9:32 AM – Ridgewood High, Abandoned Homeroom (Revolt & Revelation, Part 2)
"Okay, but what if it's a trap?" Logan asked, nudging his glasses up. His fingers tapped nervously against the edge of the table. "What if whoever's been feeding us crumbs wants us to show up there—to catch us in the act?"
Bee stared down at the map, tracing the unmarked room with her finger like it was a live wire. "Then we make sure we walk in louder than they expect and leave before they can blink."
Kai leaned against the wall, arms folded. "We'll need a cover. An excuse in case we get caught wandering into a locked faculty zone."
"I can forge a hall pass," Zuri said casually, already pulling out her tablet. "One that says we're part of a 'student committee safety inspection.'" She smirked. "Sounds fancy enough to be believable."
Serena shook her head slowly. "We're not just playing with rumors anymore. This is evidence. Real consequences."
"That's the point," Bee replied, eyes burning. "It's time Ridgewood learned what happens when you bury truth under shiny trophies and perfect smiles."
Her phone buzzed.
One notification. No name. Just the same anonymous number.
Unknown Number: You're getting warmer, Queen. But are you ready for the heat?
Bee didn't flinch. She held the screen up for the others to see. "They know we're close."
Kai took the phone, scrolling. "We need to move now. Before they shut it down—or wipe it clean."
---
9:55 AM – Ridgewood West Wing (The Forbidden Door)
The hallway smelled like bleach and secrets.
This wing was mostly storage and admin-only zones. No student traffic. No cameras. No witnesses.
Perfect.
Zuri swiped the forged hall pass across the electronic lock. It blinked red once… then green.
Click.
They slipped inside, one by one, into the dim, narrow corridor. The lights above flickered like even they didn't want to be here.
"Third door to the left," Serena whispered, checking the layout she'd memorized. "Storage 3B."
They stopped in front of it. Bee's hand hovered above the handle.
Kai placed his hand over hers. "You don't have to do this alone."
She glanced at him. "But I'm not alone."
Then she turned the knob.
---
10:02 AM – Storage Room 3B (The Files No One Was Meant to Find)
It wasn't a broom closet.
It was a vault.
Metal shelves lined the walls, packed with boxes labeled in neat handwriting: Ridgewood Foundation: Grant Disbursements, 2018-2024.
Student Discipline Files – Sealed.
Board Meetings – Confidential Transcripts.
Serena exhaled. "This is it. This is where the skeletons live."
Logan was already filming. Zuri pulled on gloves and began flipping through files. "There's stuff in here that could burn this school to the ground."
"Let it burn," Bee said.
Kai cracked open a folder and froze. "Bee… You need to see this."
He passed it to her. Inside was a file stamped with her old name—Brielle Kingston—and a disciplinary recommendation for expulsion dated the day after Hailey's death.
Bee's pulse thudded.
"Wait… they were planning to expel you?" Serena asked.
"No," Bee said slowly, flipping through the pages. "They already did. They just buried it. And erased the record."
Zuri looked up. "That means someone didn't just silence you. They wiped you out. Like you never existed here."
Bee's hands tightened around the paper.
"Well," she said, voice like steel. "Let's make sure they remember me now."