Chapter 19 - THE LAST TESTKAYISE
For one terrible second, I forget everything I've ever learned.
I forget how to control my breathing.
I forget how to think.
I forget that running toward a burning building without protective equipment could turn one emergency into two.
All I can think about is Sebastian.
The boy who believed me.
The boy who made me laugh.
The boy who reminded me that I was more than my father's daughter.
I start moving toward the research annex.
Then someone grabs my arm.
Captain Ndlovu.
"Mthembu!"
I turn.
"Sebastian is inside!"
"I know. The evacuation teams are responding."
"We have to help him!"
"And we will. But not by creating another casualty."
I stare at her.
She points toward the emergency staging area.
"You're trained in communications. Come with me."
My mind finally begins working again.
I take a breath.
Then another.
"Yes, ma'am."
We move toward the staging area, where emergency personnel are organizing their response.
Smoke is pouring from the rear section of the building.
Students are gathering outside.
Some are crying.
Others are shouting names.
Captain Ndlovu takes charge of the academy's coordination with the fire service.
I am assigned to help verify the class attendance list and pass information to the emergency communications officer.
Ryan arrives a few minutes later.
Her face is pale.
"Kayise!"
I turn.
"Ryan!"
"Where's Sebastian?"
"Still unaccounted for."
She looks toward the building.
Her eyes fill.
I grab her hand.
"Help me check the class list."
She nods immediately.
"Okay."
We work together.
Names.
Classrooms.
Last known locations.
Students who have already exited.
Students being treated for smoke inhalation.
Two cadets are still unaccounted for.
Sebastian is one of them.
My hands begin shaking.
Ryan notices.
She touches my shoulder.
"Kayise."
I look at her.
"Breathe."
One word.
So simple.
I close my eyes.
In.
Out.
Again.
Then I return to the list.
The firefighters enter the building.
Minutes pass.
Then more minutes.
I stare at the entrance.
Waiting.
Praying.
Trying not to imagine the worst.
My father arrives beside me.
He has removed his uniform jacket.
He looks at the building.
"What's happening?"
"Two cadets unaccounted for."
"Sebastian?"
I nod.
He places a hand on my shoulder.
"Stay with the team."
"I am."
He nods.
"Good."
For once, he doesn't take over.
He doesn't give me an unnecessary order.
He simply stands beside me.
Then the radio crackles.
"Rescue team to command. Two occupants located in the eastern stairwell. Both conscious."
My knees nearly give way.
Ryan grabs my arm.
"Kayise!"
I stare at the radio operator.
"Is one of them Sebastian?"
The operator speaks into the radio.
A moment later, the response comes.
"One occupant identifies himself as Cadet Sebastian Nkosi."
I burst into tears.
Ryan wraps her arms around me.
We stand there crying while the rescue team brings the two cadets out through a protected exit.
Sebastian is coughing.
His face is covered in soot.
But he is walking.
A paramedic leads him toward a medical assessment area.
I move toward him, then stop when the medic asks everyone to give them space.
Sebastian sees me.
He raises one hand.
Even from several feet away, I can see the familiar expression on his face.
"Don't look at me like that," he croaks.
I laugh through my tears.
"Like what?"
"Like I missed an assignment."
I start crying harder.
He smiles.
"I'm okay."
The paramedic gently directs him toward an ambulance.
I watch until he disappears inside.
Only then do I allow myself to sit down.
Everyone is out.
Everyone is alive.
And I have never been more grateful for anything.
Later that evening, investigators confirm that the fire began in a restricted storage room.
The cause is not immediately announced.
But the building's surveillance footage and access records are preserved.
The next morning, Naledi visits our dormitory.
Ryan and I are sitting together.
Sebastian has been discharged after medical observation and is resting in his room.
Naledi sits opposite us.
"I wanted you to hear this from someone involved in the investigation rather than from rumors."
My stomach tightens.
"What happened?"
"Investigators have identified evidence suggesting the fire was deliberately started."
Ryan covers her mouth.
Naledi continues.
"A former contractor associated with Northstar was recorded entering the restricted storage area shortly before the alarm."
"Why?" I ask.
"That is still being investigated. But the timing and the location are significant."
I think about the preserved records.
The amended documents.
