The Weight of Blood (27)

No harm? Jules stood there in blackface, and he had the audacity to say “no harm”? What about the disrespect, not just to Maddy but to him and all the Black kids in school? Why didn’t anyone see that? Why did he have to be the one to point it out?

Kenny eyed every person circling him as if he was something to be captured, as if he was the one out of control, and not Jules. The group exchanged nervous glances, avoiding his glare. His “friends” were avoiding him when they should have been on his side.

“Man, whatever.” Kenny sucked his teeth, shoving through the circle.

Wendy rushed after him. “Kenny? Kenny, please, wait . . .”

Kenny shook her away, ripping off his ridiculous costume as he stormed out the gym doors, leaving everyone in stunned silence.





Six


MADDY DID IT

EPISODE 4, CONT.

Michael: So when did you retire and close your medical practice?

Dr. Paul Foreman: ’Bout few months after it happened, give or take. I had my fill of blood after that day.

Michael [narration]: This is Dr. Paul Foreman, Maddy’s physician. It took a while to find any mention of him in the investigation report. But I think it’s crucial that we learn as much as we can about Maddy’s overall health before the prom.

Dr. Foreman: First time I met Maddy, the state had actually mandated her to come to me. At that point, she had only been taken to the emergency room after a fit of hysteria. Something about some bird attack. Anyway, when she was brought into the ER, doctors learned she had no clue what a menstrual cycle was. Poor girl thought she was dying. They had a nurse explain it to her, which got child protective services involved, and the state sent her my way. She hadn’t had the proper immunizations to attend middle school.

Michael: Do you remember anything about that first meeting?

Dr. Foreman: She was quiet. Shy. Every question I asked her, she’d looked to her daddy for permission to talk. I thought it was strange, but there were no signs of abuse.

Michael: So maybe you can help put this rumor to rest. Did Maddy have lupus?

Dr. Foreman: No, not at all. Not sure where that idea came from. Probably her daddy.

Michael: And when’s the last time you saw Maddy?

Dr. Foreman: Exactly three months before Prom Night. She came in, I’m assuming without her daddy’s knowledge, concerned about period pain. She had an extremely heavy menstrual cycle that left her exhausted. Her extremities were often cold, and she constantly craved ice chips. All signs of iron deficiency or anemia. I prescribed her an iron supplement and told her to see a gynecologist within the month. That’s the last time I saw her.

Michael: Anything else unusual?

Dr. Foreman: You know, that’s what the state asked me too. Over and over. Was I aware of any unnatural “abilities”? The best answer I could give them was I don’t think anyone knew what she was capable of. Including her.

Michael: Do you think she could still be alive?

Dr. Foreman: With no body, it’s hard to confirm. But ultimately, I find it almost impossible for her to have walked away unscathed, and no one notice.

From CNN.com article, May 19, 2014: “High School Investigating Reports of Students Dressed in Blackface”

A photo of a girl posing in blackface, dressed as a fellow student, has come to the Springville school district’s attention after being widely circulated on social media.

District administrators issued the following statement: “We hope, as a community, that we can work together to ensure that the racial insensitivity and inappropriateness of the students’ actions can serve as a teachable moment.”

The school declined to release the name of the student, but fellow students identified her before her social media accounts were deleted.

This is the second incident in recent weeks at the town’s high school, drawing questions about district protocols.

May 19, 2014

Wendy hadn’t seen Kenny all morning. His car was parked in the lot, but he wasn’t in his usual spot, and for some reason, she couldn’t shake the feeling that he was avoiding her. She drank the smoothie she had prepared for him, guzzling the chalky liquid, trying to drown her nerves. He couldn’t still be mad about Jules, right? Wendy had managed to smooth things over, and they’d made up over the weekend.

But Kenny still felt distant. She clung to the hope that once they were away from Springville, they would be them again, Wendy and Kenny. She checked her email with anxious fingers. Still no word from that last scholarship. All she needed was another thousand dollars, and once they were on Alabama’s campus, she’d be taken care of. Being the girlfriend of Kenny Scott just had to come with some privileges.

When the bell rang, she nearly sprinted down to the caf, hoping Kenny would be there, waiting for her. Missing her. But as she skipped down the staircase, she ran right into a traffic jam that blocked the hallway leading to the lunchroom. Chanting voices boomed over the crowd.

“Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Racist students have got to go!”

“What’s going on?” she said aloud.

“The Black Student Union is protesting,” a kid beside her grumbled.

Wendy sucked in a breath. Could Kenny be there too? He had never once showed interest in that type of stuff before.

She bulldozed her way through the crowd, coming upon the clearing in front of the caf doors.