Chapter 10
The Wrong Person
Keira stared at the photo until her phone screen dimmed.
Three people stood in front of a company building.
Jovan's father.
Bagas.
And a man named Reza Mahardika.
The name felt unfamiliar.
Too unfamiliar for someone who had just been named as a possible center of the problem.
Keira touched the screen to wake it again.
Beneath the photo, the message from the unknown number was still open.
If Jovan wants to know who really set up his family, find Reza Mahardika.
Felix is just a kid who's too afraid of his father.
You've been chasing the wrong person this whole time.
Her phone vibrated.
Jovan was calling.
Keira answered immediately.
"Hello."
"You still have the original photo?"
"Yeah."
"Send me the file, not a screenshot."
Keira frowned.
"Why?"
"Mom's lawyer wants to check the metadata."
"Oh."
Keira immediately sent the photo she'd received.
A few seconds later, Jovan said,
"I don't like this."
"Which part?"
"All of it."
Keira sat cross-legged on her bed.
"Who is Reza?"
"I'm asking Mom."
"She knows?"
"Not sure."
Silence.
Keira stared at the third man's face in the photo.
He looked about the same age as Jovan's father.
Short hair.
A white shirt.
Nothing particularly striking.
If the photo had appeared without context, Keira wouldn't have given it a second thought.
"Van."
"Hm?"
"If the person sending these messages really wants to help, why did they threaten me from the beginning?"
Jovan immediately fell silent.
That was bothering him too.
Someone who genuinely wanted to help wouldn't need to send photos in secret.
They wouldn't need to say they knew where Keira lived.
They wouldn't need to ask her to meet in an isolated place.
"Then don't trust them completely," Jovan finally said.
"Agreed."
"Reza could be important."
"But he could also be bait."
"Yeah."
Keira smiled faintly.
"You're finally learning."
"Don't start."
"I'm just appreciating it."
"I can think."
"Sometimes."
"Keira."
She laughed softly.
For a few seconds, the fear in her chest eased a little.
Then a woman's voice sounded faintly from the other end of the call.
Jovan stopped.
"Mom's calling me."
"Okay."
"Don't reply to that number yet."
"I know."
"If there's another message—"
"I'll send it to you."
"Good."
Keira was about to end the call.
"Van."
"Hm?"
"Be careful."
Jovan was silent for a second.
"You too."
The call ended.
Keira set her phone down.
But that night, one question kept bothering her.
If Felix wasn't the main person—
why had he stolen the letter?
The next morning, Jovan came to school with Bima.
There were no jokes as they passed through the gate.
There was no Dito shouting.
Even some of the students who usually turned to look now kept their distance.
The news about Jovan's family's case was still spreading.
But after the school started getting involved, most people became more careful.
Keira was already standing in front of the classroom when Jovan appeared in the hallway.
Their eyes met.
Jovan walked over.
"Have you eaten breakfast?"
Keira raised an eyebrow.
"Good morning to you too."
"So you haven't?"
"I have."
"What did you eat?"
Keira narrowed her eyes.
"Are you interrogating me?"
"I'm verifying."
"Toast."
"Good."
Keira held back a smile.
"How's your dad?"
"Still in the hospital."
"Your mom?"
"Running on too little sleep."
Keira nodded slowly.
"And Reza?"
Jovan looked around.
"Not here."
Keira understood immediately.
They moved to the quieter end of the hallway.
Jovan lowered his voice.
"Mom knows him."
"Who is he?"
"The former head of internal audit."
Keira froze.
"At your dad's company?"
"Yeah."
"Why former?"
"He left about a year ago."
"Why?"
"Apparently he resigned."
"Apparently?"
Jovan rubbed the back of his neck.
"Mom doesn't know the details."
Keira thought about the photo.
Jovan's father.
Bagas.
Reza.
"Was Bagas close to him?"
"Seems like it."
"And?"
"The family lawyer is looking into it."
"Where is Reza now?"
"I don't know."
Keira looked at Jovan.
"So we have two missing people."
"Bagas and Reza."
"That's great."
Jovan snorted.
"Don't say it like that."
"Is the situation great?"
"No."
They fell silent.
Then Keira asked,
"Felix?"
Jovan sighed.
"The school managed to contact his family."
"And?"
"He's coming this afternoon."
"To school?"
"Yeah."
Keira stared at him.
"His dad?"
