Finding Cassie Crazy (41 page)

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Authors: Jaclyn Moriarty

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

It is time to bow our heads in shame
The end is nigh for this dreadful ‘game'
Which, indeed, is not a game
At all.

STUDENTS. WE NOW HAVE THE NAMES OF THE ASHBURY INDIVIDUALS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ATTACKS ON BROOKFIELD.

The individuals in question were observed carrying out a childish prank at Brookfield yesterday after lunch. YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE. You have until midday today to report to me.

This has been a message from your horrified Form Mistress

To:
[email protected]
From:
[email protected]
Subject:
VERY EXCITING NEWS!!!

Exciting development here! They have found the culprits!! It's on our noticeboard here! Someone at your school SAW
them do some kind of childish prank yesterday afternoon. Stupid. They mustn't be very good at childish pranks, to have got seen.

To be honest, Charlie, I am looking forward to the reinitiation of the Pen Pal Project (which will surely happen now they've got the bad guys). I miss your
handwriting
on
envelopes.
I miss
opening
the envelopes. Just so you know, I wrote a letter to you today, setting out the things that I think are particularly good about you. For the sake of your self-esteem. I will post this as soon as the mail box returns outside the upstairs staff room.

Love
Emily

To:
[email protected]
From:
[email protected]
Subject:
Tactics

They put up a notice saying they know who did it? Don't believe a word of it. They're trying to smoke out the bad guys is what they're up to, those crafty teachers of yours. They try that here all the time and I personally have never fallen for it.

But let me know if anything interesting turns up.

Can't wait to get that letter of yours. I also miss your handwriting.

To:
[email protected];
[email protected]
From:
[email protected]
Subject:
VERY URGENT MESSAGE

Seb and Charlie
You're not going to believe what's been happening here.

At exactly midday, Em, Cass and I got called to the form mistress's office. And informed that we are the ones behind the Ashbury attacks on Brookfield.

They say they've got some witness at Brookfield who saw us at your school yesterday afternoon, tipping grapeseed oil all over the floor of one of your empty science labs.

As if we would do anything as stupid as that.

But listen to what happened.

We're sitting there open-mouthed with disbelief and the form mistress (Mrs Lilydale) gets up and says, ‘Wait right where you are.' Then she walks out, and comes back five minutes later and she says, ‘I'm going to have to read through these, okay?' and she's carrying the following things:

1.
My private Note-book, which is a book that I'm using to learn how to write,
2.
Cassie's diary, and
3.
An envelope addressed to Charlie, which Em must have written.

You can guess what she'd done. She'd opened up our lockers and gone through them, and got out the most personal-looking stuff she could find. I had to stop myself getting up and hitting her across the face. And you should have seen Cass; she was practically crying.

I'm so angry I can hardly type.

Mrs Lilydale reckons there must be some incriminating evidence in these papers. Which obviously there's not. But she wants to read them and prove that for herself. So obviously we said don't you DARE read our private things. So she said, well, you'd better just confess then. And we said that we had nothing to confess to. And she said, ‘Girls, we have a
witness
who puts you at the scene of the crime. Of course, you should have been in
Maths
at the
time
of the crime, so perhaps the witness was wrong.' And then she calls in Ms Yen, the Maths teacher, and puts on a show of asking whether we were in our Maths class yesterday afternoon and Ms Yen looks all surprised and says, ‘No! They weren't!'

Well, of course we weren't. We were at the movies.

And we couldn't exactly say that. We'd have got expelled, since we got in a lot of trouble last year for going to the movies.

Then Mrs Lilydale said we have until the last bell today to confess, or she'll read our things.

Then she let us go so we could ‘makeup our minds'.

There is no way in hell we're letting her read our things. But what are we supposed to do?

Em and Cass have gone to call their parents and I've come to write to you.

Because we're hoping you guys can help us. Obviously, we weren't at your school yesterday afternoon putting grapeseed oil on your science lab floor. The witness, whoever it is, must have made a mistake or must be lying, but they won't tell us who the witness is. They're giving us some crap about how they have to protect his confidentiality.

