CHAPTER TEN167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMDEHHJ5Nc5
Mary’s latest note was tucked inside a battered copy of Things Fall Apart in the library, slipped between pages dog-eared by a hundred anxious hands.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdpSF5sutiW
“Order meeting after lights out. Mercy absents. Prefects nervous. Watch for new patrols near the tank. –M”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr99IAaGHAV
Kim read it twice, then passed the book to Seline under the table. Their eyes met for just a moment-enough to agree on the next step.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkTtPOAkC7p
That evening, as the sky faded to indigo and the wall’s shadow stretched across the field, Kim and Seline moved quietly through the compound. They didn’t linger together-never enough to draw suspicion-but their paths crossed at just the right moments. A nod at the water tank. A glance near the bougainvillea. Each signal meant the plan was moving forward.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYf7itvCOqD
They didn’t have the Order’s reach or its old network of loyalists, but they had something better: information. Mary’s updates, June’s whispered hints about which teachers were restless, which prefects were wavering, and which adults might listen if approached the right way.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmSfuyBwCfL
Seline, ever the observer, noticed that Mrs. Atieno lingered after evening prep, her eyes sharp but not unkind. Seline approached her, careful to sound casual.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi84PpDWus9
“Madam, I heard some girls might be sneaking out tonight. Maybe someone should check near the tank? I just… don’t want anyone to get in trouble.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlp2Dr39pJS
Mrs. Atieno’s gaze sharpened. She nodded, and Seline slipped away, heart pounding.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA0RfMYXe5E
Meanwhile, Kim made her way to the staffroom, her excuse ready. She needed to return a lost library book. As she waited for the teacher on duty, she left a folded note on the desk-unsigned, but clear:167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVNUf6JCnT4
“Some students are hiding things in the old storeroom. Please look tonight.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPnNjNrTyT8
Back in the dorms, Seline quietly gathered a few trusted girls-ones who had suffered under the Order’s rules, or who had seen too much to stay silent. They didn’t talk about plans, not directly. Instead, they shared stories, piecing together a picture of what the Order had done, who had been hurt, and how the silence could finally be broken.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSXl5DQwNsO
The next morning, the school buzzed with news: a surprise inspection, a prefect caught out of bounds, a teacher who seemed to know more than she should. The Order was on edge, its members glancing nervously at each other, unsure where the next blow would come from.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHplbIVBwKM
Kim and Seline watched from the sidelines, careful not to celebrate too soon. Their actions were small, almost invisible, but each one nudged the balance of power. They weren’t just disrupting the Order-they were building something new: alliances with adults who cared, solidarity among the girls, and a quiet resistance that grew stronger with every secret passed through the wall.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp8iw442Lp3
In the golden hush of evening, as the jacaranda petals drifted down and the wall glowed in the last light, Kim and Seline knew they were no longer just outsiders. They were the ones changing the story-one careful move at a time.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN8HJEN44gd
June167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEYBnJTeY8b
June moved through the corridors of Kisumu Girls’ with a kind of practiced invisibility. She wasn’t a prefect anymore, but the memory of her leadership lingered in the way teachers nodded to her in the staffroom, the way the bursar always smiled when she handed in club receipts, the way even the strictest dorm captain softened her voice when June asked for an extra blanket for a sick girl.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxNqFJmioiD
It was a power she wore lightly, never flaunting it, always careful. That afternoon, as the sun slanted through the jacaranda trees, June lingered near the staffroom door, pretending to check the noticeboard. She listened as Mrs. Atieno and Mr. Omondi discussed the latest rumors-something about missing library books and students sneaking out after prep. June tucked away every detail, every stray complaint, every mention of “unusual activity near the wall.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6EMubO7fWq
Later, in the dining hall line, she found herself behind Ruth, a junior prefect whose loyalties had always wavered. June leaned in; her voice low but warm. “You know, Ruth, sometimes it’s better to ask questions than to follow blindly. Things are changing. You don’t want to be on the wrong side of the story.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlBmWMM9c2x
