The Hayloft. A 1950s Mystery by Alan Cook Read Free Book Online Page B

we’ve got that out of the way, I’ve got another project you two can help me with.”
    “Oh oh,” Natalie said. “Watch out for Sylvia when she has a project.”
    Sylvia ignored Natalie and said, “It’s Mr. Plover, the ninth grade science teacher. As everyone knows—or at least everyone who had him—he is incompetent. His teaching method, if you can call it teaching, is to distribute worksheets that he prepared ten years ago outlining each chapter of the textbook. The outlines contain blanks to fill in. You can fill in the blanks by skimming the chapter because the sentences on the worksheet are taken directly from the book. That’s the homework. In class, all he does is go over the worksheets. A second grader can do the work; you can get an A in the class without learning a damn thing, not to mention that it’s more soporific than sleeping pills.”
    “What’s soporific?” Natalie asked.
    “Something like sophomoric,” I said.
    “I’ve been trying to get him fired for three years,” Sylvia said, ignoring both of us. “You wouldn’t believe how hard it is to get a teacher fired. Because of tenure, you have to jump through a million hoops. Dr. Graves didn’t want to hear about it. Neither did the school board. However, there was a school board election in July. Finally there’s a member who’s willing to support me.”
    “It sounds like a worthy goal,” I said, although I had never considered trying to get a teacher fired. “But what do you want us to do?”
    “Nat, I would like you to think back to your experience in freshman science class. Write down what you remember about the class, what you learned, and why you haven’t taken a science class since.”
    “You want me to write an essay?” Natalie asked, opening her eyes wide.
    “Precisely. About three hundred words should do it.”
    Sylvia turned to me as Natalie started grumbling, and said, “Gary, you were a reporter at Atherton. I would like you to interview freshmen who are currently taking Mr. Plover’s class and find out if his teaching methods are the same as they were three years ago. I’m sure they are, but we need supporting evidence.”
    “I’m not doing any newspaper work here.”
    “This isn’t for the newspaper. This is to present to the school board.”
    I knew that Dr. Graves wouldn’t stand for me presenting anything like this to the school board. I said, “I’m keeping a low profile.”
    “That’s fine. I’ll present it to the school board. All you have to do is gather some information.”
    “I don’t know any freshmen.”
    Sylvia looked irritated. “Mr. Plover’s room number is 105. Hang out beside his door when a class lets out and collar students. You’re big, and you look authoritative. They’ll talk to you. I don’t have to tell you not to breathe a word of why you’re collecting the information. But remember: we’re trying to make a better school.”
    I had more objections, but nothing Sylvia wouldn’t bulldoze over. I said, “Yes, ma’am.”
    Sylvia smiled and said, “That’s more like it.” Her tone softened. “Sorry, Gary, I didn’t mean to sound like a general. But this is important to me. And you were such a big help on nim, I know you’re the right person to do this. But what can we do for you?”
    “Find him a girlfriend,” Natalie said, giggling.
    That hurt, since Natalie was my number one pick in that area.
    “Did you have a girlfriend at Atherton?” Sylvia asked.
    “I didn’t go steady. I…played the field.” Actually, I hadn’t dated all that much, but I wasn’t going to admit it. Nobody at Atherton had stimulated my hormones like Natalie. I said, “Maybe there is something you can do for me.”
    “Name it,” Sylvia said.
    “Well,” I said, wondering where to start. My relationship with the girls had strengthened, and I was ready to divulge my secret. Or at least one of my secrets. “I haven’t been completely honest with you. You see…Ralph Harrison was my