Forty-One After Midnight (Completed)

Chapter Fifteen

Monday morning came quickly. It was probably because I knew there was something I had to do that I really didn't want to do. Life always worked that way. You want something to happen, and it takes forever to get here. You don't want it to and before you know it, that day is today.

I stayed in bed longer acting like I was sick just in case anyone came to check on me. I even went as far as to turn on a hair dryer and hold it to my head to make it feel like I had a fever. Laney wished me good luck before she left for classes. I guessed that was supposed to be comforting, but honestly, the only times people said good luck to you were when they knew you needed it. I sighed and waited, looking over at the clock so I knew what time classes would officially be starting.

When I was sure everyone had cleared out of the dorms for the day I got up, slipped on a pair of comfortable winter boots, and grabbed my jacket. I brushed my hair out and then quietly walked over to the door and cracked it open. The hallway was silent. So far so good.

I picked up my bag that I had dropped by the door the day before and hung it on my shoulder. With everything seemingly how I needed it to be, I stepped out and closed the door slowly behind me.

It was a little colder outside than it had been on previous days. It probably would have been wise of me to remember a hat, but it was too late. I couldn't go back now. It's not like the walk to the staff dorms was really that long, but it was longer than I wanted it to be. I shivered a little as I walked.

It was so quiet outside. Everyone was already in the main building and I had to watch where I walked so people wouldn't look out their windows and see me. It was a little tricky considering there where spots that weren't very well hidden, but I eventually made it there with no one chasing after me, which I assumed was a good sign.

Here's where it was going to get a little tricky. I opened the door enough to peek inside and make sure no one was out in the hallway. When I decided it was clear I opened it farther and walked inside. I made sure to stay quiet though, because I never knew when I could possibly hear a door open and have to find somewhere to hide quickly.

I walked up and down the hallways searching for door number 345. I knew that was his, because before I left I asked Laney about it. She seemed to think I was nuts for attempting such a thing, but gave it to me anyway.

When I finally found it I kneeled on the ground and started digging through my bag as fast as I could. I knew I had something in it that could pick a lock. I used to do it all the time when I forgot my keys and got locked out of my house.

I finally found something useful and started fiddling with the lock. It took a couple minutes, but I eventually heard the click I had been waiting for, and pushed the door open to look inside. No one was there, just as I was hoping, and I sighed in relief before stepping inside and closing the door.

The first thing I noticed was that it was definitely neater than I expected it to be. All of the things in the room were folded, stacked, packed away, or arranged neatly on shelves. I looked around taking everything in before I decided that it would be better for me to just get the book and get out. Granted it was even in there.

The neatness was proving to be a slight issue. I was going to have to look without making it look like someone had been in there rummaging through everything. I decided to start with the dresser. I opened the drawers one by one and felt around for a large book. It was a little bit awkward, and sadly I had no luck. So I moved onto looking under the bed. There was nothing at all.

When I stood back up I saw some boxes sitting in one of the corners, but just as I was about to walk over and grab them, I heard someone walking down the hallway. I looked around frantically and spotted a small closet. Carefully, and quietly I snuck over, opened the door and got inside. I got the door shut just as the door to the room opened. I held my breath.

I imagined it was our principal. Who else would be walking in here? I just didn't get why he would be here at this time of day. He was supposed to be over in the main building. I attempted to move to get more comfortable and ended up stepping on something hard. I bit my tongue to keep from swearing along with the slight pain it cause me, and then I leaned down as much as I could to try and feel around on the ground, hoping that I didn't just step on something really important that could break. It wasn't though. It was just a book.

A book. Could it be? Was it the one I was looking for? I heard him shuffling through dresser drawers, obviously looking for something different, not knowing someone else was in the room. When he was done, he walked out quickly and practically slammed the door shut behind him. Guess he was in a hurry.

I waited a little bit, just to make sure he wasn't going to turn around and come back, and when I felt it was safe, I opened the closet door.

When the light from the room lit up the closet a little more I looked down at the floor to see what book I had stepped on. It was in fact the book I was searching for. I picked it up, threw it in my bag, and tried to get out of there as fast as I possibly could.

When I was safely out of the building I leaned on the wall to take a quick break before heading back to the dorms. I was shaking a little and I could feel my heart pounding away in my chest. I breathed in and out as evenly as I could and then started to walk.

Inside my dorm I took the book out of my bag and set it down on my bed. I don't know why, but I almost didn't want to open it and read what it said. For some reason it just didn't seem right without everyone else around. I decided to put it back in my bag and stuff it under my bed. Then I sat there waiting for everyone else to get back from classes.

-

Laney came back a lot faster than I expected her too, and when she got in the room and shut the door I notice she seemed a little out of breath. He face was red and she had to put her hand on the wall to keep her balance.

"Laney? Is everything okay?"

"I'm sorry, I feel bad. I probably should have come here earlier, but I didn't want to skip classes so I waited until they were done and ran here as fast as I could."

"Why? What's going on?" I was starting to panic now.

"Don't you remember? We sent Mrs. Reeves to look for an old yearbook or something. Well, she never came back. When we went to class today we noticed that she wasn't there. Mrs. Reeves never misses work Nicole... something's not right."

I thought about what she said for a moment. She was right. Mrs. Reeves never did come back that night, and we hadn't heard anything from her since then. We just... didn't notice somehow.

I thought even more about that night and suddenly what I feared most was starting to seem more and more like it could possibly be a reality.

"Laney... I'm worried." I said.

"Well yeah, so are we."

"No I mean I'm really worried."

I explained to her about the first night with Jane. I explained to her about how Jane had told us we should be quiet when we walked by the main office. Then I told her about me and Kyle finding the office quiet and empty when we went to search there last. The same night that Mrs. Reeves would have went down there.

"What are you suggesting?" she asked.

I could hear the fear in her voice though. I knew she understood perfectly fine what I was suggesting.

"I don't think Mrs. Reeves remembered that when she went to look for that yearbook. That's most likely where she would have looked, and I have a feeling she got there before us and John Williams was there."

Wesat there in silence for a few more minutes. Neither one of us seemed to knowwhat to do. The only thing I could possibly think of was to wait for night timeand search the entire building for her. The only problem was, there was no wayof knowing whether or not we were going to find her at all, or even if shewould be alive.