Ruth glanced at her, uncertain, but June only smiled and moved on, leaving the words to settle.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCsOvLG7Ai3
In the library, June found Mercy’s friend, Lydia, hunched over a stack of textbooks. June sat beside her, not speaking at first. When Lydia finally looked up, June said, “If you ever need to talk about… anything, you know where to find me.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx7NloUcMrf
She left a folded note in Lydia’s book, a simple message:167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7DbSUr9gMb
“Not everyone who leads is right. Not everyone who follows is safe.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhD7rdS6jxC
As dusk fell, June walked the edge of the compound, pausing near the wall. She watched as a group of Order loyalists huddled by the water tank, their conversation tense, their glances nervous. June caught the eye of one-a girl named Faith, who had once confided in her about the pressure to “keep things quiet.” June gave her a small, knowing nod. Faith looked away, but June saw the uncertainty flicker in her eyes.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLX3TBQDK9q
By the time evening prep ended, June had gathered enough whispers and fragments to piece together the Order’s next move. She passed a coded message to Mary, who would get it to Kim and Seline:167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLwcanZxjqZ
“Watch the water tank. Some are wavering-Faith especially. Staff are restless. The wall isn’t as silent as it seems.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFXfSszkTSD
June never claimed credit. She never needed to. Her influence was a quiet current beneath the surface, shifting loyalties, planting doubts, and gathering truths. In a school divided by stone and silence, June’s power was in the spaces between-in the trust she inspired, the doubts she sowed, and the secrets she carried from one side of the wall to the other.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Hig229BcY
**********167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5xR4vW2tAK
Mary’s note arrived tucked inside a dog-eared math revision booklet, slipped onto Kim’s desk during afternoon prep.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡckKtnU2E2v
“Ruth is scared. She’s not sleeping. Prefects questioned her about the wall. She’s not loyal-just trapped. –M”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ80Y2P8FgRP
Kim read the message twice, then slid it to Seline under the table. Seline’s purple pen tapped once, a silent agreement. They’d seen Ruth-her eyes ringed with worry, her laugh brittle, always glancing over her shoulder.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAT5ZTtFWrH
That evening, as the sky deepened to indigo and the jacaranda shadows stretched across the compound, Kim found Ruth alone by the water tank, pretending to fix her shoelace.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtbY2Bxlayl
Kim crouched beside her, voice low. “You don’t have to keep covering for them, you know.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpnELk5sM8m
Ruth’s hands stilled. “I don’t know what you mean.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6go6wtMIn
Seline appeared, as if by accident, standing a few paces away. “We know you’re not like the others. You don’t have to be afraid.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡctJN9goD2T
Ruth looked between them, her eyes wide and uncertain. “If they find out I talked to you-”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUnaM4t2wAf
Kim shook her head. “We’re not asking you to betray anyone. Just… help us stop this. You know what they did last night. You saw who was there.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzfvqiKM59H
Ruth hesitated, then nodded, a tremor in her voice. “I just want it to end. I want to sleep again.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlkyLIUYENr
Seline smiled gently. “Then you’re already on our side.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡePBvP3tjYf
Word spread quietly-Mary made sure of it. She whispered to another wavering prefect in the library, left a coded message in a borrowed textbook, steered frightened juniors toward Kim and Seline with a reassuring nod. Each new ally brought a piece of the puzzle: a name, a time, a warning about the Order’s next move.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdcMexMa7ow
One by one, the Order’s unity frayed. Those who had ruled by fear now found themselves isolated, their commands met with silence or, worse, quiet defiance. The wall still stood, but the lines of loyalty had shifted; the old boundaries were blurring.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWNO0LHJfH2
By the end of the week, Kim and Seline had gathered a handful of former Order loyalists-girls who had once enforced the rules, now quietly helping to dismantle them. Mary kept the updates flowing, always a step ahead of suspicion.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM48X3oM1FE
In the hush before lights out, Kim looked around the dormitory and realized: the Order was no longer one solid wall. It was a crumbling line, and every new ally was a crack letting the light through.
