Stolen Youth:Kasi Secrets Don’t Stay Buried
📖 Chapter 14 – They Know We Know
Boitumelo woke up to a banging sound at the gate.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
She quickly checked her phone — 05:47 AM. Neo hadn't messaged yet. Her gogo was still asleep.
She stepped outside slowly, barefoot, hoodie on.
"Kea?" she whispered.
No one answered. She opened the gate.
And there it was: a burnt flash drive. Melted plastic. No note. Just silence.
Boitumelo bent down slowly and picked it up using her sleeve.
She knew what this meant.
They knew she had the files.
They knew she posted the video.
And now, they were watching.
---
At school, the tension was thicker than smoke.
Even the loud ones were quiet. Boys who normally clowned the teachers sat still. Girls who always gossiped just stared.
Principal Molefe was back. But this time he didn't walk alone — a tall woman in an all-grey suit shadowed his every step. She had cold eyes and a clipboard.
"She's not from here," Neo whispered. "Check her shoes. Expensive. Imported."
Boitumelo replied without blinking, "She's not here to help. She's here to erase."
---
In Life Orientation, things got real.
Mrs. Nkosi walked in and wrote on the board:
> "Conspiracy Theories in Modern Society."
Boitumelo almost choked.
She turned to Neo. "They're flipping it. Turning our story into a theory."
Mrs. Nkosi spoke without making eye contact.
"We must be careful of fake news, dangerous online rumors, and harmful lies spread by people seeking attention. Sometimes trauma creates fantasy."
The whole class looked at Boitumelo.
Her hands clenched.
She stood up.
"If trauma creates fantasy, ma'am, then who created the missing kids?"
Silence.
Dead silence.
Mrs. Nkosi dropped her chalk. "Sit down, Boitumelo."
"I will. After you answer."
"Sit down!" her voice cracked.
---
Later at break, Neo pulled Boitumelo aside.
"More names are disappearing. They're wiping school records."
He showed her the school website.
Lerato's name? Gone.
Tshepo? Gone.
Even old yearbooks — changed.
They were erasing history like the kids never existed.
Kea ran over, panting.
"I found something! My brother hacked into the old school CCTV backup server."
Boitumelo and Neo followed her to the computer lab.
---
What they saw made their stomachs twist.
Footage. Grainy, but clear enough.
A black van. No plates. Parked by the back gate.
Date stamp: 3 days before Palesa vanished.
Two men in coats. One wearing gloves. One holding a clipboard.
And Palesa, walking alone toward the van, looking scared… then gone.
Boitumelo covered her mouth.
Neo hit "pause." "That's enough. We have them."
Boitumelo: "No. We're not posting this. Not yet."
Kea: "Why not?"
Boitumelo looked out the window at the cold sky.
"Because they already know we know. We need to be smarter now."
---
That night, she didn't sleep. None of them did.
Instead, they planned.
Kea started printing documents. Neo downloaded off-grid messaging apps. Boitumelo backed up files onto three different drives and hid them in different Kasi corners.
They weren't just kids anymore.
They were witnesses. Fighters.
Rebels.
And if the system wanted war…
They were ready to fight.
---
[End of Chapter 14]
🔥 Estimated word count: ~1,300
🔥 Total word count for story: ~11,380
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