Team Manager CHAMP!
Chapter 19
THE CREW WATCHED breathlessly Saturday afternoon as the Crusaders took on the Knights. The four from Bartley chose to make the three-hour drive, in order to cheer for Brenda and Ardith. The Knights were always a big threat to the Crusaders and fought back from a ten-point deficit in the first quarter to take the lead 50-51 in the third quarter. Payton dropped in six of six free throws in the fourth quarter but fouled out before the end. Trailing by three points with just four seconds on the clock, Laura threw the ball inbounds to Eve. Eve started a drive to the left and then passed the ball back to Laura in the right corner. Laura launched the three-pointer and beat the buzzer to tie the game at 68.
Brenda and Grace both came off the bench again in the overtime period and tipped the tables on the Knights with seven out of the ten points the Crusaders scored in the five-minute period. The Knights scored only five points in the period and Eve put the game away with a three-pointer from the right elbow. Dennis and his girlfriends were among the loudest fans of the Crusaders in the stands and rushed to hug their girlfriends.
Grace’s four points in the overtime period came despite playing the entire period with four fouls.
“Grace plays like Amy does,” Dennis said as they waited for Brenda and Ardith to return to the court after the game.
“Except she makes her shots,” Amy said. “I can’t believe how fast she is coming down the court after she steals the ball.”
“There were a few of those that I thought she’d dunk. She could have hit those two missed layups if she’d gone a little higher,” Natalie said.
“That’s okay. I can’t believe short little Brenda came up with the rebound under the basket after that block and put it up and in. And we’re going to bring our own Deviline to Salter next year. She’ll learn everything Grace has to teach her. Then when we’re sophomores, there will be no stopping the rhythm.”
“This team is just so good, I’m glad we’ll get to play with them next year. Here they come,” Natalie said.
The two women came up into the stands where the crew were pretending to watch the men’s game. It was Amy and Natalie’s turn to sit on either side of Ardith and Dennis and Lana bracketed Brenda as they all sat through the game. Then the two women had to catch up with the rest of the team for their bus ride back to Salter. The four younger friends loaded in Dennis’s car and headed back to Bartley.
Two hours after they got back, Ardith and Brenda came into Dennis’s house and were quickly fed and hugged.
“I’m not going to give you a number, Ardith,” Dot said. “But you are always welcome here. Tom and I don’t want any questionable behavior that could get us all in trouble, but you are always welcome to come and hang out with the rest of the family.”
“Thank you so much, Dot. I won’t be staying long or spending the night, but I do love seeing my boyfriend and girlfriends.”
“Just remember the rules. No means no. Never without protection. And never in front of the children. Or parents. Or strangers,” Dot said. They laughed a little but took her seriously. “I need to check on Peg real quick. She’s very excited about her music for tomorrow and I can still hear her singing.”
Dot left the room and the group quickly gathered for deep kisses with Ardith, then she left.
Sunday morning the five surviving girlfriends and boyfriend went to church to hear Peg sing. It was a very unusual service, even by Lutheran standards. The bulk of the service was a cantata from the sixteenth century in Latin called Epiphaniam Domino canamus. Between sections of the cantata, the preacher read a scripture or commented on the lyrics. The translation from Latin to English was printed in the church bulletin so people could follow along and understand what was being sung.
Peg carried two of the arias as solos and her voice blended beautifully with the choir on the chorales. The music lent itself well to meditation rather than exhortation. Everyone left the church feeling somehow refreshed.
“When did Peg start singing such difficult music?” Lana asked as the five left the sanctuary.
“I’ve been asking that for a year now,” Dennis said. “Mrs. Thompson says she bears all the marks of being a savant, but she’s never heard of a Down Syndrome savant. All I know is that as long as Peg feels she is singing for Jesus, she can sing just about anything.”
“Dennis, could I have a word with you? With all five of you, if possible,” Janet Mills asked on the front steps. Pat Fisher was nearby, and watching closely. Janet, the cheer leading and softball coach, got along well with Dennis and his girlfriends.
“Sure, Coach. What’s up?”
“Um… Maybe we could go back inside. It’s a private conversation,” she said.
The crew came to attention quickly and followed the coach back into the church which had emptied out. Janet took them to the basement where there were tables and chairs set up and motioned them to sit down. They noticed that Coach Fisher followed them down.
