Disclaimer: I do not own Ice Age.
AN: Thanks again for the reviews…for now, only a few chapters left. And as for the what happens next, I feel that it needs to happen…I'll explain in the last chapter.
Chapter 18:
"What the hell is going on here?" Diego shoves his way through where a crowd had amassed at the front of the school. Soto and Oscar are standing by there, surprisingly grim-faced as paramedics walk away with a stretcher that carries a motionless Zeke.
But there is nothing rushed about the paramedics' movements, and Diego's heart sinks as he turns to Soto. "Dead?"
Soto nods solemnly, equally shocked.
Diego freezes as well, panting as he tries to regain air into his lungs. Shira elbows her way to the front, glaring up at the captain. "What happened?"
"We were about to start training-"
"Without Diego?" Shira interrupts, keeping her voice low so only Soto and Diego can hear her. Diego also looks confused as he turns on his captain.
Soto frowns at her reaction. "I sent him a text informing him of the last-minute practice. You said you were on your way."
Diego stops for a moment, then pulls out his phone. "I never got that. And I sure as hell did not send any message back." He opens his messages and scrolls through it quickly, showing it to Shira and Soto.
Sure enough, the last message he had from Soto was from the day before, barring the one informing him about Zeke being poisoned.
"Why the hell would anyone want Zeke dead?" Shira frowns softly. Lenny and Oscar shift closer to them, pale and shellshocked.
"The cops want to talk to us," Oscar says softly. He musters up a glare at Diego. "Where the hell did you go to?"
"What?" Diego frowns.
"You completely ditched us before we had training."
"I didn't know we had training." Diego growls.
"I saw you in the changing rooms," Oscar narrows his eyes. "I called out to you but you didn't reply."
"What do you mean?" Diego asks in confusion. "I was with Shira and the others the whole time. I didn't leave their room. Just ask them."
Oscar's expression morphs into one of confusion. "I swear I saw you."
"I only left once Soto texted me."
"Excuse me?" A police officer shows up beside them, her expression stern. Around them, the students had started to disperse into groups, teachers shouting out instructions as everyone is herded back into their rooms. "We have some questions for you."
Shira anxiously paces outside the principal's office, having just been questioned. She provides the herd a succinct update, who also display confusion at Oscar's claim.
"Do you think he's trying to set Diego up?" Ellie frowns. "He's not exactly friends with Diego."
"No," Shira shakes her head. "Besides, he seemed genuinely convinced he saw Diego. And he doesn't seem like the kind to go around murdering his teammates. He doesn't have the stomach for that."
Soto, Lenny and Oscar slowly file out of the office, and Shira instantly whirls on them.
"Where's Diego?"
Soto gestures for Lenny and Oscar to leave, then sits down in the seat beside the herd. He frowns at them in suspicion, but relays the information anyways. "Still in there. There's been some kind of dispute over the security footage. He said he's with you, but the footage shows him leaving the changing room and heading over to Zeke's lockers."
"That's wrong though," Sid protests. "He was with us."
Soto rolls his eyes, though it seems more habit than intentional now. "We can't be sure about that. You're his friends, it could be personal bias. Besides, there aren't any cameras in the rooms."
"There has to be something we can do to convince them otherwise."
Soto sighs in frustration. "If there is, I hadn't come up with anything now. I trust Diego to have my back, and I'll always have his, but there's nothing I can do now."
"Did the cops say anything else?" Manny asks.
Soto sighs. "They found two deleted texts on Diego's phone - the one I sent and the one he sent back. But he swears he never deleted the texts."
"Well, what are they going to do now?" Shira demands.
Soto sighs again. "His guardian is going to come over and smooth things over with the authorities and Zeke's parents. I wouldn't stay up too late if I were you," Soto stands up. "We still have classes tomorrow."
Once he leaves, Manny turns to the rest of the herd. "How was the camera footage changed? Who could have done that?"
Ellie nods thoughtfully. "Could there be any footage that shows otherwise?"
Shira shakes her head, shoulders slumping.
"Why not?" Sid asks.
"Witches aren't able to be caught on camera," Shira groans. "The only way they can be is if its intentional, and that doesn't exactly come up very often."
"So if someone tried to doctor footage of Diego," Ellie says with a sinking heart, "he wouldn't be able to prove otherwise."
Shira shakes her head. "The footage will alter itself to make sense to mortal eyes, but this is one that that ability can't be used."
"Then," Sid lights up. "If Diego can't be seen on camera, then he wouldn't have appeared on the cameras in the changing rooms! We can tell them that!"
Manny whacks him on the head as Shira growls. "And what? Reveal the existence of Witches, Mediums and Dæmon Hunters? 'Oh, hi!'" He puts on a mock-polite voice. "'Listen, Witches and ghouls exist, and our families hunt them down. Diego is a Witch and he can't be viewed on screen unless he wants to, which is why he doesn't appear anywhere else, so the footage of the changing rooms must be doctored!'"
Shira sighs. "He's got a point."
"Then what do we do?"
At that moment, the door opened, and Diego walks out, steps firm and sure despite looking surprisingly shaken.
"Di?" Shira asks, voice becoming gentle. "What's going on?"
Diego scowls, though it is clearly a facade as he begins to look a little frightened. "Until the police get to the bottom of what's happened, I'm getting suspended for the rest of the school year."
