Chapter Nine – The Fight Back
228 Words
The loss of the flash drive hit Korede like a punch to the chest.
Everything they worked for—gone.
He and Adaora sat under the mango tree behind the chapel, barely speaking. The celebration banners were already up around the school. The event would begin in less than 24 hours. And they had no evidence.
“We failed,” Korede muttered.
“No,” Adaora said. Her voice was shaky, but steady. “We start again.”
He looked at her. “With what?”
She pulled out her phone. “I backed up some of the files. I didn’t tell you… just in case. I didn’t think we’d be betrayed so soon.”
Korede stared, then smiled faintly. “You’re actually smarter than me.”
That night, Adaora sent everything they had to an independent journalist through an anonymous email. A woman known for exposing school scandals. The subject line read: “Code of Silence – One boy died. We won’t be next.”
They weren’t sure she’d come.
But the next morning, as the school welcomed alumni and parents, a black SUV pulled up. A tall woman stepped out, press badge swinging from her neck.
She walked straight to the principal’s office—with police officers behind her.
Korede stood at the edge of the crowd, watching.
And for the first time, he felt hope.
- Writer
