This is part one!

Darryl, Sean, Mario, and Julian were standing on the street corner in Darryl's neighborhood.


"Darryl, I dare you to shoot that old guy with this gun," Sean said to Darryl, handing him a pistol gun. "It's loaded," Sean added. Darryl looked at him warily.

"What kind of "dare" is that? Are you crazy, Sean?" he said in a shocked tone. What kind of friends do I keep? Darryl wondered internally.

"No, I just know how to have a good time." Sean said with a smirk.

Darryl firmly pushed the gun back into Sean's hands. "Take this thing out of my sight", he said in a cold, even voice.

Mario taunted in a baby voice, "What's the matter? Afraid to play with guns?'"

Darryl gave Mario a cold look. "Oh shut up, Mario. Didn't you learn not to play with guns when you were little?"

Julian said, "What a baby. We shoot people all the time now. Of course you wouldn't know that since you went to that poo-poo boarding school, Johnson."

"You guys actually shoot people as a game?" Darryl asked, shocked and disgusted.

"Yeah", Julian, Mario, and Sean said in unison.

"What the f u c k is wrong with you three? Shooting people isn't a game. It's a felony", Darryl said disgusted.

Sean said, "Don't act like you're Mr. Goody Two-Shoes, Darryl", he said in a sarcastic tone. Then in a sugary sweet voice, he said, "Remember the robbed stores and the stolen cars? Remember the robbed houses? The muggings?"

"That was different. I am not like that anymore. And stealing people's belongings is a lot different than shooting them," he argued.

"Oh shut up. We just wanna have fun." Then he sang in the tune of Cyndi Lauper's song, "We just wanna have fun."

"Your kind of fun is not my kind of fun", Darryl said evenly.

Sean stared at him icily and took the gun and aimed it at the old guy, who looked to be in his 60's. "Let's resume the the game, shall we?", he said to Julian and Mario.

"Yes"! Julian said eagerly.

"Do it!" Mario said excitedly.

Sean nodded.

"Nooo!" Darryl screamed inhumanly. He lunged at Sean, trying to stop him from pulling the trigger and shooting the old man. He ended up making Sean drop the gun. Sean and he both dove for it and both got the gun. They both stood up, still holding the gun. Sean snatched the gun out of Darryl's hands. He aimed the gun at the man again. Darryl slapped Sean's hands, trying to get Sean to let go of the gun. When that didn't work, he tried to pry the gun out of Sean's hands.

Sean punched Darryl in the face, with his right hand and held the gun in his left.Then he kicked him in his shins, causing him to fall down. He re-ainmed the gun and shot the old man. Darryl atched helplessly from the ground as the man keeled over.

"That was fun, wasn't it," Sean said to the other two friends.

"It's how we do it," Julian said with a big smile. Mario nodded.

Darryl got up and Sean stood right in front of him. He put the pistol under Darryl's jaw. "If you tell anyone what you saw, I'll shoot you", he said in a deathly cold, quiet voice. "Remember, my baby's still loaded", he said with a cold smile.

"I won't", Darryl said, trembling with fear, but trying to hide it. He internally gulped. What kind of maniac friends do I have? I just saw him shoot a guy in cold blood. My other friends agree with him because they do this all the time! Darryl felt sick to his stomach.

"And remember D, your fingerprints are on this gun, so if you snitch, it will be your word against all three of us, and it won't look good that your prints are on this gun, now will it?" Sean said with a wicked gleam and a smile.

Darryl shook his head and said in a cold voice, "Take that gun away from my jaw."

Sean said, "You've changed, D. You used to be hardcore. Now you're just..... a wimp." He put the gun down. "It's always so heartbreaking to see someone waste so much talent". He shook his head and looked at Darryl with sad disappointment.

That was interesting, Don't wait too long to do part 2 or I will forget what part 1 was about. Are you a writer ?