“You’ve got us worried, Coach,” Dennis said. “Is there a problem?”
“Possibly. Coach Neil asked me to talk to you all because we come here to church and… well, we get along better than you do with Pat,” Janet said. Pat shrugged and stayed silent. “It could all blow over, but Coach wanted you all to be aware that someone has suggested that there is inappropriate behavior going on with the girls’ basketball team.”
“I don’t even enter the locker room anymore unless I’m called in or am giving a pep talk at halftime. And Josie Kelly is always there with me,” Dennis said.
“That’s not the concern this year,” Janet said. “It was all so under the radar the past two years that no one is bringing that up at all. The allegations seem a bit far-fetched to me. Neil believes this is all tied in with the general investigation around the players being extorted last year and possibly with the whole mishmash involving AgCentral and Warner Affiliated Farms. Warner is just trying to throw as much suspicion on Bartley as they can. Anyway, the allegation is that a coach is sleeping with members of the basketball team. It could be that they are jumping on Ardith’s rapid exit from the program, but Neil is suspicious that they are targeting you. They’ve cited a law regarding school personnel in sexual relationships with students. You, Dennis, with these young women.”
“But we’re all students!” Natalie said. “And we were in a relationship long before Dennis was named as a Student Coach.”
“Neil believes that will be all the defense that is needed, but he wanted you all to know so you could, in his words, ‘lawyer up.’ I want you to know that all the coaches are on your side in this.”
“Including me,” Pat said, breaking her silence for the first time. “Whether I like your lifestyle or not is irrelevant. The whole idea is just a distraction and you should stay focused on winning basketball games. We would all be less if it wasn’t for your leadership.”
“Thanks, Coach. That means a lot to all of us. I guess we should lawyer up and try to get this squashed before it becomes an issue,” Dennis said. “We appreciate the coaches’ vote of confidence.”
“That’s really all we have to say, but I assume you have an unofficial means of communicating with Ardith. The other idea could be a remote possibility as well. Attacks like this could flow over on all of us.”
Sunday afternoon cooking was so deeply ingrained in the crew that even though they had separated themselves from really dating Dennis or the other girls, Rosie and Leanne both came over to Dennis’s house Sunday afternoon to help. Ardith came over as well and had Sunday dinner with everyone. Tom had an increasingly rare Sunday afternoon off, but was slated to go on duty at five.
“None of this has come from the Sheriff’s office,” he said when the kids had related the story to him. Ardith sat in a corner with a hand covering her mouth in horror. She looked like she wanted to run, but Brenda sat with her, holding her hand.
“I’m going to go get Daddy,” Leanne said. “I think Coach’s advice to lawyer up is good.”
“I’d agree,” Tom said. “I don’t think there is anything to the accusations, but you might want to be ready for a defamation suit.”
“I’m going to call my dad, too,” Natalie said. “Maybe we should call Diane and Judith and get her father on alert.”
“We certainly have some of the best lawyers in the area as fathers here, don’t we?” Amy said.
“I wouldn’t make a big deal out of this with anyone outside your dating group,” Dot said. “We’re missing Tori, Diane, and Judith. Is everyone else accounted for?”
“All of us except Judith have kind of broken up,” Rosie said. “Not in a bad way. We just grew out of it. And Tori’s got a new boyfriend.”
“That makes it even more important for her to know,” Dennis said. “I’ll call her myself.”
“Ardith, you’re clean as far as we’re all concerned,” Tom said. “That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be prepared as well.”
“Yes. Maybe I shouldn’t be coming back on weekends. This could look suspicious. And with the tournament in just two weeks, things are going to get crazy,” Ardith said.
“Aw,” Amy complained.
“Don’t worry, Miss Deviline. I’ll come back for as many of your tournament games as I can, but I’ve got another team to get ready now. We’re rising in the numbers, both as a Conference leader and in the D-III top ten. I need to focus on getting them all the way,” Ardith laughed. “And I don’t think I should use the same lawyer as the rest of you. I know one who would love a case like this.”
Dennis talked to Tori, Diane, and Judith at lunch. Tori got a horrified look on her face. She started panting.
“What is it, sweet cheeks?” Natalie asked.
