As we live our lives, sometimes we forget that surprises can come around any corner. Sometimes we get nice surprises. Then again there are some that we wish we had never heard of.

Such was the case for five high school friends in Highland Park, New Jersey. Chris Silver, Ivana Russo, Alexandra Poovey, Mike Chandler, and Max Petrov. All five were walking home as usual and decided to cut through down by the Raritan River and take the path that would bring them down to the area of their apartment complex. Then walk up a hill and go through the back area leading home. All was good except when they got down to the walkway by the New Brunswick bridge that they use to cut through. Mike and Max spot some furniture in the cave under the bridge. So the five friends walk inside and look around. At first, they didn't notice anything but when Chris walked around what seemed to be the remains of a sofa, he got the shock of his young life. The body of a hobo lay at his feet. He stood there silent, his eyes wider than a bowling ball. Ivana looked over and saw his expression, she asked him if he were alright. He just stood there staring down at the ground. His friends then gathered around and they too stood there in shock. After a moment  they look at each other and secretly wonder who would be brave enough to check and see if he were still alive. They all started to back away slowly, except Chris and Ivana, who were stuck there at the couch. So Ivana boldly bent down and checked for a pulse, there was none. She then motioned for Chris to turn the body over. He did so reluctantly, holding his breath as he turned it. Where upon they found a knife in the man's chest. The others start to panic and start running down the path for home. Chris yells for them to stop, but they are too scared and keep going. He runs after them and catches Max. Chris tells him that they need help and have to go to the police. Suddenly they Mike and Alex running back. Chris tells them to get the police and that he, Ivana and Max would stay with the body until they came back. So Mike and Alex  run to her apartment and call the cops, who at first didn't believe them. But they sounded scared enough, so the dispatcher relayed the call. Then Mike and Alex ran to the entrance of the complex and waited. They didn't have to wait long, about two minutes later a squad car pulled up and the kids flagged it down. They told the officer what happened and where to find the others. He told them to hop in and show him where everything was. They then drove to Raritan Ave. and the officer parked on the sidewalk by the bridge. They then walked to the gate, the officer looked down and saw Chris, Ivana and Max waiting. Then he and the others climbed the gate and walked down. Chris and Ivana were sitting as Max threw rocks into the river. Chris got up and walked the officer over to the body. The officer then searched the body and his own signs of life check. He then called it in and requested assistance. He commendeed the friends for keeping their cool and their stamina and courage in reporting the incident and staying with the body. That they would have to stay a while longer and give their story to the detectives. They all agreed, then he asked Mike to go back up the hill and wait for the others, then show them the way down. Mike said okay and ran up. After about ten minutes, the detectives arrived with two other squad cars and a CSI unit. Mike then walked them down the hill. Det. Lieut. Joe Santori then took over and had his partner Det. Tom Parrish, take the kids statements. Afterwards he had the officers take them home and if necessary explain to their parents what had happened. Some parents are prone to over react when their children are brought home by the police. ANd since they were heroes and not in any kind of trouble, it would be good to clarify the reason behind the escort. Some parents mat still not believe, then it becomes their problem. Because when they don't believe the police who brought them home, then they have real problems. 

