Chapter 3 – A 'Sweet' Discovery

A/N: A guest reviewer had a question about John wearing a skirt. Check out the story Machine High for the answer to this and other questions like Bear being able to speak.

That evening a lithe figure slid along a cable from the observatory tower in the Science building to the roof of Machine High's Administrative building. Deftly avoiding any cameras, the figure then rappelled down to a small private fourth floor balcony, entered a dark hallway and picked the lock on the first office on the right and slipped inside.

Joss stood there for a moment, getting her bearings, casting a small flashlight over the space.

No one ever set foot in Teacher's Union President Patrick Simmons' office. He relied on stealthily coming up behind a faculty member and whispering something vaguely menacing in their ear, lying in wait in their dark office or standing in the back of their classroom, his skull like face and dead eyes causing more than one skilled lecturer to babble or lose their train of thought before he slowly melted away with a smirk on his face.

It was a mystery as what he exactly did or how he had become President of the Teacher's Union, but Simmons had been at Machine High forever. Most faculty members were terrified of him and even the non-faculty members usually gave him a wide berth when he appeared in the halls.

Joss wasn't one of them.

Her colleagues thought it was because of her time in the military and as a police detective, but Joss knew there were monsters out there much, much worse than Patrick Simmons.

She wasn't afraid of Simmons at all, and she knew that deeply disturbed him, and while she pretended to be distraught after the memorial service, Joss knew she hadn't fooled him. The urgency in Quinn's and Simmons' voices told her that whatever they were planning on doing was going to happen soon and Joss was determined to find out what it was.

Noting Cal's passing was key. There had been rumors about Machine High for years, and Joss had heard the nicknames - Stepford High, Robot High, X-Men High – with a record setting football team, award winning students and a very non-traditional faculty, people thought the place was too good to be true.

Collier had been crushed not because John Greer had been providing information to local authorities – he was crushed because nothing damning had been discovered.

But Cal's death had changed all that. Animal rights activists were questioning the school's policies in the wake of the horse's death, Ian Murphy had given several unflattering interviews about the school overall, a reward had suddenly been issued from some long lost relative looking for information about the missing HR counselor Stills and old stories about Root's crime had reappeared in the press.

Despite Ms. Morgan's best efforts, the Ledger's Maxine Angelis was reveling in hyping or simply making up any 'news' about the school. She had covered the memorial service and the reception – which featured Detective Delmonico steaks, Carter Chicken Cacciatore and nonalcoholic Joss Julep Jigglers –and had posted an online article this afternoon called 'Hoarse Play?' which speculated about what 'secrets' motivated the tendency of many of the school's staffers to speak in what she referred to as the 'Machine Murmur', a low sexy whisper that mesmerized you.

Hours later, she wrote, you realized that you couldn't recall a single thing that they said.

A sidebar to her article announced a hastily scheduled pre-season scrimmage orchestrated by J E Hoover High's Coach Nicholas Donnelly, who was obsessed with beating Machine High and had badgered and browbeaten the athletic commissioners into sanctioning the match. Ms. Angelis had tried to rattle Coach Finch with several pointed questions about the success of the Machine High football team and while the Coach answered them calmly, Joss knew that he couldn't be happy with this sudden development.

If Quinn and Simmons were planning on draining the private school's coffers, this would be the time to do it, Joss thought.

Simmons office was pristine, papers lined up perfectly, pencils evenly sharp. Ironically, in keeping with the school's image, there were no additional security measures, no safe, nothing that indicated Simmons had anything to hide. As Joss carefully and meticulously went through his office, she thought about his habits, especially the things he liked to ride people about.

Fusco's weight was a favorite target; Simmons delighted in calling the Counselor names like Poppin' Fresh, the Keg with Legs and Dear Flabby, and had even tried to have all sodas banned from the Machine High campus, a ploy foiled only after Fusco, with Joss' help, had gathered data on how successful his counseling sessions were with the therapeutic beverage.

Joss opened the small refrigerator in a corner of Simmons office. There were the expected fruits and vegetables, the yogurts and the flaxseed, but as Joss looked at the contents, she noticed that the shelves were just a little shallow, not as deep as they should be, considering the depth of the interior. Carefully looking at the back wall, Joss pulled out one of the shelves, revealing a seam in the smooth plastic. She peeled it back.

Candy bars.

Joss smiled grimly at the thought of Simmons secretly scarfing these down, while pretending to be a health nut.

They were neatly lined up in alpha-numerical order, from Almond Joys to York Peppermint Patties, 3 Musketeers to 100 Grands, with gaps where Simmons must have made the day's selections.

Joss' eyes scanned the treats – there was something here, she just knew it.

There.

She took several photos, then carefully put everything back.

Making sure there was no trace of her being in the office, Joss left, rappelling off the balcony to the ground. She carefully hid her equipment in some bushes as she considered her next move.

There was one more stop she needed to make.

Joss closed her eyes, took a deep breath and then strode determinedly towards her next destination.

Next: We learn Joss' secret and meet some old friends.