Chapter 7
Man on the Inside
“Hey, Zo? That book’s back. And it’s open…” I said quickly grabbing out my phone.
“Wait, what!?” She came running to my side. “W-wow…” Zoe was lost for words, as was I. I quickly went to my phone’s camera and took a photo of the page. As I went to turn the page, the blue sparks began to appear again as the book faded away.
“I… I can’t believe it, we finally got a photo of the inside of this book.” I looked down at my phone where the photo sat, staring back at me. Zoe looked over my shoulder as well.
“It looks like there are multiple writing styles here. See the difference in colour of the text and how it’s overlapping?”
“Yeah, it’s the same with the page that Makayla drew!” I grabbed the drawing and compared the two. “Yep, definitely the same. Let’s see here… ‘Project… crystalline substance… dangerous…’ That’s all I can get from the first writer. ‘Well obviously. Never going to work. Flawed design.’ That one’s a bit easier to read because of the red pen although this last writer has their writing all smudged out, almost like it was written in pencil.”
“Although that last little bit is kinda readable. ‘…dumb science fiction novel.’ Huh…?”
“This is quite the mystery, huh?”
“Certainly, Mr. Holmes!” Zoe laughs, putting on a faux British accent, mimicking Doctor Watson. I snicker as well.
“Well, I’m tired. I’m going to bed.” I kissed Zoe goodnight as I flicked the lamp on my bedside table off.
The next day…
Today was the day of the grand reopening of Bentley State School. It just so happened that it was also the day I brought in my fake resume to Trevor. As I got ready to head to the school, I thought about what Zoe and I had seen the night before. It was something I was ready to show everyone at the meetup after the reopening. I took a look at the photo again, trying to decipher more of the text. I found a red pen line in the middle of the book. It was feint but I managed to make out the words, ‘It’s all connected!’ From the things we had experienced so far, this felt like the first confirmation that there was something bigger at play. I checked the time and started collecting my things. I printed out the resume that Ron had helped me make just the night before as well as my phone with multiple backups of the photo of the book. I shut the door and locked it. I hopped in my car and drove off.
As I arrived at the school, I realised that most of the people from town were there, the streets were all blocked with cars trying to park, and some of the anti-BSS people protesting. One of them waved a sign in front of my windscreen with the words, “Close Forever!” written on it. I managed to find a parking spot and slipped my glasses on. As I got out of the car, I realised just how many people were actually here today, there was a barbecue going on and everything. I finally caught sight of my friend group in amongst the sea of people.
“Jacob! What are you doing? Get your sunglasses on!” Tommy desperately asked. I looked at the others who had various different designs of sunglasses on their faces.
“It’s fine, I’m pulling a Superman. It already worked once.”
“Wow, wow wait, what do you mean?” Reece asked.
“Uh… yeah, I applied for a job here. I told Will about it yesterday and I was going to tell you all later but yeah so from now on I am no longer Jacob O’Callie, I am Joey Hawthorne and I absolutely don’t know you guys.”
“Jacob! This is like, what, the fourth time you’ve left us out on a plan?” Cane asked.
“Yeah, I… I know. I’m sorry. I promise it won’t happen again.” I apologised. They all stayed silent for a bit. “Alright, I gotta go hand in my resume. You never saw me and you don’t know me… secret sunglasses people…” I backed up and entered into the crowd of people. I pushed past everyone and made it to the door of the admin building.
“Hey, I’m assuming Trevor is busy so I’ll just leave these with you. My resume and the papers he asked me to sign.” I handed the documents over to the receptionist. She took them and continued typing on her computer. “Uh… good talk. Looking forward to working with you.” As I turned, I heard a slightly mumbled “Uh huh” in the background. I went back out into the courtyard and went over toward the stage that had been set up in the memorial garden. I could see Cane, Will, Tommy and Reece all dispersed amongst the crowd with their sunglasses on. As I found a seat, I watched Trevor walk on stage and up to a microphone.