The evidence Northstar tried to remove.
"Was he trying to destroy the files?"
Naledi looks at me.
"That is one of the possibilities investigators are examining."
"Did they catch him?"
"Yes. He has been detained for questioning."
Ryan leans forward.
"What about Colonel Venter?"
Naledi's expression becomes serious.
"Additional records recovered during the investigation have linked him to several unauthorized directives."
My heart pounds.
"What does that mean?"
"Authorities have sufficient grounds to pursue criminal charges relating to threats, falsified documentation, obstruction, and other alleged offenses."
I stare at her.
"So he's finally being held responsible?"
"The legal process has begun."
She looks at both of us.
"And your testimony has been important."
Ryan lowers her head.
For a moment, none of us speaks.
Then she whispers:
"Does that mean I can stop being afraid?"
Naledi's expression softens.
"I can't promise you will never feel afraid again. But protective measures are in place, and you won't have to handle this alone."
Ryan begins crying.
I move closer.
This time, I don't hesitate.
I wrap my arms around her.
She cries against my shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Kayise."
"I know."
"I really am."
"I know."
She pulls back.
"Can we ever be friends again?"
I look at her.
For a moment, I remember the girl who betrayed me.
Then I remember the girl who stood in that hearing room and told the truth when she believed she might lose everything.
"I don't know if it'll ever be exactly the same."
She nods.
"I understand."
"But maybe it doesn't have to be."
Her eyes widen.
I smile faintly.
"Maybe we can build something better."
She starts crying again.
I laugh.
"Ryan!"
"What?"
"You're going to dehydrate."
She laughs through her tears.
Then hugs me so tightly that I can barely breathe.
For the first time in weeks, it feels like our friendship has a future.
That evening, I visit my parents.
My mother is preparing dinner.
My father is outside on the patio.
He looks up when I approach.
"Baby girl."
"Hey, Dad."
He smiles.
"How's Sebastian?"
"He's going to be fine."
"Good."
I sit beside him.
For a while, we watch the sunset.
Then I ask:
"Do you regret letting me come here?"
He looks surprised.
"No."
"Even after everything?"
He thinks for a moment.
"I regret interfering with your journey. I regret trusting people I should have questioned. I regret making decisions for you that you were capable of making yourself."
He pauses.
"But I don't regret watching you become the woman you're becoming."
My throat tightens.
"Dad..."
He smiles.
"You've taught me more about leadership in these past weeks than some men have learned in an entire career."
I lean against him.
He wraps an arm around my shoulders.
For the first time in a long time, being close to him doesn't make me feel pressured to prove anything.
I can simply be his daughter.
Then my mother appears.
"Before you two start getting sentimental, dinner is ready."
We laugh.
My father stands.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Don't yes-ma'am me. Go wash your hands."
He salutes her.
She rolls her eyes.
I laugh so hard that my stomach hurts.
For a moment, everything feels peaceful.
Then my father's phone rings.
He looks at the screen.
His expression changes.
"Who is it?" my mother asks.
He answers.
Listens.
Then looks at me.
"Kayise, there's something you need to hear."
My stomach tightens.
"What now?"
He places the call on speaker.
A lawyer introduces herself as a representative contacting our family on behalf of Northstar's board.
She explains that the company wants to resolve certain civil claims without a prolonged dispute.
There is an offer.
A substantial educational scholarship.
Compensation.
Access to a university of my choice.
And assistance with my future career.
For one second, I don't understand why my father looks so angry.
Then the lawyer explains the conditions.
The agreement would require me to withdraw my pending civil claims, limit certain public statements, and decline voluntary participation in further public proceedings except where legally compelled.
I stare at the phone.
My mother becomes perfectly still.
The lawyer continues speaking about confidentiality and mutual resolution.
I barely hear her.
Because I finally understand.
After everything that happened—
After the lies.
The threats.
The manipulation.
The fire.
They still think they can buy my silence.
The lawyer finishes.
"Ms. Mthembu, the offer will remain open for forty-eight hours. We believe it is a very favorable arrangement."
I look at my father.
Then at my mother.
Neither of them speaks.
Neither tells me what to do.
May you like
For the first time, the choice belongs entirely to me.
And I know exactly what I am going to say.
