> "Some rooms burn,
some rooms survive.
But not because they were meant to.
Only because someone chose not to set them alight."
— Unknown
---
🔦 Beneath the Old Wing
Sharon used a borrowed flashlight from the lab. Reina stood behind her, arms crossed, chewing her lip — more nervous than she let on.
The old literary basement had been sealed for two years, since the accidental fire that "ruined a section of the archives." Only… the door was never fully replaced. Just locked and forgotten.
And now, unlocked.
The smell of old wood and faint smoke clung to the walls. Broken chairs. Scorched edges of bookcases. But there was one spot — just one — that looked… untouched.
The far corner.
Near the mounted portrait of the school's third principal, who, rumor claimed, had died of a "stroke" after exposing too many board secrets.
Reina gestured. "There. That floorboard. The color's off."
Sharon crouched. The plank lifted easier than it should have.
Inside, wrapped in waterproof cloth, was a slim, heavy metal box — sealed with an old-fashioned keyhole.
Reina pulled something from her pocket.
"A key," she said. "It was in Sade's journal. Taped under the last page. I think it's time."
Sharon hesitated — then unlocked it.
---
🗂️ The Contents
Inside were:
A flash drive marked "Session C, 2nd Term, Audio Only."
A folded copy of a student medical record: Nora Adams.
Circled in red: "No known epilepsy. No consent to behavioral monitoring drugs."
A second file: A list of expelled students, years back. One name was highlighted in blue. "Marian Okoye – 2015 – Circumstantial suicide."
And finally, a faded letter. Handwritten. Torn at the edges.
> "To the one who finds this —
If you're reading this, they've either forgotten to clean their tracks, or they didn't think you mattered. Either way, you're dangerous now.
The system isn't broken. It's designed this way.
Bianca, Martins, the Board — they curate silence.
But they're sloppy when they get comfortable.
The truth is layered. What you found? That's only the first cut.
Go deeper.
Find Mara's brother. He left clues before he left town.
Look for the chess player with burned hands."
— M.O."
---
🧩 Questions with No Clear Answer
Sharon stared at the letter.
"Mara's brother?" she whispered. "I didn't even know she had one."
Reina looked pale. "And what does that even mean — the chess player with burned hands?"
Just then, her phone vibrated.
Except… no one's phones were supposed to work.
She looked at the screen.
> 📩 Unknown Number:
"You weren't supposed to find the box. Return it — or we'll take something else."
Attached was a photo.
Of Zuri.
Smiling.
Walking down a hallway.
Timestamped five minutes ago.
---
🎭 Back to the Game
"We need to go," Sharon said, grabbing the box. "We're being watched."
Reina didn't argue. But as they ran up the stairs, the basement door slammed shut behind them.
Locked.
Click.
They weren't alone.
---
📌 End of Chapter Nineteen
> The fire never burned that room — because someone made sure it didn't.
What was preserved there might just be enough to burn everything else down… if they survive long enough to use it.
---
🔜 Coming in Chapter Twenty: The Chess Player With Burned Hands
Sharon and Reina are forced to hide the files in a new location.
Jayden returns — and he knows more than he ever admitted.
A clue about Mara's brother leads them to the edge of the old boys' dormitory.
Bianca calls an emergency assembly… but it's not just for announcements.
Ready to uncover the next layer?