The day after the incident, the school felt even more empty.
Not in students—there were still plenty of them—but in honesty. Every conversation had the same careful tone. Every joke had the same safe distance. Ravenswood had become a place where people lived inside their own mouths, afraid of what their words could do.
Rowan sat in the library, staring at the same page for the third time.
Lyra leaned over his shoulder. "You're not going to solve anything by staring," she whispered.
Rowan didn't look up. "I'm trying to see what's missing."
Vivienne sat beside them, her sketchbook open. "Maybe you're looking at the wrong thing," she said softly.
Rowan frowned. "What do you mean?"
Vivienne traced a line with her pencil. "Everyone is so focused on the teacher. But what about the students who never talk? The ones who don't even exist to the school anymore?"
Rowan's mind raced. "You mean… the ones who were removed quietly?"
Lyra nodded. "Exactly. The school doesn't need to kill someone to silence them. Sometimes, it just erases them."
Rowan's heart tightened.
He was about to speak when a voice interrupted.
"Rowan Arden."
He looked up.
Cassius Rowe stood in front of the table, hands in his pockets. His expression was calm, but his eyes were sharp, like a blade hidden behind a smile.
"Cassius," Rowan said cautiously.
Cassius leaned against the bookshelf. "You're looking into things you shouldn't."
"I'm looking into things that happened," Rowan replied.
Cassius smiled. "That's what they all say at first."
Lyra's gaze sharpened. "What do you want?"
Cassius's eyes flicked to Lyra, then back to Rowan. "You want to know what happened to the boy. You want answers. But you don't want the truth."
Rowan's jaw tightened. "What truth?"
Cassius stepped closer. "The truth is that people like Langley don't act alone. He has allies."
Rowan's eyes narrowed. "Who?"
Cassius shrugged. "The school protects him. So the school is guilty."
Lyra's voice was quiet. "That's not a clue. That's a statement."
Cassius smiled. "Sometimes statements are clues too."
He turned and walked away.
Rowan watched him go.
Then he noticed the way Cassius's fingers brushed the book spine as he passed—like a secret code. Like a message.
Rowan stood abruptly.
"Wait," he called.
Cassius paused, glancing back.
Rowan walked quickly toward him. "Why are you helping me?"
Cassius's smile was slow, almost amused. "Helping? I'm not helping you."
Rowan felt a chill. "Then what are you doing?"
Cassius's eyes darkened. "I'm making sure the right people get blamed."
He turned and disappeared into the crowd.
Rowan stared after him.
Lyra was quiet beside him. "He's dangerous."
Rowan nodded. "So is the school."
Later that night
Rowan couldn't sleep. His mind replayed Cassius's words like a loop.
"I'm making sure the right people get blamed."
Who did Cassius mean?
Orion's face appeared in Rowan's mind—calm, controlled, eyes sharp as knives. Rowan couldn't tell whether Orion was the kind of person who could protect him… or the kind of person who could use him.
A knock sounded at his door.
Rowan opened it.
Orion stood there, hands folded, expression neutral. He looked tired. Worn.
"You shouldn't be out," Rowan said quietly.
Orion stepped inside without waiting for permission. "You shouldn't be alone."
Rowan swallowed. "What do you want?"
Orion's gaze held his. "You're making it worse."
Rowan's brow furrowed. "Worse how?"
Orion's voice dropped. "By asking the questions out loud. By looking for answers where the school wants you to look away."
Rowan's heart pounded. "Then tell me where to look."
Orion hesitated.
Then he reached into his pocket and placed something on Rowan's desk.
A small strip of paper.
Rowan picked it up.
It was a schedule.
Langley's schedule.
But it wasn't the official one.
It was marked.
With times.
And names.
Rowan's eyes widened.
Orion's voice was quiet, almost a whisper. "Langley has meetings. Not with students."
Rowan stared at the paper. "With who?"
Orion's eyes flicked toward the window. "With the people who run this place."
Rowan felt a cold wave of realization wash over him.
Orion's gaze returned to his. "That's why you need to be careful."
Rowan swallowed. "You're helping me."
Orion's voice was flat. "I'm making sure you don't get killed."
Rowan stared at him, stunned.
Orion turned toward the door. "Sleep. Tomorrow, you'll need your mind."
He left.
Rowan stood alone, the paper trembling in his hands.
Cassius Rowe was a red herring.
But Orion Lennox?
Orion was the only person Rowan trusted to be dangerous.