"Don't know."
Jovan shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Mr. Hendra said we shouldn't get involved while they're talking."
"Makes sense."
Jovan looked at her.
Keira said immediately, "Don't look at me like that."
"I haven't said anything."
"You were going to say we still have to find out."
Jovan smiled faintly.
"It's nice having someone who knows me that well."
Keira immediately lost her words.
Jovan noticed.
His smile grew more obvious.
"Don't."
"Don't what?"
"Don't say things like that on purpose."
"Like what?"
"Van."
He chuckled.
Keira walked back toward the classroom.
Jovan called after her,
"Kei."
Keira turned around.
"About yesterday..."
"What?"
"The hug."
Keira's face immediately grew hot.
"Don't bring it up."
"I just wanted to say—"
"No."
"I'm not finished."
"I don't want to hear it."
Jovan smiled.
Keira walked faster.
Bima's voice came from behind them.
"Rejected first thing in the morning?"
"Shut up."
Keira entered the classroom, holding back a smile.
Felix arrived at 11:20.
Keira knew because Celine came with the information two minutes later.
"He's in the vice principal's office."
Farah didn't even ask how Celine knew anymore.
Tasya only said,
"Don't go there."
Celine looked offended.
"I didn't say I was going to."
"But your face did."
Keira stared at her laptop screen.
"Is his dad there?"
"No."
"Is he alone?"
"With his mom."
Keira turned immediately.
"His mom?"
Celine nodded.
"Looks like it."
Tasya sat beside Keira.
"Don't overthink it."
"I'm just curious."
"Whenever you guys say you're just curious, it ends with an investigation."
Keira was about to reply when her phone vibrated.
A message from Jovan.
Jovan: Felix is here.
Keira: I know.
Jovan: Celine?
Keira smiled.
Keira: Who else.
Jovan: I'm being asked to go to the counseling office later.
Keira immediately grew serious.
Keira: Why?
Jovan: Felix wants to talk in person.
Keira stared at the screen.
Keira: Alone?
Jovan: Mr. Hendra will be there.
Keira: Good.
A few seconds later:
Jovan: He asked for you too.
Keira stopped.
Keira: Why me?
Jovan: Don't know.
Keira looked at Tasya.
"I've been called in."
Tasya immediately said,
"Don't go alone."
Keira almost laughed.
"Mr. Hendra will be there."
"Oh."
Celine stood up.
"I'll come with you to the door."
"No."
"For moral support."
"No."
"Kei."
"No."
Celine sat back down, disappointed.
Felix Adhitama didn't look like someone who had made their lives a mess for the past few days.
That was the first thing Keira thought when she entered the counseling office.
He was thin.
Paler than usual.
There were dark circles beneath his eyes.
His hands kept fidgeting.
His mother sat a few chairs away with the vice principal.
Jovan was already in the room.
He turned when Keira entered.
Keira sat beside him.
Not too close.
Mr. Hendra stood near the door.
"Felix," he said, "they're here."
Felix nodded.
But he didn't speak right away.
Jovan looked at him.
Not warmly.
But not aggressively either.
Keira noticed.
He was really trying to hold himself back.
Finally, Felix said,
"I'm sorry."
Jovan didn't answer.
Neither did Keira.
Felix swallowed.
"About the letter."
Jovan asked,
"Where is it?"
Mr. Hendra looked at him.
Jovan lowered his voice.
"Sorry."
Felix rubbed his palms together.
"I don't have it anymore."
Jovan clenched his jaw.
"Who did you give it to?"
Felix didn't answer right away.
His mother touched his shoulder.
"Tell them."
Felix lowered his head.
"My dad."
The room suddenly went quiet.
Keira had suspected as much.
But hearing it still made her stomach tighten.
Jovan let out a short, humorless laugh.
"Great."
"Van," Keira said softly.
He stopped.
Felix continued,
"I didn't know what the letter was about at first."
"Then why did you tell Selma to take it?"
Felix looked at Jovan.
"Because my dad told me to."
No one spoke.
Felix said more quickly,
"He knew the letter existed."
"How?"
"I don't know."
"You didn't ask?"
"I did."
"And?"
"He said it was a company document Bagas had stolen."
Keira looked at Jovan.
His jaw had grown even tighter.
Felix lowered his head again.
"I believed him."
"And you used the school account to threaten people?" Jovan asked.
Felix shook his head quickly.
