“Water’s Path”56Please respect copyright.PENANAM8cRPbN8ia
The grate groaned louder this time.56Please respect copyright.PENANAR7KXSz4lfu
Musa had oiled the hinges the day before, but rust still fought them on principle. Jabari winced at the noise — not because it might give them away, but because it was inefficient. Unclean. Sloppy.56Please respect copyright.PENANAtKEHDOTDUi
Otieno ducked in first, his frame slipping through the rectangular opening like he’d done it before.56Please respect copyright.PENANA2GFpDLA5AO
Because he had.56Please respect copyright.PENANA7mMp0Hys5V
Jabari followed, torchlight already painting the sloped concrete ahead of them in shaky yellow arcs. Musa took the rear, glancing back once to check that the lock clicked quietly into place.56Please respect copyright.PENANAr2GyCBomrG
Below them, the earth sloped downward — the tunnel running like an artery between buried decades.56Please respect copyright.PENANAETihyD7r2L
They said nothing. They had said enough upstairs — mapped it, measured it, debated its existence.56Please respect copyright.PENANAfPBDeULIX1
Now they moved. The walls narrowed where old pipes jutted from the ceiling, dripping condensation and rust. Footprints marked the sludge — faint, shallow, but undeniable.56Please respect copyright.PENANAmnEQGM2lDl
Otieno paused and pointed. Three footprints. One small, barefoot.56Please respect copyright.PENANAe7ZbebWnU0
Musa stared. “Girls’ side?”56Please respect copyright.PENANA0D2nmtQ7A5
“Maybe,” Otieno muttered.56Please respect copyright.PENANAkI9qP3Ezaq
“Maybe not,” Jabari said. “Shadow Walkers don’t move to be recognized.”56Please respect copyright.PENANAXCV52InZy7
They walked for seven more minutes.56Please respect copyright.PENANADgmt6ngtf3
The tunnel veered slightly to the left, then leveled. At the far end, beneath the old junction where Kisumu Girls’ science wing once connected to the shared pre-independence utility shaft, a faint patch of air carried a new scent: chalk dust and old detergent.56Please respect copyright.PENANAe7T0O649wM
Jabari stopped.56Please respect copyright.PENANA4T2UZVZuRG
The space widened slightly. A second hatch — rusted but intact — blocked the passage forward. Spray-painted once in faded white: “O3” — the old access tag for shared maintenance between both schools.56Please respect copyright.PENANAcrfNtBnTyw
Jabari placed his hand against it.56Please respect copyright.PENANAD1C1kWii3W
Warm. Not recent use — recent presence.56Please respect copyright.PENANAndoEAtIoSt
He knelt and examined the lock. Not padlocked. Not welded. Just… placed. Like someone expected it to stay closed out of memory, not resistance.56Please respect copyright.PENANAB5wIogBaEj
Otieno bent down beside him. “Should we open it?”56Please respect copyright.PENANAOPn8UhBThE
Jabari looked to Musa. Musa didn’t nod. He just stepped back.56Please respect copyright.PENANAvP4C2W20Pn
They opened it.56Please respect copyright.PENANAcw78v0HYJ4
The air that spilled out was drier than the tunnel — warmer. Faint traces of soap and boiled cabbage told them what they feared: They were on the other side now.56Please respect copyright.PENANA96Xbmz1psn
They emerged behind a collapsed water pump near the base of what used to be the girls’ science annex — now a disused tool shed beside a cracked concrete trough.56Please respect copyright.PENANAUaBvswgbym
It was quiet. But not still.56Please respect copyright.PENANALPSX2PemK3
Musa crouched immediately and pointed to something beneath the trough:56Please respect copyright.PENANAnGp9pj2M0g
A red ribbon, frayed at the edge, tied to a pipe. Not school-issued. Shadow Walker.56Please respect copyright.PENANAt1QCKCk9oI
Jabari’s breath slowed.56Please respect copyright.PENANAGyjkxykwNx
Otieno glanced up toward the tree line. “They know.”56Please respect copyright.PENANAareLjOebP6
“They’ve known,” Musa muttered.56Please respect copyright.PENANAdmbuOnXz50
Jabari scanned the treetops, the broken greenhouse beyond the annex, the faint shadows leaning in the wind.56Please respect copyright.PENANASEzz6jpD9x
No alarms. No voices. But they were not alone. He felt it in his bones.56Please respect copyright.PENANAxrGS5En81W
They didn’t linger. The breach had been proven. The path existed. The schools were not two. They were one body, stitched together by ignorance and fear — and now, that thread was unraveling.56Please respect copyright.PENANAIcDwq4AaaV
As they retreated into the tunnel, Jabari whispered low:56Please respect copyright.PENANAQYCGm1jhbx
“No word of this. Not yet. Not until we understand what they’ve left behind.”56Please respect copyright.PENANAobBVLi0cm6
Musa didn’t respond. But Otieno, from behind, whispered the question they were all too afraid to ask:56Please respect copyright.PENANAmsZiyQ54WQ
“And what if they’ve never left?”