Can you see if you can find something that might help us?
Anything about who the witness is? Anything about who really did it?

Thanks.

Lyd

To:
[email protected];
[email protected]
CC:
[email protected];
[email protected]
From:
[email protected]
Subject:
THE INJUSTICE

Charlie and Seb
The INJUSTICE! THE INJUSTICE!

This is the BIGGEST DISASTER OF OUR LIVES.

Lyd says she has told you the whole sordid story and now I am giving you an update, which is this! Cass and I called our parents and MY DAD and CASS'S MUM both came screaming up to the school!

What parents!

They were both very excited about the events, my dad in an unnecessarily jolly way, but Cass's mum in a FURIOUS way.

Cass's mum (Patricia) is excited by children's rights, so she was OUTRAGED at the idea that they were going to INVADE OUR PRIVACY AND READ OUR SPECIAL, PRIVATE THINGS.

She said: ‘ABSOLUTELY NOT'.

And Mrs Lilydale said: ‘Then they simply need to confess.' (Infuriating!)

And Patricia said: ‘REGARDLESS of whether they are GUILTY or NOT, I
will not have you reading their private things.'

She was so fiery-eyed!

It went back and forth for a while, with my dad making excited exclamations of agreement, and Patricia saying she would go up to the Supreme Court right then and get an INJUNCTION to stop Mrs Lilydale!

So Mrs Lilydale started to get a bit panicked and said, ‘BUT THERE'S A WITNESS WHO SAW THEM DO IT. AND THEIR REFUSAL TO LET US READ THEIR THINGS SEEMS TO
CONFIRM THAT THEY ARE GUILTY.
WHAT ARE WE GOING TO TELL THE PARENTS AT THE MEETING TONIGHT?!!'

At which Patricia thought fast and then said, ‘Well, if it's a MEETING you're concerned about, we'll resolve this BEFORE the meeting. Who's running this MEETING of yours?'

She was on fire, that Patricia.

‘Senior teachers from both schools,' trembled Mrs Lilydale.

‘THEN,
they
will act as JUDGES and we'll hold a PRELIMINARY hearing, immediately BEFORE the meeting, to DECIDE THE ISSUE!!! It's either that or I'm heading up to Court RIGHT NOW!!'

So, reluctantly, Mrs Lilydale agreed.

Patricia said she wants the hearing to be done PROPERLY like a REAL LEGAL HEARING, and she even wants a TRANSCRIPT typed up, so that she can use that to APPEAL TO THE SUPREME COURT if there is ANY PROCEDURAL INJUSTICE AT ALL.

So that made Mrs Lilydale look frightened.

And my dad said he would be the LEGAL CONSULTANT
at the meeting, to make sure IT IS DONE PROPERLY LIKE A PROPER TRIAL!!!!

And then Patricia said, without even looking at me: ‘Emily can represent the girls.'

And I said, ‘Can I?'

And she said, ‘Yes.'

I am going to be a lawyer tonight!

I'd better go and prepare.

Cass and Lyd will be depending on me.

See you and wish me luck.

Em

To:
[email protected]
CC:
[email protected];
[email protected];
[email protected]
From:
[email protected]
Subject:
No problemo

Hey Lyd
I betcha the ‘witness' is that a/hole Wilson. Trying to take advantage of this whole Brookfield–Ashbury battle to get revenge for your revenge.

Charlie & me are all over it. We'll get back to you as fast as we can.

By the way, you once said you had a contact with a talent for breaking locks. Any chance you could hook me up with that person?

Cheers & take it easy there, beautiful
Seb

PART 32
TRANSCRIPT
OF
PROCEEDINGS
TYPED BY
BINDY MACKENZIE

The Hearing is taking place in the Ashbury assembly hall, which is already beginning to fill with anxious parents and excited Year 10 students, all of them here for the meeting but interested in the preliminary hearing (word having got around), all scraping their chairs and chattering like budgerigars. In the front row, the Year 10 student leaders sit, straight-backed and proud. The Brookfield Year 10 captain is striking to look at, a tall, blond young man.

