Chapter 4: The Reckoning
The school was eerily quiet when Nia stepped back through the kitchen door. The adrenaline in her veins made her feel like she was moving through a slow-motion dream, every step deliberate, every sound amplified. The air felt thick, heavy with the weight of uncertainty. Her heart was hammering in her chest, but she pushed it down. This wasn’t the time for fear.
She moved swiftly, hugging the walls, her eyes scanning every corner for any sign of movement. Mikey had to be somewhere close. The police were still trying to advance, but she had no idea what his next move would be. Was he holding hostages? Was he waiting to ambush anyone who dared step into his path?
Nia’s mind raced. She could hear muffled voices—frantic whispers from students who had managed to lock themselves in classrooms, taking cover wherever they could. The loudspeakers crackled again, this time with a voice she hadn’t expected to hear.
“Don’t make me do it!” Mikey’s voice echoed throughout the halls. “If anyone tries to stop me, I’ll make sure they regret it. No one’s leaving until I say so!”
His words hit her like a punch to the gut. He wasn’t just trying to escape anymore; he was trying to make a statement. And with the school on lockdown, no one could get in or out without going through him.
Nia ducked into a hallway, trying to make her way toward the classrooms. If she could reach the students, if she could find someone willing to help, maybe they could end this without anyone getting hurt. But she knew it wouldn’t be easy. Mikey had made it clear he wasn’t backing down.
Inside the second floor.
Mikey paced back and forth, his footsteps echoing ominously across the long corridor. He’d already locked down the stairwells, set up barricades with whatever he could find, and was preparing for the inevitable standoff. He wasn’t a fool. He knew the police would come. They always did. But today, he was the one in control.
“Anyone who gets in my way…” Mikey muttered to himself, his voice trembling with a mix of rage and fear, “…they’re gonna pay.”
His mind was a blur of thoughts and emotions. The death of his older brother still haunted him. The school was supposed to be a safe space, but it had become another battleground—a place where he could be heard, where he could be seen. His actions weren’t just about survival. They were about making people understand the pain he’d been forced to live with. They were about revenge, about being seen. He’d spent so long in the shadows—today, he was going to make sure the whole world noticed him.
As he neared a window at the end of the hall, he glanced down toward the school parking lot. He could see the flashing lights of the police cars, the figures of officers moving in slowly, cautiously. But it wasn’t just them. He noticed Nia, standing at the edge of the lot, just outside the shadows.
Her. She wasn’t running. She wasn’t hiding like everyone else. She was standing there, trying to act like she was in control.
Mikey’s grip on the gun tightened. He knew what she was trying to do. She was going to try to talk to him. But he was beyond reason. She wouldn’t be able to stop him. Nobody would.
But even then, a small part of him hesitated. There was something in her expression—something familiar—that made him falter for just a moment. Nia had always been one of the good ones. She was smart, kind, someone people looked up to. It wasn’t easy to forget that.
Back in the hallways.
Nia’s heart nearly stopped when she saw Mikey through the window, his figure moving back and forth along the second-floor hallway. She had to act fast—before he could spot her, before things got any worse.
She pulled her phone from her pocket, her fingers shaking as she quickly texted Malik.
Stay low. I’m going back in. Don’t do anything stupid.
She didn’t wait for a reply. The second Mikey saw her through that window, everything could spiral out of control. She needed to find a way to get to him before he did.
As she made her way down the hall, she spotted a few students huddled near a classroom door, their faces pale with fear. One of them, a girl Nia recognized from her biology class, was crying.
“Nia,” the girl gasped when she saw her. “We… we can’t stay here. We’re trapped.”
Nia knelt beside her, trying to keep her voice calm. “We’re not trapped. Not if we stick together.”
“We’re going to die,” the girl whispered, looking around frantically. “Mikey… he’ll—”
“We’re not going to die,” Nia said, cutting her off firmly. “I’m going to get us out of here. But you have to trust me.”
The girl nodded, sniffling, her fear still overwhelming her.
Nia motioned for the others to follow, guiding them toward a small utility closet near the back of the hallway. It wasn’t much, but it was a place to hide. As she shoved the door open, she saw a few other students already inside, crouched in the dark.
“Stay here,” Nia instructed. “Don’t make a sound. Stay low and don’t move until I come back. Understand?”
They nodded, their wide eyes filled with terror.
Nia’s resolve hardened. She couldn’t lead them to safety if she didn’t stop Mikey first.
Upstairs.
Mikey stood by the window, his eyes locked on Nia as she moved back toward the building. He watched her like a predator, tracking her every step. There was something about her presence that unsettled him. She wasn’t scared. She wasn’t running. He didn’t understand how she could be so calm, so composed. Was she truly that brave, or was she just pretending?
He didn’t know. All he knew was that if she was coming for him, there was no way he was letting her get too close.
The sound of footsteps in the hall jolted him back to reality. The police were getting closer.
He took a deep breath, steadying himself. He had to focus. He had to end this before anyone else got hurt.
Outside the school.
Nia reached the back entrance again, her mind set on the one thing she knew could bring this all to an end—talking to Mikey. She didn’t have a plan, not really, but she had to try. She had to get through to him before the situation escalated beyond control.
She stepped outside, heart in her throat, the cold air biting at her skin. And for the first time in what felt like hours, she looked directly at Mikey, who stood in the window, staring right back at her.
It was time.