167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUC3Guusrg6
June167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzfDUIIhcyI
June’s presence in the group was always quiet, but tonight it was purposeful. She sat at the edge of the group, her notebook open, eyes flicking between Kim, Seline, and Mary as they whispered over the low hum of the dormitory’s evening routine.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmBlMQ8X2nD
She listened first-always listening-while the others described what they’d seen: the new patrols near the wall, the prefects’ sudden interest in the water tank, the coded glances exchanged at roll call. When they finished, June spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ10c1kozVCO
“They’re nervous. That’s why the patrols are doubling back, why Mercy’s group is splitting up instead of moving together. When I was in charge, we always rotated the routes after a scare. It makes them feel in control, but it actually leaves gaps-especially near the old storeroom and the back gate.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHBb9ekIsDM
Kim nodded, scribbling notes in the margin of her Chemistry book. “So, if we want to move something-or meet someone-we do it when the patrols are changing over?”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLrMfkW6y2L
June smiled, just a hint of pride in her eyes. “Exactly. And if you want to pass a message without being caught, use the library returns slot. Prefects rarely check it, and the staff only empty it in the morning.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPMckvunEQE
Mary, perched on the edge of her bed, added, “What about the teachers? Some of them are getting suspicious.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2FwUSo3zBl
June leaned in. “That’s where timing matters. If you want a teacher to see something, make sure it happens just before evening prep-when they’re tired and less likely to ask questions. And always let them think it was their idea to investigate. Never push too hard.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4DrNiYbdkf
Seline, twirling her purple pen, asked quietly, “What about the Order’s loyalists? Some of them are scared, but they’re still watching us.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMgAfvx6So3
June’s expression softened. “Find the ones who hesitate before they speak. The ones who linger after meetings. Offer them a choice, not a threat. When I was in charge, the most loyal girls were the ones who felt trapped. Show them a way out, and they’ll help you-sometimes without even realizing it.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHrrbIsysTl
The plan came together in whispers and glances: when to move, where to hide, who to trust. June’s experience turned their scattered ideas into a strategy-one that used the Order’s own routines and fears against them.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7gME7fHdgn
As the bell rang for lights out, June closed her notebook and looked at the others. “Remember, they expect chaos. Give them quiet instead. That’s how you win.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzRukC0hhzW
Kim smiled, feeling a surge of confidence she hadn’t known in weeks. With June’s guidance, the wall no longer felt impenetrable. It was just another obstacle-one they could outthink, one step at a time.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPiIb6299g0
**********167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ76cXYVmh53
June’s notebook was always half-hidden, its pages filled with careful notes and coded sketches of the compound. She sat with Kim, Seline, and Mary in the far corner of the library, where the smell of old paper masked their whispers.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8i5PFBnRlu
June tapped her pen against the page. “If you want to meet without being seen, do it during the changeover after evening prep. The Order always rotates patrols then-there’s a five-minute gap near the storeroom and the water tank. That’s your window.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbtZJJ4vFM6
Mary nodded, committing the detail to memory. Seline glanced at Kim; her purple pen poised over her own notebook. “And if we need to pass a message?”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzYnp0w0JGg
June smiled faintly. “Use the library returns slot. Prefects never check it after seven, and the staff only empty it in the morning. If you need a faster way, leave a blue paper clip in the bougainvillea. That’s the old signal-no one outside our circle knows it means ‘urgent.’”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡszudFhAEdr
Kim leaned in; voice low. “What about the Order? If they realize we’re meeting-”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjvm2ghkOYS
“They’ll try to flush you out by calling a surprise roll call or sending a prefect to ‘accidentally’ find you,” June said, her tone matter-of-fact. 167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQVMFxrYlw2
“If that happens, split up. Never let them catch two of you together. Always have a cover story-water bottle left behind, library book to return, anything.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHZAoUUHQn8