*****56Please respect copyright.PENANAZw1130BGu8
He wasn’t meant to be there.56Please respect copyright.PENANAZRTcuvxAR4
He hadn’t been invited.56Please respect copyright.PENANAvMqNQqImPX
Hadn’t even been told.56Please respect copyright.PENANAV4QQCYB7Qq
But Juma knew how Jabari moved when he was hiding something. The way he tucked his sleeves. The way he avoided eye contact with people who asked too few questions.56Please respect copyright.PENANAKySwjXKtPC
So, when Jabari, Musa, and Otieno vanished after prep without explanation, Juma followed — a few paces back, hidden in the shadow of the unfinished perimeter wall.56Please respect copyright.PENANAnmknbYj9CV
At first, he thought they were going to stash records. Maybe revisit the archive gap Otieno had found. But when they pried open the borehole grate, his stomach turned.56Please respect copyright.PENANAGsPfOrj56I
The tunnel.56Please respect copyright.PENANAejbZFANmM7
They were testing the tunnel. Without him.56Please respect copyright.PENANA23VEDGbvhk
Juma waited until the last foot disappeared. Then crept forward and lowered himself in.56Please respect copyright.PENANAjPM8LT0nDJ
He didn’t follow directly. He walked slower, far enough back to let the echoes settle. He didn’t need to hear them. He just needed to watch. He could still smell the rust of the pipe joints. Still hear the old riddle in his mind— “follow water to truth”. It used to sound like legend.56Please respect copyright.PENANAlbCYCH4w5Y
Now it felt like betrayal.56Please respect copyright.PENANA0QegrUUGp0
Crossing into the girls’ side?56Please respect copyright.PENANAr8Q0P6U8qC
For what? Information? Or for someone?56Please respect copyright.PENANATb6Mf1ubbY
Kim’s name surfaced like a wound, unspoken but sharp. Did she know? Had she met Jabari? Was this part of their “alliance,” the one Juma never got the full story on?56Please respect copyright.PENANAWCioGowX9q
The wall was supposed to divide them. Now Jabari moved through it like it didn’t exist.56Please respect copyright.PENANAcv8fdUhGeH
Juma clenched his fists. It wasn’t just about power anymore. It was about truth. And about who got to hold it first.56Please respect copyright.PENANAGGt8vrTmxg
As Jabari and his crew reached the junction beneath the science annex and paused to survey the exit point, Juma watched from behind a bend, hidden in shadow.56Please respect copyright.PENANAxZIodUkqnX
He didn’t speak. Didn’t breathe. But in his chest, a slow decision began to form. If Jabari won’t say what he’s doing… Then Juma will find out for himself.56Please respect copyright.PENANAsI9Ht8SDKu
Even if it means crossing alone.
