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
I DIDN'T like attending burials. The atmosphere was so solemn and serious, no one wouldn't dare to crack a joke and make the mood any lighter. Lagi akong nag-i-skip kapag iniimbitahan ako, kahit na kamag-anak ko pa ang nag-i-invite sa akin. I'd always reason na may sakit ako o kaya nasa malayo akong lugar kaya hindi ako makapupunta.
But today was different. I willingly attended the interment of Zacharias Zafra. It had been four days since we officially ruled his death as suicide. Hindi ko siya kaano-ano. Hindi ko rin siya kakilala maliban noong namatay siya. But I felt like I needed to see this case through until the end . . . and bury the tragic truth along with him.
The burial was attended by mostly students, faculty members and personnel of Clark University. Isang kaanak lang niya ang sumipot dito at ang nag-asikaso sa lahat. His cousin, I think? He didn't have any immediate family. His mom and dad were dead. He didn't have any brother or sister.
Everyone here was mourning for him, except for a few who finally saw what's beneath the mask of this college instructor slash guidance counselor. Maraming magagandang experiences at moments ang isine-share ng mga nalungkot sa pagkawala niya. But no one knew the real him. The one who kept all secrets on campus and stored them in his phone. The one who concocted an evil scheme that ended up backfiring on him.
Nakasilong kaming dalawa ni Verity sa puno habang pinapanood mula sa 'di kalayuan ang ceremony. When the crowd began to slowly disperse, my partner and I walked toward them. It's hard to search for the people we wanted to see because everyone's wearing the same color black. Some even wore sunglasses that hid their eyes from us.
"Hey!" I raised my hand to capture the attention of four attendees. Sabay-sabay silang lumingon sa akin.
I honestly didn't expect to see the four suspects—former suspects, rather—here. Given what they found out about their college instructor, I thought they'd ditch his burial. But I guess they wanted to pay their last respects to the person who also became part of their lives—despite everything. Maybe they wanted to bury their memories with the man they used to know, not the man they later found out about.
Kung ako ang nasa posisyon nila, hindi ko iisiping pumunta rito.
"Detective," tawag ni Beatrice, palipat-lipat ang tingin sa akin at kay Verity. "May kailangan ba kayo sa amin?"
"Nagbago ba ang conclusion ng mga pulis at na-realize na murder talaga ang nangyari?" tanong ni Desmond. "Nandito ba kayo para arestuhin ang isa sa amin?"
I raised both of my hands and shook them. "No, no! Case solved at case closed na 'to. Wala kayong dapat na ikabahala. I was just wondering if Verity and I can invite you to—ano na bang oras—lunch! Libre daw kasi niya."
Bigla akong siniko sa tagiliran ni Verity at binato ng masamang tingin. "Ano ba'ng pinagsasabi mo riyan? This lunch invitation is entirely your idea."
I forced a smile at her. Dapat nakisakay na lang siya sa trip ko. Humarap ako sa apat. "Fine! I want to invite you four to lunch. My treat, don't worry. Kahit diyan lang sa malapit."
