Chapter 2 - The Green Indicator
Maya adjusted her thick-rimmed glasses, her hands shaking uncontrollably as she stared down at the floor beneath her desk. The loose power cord lay just inches from her patent-leather shoes, disconnected during the sudden scuffle between Eleanor and Leo. Across the classroom, Leo was pulling himself up from the linoleum, a dark red welt blooming across his pale cheek, while Eleanor turned her back to check the hallway windows for any approaching faculty members.
Maya knew the school board’s internal cameras recorded everything, but Eleanor had disabled the wall unit, thinking she had blinded the room completely. What Eleanor didn't realize was that the older analog routing system had a secondary auxiliary feed powered directly through the floor junction box—a legacy installation from the nineties that nobody ever bothered to remove during the modern digital upgrade.
With a heart hammering wildly against her ribs, Maya reached down in the dim light. Her fingers brushed the frayed plastic connector, slick with cold sweat. If she plugged it back in, the security server in the basement would instantly receive the data stream. If she left it unplugged, the assault on Leo would disappear into the void, leaving them entirely at the mercy of a desperate, cornered teacher.
"Maya," Eleanor’s voice cut through the air like a razor blade, cold and razor-sharp. "Is there something interesting down by your feet, or are you just practicing your posture for the school assembly?"
Maya froze, her fingers hovering a millimeter away from the prongs. She could feel Eleanor’s heavy gaze shifting away from the door and locking directly onto the back of her desk. The temptation to pull her hands back and pretend nothing was happening screamed in her mind, warning her of the immediate consequences. But then she glanced at Leo, who gave her a fleeting, desperate look of warning and pleading combined.
Taking a deep, trembling breath, Maya shoved the plug firmly into the floor outlet. A tiny spark hissed in the socket, and a second later, the small circular indicator light on the dangling wall camera flashed from blinking red to a steady, glowing emerald green.
May you like
Eleanor spun around, her eyes widening in sheer, unadulterated horror as she stared at the glowing green bulb. But before she could cross the room to rip the wiring out of the floor permanently, the heavy classroom door slowly began to click open from the outside hallway.
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