*****56Please respect copyright.PENANAJvyr0mSGZS
They never heard them coming.56Please respect copyright.PENANAGzqAn5lzC9
Not Otieno, who usually heard everything. Not Musa, whose instincts were tight as fencing wire. Not even Jabari, who trusted shadows too well.56Please respect copyright.PENANAzlPS0kI2ON
They were halfway back through the tunnel, the return path slick with dripping lime-water, when the air shifted.56Please respect copyright.PENANAp46fIrB3wG
It wasn’t light. It was heat. Then a hiss.56Please respect copyright.PENANAthBX3JNlkG
Kerosene.56Please respect copyright.PENANAFTmYrMwVIi
The smell punched into the space like a slap—acrid, chemical, recent.56Please respect copyright.PENANA8lgXbXdGfM
Jabari stopped dead. He threw a hand out to halt the others.56Please respect copyright.PENANAME5afc0PfN
From up ahead — near the tunnel mouth — came a glint.56Please respect copyright.PENANACrearUK64V
Small. Orange.56Please respect copyright.PENANAv105MKZsuN
Then the flare lit.56Please respect copyright.PENANA0lIE5FUhKG
A white-hot hiss exploded forward, rolling fire in a half-spiral across the wet stone. Jabari yanked back violently, his games kit catching on a pipe and nearly igniting.56Please respect copyright.PENANASemYK1trIS
He hit the wall hard, smothering the sleeve in dirt. Musa cursed.56Please respect copyright.PENANA93BToiRQA4
Otieno dove back into the bend.56Please respect copyright.PENANA1sCcYc4Mzd
And then they heard it— A voice.56Please respect copyright.PENANAmmryX5pTul
Calm. Cold. Crooked by the tunnel’s acoustics:56Please respect copyright.PENANAZJvZeEgIHf
“You were warned.”56Please respect copyright.PENANADvxlFrAz2Y
The light died as quickly as it came.56Please respect copyright.PENANAhk0rRaOyzm
When they stumbled forward five minutes later — torchlight flickering nervously — they found only the reek of scorched cloth, a blackened floor, and a small smear of red chalk on the tunnel wall:56Please respect copyright.PENANAygfY7bm9ok
A glyph: Shadow Walker fire mark.56Please respect copyright.PENANAC9UrHqmTmF
Jabari said nothing for a long time.56Please respect copyright.PENANA24M3BkqWn0
Musa stared at the chalk. “They knew we’d be here.”56Please respect copyright.PENANAtw46rbyxvv
Otieno clenched his jaw. “They let us in… just to mark the border.”56Please respect copyright.PENANAGcUmbjcNxE
Jabari’s voice was low when it finally came:56Please respect copyright.PENANAtyRwyCQJha
“No. They let us in… to remind us it’s not ours.”56Please respect copyright.PENANACyYaORbvGh
From high above in the greenhouse shadows, Kwame uncapped the second flare and blew gently on the tip.56Please respect copyright.PENANA90LBVBGBVS
Ayo looked down at the smoking tunnel vent.56Please respect copyright.PENANAPULaPJSwFW
“Was that really necessary?”56Please respect copyright.PENANA4g49Ix8LDe
Kwame didn’t smile. He just whispered:56Please respect copyright.PENANArRZIylqxc4
“They drew maps of our bones. Now we burn their paper.”56Please respect copyright.PENANAZpAYc7YVgr
The flare’s glow had barely died when Kwame stepped out of the smoke.56Please respect copyright.PENANAqL7OELvu0i
No hood. No bluff.56Please respect copyright.PENANAAHQRgHJ4L0
Just him — tall, furious, silent.56Please respect copyright.PENANARYQvgA818s
Jabari rose quickly, dirt smearing his sleeve, his eyes locked with Kwame’s like old enemies recognizing the war had finally begun.56Please respect copyright.PENANAYT3X84WtWf
Kwame said nothing. He raised a second flare.56Please respect copyright.PENANAVslZ2QFZGQ
And that’s when Musa moved. He didn’t shout. Didn’t warn.56Please respect copyright.PENANArWItljPSVI
Just tackled Kwame sideways with a thud that cracked against the pipe wall. The flare dropped, bounced once — skidded harmlessly into a puddle. Extinguished.56Please respect copyright.PENANAAuUM6O6Qxb
They crashed into the damp stone, grunting, Musa’s elbow driving into Kwame’s chest with years of silent discipline.56Please respect copyright.PENANAPkSQYdcsRx
Otieno was already helping Jabari to his feet.56Please respect copyright.PENANAPgXf8eyHG3
But Ayo — Ayo was gone.56Please respect copyright.PENANAHxbAvsh29v
The boys spun, torchlight slicing through the tunnel like frantic blades.56Please respect copyright.PENANAsEyjerj1J0
No sound. No echo. A shadow where Ayo had been seconds before.56Please respect copyright.PENANAp2gMHBwkBi
And on the ground where he’d stood — half hidden under an old gear bag — was a folded square of thick paper.56Please respect copyright.PENANAF7Qhkqit3L
Black. Crisp.56Please respect copyright.PENANAClHusUBbM7
Stamped with a mark: M.O.56Please respect copyright.PENANAyWVZqqRoof
Jabari picked it up carefully. The wax seal had melted slightly from the heat — enough to distort the shape.56Please respect copyright.PENANAYz97VDNfpo
But he recognized the symbol beneath the black ink.56Please respect copyright.PENANAiMmGPasgXL
Mercy’s initials.56Please respect copyright.PENANAXuDCm9fHlJ
Kwame lay pinned beneath Musa, coughing. He didn’t fight back. Didn’t speak.56Please respect copyright.PENANA6CqIQdeaCI
But his eyes were locked on Jabari.56Please respect copyright.PENANA9sPUzvVu6D
Daring him to guess how deep this went.56Please respect copyright.PENANApJ3Lc4v3Mp
Jabari backed away slowly, holding the black card like it might catch flame.56Please respect copyright.PENANAIX19h3N3Q9
Otieno whispered, “He was never here for us.”56Please respect copyright.PENANAEcCuOAFnrR
“No,” Jabari said, his voice low. “He was here for the message.”
