Chapter Twenty Two - The Door

Nobody moved.

The handle turned slowly, deliberately, like whoever was on the other side wanted us to hear it. Wanted us to know they were there.

Myles stepped forward, positioning himself between me and the door. His hand reached back, pushing me gently behind him. Protective. Stupid. Sweet.

Then the lock clicked open. And Derek appeared and there was a heavy sigh of relief from all of us.

“Uhmm…did I miss something.” Derek scanned the room and the position we took charging at the door.

"Why are you back early," Myles asked, letting go of my hand , but his voice shook.

Derek shrugged, kicking off his shoes by the door. "Practice got canceled. The coach had a family thing." He flopped onto his bed, completely oblivious to the four hearts pounding in the room. "You guys look like you've seen a ghost."

"Something like that," Madden muttered.

Ashley laughed,too high, too fast. "We were just talking about... the exam. The psych exam. It's going to be brutal.”

"The psych exam isn't for two weeks," Derek said.

"Better to start early.” Another nervous laugh. “Do you want to have dinner with me?”

Derek looked at her. Then at Madden. Then at Myles. Then at me.

“No.” I’m good” he shrugged. "Well, I'm going to play video games. You're all welcome to stay. But the vibes are weird, so maybe don't."

He grabbed his controller, turned on the TV, and the opening music of some shooting game filled the room. Normal sounds. The sounds of a dorm room on a normal night.

But nothing about this night was normal.

Myles caught my eye. Jerked his head toward the door.

We needed to leave. Somewhere private. Somewhere Derek couldn't overhear.

"We should go," I said, standing up. "Let Derek have his space."

"Good idea," Madden said.

Ashley grabbed her backpack. Myles grabbed his jacket. Derek didn't look up from his game.

"See you later," he said.

"Later."

We filed out of the room, one by one, closing the door behind us.

---

The hallway was empty

"Where do we go now?" Ashley whispered.

"Somewhere with a lock," Madden said.

"Laundry room?"

"Too small." Myles shook his head. "And someone could walk in."

I thought for a moment. "The roof."

"The roof?" Ashley's eyes widened.

"The dorm next door has a fire escape that leads to the roof. No one ever goes up there. I checked it my first week."

"You checked a random roof your first week?"

"I like knowing escape routes."

Myles raised an eyebrow but didn't argue. "Lead the way."

---

We slipped out of the building and crossed the quad at a fast walk, keeping to the shadows. The dorm next door was older, brick, with a fire escape that groaned under our weight as we climbed. Ashley went first, then Madden, then me, then Myles.

The roof was flat, covered in gravel, with a low wall that overlooked the campus. The moon was half-full, casting silver light across the trees and buildings. In the distance, the lake glittered like black glass.

We sat in a circle, our backs to the wall, hidden from anyone below.

"Okay," Ashley said. "What the hell is happening?"

I pulled out all the notes again.The red letters seemed darker in the moonlight.

"Someone knows we're planning something," I said. "Someone's been watching us all day. The photograph in Derek's room. The note on his door."

"Someone who knows every nook and cranny of this school," Madden said. "Someone who saw us go into Myles's room."

"Or someone who's been following us for weeks." Myles looked at me. "Helena?"

"Myles we are talking about people who can commit a murder ." Madden teases

"Maybe she's playing with us," Ashley said. "Like a cat with a mouse."

"Or maybe she's not the only one." Myles voice was low. "Maybe there's more than one person watching."

We sat with that for a while. The wind picked up, cold and sharp, rattling the fire escape below us.

"We can't let this stop us," I said finally. "Earl died because he was going to tell me the truth. Alice died because she found the truth. I'm not letting them win."

"So what do we do?" Ashley asked.

"We go to the basement. Tomorrow night. Not tonight. They're expecting us to panic, to rush in. We wait. We plan. We go when they're not watching."

"And if they're always watching?" Myles asked.

"Then we give them something else to watch."