The Castaway Hotel: Book 7

Our flight back was fairly routine, and since we were traveling on a smaller plane, we comprised a large percentage of the passenger list. As usual, we attracted some attention boarding and we were all chatting excitedly about our vacation and going home. By this point, however, we were also clean and well dressed.

The flight didn’t last very long, and when we touched down, Mark and Frankie were there to pick us up. Frankie seemed pretty excited about something, so I thought he might have landed a job, but he took me aside to speak to me in private.

“Dad, there’s been a Detective James calling the house ever since I got back,” he announced. “He keeps asking when you’ll get home, what boys are with you and where you went. He wouldn’t tell me what he wanted, but he did tell me to make sure you called him as soon as you returned. I don’t like the sound of this.”

“Calm down, Frank,” I stated, as calmly as I could. “It probably has something to do with the school district. There was most likely a break in or some vandalism done while we were gone, so he probably just needs me to clear it up or see if I want to press charges against those responsible.”

“Nice try, Dad, but remember I have a degree in criminal justice and can tell that isn’t so,” Frankie protested. “The detective wouldn’t be asking who was with you and where you went, if it was only related to a school issue.” I just nodded at him.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to insult your intelligence,” I explained. “I got the same impression, but didn’t want to alarm you. I also don’t want you telling any of the others about this. I’ll call the guy when we get back and see what I can do to sort it out. I might even need your help with this, whatever it is.” He smiled at me.

“Sure, Dad. I’d love to help. You know you can count on me for anything,” he confirmed. “I owe you and the others a great deal. You really saved my life when you let me move back in, and the others did too, because I know you wouldn’t have taken me back a second time if any of them had objected. If you had turned me away, I’m sure I would have been on the other side of the law by now, instead of trying to get a job in law enforcement.”

“Frank, that’s all water over the dam and you’ve more than proved your worth since then,” I assured him. “You don’t owe any of us a thing, but I’m glad you came back when you did and gave us a second chance too. I really felt guilty about having you removed the first time.”

“No, you shouldn’t,” he insisted. “It was all my fault and I deserved what happened. In fact, that was probably the wake-up call I needed to get my shit together.” I looked at him and raised my eyebrows.

“Colorfully put, but I get the point,” I replied. “We all made mistakes back then, but I’m glad none of them ever came back to haunt us. Now, do you have any idea what this might be about?”

“None. I even tried to get the guy to tell me something, but he wouldn’t,” Frankie responded. “I even asked some of my friends if they might have an idea about what might be up, but no one could come up with a thing.”

“Then it probably isn’t anything we need to worry about,” I responded, although I wasn’t sure I believed it myself. “We should know what it is about soon enough.”

“True, but I’m still very concerned,” Frankie admitted. “The detective sounded as if he was on a mission.”

“Well, let’s just wait and see what’s up, before we start to panic,” I urged. Frankie agreed and we got in the vehicles and headed home.

The drive seemed to last forever, as my mind raced over the possibilities of what the detective might want with me. I let Mark drive the van, so I could sit in the passenger seat and think, and soon he was questioning me about my mood.

“Something up, Dad?” he asked, jolting me from my reverie. “You seem to be very deep in thought.” Now, I knew I’d have to come up with something to put him off the track.

“Nah, just thinking about everything I have to do once I get back,” I responded, casually. “School will be starting soon and I have a lot to do to get ready.”

“Oh, I thought it might have something to do with all those calls Frankie got from the detective,” Mark pressed.

I must have looked shocked when he said this, because he gave me a strange glare. I quickly looked around to see if anyone else had picked up on what he had just mentioned, and once I was convinced no one had, I leaned closer to him to respond.

“I’d prefer the others not know about this just yet,” I whispered, “at least not until I discover what it’s all about.” He nodded in response and said nothing more about it for the rest of the trip.

We hadn’t been home more than a few minutes, and were still in the middle of unloading our things, when the phone rang. One of the boys picked it up and soon I was being informed it was for me. I took the receiver and spoke. “Josh Currie here.”

“Mr. Currie, this is Detective James. I’ve been trying to reach you,” he announced, sounding annoyed.

“So I’ve been told, but we just got back a few minutes ago and are still unloading our luggage,” I replied. “What may I do to help you?”

“Well, I have some questions I’d like you to answer for me, if you don’t mind?” he countered, but the way he had worded this concerned me a little. He wasn’t calling to give me information or inform me of a problem, but instead he wanted me to answer questions. Something wasn’t adding up.

“Certainly, but what is all this about?” I inquired.