A table has been set up on the stage. The table is laid with a pretty lace cloth. Judge Anderson (the Brookfield deputy principal) and Judge Koutchavalis (the Ashbury headmistress) are sitting side by side at the table. Emily Thompson's father is alongside them and is wearing a suit.

A row of chairs has been set up across the back of the stage for the many teachers from both schools who are attending. Ms Lawrence and Ms Yen keep whispering to each other and giggling, like schoolgirls.

The defendants, Emily Thompson and Lydia Jaackson-Oberman, are sitting over there but where is Cassie Aganovic? It is interesting to note her absence.

I (Bindy Mackenzie) am sitting at the end of the judges' table and typing on my laptop. I just went ‘shhhh' and frowned at Ms Yen and Ms Lawrence: they looked at me with surprise. Ms Lawrence raised her eyebrows, archly.

Judge Koutchavalis is clearing her throat. She is about to speak:

Judge Koutchavalis:
Ladies and Gentleman. This is a preliminary hearing, which is being held in relation to certain Ashbury students, who shall remain unnamed. As this
issue is not necessarily of interest to you, you may like to partake of the refreshments in the staff room, and we shall let you know when the meeting itself has begun. (
There is some shuffling in the audience, but nobody leaves.
) Very well, I shall proceed as quickly as possible so that we can move on to the public meeting. The issue is this: a witness at Brookfield claims to have seen three Ashbury girls carrying out a prank at Brookfield yesterday afternoon. Some people now think that these particular Ashbury girls must be responsible for initiating the dispute itself.
(
Clears her throat, and looks to Mr Thompson, who nods wisely.
)
  The Year 10 form mistress at
our
school believes that she should be entitled to check through the girls' personal papers for evidence to this effect. The girls themselves deny the charge and think that she should
not
be allowed to look through their papers. The Year 10 form mistress will speak first, and then Emily Thompson will speak on behalf of the girls.
  Please thank Mr Thompson here on my right, who is acting as our legal consultant, and also thank Bindy
Mackenzie, who is typing up the transcript today.
Mr Thompson:
She types very quickly, doesn't she?
Judge Anderson:
She types like the wind!
Emily:
She's not that fast.
Mr Thompson:
Yes she is. Look at her.
(Pause as he people on stage watch Bindy Mackenzie, typing like the wind, typing like a tidal wave, typing up a storm—while parents and students in the audience talk amongst themselves.)
Judge Koutchavalis:
(
talking into the microphone again
) We will begin by inviting Mrs Lilydale, the Year 10 form mistress, to address the Court. (
More quietly, to Mr Thompson
)
How's it going so far?
Mr Thompson:
Excellent.
(
Mrs Koutchavalis smiles proudly.
  Mrs Lilydale stands up, coughs and says an experimental ‘ahem'. A small pause.
  A couple of students in audience begin applauding, and making loud, ironic comments such as, ‘What a speech', and ‘That was a great point, that second thing she said' and ‘You tell 'em Lily', as if to indicate that the speech is over now. Parents frown and say ‘shhh!'
)
Mrs Lilydale:
(
ignoring students
) I will be very brief. Your honours (
turning to the two judges and putting on a sort of little girl's voice
),
your honours, I am the Year 10 form mistress.
Judge Koutchavalis:
You certainly are.
Mrs Lilydale:
(
clears her throat again
) As such, I have responsibility for the wellbeing of the students of Year 10.
Student in audience:
(
putting on sincere voice
)
Thank you,
Mrs Lilydale.
Mrs Lilydale:
(
ignoring student
) In the last week, the education of Year 10 has been in serious jeopardy.
(
Students in audience break into spontaneous applause, cheering etc, presumably in support of the detriment to their education; parents ‘tch' at their children.
)
Mrs Lilydale:
(
over the cheers
