Secrets Are For Keeping

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Walking back into the classroom that we'd stayed in the night before, ruined it.

It ruined what I had come to think of as a moment of peace, a moment of remembering Beckam, and hope that I could make it through.

But the moment, like fragile and vulnerable glass, had shattered the second my feet carried me across from the hallway to the room.

Because I saw Pepper's face.

She and Zander were once again sitting across from each other at Zander's sleeping bag, and both looked up when Kain and I walked into the room. And the way Pepper looked at me spoke more than anything she could possibly say.

Her eyes were wide, looking more terrified than I'd ever seen her. Her face was paler than usual and the entire thing reminded me of the time when we'd found the laptop and then heard footsteps coming down the hall afterwards.

I walked closer to her before asking her what was going on since screaming it across the room would attract the attention of everybody else there, which was something I was trying to avoid. Even though avoiding attention was extremely difficult since everyone in the room was staring at me, half-shocked that I was still there and then also half-intrigued by me and what I'd done in the cafeteria.

I sat down next to her, as she continued to give me her horrified stare. "Pepper, what happened?" I asked when people began to look away and return to their own conversations.

She just shook her head slowly, unable to speak. I looked over at Zander who seemed to be in about the same state of shock.

Finally, Pepper began to speak.

"I...I went back to the room."

I stared at her in surprise, knowing that she'd taken such a risk to go back there after everything. And then it really hit me, when I put together her expression and her statement. What she was trying to tell me, but didn't actually want to say it since she knew exactly what that would mean for me.

Something had happened to my name on the laptop.

"I'd gone back once before...you know after we went the first time...and I'd realized that they also colored names blue of anyone they were planning on taking out...this time..."

"My name was highlighted in blue...," I finished, the shock not allowing me to feel anything but pure surprise.

Pepper just nodded.

The entire time Kain was staring at both of us, not understanding what we were talking about. It was only then that I remembered I never told him about the list...and how he was on it.

I opened my mouth and then closed it, not knowing how to explain it especially after the new information I'd only just received.

My name was highlighted in blue.

They were going to take me away.

They were probably just waiting for a vehicle to arrive. Or maybe they were coming right now, walking down the hallway outside to come and get me. The only thing that was stopping them from coming and taking me out at that very second was likely just the fact that they had other people to get to first.

I finally found my voice. "It's...they have a laptop...in a room in the restricted area...and on it is everyone's named categorized into two categories..."

Kain stared at me for a second and I saw a flash of betrayal pass over his eyes as he seemed to come to his own conclusions about it. "What are the two categories?" he asked anyway, although I guessed he'd already figured out the answer himself.

I closed my eyes and spoke, not wanting to see his face when he really figured it all out. "One's for normal...the other's a warning category with the names highlighted in yellow."

When I opened my eyes again he looked speechless. "And...why didn't you tell me?"

I stared at him, feeling a stab of guilt that I hadn't admitted what I'd seen about him in the category. Maybe if I had he could've been more careful and just possibly gotten his name off of the warning list. But I knew his name was still there, because Pepper was now giving that same nervously terrified look at Kain, but not to the same degree she had given me.

"Because...because your name's on the warning category...with mine," I said softly, feeling my stomach drop and not looking him in the eyes.

He didn't say anything and just stared at the ground, looking somewhat bewildered and betrayed.

"We need to do something."

I looked up and met Zander's eyes, how he seemed determined to follow through with the statement he'd just made. I didn't really understand what he meant by do something, though. What could we possibly do. It was game over. There was no coming back this time. And I knew this time they hadn't made a mistake.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Something. Anything. We can't just let you be taken. I won't just abandon you like that." The look in his eyes was pure determination. His jaw was clenched together, eyebrows bent forward. I didn't need him to say it for me to know he would do whatever it would take to make sure I wasn't taken.

And that made something warm spiral up inside of me, that he was actually willing to fight for me, when I couldn't really remember the last time that had happened.

"Do you have any ideas?" Pepper asked, calming down slightly. She looked as concerned as Zander did determined. The crease between her forehead wouldn't go away, even as Zander began to respond.

"I have an idea, but it's practically insane...," Zander started and then took a deep breath before continuing. "You said that the room with the laptop was in the restricted area, right? So why don't we just go back to that room...and change the information in the laptop. There are so many students here already, how likely is it that they would remember which exact students were in which exact category."

My first thought was that Zander was actually crazy for even thinking of something like that. I'd only ever really looked at the laptop; I hadn't changed anything on it. But after I really began going over his plan in my head, it started to sound more and more like our only option.

And maybe it could work. Pepper and I had gotten into the room once, how hard could it be to go again? And we just needed to change my name to a warning color again since actually physically moving it to the other category would be too noticeable. We had to do only what was necessary, and with only one day left, I felt I could hold off from being taken away if I was only in the warning category.

"That...might actually work," I responded as Kain and Pepper seemed to be coming to their own conclusions on Zander's idea in their own heads.

Pepper began to nod along with the idea, yet Kain still looked unsure.

"But...," he muttered, staring off into space with his face an expression of confusion. Then it cleared away and he returned his gaze to Zander. "Fine."

Zander looked surprised that anyone had agreed with him. I kind of was too. Making plans against inspectors to go into a restricted area and change vital information on a laptop? Sounded like something that belonged more in an action movie than it did my life.

But then again, my entire life was changing drastically and I wasn't really sure anything was how I expected it to be anymore.

"Let's do it tonight," I suggested. "We'll meet back here after dinner, and then we'll all go together. Zander, you can stay outside the restricted area and keep watch next to the door while Kain, you can come in with us and tell if anyone comes in from the opposite direction of the hallway. Then me and Pepper will go back in the room like we had before, and I'll change my name from being highlighted in blue to being highlighted in yellow."

"Okay." Zander was nodding along with the idea, even as I'd been explaining it.

Pepper looked a bit intimidated by the plan and her part in it, but she also agreed with a sharp, "Cool."

Lastly, was Kain, who was sitting still and seemingly going over the plan in his head. At last, he looked up and replied, "Yea, let's do it."