“I told Brandon that we’d all slept together. It was kind of part of full disclosure before we got too serious. He seemed fine with it, but what if he is the one who reported it?” Tori said. “I have to… I still love you guys and I don’t want anyone to get hurt because of me. If he told someone, I’ll break up with him. And then I’ll kill him.”
“Take it easy, hon,” Diane said. “We don’t know where it came from and there’s no reason to jump to conclusions. Mom and Dad are both investigating, along with Natalie’s mom and dad and Leanne’s dad. They’ll let us know if there is anything to worry about.”
“I thought we were through with all this shit when that church got dragged through the mud,” Amy said. “I don’t wish anyone ill, but that preacher and Kristen Conway got exactly what they deserved. And so did her husband.” Bart Conway had gone to trial and was convicted in one of the shortest murder trials the state had ever seen. He was serving a life sentence at the state penitentiary. Of course, appeals were pending.
Everyone headed for the afternoon practice, comforting Tori and making sure she didn’t do anything rash. They worked hard to get ready for Tuesday night’s game.
First, the Crusaders had a make-up game against the Norse Monday night. It was too far for the crew to travel, but they gathered at Amy’s house to watch the stream. It was a hard-played game but the outcome was decided in the first three minutes as Gloria sank four straight three-pointers to put the Crusaders in the lead at 12-2. They never dropped the lead and raced to an 85-49 victory. Everyone on the team got at least five minutes of playing time as the Norse outscored the Crusaders in the last quarter 3-11. Brenda got about two quarters of playing time and scored six points. Only two of the Crusaders came away without scoring.
Then it was time for the Angelines to meet the Hawks on Tuesday night. It was an hour trip to the school and Dennis made sure the girls were well warmed up at the game before they started their shooting drills. In their first eight minutes on the floor, the Angelines captured a 26-6 lead. Dennis followed Ardith’s example from the previous night and kept substituting the lower level players throughout the game. He kept his starters in as needed to maintain the lead, but it was good experience for the girls to play hard. They ended the game at 59-22. The girls dressed and went to the stands to support the boys as the Wolverines captured a solid 77-58 victory.
The real action, however, was taking place back in the Bartley school cafeteria for the monthly school board meeting. Superintendent Jones correctly assessed that the rumor of a teacher/student involvement had circulated and that contributed to the larger than normal attendance. It still wasn’t huge, with twenty-five in the audience.
“We’ll open to new business, now,” Jones said. “I have a request from District Attorney Madeline Courtney for time at the podium. Ms. Courtney?”
A woman in a sharp business suit stepped up to the podium and looked at the small group as if she was disappointed in the attendance.
“Superintendent Jones, Members of the School Board, and guests. I am Madeline Courtney, District Attorney for Bartley County. Some of you may know me from the recent high-profile trial of a local man for double homicide. I’m glad that is behind us, but I’m sad to say our investigation of other matters in the Bartley community has not finished. We believe we have cleared all Bartley students and coaches in the investigation of a gang fight between students of this school and the Bulldogs. The investigation has been raised a level, and federal investigators are uncovering details about two major agricultural organizations in the state. It is therefore, a surprise and a shock to have new allegations placed on my desk regarding a coach here at Bartley having sexual relations with young women on the team. As an agent of the court, I am required to notify you that we are investigating this case and the school board’s level of knowledge regarding the relationship of one Dennis Enders with young women on the girls’ basketball team.”
It seemed like that was all she was going to say, but she stayed at the podium and picked up her notes.
“As you may be aware, I am running for State Attorney General. I am absolutely committed to the protection of our children and will not leave any stone unturned to find the truth in this matter. If we discover the Board has prior knowledge in this, we will prosecute to the maximum extent of the law.” With that she turned and started for the exit.
“Ms. Courtney, if you would stay a few minutes, I believe we can put this matter to rest once and for all and won’t need to waste taxpayer money on an investigation. Mr. Vining, would you come to the podium, please,” Jones said. He was thankful that they’d gotten a heads up on this. Everyone was as prepared as they could be. Vining approached the podium.