) It is vital, for the wellbeing of our schools, that the people who are organising these attacks be apprehended. We have a witness who saw three girls at Brookfield carrying out a prank. We have the same three girls missing from their Maths class. Yet the girls themselves refuse to confess to this! What are we to think? Are they guilty or not? One way we can make sure is to look through their personal papers—if there is no mention of their attacks on Brookfield, there may be some doubt! If there
is
mention, then the issue will be resolved. The girls
refuse to allow us to read their papers. This makes it even
more
likely that they are guilty, and gives us even
more
reason to read their papers. (
She holds up both hands and looks around the audience, as if waiting for applause. There is silence; some parents are nodding.
)
Judge Koutchavalis:
Well, thank you, Mrs Lilydale. Do you have anything to say, Mr Anderson, excuse me,
Judge
Anderson?
Judge Anderson:
As deputy principal of Brookfield, I'm obviously keen to track down the culprits. But Mrs Lilyfield, what do you have to say about these girls' right to privacy?
Mrs Lilydale:
It's ‘dale', actually. Not ‘field'. Lily
dale
.
(
Judge Anderson tilts his head to the side, as if he finds Mrs Lilydale a little curious. She continues.
) Privacy is well and good. But the time comes when the
safety of two entire schools
must be put ahead of three students' privacy in whatever they might have scribbled. Now is that time.
Judge Koutchavalis:
Thank you, Mrs Lilydale. You may sit down. I am sure the people here are considering your words carefully.
(
She looks to the audience where some people shrug slightly. Others frown. Somebody sighs, deeply. A sniff from the audience. A single cough. Someone says ‘ow' and someone, somewhere, whispers
that they are very hungry. Another voice offers some chewing gum. The first voice says, ‘That won't help.' Another voice says, ‘There's a spider on the wall.' Another voice says, ‘No, that's just the tassel from the curtain.' ‘No, it's not.' ‘Yes—')
Emily:
(
standing in her place
) Before Mrs Lilydale sits down, I want to cross-examine her.
(
General shouts of approval and some of unexpected sexual innuendo from the students in the audience. Is cross-examining Mrs Lilydale something sexual? I cannot understand it.
)
Mrs Lilydale:
Is that allowed? Can she cross-examine me?
Mr Thompson:
Absolutely.
Judge Koutchavalis:
All right, I don't see why not.
Emily:
Mrs Lilydale, you want to read our private diaries and letters, right?
Mrs Lilydale:
Right.
Emily:
And you think you should be allowed this because you have evidence that we went to Brookfield yesterday afternoon, right?
Mrs Lilydale:
Right.
Emily:
And the
only
evidence you have against us is a Brookfield student who says he saw us there yesterday afternoon, right?
Mrs Lilydale:
All right.
Emily:
And you won't tell us this Brookfield student‘s name?
Mrs Lilydale:
That's right. We agreed to protect his identity.
Emily:
Why?
Mrs Lilydale:
Well, obviously, there is much hostility between the two schools so we need to protect him from that hostility and —
Emily:
Because Ashbury students could not be trusted to be nice to this Brookfield student?
Mrs Lilydale:
Precisely.
Emily:
Ashbury students are so mad at Brookfield students that they might attack this boy, if they know he has told on Ashburians?
Mrs Lilydale:
Exactly.
Emily:
Ashbury students might attack this boy physically or they might, let's say,
insult
him or they might even start
telling lies about him?
Mrs Lilydale:
Right.
Emily:
They might, even, let's say,
accuse him of doing something he didn't do?
Mrs Lilydale:
I suppose—well, hang on there—(
There is a ripple of excitement from the audience as people realise where she is heading.
)
Emily:
Mrs Lilydale! Don't Brookfielders hate us as much as we hate them? WHY SHOULD ANYONE BELIEVE THIS
BROOKFIELD BOY WHEN HE IS SAYING SOMETHING MEAN ABOUT ASHBURY GIRLS?!!
Mrs Lilydale:
(
says nothing, just gapes a bit
)
Judge Anderson:
(
aside, to Judge Koutchavalis
) She makes a good point, but our witness is fairly reliable, you know.