"Not at first."
"Not at first?"
"@TheNextHallway existed before all this."
Mr. Hendra interrupted,
"Tell us from the beginning."
Felix took a breath.
"Reno, Candra, and I ran the account."
"Four people," Keira said.
Felix looked at her.
"Yeah."
"Who was the fourth?"
Felix fell silent.
Keira immediately felt uneasy.
"Who?"
Felix glanced at his mother.
Then he said,
"Alma."
Keira frowned.
The name was familiar.
Very familiar.
But she couldn't immediately remember where from.
Jovan asked,
"Which Alma?"
"Alma Pramesti."
Keira remembered immediately.
Class XI-4.
Her own class.
Keira froze.
Tasya had chatted with her a few times.
Alma sat two rows behind Farah.
Not particularly close.
She never stood out.
She was the student who almost always wore earbuds during breaks.
"Alma's in my class," Keira said.
Felix nodded.
"She was the one who handled the account most often."
Keira felt a chill run down the back of her neck.
"Why didn't Reno ever mention her?"
"Because..."
Felix stopped.
"What?"
"Because Alma had all the passwords."
Jovan looked at him.
"So she was the main admin."
"You could say that."
Keira immediately remembered all the posts.
People's faces.
Photos from the hallway.
Class information.
It wouldn't have been difficult for Alma to know Keira's routine.
She was in the same room almost every day.
"How did Alma know about Jovan's family's case?" Keira asked.
Felix shook his head.
"Not from me."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
"Then who told her?"
"I don't know either."
Jovan leaned back.
"What do you actually know?"
"Van."
Keira gently reminded him.
Jovan exhaled.
Felix continued,
"I only know my dad started panicking after Bagas disappeared."
Keira held her breath.
"Why?"
"He kept calling people late at night."
"Who?"
"Reza was one of them."
Jovan immediately fell silent.
Felix said,
"I heard that name once."
"What did your dad say?"
Felix tried to remember.
"Something like..."
He stopped.
"If Reza opens his mouth, it's all over."
Keira's heart pounded.
Jovan looked at her.
It was the first time they'd gotten something that felt like a real lead.
Mr. Hendra wrote something down.
"Felix, are you willing to tell this to the people handling Jovan's family's case?"
Felix looked frightened.
His mother took his hand.
Finally, he nodded.
"Yes."
After the meeting ended, Keira and Jovan left together.
Neither spoke for several steps.
Only when they reached the side staircase did Jovan stop.
"Alma."
Keira nodded.
"She's in your class."
"Yeah."
"Was she ever close to you?"
"No."
"Why didn't you ever tell me about her?"
Keira looked at him immediately.
"Do I have to tell you about every classmate I have?"
"That's not what I meant."
"Then what did you mean?"
Jovan rubbed the back of his neck.
"I just..."
He stopped.
"Worried?"
"Yeah."
Keira exhaled.
"Alma barely ever talks to me."
"She can watch you every day."
"Van."
"I know. Don't panic."
"I'm not panicking."
"You're rubbing your fingers."
Keira stopped immediately.
Only then did she realize she'd been rubbing her thumb with her index finger the whole time.
A habit she had when she was anxious.
Jovan looked at her.
Keira clicked her tongue.
"You're annoying."
"I still know you."
Keira didn't answer.
Jovan smiled faintly.
Then his face grew serious again.
"We need to tell Tasya and the others enough to keep them informed."
"Why?"
"Because Alma's in your class."
Keira knew he was right.
"Mr. Hendra first."
Jovan nodded.
"Okay."
Keira studied him for a few seconds.
"Why are you agreeing with me so much today?"
Jovan looked at her flatly.
"I can go back to being annoying if you miss it."
"Don't."
"See?"
Keira almost laughed.
Alma wasn't in class when they returned.
Keira only realized then that her bag was gone too.
Tasya immediately noticed Keira's expression.
"What's wrong?"
Keira sat down.
"Later."
Celine came closer.
"Why later?"
Farah looked at the empty desk behind them.
"Alma?"
Keira looked at her.
Farah immediately realized something was wrong.
Before they could say anything else, Mr. Hendra entered.
He asked Keira, Tasya, Celine, and Farah to come outside.
In the empty room next door, Keira explained.
Not everything.
Only that Alma was one of the admins of @TheNextHallway and the school wanted to make sure Keira wasn't alone.
