CHAPTER ELEVEN21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSnyoqeIt7W
June stood at the edge of the assembly ground, the jacaranda blossoms falling around her like quiet confetti. She had once stood here as a prefect, her voice carrying the rules of the Order, her eyes sharp for any sign of disobedience. Now, she watched from the margins, no badge, no authority-just her name, and the memory of choices made.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlmzHQrc4UA
The whispers had started slowly:21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrbIBqt397f
“Isn’t that June? She used to be with them…”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoofhws0EA8
“I heard she’s helping the others now.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOqYZTEl6Mg
“She warned Madam Atieno about the patrols last night. That’s why they caught the prefects sneaking out.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvrBMvhwPDn
Some girls eyed her with suspicion, others with something like hope. The teachers, too, seemed to watch her differently-Mrs. Atieno’s questions more curious than cautious, Mr. Omondi’s nod a touch more respectful. June felt the shift, subtle but real.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyimi39ZwVg
She didn’t seek the spotlight. Instead, she worked quietly, passing messages to Kim and Seline, advising on timing, steering wavering Order members toward a gentler path. She used the same skills she’d once wielded for control, now turned to shield and guide. When Ruth, trembling and afraid, confessed what she knew, it was June’s calm presence that kept her steady. When a teacher hesitated to believe the girls’ story, it was June’s quiet testimony that tipped the balance.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBU3m98fpcH
In the dorms, the younger girls watched her, uncertain. June met their gaze, never flinching. She knew what they saw: someone who had been on the wrong side and chosen to cross the wall-someone who understood both fear and courage.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqQH6q2T9DG
As the scandal broke and the Order’s grip loosened, June’s name was whispered not with blame, but with a strange new respect. She became the proof that change was possible, that even those who had enforced the silence could help break it.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ50LdBi3y1T
One evening, as the sun set gold against the wall, Kim found June alone by the bougainvillea.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOHW5N56zL2
“Did you ever think it would end like this?” Kim asked.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZTyOOGCCoA
June smiled, soft and a little sad. “No. But I think it had to.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9wjAeoVWMW
Kim nodded, understanding. “You could have stayed quiet.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz8lbKjLuO8
June looked at the wall, its stones glowing in the last light. “I did, for too long. But sometimes, the only way to fix what’s broken is to stand in the open and say, ‘I was part of this. But I’m choosing something better now.’”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrwFZ63CAgP
As word spread, June’s redemption became a quiet legend-a story whispered in the dorms, a lesson passed down to the next class:21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Vl29NGUQ7
You can cross the wall. You can choose the truth. And sometimes, the bravest thing is to begin again.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpYYmecrrhv
*********21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw4XS5nQBUz
The staffroom was quieter than usual, the air thick with the scent of chalk and brewing tea. June waited in the corridor, her heart steady but her hands cold. She had agreed to this meeting-not for herself, but for the girls who had no voice, the ones whose stories were always whispered and never heard.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZTz8WLfvpH
Inside, Mrs. Atieno and the deputy principal sat with a reporter from the Lake Victoria Chronicle, her notebook open, pen poised. June slipped in quietly, eyes lowered, her presence both familiar and strange.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNojaLQAqTS
She didn’t use her name. She didn’t need to. Her reputation as a former leader, someone who had once enforced the rules and now stood apart from the Order, was enough. The adults listened differently when June spoke-leaning in, weighing her words.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCBPfMEwgIJ
“I can’t give you everything,” June said, her voice calm, “but I can tell you what I saw. The late-night patrols. The girls who were punished for asking questions. The notes that went missing, the meetings that happened in the shadows. I was part of it, once. I know how it works.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg6Qq1ahdQ6
The reporter nodded, scribbling furiously. “Why speak now?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvmdXlafq4v
June looked out the window, where the jacaranda trees bloomed against the stone wall. “Because silence is what let it grow. And because the ones who are suffering don’t have anyone else to speak for them.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeXHCHmHiu1
She didn’t name names. She didn’t have to. Her details-specific, measured, impossible to ignore-gave the exposé its backbone. The adults in the room exchanged glances, the weight of June’s words settling over them like dusk.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxZLyYZ9nXM
Later, when the article appeared-anonymous, but unmistakably true-it sent a ripple through Kisumu Girls’. The staff called emergency meetings. The Order’s leaders grew restless, their authority suddenly fragile. And the girls, reading the words in the Chronicle, felt something shift: a sense that the wall might finally crack, that someone was listening.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1TK1so9Lc8