Darryl looked at Sean with flashing eyes, and then went to check on the old man. He checked the old guy's pulse, then his breathing, then his heartbeat. There was nothing! No! It couldn't have happened! The guy couldn't be gone! Darryl realized that the guy's blood was gushing out in what seemed like gallons. Darryl's stomach churned. Bile began to rise in Darryl's body. He struggled to keep it down. He could still call paramedics. He called "911" on his cellphone to see if an ambulance could come revive the old guy. A dispatcher answered.

"Hello?" There's a guy on the corner of 140th street and 1st avenue, 31053." The dispatcher asked, "Did you check him?" Darryl answered, "Yes. I don't hear any breathing, feel a pulse, or hear his heartbeat," he said, trying to sound calm.

"Okay, I'll send an ambulance there right away," the dispatcher said.

"Thanks", he said, and hung up.

Sean said, "You're an idiot." He smirked.

Darryl ignored him. A few minutes later, the ambulance showed up with two police cars. The paramdedics checked the guy. The paramedics had grim serious faces. the had the look of tragedy on their faces. One paramedic said, "Sorry, but this guy is gone." The other paramedics nodded sadly. "He lost way too much blood. There is no heartbeat, no pulse, no nothing. We tried to revive him, but to no avail."

One policeman looked at him suspicioulsy. "What were you doing when you found him dead?"

No!This couldn't be happening. Was he now a suspect?
"I.I,".... Darryl began to stammer. He couldn't tell the truth, not after remembering Sean's cold voice as he threatened to shoot him, just like he did the old man. He shuddered.

"I was just walking around the neighborhood when I saw him on the ground", Darryl lied. He looked around. Where were his "friends"? They'd deserted him. Figures. Murderers always leave the scene of a crime, he thought, bitterly smiling.

"What's your name son?" Another policeman asked him, flipping open a notebook.

"Darryl Johnson", he said, feeling his heart go dry. The policeman wrote his name in the notebook. Darryl's heart beat fast as he realized that the guy had written his name under a list called "Suspects". He took off running. Behind him, he heard the policemen order the paramedics to put the body in a a bodybag. One policeman yelled to him, "Hey, wait a minute Darryl. We just want to know why you were here with a dead body that has a bullet lodged in him!" Darryl was scared. He didn't deserve to be on a suspects list!

Darryl ran as fast as he could, dashing in alleys, down roads, and jumping over people's fences. He ran through yards. He looked behind himself, and realized that the police were chasing him in their cars. His heart palpitated, and his body was drenched in sweat.

He kept running , and the roar of the police sirens was deafening. He ran to a main street and ran on the sidewalk. He ran like a track star runner. Him being chased by police was causing a commotion and drivers, passengers, and passerby stopped to gawk. Darryl almost fainted from exhaustedness. Darryl's body began to get very weary, and he began to slow down. What's the worst thing that can happen if I were caught? His weary mind wandered. Then an inner voice yelled, 'Sean! Sean will kill you if you rat him out! Remember that old man? That could be you next!

Darryl snapped up and began running full speed again. He ran behind a store and saw a big dumpster. He lift it up, and the rank smell almost gagged him, but he had to climb in so that he could hide from the police. He climbed in, and landed in a pile of mushy, pulpy, old newspapers, eggs, bananas, and who-knows-what else. The smell was truly repulsive.

He wanted to regurgitate from what was all over him and the putrid smell was attacking his nostrils. He had to will his stomach not to respond to his surroundings. He mused over him being treated like a criminal. He wasn't a criminal, but his life was very much in danger. His friends were MURDERERS, and especially one of them would kill him if he ratted him out.

He hoped the police wouldn't find him. He wauted for a little while. then, what seemed like 10 minutes later, he decided to get out. He lifted the dumpster lid and furtively looked around to see if he was still being chased.

He wasn't, so he got out completely. He began to walk back to his house. He took in big gulps of sweet, fresh air, though he still reeked. He walked down the roads. A couple with two kids stared at him curiously. The little girl was holding her nose. "Man, he STANKS!", she said loudly. Her brother complained, "Oh my gosh, he smells like garbage!", covering his nose. The mother and father looked at him as if he were an alien and wrinkled their noses.

