CHAPTER 117: DAMNING EVIDENCE...

Rhett

The three of us stood in Headmistress Vale’s office, staring at the computer screen in stunned silence as the security footage played.

Headmistress Vale dimmed the lights and hit play.

The screen on her wall came to life. A wide, fisheye view of the deserted classroom corridor from nearly three weeks ago, panned across the screen. It was the day we had sent all the students back to their dorm rooms because of the snow rogue’s threat.

There was no denying what we were seeing; the person in the footage was clearly Charis moving through the corridors.

The timestamp showed that she arrived at her classroom around 19:22. First, she scanned the empty hallway, palmed her access card, and the classroom lock flashed green.

Once she was inside, the camera angle switched to the room feed: she went straight to her desk, opened her school bag, and rifled through it, retrieving something. She closed the bag, checked the wall clock and left.

In the next clip, the time was 19:31, and this time around, she was standing in front of the computer lab. First, I wanted to mention how it was unlikely for anyone to move from the classroom area to the lab in nine minutes, but I kept my cool.

Any information that may prove Charis’s innocence shouldn’t be shared carelessly.

She accessed the computer lab, repeating the same process she had used in her classroom. She walked in, passed the first row of terminals and went to the last machine by the window.

We watched as she sat and used the computer. She muttered to herself as her hands flew over the keyboard, a habit I have never noticed. At 19:41, she rose to her feet, looked around once and left. Then the footage ended.

Vale clicked off the video and turned the lights back on.

Her gaze met ours coolly.

"There’s no doubt that’s him," she said quietly. "I know Eamon is your friend, and you always want to protect him, but this is pure evidence. You can see for yourself. He accessed his classroom and used the computer."

Everything Vale said was the truth. The evidence they had on her was enough to expel her, and after she’s expelled, she’d be handed over to the Civil court for trial.

But before that, she’d be indicted for impersonation and by the time all of this is over, given that she’s an adult already, we might be talking a minimum of ten years in jail.

Something about the whole situation felt wrong. A part of my mind kept insisting that Charis wasn’t capable of pulling this sort of thing, but I couldn’t ignore that she’d also hidden her true identity for more than two months.

I closed my eyes, trying desperately to recall what had happened that day.

"Wait!" I said suddenly. "That was the day I resumed school, and we were in the ref when the lockdown started. The student council came in to inform all the students to return to their hostel. You remember right?" I turned to Slater and Kael.

They nodded in agreement.

"After all the students left, Eamon lingered for a bit because Marcus was talking to him. After that, I’m sure he went to my room and stayed there until nighttime. Because that’s where we met him. We had a couple of long meetings and finished at nearly midnight. I’m not trying to say he’s perfect, but Eamon is my brother, and he won’t do this. He can’t."

"Well, the videos don’t lie," Vale shrugged dismissively, pulling out a stack of printed papers. "And neither do these."

She slid three sheets across her desk towards us. "There are also printed logs of search histories and timestamps showing browsing activities that came from Eamon’s computer session, but we would present that during the hearing. What interested me most is this."

She nodded at the three sheets on her desk.

Slater reached for one of the sheets. Kael hadn’t said a word since we came in. His hands were buried in his coat pockets. I took the two sheets and tried to read them.

User: riggs.eamonStation: LAB-1C-27Login: 19:32Logout: 19:41

Query history:

Faculty Directory (cached)

Enrollment Roster – Year One (restricted)

Student Services Portal (admin)

Printer Queue (lab)

Export: CSV (students, Y1)

The time stamps matched the footage. Everything was too goddamn neat as if it were a crime committed by a professional rather than Charis.

"These show someone accessing the student database, downloading personal information, and uploading it to an external server," Vale explained with relish. "All during the timeframe when Mr. Riggs was supposedly in his brother’s room."

"He doesn’t have admin rights," I insisted. "No first-year does. Not even a Class Alpha."

Vale’s mouth curved into a smirk. "You’re right. Which is why this is so interesting." She tapped a line lower on the page. "Temporary elevation, and it happened within three minutes. Exactly the window used to view and export."

"Then who approved it?" Kael asked flatly.

"Auto-approval by a staff token cached from the last session on the machine," Vale replied. "A token that should never have been there in the first place. Let’s say it was maybe from a distracted technician who left the lab while still logged into an admin overlay. Or, possibly..." Vale paused and opened her hands. "Someone very clever who planted a ghost token to be used later."

"And how do you know all of these?" Slater asked. "You’ve got to be computer literate to..."

"I asked the computer literates," she didn’t allow Slater to finish, "Of course, they told me, and I’m only reciting word for word everything they said."

"This is impossible," Kael said, shaking his head. "Eamon wouldn’t do this."

"The evidence suggests otherwise," Vale replied coldly. "She accessed the classroom to pick up the access card in her bag, then went to the lab, opened a restricted portal and uploaded the entire year one data on the internet."

"I’m telling you, Eamon cannot do this," Slater said with a sigh. "He’s not dull or stupid, but the expertise... c’mon... he’s incapable of doing it."

"Evidence can be fabricated," I countered, adding to Slater’s argument. "Anyone with administrative access could have planted this information."

"Someone could have worn his shape on camera. This could also be an illusion or even patched footage. Why would he want to sell students’ information? Does it make sense to you, ma?" Slater asked.

"But the lab’s fingerprint reader registered his palm vein pattern when he logged in, and it says it’s him. What other proof do you want?" Vale asked.

"He didn’t do it," Kael shook his head again. "He would never."

"Are you suggesting I’m framing an innocent student?" Vale asked with raised eyebrows.

"I’m suggesting that someone is," I said firmly. "And until we know who really did this, you can’t just assume Eamon is guilty."

"The inquiry board will determine his guilt or innocence," Vale said with finality.

My blood ran cold at the mention of the inquiry board. Those proceedings were notoriously thorough. They would investigate every aspect of Charis’s background, conduct medical examinations, and verify her identity documents. If she faced an inquiry board, her true identity would be discovered within hours.

"What happens next?" I asked quietly, though I dreaded the answer.

"Standard protocol. He’ll face an inquiry board next week to determine the appropriate punishment. But until then, he’ll remain in detention."

"A full week?" Slater protested. "That’s too much for someone who hasn’t been proven guilty of anything."

"It’s necessary to prevent any potential flight risk or evidence tampering," Vale replied smoothly.

I felt panic rising in my chest. A week in detention followed by an inquiry board would destroy everything. Not only would they discover Charis’s true identity, but they might also uncover the mate bond and everything else we’d been hiding.

"You cannot keep her in detention, Headmistress Vale. I’m exercising my authority as a sitting member of the Academy’s board," I said, meeting Vale’s eyes. "Section Seven, Subclause (d) says: a board scion may request provisional release of a student into monitored custody if the student’s presence is deemed necessary for ongoing safety considerations. I’m asking for his release."

"Nicely quoted, Alpha Thatcher," Vale nodded with a quirky smile on her lips. "And as you know, the same clause requires a 24-hour holding window for questioning and preservation of evidence. What the interrogation team gets from him would determine if he’ll be released or not."

My heart sank. She had anticipated this move and was prepared for it.

"Furthermore," Vale continued, "given the serious nature of these charges, I’ll be recommending to the board that we conduct a full background verification on Mr. Riggs. His enrollment documents may contain discrepancies that need to be investigated."

That was a threat.

She wasn’t just going after Charis for the alleged data theft; she was planning to expose everything.

"I think we’re done here," Vale said, gathering up the evidence. "Boys, I have work to do. I can allow you to visit your friend tomorrow. So, until then, you’re dismissed."