“I’ll fill you in about that later,” he snapped back, although not in a menacing way. “First, I need for you to tell me a few things.” He had avoided my question, and now I understood why Frankie was suspicious and worried.

“First of all, when did you leave for your vacation?” he continued.

“Four weeks ago, yesterday. Why?” I asked, since I wanted to know what this was about.

“And your entire family went with you?” he continued, without responding.

“Yes, although Frankie and Mark came back after the first two weeks, because they had other things to do,” I confirmed. “Now, would you please tell me what this is about?”

“Let’s just say that some of your boys were implicated in a crime,” he finally admitted.

“Well, we’ve been away, so it couldn’t have been them,” I quickly challenged.

“I’m sorry, but this crime happened before you left,” he informed me, “so it is still a possibility your boys were involved.”

“What type of crime are we talking about?” I pressed.

I was starting to get more than a little paranoid, but I was also becoming pissed off by the way he was handling the matter. What the hell was going on and what was he trying to say about my boys?

“It’s an assault case,” he replied, as if he were trying to control the amount of information he was giving out. However, I wasn’t about to be put off that easily.

“Okay, so who was assaulted and what happened to him?” I followed. The detective did not respond immediately, so I figured he was considering how much he wanted to tell me about this case. Finally, he answered.

“Do you remember a David Hubbard?” he asked. I had to stop and think for a second, because the name didn’t immediately ring a bell.

“Wait, isn’t that the scout master’s son, the one who was harassing Shannon McCarthy?” I asked in response, to confirm my suspicion.

“Yes, he’s the one,” he replied, “and I heard some of your boys have a grudge against him because of that.” This statement sounded more like an accusation.

“Maybe a couple of years ago they might have, when that happened,” I confessed, “but no one has had anything to do with him since.” I thought maybe that would settle the matter for now.

“Well, it appears as if some of your boys still feel they have a score to settle,” he countered. He seemed smug when making his response.

“What do you mean?” I nearly shouted. “My boys aren’t the kind to hold a grudge or seek revenge.”

“Then maybe you don’t know your sons as well as you think you do,” he challenged, with an air of arrogance in his tone.

“I don’t believe that,” I countered, “and I know my boys better than most parents know their children. If they’d been involved in something like this, then I’d have heard about it by now.”

“So, you think they would have come running to you and tell you what they did?” he scoffed.

“I didn’t say that, but if they had been involved, I’m sure they would have taken one or more of their brothers into their confidence,” I explained, “or someone would have overheard them talking about it. If that had happened, then that person would have said something to me. We just spent a month on vacation, spending every minute together, so I’m sure if something like this had taken place before we left, I would have known about it by now.”

“Unless your other sons are covering for them,” he suggested, making more unfounded implications. Again, his smugness was coming through, loud and clear.

“Trust me. There’s no way you can get that many boys to agree on anything or keep a secret for that long without someone slipping up,” I informed him. “Even if that doesn’t happen, someone else will have doubts about what they’re doing or suffer a change of heart. When that occurs, they come to me. That’s why I would have heard something by now.”

“That’s a nice thought, but it’s not a criminal defense,” he shot back, without hiding the fact he was mocking my claim. “I think I’ll need you to bring some of your sons down to the station, so I can speak to them personally.” It sounded as if he was about ready to charge them with this crime.

“Should I have my lawyer join us then?” I asked, in order to make sure I protected my boys first and foremost. He didn’t respond immediately this time and took a few seconds before he answered.

“Of course, that would be your prerogative,” he confirmed, “but if you involve your lawyer now, we may be forced to charge the boys immediately, rather than just questioning them.”

At that moment, I knew he was trying to intimidate me with this statement and I wasn’t going to let him gain such an advantage.

“Well, thank you for your concern,” I replied, half-heartedly, “but I think it may be in our best interest if we had someone there to protect their rights.” I wanted to let him know I didn’t entirely trust his motives.

“I thought only guilty people needed their rights protected,” he countered, thinking he could shake me with his comment.

“That’s not entirely true,” I countered, instinctively. “Both guilty people and those trying to protect themselves from overzealous individuals trying to make a name for themselves or clear their caseload need counsel.”

Later, I wished I hadn’t slipped to his level and accused him of something in return, but it was already done. However, there was a pause before he said anything else.

“So you think I’m making this all up?” he asked me.

“I didn’t say that,” I explained, “but it sounds as if you’ve already made up your mind as to guilt. Either that or you’re grasping at straws to clear up one of your cases.”