“Hello everyone! Welcome to the grand reopening of the new and improved Bentley State High School, or should I say, Bentley State School!” Trevor announced. The crowd stood silent for a bit save a few claps here and there. “Ahem… As you all know, I am Trevor Manning and I want to take a few minutes to talk about what my team and I plan to do here. Now as I’m sure you all know, we have had quite a bit of an abysmal past. However, I am going to be working on rectifying this situation, starting today. Now, I want to mention something before I get a familiar face up on stage here with me. As we now have both a Junior School and High School, we will be needing two principals to run each side. So starting today, I will be the Head of the High School, and my great Vice Principal will be the Head of the Junior School. Now, without further ado, please welcome the new principal of the Junior sector, Mrs. Ladier.” Trevor’s long speil finally ending. Vicki walked up onto stage, her heels clacking on the metal stairs.
“Ahem, good morning everyone. It’s a pleasure to be here with you all. Both Trevor and I have been waiting for this moment for quite a while…” As Vicki was speaking, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and saw Felix looming behind me.
“Ey new guy, The boss said he wants to introduce ya to everyone today after Vic’s speech. Ya up for it?” He asked.
“Uh… yeah, I suppose.” I replied nervously. I got out of my seat and followed Felix. I saw Cane in the crowd shrugging his shoulders at me. I shrugged back. Felix took me to the back of the stage where a few people were waiting in chairs. I recognised a few of them but some I hadn’t seen before.
“Ah, Joey, there you are. I apologise for the last minute change but I just thought people should get a chance to see that we aren’t just old faces. That we are getting some new blood here.” Trevor explained.
“…thank you all for listening. Now I’ll hand back to Trevor.” Trevor went up onto stage after Vicki’s speech was finished. He thanked Vicki for her speech and then introduced me.
“Now, we have a bit of a surprise. I’m sure you are all very skeptical after all of this stuff that happened, however I’d like to invite a new face to the staff at Bentley State School, Mr. Joey Hawthorne.” I slowly walked up the stairs and in front of everyone. “Now Mr. Hawthorne here is from Red Water Springs and recently moved here with his family and was one of the first to apply for a position here. We’re hoping that a little change of face will help to ease you all. In fact, Mr. Hawthorne here…”
“Hey! Hi! Hey! Ho! Bentley State? We say no!” One of the protestors interrupted. All of the parents began to invade the crowd chanting and shouting. They were starting to advance toward the stage when Will and a few other officers came up to stop them.
“Well then… certainly an excitable day today, isn’t it…” Trevor joked.
The grand reopening had been an interesting experience. Will ended up having to arrest a few of the students’ parents that had formed the Anti-BSS movement. And I ended up on stage being introduced as Joey Hawthorne. It definitely didn’t go to plan. After the reopening we all went and met back at the Coffee Palace.
“Well that was an absolute disaster!” Tommy exclaimed. Everyone nodded in agreement.
“Can’t believe Will was stuck with having to take all those people in to the station.” Cane said, almost solemnly.
“Yeah, it’s a shame that those people ended up going down this path.” Reece followed Cane’s sentiment.
“Anyway, we need to talk about the elephant in the room. Why didn’t you tell us that you were applying for a job there?” Cane asked.
“I was meaning to get around to it. I just had a lot on my mind recently. I mean with the Anti-BSS attacks and everything, you know?”
“Still, you could’ve given us all a heads up. It’s not the time to be keeping us in the dark about this.” Tommy explained.
“Yeah, I know. But, look, my plan is to infiltrate the school and try and get a bit of insider info. They don’t seem to recognise me apart from a few close calls or deja vu feelings, so I should be all good on that front. The job I applied for is sorta like a teacher aid position so I’ll be able to get up close and personal with the teachers.”
“Hmm, alright, seems interesting enough. Just make sure you keep us updated this time, okay?” I nodded in response.
“Oh, that reminds me! We saw the book again. This time it was open.”
“W-what!? You saw inside!? Did you get a photo of it?” Cane asked.
“Oh you know I did!” I brought my phone out and showed them the photo.
“Wow! That’s weird.”
“My thoughts exactly. Notice how there’s like three different writers in here. And it looks like they’re contradicting each other.” I showed them. “However, I did notice something just earlier. There’s something hidden amongst these pages that ties this whole mystery together almost nicely.” I swiped across and showed them a heavily desaturated version of the photo. However, the desaturation revealed the hidden text that was scrawled across the pages.
“It’s all connected…” Cane read out.
“And I know better than to think this is all just a coincidence. Especially this far into the mystery.
