The library was silent except for the soft whir of the cassette player.
Marcus replayed the tape for the fifth time.
Everyone else had gone to bed.
Only Ethan remained, typing steadily on his laptop.
Marcus closed his eyes.
He wasn’t listening to Michael’s words anymore.
He was listening to the silence.
Three seconds.
Then Michael said Rebecca’s name.
Another three seconds.
Then Jonathan’s.
Another pause.
Too perfect.
Too deliberate.
Ethan looked over.
“You hear it too?”
Marcus nodded.
“It’s coded.”
⸻
Breaking the Code
Ethan connected the cassette player to his laptop through an audio converter.
“If Michael wanted to hide something, analog tape is actually a clever choice,” he said.
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
“How so?”
“Unlike digital files, cassette tapes carry back