“And would you consider having an eyewitness as grasping at straws?” he countered. I believe he told me this to shake my confidence, but I was smarter than to take what he said at face value.

“It would depend on what the eyewitness had seen and had to say,” I answered coolly. “Did your star witness actually see my boys do anything?” Now, it was his turn to be put on the defensive.

“This person can put your sons in the area at the time of the crime,” he responded, but not as smugly this time.

“In the area, but not at the scene or not actually committing the crime,” I emphasized.
“That’s not what I said,” he countered.

“Maybe not, but I can read between the lines,” I informed him. “If you want to speak to any of my sons, then you’ll just have to tell me where and when, but our lawyer will also be present.” I think this completely deflated his balloon.

“Fine,” he nearly shouted back. “I want you to have Danny, Brandon and Patrick here as soon as you can then.”

“I shall call my lawyer and inquire about a time that would be convenient for him,” I replied. “Once I have that information, then I’ll call you back and set up an appointment. Would that meet with your approval?”

“Fine, but it better be today,” he snapped back. “I’ve waited long enough to get this done.” He sounded very angry at this point and I thought maybe I had done the boys a disservice by the way I had handled the situation. I certainly didn’t want to piss him off and give him even more of an incentive to go after them.

“I will have them there today, so don’t worry,” I confirmed. “The time, however, will depend on our lawyer’s schedule.” I hoped this would diffuse the tension some, but I just heard sort of a growl, before he spoke again.

“I understand Shannon McCarthy and his father live with you too?” he continued, without hiding his disdain.

“Yes, they do,” I answered.

“Would you please make sure they come with you then,” he asked, “or would you like me to speak to them myself?”

“No. I will inform them and make sure they come with us,” I answered, but he didn’t say anything more. Instead, he just hung up, which I thought was extremely rude.

Now, I got on the phone and called another lawyer friend of mine, one who dealt with criminal law, and explained the situation to him. Seeing it was the weekend, he wasn’t working, but did agree to meet us at the police station and represent the boys while they were being questioned. He assured me things would be fine and I knew I had to trust his judgment. I thanked him for giving up some of his free time and then said good-bye. Then I called Steve Shay next, before I notified the detective.

After explaining the situation to my best friend, he tried to assure me it was probably just a case of mistaken identity and would most likely be cleared up quickly. He also told me it was a good move to have a lawyer present during the interview and asked me to keep him advised, as a friend, about what happened. I promised I would, before I called the detective back and informed him when we would be there.

Detective James didn’t sound happy, because it would be a couple more hours before we got there and that would probably take him past the end of his shift. However, I explained that was the best my lawyer could do on such short notice. Once I hung up, I rounded up Jake and the four boys he had implicated.

“What’s up, Dad?” Danny asked, once we were alone in the family room.

“I’ve got some bad news for the four of you,” I began, which elicited shocked and concerned looks from all of them. I then went on to explain about the phone call and everything that had happened since. Along the way, I had to cut off their objections and protests of innocence, while informing them I believed the accusations would prove to be unfounded. After I finished filling them in, I finally gave them a chance to respond.

“Pop, this is bullshit,” Brandon told me, quite pointedly. “Even though we have no love for that guy, we haven’t seen him in ages.”

“Yeah,” Pat added, “and I don’t remember when the four of us were ever out together at the same time, Dad. I mean it’s not that we don’t all hang out at times, but the four of us don’t usually hang around as a group. I’m not sure why, but we just don’t.”

“Well, that may work to your advantage then,” I advised them.

“Pop, who is this witness and why does he think we were the ones who did this?” Shannon wanted to know.

“I’m not sure, but we’ll probably find this out soon,” I answered. “We have to go down to the police station and meet with this detective shortly, so I want you boys to get ready. I’ll call you when it’s time to go.”

Jake and I discussed a few items after they’d left, but once we finished, I just sat and worried about what might happen next. I tried to remember every phrase the detective had used and attempted to piece together every tidbit of information I had heard, as I tried to come up with some way to get my sons out of this mess. It was a rough wait for me, as I tried to pass the time until we had to leave.

When we got to the police station, I announced our arrival to the desk sergeant and soon Detective James came out to greet us. He wanted to start talking to the boys immediately, but our lawyer wasn’t there yet, so I told him we’d have to wait until he arrived. He wasn’t happy about this either, but reluctantly agreed. After our attorney showed up, there was some discussion as to how the interviews would be conducted. Eventually, our lawyer and the detective reached an agreement and we were all led to an interrogation room. Once we all sat down, the detective began asking his questions.