Episode 1: The Quiet Morning
The morning sun filtered weakly through the tall windows of St. Andrews College, casting long shadows across the assembly hall. The building, with its towering arches and polished wooden floors, always smelled faintly of dust and old books. But today there was something heavier in the air—something no one could name, yet everyone felt.
Students shuffled in, their chatter bouncing off the walls. Laughter, yawns, and hurried whispers filled the room until Principal Mr. Hargrove walked onto the stage. Normally, he had a commanding presence: tall, sharp-eyed, and strict to the bone. But now, he looked pale, almost frightened, as though the words he was about to say weighed like stone in his mouth.
He gripped the microphone, his hands trembling slightly.
> "I regret to inform you," he said, his voice lower than usual, "that last night, one of our brightest students, Emily Harper, was found dead in the chemistry laboratory."
The silence that followed was sharp enough to cut glass.
Gasps. Whispers. Wide eyes.
Emily Harper. Everyone knew her. Top of the class, science prodigy, president of the science club. She was the kind of girl teachers admired and students envied. And now, gone.
Mr. Hargrove cleared his throat, but his voice cracked.
> "The authorities believe it was a tragic accident. A chemical spill. Nothing more."
Daniel Cole, sitting near the far window, frowned. Seventeen, quiet, unnoticed by most. He wasn't the smartest or the strongest, but he was a watcher. A thinker. He noticed things others ignored.
And what he noticed now was the way Mr. Hargrove avoided eye contact, his knuckles white as he squeezed the microphone.
If it was an accident… why did the principal look so afraid?
When the assembly ended, the students filed out in a storm of rumors. Daniel lingered, his eyes drifting toward the hallway that led to the chemistry wing. It had been sealed with yellow caution tape. Just beyond it, something sparkled on the tiled floor.
He moved closer, his heart thudding. It was a broken bracelet—silver, with a small blue crystal charm. He knew it instantly. Emily wore it every day.
And if it broke… she hadn't gone quietly.
Daniel crouched, sketching it quickly into his notebook before stepping back. Something told him Emily Harper's death was no accident.
It was murder.
---
Episode 2: The Bracelet Clue
The day dragged on, heavy and restless. Teachers tried to teach, but no one listened. Students whispered Emily's name like a ghost haunting the halls. Her empty seat at the front of class was a wound no one could look at for long.
Daniel sat near the back, notebook open. He scribbled down every detail he remembered: the bracelet, the stain near the lab door, the principal's shaking hands. His pen scratched furiously across the page until the final bell rang.
When everyone else returned to their dorms, Daniel stayed behind. The corridors grew quieter, shadows stretching as the sun dipped lower. Slowly, carefully, he slipped down the hall toward the chemistry wing.
The lab door was sealed, the yellow tape fluttering faintly in the draft. Daniel crouched, scanning the floor. Scuff marks. A faint, dark stain. Not water. Not quite blood. Something else. He jotted it down quickly.
> "Hey! What are you doing here?"
Daniel froze. He turned slowly.
Maya Lewis stood behind him, Emily's best friend. Her eyes were swollen from crying, her arms folded defensively.
> "You… you were at the assembly. Why are you snooping around here?" she demanded.
Daniel swallowed. "Just… looking."
Maya stepped closer, lowering her voice.
> "You think it was an accident, don't you?"
Daniel hesitated. "…Don't you?"
Her lips pressed tight. Then, almost trembling, she whispered:
> "I don't. Emily texted me the night she died. She said she'd found something. Something about a teacher. She wanted me to meet her in the lab, but when I got there—"
Her voice cracked. She looked away.
Daniel's pulse quickened. She wasn't the only one who thought something was wrong.
And that meant he wasn't alone anymore.
---
Episode 3: An Uneasy Alliance
The corridor seemed to grow colder. Maya stared at the sealed lab door, then back at Daniel.
> "Listen," she said, voice hushed, "we can't talk here. Too many ears. Meet me tonight. Midnight. Behind the old library."
Before Daniel could respond, the sound of footsteps echoed from the far end of the hall. The janitor, flashlight in hand.
Maya's eyes widened. She grabbed Daniel's sleeve.
> "Go!"
They darted down a side passage, nearly colliding with a cart of cleaning supplies. Daniel's notebook slipped, but he snatched it just in time. They ducked into an empty classroom, both of them breathing hard.
Maya's eyes burned with urgency.