I don't blame them. After being in a dumpster, I don't smell too good. He thought.

He went back home and looked around to see if there were police staking out his house. None were. He got in the front door and went into the bathroom and gratefully turned on the faucet, and warm water came out. The warm watser soothed him a little as he showered. He washed his hands, his hair, and his body. He felt a little better. he rinses, then dried off. He went to his room and put on his nightclothes.

He went to the family room. His mother was there. "Hi mom,", he said smiling a forced smile. Even his forced smile didn't reach his eyes. "What happened?", she asked him, worried.

"Nothing", he replied. His forced smile went away and he looked a little down.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay, mom", he replied, his stomach churning again.

"Honey, you can tell me anything." She said soothingly.

"There's nothing to tell you", he said in a slightly robotic voice.

"Oh." She looked at him oddly and concerned. She turned on the TV. She said, "We can watch Good Times. It's one of your favorite TV shows."

"Okay mom", he said in a slightly unenthused voice.

Good Times played, and his mom laughed at a funny scene where JJ threatened Michael's life with thelma's cooking. She noticed Darryl didn't laugh. She looked at him, with a worried look. He wasn't even looking at the screen. His face was turned sideways, away from the TV, his eyes were downcast, and he looked troubled.

"What happened?" She asked again. "And don't tell me 'it's nothing', because I know it's something."

He took a deep breath. "Mom, a friend of mine at Johnson told me that he saw one of his friends shoot a guy and murder him in cold blood. Then his friend turned the gun on him and said that he'd shoot him if he told anyone what he saw." He shuddered again, thinking about what Sean did to him.

'What's this friend's name?" She asked him gently.

"Mike." He said, saying the first name that came to his mind that wasn't Sean, Mario, or Julian.

"Well, Mike should get himself involved in some type of witness protection program. He should tell police what he saw happen to that guy."

"No! If he does that, he will be killed by his friend!" He said panicked.

"Why do you care so much about Mike? Did he get you involved in this?" She asked him suspiciously.

"No!" He said defensively. "Mike didn't get me involved!"

"So why is he telling you his problems?" She asked him pointedly.

"He just wanted someone to talk to. He wanted to unload his problems on me."

"Well maybe Mike should just avoid this friend."

"His friend knows where he lives," he said fearfully. "He can come "get" him anytime he wants." Darryl gulped.

"Mike should get the police to help him out. Or he can try moving from his house to a relatives house or something like that. But don't worry about it. Mike will be fine, if you tell him what I suggested."

No I won't Darryl said internally.

"Maybe you should eat something." Darryl didn't want to eat, but his stomach growled loudly. "I'm not hungry," he said.

His stomach continued to growl. "Your stomach seems to think otherwise," she said knowingly.

"Okay, I am hungry, but I have no appetite," he confessed.

"Just eat a little something," she begged him.

"Okay, I'll eat something." She gave him a few crackers. He reluctantly took the crackers and had to force them down, not wanting to eat after what Sean did and he himself hiding in a messy dumpster.

His stomach was finally satisfied. He looked at the TV. His mother had put on the news, then left the family room. Darryl gasped as the news station showed a picture of the dead old man. Nooo! He screamed internally as they put up all his facts. He was Marco Smith, a 66 year old grandfather of 12 children, and a good man who believed in the good of everybody. They showed his crying, mourning family. Darryl gulped as they said the number one suspect's name. Darryl Johnson. A voice over news anchor said, "Johnson reportedly called 911 to get an ambulance, and fled the scene when it was implied that he was a suspect. He led police on a chase until they couldn't find him. Here is a sketch of Darryl Johnson."

They showed a sketch picture of Darryl. The news anchor said, "Darryl Johnson seems to be around 17, seems to be a light-skinned African American of medium build and about 5'10 and about 180 pounds. His eyes are cocoa brown and his hair is black, and has a short afro. He was seen wearing light gray jeans, a white shirt, and a gray hoodie sweat jacket. He's the number one suspect in the death of Marco Smith. If you have any information on Darryl Johnson, call 1-800-FOR-TIPS.

