Book 1 - The Boy in the Yearbook: The Photograph - Chapter 14 - The Boy's Secret

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The words followed Clara out of the Blackwood house.

CLARA WAS THE SIXTH.

She couldn't stop looking at them.

The photograph trembled between her fingers as she sat in Adrian's car.

He hadn't started the engine.

Neither of them spoke.

Finally, Adrian broke the silence.

Adrian: "We need to tell the others."

Clara stared through the windshield.

Clara: "Tell them what?"

Adrian: "Everything."

She looked down at the photograph.

Clara: "That I was somehow part of a secret created before I was born?"

Adrian: "Yes."

Clara: "That Elliot Ashford was apparently my legal guardian?"

Adrian: "Yes."

Clara: "That someone just told us my mother wasn't supposed to have me?"

Adrian paused.

Adrian: "Especially that."

Clara finally looked at him.

Clara: "And what about you?"

He frowned.

Clara: "You were in the future photograph with Elliot."

Adrian's expression hardened.

Adrian: "I don't know why."

Clara: "But you're connected to him."

Adrian: "Apparently."

Neither of them noticed the figure watching from the trees.

They met Noah, Maya, and Elena at the library shortly before midnight.

Maya had spread newspapers across the table.

Noah had school records.

Elena had her grandmother's letters.

Clara placed the photograph in the center.

Everyone stared at it.

Maya: "What happened?"

Clara: "We found something."

Adrian placed the Blackwood document beside it.

Maya immediately picked it up.

Her eyes moved across the page.

Maya: "Elliot was Clara's guardian?"

Noah: "What?"

Clara nodded.

Clara: "According to this."

Elena looked at the photograph.

Her expression changed.

Elena: "That's my grandmother."

Clara: "And my mother."

Maya pointed to the date.

Maya: "1997."

Noah: "Ten years after Elliot disappeared."

Clara looked at everyone.

Clara: "That's what we need to understand."

Noah pulled out a newspaper clipping.

Noah: "Then we should start with what officially happened."

He placed it on the table.

The headline read:

BLACKWOOD STUDENT MISSING AFTER SCHOOL EVENT

October 15, 1987

Maya: "Elliot Ashford disappeared the night before."

Noah nodded.

Noah: "According to the police report, he was last seen leaving the east wing at 11:52 p.m."

Clara remembered the photograph.

Exactly 11:52.

Clara: "What happened after that?"

Noah flipped the page.

Noah: "Nothing."

Clara: "Nothing?"

Noah: "No body. No witnesses. No evidence."

Elena looked at the newspaper.

Elena: "Then why did everyone assume he was dead?"

Noah pointed to another article.

Noah: "Because three days later, his locker was emptied."

Maya frowned.

Maya: "By whom?"

Noah shook his head.

Noah: "Nobody knows."

Clara's eyes narrowed.

Clara: "And the school?"

Noah: "They said he ran away."

Adrian: "Did he?"

Noah looked at him.

Noah: "That's the problem."

He placed another document on the table.

It was a police report.

Noah: "Elliot left his wallet."

Clara looked at the page.

Noah: "His money was still in his room. His clothes were still there. His passport was there."

Maya frowned.

Maya: "Why would someone run away without anything?"

Noah: "Exactly."

Elena slowly opened one of Vivian's letters.

Elena: "My grandmother wrote something about this."

She read.

Elena: "Elliot didn't run."

Everyone looked at her.

Elena: "He was taken."

Silence.

Clara: "By whom?"

Elena continued reading.

Elena: "I don't know."

She turned the page.

Elena: "But I know why."

Clara leaned forward.

Clara: "Why?"

Elena looked at her.

Elena: "Because Elliot discovered the truth about the Blackwood family."

Adrian looked away.

Adrian: "That keeps coming up."

Maya pointed to the documents.

Maya: "What exactly did he discover?"

Noah pulled another folder from his backpack.

Noah: "I found something."

He opened it.

Inside was a photocopy of an old student disciplinary record.

Noah: "This is Elliot's."

Clara read it.

There were several strange entries.

Unauthorized access — East Wing.

Possession of restricted records.

Attempted removal of confidential documents.

Failure to comply with administrative orders.

Then one final entry:

October 14, 1987 — Subject terminated from enrollment.

