“Card of Betrayal”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOvFJ8Do4WV
The girls Assembly Hall the following morning is the venue for the second Tribunal. Curtains drawn; bell silent. Only selected prefects, Order affiliates, and nominated students have been summoned. The rest go about their normal school routine mostly unaware of the tension in the hall.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFN6PwXIVFC
Naomi stood at the podium under dim, deliberate lighting.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ05Q7iI4rrS
To her left: June and Mary. To her right: Kim, silent, unreadable. In front of her: the M.O.3 crate, now cleaned, re-sealed, chalk mark intact.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfRqYOuZpic
“Today,” Naomi began, voice crisp, “we close a page.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqhazqsAQF5
“The ledgers within this crate represent the past we choose not to forget—but to contain.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ0AfqkI6Sc
The prefects stood still. No movement.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6kDpKQKG75
Naomi leaned forward. “Let it be known: Mercy’s ledger, last of its kind, is here. And this assembly will witness its archiving.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7hQtrvCLV1
She lifted the lid slowly. Tissue and canvas inside.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6bdyNPhTAb
Perfectly wrapped.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQBRq0ebwyQ
She reached in.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUcIMoDhDzn
Paused.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEED2hZfUH2
Her hand emerged—not with a ledger. But with a flat black card, stamped with a silver serpent.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqX3Jxj4nzf
Gasps rang through the hall.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtuqWQcwZbI
Naomi stared at it, frozen.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡal88S4LVm2
She whispered sharply, “That wasn’t in the crate.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuLNMdLPzF1
Mary stepped forward, too late.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdrauDUzwcq
“There’s been a switch—!”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9uYVZeJ3sm
But the room had already turned.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn9DByeqMJC
“Is that… Mercy’s mark? Did Naomi fake the crate?”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFfXnvAOWW0
“Was this whole thing a setup?”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlP2DLCZUox
From the back of the hall, a junior whispered to another:93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡorOdf1PbLx
“She said she had nothing left to hide. Then what’s that?”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTWZb3C7ufU
Naomi placed the card down without a word.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE8Kc9E1qOi
The silence was suffocating.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu1qtrmhbqZ
Then she said, slowly:93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQQc0SKjEFX
“This is not the card we inspected last night.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVSndvZbOTr
Murmurs spread. A few laughed nervously. Others stepped backward.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKgJxfhJ0Qk
Kim whispered, “There were two?”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX9bKIBsuXf
June’s face hardened. “Or someone replaced ours after we destroyed it.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtHPQqJN7hh
The room was already vibrating with uncertainty.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0qPIFlHLjt
Naomi's fingers hovered over the black card, but her composure had cracked. Whispers were no longer whispers.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCVF44BfHH9
“She’s not in control.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoDIUk5FxFz
“This was never about safety.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWeMgQ3DWrV
“Mercy’s winning.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdRbM2hlDE
Suddenly—93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNmBg2k915
June stepped forward. Without asking.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ51v4tsuHdw
She snatched the card from Naomi’s hand — held it up to the hall’s filtered light.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0YM6U8LS5s
Gasps rang out.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6weRPKdyOW
In the upper right corner, only visible at an angle under the glow of the nearby reading lamp:93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvmbfXaZPvc
A faint signature. In soft gold ink.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkZ1B93giEI
One name:93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI3N5ycjkPw
Ayo.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡahxTmW2CKD
A prefect shouted, “One of the boys?!”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgnLEv0wmXs
Another hissed, “So they set us up?”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXwNGeI0LaQ
Kim’s jaw tightened. “That’s why the card wasn’t just symbolic. It was bait.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZoTjyc7qC
Naomi stood frozen — trying to catch her breath, the weight of the card finally gone from her hands.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmEEy44yTCO
June turned to the room:93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH51jn4CfQG
“This is not Mercy’s card. This is a forged threat. It carries the signature of a boy who helped deliver the crate.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡip6OQx1dRa
Gasps deepened into murmurs.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1itd4I81wC
“It was a plant. So, the alliance wasn’t fake—someone tried to make it look fake.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ8o0XFhjZv
June turned toward Naomi — not confrontationally, but like a scalpel in a surgeon’s grip.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX5R8Ngf3tY
“You need to decide, Naomi. Either call this what it is — sabotage — or let them write your ending for you.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsiVgwyS6so
Naomi finally nodded.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1aX2runkfO
She turned back to the room.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2fioyBwaMx
Naomi quietly sealed the box again, her voice calm.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ349xcIXnzN
“The Tribunal is postponed.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXJqiVcmGLD
The Tribunal Hall had half-emptied. Girls were filing out in low whispers after Naomi’s announcement suspending the boys’ alliance.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWjlBtU3dbE
But Mary stayed behind, unmoving. June stood by the crate. Kim lingered at the base of the lectern. Naomi had turned to leave.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF7hCdjH0Qk
That’s when Mary stepped forward.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ujnZFaQYx
“There’s something else,” she said quietly.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNulr1SazB5
Naomi turned.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvKrgTzj4QD
“Not now, Mary—”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjCkiQq98Fh
“Now,” Mary repeated, louder.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI5OcqptPSU
From her jacket, she pulled a tightly rolled bundle. The room stilled again.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEcNecjVgGA
“This passed through the old herbarium drain vent.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBkyV5pcKA4
She unrolled the pages on the center table.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnpMYtI4jCC
Real ledger pages.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1CHlIKaw7i
