One week. It has been one week of a new term at Saint Anne’s Boarding School for Girls.

Katherine had only been the new Head Girl for a week. When she arrived at her dorm room, Katherine found an envelope. She was confused why someone would send a letter to her? It had no stamps and no return address, just her full name written on the front of the envelope, ’Katherine Alvarado’, in neat cursive writing.

Curiously, Katherine carefully opened the envelope, trying not to ruin the contents. When she finally opened the lip of the envelope and reached inside for the letter, Katherine dropped to the floor in shock at the contents inside.

A picture of her parents tied up and beaten. Her mother had tears welled up in her eyes, and her once-kept-up hair was now messy and unkempt. Her father’s once neat appearance was bruised and bloody from considerable beatings.

Chocked sobs left Katherine's lips, and large teardrops ran down her cheeks.

’Why would someone do this?!’ Katherine thought.

With a shaky hand, Katherine reached for the note attached to the horrid photo. She tried to read the letter, but her tears clouded her vision. Wiping her tear-streaked face with the sleeve of her sweater, Katherine took a shaky breath and read the letter.

”Dear Miss Alvarado,

Due to you and your family's choices, we, unfortunately, had to resort to blackmail and violence for our voices to reach you. If you want your parents to live, you will obey our orders until the end of your school year. If you try to contact authorities or tell anyone about this, your parents will instantly be killed. We will be sending your following instructions shortly.

Signed by those you have wronged

P.S. We have eyes and ears watching you at all times, so please behave like the proper Head Girl you are. ”

Katherine rushes to the bathroom and pukes into the toilet as she starts to sob again, and tears sting her red-stained eyes and face.

Katherine stops abruptly; her blood goes cold. Someone had knocked at her door.

“I need you to help me.”

Rain frowned as the Head Girl passed a folded piece of paper to them, opening it up to reveal a short note.

As they read it, though, it was soon clear that it was a ransom note. An extremely worrying one at that. Lucy didn’t speak another word until the fourth year was done, before sighing.

“You know my sister, right?” she asked, twisting her fingers together. “Kiera?”

“Yeah,” Rain nodded, still gazing at the note. “Everyone knows Kiera Johnson. Is this about her, then?”

Lucy gave Rain a wry smile. “I have several younger sisters too, but yes, this is about her. She went missing almost a month ago, and I’ve heard about your skill with solving murders.”

Rain couldn’t believe their ears. The Head Girl, top student Lucy Johnson, asking a fourth year for help? In solving her twin’s disappearance?

Sure, Rain and their friends were pretty good with solving murders, and had begun to garner a reputation of stumbling onto dead bodies, but this?

This felt a lot more personal.

“I’ll help you,” they said slowly. “And I mean that I will help you, if that’s alright. I… don’t want to get the others involved.”

Lucy cocked her head to one side, but didn’t bother to ask why. “Ah. Yes, I thought you’d realise something about this. But… forgive me, would the chances not be —“

“This case is personal to both you and me,” Rain interrupted. “I will help you find your twin, and I can let mine go.”

If Lucy noticed how Rain left their sister’s name out of their statement, she didn’t mention it.

Hannah got the note. She knew we were serious. If she does exactly what we say, everything will end up fine. She would have nothing to worry about.

They had proof. That’s what the note said. Proof of what? Well since you asked, I’ll tell you but I’m going to have to go back to the end of last year. My sister, Hannah, and I were inseparable. In fact, you could say that we were identical in every physical way. Our main difference were our personalities. She was the typical straight A student and perfect class president. Me, on the other hand, well, not so much. I was kicked out of her boarding school and went to average American public high school. The reason I got kicked out is a whole other story. Back to the end of last year. Hannah came home from school abs was completely burned out. I felt bad for her, so I offered for her to come with me to a party that some people from my school were throwing. After about twenty minutes of my pestering, she gave in. I helped her get ready and let her borrow some of my clothes, while I borrowed some of hers. When we got to the party, everyone thought she was me and I was her. I told her to go with it. We spilt off after that and she got to have an actual high school experience. I was so proud of her. A few weeks after the party, Hannah asked me for a favor, “Will you switch places with me next year?” “I’ll need to think about it,” I told her. However, after twenty minutes of her pestering, I caved. “What’s your plan?” And then we switched. That brings us to now. Whoever wrote the note said they had proof. They never said proof of what and they addressed it to Hannah. So they don’t know we switched places. What do they have proof of? I guess that’s what I get to find out this year.

I guess i should’ve known it was a bad idea, but i did it anyway. I put on a tough, self-important exterior, but to be honest, i really wish i hadn’t done it. To whoever is reading this, i have either ended up in prison or writing to you from the ‘great beyond.’ Unfortunately those are my only two choices i can see while writing this. Hopefully it’s the latter because God i really don’t want to know what prison is like.

