In the Kisumu Boys' Assembly Room, a closed session in the late afternoon is underway. The rain drums faintly on the roof. Both Order loyalists and Shadow Walker affiliates have been summoned — the first meeting of its kind.65Please respect copyright.PENANAZhSfOl5Ujm
The room buzzed with restrained confusion. On one side: prefects, old Order loyalists, data-keepers. On the other: Shadow Walkers — code-runners, graffiti scouts, watchers from rooftops.65Please respect copyright.PENANA0yPmAGUxWe
No one sat near the center.65Please respect copyright.PENANA5PGjyXohRZ
Jabari stood at the front of the room, back straight, the cracked ledger box in one hand.65Please respect copyright.PENANAb3wiaenBX7
He didn’t shout.65Please respect copyright.PENANAjPgYXC5NRh
“You all saw what Mercy did.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA6m81oSEJe6
Silence.65Please respect copyright.PENANAREUOhoXs78
“She used our stories. Our fractures. She drowned us in our own past.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA4WIzAf7eY7
He placed the box down — loudly.65Please respect copyright.PENANACvxWl3WJnS
“So, this time… we drown her in it.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA9kPoWEkdFf
He scanned both sides of the room.65Please respect copyright.PENANAflTauegIS7
“We have word Naomi’s side is moving — quietly. They’ve offered a containment pact.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAECFqlEjtbO
A few gasps. One laugh — quickly hushed.65Please respect copyright.PENANA3mcIf9luWP
Jabari continued.65Please respect copyright.PENANA0gVkxnY2Rp
“This isn’t an alliance for peace. This is a trap.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAT2EWUYooEF
He walked to the chalkboard and drew a quick diagram: the chapel crypt, the drainage lines, the tunnel forks.65Please respect copyright.PENANAo4YKCAoiTK
“Mercy’s using the third memory drop — a ledger no one catalogued. We lure her into finishing the cycle. And we lock her there. Not with chains. With evidence. With noise. With memory.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA9BMCqf29IX
Kwame wasn’t present.65Please respect copyright.PENANAdLk3gjzIhf
But Otieno was — arms folded, expression blank.65Please respect copyright.PENANAs8V44PAC2c
Ayo muttered under his breath, “He won’t like this.”65Please respect copyright.PENANACxteV6vEfo
Juma asked sharply, “So we do Naomi’s cleanup?”65Please respect copyright.PENANAzut0COMbM3
Jabari looked him straight in the eyes.65Please respect copyright.PENANAzJRD5HpNF5
“We clean up our own ghosts. Naomi’s just part of the smoke.”65Please respect copyright.PENANARVt5UOLZIk
Musa stepped forward and unrolled the scroll — Naomi’s signed terms, retrieved from the wall.65Please respect copyright.PENANAA6Wjj4HvLJ
He read them aloud: Neutral crypt space during the trap execution. Shared counter-signal system (one chime = cancel, two = proceed). No betrayal until both crates are verified and neutralized.65Please respect copyright.PENANAHmUazKJwOz
The final line:65Please respect copyright.PENANAZzwjxSTJR5
“No war until the wound is stitched.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAqLWKDJnMiX
A single nod from Jabari. “Vote?”65Please respect copyright.PENANAMx8Tvxt6qq
This time, only one hand stayed down.65Please respect copyright.PENANAwAz1soYQMJ
Otieno.65Please respect copyright.PENANAyMzDWd0y6n
He met Jabari’s gaze, then whispered: “You catch her… Just don’t become her.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAGzMubqnsnM
The moment Musa finished rolling up the scroll, Juma stood — arms crossed, eyes cold.65Please respect copyright.PENANAY5gwMIeuNb
“We’re trusting Naomi now? The same girl who tried to silence everything Mercy uncovered?”65Please respect copyright.PENANA80nl3bYmo9
The room went quiet again. Even the Shadow Walkers leaned in, sensing heat beneath the words.65Please respect copyright.PENANA2XAP3QXJfb
Jabari didn’t answer immediately.65Please respect copyright.PENANAaFwlQABnLJ
Juma continued, his voice quieter but heavier:65Please respect copyright.PENANAKWEBYiuafi
“She isn’t here to contain anything. She’s here to bury it again. And if we help her… we’re part of it. We’ve already done one cover-up, Jabari. I won’t do a second.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAJEBTJn3jCk
Otieno glanced at Musa. Ayo looked away.65Please respect copyright.PENANAYvwQFtfNEU
They knew what Jabari suspected but never asked.65Please respect copyright.PENANAfb6LOtOMwf
Juma’s voice cracked ever so slightly: “I swore I’d protect Kim. Not just physically. From all this. From becoming one of us.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAdJPzAY7UZw
He looked straight at Jabari. “You think Naomi won’t use her if it means killing Mercy’s story?”65Please respect copyright.PENANAjn39XrZ4vR
A slow clap echoed from the hallway.65Please respect copyright.PENANAJGjKBopGfV
Kwame.65Please respect copyright.PENANAEaze5iansX
He leaned against the doorframe, shadowed, smirking.65Please respect copyright.PENANAPzMmMqD7ZU
“Now that’s what I’ve been waiting for.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAtWMfrL2L6U
