Ch. 45

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The chill of the night hit hard.  I'd forgotten about the cold.

                "I wish I'd brought my sweater," I said, rubbing my arms.  I jogged behind Ethan.

                "We'll mostly be inside," he said.

                "Wow.  Thanks for the offer to borrow your jacket.  You're such a gentleman."

                He stopped, sighed, and removed his jacket.

                I took it.  "I hope you're not like this with Charlie.  Sheesh."

                We reached the administration office.  Ethan took out a small rag where he had small tools wrapped up in.  "My cousin let me borrow these."  He knelt down started picking at the door.

                I turned and stood guard.  "So he wants them back?  What the hell does your cousin do?" 

                "I tend not to question him.  He gets results."

                The auditorium looked like a dark blob in the night.  The school looked different… eerie.  The cold breeze wasn't helping.  I knelt down beside Ethan, trying to get my legs into the jacket too.

                "Don't stretch it," he muttered.

                "Sorry.  So… you're a tenor?"

                "Yeah."

                "I didn't know."

                "It's nothing to write home about."

                "You and Charlie sounded great."

                "Thanks."  There was a small click.  "Got it."  He sang that part, which was unexpected and weird, but I didn't comment.

                I followed him inside.  "Creepy."  Empty and dark, it looked like a movie set for a horror film. 

                "Now I'm imagining all the horror movies I've ever seen," said Ethan.  "Let's hurry."

                "Thanks for the air of confidence."

                Oddly enough, the door to Wyatt's office was not locked.  I went inside, but Ethan stayed by the door.  "Good," I said, "stand guard.  I shouldn't take long."

                "It wasn't locked."

                I took off Ethan's jacket it and set it on the chair as I turned on the computer.  "I noticed that.  It was faster."

                "It doesn't feel right."

                I looked up.  "You want to leave?  We're already here."

                "I know, I know.  I just don't like it."  He crossed his arms, staying near the doorway.  "Are you sure you'll be able to get into the computer?"

                "As much as she annoys me, Beatrice hasn't been wrong so far.  Besides, can you break into a computer?"

                He frowned in the dim light, glancing out into the hall.  "My cousin can do more.  I just know how to get into public networks."

                "Your cousin needs to teach you more lessons."  I was already at the log-in page.  Password: elizabeth.  That was the easy part.  The problem was the username, which we had never figured out.  And even if it did work, both log-in items had to be correct or else the whole thing was for nothing.

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