“Madam District Attorney, Superintendent, and members of the Board. I’m Drake Vining, father of one of the Angelines and attorney for Dennis Enders,” Drake said. “The matter was brought to the attention of the Board and of my client this weekend and we went to work immediately to determine if there was any cause for concern. The criminal code of the State of Iowa, Section 709.15 was created to prevent and punish inappropriate relations between a counselor, therapist, or school employee and students in their charge. The relevant passage of this code is Paragraph 1-g. In this paragraph the term school employee is defined. It states specifically, ‘School employee does not include a student enrolled in the school district.’ The accusation against Dennis Enders is therefore irrelevant as Dennis is a seventeen-year-old student at Bartley High School volunteering at the school to fill in for a missing coach. He has been in a long-term relationship with a young woman on the team—a classmate—for two years and there is no reason to investigate the nature of their relationship. They are high school students who are only a month different in age. Madam District Attorney, we respectfully suggest that pursuing a spurious accusation against a high school student would be detrimental to your campaign. We do, however, wish to thank you for your rapid response to serious issues that have plagued us in this county.”
“Thank you, Mr. Vining. Are there any questions?” Jones asked. He looked at Ms. Courtney.
“We were informed only that Mr. Enders was the coach of the girls’ basketball team and not about his status as a minor student. I apologize for having rushed to inform the Board of the potential problem but am glad to see the Board has been proactive. Good evening.” The attorney left quickly.
“So the question is still, ‘Who has brought this accusation and why?’” Drake said to John Armor and Mark Long after the meeting. “I don’t have a good feeling about anonymous individuals or groups continuing to bring accusations and charges against the school and our children.”
“You have my ears if you have any ideas,” Mark said. “Somehow, though, I think this all ties in to the AgCentral problems. The company has been very responsive to our problems with the new building, which technically, they aren’t liable for. But they’ve had problems out at their new farm operation north of town, too. I understand they brought in a new manager for the operation and he’s been digging into some deep shit, so to speak.”
“Yes. Pig shit,” John responded. “The operation is currently running at about twenty percent capacity because they have to mitigate the waste removal and treatment operation that was incorrectly installed.”
“So, do you think we’re being targeted as a means of casting a shadow on AgCentral?” Drake asked.
“I’m a small-town boy,” John said. “I can’t fathom that kind of behavior between two large corporations. But something just isn’t sitting right. We should sit down and discuss what other things might draw attention so we can prepare a response.”
“Well, you two have wives on the school board,” Drake said. “Maybe you can fish some possible problems out from them.”
“I’ve got a move I want you to practice and see if you can pull it off,” Ardith said. “It will take a little work, but will put another play in your arsenal. Brenda and I will demonstrate it because we’ve used it a couple of times. Eve, Laura, Grace, you’ll defend. This is a two on three fast break move. I’ve just stolen the ball and am headed for the basket.”
Ardith dribbled hard toward the basket, did a fancy move against the three and still got her shot blocked. The next time, they ran down the court and at just about mid-way down the paint, Ardith bounced the ball to Brenda who went up for the layup and was blocked. Ardith didn’t make any comments on the moves, but they lined up and made the fast break to the basket again. This time, Ardith passed the ball to Brenda and Brenda barely touched it—only enough to push it back to Ardith. Both women went up as if to shoot. All three blockers shifted their focus to Brenda when Ardith passed the ball and Ardith easily laid it up and in.
“Whoa! Where did that come from?” Grace exclaimed. “I thought Brenda had the ball!” Laura and Eve agreed.
“It won’t work every time,” Ardith said. “But it gives you three moves to defend against under the basket instead of two. When the defenders have to keep both of you in their sights, they reduce the focus on either of you. Pair up. We’ll run end-to-end on the court, just practicing the feed back to the dribbler. Grace, I want you and Brenda to pair up on this one and practice it until it is automatic. Everyone else get with your partner and just work on passing the ball back and forth on the run. You’ll find other situations where this is useful, especially when we’re facing a full court press and zone defense. Makayla, I’ll work with you on the drill so you get the feel for how to teach it. Ready?”
Ardith blew her whistle and the team took off. The hardest part for most of the women was to not take the ball and dribble on the first pass, but to send it back on the run. Brenda and Grace worked it best. That surprised no one and they could all see the girls’ shooting percentage being lifted. They were all talking about the new cool move in the locker room as Ardith glanced at her watch and headed to her office to make a call.