Jabari’s jaw tightened. “You weren’t invited.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAQHyxLMzmYn
Kwame stepped in. “I don’t need an invitation to watch a castle collapse. Especially when the stones fight each other.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAHWYeWZk2sb
He glanced at Juma. “Finally, someone with a spine.65Please respect copyright.PENANAZdsTf8LrFx
Jabari stepped forward. “This isn’t about Kim.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAJzISIg9CCl
Juma didn’t move. “No. It’s about all the people who can’t speak anymore. Mercy included.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAWQoPZ88VsE
Kwame tilted his head, amused. “You know, I think Mercy would like him.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAMMuq5T0e8O
Musa finally spoke. “We don’t have time for this.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAHGtEKM5SwQ
Jabari looked at Juma. “You can’t protect her from all of it. You can only decide whether you help shape the truth or let it crush her.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA9rQYg0Bxmo
Juma’s fists clenched.65Please respect copyright.PENANAw0n7SpqEsM
But he didn’t sit back down.65Please respect copyright.PENANApor2Gglapy
Later that night, after the hall had emptied and the plan was posted on the encrypted wall scroll, Kwame found Otieno near the water tanks, where the fog rolled low and the pipes hissed with steam.65Please respect copyright.PENANA5CqI9iuVIa
Kwame leaned against the concrete.65Please respect copyright.PENANAaWux0BjKTm
“So. You’re really going with Jabari?”65Please respect copyright.PENANAT80vpVVGiL
Otieno didn’t look up. He was fitting a copper ring into the vent grate — a piece of an old filtration system he’d been rigging for months.65Please respect copyright.PENANA3n8JkTHCSk
“Does it matter?”65Please respect copyright.PENANAe1712pc5Y6
Kwame smirked. “It does to me. I had you pegged as a watcher. Not a follower.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAkGbW623nHw
Otieno stood slowly. “You’re right.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAN1qKh41bNZ
He turned to face Kwame — taller than him in the dim light. 65Please respect copyright.PENANAyM8kkCpdkB
“I do watch. I watched what happened when the last war between Orders wasn’t stopped. I watched Jabari get blamed for things he never did. I watched you use Mercy’s name like a weapon — without carrying any of her burden.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAkXuE7D6NpT
Kwame’s smile faded slightly.65Please respect copyright.PENANAEdfGBDfLsh
“She’s rewriting history,” Otieno said. “And you think you’re the editor. But she’ll erase you the second you stop being useful.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA3Ahl77BwGU
Kwame raised an eyebrow. “And you think Jabari won’t?”65Please respect copyright.PENANAa2YIWooKsn
Otieno stepped closer.65Please respect copyright.PENANAKfKR4NVDGC
“If we help Jabari now, we keep Mercy’s revenge from destroying us all. Not for Naomi. Not for orders. Not for walls.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAWUfA82N6XS
He paused. “For survival.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAEYtNi4Hta5
Kwame scoffed lightly. “You sound like you’re preparing for a funeral.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAKH0p6q73W0
Otieno turned away, sliding the copper ring into place.65Please respect copyright.PENANAx13nbWS3le
“I am. The old war never ended. This time, I just want to know which side I buried my friends on.”
**********65Please respect copyright.PENANADI4iEdOLtO
The ledger crate was lighter than expected.65Please respect copyright.PENANAFXf11kvwcO
Musa tested its weight once more as he crouched beneath the courtyard arch. The M.O.3 chalk mark had been carefully redrawn. The false ledgers inside were wrapped in canvas, just enough heft to feel real.65Please respect copyright.PENANAV2s7sZUqOg
Jabari stood beside him in the hallway shadows. “You’re sure?”65Please respect copyright.PENANAX5ZR1O3lTo
Musa gave a half-smile. “You trust me with a busted borehole and a map that doesn’t exist, but not a box full of air?”65Please respect copyright.PENANA9I3UJb53Xl
Juma, standing nearby, muttered, “It’s not the box I don’t trust. It’s the gate it’s going through.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAkIAKYNwmmt
Musa turned to Jabari.65Please respect copyright.PENANA849qXar8pb
“Let me take it. If we send a signal through anyone else, they’ll second-guess it.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAJHTSlOrDZO
He gripped the crate.65Please respect copyright.PENANAMF5VnT5z41
“I’m neutral enough to walk through fire.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA0aCjr5jlp9
From behind him, Ayo appeared silently, holding a folded black card — flat, thin, almost forgettable.65Please respect copyright.PENANAqSqdZ0j3YD
“For insurance,” Ayo said, sliding it beneath the top canvas.65Please respect copyright.PENANADjnqkTKaHN
Musa frowned. “We’re not sending threats.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA0QsGogT7kt