Mrs Lilydale:
Well, this so-called Brookfield boy knew your
names
and
described you in detail!
Emily:
And yet we are not allowed to know anything about him! How did he know our names, for an example, when we hardly know anyone at Brookfield? Why did he see us if nobody else saw us? How is his eyesight? IS HE BLIND? FOR ALL WE KNOW, HE COULD BE BLIND!?!?!
(
Mrs Lilydale gives a little frowning shrug, as if all of this is silly—but Emily is correct. What if he has some sort of perceptual shortcoming? The audience is really excited now, leaning forward, whispering, listening, nodding to each other.
)
Emily:
Another thing: do you agree that yesterday, you put a message on our Year 10 noticeboard that said ‘OUR SCHOOL IS IN SERIOUS DANGER'?
Mrs Lilydale:
I wouldn't have a clue.
Emily:
Well, would you have a look at this
please, see where it's highlighted in pink?
Mr Thompson:
(
leaning forward with interest
) Let the record show that Em is showing Mrs Lilydale a piece of paper. (
For the record, Em is showing Mrs Lilydale a piece of paper.
)
Emily:
It's the notice from yesterday.
Mrs Lilydale:
All right then, I see that I
did
say that.
Emily:
And would you agree that people who read that the school was in serious danger might be afraid that the school was in serious danger?
Mrs Lilydale:
Excuse me?
Mr Thompson:
The question was perfectly clear.
Mrs Lilydale:
All right.
Emily:
And do you think that someone spray-painting our classroom walls puts the school in serious danger?
Mrs Lilydale:
Well, no, but—
Emily:
(
fiery-eyed
) Just answer the question, Mrs Lilydale!
Mrs Lilydale:
You can't talk to me . . . Okay. No.
Emily:
(
dramatically
) So, wasn't it
false
for you to say that the school was in
danger?
Mrs Lilydale:
Well, but—
Emily:
So, it was false!
Mrs Lilydale:
Oh, for heaven's sake.
Emily:
(
lowering her voice to a dramatic whisper
) What would you say if I told you that, under section 93IH of the Crimes Act 1900, New South Wales, it is illegal to say that a school is in danger if that is not true (
long pause
). And what would you say if I told you that the maximum penalty for this crime is
five years in prison!!!!
(There is a great uproar of cheering, applauding, stamping, hysterical laughter, from, I should say, both parents and students—offers from students to phone the police—offers from humorous parents to make a citizen's arrest
—) (
Once it is has quieted down a bit.
)
Mrs Lilydale:
Emily Thompson, that is nonsense. I had every reason to believe that the school was in danger and—
Emily:
(
interrupting her, and walking away theatrically, so that she can read the transcript over Bindy's shoulder
) But, Mrs Lilydale, didn't you just say—? Hey, Bindy's putting all kinds of adjectives in the transcript!
Mr Botherit:
(
leaning forward from the back row
) What do you mean when you say ‘adjectives'?
Emily:
She's putting things in there like ‘lowering her voice to a dramatic whisper' and ‘walking away theatrically'.
Mr Botherit:
I don't think those are all adjectives.
Ms Yen:
It can't hurt, can it? It will make the transcript more entertaining.
Judge Koutchavalis:
Well, I don't know if that's normal is it, Mr Thompson?
Mr Thompson:
I'm pretty sure it's not normal. Of course, just between you and me, I'm a tax lawyer. I haven't been in a courtroom for years. But I'm pretty sure it's not normal.
Judge Koutchavalis:
(
bossily
) Bindy? Can you stop typing in those descriptive bits?
Mr Pappo:
They're adverbs, aren't they?
Mr Botherit:
I would call them ‘adverbial phrases'.
Mr Thompson:
(
looking over at Bindy
) She's really a very fast typist.
Emily:
She's not that fast.
Judge Koutchavalis:
You should get on with your cross-examination, Em.
Emily:
I've finished, haven't I? I proved that Mrs Lilydale is a criminal.
Judge Koutchavalis:
Order, everyone! Order! (
The general clamour begins to subside.
) Please show some respect, Emily.
Emily:
Sorry. But I haven't actually finished.

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