“Hey, Ardith. What’s up?” Dennis said when he answered the phone.
“Just wanted to wish you happy birthday, honey. Thought I’d catch you before the girlfriends all capture your attention for the rest of the night,” Ardith said.
“Wow! Thank you. I actually forgot about it.” He glanced at the time. “That must be why the girls were all so insistent that I get right home after practice. They claimed I wasn’t spending enough time with Peg. Which is true. I don’t know how we’ll handle it when we’re seventy-five miles away,” Dennis said.
“We’ll all do everything we can to make it work,” Ardith said. “Are you home now?”
“Just pulling into the driveway. I’m alone.”
“Consider this birthday just us being one step closer to being able to really explore our relationship. I know it’s hard, lover, but we’ll make it happen.”
“It is hard. In more ways than one. I love you, Ardith. We’ll make it all work out somehow.”
They disconnected and Dennis went into the house to find all his girlfriends, including Debbie, Tori, Diane, Judith, Leanne, and Rosie in the house waiting for him to surprise him and Peg dancing up and down to sing ‘Happy Birthday.’
“What exactly did you tell the school board when you resigned?” George asked Ardith.
It wasn’t the first time Ardith had met with George and Rebecca since they went their separate ways. She’d been on her way to spend New Year’s Day with them a year ago when she was hit by a drunk driver. George had gone straight to work filing a civil suit against the drunk driver who hit her. Bart Conway had then been convicted of the murder of his wife and the local preacher. There wasn’t going to be a huge settlement, but profit from the sale of the Conway farm and livestock was earmarked for her. The court couldn’t give the property to itself to defray expenses in a criminal case.
“I told them that I had been offered the job of a lifetime at Salter University and I had decided to resign from the school district in order to take the job. I spoke with Superintendent Jones and he asked specifically if there were any personal issues between me and students that influenced my decision. I said there had been no explicit issues but that I felt it was good to remove myself from a place where such temptations could exist,” Ardith said.
“What about your contract?” George asked.
“Teachers are hired according to the terms of the union contract, not on an individual contract. The union contract states the salary ranges and arbitration procedures, but employment, like most jobs these days, is at will. The school would come under fire for a meaningless dismissal, but all they’d need to do is show a change of enrollment or responsibility and it would all go away.”
“And you’ve never done anything inappropriate with the student in question?”
“I’ve never done anything more with these students than a hug. And that was not done with intent to arouse or suggest action, which is the standard the law holds up if what we were taught in school was accurate.”
“Yes, but don’t go quoting the law to anyone. There are too many traps you could fall into. Stick to your own actions and not to how they should be interpreted. If it comes to that, I’ll interpret them for you.”
“Yes, sir,” Ardith smirked.
“Those days are over, Ardith.”
“I know, George. I don’t even want a repeat. I just want to feel safe from threats and get to a point where I can feel free to love whom I will,” Ardith said.
“Make sure you stay clear for a month after he graduates. There was a case just a couple of years ago where the teacher was arrested for having an affair with a student eight days after graduation. They couldn’t have touched her if she’d stayed apart for thirty days.”
“But I’ve left the school district now.”
“Ardith, that’s not what makes a difference. It isn’t from your date of separation, it’s from the student’s date of graduation. You can’t push it,” George sighed. “He must be pretty special.”
“They are.”
“They? You are a glutton for punishment,” he laughed. “Okay. All we can do now is wait and see if anything comes of it. The fact that concerns have been raised with the DA over the student matter indicates someone is out there trying to cause trouble. The big advantage at this point is that the DA will be slower to charge in on her white horse to do battle with the next accusation. That was quite a fiasco last night. I’m glad you told me about the school board meeting so I’d be there to listen if anything was brought up.”
“I suppose I owe you a bundle for that,” Ardith sighed.
“Our agreement still stands, Ardith. I will always be available to handle your legal issues without regard to cost. I just never expected it to include a civil suit for hit and run or the possibility of a sex offense. Let’s try to keep the next thing to something like your will or purchase of a house. Okay?”
“I hope so.”
“Now let’s go home. Rebecca has dinner waiting for us and your godson Nathaniel hasn’t seen you since summer.”
Comments
Please feel free to send comments to the author at devon@devonlayne.com.
