The Case I Refuse to Lose

I keep hearing the school’s legal language in my head: harassment, manipulation, formal review. Every careful noun sounds like someone has already decided which girl is dangerous and which girl is merely inconvenient.

The Hargroves did not build that complaint because Destiny threatened them. They built it because Destiny knew something they needed buried. That certainty steadies me, but it also makes me afraid. If I push too hard, the school may treat every question I ask as part of the harassment. If I pull back, they may bury her anyway. I hate having no clean move.

Lorraine’s apology bothered me more than her fear. She should never have apologized for sitting in a diner while someone threatened her daughter. I wanted to shake the caution out of her, but I also understand it. A tired woman with a child under threat learns to apologize quickly. The Hargroves probably taught her that.

I have started ranking the unanswered emails from Claire Donovan. First: which questions expose the case file. Second: which questions were planted to see whether I know about Margot. Third, and this is the one I refuse to write down: whether Claire is frightened enough to become useful.

I told Lorraine to keep Destiny away from the school, and my own fear came back wearing the same instruction. Stay home. Stay quiet. Stay reachable.