> "If you really want to know the truth about Emily… come tonight. Don't be late."
She slipped away before Daniel could answer, leaving him alone with the echo of her words.
---
Episode 4: Midnight at the Library
At midnight, the campus was cloaked in silence. The old library loomed ahead, abandoned years ago. Its windows were cracked, its doors rotting. A place of dust, shadows, and secrets.
Daniel arrived first, notebook clutched in his hand. The air was cool, the silence broken only by crickets. At 11:58, no one was there. At 12:00, footsteps crunched behind him.
Maya emerged from the darkness, her hood pulled low.
> "You came."
She slipped him a folded note. Inside, in Emily's handwriting, were the words:
"Meet me where the clocks never move."
Daniel frowned. "What does it mean?"
Maya's eyes darted nervously.
> "The old clock tower. The hands are stuck at 3:15. She must have meant there."
Before Daniel could respond, a creak echoed from inside the deserted library. Both froze.
That wasn't the wind.
Someone was inside. Watching.
---
Episode 5: The Shadow in the Library
Daniel and Maya pushed the door open. The library smelled of mold and forgotten years. Dust coated the shelves. Broken chairs littered the floor.
And on a table near the window sat a lit cigarette, still burning.
Daniel's skin prickled. Whoever had been here was close—too close. He scanned the room, heart racing. On another desk lay a battered notebook. Emily's.
Maya's breath hitched as she picked it up. "This was hers."
Half the pages were torn out. The rest were filled with hurried notes about secret experiments and late-night lab activity.
As they backed out of the library, Daniel glanced up. From an upstairs window, two glowing eyes stared back at him.
Someone had been watching the whole time.
---
Episode 6: Secrets in the Notebook
Back in his dorm, Daniel flipped through Emily's notebook. Scrawled between chemical equations were warnings:
"Someone is using the lab at night."
"It's not just drugs. Something bigger."
"It's someone we all trust."
Maya sat beside him, wringing her hands.
> "She told me she was close to proving it. She thought… she thought a teacher was involved."
Daniel frowned. "Which one?"
Maya looked away. "She didn't say."
But Daniel saw the fear in her eyes. Maybe she knew more than she admitted.
---
Episode 7: The Clock Tower
The next night, Daniel and Maya snuck into the abandoned clock tower. Its broken gears groaned as they climbed the stairs. Dust filled their lungs.
At the top, they found crates of chemicals, forged exam papers, and envelopes stuffed with cash. Proof of something illegal.
But before Daniel could take photos, the heavy door slammed shut behind them.
Footsteps echoed on the stairs. Someone had locked them inside.
---
Episode 8: Betrayal
They escaped through a broken window, but Daniel's suspicion grew.
Why had Maya known about Emily's note so quickly? Why did Emily's notebook mention blackmail—and why was Maya's name written faintly on one of the torn pages?
When he confronted her, she broke down.
> "Emily found out someone was blackmailing students. Me included. I owed money. She promised she'd help me… but then she started digging too deep. I never thought—"
Daniel didn't know if he could trust her.
---
Episode 9: The Mask Drops
All signs pointed to Mr. Grayson, the chemistry teacher. His late hours, his missing records, his nervous behavior.
But when Daniel snuck into Grayson's office, he found a letter hidden in a drawer. It was addressed to Emily.
"Stop digging, or you'll end up like the others."
Daniel's blood ran cold. The others? How many more?
---
Episode 10: The Truth in the Dark
One stormy night, Daniel and Maya confronted Mr. Grayson in the lab. But before Grayson could defend himself, the real mastermind appeared.
Principal Hargrove.
His calm mask finally slipped, revealing a cruel smile. He had been running a scheme for years—selling drugs, stealing exams, blackmailing students. Emily had uncovered too much.
> "She was brilliant," Hargrove sneered. "But brilliance can be dangerous."
Before he could silence Daniel and Maya, the janitor burst in, wielding a heavy wrench. He'd suspected for months, and now he had called the police.
Hargrove was arrested, but not before warning Daniel:
> "You think this ends with me? The real game has only just begun."
---
Final Scene
Weeks later, the school tried to return to normal. But whispers lingered.
Daniel sat by the window, flipping through Emily's torn notebook. In the very back, hidden in faint ink, was one final line:
"If anything happens to me… don't trust Maya."
Daniel looked up. Across the hall, Maya was staring right at him.
Her expression unreadable.
End of Season One