I didn't do anything! He thought angrily.

His mother opened her bedroom door and came out. "I'm going out. Do you want to come with me?"

He said, "No!", explosively. He couldn't go out. People would notice him right away.

"Okay...... Bye Darryl." She said, looking at him weirdly.

She left. Five minutes later, the phone rang.

Darryl nervously picked up the phone. "Hello?", he said nervously.

"Seems like you're the Number One Suspect." Sean said evilly, then laughed. "They're gonna come get you!"

"Sean, you're the coldest man I know right now. You know I didn't kill that old guy," he said, his voice fillled with rage. "Now I could end up in PRISON because of you. You're ruining my life!" he screamed furiously.

"I could have told you that. That's why I said to you that you're an idiot. I KNEW that there was a possibility that they'd think YOU were the suspect!"

"Thanks to you, I'm being treated like a fugitive," Darryl said, his voice cracking with sad emotion.

"No, correction, you ARE a fugitive. If they find you, you're going to the slammer for a long time. Don't pick up the soap," he said laughing evilly.

"Oh stuff it." Darryl said, tears running down his face. His life was over. He probably never should have come home from Johnson. Now, his dream of going to college was marred. If he went to prison, his education would be put off for a LONG time. Just when he was finally getting his life straight. He was finally starting his life anew.

"Darryl, Mario, Julian, and I will come visit you in prison." Sean said in a softer voice. "We won't abandon you."

You mean like you abandoned me when the paramedics and police came?, he fumed inside.

"Where did you go when the police and paramedics came?" He asked hurt and angry.

"We left because we were scared", Sean said in a scared voice.

"Oh, so you left me holding the bag?" Darryl said, his voice quavering with rage.

"Look, D, no one told you to call "911", "Sean said with an edge in his voice.

Is he angry with me? Darryl thought lividly and shocked.

"Look, Sean, no one told you to shoot that old guy," Darryl retorted, seeing red.

"No one but Mario and Julian," Sean said. "I told you, we do it for fun all the time. You HAD to jump in and try to save that old guy." He chuckled. "You're pretty weak. I was able to snatch that gun from you so easily, D. It was pretty noble of you to lunge at me while I had a fully loaded gun in my hands." He chuckled again. “What were you thinking lunging at me like that? I could have easily shot you."

"Like you did to that old guy?" Darryl retorted.

"Look, D, you wouldn't be a suspect if you'd just let sleeping dogs lie. You should have just left him there. We shoot a lot of people. We don't get caught because no one sees us shooting this people. You're too good now Darryl. You used to be so hardcore. The old Darryl would have joined us in the game."

"You know, you've changed too, Sean. We never used to play shooting games where we shoot people," Darryl said softly.

"That's because after you left to Johnson, we decided to spice up our lives. So we decided to start that shooting game. If they die, that's just a casualty."

"Bye, Sean," he said his voice filled with icy coldness and hurt.

"Bye, jailbird," Sean said.

He hung up the phone.

His mother came home 15 minutes later. "Mom, I have something else to tell you about Mike," he said nervously.

"More Mike?" She said, rolling her eyes and sighing. "Okay."

"Mom, Mike is now the number one suspect," he said, clasping his hands and looking at her nervously.

"Why is he a suspect?"

"Well, he ran when the police showed up and implied that he was a suspect,"he said, looking at her with a chagrined look, and then looked down.

"Oooh," she moaned softly. "He did NOT run away," she said softly, shaking her head slightly.

"Yes he did."

"Well, no wonder he's the number one suspect," she said. She looked at him curiously. "Are you sure you aren't Mike? You can tell me anything, you know."

"No, I am not!" he said defensively.

"Okay, Darryl. Did they arrest Mike yet?"

"I don't think so."

"Oh. Well I'm going to my room again. Just tell Mike to be careful."

"Okay mom. Thanks for listening."

A few minutes later, he heard a knock on the door. Actually, it was more of a loud banging.

