The smell grew stronger as Margaret approached Sarah Morrison's classroom at the end of the hall.Sarah was one of the school's most dedicated teachers.She often stayed late preparing lessons and creating elaborate displays for her students.Margaret frequently found her working in the classroom long after other teachers had gone home.
She reached Sarah's door and tried the handle.It was unlocked, which wasn't unusual.Sarah sometimes forgot to lock up when she stayed late.Margaret pushed the door open and called out.
“Sarah?Are you here early today?”
No answer came from inside the darkened classroom.Margaret reached for the light switch and flipped it on.The overhead fluorescent fixtures buzzed to life, illuminating the cheerful space that Sarah had created for her kindergarten students.Tiny chairs were arranged around low tables.A reading corner filled with pillows and picture books occupied one corner.Alphabet charts and number lines decorated the walls.Children's artwork hung from clotheslines stretched between bulletin boards.Everything looked normal except for the scattered supplies near Sarah's desk—crayons and construction paper on the floor.
The crayons were scattered across the floor in a rainbow explosion.Construction paper lay crumpled near overturned containers.Art supplies that should have been neatly organized were strewn about as if someone had knocked them over in haste.
Then she saw the body.
Sarah Morrison lay collapsed on the carpet among the colorful chaos of her classroom.Her face was pale and still.Her arms were splayed awkwardly beside her body.She wore the same cheerful cardigan she'd had on yesterday during the faculty meeting.
Margaret's coffee cup slipped from her fingers and shattered on the floor.The brown liquid splashed across her shoes and the scattered art supplies.But she barely noticed.Her attention was completely focused on the motionless figure of one of her best teachers.
“Sarah!”Margaret rushed forward and knelt beside the body.She pressed her fingers against Sarah's neck, searching for a pulse.The skin was cold and waxy.No heartbeat moved beneath her touch.
Margaret's hands shook as she pulled out her cell phone.The sweet chemical smell filled her nostrils completely now.It was everywhere in the room, coating the inside of her mouth and throat.She felt dizzy and nauseated, but forced herself to dial 911.
“911, what's your emergency?”
“This is Margaret Davis, principal of Roosevelt Elementary School.I need an ambulance immediately.One of my teachers is dead in her classroom.”Her voice was high pitched, nearing something like a squeal.
“Ma'am, I need you to stay calm.Can you confirm that the person is deceased?”
“Yes, she's dead.She's been dead for hours.There's a strange smell in the room.Something chemical.”Margaret's voice rose with panic.“I think something terrible happened here.”
“We're dispatching emergency responders to your location.Roosevelt Elementary School on Connecticut Avenue?”
“Yes, that's right.Classroom 118 in the kindergarten wing.”
“Ma'am, I need you to exit the room immediately and wait outside the building.Do not let anyone else enter that area.”
Margaret looked around the classroom one more time.Sarah's body lay surrounded by the cheerful decorations she'd created to inspire young minds.Children's drawings smiled down from the walls like silent witnesses to whatever had happened here.
She backed out of the room and closed the door behind her.The chemical smell clung to her clothes and hair.Her hands trembled as she walked quickly toward the main entrance.The building that had felt safe and familiar just minutes ago, now seemed contaminated and dangerous.
All she could think about was Sarah Morrison lying alone on the classroom floor.A dedicated teacher who stayed late to prepare lessons for her students.A woman who had decorated her room with love and care, creating a space where five-year-olds could discover the joy of learning.But now that same classroom had become a place of death.And as Margaret waited for emergency vehicles to arrive, she sadly realized that for her, Roosevelt Elementary School would never feel safe again.
CHAPTER THREE
Miles’s office at Quantico was nothing like his workspace at home.Where his home office overflowed with case files and obsessive research, his professional space maintained the sterile efficiency expected of a federal forensic scientist.A single desk held his computer, a phone, and a neat stack of current case files.Bookshelves contained reference manuals and scientific journals arranged in alphabetical order.No periodic table posters marked with colored pins.No crime scene photographs taped to walls.Just the clean, organized environment of someone who analyzed evidence rather than chased theories.
He was reviewing toxicology results from a Baltimore homicide when his phone buzzed with a news alert.He’d long ago set his phone to notify him of news alerts that might have anything to do with chemical attacks in the US.He had to read this particular headline a few times before the harsh reality of it sank in.
CHEMICAL ATTACK AT D.C.ELEMENTARY SCHOOL LEAVES TEACHER DEAD
Miles clicked on the article immediately.His pulse quickened as he read the initial details.Roosevelt Elementary School.Kindergarten teacher found dead in her classroom.Suspicious chemical smell that had triggered a hazmat response.
He scrolled down to find more information.The article was brief, published just thirty minutes ago by a local Washington news station.Most of the details were still emerging, but one paragraph made his breath catch:Initial reports from first responders suggest the presence of fluorine gas in the victim's classroom.The entire kindergarten wing of the school has been evacuated and cordoned off while hazmat teams work to identify the exact chemical composition of the suspected poison.
Fluorine.Element number nine on the periodic table.The information landed in his head like a little bomb.
Miles opened a new browser window and searched for additional coverage.Another local news station had posted a brief video report.He clicked play and watched a reporter standing outside Roosevelt Elementary School, emergency vehicles visible in the background.
“I'm standing outside Roosevelt Elementary where emergency responders are treating the death of kindergarten teacher Sarah Morrison as a potential chemical attack.Principal Margaret Davis discovered Morrison's body early this morning after noticing what she described as a sweet, chemical smell coming from the classroom.”
The camera panned across the cordoned-off school building.Yellow hazmat tape fluttered in the morning breeze.Specialists in protective suits moved methodically around the kindergarten wing.A jumble of traffic was stalled in the background near the intersection of the school.
