Chapter 34—The Firing of Dean Buckley and the fallout from everything

March 16th, 2000, 4:30pm

Adam's POV

There were news crews everywhere on campus, word had gotten out about what Dean Buckley had done. Personally, I didn't think he was that bad of a guy, but then again I grew up with types like him in Edina. He was back on campus both yesterday and today, holed up in his office all day. Gunnar was a nervous wreck about what was to be going on down. He was more than positive he was going to get kicked out of school with less than 2 months to go. Dad had to constantly reassure Gunnar that he would not be removed from Eden Hall and sent home. If anything happened to him, he would be transferred to another public school somewhere in the city. I decided that if that happened to Gunnar that I would follow him. I could not bear to see what would happen to my boyfriend and not be able to protect him. Charlie and Bella were scared for both of us. They were there for Gunnar along with Connie and Guy for support for us.

"Dean Buckley, is it true that you took a bribe of 30 thousand dollars to make Mr. Stahl student captain of the Varsity Hockey team?" Dad asked.

"Yes," Dean Buckley said.

"Why?" Dad asked.

"Because I needed the money. My wife had been diagnosed with brain cancer and had to give up her teaching position and unfortunately the health insurance here would not cover her need for drugs and special doctors," Dean Buckley said.

"Do you believe it was wrong to do such a thing?" Tom Riley asked.

"Yes, and I am truly sorry about what I have done," Dean Buckley said

There was some more questioning with different members of the board and dad. Then I heard that Dean Buckley was to be removed from the room.

The board motioned to have Dean Buckley removed as headmaster from Eden Hall effective immediately and in his place was interim headmaster, Sarah Beth Donovon, the first female headmaster of Eden Hall. Dean Buckley had to have his stuff removed from Eden Hall by the time school was let out on Friday. A national search for a new headmaster would begin immediately.

"So, what does that mean what will happen with Gunnar, Coach?" Guy asked.

"I don't know, it's going to be up to Dr. Donovon before we find out what happens with Gunner, Connie and Charlie's fate," Dad said.

Gunnar's POV

Friday March 17th, 2000, 2:25pm

I and the ducks all went down to Dean Buckley's office, we had to say goodbye to him. He was my first contact here in America when I came here by myself almost 3 years ago. He was busy packing his things and getting ready to vacate his office.

When we were shown into his office, he said, "What are you kids doing here. I should not be interacting with the student body."

"We know that," Charlie said.

"We just wanted to say Goodbye to you, we knew that you believed in us from the start," Julie said.

"Oh Ms. Gaffney that is so sweet of you," Dean Buckley said.

"I also wanted to say that I was sorry too, I wish that it didn't have to come down to this. Especially with the cancer diagnoses that your wife has. Adam told me that it was fatal," I said.

"Yeah it is. But Amanda is doing pretty good right now and I think that once we get to West Virginia she will do better," Dean Buckley said.

"West Virginia, you're moving?" Averman asked.

"Yes, we have no family here at all. She has a nephew in California, but that is it for her family and my family didn't move out of West Virginia. It's the only family we have left, since both of her parents are gone and her brother died in a car accident in the early 1980's," Dean Buckley said.

"Gunnar and I wanted to apologize to you, we are sorry about what we did. I didn't want to get you fired," Connie said.

"It's okay Ms. Moreau and Mr. Stahl, it was my fault, I should not have done what I did," Dean Buckley said.

Bella elbowed Charlie in the ribs and said, "Aren't you going to say something?"

"I'm sorry too, I just wanted to take some of the preppy snobs down a few pegs. I didn't know it would lead to being your fault," Charlie said.

"Mr. Conway, I know that we didn't always get along. But you need to know that the fault was not entirely yours alone," Dean Buckley said.

"Okay," Charlie said.

"Well, I best get finished packing and I believe that you kids all have class to get too. You better get to those classes before the interim headmaster finds out. See the secretary about your passes. But I will remember you kids and I wish you all of the best luck in the future," Dean Buckley said.

"Thanks," we said together.

That was the last we ever saw of Dean Buckley. His wife died in January of 2005, Connie told us, she found out in the paper she was reading at her school that she was teaching in Johnstown, PA. Where Guy was playing in the minors for the Wild.

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