Mary’s eyes widened. “How do you know all this?”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKmrq2uvDc6
June’s smile was almost sad. “Because I used to plan it. The same way they do now.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHbOxHBew7U
She outlined the rest:167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWlSUKEsxpM
“Never use the same meeting spot two nights in a row. If you hear the phrase “sunflower duty” from a prefect, it means a sweep is coming-hide anything suspicious. If you need to warn someone fast, use the old storeroom window: a folded note taped to the inside means “danger-don’t come.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLGNRfTBMI5
Seline scribbled it all down, her hands steady. Kim felt a strange surge of confidence. With June guiding them, the wall no longer felt like a prison. It was a chessboard-and they finally knew the moves.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡANshH2WUWx
As dusk crept in and the bell rang for evening prep, June closed her notebook and met their eyes. “Stay alert. Stay separate. And remember-timing is everything.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoTm2AIUR5Y
The girls slipped away, each to her own path, their hearts racing not with fear, but with purpose. In the golden hush of the Kisumu evening, they moved as shadows-quiet, coordinated, and unseen.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlRBIfLkdQh
**********167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEY4cclKqOW
June’s voice was always calm, even when the others’ nerves frayed at the edges. Tonight, she gathered Kim, Seline, and Mary in the shadowy alcove behind the old science block-a place the Order rarely patrolled, and where whispers could be swallowed by the hum of the generator.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2h0NB5JhJ2
She laid out the plan with the precision of someone who’d once enforced the very rules she now helped to subvert.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGyet9kmAXB
“Listen,” June said, her finger tracing a map of the compound drawn in the dust on the floor. 167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6klohD9Dvk
“The Order always retaliates in patterns. If someone gets caught near the wall, they’ll call a surprise roll call the next night-usually just before lights out. They’ll search bags, check for missing girls, and question anyone who looks nervous. That’s when you keep your heads down. Don’t volunteer. Don’t argue. Just blend in.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwXR1JAKQCn
Mary nodded, scribbling notes in her margin. Seline’s purple pen hovered, ready.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqv6n3v6Fw9
June continued, “If you want to pass a message or move something important, do it right after evening prep, when the Order is busy reporting to the staff. That’s the only window when their guard is down. And never use the same route twice-rotate between the storeroom, the water tank, and the library returns slot. If they catch a pattern, they’ll set a trap.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡibQfLRBXYw
Kim frowned. “What about the loyalists? They’re watching us more closely now.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsMP3xx1VuN
June’s eyes narrowed, thoughtful. “That’s why you need a decoy. If you know the Order is planning a sweep, have someone unrelated-someone they’d never suspect-ask a loud question in the dining hall or start a harmless commotion. It’ll draw their attention away from the real meeting spot.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIew7JSWkYU
She paused, letting her words settle. “And remember: they discipline by isolation. If they suspect you, they’ll try to separate you from the others-send you on errands alone, assign you to different dorm chores. Don’t let them. Always move in pairs, even if it’s just to fetch water.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6M68bPMN6O
Mary looked up. “And if someone gets caught?”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG9sj3wmvy4
June’s voice softened. “If anyone is questioned, say as little as possible. The Order relies on fear and confusion. If you don’t give them a story, they can’t twist it. And if you have to take the blame, make sure it’s for something small-never the real secret.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHY9Z1zZbdp
Seline’s eyes shone with new resolve. “You make it sound like a game.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxDybsXscad
June smiled, just a little. “It is. But we know the rules now. That’s how we win.”167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRd9vHs1qZ3
As the bell rang for lights out, the girls melted into the shadows, each carrying their part of the plan-every step calculated, every risk measured. With June’s guidance, their rebellion was no longer reckless. It was precise, invisible, and-most importantly-untouchable.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMhsrsvC8QK
And in the hush that followed, the wall seemed to pulse with a new kind of energy-not just a boundary, but a silent witness to the quiet war being waged in its shadow.167Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL0YF4zY0fX
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