Anyway i guess i should start from the beginning. Once upon a time there was a messed up girl living a lavish life in a grand old house with everything she could possible want or need. Then i came along and dropped a tiny, yet very effective and very metaphorical, bomb in her lap.

To do this i simply put pen to paper and went at it. Telling daddy’s girl that everything she knew about her precious father was a lie. I wrote on that parchment that her father was, in fact, NOT an investment banker as he led everyone on the believe. No in fact, he was selling company secrets to the highest bidder and getting a huge paycheck by the end of it.

I still remember her face when she opened the note. I hid behind a pillar at the school and watched her eyes widen, then her brows crease together in anger and disbelief. She jumped when her friend came by with a big ‘welcome back’ hug. And that’s when i left. Didn’t want to be getting too comfortable now. Someone may have noticed i was there. I don’t even go to that stuck up rich-person school. If you can’t tell by my attitude, its because i wouldn’t be able to afford it.

I don’t hate rich people. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not putting myself on a pedestal either. No, i can say, without hesitation, that I’m a pretty messed up little lady myself. Who else would be so cruel then someone who had their own fair share of issues. Anyway, therapy time is over, back to the story.

The next day i really ate it. Turns out, all that bs i wrote in the note was actually true. Well, not all of it but…enough. Oh yeah, did i forget to mention that. Silly me. I only wrote the letter to make stuff happen. I was bored and alone and in need if some decent entertainment. So i wrote some mysterious cryptic letter expecting some blow back that would blow over after a few days. But i guess in rich society you can just point to someone and SOMEONE in there family is bound to be doing something shady. Their…for any grammar freaks out there. No offense intended of course.

So anyway, yata yata, all that stuff was true and the police actually started looking for the person who wrote the note. You’d think they’d focus more on the guilty party then the good samaritan just doing their duty. Right? So I’m no Jason Bourne and they found me pretty quick. Needless to say i was in a lot of trouble and for good reason. But if they’re trying to catch me I’m not going down without a fight. Like i said earlier, i REALLY don’t want to go to prison.

So long story short, if you’re reading this, could you do me a favor? Attached is the directions to the alley where i used to live. Could you go there and make sure my cat Dixie is okay? There’s plenty of food for her to eat but I’m sure she’d like the company.

Thank you 🙏🏼 and bye bye 👋

“Dear Alia, Your boyfriend is being held ransom at the House on Grape Street, you must skip class and come here if you want him to live.” Alia looked up, frowning. “Who wrote this?”

I shrugged, placing my books inside of my locker. “Not sure. Probably just the freshmen playing a prank on you.”

“Or the juniors,” Alia said wryly.

It was always the freshmen or the juniors. The freshmen were the youngest and liked playing pranks, and the batch of juniors this year didn’t like the seniors and also liked playing pranks. Least of all they liked the Head Girl, Alia Roberts. Alia was nice, but she was a stickler for the rules. Even I couldn’t deny that. Alia said that she liked order, and anyway, she was genuinely helpful and responsible. She was honest and genuine, too, and never pretended so she could get into teachers’ good books. But others didn’t think so. This was typically the juniors, who thought they were better than the sophomores and freshmen, who were younger than them, and the seniors, who they thought acted elitist. Which was dumb because the juniors were the ones thinking they were the best. Hence the pranking.

“Anyway, Harrison can’t be at Grape Street,” Alia was saying. “He’s right there.” She pointed to the figure of her boyfriend, Harrison Cooper.

“Definitely a freshman,” I said. “An inexperienced pranker.”

“Yup,” Alia nodded, swinging her backpack over her shoulder. “Come on. Let’s get to class.” She gave Harrison a kiss on the cheek before walking to Mr. Tanner’s classroom.

I didn’t think things were weird at all, until sixth period. Harrison was supposed to be in our history class, but he wasn’t, for some strange reason. I hadn’t noticed until Alia poked my shoulder ten minutes into class and whispered, “Hey, where’s Harrison?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe he’s late.”

He wasn’t late. In fact, he wasn’t even there at all. I could tell Alia was growing more and more worried, thinking that he was at the House on Grape Street.

The second class got out, she whipped out her phone and started texting. Even in the noisy hallway full of students coming and going and trying to get to various places, I could hear the small clicks of the on screen keyboard. “Everything okay?” I asked Alia.

“Mm hm,” she nodded absentmindedly, focused on her phone. I stood in the hallway, glancing around me in case Harrison mysteriously showed.

He didn’t. “Alia? Is he replying?” I asked.

“No,” Alia said, shoving her phone into the pocket of her skirt. “I’m going to go to Grape Street. See what’s going on.”