“I think we’re all past that point.” Tommy admitted. I chuckled.
“Anyway, Jacob? Are you sure you’re ready for this mission? I mean you’re literally heading into the lion’s den alone and defenceless. So, I ask again, are you sure?” Reece asked. I sighed and thought about it for a bit.
“Reece… everyone. I’m sure you know me well enough to know, I’m not scared of diving in. If there really is something going down, I’ll get to the bottom of it and with your help, of course.” I comforted. We all ended up talking to each other about other things after that. I think we were all trying to just get our minds off of this upcoming dance with danger. However, no amount of running would stop the song from playing.
The Following Monday…
I brought Makayla to school on my way to Bentley State which gave me enough time to think about the situation I was about to walk into. I had almost forgotten to lock the door before I left today, I was too busy thinking about it. Thankfully, Makayla had been on her game and had reminded me. After dropping her off, I drove over to the school and pulled up to the front gates. I got out and locked my car, walking into the main admin building, where Trevor had seemingly been waiting for me.
“Ah, Joey, so glad you could make it!” He said, offering his hand for a handshake. I accept it.
“Yeah, definitely! Looking forward to it!” I replied. I was finally here, back at my childhood school. Being in amongst the teachers. My job? To find out what had been happening here at this school for the past 11 years. And it all started with just two words:
“Hello, everyone!” I said to the room of teachers. The very same teachers who had taught me for a year and a half of my life. You know, now that I was seeing all of them in the same room together, they looked awfully similar to each other, although I couldn’t really put my finger on it. “As I’m sure most of you know I’m the new teacher… aid?” I look over at Trevor who gives me a thumbs up. “Yeah, I’m the new teacher aid here. The names Joey Hawthorne. I hope that I can help you all out with anything you may need.” I quickly walk off stage as the teachers applaud and Trevor replaces me.
“Ok everyone, today’s the day! The first day back. I hope you’re all ready to get back to teaching after so long.” Everyone started cheering and clapping. “Alright, alright, everyone simmer down. Now, we have a few things to go over before we start. We all need to be aware that the town still has a somewhat negative impression of our school. It’d be best to try and give these students and parents some comfort and show them that their children are in safe hands. Now, I’m sure you all are wondering what classes you are assigned to. Vicki is coming around to you all now and handing out your timetables. These show you what classes you have on what days.” Vicki handed them all out and I was left sitting without one. I put my hand up for a sec when Trevor signalled to put my hand down. I complied. Everyone ended up leaving and then it was only me, Trevor and Helen in the room. “Joey, you’ll be shadowing Helen today. Just follow her around and go to her classes.”
“Cool! Cool!” I said, slightly adjusting my glasses.
“Good, if you need anything just come see me anytime. My door is always open.” Without another word, Trevor left the room leaving me and Helen alone.
“Just stick with me, hon! You’ll learn the ropes in no time!” I followed her throughout the school to where the science rooms were. The school had been updated with a whole new science division with a few science labs that were perfect for all types of experiments. Of course, the normal type of experiments you’d usually find in a school. Dissections, chemical… mixing? I wasn’t really a big science type back in school. Helen didn’t have a class during the first session of the day so I sort of just relaxed and spoke with Helen and a few of the other science teachers.
“So what’s on the agenda for today?” I asked Helen who had been going through PowerPoint presentations on her laptop.
“Well, next lesson we have the year 8s where we’ll be teaching them about different rock types.”
“Oh, you mean like sedimentary and igneous and stuff right?”
“That’s right! Well done!” Helen smiled. She spun her laptop to face me and showed me the presentation she had prepared. It had a few images of rocks with google eyes that told facts about different rocks. It was, in all honesty, quite cute. We continued talking for a while until it was time for the second lesson, I joined Helen in her classroom as we waited for the children to walk in. Soon after, the class was filled with students looking at both of us.
“Hey Joey?” Helen whispered. “How would you like to start us off today.”
“Uh, yeah alright.”
I stepped towards the front of the classroom, a sea of expectant faces staring back at me. "Good morning, everyone," I began, trying to look confident. "Today, we're going to dive into the fascinating world of rocks and minerals. Now, can anyone tell me what the three main types of rocks are?"
