Chapter 1

I had spent seven years guarding the entrance of the testing site, with Millbrook High School being the only testing site in the entire county.

Thus, every time, the destinies of over 8,000 students passed through that metal detector gate behind me.

Those seven years had been more than enough to turn a rookie into a seasoned pro. I had seen every kind of cheating method, including schemes designed to make money. Those tricks were nothing more than child's play in front of me, though, since I had been an exam security officer for seven years.

That morning began with the Reading and Writing section. There were still 12 minutes to go before start time, and the last batch of students was still coming through.

I stood by the metal detector gate, giving each person the routine once-over.

"Next."

It was then that a male student approached from the end of the line. He was of average height with a darker complexion and a neatly trimmed buzz cut.

He wore his school uniform by the book, buttoned all the way to the top collar. He carried a clear stationery pouch in his left hand and held his admission slip in his right, standing quietly in line.

"Good morning, Mr. Gardner," Steven Lindell said in a low and gentle tone, his volume barely louder than someone speaking in a library.

I nodded, gesturing for him to head through the gate.

In that instant, the indicator turned green with a beep, the facial recognition showed a 99.7% match, and the fingerprint scan passed.

He had a valid admission slip as well. He should have been allowed into the exam hall, but I held up my hand to stop him. I instantly looked at the clear stationery pouch in his left hand—to be exact, it was the plain-looking bottled mineral water inside the stationery pouch.

It was a common brand that could be bought at any local grocery store, costing roughly two dollars a bottle. It was so ordinary that at least 200 or 300 students who went through the gate that morning were carrying the exact same kind.

Steven's bottle was slightly different, though. There was a hairline ridge on the safety seal around the cap, which felt subtly out of place compared to normal bottled water.

I couldn't pinpoint what was wrong, but seven years on the job told me this wasn't just a normal bottled mineral water. I was confident that there was something off about it.

I felt my heart skip a beat for a moment, but I maintained a completely straight face. "I'm sorry, but please step over to the side for a minute."

Steven froze momentarily. He nervously shifted his gaze before quickly composing himself. "Is something the matter, Mr. Gardner? I'm about to sit for the exam soon."

"It's a routine spot check, so please cooperate," I explained before I lowered my voice and spoke into the walkie-talkie. "I'm re-checking a student."

It was my first time in seven years that I called for a re-check after passing this gate. I didn't think it was enough, though. I backed up three paces and moved behind the gray post marked "Fire Equipment", which was right next to the metal detector gate.

There was a red button concealed beneath a metal cover right at the bottom of the post. That was the highest-level emergency response system personally approved by the higher-ups seven years ago during the testing site's renovation.

Hitting that button meant putting the whole school on immediate lockdown, with police and emergency response on scene in under ten minutes.

I had never used that button in seven years. I didn't even use it during last year's earphone cheating scandal that rocked the whole county. After all, once it was pressed, the situation would escalate far beyond just standard cheating.

I took a deep breath, lifted the metal cover, and pressed the button.