"Open up, this is the police. We've gotan arrest warrant on you, Darryl Johnson. You're surrounded. Open the door peacefully or we will break the door down and come get you!"

Darryl gulped and knew he had to surrender peacefully. He opened the door and two policemen stood there solemnly. The car's sirens provided blue and red lights. The policemen flashed badges and the arrest warrant in front of his face.

One policeman put Darryl's hands behind his back and cuffed him. His mother came out of her room. "Darryl, you told me you weren't Mike!," she said, with tears in her eyes. The tears soon flowed down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry, mom". He choked out sadly. The sight of his mother crying really stabbed him in the heart. He didn't want her to see him like this, in handcuffs, being led out of the house by cops. He wanted to disappear from the face of the earth. He hung his head low.

"Bye mom,” he said sadly.

"Bye Darryl, she said, sobbing heart-wrenching sobs. "I'll get my lawyer and see if he can see you out of this mess."

"Thanks," he said smiling a little sadly. The cops ushered him completely out of the house. They escorted him to the police car, put him in, and buckled him up.

They began to ride. Darryl was really uncomfortable and the cuffs were digging into his skin. He wanted to yelp in pain, but he decided not to. He looked at the cops through the separator. He couldn't believe this was happening to him.

Part 4

They continued to ride. Darryl looked sadly out of the police car, at the other cars on the road. He was miserable.

The police car turned into a police station. The car was soon parked, and the policemen unbuckled Darryl, helped him out of the car, and escorted him to the police station. They put Darryl into a seat, and got out fingerprinting ready.

They dragged him to the fingerprinting station, removed the cuffs and put his fingers into the ink and onto the paper. Look at me being fingerprinted, just like a criminal. He thought. Then he rubbed his sore wrists. Then they took him to get his mugshot.

He did a serious, solemn expression and they took his picture. Now I have a mugshot, he thought, smiling bitterly.

Other cops looked at Darryl in amazement. “Hey, that’s Darryl Johnson!” One exclaimed loudly. “You two caught Darryl Johnson! Good job! You caught the number one suspect so quickly!"

I always wanted to be a star, Darryl thought, but not like this.

“Thanks,” the two cops said.

They took Darryl into a separate room for questioning. The heavier policeman, Officer Patterson asked, ‘What were you doing with Marco’s Smith’s dead body?”

“I was just walking around the neighborhood when I saw the guy on the ground and called 911 to see if they could get paramedics to come revive him,” he lied again.

The skinnier officer, Officer Michaels said, “Then why’d you run from police?”

Darryl stared at them, with tight lips and a cold stare. He didn’t want to tell them about Sean.

Patterson said, “You must be involved in the murder then.”

“No! I even tried to stop the shooting of Marco!” Darryl screamed without thinking, and then covered his mouth as he realized he virtually said that he knew who killed Marco.

Michael said, “I thought you found him on the ground.”

“Um, I. I.," Darryl stammered.

“Yeah,” Patterson said. “Hadn’t he already been shot when you found him?”

Darryl said, “I didn’t mean to say that,” he said unconvincingly.

“So, you were involved in the shooting,"Patterson said.

Darryl gave them the tight-lipped cold stare again. “No, I wasn’t involved in the shooting,” he said in a cool tone, after about two minutes.

“Do you know who shot Smith?” Michaels asked.

Darryl began to fidget with his hands again nervously. He looked at the cops nervously. He took a deep breath. “I do not know who shot Marco.” He said.

The officers escorted Darryl to a holding cell. They put him in and locked the door. The cell was small and had two beds that looked more like benches.

Darryl paced around the cell. He sat on the “bench” bed and stared blankly into space, thinking.

About an hour later, Patterson said, “Michaels has gone home.” Here is your one phone call,” he said, unlocking the cell door and putting him in handcuffs. Again, Darryl didn’t resist. Patterson led him to the payphone , took the handcuffs off, and gave him 35 cents. Darryl thought of who to call. Sean or his mom? He decided to call Sean. He called Sean and when he answered, Darryl said, “I’ve been arrested. I am in a police station." In a very soft voice so that Patterson wouldn’t hear him, he said, “Get your ass over here.” Sean had caller ID so he didn’t have to tell him which police station it was. Sean said, “I’ll come. I did promise to visit you, D. I’ll tell Mario and Julian to come too.” “Thanks,” Darryl said, and hung up.