A hand shot up, and I pointed to the eager student. "Yes, you there."
The student, who went by the name of Tim, practically leaped out of his seat. "Sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks," he declared with the speed of a cheetah.
I nodded, acknowledging his correct answer. "That's right, Tim. Well done. Now, let's start with sedimentary rocks."
As I began explaining sedimentary rocks, I noticed Helen smiling from the corner of my eye. I could see her looking at me, with unwavering eyes. Tim, eager as ever, kept interjecting with additional facts and examples.
"Mr. Hawthorn, I read about this in a book last night," he chimed in.
"That's great, Tim," I replied with a smile, trying not to let my annoyance get to me. "It's always good to do some extra reading. Now, I’ll hand over to Ms. Tempest so we can move on to igneous rocks." I thought it best that Helen could handle the rest from here.
As I passed her, she whispered in my ear,
“Don’t mind him, he’s a bit of a know it all.” I chuckled a bit and went and sat down in Helen’s chair. “Alright, class now igneous rocks are found…” I suddenly tuned everything out. I felt… something, something I hadn’t felt in a real long time. An almost eerie feeling that was digging into the deepest parts of my body. I began to feel nauseous and dizzy. One of the students noticed me and pointed me out to Helen. “Joey? Joey! Are you alright?”
“Uh… yeah. Just… a bit dizzy. I might just go sit down in the admin building for a bit if you don’t mind.”
“Yeah no that’s all good, I got it from here! Everyone say bye to Mr. Hawthorne.” The students all said goodbye as I left the room. I had no idea what that feeling was that left me almost completely exhausted. As I was making my way to the admin building I hear a voice call out from behind me.
“Joey, Ey, wait up!” I turned around and it was Felix.
“Oh, uh hey Felix.”
“Hey you all good buddy? Helen ain’t giving ya no trouble is she?”
“No, no, she’s fine. I just all of a sudden started feeling dizzy and thought it best to just go back to the office and sit down.” I explained.
“Oh, well I’m going that way too. How lucky! I’ll walk with ya.” Felix gave me his signature wink. How was it only now that I was realising he had a scar on his left eye. Had he always had that? It was long and straight down the middle of his eye. As we walked, I hesitantly asked about it.
“Hey, what’s with the scar on your eye?”
“Oh this? Yeah, just a painful reminder of my past. Ya know, I was lucky that the knife didn’t hit my eye, otherwise I’d be blind in that eye. But it sure got my face good.”
“Wow, that sure is lucky.” We ended up just talking about a few of the things we had done on the weekend and then reached the admin building. I walked through the cool hallways and knocked on Trevor’s office door.
“Come in.” I opened the door. “Ah, Joey! How is everything? Helen treating you well I hope.”
“Yeah she is… but uh, I started feeling a bit nauseous in the class earlier, I don’t mean to be the guy that goes home early on his first day but uh…
“Say no more. We care about our staff members health here, you go home and rest up, we’ll see you tomorrow.” That conversation went better than I had initially thought, but I was able to go home early. As I was walking out, that feeling of nausea came back. I turned to the right of me and saw the hallway with the door at the end. It felt like it was drawing me in. It felt like my body moved on its own. As I approached the door, I felt the pain get worse. I started getting a bad migraine. The pain was excruciating. The more I looked at the door, thought about the door, the more I was dragged in but the more I approached the sharper the pain got. I could feel it inside me, invading me. As I got to the end of the hall, the pain had fully enveloped me. I felt like I just wanted to lay down and never wake up… but at that moment, I collapsed to the floor, unconscious.
*BEEP* “This is Jacob, I can’t answer the phone at the moment but leave me a message and I’ll get back to you! Cya!”
“Hey Jacob. It’s Zoe. I know you’re probably busy teaching or whatever but I just wanted to check on you and let you know I love you.” She paused and sighed. “I know I said I would support you in this no matter what, through all trials and tribulations, it’s just… I need you to promise me something… promise me you’ll come home at the end of the day. I know that’s a silly thing to say but Jacob, please you’ve got to come home. I… honestly don’t know what I’d do without… ugh, this is stupid.”
*BEEP* “If you’d like to save your message press one, if you’d like to re-record, press two, if you’d like to delete your message, press thr…”
“MESSAGE DELETED…”