? Attempted murder of whom?
Head: No please don’t do that. What about the reputation of my school?
Inspector: You don’t need to worry about the reputation of your school anymore. Why? Because it simply isn’t your school anymore. Mr Winstanley will take your place for temporary until we find a suitable head.
Head: What you chucking me out of. I haven’t done anything wrong.
Inspector: Haven’t done anything wrong? Huh. You are going to have to stand trial for allegations of withholding vital evidence from the police.
Head: You are joking aren’t you?
Inspector: And as for you John Ebony you have failed your teaching practice. With discussion with the local authority I will see if you are suitable for doing your probation year again at another school and if they say you are not fit enough of becoming a teacher then wave your chosen career bye bye.
