Page 136 of For Your Own Good

Winnie appears at his side, with Daphne right behind her. Together, the two of them have taken over Ms.Marsha’s duties. For now, it works. By fall, he’ll have a new assistant.

With a clipboard in her hand, Winnie rattles off a list of updates. “All the speakers have checked in. The mayor called and said he’ll be arriving about five minutes before the program starts. But we have to set up a few more rows of chairs, because”—she looks out into the crowd—“I don’t think we’ll have enough.”

Teddy glances up. He’s been staring down at his cuticles, which look awful. Ever since Fallon’s funeral, he’s been biting them again.

“Hello, Teddy.”

Frank. He’s looking at Teddy with that same weird smile.

“Frank, good to see you.”

“You look well,” Frank says, glancing around. “Where’s Allison? I’d love to say hello.”

Teddy restrains himself from looking as irritated as he feels. “She’s trying to get away from work but may not make it. Hospitals do need their nurses.”

“Allison must be very busy these days. Missy said she hasn’t talked to her in a while.”

“Yes, she’s been busy.” Teddy turns away from Frank and back to Winnie. “We definitely need more chairs,” he says. He walks away, down the three steps to the seating area.

“Twenty minutes!” Winnie calls.

He doesn’t turn around. A group of parents stand near the front row, and Teddy stops to greet them. Press the flesh. Smile and nod and hope they contribute a lot. Before Ms.Marsha’s unfortunate arrest, she’d explained that this was a big part of his job. Public relations. “You have to be the face of the school,” she said.

Here he is, doing just that, working the room.

If he were still a teacher, he wouldn’t have to do any of this. As Teacher of the Year, he would be reviewing his speech. And if he hadn’t been named Teacher of the Year, he would be having a snack or showing up a few minutes before it started.

Such is the life of a headmaster.

It’s not what he’d expected. Still, it’s better than being a teacher who was never considered part of the Belmont family.

The worst part is dealing with the families of the victims. They’re all seated in the front row, to the right of the center aisle. Together, they are a sea of black clothing drenched in the smell of death. If Teddy had known this, he would have told Winnie to seat them farther back.

First, he must greet them. He begins with his predecessor’s wife. Before her husband died, she was a stern, no-nonsense woman. Now, she appears almost weak, with a stooped posture and a veil covering her face. She only nods when Teddy expresses his condolences.

Next, Dr.Benjamin. Sonia’s husband wears a grey suit, and his hair islonger than a typical professional’s cut.Professorscan get away with that. He’s also much bigger than he was the last time Teddy saw him, and that was at Sonia’s memorial. Perhaps grief makes him hungry.

“Thank you so much for coming,” Teddy says, shaking his hand. “I realize this is of small comfort, but we will do our best to honor your wife in a way that you find fitting.”

“I appreciate that,” he says.

On the upside, at least Sonia never had children. Teddy hates dealing with small children.

The last of the mourners is Courtney and her father. Teddy steels himself to be gracious and humble, because there’s still a chance Courtney will return to Belmont in the fall. Her father can afford it.

“Mr.Ross,” he says. “It’s nice to see you again, though obviously not under these circumstances.”

“Of course.”

“And I can’t tell you how happy I am that the FBI stepped in and cleared up the awful misunderstanding with you,” Teddy says to Courtney.

She nods, tries to smile a little. “Thank you.”

Teddy sees someone behind Courtney, who must be sitting with them.

Zach Ward. That little shit.

“Hi, Mr.Crutcher,” Zach says.