Chapter 13 - The Inside Source
The pickup truck bounced violently as Arthur turned off the paved highway onto a dusty service road leading toward the downtown district. The neon lights of the city skyline flickered in the distance through the smog and pine haze.
"Where are we going, Dad?" Clara asked quietly, wrapping her arms around herself for warmth. "Vance said the federal people won't help us."
"Vance lied," Arthur said firmly, keeping his eyes fixed on the dark road ahead. "Institutions are run by people, Clara. And not everyone inside St. Jude is a monster."
Ten minutes later, the truck pulled into the rear parking lot of the St. Jude administrative annex. Parked by the dumpsters was a sleek, silver compact car belonging to Chloe—the same student whose phone had received the video call notification during the opening classroom incident.
Arthur killed the engine and stepped out of the truck, walking cautiously toward the silver car. The driver’s side window rolled down smoothly, revealing Chloe’s pale face in the dashboard light. She looked terrified, nervously twisting a silver ring around her thumb.
"Mr. Hayes?" Chloe whispered, glancing around the empty parking lot. "Why did you ask me to meet you here?"
"Because you were in the classroom, Chloe," Arthur said, leaning down by her window. "You saw what Mrs. Gable did. And you know something else about how this system operates."
Chloe swallowed hard, her eyes welling with tears. "My older brother went to St. Jude three years ago. He didn't drop out... they broke him. He’s been in a private recovery clinic ever since because he tried to leak their grading practices to the local newspaper."
"Then you know we aren't the only ones fighting them," Arthur said, pulling a small encrypted flash drive from his pocket—the physical backup drive Dr. Holloway had slipped into his coat before the raid. "I need you to take this. You have clearance access to the student council media network server, don't you?"
Chloe stared at the flash drive in Arthur’s palm. Her hands shook violently as she reached out and took it. "If Principal Vance catches me uploading this to the public student network, I'll be expelled, and my parents will lose their healthcare benefits."
"If we don't upload it tonight, no one is safe," Arthur said softly. "You have a choice, Chloe. Be a silent witness, or help us end this nightmare once and for all."
May you like
Chloe closed her fist tightly around the flash drive, taking a deep, shuddering breath as she nodded slowly.
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