Grape Street was a street a few blocks from our house. It was a town legend that there was a house on it that was haunted. The property was owned by the woman who lived next door, Mrs. Dawson, who was actually a pretty nice, normal old lady from what I’ve heard, but people still think her house is rather shady.

“You can’t seriously think that note was telling the truth?” I asked.

“No. Of course not. But it’s something,” Alia said. “Maybe the pranker planned this out and didn’t give me the note at the right time.”

The Alia Roberts I know wouldn’t believe this. But something is off. I just wish I knew what.

I wrote the final words of my letter on the paper, and made my way around the school just like I usually did in the mornings. I made sure to write in messy writing so Ariana, the most popular student in the school would suspect her classmates and not me, the janitor. I was fed up with her behaviour, she acted as if everyone was below her, and to add on to her shitty attitude she was about as smart as a brain dead fly. With an exited giggle I placed it on her unlocked locker, time to watch the chaos unfold.

"Lila, I need to talk to you," my best friend said as she came running up to me.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Umm. Privately?" Her grey eyes glisten with tears threatening to spill out.

I grab her hand and pull her into the nearest bathroom with me. After locking the door behind us, I turn to face her.

"Talk to me," I say still holding her hand to comfort her.

"This was on my bed. I don't know what to do. You have to help me," she cries pulling a folded up sheet of paper from her stack of books.

I take the note after setting my own books to the side and look it over. The sky blue stationary has a lip mark on the outside that matches the one used as a signature.

"I know your secret you little fraud. You pretend you're someone special but you aren't. You're nothing. You're just here because daddy didn't want to deal with you and all of your bad habits. You don't deserve to be head girl. If you want to keep your position, then you'll have to either pay up a grand total of $1,500 or do all of my homework for me. You can't escape this." My eyes carefully scroll over the words several times making sure I didn't miss anything.

"Do you know who wrote this?" I ask.

Marcy just shakes her head, tears streaming down her face. I look back at the note examining the writing, the kiss, the paper.

"I think I do," I say shoving the note between my binders, grabbing my things, and marching out of the bathroom.

"Lila, wait!" She tells after me.

I stop, still seething, but turning to face my best friend.

"Please. You can't tell anyone. I can't get kicked out. My dad will..." she trails off.

"He won't lay a hand on you, Marcy. I promise. But I have to go tell the headmaster," I sigh.

She looks up at me confused.

"This isn't the first ominous note this person has sent," I say gritting my teeth and heading to the headmaster's office.

Upon my arrival to the headmaster's office, I quickly knock on the door. I hear a faint "come in" from the other side before I open it.

"Mr. Mackleroy, do you remember the issue I came to you with just last week?" I ask as he looks up from some papers on his desk.

"Yes I do. What about it?" He responds, sitting back and giving me his full attention.

"It's happened again. But it wasn't me that was targeted," I tell him, setting the note down in front of him.

He takes a moment to read it over before looking up at me once more.

"Who?"

"Marcy, sir. She didn't want me to tell anyone but I'd already come to you with my complaint and I thought the more evidence the better."

"You were correct to come to me. Though I don't believe we've figured out who is blackmailing you all."

"I do. It's Mackenna Harper, sir. She's the only one with access to mine and Marcy's room. She's also the only one in the school to use that specific stationary. It's her private stash hidden away in her footlocker normally reserved for letters back to her parents and such," I state.

"And just how exactly do you know this?"

"I, uh, I was good friends with her the last few years. We were close. Close enough to share our secrets. All three of us, I mean. Me, Marcy, and Mackenna. Something happened over summer break last year and she came back different. It, um, it didn't sit well with me or Marcy and so we ended the friendship. Sir," I say finally slumping down into the chair across from him.

"What about Katy Evans?" He asks.

"Oh. She was friends with Mackenna before Marcy and me. We don't know her that well. Why?"

"Nothing that concerns you. Head off to class and I'll take care of this. Thank you, Lila," he says pointing me to the door.

I nod, pick up my books, and walk out.

"What'd he say?" Marcy asks me fear painting every inch of her face.

"He'll take care of it. Let's go to class," I say just as an announcement comes over the loud speaker.

"Mackenna Harper to the headmaster's office. Mackenna Harper to the headmaster's office," the voice garbles.

"Mackenna?" Marcy whispers.

I simply smile pulling her along.

She didn’t see it at first, not until sixth period when she was searching the bottom of her book bag for a stray pen.

The slip of paper was black, etched with silver writing that swirled and slanted in the best penmanship she had ever seen. Scarlet didn’t know why she didn’t notice it earlier. The dark gothic looking note hardly blended in amongst her possessions, which were all in shades of pink or soft creams. But as she searched the bottom of her bag, she pulled out her chemistry textbook and out flew the paper. Scarlet fumbled to grab it midair before it hit the ground. When she finally held the paper in her hands she glanced up one more time to make sure Mr Yual wasn’t watching. Though she was Head Girl at the academy, even she was not above Mr Yuals rants about paying attention and avoiding distraction. Scarlet let her eyes skim over the paper, her comprehension slow as she worked to make out the swirling letters.