Clara stared at the word.

Clara: "Terminated?"

Maya shook her head.

Maya: "They expelled him."

Noah nodded.

Noah: "Officially."

Adrian: "But he disappeared that same night."

Noah looked at him.

Noah: "Exactly."

Clara felt a cold sensation run through her.

Clara: "What did he steal?"

Noah opened another document.

Noah: "That's where it gets strange."

He placed a photocopy on the table.

It showed a handwritten inventory.

One Black Ledger.

One Student Register.

One Photographic Archive.

One Personal Journal.

Clara looked at the list.

Clara: "The journal."

Noah nodded.

Noah: "That's what he took."

Maya frowned.

Maya: "But we found the journal."

Noah: "Yes."

Maya: "Then how could he have disappeared with it?"

Nobody answered.

Clara suddenly remembered Professor Ashcroft.

Don't let her trust Adrian.

She looked at Adrian.

He noticed.

Adrian: "What?"

Clara: "Nothing."

Adrian: "Clara."

She shook her head.

Clara: "Nothing."

Elena suddenly pulled another letter from her bag.

Elena: "There's something else."

Everyone turned.

Elena: "My grandmother wrote this one the night Elliot disappeared."

She unfolded it.

Her hands trembled.

Elena: "She says she met him at 11:30."

Clara looked at the date.

October 14, 1987.

Elena: "He told her someone was following him."

Maya: "Who?"

Elena continued.

Elena: "He wouldn't say."

She swallowed.

Elena: "But he gave her something."

Clara: "What?"

Elena looked up.

Elena: "A photograph."

Clara's heart jumped.

Clara: "The photograph."

Elena nodded.

Elena: "She said he told her to hide it."

Noah: "Where?"

Elena's eyes moved to Clara.

Elena: "Inside the Blackwood house."

Clara remembered the secret room.

Clara: "We found it."

Elena shook her head.

Elena: "Not that one."

She pulled another page from the letter.

Elena: "She hid it somewhere Elliot would never look."

Maya frowned.

Maya: "Where?"

Elena whispered:

Elena: "In the yearbook."

Clara stared at her.

The yearbook.

Of course.

The photographs.

The writing.

The messages.

Everything had been leading back to it.

Noah immediately stood.

Noah: "We need to go back."

Maya: "It's midnight."

Noah: "I know."

Adrian grabbed his jacket.

Adrian: "Let's go."

They returned to the archive.

The hallway was completely silent.

Too silent.

Clara unlocked the door.

Inside, the yearbook sat exactly where they had left it.

She opened it.

Elliot's photograph was still missing.

But the page underneath contained something new.

A small envelope.

Clara carefully removed it.

Her name was written across the front.

CLARA BLACKWOOD.

She opened it.

Inside was a photograph.

Elliot stood beside Vivian Vale.

He looked younger.

Happy.

Alive.

On the back was a message.

HE DIDN'T DISAPPEAR.

Clara turned the photograph over.

Another line appeared beneath the first.

HE CHOSE TO DISAPPEAR.

Noah stared at it.

Noah: "Why?"

The writing changed.

Letters appeared slowly.

BECAUSE THEY FOUND OUT ABOUT CLARA.

Clara froze.

Clara: "About me?"

Another line appeared.

HE KNEW THEY WOULD COME FOR HER.

Then:

SO HE LEFT FIRST.

Elena whispered:

Elena: "He was protecting you."

Clara shook her head.

Clara: "Then why come back now?"

The ink continued spreading.

One final sentence appeared.

BECAUSE HE FAILED.

Clara's heart sank.

Clara: "Failed at what?"

The yearbook slammed shut.

Everyone jumped.

Then the pages opened by themselves.

A photograph appeared.

It showed Clara.

Adrian.

Noah.

Maya.

Elena.

All five of them standing inside the archive.

But the photograph had been taken from behind.

As though someone had been watching them.

And standing in the doorway behind them was Elliot.

Alive.

Older.

Looking directly at Clara.

Beneath the photograph were four words:

HE IS HERE.

The lights went out.

A man's voice whispered from the darkness.

Elliot: "Clara."

She froze.

Elliot: "You were never supposed to find me."

A hand touched her shoulder.

She turned.

No one was there.

Then the emergency lights came on.

And the yearbook was gone.

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