Celine looked the most shaken.
"Alma?"
"Yeah."
"Alma, the one whose voice is almost inaudible whenever she presents?"
Tasya looked at her.
"That has nothing to do with this."
"I'm just shocked."
Farah was calmer.
"She was here this morning."
Keira turned immediately.
"You saw her?"
"Yeah."
"What time?"
"Around seven."
"And now she's gone."
Tasya looked at the door.
"Did she go home?"
Mr. Hendra said,
"She didn't get permission."
Keira felt uneasy.
"Have her parents been contacted?"
"We're working on it."
Keira's phone vibrated.
Everyone turned toward her.
She picked it up.
An unknown number.
Again.
But this time, the message was very short.
Unknown Number: Don't look for Alma.
Keira froze.
A second message appeared.
Unknown Number: She's not your enemy.
Keira showed it to Mr. Hendra.
His expression changed.
Then a third message:
Unknown Number: If you want to know who Reza is, look through last year's journalistic archives, dated February 14.
Keira stared at the screen.
Journalistic archives.
Celine immediately said,
"The Media Room."
Farah looked at Keira.
"Photos from the event?"
Keira thought quickly.
February 14 last year.
The date on the back of the photo.
Damar—Bagas—Reza, February 14.
It wasn't a coincidence.
"Don't go there yet," Mr. Hendra said.
Celine immediately covered her mouth.
Mr. Hendra took the phone.
"I'm coming with you."
Last year's journalistic archives were stored in the cabinet at the very back of the Media Room.
Photos.
Articles.
School coverage.
External activities.
Celine opened the folder list.
"February 14..."
She typed.
There was one folder.
Grade Eleven Career Visit—PT Madyantara
Keira immediately looked at Jovan.
"Your dad's company."
Jovan nodded.
Mr. Hendra stood behind them.
Celine opened the folder.
Hundreds of photos appeared.
Students visiting the company office.
A presentation.
A tour of the building.
Group photos.
Keira scrolled.
Then she stopped.
There was a photo of Jovan's father standing with several people.
Bagas.
Adrian Adhitama.
And—
"Reza," Jovan said.
The same man from the photo the night before.
Keira enlarged the photo.
Behind them was an event banner.
Celine scrolled to the next photo.
Reza was talking to a female student.
Part of the girl's face was obscured.
The next photo.
Clearer.
Keira froze.
"Alma."
Alma Pramesti stood in front of Reza.
They didn't look like two people who had just met.
Reza had a hand on her shoulder.
Alma was smiling.
Tasya covered her mouth.
"What..."
Keira opened the next photo.
A group photo.
Alma stood beside Reza.
Very close.
There was a coverage-notes file at the back of the folder.
Celine opened it.
List of interviewees.
Damar Dirgantara—Chief Executive Officer
Adrian Adhitama—Chief Financial Officer
Bagas Wiratama—Head of Operations
Reza Mahardika—Former Head of Internal Audit / Consultant
Then, at the bottom:
Student liaison contact: Alma Pramesti—interviewee's family.
Keira read it twice.
"Interviewee's family?"
Mr. Hendra took over the computer.
"That means..."
Jovan continued,
"Reza is Alma's family."
Keira felt everything beginning to fall into place.
Alma knew Reza.
Maybe she knew about the company case.
Maybe she knew Bagas.
Maybe she knew more than Felix.
"Why did she send anonymous clues?" Tasya asked.
No one knew.
Keira's phone vibrated again.
Everyone froze.
A new message.
Unknown Number: Now you know.
Then:
Unknown Number: Reza Mahardika is my father.
Celine covered her mouth.
Jovan stared at the screen.
The next message came in.
Unknown Number: And he isn't missing.
Keira felt her heart beating faster.
Unknown Number: He's hiding because he knows who took the money.
Jovan immediately typed.
Jovan: Alma?
Keira looked at him.
"You replied?"
"I need to know."
The message was read.
A few seconds passed.
Then:
Unknown Number: Yes.
Everyone fell silent.
At last, the person behind some of the anonymous messages had a name.
Alma.
But one question had only grown bigger.
Keira typed herself.
Keira: Why did you threaten me?
The reply didn't come immediately.
One minute.
Two.
Then:
Alma: I never threatened you.
Keira froze.
Keira: The hospital photo. The photo of my house.
Alma: That wasn't me.
Jovan looked at Keira immediately.