Scarlet,

I know what you did at the Year End Formal last year and I have the cellphone you lost that night. Something tells me you’ll want to delete the messages and photos saved on it before anyone else sees.

$50,000 at 2am tonight in the main library. Give me the money and the phone is yours, if not, it might end up as evidence in a murder case. It shouldn’t be too hard to come up with the cash, I’m sure the allowance you get from mummy and daddy should cover it.

Yours truly, In love and in care, O

By the time Scarlet had finished reading the note her hands were shaking and her breaths came out in ragged heaves. Who else had known about what she had done that night? How was it even possible? Her parents had done everything in their power- used up every resource and payed hush money to authorities- to make sure no one found out about what she had done. She hadn’t even told them that she had lost her phone that night, her parents would be furious with her if they new that a device holding enough evidence to put her in jail was missing out there. After an entire year without cops knocking at her door she had assumed she was safe or that the phone had somehow been destroyed. But this note had ripped apart all shreds of hope she had built. Someone out there knew what she had done that night and if she didn’t pay up, the authorities might know too.

This year was meant to be different, she was suppose to move on from last years events and become an entirely new and improved Scarlet. But it was only the first day of term and someone was already hell bent on destroying her life. Scarlet had finally earned the position of Head Girl at Renaes Academy and Board and she had worked painstakingly hard over the summer to craft the image of a polished and independent woman.

This person probably didn’t even know the details of what had led up to the accident. If they were relying on the messages and pictures on that phone, they were already being fed the wrong information. The messages she had sent Addie were the result of normal squabble between friends. But now that Addie was six feet under and Scarlet had been the last one to see her alive, those messages held an entirely new meaning.

Making sure to avoid Mr Yuals attention, Scarlet pulled out her phone and tucked it behind the cover of her textbook to disguise the device. She scrolled to the bottom of her messages until she found the group chat that hadn’t been used since the night of the Year End Formal. Though she felt a shred of guilt for reminding everyone of the part they played in the events that transpired almost an entire year ago, Scarlet was not going to be the only one taking the blame. With still shaking fingers she typed out the message that would not only revive the long dead group chat, but remind everyone of the events of that night.

Scarlet: Someone found the phone and they know what we did. They want $$ in exchange for it back or they go to the police. Meet me at the old meeting spot after school.

A ransom note here My best friend taken by force. No one can help me!

"I totally have no clue where it came from. I just woke up and there it was on my bed."

"Maybe it was someone in the school?" Molly, her friend asked

"Who would do such a thing."

The girls bickered a bit and looked around the room for any suspects.

A pudgy, thick glasses kid caught there attention.

"W-why are you gazes fixated upon me?" He was holding a deck of cards in his hand.

"Cut the crap George. We all know you'd probably do it after what Samira did to me you at the rally last week," Molly slapped the cards from his hand. On the floor they scattered.

The kid immediately dropped to his knees and hastily picked them up.

"I- I have no i-idea what you a-are speaking of-" His concentration was too much on the cards.

"Cindy I don't think it was him." Molly interjected.

Next came the emo quiet kid in the back. I know what you're thinking; Emo, quiet, back of the room, prefect for a killer.

"Don't think you're safe back here." Cindy slammed the desk. The kid stared inclusively at her. He looked as unpuazed as a mom in a grocery store with a winy kid.

"..."

"Don't play games with me. Why would you do it?"

"..."

The kid pulled his desk back and put his head down.

"Cindy I think you're going overboard."

Lastly they turned their attention at the high school jock. The guy was who brought the school victory on the football field. He always wanted the glory and wouldn't stop till he got it all.

He realized this and looked away from their direction. Both Molly and him were always on the outs.

Before Cindy could get to him, Molly pulled her back. She shook her head.

Doing one final sweep, they turned there attention towards me. Cindy's eyes widened. Never before has she even spoken to or around me. She looked like a prosecutor who just landed their key witness.

Not even a few seconds went by before they were at my desk. Cindy started barking remarks at me but I didn't really care. I kept staring at Molly as her hair twirled in the gentle breeze which entered the room. Her eyes glistened like pearls as my desk reflected off her pupils.

It was as we were in a standstill until she realized she was staring at me. Her face reddened up and she hid herself.

"Molly?" Her friend asked.

"Huh- what? Why are we- Why are we bothering him?" Her face reddened again,"I'm so sorry Josai. Get over here idiot-" she pulled Cindy away.

"Ah. Stupid dumb love. It's all you need to get away with anything." I thought to myself as I started writing the next note.