Ayo’s voice was smooth. “It’s not a threat. Just… a reminder. She needs to know she’s still being watched.”65Please respect copyright.PENANADw9qwuoFmU
“No names. Just the old cipher. Mercy’s mark.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAYv08BeeYi6
Musa hesitated, then said nothing. There wasn’t time. Jabari was still briefing the wall runners. No one else saw.65Please respect copyright.PENANAsWUo3Tt6xw
At 5:48 p.m., beneath the buzz of Science Week cleanup, Musa rolled the AV cart up to the old drain-slot gate in the concrete wall.65Please respect copyright.PENANAO0PCTw1dMP
He stood still, adjusted his sleeves. Waited.65Please respect copyright.PENANAXGcyS3ju7D
The grate shifted open. Two gloved hands — Mary’s, if he had to guess — pulled the crate silently inside.65Please respect copyright.PENANALSUHV2FTi8
No words. Only a single origami triangle left behind, folded from printed timetable paper.65Please respect copyright.PENANAPYIRJ6FfBp
He picked it up, unfolded it.65Please respect copyright.PENANAfQhZLVHSAY
“Drop scheduled. Second chime. No shadows.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA7YkoY3sCOh
The plan was live.65Please respect copyright.PENANAebPRBCpywx
Inside the crate, beneath the false ledgers and canvas, Naomi’s hand paused when she reached the black card. It bore Mercy’s old cipher — a twisting serpent swallowing its tail — stamped in silver ink.65Please respect copyright.PENANAxvm1jPzcqX
Below it: one line in tight handwriting.65Please respect copyright.PENANA7TsmdkPnuR
“She buried you once. Don’t let her bury you again.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAzAtRb8vZGy
Mary looked up at Naomi.65Please respect copyright.PENANALSteIHnvQF
“Did you put this in?”65Please respect copyright.PENANAg1BJJIrM6v
Naomi said nothing.65Please respect copyright.PENANAqOjCwFtsGP
Her fingers tightened.
*****65Please respect copyright.PENANA0rrURKDuQw
On the girls’ side. After dark. Naomi’s inner circle meets in the underground storage room behind the old library annex. The crate sits unopened on a long metal table.65Please respect copyright.PENANAxACwVrnltA
The room smelled like old pine and chalk dust.65Please respect copyright.PENANAKYorSg5jRr
June, Mary, and Naomi stood around the crate. No one had spoken since the door shut.65Please respect copyright.PENANAWSFMwshrEG
The origami triangle Musa left sat neatly beside the latch. Naomi’s hands hovered above it.65Please respect copyright.PENANAHXjj7TBek7
“We open it now,” she said.65Please respect copyright.PENANAFch34wNGmi
“We can’t afford another surprise at the Tribunal.”65Please respect copyright.PENANArrwOy03HcO
She glanced at Mary. “Gloves.”65Please respect copyright.PENANApFWhzpRZG5
Mary handed them over — clean surgical pairs swiped from the chem lab.65Please respect copyright.PENANAYliMZ4kF35
Inside, the ledgers were exactly as expected — wrapped, unmarked, blank. But under the first canvas fold, June’s hand paused.65Please respect copyright.PENANAy6CxqX66c3
“Something’s here.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA7XAYTleoVI
She pulled out the black card.65Please respect copyright.PENANAnfx96ZQPJw
The serpent. Silver ink. Old cipher.65Please respect copyright.PENANAFir5DoJtPg
Naomi took it. Kim read the line aloud:65Please respect copyright.PENANAoUYovPJNTs
“She buried you once. Don’t let her bury you again.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA2MkKQceBnm
A beat of silence.65Please respect copyright.PENANA6JCaCE9rfF
Naomi’s face stayed blank, but her pulse visibly jumped.65Please respect copyright.PENANALLat3dV3x2
“It’s not hers,” she said flatly. “She never wrote in third person.”65Please respect copyright.PENANA3WeYJLjT3S
June stepped in. “Then it’s meant to make it look like it is.”65Please respect copyright.PENANASAafmnIVtZ
Mary whispered, “Could it be a warning? From the boys?”65Please respect copyright.PENANA47gYOhnXf0
Naomi shook her head. 65Please respect copyright.PENANAWoZFtwOjjn
“Too calculated. This isn’t warning. It’s planting doubt. Whoever slipped it in wanted us to panic in front of the school.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAAt03thfq9x
June laid the card flat on the table.65Please respect copyright.PENANA3CkW7alQWE
“We pull it now. Quietly. And we never say a word.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAIswgki2Qj6
Naomi finally nodded. “Burn it.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAw9KU4Hq248
Mary hesitated. “That’s a Mercy move.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAVlYWL9zpXu
Naomi replied coldly: 65Please respect copyright.PENANAoPnmdm5rAs
“Then maybe she taught us well.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAYHinTdNfBu
The card was burning in a lab beaker, the serpent curling into ash by the time they were done, Naomi staring into the flame longer than the others.65Please respect copyright.PENANAWyxJRgKvMO
June turned to Naomi. 65Please respect copyright.PENANAUuKFPl3ZQN
“When you open that crate tomorrow, make sure your voice doesn’t shake.”65Please respect copyright.PENANAMOlBtZb3Hr
Naomi said nothing.65Please respect copyright.PENANAc6HnglM4lK
But her jaw was set.