Kim and Seline watched June from across the courtyard, understanding passing between them. June had risked her reputation, her safety, to give their cause a voice. And in the dorms, girls who had never dared to hope began to whisper, “If she can speak, maybe we can too.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVv8zeFioiT
June never claimed credit. She didn’t need to. Her story-carefully shared, always with her consent-became the turning point, the moment when truth stepped out from behind the wall and into the light.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBwMZtOUH4a
June’s footsteps were soft on the gravel path, her eyes always scanning-not just for teachers or prefects, but for the subtler signs: a cluster of girls whispering too quietly, a prefect’s gaze lingering too long on the wall, the sudden appearance of a new “lost and found” box near the dining hall. She had lived inside the Order’s machinery; she knew how it ticked, and more importantly, how it broke.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNmjfoJy18B
Kim and Seline met her by the water tank, their voices barely above a breath. June didn’t waste time.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJd7xT6fIRk
“They’re watching the bougainvillea tonight,” she said, her tone matter-of-fact. “Mercy’s group changed the patrol schedule-two rounds before lights out, one after. If you’re moving anything, do it just after the first bell, not before.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEGb74bQlbk
Mary nodded, scribbling the update in her tiny notebook. Seline’s eyes flicked to the shadowed corner near the old storeroom. “And if they suspect someone?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwoEennFCJt
June’s lips pressed into a thin line. “They’ll isolate her. Prefects will assign you solo chores, or call you to the staffroom for ‘extra duties.’ If that happens, don’t argue. Just go. But leave a signal-your purple pen, Seline, or a blue clip, Kim-so we know you’re being watched.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnpzsZdulz0
Kim shivered, remembering the cold stare of the girl in the hood. “What about retaliation?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkrO39fiDHW
June’s gaze was steady. “They’ll try to scare you first. Spread rumors, search your locker, make you feel alone. If you hear the phrase ‘special inspection’ or see a prefect with the red ledger, it means they’re planning a sweep. That’s you’re warning to hide anything important and stay close to the crowd.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRQKx9wxWyn
Mary glanced up. “Did you make all these rules?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEwrBdePJis
June’s smile was small, almost sad. “Yes, I used to write the rules. Now I help you break them.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTLp7PryiEG
The girls listened; their nerves steadied by June’s calm. Every detail she shared-a patrol’s timing, a code word, a glance exchanged in the corridor-became a shield. They learned to spot the warning signs: a sudden silence in the dorm, a prefect’s footsteps echoing too late at night, the way Mercy’s loyalists always seemed to know who was alone.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvL0VJY7RL5
With June’s guidance, they moved like shadows, always a step ahead. Notes passed through the library slot, meetings timed to the minute, signals hidden in plain sight. When the Order tried to tighten its grip, the girls slipped through the cracks-unseen, unbroken, and quietly, steadily, turning the wall from a prison into a passageway.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNigLaD9wOK
And in the hush that followed each narrow escape, Kim would look at June and realize: Sometimes, the best way to survive the rules was to know them better than anyone else.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIzuNv3I4ML
Jabari21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzYe1YbQ8T1
The wall was never meant for hope. Jabari had always known that, even when the others whispered about secret notes and daring crossings. He’d watched Musa and Otieno get reckless, watched the lines blur between curiosity and outright defiance. But Jabari’s loyalty was to the Order, to the structure that kept chaos at bay.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0XJRJJcooG
Tonight, the boys’ compound was tense. Rumors of a crackdown had swept through after the last incident-girls’ prefects on high alert, teachers prowling the perimeters, the principal’s voice echoing warnings at assembly. Jabari had seen it coming. He’d warned the boys, told them to keep their heads down, to trust no one-not even the girls who left blue paper clips in the bougainvillea.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkVUhu3WE8i
But Musa hadn’t listened. Otieno hadn’t listened. And now, the Order was splintering.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqtH8XuOrxg
Jabari called the boys together after lights out, gathering them in the shadow of the old sports shed. His voice was low, hard. “No more games. No more notes. Anyone caught near the wall is on their own. The girls’ side-they’re not our allies. They’re a liability.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJSIsLcvW47
Musa looked away; jaw clenched. Otieno shifted uncomfortably, his limp more pronounced in the darkness.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBabiky4ZVI
“It’s not about them,” Jabari pressed on. “It’s about us. About survival. You want to risk everything for a smile through the wall? Go ahead. But don’t expect the Order to save you.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOi6HbiF656
He made it clear: from this night on, the boys’ Order would operate alone. No more secret exchanges, no more shared signals. The wall was a boundary again-absolute, impenetrable. Anyone who crossed it, physically or otherwise, would be cut off. Loyalty would be tested. Betrayal would be punished.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJBw539picC