“May I have another 35 cents?” He asked Patterson sheepishly.

“Sure you can, Darryl. You surrendered peacefully, and didn’t resist us when we came to arrest you, so I think that deserves another 35 cents. He smiled and gave him the money. It pays to come peacefully." “Thanks”. Darryl said, and put the money in the pay phone and called his mom. She answered the phone. “Mom, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you the truth about what happened to me,” he said honestly. Did you get the lawyer?”

“Sorry honey, he’s sleeping right now,” she said sorrowfully. She burst into fresh tears. “My only son, my only child is in jail,” she sobbed.

“Mom, I’m not in jail. I’m in a police station. But, I am in a cell. A holding cell.”

“Honey, I know you didn’t do it. I know you are innocent in all of this. But tell me, who did it? Which friend was it?”

“I can’t tell you, mom,” he said, almost choking on his words.

“Okay, if you want to keep secrets from me, go ahead,” she said, trying to guilt trip him.

“Okay”. He said. Then he whispered, “Sean,” low so that Patterson wouldn’t hear him.

“It was Sean?” she repeated, sounding angry and shocked.

“Yes”.

“Oh, I’ll get him. He got my baby arrested,” she said, sounding vindictive.

“No, mom, no. Don’t do anything. Please,” he begged.

“Okay. I won’t.” She said, sounding disappointed.

“I love you mom,” he said, choking on the words.

“I love you too,” she said. “Bye.”

“Bye mom.” He hung up the phone.

Patterson put him back in handcuffs and led him back to the cell.

He sat on the “bench” bed again.

“You have three visitors.” Patterson said a few minutes later. “Okay”. Darryl said. Sean, Mario, and Julian came in. “Hi Darryl,” Sean said in a sweet voice.

“Hi,” Mario said looking at him sheepishly. Julian said, “Hey.” He looked at the floor.

Darryl stared at them coldly and didn’t say a word.

Sean said, “Now, you officially have an arrest record. You’re spending time behind bars,” he said with a snicker.

Julian said, “I’d NEVER get you into this,” he said to Darryl. “Me neither. I’d never let you take the rap.” Mario said.

Sean gave them glares and told them to shut up. Mario and Julian both seemed to wither a little bit..

Darryl looked at Mario, Julian, and Sean through new eyes. Were they afraid of Sean?
Sean said, “Let’s go.” “Bye Darryl," Julian and Mario said. “See ya later, D” Sean said. They trailed behind Sean and left.

Darryl thought, They always act like flunkies to Sean. Maybe he intimidates them. He even felt a little sorry for Mario and Julian. He thought back to the way that Mario and Julian always seemed to try their best to agree with Sean. It’s like Sean has some kind of control over them, he thought shuddering.

He knew what he had to do. Darryl told Patterson, “I know who killed Marco Smith,” he said taking a deep breath. “Yes?” Patterson prodded.

“It was Sean Masters.” He said, breathing hard.

“Who’s that?” Patterson asked.

“You know the skinny dark chocolate colored guy with the low-top fade that was just here? That was him.”

“You mean he was here and you didn’t say anything?” Patterson asked. “Why?”

“I saw Sean point the gun at Marco, and I tried to stop him by lunging at him and trying to take the gun from him, but he snatched it back from me. When I tried to get it back, he punched me in the face and kicked me in my shin, causing me to fall down. He shot the guy who keeled over as I watched helplessly from the ground. When I got up, Sean put the gun under my jaw and told me that he’d shoot me if I told anyone what I saw.”

“I called 911 to ask them for an ambulance to see if Marco could be revived, after I checked him and found nothing. When the ambulance came, the paramedics checked Marco and tried to revive him, but it was too late, because he was gone. Sean had left me. The police put my name under the “Suspects” list and asked me why I was with a dead body. So I ran and led police on a chase. I even hid in a dumpster. Then I went home when I realized no more cops were chasing me.”

