Chapter 53: Thief among us
Ruelle stood at the front of the room, her back straight, hands loose at her sides, while the guard turned her bag inside out. She had nothing to fear. And yet—her chest felt tight.
The guard’s hands rifled through Ruelle’s belongings, flipping through her parchment and quills thoroughly.
"I have done nothing wrong," she reminded herself, though her fingers curled slightly. A whisper cut through the silence—
"Watch, they will find it in her bag."
She ignored those words and instead, her gaze flickered to the back of the room, where she caught a figure at the doorway.
It was Ezekiel. His arms were crossed, his face composed—but the look in his eyes was different. The guard tugged at a stubborn zipper. The old fabric of Ruelle’s bag groaned under the force before it tore clean.
A few students snickered. Ruelle’s face burned in embarrassment, heat radiating from her flushed cheeks.
The guard’s hand reached inside, feeling along the frayed seams. He then paused, as if finding something, and then stated, "Clear."
It was a single word. And yet, the weight that lifted from Ruelle’s chest felt like an entire mountain crumbling away.
From the doorway, Ezekiel’s stance remained unchanged—but his fingers twitched. A minuscule movement. A reaction so small, it would have been unnoticeable—if not for the tightening of his jaw and the flicker of disbelief in his darkening gaze. That wasn’t supposed to happen, he thought to himself.
Ruelle accepted her bag, going out of the room to keep her bag and then returning to her seat.