The new semester opens with a bang that shocks the four Houses of QED University, an exclusive school for promising students of the science of deduction and art of detection.
The Holmesian Harriet Harrison never thought that the day would come when...
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HARRIET
THE TRUTH was about to be revealed. We were "this close" to solving this case and the serial killings disguised as suicides. Malapit ko nang maideklara ang "checkmate" sa aking kalaban.
"Ano nang gagawin natin ngayon?" Aiden asked. Kahit wala siya sa tabi ko, kaya ko namang i-solve ang kasong 'to. All the facts were available to me and I could draw a conclusion from those vital details.
Inasahan kong susunod si Aiden sa akin. As my partner, he couldn't let me leave his side. He also couldn't inform SPO1 Cosmiano about my plan, because if he did, he would suffer severe consequences. So the only choice for him was to follow me.
Whether he had another motive or not, that was none of my concern at the moment. Ang mahalaga'y matuldukan na namin ang kasong 'to.
This was one of the opportunities where I could prove that a Holmesian live up to the name of the greatest fictional detective. I am a Holmes' disciple after all. Isa rin itong pagkakataon para malamangan ko si Morrie at ang mga kapwa niya Moriartard. Imagine the shocked expression on their faces once they hear that I apprehended the culprit. Malaking sampal 'yon sa kanila.
Alam kong wala akong authority para makialam sa imbestigasyon at hanggang classroom discussion muna dapat kami. Baka nga patawan ako ng punishment kapag nalaman ni SPO1 Cosmiano na pumunta ako rito sa ground floor para sa unofficial investigation ko sa kaso. But to be fair, even Sherlock Holmes broke some laws in his detective career.
"Ang sabi n'yo, kakatapos lang ng interrogation. Nasaan nagpunta 'yong tatlo?" I asked the police officers who were slow to reply. Kung sanang hinold pa nila nang ilang minuto ang mga suspect, naabutan namin sila rito para tanungin. Nevertheless, though their interrogation notes were not too detailed, nakuha naman nila ang mga important point para makabuo ako ng theory.
"Nauna nang umalis 'yong pizza delivery guy sakay ng motorsiklo niyang naka-park sa tapat ng hotel kanina. 'Yong laundry guy, pina-check-up muna namin sa medic dahil na-trauma siya sa nakita niya. At 'yong hotel staff, pumunta sa basement para ihanda ang sasakyan na gagamitin nilang pangsundo sa mga guest."
The police did not have anything against those three at the moment kaya naintindihan ko kung bakit sila pinakawalan. But maybe that's what the culprit was waiting for—an opportunity to escape from the grasps of the police.
I immediately ran to the elevator, repeatedly pressing the down button. Dahil nasa twelfth floor pa ang elevator, minabuti ko nang bumaba gamit ang emergency stairs. Sumunod si Aiden sa akin nang walang reklamo. He was not that dumb so I expected him to suspect the same person for the murder.
The million dollar question: Who killed the victim? Walang iba kundi ang hotel staff. Oo, may pagkakataon ang tatlong suspek na patayin ang biktima, ngunit siya lang ang pinaka-kahina-hinala. Paano? Pinapunta siya sa unit para linisin ang kwarto. Malinis ang bawat sulok, walang pakalat-kalat sa tabi, pero may nakalimutan siyang gawin: ang itapon ang basura sa garbage room. If he was responsibly doing his job in this hotel, he shouldn't have missed that part of his duty. That's the inconsistency that Aiden pointed out earlier.
