Chapter 23
Luna
For the next couple of days, I avoid everyone, even Sophie and Annika. I push harder during training. My migraines keep getting worse, and nothing seems to help, but that doesn’t stop me. It never did before. This is what it takes to get to the top.
After practice, I spend most of my time at the library, trying to find anything about Ellias, but I still have nothing. Just a locked archives room and a name everyone’s too afraid to say out loud.
But I know someone who might be able to help.
Jasper.
I’ve heard the whispers that he’s kinda like a tech genius and can hack into almost anything.
I find Jasper by the east rink exit after my practice, and thankfully, he’s alone.
“Hey,” I say, stepping into his path.
He blinks, like I caught him off guard, taking out one earbud. “Heyyy.” He gives me one of his boyish smiles.
“Can I talk to you for a second?”
“Is this about Zayden? Because you guys need to figure out whatever the fuck is going on between you two. He’s been acting like he’s fine but barely holding it together.”
“What? No. This isn’t about him.” Not entirely.
“Oh. I mean, you two have been avoiding each other…but we can all see how miserable you are.”
I raise an eyebrow.
“Never mind. What do you want to talk about?”
“I need a favor.”
He narrows his eyes at me. “What kind of favor?”
“I need to get into the restricted archive room,” I say quietly.
He pulls me aside. “You want to break into the archives? The ones locked behind a coded door?”
I nod once.
“Luna, it’s restricted for a reason.”
“I know.”
“Do I want to know why?”
“Probably not.”
He exhales, scratching the back of his neck. “Does Zayden know about this?”
“No, I don’t owe him anything.”
“Then it’s definitely a no.” He starts walking away.
“Please, Jasper.”
He stops and looks at me over his shoulder.
“I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.”
He groans. “You’re not gonna tell me what this is about, are you?”
“No.”
“You’re gonna do it with or without me?”
“Absolutely.”
He mutters something under his breath. “Midnight. South stairwell. Bring gloves. And Luna?”
“Yeah?”
“This never happened.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet. If we get caught, we’re dead, and if Zayden finds out I put you in danger, I’m dead, too.”
Then he disappears down the hallway.
I try not to think about what his last comment about Zayden means.
I wait until I know Annika and Sophie are asleep, and then sneak out.
I stay out of view of the cameras, like Jasper suggested.
The campus is quiet, but I’m used to it by now.
When I make it to the side entrance of the library, Jasper is already there, leaning against the wall in a black hoodie, arms crossed over his chest.
“You’re late.”
“Sorry, I had to wait until the girls were asleep.”
He pulls the door open, and I follow him inside. The library is dark, except for Jasper’s phone flashlight. Long shadows stretch between the shelves, and my imagination fills them with faces.
We reach a door at the back of the library that says Staff Only.
Jasper pulls a small device from his bag and crouches in front of the keypad outside the archive door. He taps the device to the digital lock, and we wait a few tense seconds before a green light flashes and the door clicks open.
Impressive.
He swings the door open, and cold air spills out—so cold it fogs the edges of his flashlight. “After you, Nancy Drew.”
I stare at the narrow stairwell that disappears into the shadows.
We start descending the stairs with Jasper’s flashlight lighting the way. The deeper we get, the colder it gets. Then there’s another door.
What the fuck?
Jasper steps closer to it and squints at the lock, then exhales slowly.
“Please don’t tell me we came here for nothing.”
“This lock is not connected to the school system.”
“Meaning?”
“This requires a more sophisticated device.” He pulls out another device that looks like a mini laptop with something that looks like an antenna, just like the old phone I used to have.
“How many of those do you have?”
“Enough.”
I watch him working on the device. His expression is calm and focused, like he could do this in his sleep. “How do you know how to do all this?”
“My dad designed the system.”
“Wait, what?”
“All tech at Valcérre is created by Virex, my dad’s company and one of the largest tech companies in the world. Sports, military, government-grade systems.”
The lock beeps, and he smirks but doesn’t open it yet.
“You’re serious?”
“Dead serious. The only reason he lets me play hockey here is because I agreed to study sports tech, and I can beta test some of his gadgets. He expects me to take over the company once he retires.”
“Wow, that’s…”
He shrugs. “I learned how to code before I even knew how to read.” He tucks the device back in his bag.
“Remind me not to mess with you.”
He laughs before pushing the door open. I step inside, and it’s even darker than the stairs.
“There should be a light switch.” I reach for the wall.
“Don’t. The school’s security system is tied to motion-activated electricity. If anyone’s monitoring grid activity, they’ll know someone was down here.”
I lower my hand. “Right. Of course, you’d know that.”
He finds a desk lamp and switches it on, giving us enough light to see the rows of long shelves with file cabinets. “Manual light. No motion sensor, and low voltage. It won’t trigger anything.”
I nod and then look around.
This place is set up like a library.
Each cabinet drawer is labeled.
Student Files:
Last names A-H
Last names I-Q
Last names R-Z
Athletic Records
Hockey Players
Figure Skaters
Scholarship Recipients and Reviews
Academic Misconduct
Injury/Medical Incidents
Sports Incidents and Injuries
“If a player died while skating alone, it should be in here, right?” I point toward the cabinet labeled Sports Incidents and Injuries.
“It should be.”
I tug it, but it’s locked. “Can you open it?” I look over at Jasper.
He gives me a look that says, Is that even a question?
Of course, he can.
“So,” he says quietly. “This is about Ellias, isn’t it?”
“No…”
“Luna, don’t lie to me.”
I glance at him, and his face isn’t judgmental. “I just need to know what happened,” I whisper. “No one talks about him. There’s nothing online. But something feels off. And the more I look… the more wrong everything feels.”
He looks at me. “Why do you care so much?” he asks. “You didn’t even know him,” he adds, softer now. “Why are you doing all this?”
And for a second, something raw swells in my chest—grief for someone I never met. Because the truth is, it’s not just about Ellias.
It’s also about me.
“I was ten years old when I tried to run away. I just wanted to see if my mother would notice. When I came home hours later, she didn’t even know I was gone.
” I breathe through the pressure in my chest. “Ellias is already a ghost, but someone should still care. We should know exactly what happened to him.”
“Okay.” He pulls a pin out of his pocket and opens the file drawer.
I flick through the tabs. So many names, so many dates, but nothing says Ellias.
“Why isn’t his name here?” But I already know the answer.
He didn’t die skating alone that night.
“If it’s not here… then it has to be somewhere.” I search the other cabinets. There has to be something here that can tell me what happened to him.
That’s when I see it.
All the way in the bottom of a filing cabinet. Midnight Challenge - Restricted.
This one is not like the others. There’s a small rectangular panel embedded in the front. “Is that a key card reader?”
“Worse. It’s a dual-layer system. Key card and biometric.”
“Can you open it?”
Jasper crouches beside me, inspecting the lock. His mouth twists. “I don’t have the tools with me.”
“Can we come back?”
He hesitates. “If we don’t get caught first.”