“Oh,” Patterson said. “What are the names of the other two friends that showed up with Sean?”

“Julian and Mario.” He said. “But they really had nothing to do with Marco’s death. Sean is the one who took the gun and shot Mario.”

“Hmm, from what you told me, you should be a witness, not a suspect,” Patterson mused.

“Why would I call 911 if I should be a suspect?” Darryl pointed out.

“You’re right. I think you should be free to go,” he said to Darryl. He took out the cell and opened the cell door. "There is one thing I need to do to you though.”

“What’s that?”

“Check to see if you have any weapons on you or drugs.”

“I am in my nightclothes. I am wearing a silk pajama top and Flannel cotton pajama bottoms. I don’t even have my shoes on,” Darryl said, smiling wryly.

“I know, but I should do it anyways.” Darryl sighed and let Patterson scan his body with a handheld metal detector. Then he let Patterson frisk him.

“You’re clean, Darryl,” he said smiling at him. “I’ll escort you home.”

“Okay.” Darryl said. Patterson escorted him back to the police car and they both buckled themselves in and Patterson drove him back home.

“One more thing,” Patterson said. Sean Masters is now the prime suspect, based on what you told me. He still thinks you’re in the police station, but here is the police station number.” He wrote the number on a piece of paper and gave it to Darryl. “Call me if you find out away to get Sean arrested.”

Darryl said, “Thanks, bye,” and knocked on the door.

His mother opened the door. “Mom, I’m home!” He said happily. She kissed his face. “You’re back!” She waved goodbye to Patterson, he waved back, and then left. “So, tell me what happened,” she said, closing the door.

He recapped almost everything to her that happened to him. He even told her about Sean’s obvious control over Julian and Mario.

“Mom, I think that Julian and Mario are scared of Sean. They tag behind him like lost puppies. They agree with whatever he says. I just realized this when they came to visit me.”

“Sean visited you?” She asked him, raising an eyebrow. “I would have choked him right there.”

“Yeah, he did. But, it seems like Sean has some kind of power over them.”

“I don’t know, honey. I’d do whatever a MURDERER told me to do, too.” She said.

“Yeah. When I used to hang out with Sean and CO, we used to NEVER shoot people. We played fun games like playing basketball and video games.

“I remember that," she said with a nostalgic smile. But people change all the time. Honey, do you want to go to sleep?” she asked suddenly.

“Yeah, I am tired.”

“One more thing. How’d you get free from the police station?”

“I sang like a canary and told what Sean did. The cop let me go home.”

“Oh. Aren’t you worried that Sean will shoot you?”

“Sean doesn’t know that I am not at the police station anymore. And I can’t keep letting Sean do this,” he said with grim determination. “I knew what I had to do and I did it.” He went to his room and went to bed, thinking about Sean before he went to sleep.

When he woke up the next morning, he showered, brushed his teeth, and got dressed. His mom was cooking him his favorite breakfast: eggs, pancake, bacon, sausage, and toast. She smiled at him when he came into the kitchen. “Hi, sweetie,” she said, giving him a hug and a kiss.

“Hi, mom.” He said. He got himself a glass of orange juice. “How are you feeling about Sean?” she asked. He sat down at the table, drinking some juice.

“Don’t even say that name around me,” he said, looking frustrated.

“Oh, I see. Breakfast is ready.” He got himself some breakfast. He ate it heartily.

“Your appetite is back,” she said teasingly.

"I feel much better today,” he stated, with a mouthful of food.

She got herself some food too and sat next to him. She looked at him tenderly. “It’s so great to have you back,” she said, putting her hand on his hand and stroking it.

He swallowed and smiled a big beaming smile.

She ate her food and they soon both finished their breakfasts.

“I’ll wash the dishes,” he offered.

“Okay, thanks.” She said.

He got up and began washing the dishes. The cordless phone rang and she picked it up.