**********56Please respect copyright.PENANALvOZtdl6JW
The chapel had long been closed for renovations — at least that’s what the staff told anyone who asked. But Mercy knew better.56Please respect copyright.PENANA0yf6HNPGUc
The boarded doors didn’t stop her.56Please respect copyright.PENANA9XI9ALJNsl
She descended through the old sacristy vent — a crawlspace known only to three girls in the school’s long history. She entered barefoot, silent, and carrying only a candle stub, a bottle of ink, and the folded black card Ayo had delivered.56Please respect copyright.PENANAdq2VDBUAuH
She sat on the edge of the cracked altar bench, unfurled the card under the flickering light, and stared.56Please respect copyright.PENANA0N7ufHvg0O
Her initials. But not her handwriting.56Please respect copyright.PENANA3CP5ccQELa
A test. Or a tribute. Either way, she recognized the pattern.56Please respect copyright.PENANAorJEWgR8ZV
It wasn’t just a seal. It was layered.56Please respect copyright.PENANAKLOCdAtl4x
The fold lines created seven geometric segments — each containing a barely visible ink dot. It wasn’t aesthetic. It was directional.56Please respect copyright.PENANA11BTKgkf7m
Mercy rotated the card slowly, letting muscle memory guide her. It felt familiar. Like a map she hadn’t drawn but had once walked.56Please respect copyright.PENANAaxHOZKEeWe
Then it clicked.56Please respect copyright.PENANAk0Z6W5NVmZ
She opened her ink bottle, dipped a pin in lightly, and connected the dots in the order they appeared from fold to fold. A new shape formed:56Please respect copyright.PENANAFgyK5en0Up
A spiral that looped west, then curved north — then stopped.56Please respect copyright.PENANA555lH3FMr7
It mirrored the forgotten layout beneath the science annex. The same route she'd once used to vanish during inspections, emerge behind the greenhouse, and drop messages across the wall without ever touching its surface.56Please respect copyright.PENANAfXSdTWWVsA
It wasn’t just a cipher. It was a return route.56Please respect copyright.PENANAcsFriBh5m8
Ayo hadn’t just escaped the boys’ ambush — he’d reopened the thread Mercy had left behind. And sent it back.56Please respect copyright.PENANA5wvYcyyDgn
June didn’t mean to watch her. But she'd grown used to Mercy disappearing at odd hours, always returning with a sharper look in her eyes — like she knew something no one had asked yet.56Please respect copyright.PENANACLgHiKbCUs
This morning, June followed — only a few steps behind. She never entered the chapel basement. She only peeked once through the warped window slit.56Please respect copyright.PENANALi7iK6rkPN
And what she saw?56Please respect copyright.PENANAWJMmX2SRgV
Mercy — lit by a single flame, her fingers gliding across the black card like a priestess reading scripture.56Please respect copyright.PENANAPBrxAYb6ob
She was smiling. Not cruelly. Not proudly.56Please respect copyright.PENANA5EiL4IYJud
Knowingly.56Please respect copyright.PENANAsmKg3Ukivj
And that terrified June more than any punishment Mercy had ever given.56Please respect copyright.PENANA0CyYfA4VRc
Mercy turned the card over. One last message, revealed only when ink-stained fingers warmed the wax:56Please respect copyright.PENANA5HgUpEus6S
“Some truths only reveal themselves in reverse.”56Please respect copyright.PENANAXeway8IOJr
She smiled wider. So that was the game. They hadn’t just reopened the tunnel. They had given her the key to walk back through it.56Please respect copyright.PENANA4ElIaYYFE2
Mercy stood, tucking the black card into the seam of her skirt. Her steps were slow, silent, almost ceremonial as she exited the chapel’s back door and disappeared toward the annex.56Please respect copyright.PENANAJtQBLGL7uy
By dusk, the greenhouse would hum with new footsteps.56Please respect copyright.PENANAnU8ERwqFep
And the Shadow Walkers — on the girls’ side — would know that their serpent had returned not to bite, but to lead.
56Please respect copyright.PENANAAOunqz4Enk
56Please respect copyright.PENANALd0W5CbCdQ