Chapter 2 - The Shadow of the Pillar
By the second week, the town seemed to turn against us. It wasn't overt; it was the cold shoulder at the grocery store, the hushed conversations that stopped when I entered a room. Harrison continued his public life, smiling in the local paper, presenting awards, and hosting town halls.
I spent my nights in my study, document after document spread across my desk. I started digging into his past. I needed to know if Sophia was the only one. My investigation wasn't professional, but it was desperate. I started reaching out to former teachers, retired staff, anyone who had worked under him in his previous district.
Most slammed the phone down. But one, a retired secretary named Mrs. Gable, finally replied to my email. She met me in a coffee shop three towns over, her hands shaking as she stirred her tea. She didn't give me a smoking gun, but she gave me a map. She told me about the "behavioral improvement room"—a windowless office where students went and didn't come out the same way. She told me that Harrison’s "disciples" were essentially his enforcers. I realized then that this wasn't just a man; it was a system.