“Hi, Sean,” she said in an even voice. “No, Darryl still isn’t home. He’s still at the police station.” She tried her best to sound extremely sad. “What’s that? You still want to come over? Okay.” She hung up the phone.

“That was Sean?” Darryl asked, puzzled.

“Yeah, that was him. He wants to come over, though I told him you were at the police station,” she said, shaking her head. “Maybe he’s up to something.”

“You may be right, mom.” He agreed. “Stop washing the dishes, go to your room and hide in the closet.” She told him.

“Okay, mom.” He said. She took a steak knife and clutched the handle angrily.

“Mom, don’t do anything to Sean,” he begged.

“Okay, I won’t”. Darryl went back to his room and hid in the closet.

Two minutes later, he heard the doorbell ring. He heard his mom open the door and greet Sean.

She said, “I don’t know how long Darryl will be at the station, ” She said in a fake sad voice.

“I just wanted to talk to you about him.”

“Oh?” she prompted.

“I wanted to tell you that Darryl is being framed for a crime he didn’t commit. But he’ll be away for a long time.”

“Yes, he may,” she said in a cool voice.

All of a sudden, Darryl heard running footsteps. He heard the door close and lock.

“What are you doing in Darryl’s room? And why did you lock the door? She demanded.

Yes, why is he in my room? Darryl wondered.

“I just wanted to lie down on his comfortable bed”. He said.

He lied down on the bed for about two minutes and then got up. Darryl heard drawers open and close. He peeked out from the closet door and saw Sean open and closing several drawers, pawing through his stuff. “I’ve got to find something good of his in these drawers,” Sean mumbled to himself.

He saw Sean open the drawer where he kept his money. $300.00. “Bingo! Eureka!” I have found something good I can keep from him!” Sean said, eying all of the cash. “Good thing he isn’t here,” Sean exclaimed happily. He began to stuff some money into his pockets. He stuffed a $50, 2 $20’s and 1 $10. Sean’s stealing my money! He thought shocked.

Darryl came out of the closet. “You know, if you wanted some money, all you had to do was ask,” he said in a soft voice.

“Noooooo! What are you doing here? You’re not supposed to be here! You’re supposed to be at the police station!” he exclaimed, looking nervous and looking at Darryl with a wide-eyed deer caught in headlights look.

“They let me go last night. They couldn’t find any evidence that I was a suspect.” He said, telling half the truth and gazing at Sean with a calm face. “And this is MY house."

Sean giggled nervously. “I just wanted to borrow a few dollars from you," he said his voice shaky.

“You didn’t know I was here. How could you borrow money from me when you thought I was incarcerated?” He pointed out softly, looking at Sean intensely.

“I.I”. Sean stammered, sweating. “I just wanted to borrow $20.00 from you.”

“What you just took from me was a WHOLE LOT more than $20.00,” he said in a sweet sing song voice.

“I didn’t mean to do it,” Sean said nervously. He began to squirm.

“You didn’t mean to steal my $100.00?” He repeated, in an incredulous voice. How could you have “not meant” to steal my money?” he asked. Sean continued to squirm.

“I didn’t know you were here,” he said honestly.

“Just give me my money back, and I’ll forget this ever happened,” Darryl said, putting his hand out.

Sean sheepishly got the money out of his pockets and gave him the money back.

Darryl took out 2 $20’s and gave it to him. “Just take it.” He said.

“You mean, you’re giving me money?” Sean asked, in amazement.

“Yes,” he said in an even voice. “You obviously are so desperate for money that you had to go into my room to steal it. You’re good at stealing aren’t you?” He said in a thoughtful voice. "You stole Marco’s life, you stole my credibility when you caused me to be a suspect and landed me in police custody for a crime I didn’t commit, and you stole my money. You would win the Blue Ribbon if stealing were a competition. You would win the Gold medal if stealing were an Olympic event. Now go before I call the cops on you for attempted robbery."

Sean looked sheepish and put the $40.00 in his pocket. He slinked out and barely mumbled bye to Darryl’s mom.