Three weeks have now gone by and no word from the police or any more questions. So the friends decide to go to the station and check it out. Lieut. Santori came out and talked with them, explaining to them that crimes of this nature take time to solve. That they had no real suspects, the murderer had gone to parts unknown, possible never to be heard from again. That the dark world of the homeless can be very dangerous. The killer probably stabbed the man over a can of beans or something trivial like that. He then told them goodbye and went back inside. Although they accepted the lieutenant's explanation, they all felt a little uneasy about it too.  Although plausable or even probable, at least Chris was skeptical and decided secretly to see if there were any more clues in the cave or surrounding area. So later on that day, just after supper he snuck back to the cave. When he arrived he was surprised to see his four friends snooping around. They had each felt the same about Santori's report and each had secretly gone to the cave. The others were already looking inside, so Chris decided to search around the entrance and up the hill to the gate. It didn't take long before he felt ill at ease, as though someone were watching there every move. He then heard some noise in some bushes a few feet away and went to investigate, looking for clues as he walked. Suddenly he is grabbed by his jacket collar and his right arm pulled behind him. A raspy voice asked him what he was doing there, he responded by saying that he was just hiking and looking around for fun. The man then told him to scram and let him go. Chris ran about fifteen feet and hid in some brush, watching as the man got ever closer to the cav e and his friends. He quietly followed and waited to make his move. When the man saw the others in the cave, he yelled and started towards them, when Chris grabbed a tree branch and walloped him over the head, knocking him unconscious. He then motions to his friends to follow him. They start leave when Ivana gets the brilliant idea to question the guy. So they wait for him to wake up.  Then they surround him and wait for his head to clear. Then Ivana asks him what he's doing there. He responds by asking who hit him. They all point to Chris, who is not at all happy about that. Ivana then repeats her question and the man tries to strike out and laughs. Alright he says and continues to say that he was only there to visit a friend who lived in the cave. Ivana tells him that they had found his friend dead a few weeks before. The man seems shocked and aggresively asks who did it. The kids tell him that they came upon the body after it happened and that the police had found nothing. So they decided to investigate on their own. This surprises the man and for the first time he seems to smile. He then says that he could use some coffee, so the kids take him to Dunkin' Donuts and by him a large cup of coffee. They then walk with him trying to get ideas on what to do next. The man suggests that they split up and he will meet them at the library after school the next day. They all agree and Alex asks him his name, he tells her Gabe. That that was good enough for now. They then split up, the kids going south on First Ave. and Gabe going east on Raritan Ave.  As the kids walk home, a squad car pulls up and the officer gets out and asks them if they were just hanging out with a bum on Raritan Ave. They say that they bought him some coffee and left him at the corner. The officer then warns them to stay away from that particular bum, that he's a hot-headed troublemaker. He warns them further to be careful and hops back in his car and takes off. The kids just stand there looking at each other. The next day each one is called into the Principal's office and find Lieut. Santori, Det. Parrish and the officer who stopped them on the street waiting for them. Santori asks the principal to excuse them and sends her out of the office.  The kids thought that was cool because it's not often that the principal gets kicked out of their own office. But the reason for it was not all that cool. Then Santori and the other two cops stare at them for a minute and asks them why they were trying to interfere with their investigation. Chris speaks up and says that they weren't sure what he was talking about. Santori responds by saying that the cave was being watched, that they were seen looking around and that they encountered a man named Gabriel Angelos. Then they went to Dunkin Donuts and bought the man some coffee. They walked for a bit, then split up at First Ave. Santori asks them why they would do that.Ivana blurts out that they were only trying to help because they had become impatient. The officers sit there a few minutes, then hold a short conference. Then Santori speaks, he tells them to stay away from Gabe and to forget about the case, that they read all about in the paper when it's over. He then says that they are free to go and to stay out of it, to just be school kids. He then opens the door and nods for them to leave. They all scurry, get passes back to class and run out. Back in the office, the officers figure that they have scared them enough to back off, in the hall though, the kids are talking about their meeting with Gabe at the library, after school. But before they can finish, the principal comes and they take off for their classes. After school they all meet in front and decide to meet Gabe as planned, but Mike bows out, says he can't afford to keep going. The police had one convert at least. So he heads home and the others run across the street to the library. Mike goes down Montgomery St. and turns left on N. 4th Ave., as he reaches Raritan Ave. he decides to go to Rite Aid and get a cold soda. After that he goes out the back way into the parking lot and heads for a short cut through a side fence. As he reaches the fence a squad car pulls up and the back door swings open and he is ordered into the backseat. 

Meanwhile, at the library, the kids have met up with Gabe and they go into a small enclosed room to talk. Gabe asks about Mike, they just say that he decided to go home. Thinking no more about it.