Handcuffs [HIATUS]

◀ XXI ▶

"I got it...guys...gising mukhang alam ko na yung key ng case ni Amanda!!!" Maine says early in the morning that both RJ and Jerald jerk up, startled.

Mara emerges from RJ's room and for a second there, Maine's mind goes blank. She's wearing one of his shirts which made her chest constrict once more.

"Huy RJ! Grabe ang tinik mo...pati ba naman si Mara???" Jerald suddenly says cutting the tension. "Di ka na nahiya...."

Maine cuts him off to their surprise. "Guys, we need to focus at the task at hand." Everyone huddles around her and she continues "We just need to find Ryan and ask him some minor details. I need to be sure we got the right guy."

"I can contact Ryan." Mara looks at her and smiles warmly. Maine looks at her and smiles, thinking that she could not feel any animosity towards their host. She is, after all, warm and kind and she would rather have her as someone closest to RJ rather than Anna. Yes, as a friend she would gladly accept Mara.

****

"Ryan?" Mara has been knocking the kid's front door for quite sometime now and it seems like no one's home. "He isn't here" she says, dejected.

"Oh, he's here..." RJ says and everyone looks at him, confused "I can hear faint voices from the inside...he's home."

Everyone turns to subtly walk out back as to not startle Ryan with Jerald in the lead. They finally see Ryan looking at them wide-eyed and about to escape.

Mara corners him and says in a low tone that Maine found both intimidating and admirable "Where do you think you're going? We need to ask you a few questions, Ry. Failure to submit to us will be punishable by law and we might deem you as an accomplice to the crime."

Ryan could only nod at them and sigh as he welcomes them inside.

Everyone waits for Ryan to settle down before questioning him. After all, the kid might be pissing in his pants right now due to fear. Maine looks around and sees how neat he is. She laughs at herself for even noticing that when they are supposed to be asking him questions. Her eye catches a lone picture at the far end of the shelf and she approaches it. The picture consists of Ryan, Pam and someone very beautiful. She guesses that this must be Amanda. Ah, is this the classic three's a crowd murder scene? But any of these doesn't add up because Amanda was raped. Maine muses.

"Ang ganda nya no?" Ryan finally says from behind her which startles her. "Me, Pam and Amanda grew up together. Magkababata kami. It was no secret na I had a huge crush on Amanda and that Pam fancied me but guys...." he looks at everyone in the room "Wala kaming kinalaman sa pagkamatay ni Amanda kahit ano pang sabihin nila. Alam namin ang totoo."

Mara is the first one to speak "Then tell us what really happened that night" she tells him as he looks at her and sighs

Everyone huddles around him as he states what he says happened that night.

"Grabe naman, guys. Wala ba kayong tiwala sa akin?" Amanda says to her closest friends while they try to exit the venue.

"Ano ka ba, Mands. We told our parents na dito tayo the whole night. Nag promise ako na..." Pam says to her, pleading.

"Ang duwag mo talaga, Pam. Ano ka ba in a year wala na tayo sa highschool so ano bakit ka matatakot? Seize the day....carpe diem." Amamda tells her bestfriend.

"Amanda, do you really have to do this? San ka ba pupunta? Don't tell me makikipagkita ka dun sa nanliligaw sa'yo?" Ryan tells her. Both of them look at Amanda who is smirking back at them.

"Eh ano ngayon kung makikipagkita ako? Gusto ko na nga siyang sagutin eh...."

Pam grabs her arm "Ganyan ka ba ka insensitive? Date mo si Ry, siya ang alam ng parents mo na kasama mo tonight tapos tatakasan mo kami? Ano ba Amanda!"

Amanda glares at her bestfriend "Ano ba ang problema mo, ha? I know that Ry likes me pero I told him beforehand that I just see him as a friend. Pumayag ako maging date nya kasi kaibigan ko siya...."

"Yan ang problema sa'yo, Pam....masyado kang concerned sa nararamdaman ni Ryan. Sige bga, tell us why you're so protective of his feelings...ano duwag ka?" Amanda glares at her.

"Tama na yan, Amanda. Pam...." Ryan says but he could see Pam shaking in anger and embarassment.

Pam slaps Amanda to their surprise "Mands, I'm sorry....I'm...." but Amanda could only look at her with disgust.

"Is there any problem here?"

Everyone looks at the sound of the voice and sees Mr. Garcia looking at them curiously.

"Wala po...wala..." Ryan says and looks back at Amanda who was glaring at both of them. She flees despite everyone screaming her name over and over.

"And that's it....we tried to look for her, we really did pero hindi namin nasundan kung san siya pumunta...the last we know, ito na nga....nakita yung katawan nya tapos..." Ryan's voice suddenly breaks.

Mara sighs "Hindi nyo ba alam kung san siya pumunta? Kung san sa tingin nyo siya pumunta? Wala ba siyang ibang friends aside from you, guys?"

"Wala siyang ibang friends. But we found something odd sa kanya, recently ang dami nyang dahilan. Nawawala siya tapos minsan ginagawa pa nya kaming dahilan sa parents nya kapag lalabas siya. We're just worried, and we want the bastard in jail."

"Sabi ng mom ni Andrea there was someone courting her, that she was seeing somebody, meron ba kayong alam kung sino yun?" Mara asks.

"Di namin alam eh, the only time we heard of him directly is nung nahuli namin si Amanda talking to someone on the phone tapos she was crying. Tinanong namin siya and she says that Gerald wanted to break up with her?"

"So let's assume that she and Gerald were now together?"

Ryan closes his eyes as if trying to block a bad memory "Ayaw ko man aminin pero parang she was already together with him...hindi lang namin napatunayan....She receives flowers on a daily basis nga eh, pero ang weird...."

"Weird? What's weird?" Mara suddenly says, interested.

Maine clears her throat and everyone looks at her "Kung okay lang may tatanong ako...yung flowers ba na binibigay kay Amanda are they...by any chance....baby's breath?"

Ryan looks at her, startled "How...How did you know that?"

"I think I know who Gerald is....." Maine says as she runs out of the house due to RJ's protests. He runs after her and sees that she drives away in his car.

"Damn it." RJ looks at everyone and says in a cold voice "Where the hell is your car, Mara."