Stiff, yellowed, handwritten. Dated.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRJptbGtucD
June stepped in, scanning the topmost page.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGZtDD2kBOC
Mercy’s handwriting. Pages of surveillance. Fabricated claims.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVHeWDIzMYD
Invented correspondences.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv4kmYVHYYC
Mary flipped to one marked in red:93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVrEISOsJ7
“Naomi collaborated with external prefects to remove dissenters in Form 3. False medical reports approved.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuD3RXSMbIa
Naomi stared at it.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlp7yZOOKAf
Kim stepped forward. “Is it real?”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2VuIvTpZZl
Naomi didn’t speak for a long time.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJqRpBa8GaO
Then — finally:93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaGjDOjOJnn
“Partially. The cover-ups happened. But I didn’t know about all of them. I let the fear run the archive. And I let Mercy control that fear.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAL75TE7ylG
She stepped back from the lectern.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ERvCPrZHE
“I wasn’t innocent. But I wasn’t the architect either.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqpICkHsfQ7
Mary rolled the pages up again.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxBUDCNCdma
“How can we trust that you are not trying to protect yourself. We need to decide what to do with this. Not the Order. Not even you, Naomi.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb5WvEyYmL0
Naomi nodded.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJwEAiDrRvv
She looked at Mary with a hint of something close to gratitude.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd9aDGKcHpH
“Then make sure whatever truth you choose next… doesn’t turn into another cage.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhEEHEoUp1G
As Mary rolled up the real ledger pages and Naomi sat in quiet resignation, a slow clap echoed from the back of the Tribunal Hall.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1ch1ibU8m6
All heads turned.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAD2BGt5EhM
Seline stepped forward, eyes blazing.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7311GnaHjE
“So that’s it? We’re supposed to believe the Order was never complicit? That Mercy lied, but Naomi just… forgot?”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCTBLi5eudd
June’s jaw tightened. “Seline—”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiJKlAH5j4k
“No. I’ve listened long enough.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu2Ztt1WWa2
She pointed at Naomi, then Mary.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTjwGZ3tsKs
“You covered for each other. You buried girls under perfect files and soft threats and fake silence. And now you want to be forgiven because someone else did worse?”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKOsVxaM6LX
Kim stood, but didn’t speak.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjfZR9qquDk
Seline stepped onto the tribunal platform.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡClLDAJkE0x
“You all failed us. Naomi with her scripts. Mercy with her games. Even June with her riddles.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTl9K8QjqN0
You think you saved us by picking the cleanest villain.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjjsTVyd8af
She pulled a thin red ribbon from her wrist and tied it around her thumb.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6j50GMzyiH
“I don’t owe this school another secret. I don’t owe this Order another name.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0LPObDFvbq
She faced the remaining prefects.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn9qZKc8AG8
“As of today, I start my own record. One that doesn’t vanish in burn bins or whisper vents. One that remembers.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf8fjb3KPwl
She turned.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbjpLhIpgiY
“You can keep your confessions. I’ll take the truth.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpToPaSFw6X
And she walked out.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeiFM2Z2Mxj
No one followed.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXE6grPrUAV
But several girls looked at each other with new uncertainty.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡydknbIS2uJ
As Naomi walked out, her fingers are trembling though nobody notices.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSXWUp1PEMn
In the archive box beneath Kim’s bed that night, a second folded black card is found — unsigned, but marked with a blue thumbprint.
*****93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwKT3Jrz5Kl
The Assembly Hall had nearly emptied.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOG39auNaiI
Seline’s vow still echoed in the minds of those who remained. Naomi had retreated behind the archive walls. Mary and June spoke in hushed tones beside the crate.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQRV26jAmsc
Kim slipped outside.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvIQxf0no2G
She didn’t notice the breeze at first, or the swirl of jacaranda petals on the stone steps. Only when a shadow moved beside her did she exhale.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKMAuVMCdew
Shiko.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXpM5Mt5Iv4
No words — just presence.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiIGtOOvGr0
For once, Kim didn’t resist the comfort. She leaned in, and Shiko placed a hesitant hand on her shoulder.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHnpatEDQZi
“You were right,” she whispered.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQfS9TiYz1U
“You didn’t flinch.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKpC4hJcEZ
Shiko gave a nervous smile. “I still wanted to.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhGlGPR62mQ
Then — just above the wind, quiet enough to be mistaken for breath:93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs7gHYTOuzh
“I think I’ve always wanted to tell you.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOUM5At0FGR
“That night by the wall. The message in the atlas. The fake card I planted to protect you.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡckoVfSYtCX
Kim turned her face toward her.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzTuDqSKIkq
“Why?”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8OgW1iP0RQ
Shiko swallowed. “Because… if they ever turned on you, I wouldn’t be able to stand behind a wall.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzAH8v6iyDU
A pause.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡODXnrraeEX
Their foreheads touched for half a second. She almost let it linger.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY0AcOZ6JxZ
But then — her eyes flicked.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqMUPO8wo44
Across the courtyard. Toward the boys’ side.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuuxm5vaF3g
Toward Jabari, standing with Musa beneath the awning, just beyond reach — half-shadow, fully watching.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ19EgikMd8D
Her breath caught.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlizmNhZ3QX
She pulled back gently.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMCG5QJVZoE
“You’re brave, Shiko. You always have been.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfxSaFDSBbM
“But sometimes the person you trust the most… isn’t the one who unlocks the map.”93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAGXlSkgJhf
She squeezed her hand once. Then walked back away.
