8. Unusual Suspects
Him:
(Minutes Earlier)
As soon as I let go of Selina, I survey the guys standing around with Tommy Elliot. I recognize VJ-the-DJ, an average-build short guy, who's been wearing his signature yellow driving cap since I've known him, and AJ, who is standing nearest the door still looking stricken.
There are two other kids that I don't know. One, a tall, lanky guy with a mass of brown curls that are pulled away from his face in a loose ponytail; the other, a stocky guy with a buzzcut.
"What's up, Bruce?" Tommy nods at me and gives a sympathetic smile, much more apologetic than when I saw him earlier.
"Just, Brant." I say, being sure that my tone sounds sorrowful and not suspicious. "I can't believe it."
"Who would do something like that at a school dance?" the stocky guy says and shakes his head in disgust. "Yea the guy could be an asshole, but he didn't deserve to be killed."
"Does anyone?" I hear a monotone voice saying and look over to see the curly ponytail looking solemn and critical.
"You tell me, "Falconey"." The buzzcut say and my ears perk up.
"Are you a Falcone?" I ask, and the curly-haired boy squints at me as though trying to determine if I am faking my ignorance.
"Yes, I am. I'm Johnnie Falcone." He says with a huff. "One of the Falcone twins."
I didn't even know there were Falcone twins.
I really need to dial back in to Gotham's social scene.
"But, being a Falcone doesn't automatically mean that I am a criminal. And I should imagine you would realize that from personal experience, "Bully" Bullock." His eyes laser in on the buzzcut kid who flashes a proud smile.
"Bullock…? Are you related to detective Bullock?" I ask, even more aghast than I was at the Falcone kid. With the Falcones', I know there are lots of them, I just didn't know any went here. But, I've known Detective Bullock, at least peripherally, for years. I've never heard him mention any family.
"He's my older brother." The guy says. "I'm Derrick Bullock, but I go by Bully. I hardly know the guy. The only thing we have in common is that our dad was a cheating son-of-a-bitch. We've got siblings all over the country." Bully smiles again as though he's proud of this lurid fact.
Johnnie said that Bully knew from personal experience that a name didn't resign you to a fate. Does that mean that he's saying Bully has gone in the opposite direction? His brother's a cop and he's a criminal?
"Yes, well. My uncle was Carmine Falcone." Johnnie says with a clear tone of disgust. "But, my mother never wanted any parts of his ill-won empire. She spent her life in service to the underserved, travelling around the world to help the poor and teaching me and my sister the same. The very idea of harming someone not only repulses me, I find crime utterly deplorable." He pauses and gives a judging stare to Bully "You can attest to that, Bully."
Bully nods "I can. The guy is always acting like a goody-goody stick-in-the-mud. Can't even take the sight of a little blood."
I narrow my eyes at him "Why would he have been subjected to the sight of blood?" I say and the smile melts from Bully's face, as he looks away guiltily.
"True." Johnnie says with a shudder "Bully and I were just coming from the bathroom when that girl screamed. And I couldn't even look at the body, because I go faint." I hear someone in the crowd snickering and Johnnie says, "I'm not ashamed of my limitations. Rather, I embrace them, unlike the rest of you cowards! I know exactly who I am and who I'm not. And to that end when I hit 18, my first move is to change my last name. I don't want to spend my life associated with that criminal element."
Hmmm. He seems pretty convincing…
"If you're done with your little sermon, how about we get back to what happened to Brant?" Tommy says with a pained and dismissive expression. "Yes, he could be a jerk, but he was our friend." Tommy glances around the group, "He was everyone in this room's friend." His eyes stop on AJ, "Well…Almost everyone's…"
"It's not AJ's fault Brant treated him like shit." VJ pipes up, glaring at Tommy, the annoyance clear in his voice. "He made that kid's life a living hell!"
Tommy smiles congenially and holds out his hands in a peaceful gesture. "I'm not defending his treatment of AJ. I am just saying that of everyone here, AJ's the only one who had a problem with him." Tommy glances back at me and then says "Actually…Bruce wasn't really a fan of his either, as I recall."
The group turns to stare at me.
Great.
My mind travels back to the memory of the incident to which Tommy must be referring.
I was going through a rough patch last year. Well, more than that. I'd killed Ra's and was taking it pretty hard. I started hanging with Tommy, Grace Blomdhal and a few other kids. Drinking, partying to dial down the pain. It was a difficult time for me, but more than that, I was an asshole to everyone in my life. And even some people who weren't in my life.
At the height of this period, I bought a nightclub that Brant was trying unsuccessfully to get us into. And then I invited everyone in the group inside. Everyone, except for Brant, who'd been taking potshots at me since the moment he met me.
At the time it felt good, but in hindsight, I realized that it wasn't the kindest, most gracious move.
And it doesn't exactly look great, now that the recipient of such boorish behavior is a murder victim.
I try and think of what to say as the surrounding eyes are all latched on to me. Of course, I didn't kill him, but I can see that they're all thinking it, now.
"Bruce wasn't there." I hear from the edge and look over and see AJ stammering toward the crowd. Everyone turns to him. "He was dancing with his date. I saw him." AJ says and points at me assuredly.
"That's true." VJ adds. "He requested a song for her a few minutes before that girl started screaming."
Right. I was dancing with Selina when Brant was killed.
Why didn't I think of that?
The basics. Pay attention to the basics, I remember.
"Of course, he wasn't there!" Tommy says exasperated, and he looks as though the thought had never crossed his mind. "I was merely stating the fact that poor AJ here wasn't the only person after all that Brant didn't get along with."
"We all know that, Tommy." VJ says and his eyes are full of resentment. This guy seems pretty angry, "You're the only one who seems to think that Brant was innocent. I wasn't his friend either. I tolerated the guy, but he was a miserable son-of-a-bitch. And I'm not going to pretend to be sorry he's dead!"
The group silenced by the harsh words, everyone seems to momentarily retreat into their thoughts.
Interesting…
Just as I am trying to determine how these new dynamics relate to Brant's death, I hear someone shrieking from the gathering of girls "…Brant would have been in the photo booth with me! Tommy's the reason Brant's dead!"
