Chapter 44: Chapter 44

I put Eva in Siobhan and Becca’s care and straightened to my feet. My heart was beating heavily at the possibility that there was an intruder in the seniors’ hostel but I put on a brave face for the sake of my fellow students.

Siobhan had tears brimming in her eyes but when I handed Eva to her she saw my fear and the courage I tried to hide it with and she blinked the tears from her eyes. She nodded at me.

I turned to Aaron. “Let’s report this to Mr. Jorge. The rest of you please stay together in one room if possible and make sure no one leaves for any reason. Or you could all stay here for safety's sake, we’ll be back. Please, everyone, refrain from screaming, let’s be as calm as possible.”

They obeyed. The boys stood guard to protect the girls. Aaron and I quickly left the quarters and made our way as fast as we could to the main school area. As we passed I noticed that the other students' hostels were undisturbed which means whoever intruded in our quarters definitely skipped our juniors’ hostels. Good thing. There’s only so much pressure and fear I can handle tonight.

Aaron suddenly reached for my hand and squeezed it. I looked up at him, there was fear in his eyes but he too put on a brave face.

“We will be fine.”

I nodded and managed a smile. I was feeling anything but fine, my mind was running in circles. Who was the man who came into the hostel and how had he gotten there? Did anyone else see him?

The junior students who greeted us as we passed weren’t acting like anything was amiss which means that not only were they undisturbed, they didn’t see anything unusual. No use alarming them by asking questions.

I squeezed Aaron’s hard to calm myself.

We were lucky to catch Mr. Jorge before he left his office.

“Sir!” I called out when he came out of his office. He was about to lock the door.

“Oh, Bianca Davis.” His smile disappeared when he saw the look on my face and Aaron’s. “Is something wrong?”

“Sir, there’s an intruder.”

His eyes narrowed. “What?”

“There was a man in the seniors’ quarters who tried to hurt Eva. She was in the bathroom when he came in through her balcony, he was dressed in black, and when she screamed he ran off leaving his shoe behind.”

The more the words spilled out of me the wider his eyes got. When Aaron raised the size 14 Nikes Mr. Jorge’s eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

“In the seniors’ quarters, you say?”

“Yes, sir,” Aaron responded.

Mr. Jorge dropped his black briefcase and started opening his office again. He was composed for the most part but the emergency in his voice gave away his fear too. “What about the other students?”

“As far as we know they are safe. We haven’t asked them anything so we won’t scare them.”

“Good thinking. I was right to vote you two as Head of this school. Sound the emergency siren now and get the younger students in their rooms. Don’t tell them what’s happening, panic kills faster than the disease. I’ll call the Matron and Concierge to my office, when you are done getting the younger students to safety, lock up the hostels and bring the rest of the Class 3 seniors here.”

We jumped into action. Aaron went for the emergency siren, and as soon as the loud sound blasted through the school every junior student out and about stopped what they were doing. I imagine those hiding at the park and the abandoned chemistry lab had no choice but to put their dicks and boobs back in their places because this siren is the loudest we have here in Edwin and Co. and it’s been years since we’ve ever used it, that is because Edwin and Co. is generally considered safe, it’s rare to have reports of an intruder in this school when there’s heavy-duty security with electric fences and guards at the gate. It’s the best school in the country after all, it’s supposed to be well secured.

Clamping my hands around my ears I made my way to the junior hostels where a couple of Class 1 and 2 juniors who didn’t know what the siren meant were wandering about.

“Bianca Davis ma’am, what’s happening?” one of the juniors asked me.

“That was the emergency siren, go into your rooms now. Get your friends and go to your room, all of you, now!”

They scrambled to obey my order. Maybe it was the emergency in my tone or the sight of the Class 2 seniors swinging into action by gathering the other junior students into their rooms. Nothing like an emergency to bring the maturity out of the most immature.

One of my juniors approached me, a Class 2 senior called Jake Newmarsh, he works as an editor for the school newspaper. He looked worried.

“Miss Davis what’s happening?” he asked.

“There’s an emergency. I’m not trying to scare you but it looks like there might be an intruder.”

His brows furrowed. For a second I saw the fear but in a flash, he was putting on a courageous face. He cupped his hands around his mouth and in a strong voice called out, “Everyone in your rooms. Now!” his voice was so loud I bet anyone lost in lust or the dead definitely heard. He was gentle with the younger students as he helped them get into the hostel. He even got some of his classmates to join him in maintaining order as everyone made their way indoors.

I may have found Aaron’s replacement as Head Boy when we graduate.

I reached out to him as he helped the last person get in before setting the security passcode for the girls' hostel.

“Thanks, Jake.”

He nodded. “Be careful. Is there anything else I can do?”

“Not for now. Please keep what I told you to yourself, Mr. Jorge doesn’t want anyone to panic so we have to keep mute about this until we have figured out what to do, okay? For now, we Class 3 seniors will be meeting with Mr. Jorge to figure out what’s next.”

He nodded.

I patted his arm gratefully and helped him input the security passcode for the boys' hostel when he got in. I made my way to the Seniors’ quarters once that was done.

Someone had gotten Eva a pair of sweats. She wasn’t trembling so much anymore but her eyes were still red with tears. Siobhan had been crying, and so had Janet and Adeline. Shewa and Becca together with the boys were trying their hardest to be strong, trying hard to calm everyone as best as they could.

“The principal will see us now, everyone. Let’s walk together please as we make our way to his office.”

Aaron joined us soon and every one of us, for the first time without arguing or envying, made our way to the Administrative building where the principal’s office was. There was Mr. Jorge behind his desk, the Matron and Concierge, and the security guards on duty with him.