Hit and Run by Norah McClintock Page B

Mike?”
    â€œHomework,” I said. Which was true, up to a point.
    â€œWhere did you do your homework?”
    â€œAt home.”
    â€œDid you do anything else last night?”
    I didn’t know what to say. For sure they thought I had done something or they wouldn’t be here. Had someone seen what happened with the truck? And how come they had just asked for me? Vin was in my history class. How come they hadn’t dragged him down here, too?
    â€œMike?” Constable Carlson said. “What else did you do last night?”
    What should I say? What
could
I say?
    â€œCome on, Mike,” Constable Torelli said. He didn’t sound nearly as friendly as Carlson. “Make it easy on yourself. Tell us exactly what happened.”
    I heard a sound behind him, then a voice.
    â€œWhat do we have here, fellas?” the voice said. I didn’t have to turn to realize that it was Riel. “Are we questioning a witness or a suspect?”
    Constable Carlson spun around. It was hard to tell who looked more surprised—him or Riel.
    â€œJohn,” he said. “I heard you were teaching school. Didn’t know you were doing it here, though.”
    Riel half-shrugged. “He’s a minor,” he said. He meant me.
    Constable Torelli stood up abruptly. “This has nothing to do with you, Riel,” he said. He was right; it didn’t. So what was Riel doing here? “Why don’t you go back to your chalk and your blackboard erasers?”
    â€œI believe we have the situation under control, John,” Ms. Rather said.
    Riel looked right past her and Torelli. He focused on Constable Carlson.
    â€œIf you’re going to question Mr. McGill, first you have to inform him of his right to counsel and his right to have a parent present or any other adult he chooses. He has a right—”
    â€œRelax, John,” Constable Carlson said. “He’s beeninformed of his rights, and he has chosen to speak to us. Isn’t that right, Mike?”
    Riel turned to Ms. Rather.
    â€œDid Mr. McGill specifically ask you to be here?” he said. “Or did you just offer?”
    She shifted uncomfortably.
    â€œWe’re going to handle this by the book, John,” Constable Carlson said. “I just thought it would make it easier all round if we had a little chat first.” Then he sighed, stood up, and touched me on the shoulder. The next thing I knew, he was telling me I was under arrest for stealing goods from a truck, and he was telling me again that I didn’t have to make a statement or say anything, and that I had the right to contact a lawyer and my guardian. He kept asking me if I understood what he was telling me. The whole time he was asking and I was answering, Constable Torelli was writing furiously in his notebook.
    Riel listened to everything that Constable Carlson said. If he was surprised that I was being arrested, he didn’t show it.
    â€œThe most important part, Mike, is that you don’t have to answer any questions if you don’t want to,” he said. “You understand that, right?”
    I nodded.
    â€œYou want me to call your uncle for you?” he said.
    â€œIt’s taken care of,” Ms. Rather said. She didn’t sound happy.
    Billy wasn’t going to be happy about this either, butI’d rather deal with him angry than with everything else alone.
    When they led me out of the school and put me in the back of a police car, I glanced up at the building and saw faces at the windows. Inside of five minutes, everyone in the whole school would know that I had been arrested. Jen would know.

    Billy definitely wasn’t happy about getting called away from work. He said missing time for any reason, especially a stupid-nephew reason, made his boss mad. The truth was, if Billy didn’t show up late so often after partying hard the night before, his boss might have been more understanding. But I didn’t think