The Kay estate was never truly quiet.
Even in silence, it hummed—with wealth, with legacy, with secrets buried beneath marble floors and velvet drapes.
That night, after Suzie's phone call, a shift took place within the estate. Subtle. Icy.
Lynn felt it the moment she walked through the front door.
The chandelier lights flickered once. A servant glanced away too quickly. Serene wasn't in her room—and hadn't answered her messages since dusk.
Lynn's heart ticked with instinct.
Something was off.
---
She found her father in his study, fingers laced, eyes cold.
"You've been busy," John Kay said.
Lynn remained standing. "You knew Suzie was trying to blackmail me?"
He didn't deny it.
"I told you—stay out of the fire," he said.
"I am the fire now," she replied.
A silence stretched between them. Heavy with history.
"She made a move," Lynn said. "It didn't work. Jenifer's losing grip."
John's eyes sharpened. "That folder was supposed to stay buried."
"She brought it back."
"She doesn't understand what it contains."
"Then tell me," Lynn said.
John stood, walked to the fireplace, and pressed a hidden switch behind a book. A wall panel slid open.
Inside was a steel drawer, fingerprint-locked. He pressed his thumb. It hissed open.
From inside, he pulled a sealed brown file with the Kay insignia burned into the cover.
He held it but didn't hand it to her.
"This is bigger than Suzie. Bigger than school gossip," he said. "It's about legacy. Power. If this gets out…"
"It won't," Lynn said, voice low. "Unless you betray me."
John studied her.
"I see your mother in you," he finally whispered.
"She'd want me to know."
He handed her the folder.
"You'll regret opening this."
"I already regret too much," she replied.
---
In her bedroom, Lynn sat on the floor, folder in hand, heart hammering.
She opened it.
Inside: photos, letters, account statements, old case files. A name appeared again and again:
The Zelar Group.
A shell company. Offshore accounts. One with connections to arms trafficking. Another—government lobbying.
And at the center of them?
John Kay's signature.
Alongside it—Suzie Kay's maiden name: Suzie Zelar.
Lynn stared at the page.
Her stepmother wasn't just greedy.
She was an heir to a crime empire.
---
She barely slept.
By morning, Serene had returned—her expression pale.
"Where were you?" Lynn asked sharply.
"In the garden," Serene said. "Someone left this by the gate."
She handed Lynn a black envelope.
No return name.
Inside: a single photo.
Lynn and Alex.
Together on the rooftop.
It was timestamped.
And circled in red.
On the back, a note:
"He's next."
Lynn froze.
Someone was watching them. Not just at school.
At home.
---
Later that day, the courtyard buzzed again—but this time, it wasn't about Lynn.
It was about Alex.
Rumors spread like gasoline on dry leaves.
"He's on probation."
"Something about an investigation."
"They're saying he stole school records?"
By lunchtime, Alex was called to the principal's office.
Lynn followed—pushed her way in without knocking.
"You're not allowed—" the secretary began.
"I'm Lynn Kay," she snapped. "Try me."
Inside, Alex stood straight-backed, his face unreadable.
The principal spoke slowly, carefully.
"A file was submitted anonymously. It suggests Alex accessed the school database using an admin code… stolen from a teacher's office."
"That's a lie," Lynn said.
Alex remained quiet.
"Until we verify," the principal said, "he'll be suspended from all leadership roles—including basketball."
Lynn's fists clenched.
"I'll handle this," she said.
Alex looked at her, finally. His eyes said it all:
Don't lose yourself for me.
But Lynn was already gone.
---
By evening, she sat alone in her room, fingers flying across her keyboard.
Code traced. File metadata pulled. IP matched.
She found it.
Not from a student.
Not from Chelsea. Not even from Jenifer.
From the Kay estate's private router.
Suzie's office.
Of course.
But the person who uploaded it?
Jamy.
---
Lynn's phone buzzed.
It was a text from an unknown number.
> You opened the folder. Now you understand. Give it back—or lose everything.
Attached: a photo of Alex's little sister. On her way home from school.
Lynn's hands shook.
The game had changed.
It wasn't about popularity anymore.
This was war.
And in war, queens do more than rule.
They protect.