The uneasiness returned.
If Felix had sent some of the messages.
Alma had sent some of the others.
Then who had sent the threats?
Another message from Alma came in.
Alma: I sent the photo of Reza and the archive clue.
Alma: I was also the one who said Felix wasn't your main enemy.
Alma: But I never asked you to come to the warehouse.
Jovan stared at the screen.
"Then there's a third person."
Keira felt a chill run down the back of her neck.
Not an admin of the school account.
Not Felix.
Not Alma.
Someone else.
Then Alma's final message arrived.
Alma: If someone is still sending messages from an anonymous number, don't trust them.
Alma: Because the person you're really looking for now knows you've started getting close to Reza.
Keira typed quickly.
Keira: Who?
A long time passed.
There was no answer.
Five minutes.
Then there was only one message:
Alma: My father said that person has been inside the company from the very beginning.
Jovan stared at the screen.
Keira felt her breath catch.
Alma: And if they find out Bagas's letter hasn't really disappeared, they'll come after Jovan again.**
The school immediately contacted Alma's family.
Mr. Hendra didn't let any of them go anywhere alone.
This time, there were no protests.
Even Jovan was silent.
Because the situation had changed again.
Felix might have been helping his father.
Alma might have been hiding Reza.
But the threats directed at Keira seemed to have come from someone else.
That afternoon, Jovan and Keira sat on the side staircase.
The school was beginning to empty out.
Bima waited not far away.
Keira looked out over the courtyard.
"I'm tired."
Jovan sat one step below her.
"Me too."
"I miss when our biggest problem was just breaking up."
Jovan chuckled.
"Me too."
Keira looked at him.
"I used to think the worst thing was everyone at school knowing we broke up."
"Now everyone at school knows my family is involved in a case."
"And we hugged."
Jovan smiled immediately.
"Now that's the good part."
Keira lightly hit his shoulder.
"Don't bring it up."
"I still have a picture of it."
Keira froze.
"You kept it?"
Jovan immediately realized he'd said the wrong thing.
"Uh."
"Jovan."
"Bima sent it to me."
"Why did you keep it?"
"Historical evidence."
"Delete it."
"No."
"Van."
"Don't push it."
Keira held back a laugh.
For a few seconds, everything felt normal.
Then Jovan looked ahead.
"Kei."
"Hm?"
"If this case is ever resolved..."
Keira turned toward him.
Jovan fiddled with his watch strap.
"...can I ask you to start over with me?"
Keira fell silent.
Not get back together.
Start over.
From the beginning.
For some reason, those words felt different.
More careful.
More mature than simply restoring their old relationship.
Keira stared at his profile.
"I don't know."
Jovan nodded.
"I know."
"But..."
He turned toward her.
Keira exhaled.
"I didn't say no."
Jovan didn't move for several seconds.
Then the corner of his mouth lifted.
"So there's a chance."
"Don't get cocky."
"Too late."
"You're annoying."
"Do you still love me?"
Keira stood up.
"I'm going home."
Jovan laughed and stood too.
But before they could go down the stairs, his phone rang.
It wasn't Keira.
It wasn't Jovan.
It was Bima.
He stood several feet away with a serious expression.
"Van."
Jovan stopped immediately.
"What?"
Bima showed him the screen.
A message from Ms. Laras.
Come home now. The police found Bagas.
Jovan froze.
Keira looked at him.
Bima continued quietly,
"He's alive."
Jovan didn't react.
As if the sentence were too big to understand right away.
Keira reached for his hand.
This time, without hesitation.
"Van."
Jovan looked at her.
His eyes began to change.
"Bagas is alive."
Keira nodded.
"Yeah."
But Bima wasn't finished.
His face was still far too tense for the news to be entirely good.
"There's one more thing."
Jovan looked at him.
Bima swallowed.
"Bagas was found outside the city."
"And?"
"He asked to speak with the police before seeing his family."
Jovan frowned.
"Why?"
Bima read the next message.
Then his expression grew even more serious.
"Because he says the person who framed your dad..."
He stopped.
"...isn't Adrian Adhitama."
Jovan froze.
Keira held her breath.
Bima continued,
"And that person is still in the company."
Jovan tightened his grip on Keira's hand.
She didn't let go.
Because at last, someone who truly knew the truth had been found.
The problem was—
that truth seemed far worse than anything they had suspected.