The decision was brutal, but necessary. Jabari enforced it with the same cold discipline he’d always shown. He collected the contraband-scraps of fabric, folded notes, anything that hinted at connection-and burned them behind the shed. He watched the flames eat away at the last evidence of hope; his face expressionless.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpsVrSgSDlu
On the girls’ side, the silence was immediate. The blue signals stopped appearing. The wall became just a wall again. Kim and Seline, watching from the shadows, understood: the boys’ Order had closed ranks. Whatever fragile alliance had existed was gone.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwdOsiA9yLZ
For Musa, the loss was sharp-a door slammed shut, a dream snuffed out. For Jabari, it was just another necessary sacrifice.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOSpQilMssb
By morning, the school was quieter. The wall stood untouched; its secrets buried. The Orders on both sides moved independently, suspicion and discipline their only common ground.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2u7WaYQbzE
And Jabari, standing at the edge of the compound, knew he had done what was needed. The wall had won. And so had he.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnAcZj40Uwx
**********21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk9rxYu1ylT
The rains had come early, turning the Kisumu Girls’ compound to red mud and making every step a careful negotiation. The wall, slick with moss and memory, loomed over the school like a silent judge. By now, everyone knew something was coming. The whispers had changed-sharper, more urgent, as if the air itself was holding its breath. The rain had stopped, but the air was heavy-thick with the scent of wet jacaranda and something sharper, like secrets about to break. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSkgFXubKxV
Mercy walked the corridors with her head high, her prefect’s badge gleaming. She still held court in the dining hall, still dispensed advice and warnings with the same measured calm. But the girls watched her differently now. Some with fear. Some with anger. Some with the hollow look of those who had learned too late what it meant to trust the wrong mentor.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIKxhZ5O8n2
The assembly bell rang, shrill and insistent, summoning every girl, every teacher, every prefect to the courtyard. For once, no one lingered in the corridors; even the wall seemed to lean closer, listening.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOuNi7VHbyv
Kim stood at the front, Seline and June at her side, Mary in the crowd, eyes bright and watchful. The dossier was in Kim’s hand-pages trembling not from fear, but from the weight of what they carried. Mercy stood across from them, arms folded, chin high, her prefect’s badge catching the weak sun. She still wore her mask of calm authority, but her eyes flickered-calculating, cornered.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIcW47krUr6
June’s voice was the first to break the silence. “We have something to say. Not just for ourselves, but for everyone who’s ever been told to keep quiet. For everyone who’s ever been punished for asking why.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5foxl8Vf3o
Seline read the testimonies-girls who had trusted Mercy, who had confided in her, only to be manipulated, isolated, or forced to betray their friends. Kim named the favors traded for silence, the threats disguised as concern, the punishments handed down in empty classrooms. Mary, voice trembling but clear, read the final letter:21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQgIe1Dh3T6
“You told us you were protecting us. But you were only protecting yourself.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwTZReIG6Cx
Mercy tried to speak, but the crowd was no longer listening to her. The teachers’ faces shifted from confusion to horror to something like shame. The girls in the crowd-some who had idolized Mercy, some who had feared her-looked at each other, realizing they were not alone.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs1cLtx4uuC
Then June stepped forward, her voice steady. “This isn’t just about one person. It’s about a system that lets power hide behind mentorship, that rewards silence and punishes questions. We are done being silent.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpD2P1WkOcJ
A hush fell-deeper than any before. The principal, who had always trusted her prefects to police the shadows, stepped forward at last. “There will be an inquiry,” she said, but her voice was small. The real verdict was already in the eyes of the girls: the spell was broken.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv7sBSUgoOU
Mercy’s mask cracked. She looked at the crowd, searching for allies, but found only the faces of those she’d used. She was alone, utterly and finally.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl3F9102ufl
As the assembly broke, the girls didn’t scatter. They gathered in small groups, talking openly for the first time-about what had happened, about what they had seen, about what they would no longer accept. The wall, for once, was just a wall-not a prison, not a secret-keeper.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkWuNUNEPrG
That night, Kim sat by the window, watching the rain return. The school was changed. The wall would stand, but the silence had been shattered. Mercy’s story would echo for years-not just as a warning about the dark side of mentorship, but as proof that even the most careful manipulator could be brought down by the truth, if only enough voices spoke it together.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFvwSrlRxQU
And somewhere, somehow, on the other side of the wall, the boys listened too-knowing that something had shifted forever.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAE3w6At1X7
21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5SHvvR7VE8
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