Chapter 11
1069 Words
Keira POV
The school felt different without Lila.
Quieter.
Like someone had turned the volume down on the whole building.
I walked through the courtyard after first period and didn’t see a single phone pointed at me.
No whispers.
No heads snapping toward me when I passed.
It was weird.
Good weird.
Kaden fell into step beside me.
“You look like you don’t trust it,” he said.
“I don’t,” I said.
“It’s been two days.
That’s not enough time for people to forget.”
“They won’t forget,” he said.
“But they’ll move on.
They always do.”
We stopped at my locker.
I spun the dial, pulled it open.
Inside was a note.
Folded once.
No name.
Kaden saw it too.
“Don’t,” he said.
“Don’t open it here.”
I closed the locker with the note still inside.
“Then when?”
“After class,” he said.
“My car.”
I nodded.
---
Third period dragged.
Math with Mr. Alvarez felt slower than usual.
Every time my phone buzzed in my pocket, I thought it was the note.
It wasn’t.
Just Mia, texting from her new school.
Mia:
Heard Lila got kicked out. Good riddance.
Mia:
You okay?
I didn’t reply.
I wasn’t sure what to say.
The bell rang.
I grabbed my bag and headed straight for the parking lot.
Kaden was already there, leaning against his car with the passenger door open.
“Get in,” he said.
I slid into the seat and pulled the note from my pocket.
It was still folded.
My hands felt clumsy opening it.
The handwriting was messy.
All caps.
_YOU THINK IT’S OVER?
SHE’S GONE BUT I’M NOT.
WATCH YOUR BACK, KEIRA._
I read it twice.
My chest went tight.
Kaden saw my face and his jaw set.
“Who is it?”
“I don’t know,” I said.
“It’s not Lila’s writing.
She prints everything.”
“Could be Mia,” he said.
“Could be anyone.”
I crumpled the paper in my fist.
“Why won’t it stop?”
“Because people like this,” Kaden said quietly.
“Drama.
Control.
It makes them feel powerful.”
I looked at him.
“You sound like you’ve dealt with this before.”
He didn’t answer right away.
Then: “Mom’s old firm had a client like that.
He sued everyone.
Lost every case.
But he kept filing.”
I let out a shaky breath.
“So what do we do?”
“We go to Mrs. Hale,” he said.
“Again.
Show her the note.
Let her handle it.”
I hesitated.
“What if she can’t?”
“Then we stop going to school alone,” he said.
“Deal?”
I nodded.
“Deal.”
---
Mrs. Hale took the note seriously.
She called campus security, had them check the parking lot cameras.
The angle was bad.
Whoever left it stayed out of frame.
“Don’t come to school alone for the next week,” she told us.
“I’ll have someone walk you to your cars.”
Kaden nodded.
I didn’t argue.
On the drive home, neither of us spoke much.
The quiet wasn’t comfortable anymore.
It felt like waiting.
When we pulled into the driveway, Mom was outside watering the garden.
She looked up and smiled.
“How was school?”
“Fine,” Kaden said automatically.
“Good,” Mom said.
“Your dad’s on a call, but he said to tell you both dinner’s at seven.”
I forced a smile.
“Okay.”
Inside, I went straight to my room.
Locked the door.
Sat on the bed.
My phone buzzed.
Unknown number again.
Unknown:
_Heard you went to Mrs. Hale.
Smart.
Won’t help._
I didn’t reply.
I blocked the number.
It didn’t feel like enough.
---
Dinner was tense.
Mr. West kept glancing between me and Kaden, like he could tell something was wrong.
Mom talked about her work, about the new client, trying to keep things normal.
“Keira, you’re quiet,” Mom said halfway through.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah,” I said.
“Just tired.”
Mr. West set his fork down.
“If something’s going on, you can tell us.”
Kaden opened his mouth.
I kicked him under the table.
He shut up.
“It’s fine,” I said.
“Really.”
Mom didn’t look convinced.
But she let it drop.
After dinner, I went upstairs and opened my laptop.
I typed Lila’s name into the search bar.
Nothing new.
Her socials were gone.
Her family’s name didn’t show up in the local news.
It was like she’d vanished.
That should’ve made me feel better.
It didn’t.
My phone buzzed again.
Same unknown number.
I’d blocked it, but the message came through anyway.
Unknown:
_You can’t hide from me, Keira.
I see everything._
I threw the phone on the bed.
My heart was racing.
A knock on the door.
“Keira?” Kaden’s voice.
“Can I come in?”
I didn’t answer.
The door opened anyway.
He stopped in the doorway when he saw my face.
“What happened?”
I pointed at the phone.
“Another message.
They’re still watching me.”
Kaden picked up the phone, read it, and cursed under his breath.
“I’m telling Mrs. Hale tomorrow.
This is going to the police.”
“What if it makes it worse?” I asked.
“Worse than this?” he said.
“Keira, you’re not safe.”
I looked at him.
Really looked.
“I’m not scared for me,” I said quietly.
“I’m scared for Mom.
For Dad.
If this gets out, it’ll hurt them too.”
Kaden sat on the edge of my bed.
“Then we stop it before it does.”
“How?”
“We find out who it is,” he said.
“And we end it.”
I nodded.
I didn’t have a better plan.
Kaden stood up.
“Get some sleep.
I’ll be down the hall if you need me.”
He left the door open.
I didn’t close it.
Lying in bed, I stared at the ceiling.
The room was quiet.
Too quiet.
My phone lit up one last time.
Unknown:
_Sleep well, Keira.
Tomorrow’s going to be interesting._
I didn’t sleep at all.
- Writer
