DESPEDIDA GONE WRONG. What's supposed to be a memorable send-off party ends up in tragedy as the celebrant drops dead after making a toast. Of all the possibilities, murder seems to be most likely scenario. And the suspects? The four attendees who w...
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JUSTE
"DO YOU think one of them really did it?"
I was staring at the white board with photos of four college students and one teacher. The victim Zacharias Zafra was at the center while Anastacia, Beatrice, Cole and Desmond were scattered around it. Each of the four outlying photo had a red string linking them to the one at the center. May sticky notes din na nakadikit sa paligid ng mga 'to.
"Hey, are you listening?"
My partner Verity stood behind me. I could hear her sipping from a hot cup of coffee. I could tell by the smell of it. Lumapit siya sa tabi ko nang hindi ako kumibo. I was so used to working alone that I didn't feel the need to have someone else on my side.
"They all have motives," I answered, folding my arms across my chest. I saw on the edge of the long table behind me. "None of them has been eliminated as a suspect."
Ipinagkrus din ni Verity ang kanyang mga braso at napaupo rin sa mesa habang pinagmamasdan ang obra maestra. "Do you think their motives are enough to make at least one of them kill the victim? By the way, your handwriting sucks."
I plucked one of the sticky notes on the board. Tama nga ang sinabi niya. Medyo pangit ang sulat-kamay ko. But in my defense, I was in a hurry to write my thoughts about each suspect. Wala na akong oras para pagandahin pa ito. "They're meant for my eyes only. But you can still make out what's written on them if you look hard enough."
Verity snatched the note from me. She put it closer to her face and squinted at it. Sumuko rin siya makalipas ang ilang segundo at ibinalik sa akin ang maliit na papel. "If someone were to kill you and you left a dying message, no one would be able to crack it."
"And who would want to kill me?"
"Basically everyone you pissed off."
"Including you?"
"You haven't pissed me off. Yet. Huwag mong subukan."
I chuckled before sticking the note back on my board, near the victim's photo. "I don't think the motives are compelling enough to make them actually kill someone. But people have proven from time to time that they can kill for the pettiest reason. If you accidentally spill your coffee on me, I might be tempted to entertain the idea."
"Oh, really?"
"Ouch!" I felt something warm on my chest. Pagkayuko ko, may mantsa na sa harapan ng aking white shirt. I glared at Verity who was giggling at me. Did she think that this was funny? Was this some sort of a sick joke?
I grabbed a pair of scissors on the table, the one I used to cut the photos of the suspects and the victim. Humigpit ang hawak ko sa gunting. Verity's smile faded as she stared at the sharp weapon in my hand. Humakbang siya paurong at may pagkabahala sa mukha niya.
"Hey—"
"Just kidding!" I burst into laughter and put the scissors back on the table. The look on her face was just priceless! Did she honestly think that I'd kill her for just spilling coffee on me? I wasn't a petty person.
