Knight in Shining Tuxedo

Capitulum 050

Pinihit niya ang busol ng pinto at pumasok na. Ako ay sumunod naman. We were greeted by stairs that went up. So, this mansion has a third floor, huh? Umakyat kaming dalawa hanggang sa dulo. There was a scanner faced it. Red laser lines started to run over his face. The door clicked open afterwards with a female robotic voice saying Identity Confirmed.

Bumungad sa akin ang medyo madilim na silid. It was huge. And silent. Natanaw ko naman ang pahabang mesa sa paligid kung saan may mga nakaupo nang tauhan. They must be the Ten Lords. Natanaw ko rin si Sakaki kasama ang isang matandang babae, that must be Raphael's advisor, Mavis.

Lahat ng mata ng Ten Lords ay dumapo sa aming dalawa. Tumayo silang lahat at yumuko kay Raphael bilang tanda ng respeto. He waved his hand in response and they all sat down, silently. I can see the fear and respect in their eyes... they must be powerful, but the fact that Raphael was more powerful than them was enough to make them like that. After all, he is their mafia boss. They looked at me, some seem to recognize me, bahagya lang silang yumuko rin sa akin bilang respeto.

Raphael approached his consigliere, Mavis. Sumunod naman ako.

"Raphael," tugon ng matandang babae. So, she calls him by his name? They must be very close if she isn't calling him Young Master. Sa tono pa lang ni Mavis ay halata na ang kanyang otoridad, "and you must be Lucent Lotus." Tumingin siya sa akin. Her eyes reminded me the color of woods after burning, not of the charcoal, but of the ashes. Her eyes were pale gray. It was amazing. "I'm Mavis. I don't have a surname. So, just Mavis... but looking at you, it seems like you already know me."

Ngumiti lang ako sa kanya at nagtaka kung paano niya ako nakilala. Ngayon lang kami nagkita. At nagtataka rin ako kung paano niya nalaman na alam ko na ang kanyang pangalan. This lady is dangerous. She seems to know a lot. Dapat ay layuan ko siya. I faked a smile at her.

"Mavis, I didn't call everyone here because I felt sentimental. This isn't a reunion among old friends. We're at Code Black." Pagdidiin ni Raphael.

"We wouldn't all be here if the matter isn't grave and crucial." Pagdidiin ni Mavis. Tumingin si Mavis sa sampung mga taong nakaupo na sa kanilang mga silya at kay Sakaki, "one of them may be the traitor... or perhaps there are two traitors, or more. Maybe none of them is the traitor. Maybe Magento escaped on his own." Mavis said all her assumptions.

"Say your point." Raphael demanded.

"I am saying that there's a high chance that nobody helped Magento to escape." Mavis said as if it was a matter of fact, "I am suggesting there is no traitor. It is only a mere speculation of your underboss. Of course, if a man escapes, the first thing that comes into our mind is that somebody set him free. But, let me remind you, Raphael, Magento isn't just any man, he used to be an underboss. He knows how to pick locks, it's basic. Especially if none of you," tumingin siya sa amin nina Raphael at Sakaki, "even considered of checking his pockets for any possibility that he might be hiding a pin there which he used to pick the lock of his cell."

Para kaming nabasa ng malamig na tubig dahil sa sinabi ni Mavis. Whoa. This woman is wow!

"Now, I am saying that none of the Ten Lords here are traitors," tumingin siya sa mga nakaupong tauhan sa tabi na bahagyang nakikinig sa usapan. "because they weren't here until now. Sila lang ang nakakaalam patungkol sa basement ng mansion na ito. So, they should be here personally. And don't reason out that it can be their soldiers who came in their steed because your caporegimes' soldiers are not allowed inside this compound without the accompany of the caporegime respectively."

"In Sakaki's case," tumingin si Mavis kay Sakaki, "if he was the one who unlocked Magento, he shouldn't have had assumed that there is a traitor in the mafia but instead, he'll just say that he escaped on his own. It's a simple defense mechanism and he passed. So, that leaves me here, saying that there is no traitor. Magento escaped on his own since you were also careless to not even bother have someone guard him. Just because he's locked up in a basement means he find ways to escape. You completely underestimated the man and he used it for his own advantage. You even lured him inside your home... and had all the important people inside." She looked around, at all the people who were in the room. "Seems like you're doing what Magento wants. That man is a hideous bastard."

Speechless!

"If you insist." Ani Raphael, may talim sa malamig nitong boses. It seems like he was slapped with the hard truth. Ngayon ko lang din ito napagtanto. She really deserves to be called an advisor!

"Pero kung nakatakas si Magento nang walang tumutulong, hindi ba dapat ay nahuli na siya? Especially if he already tried to escape the premises... I mean, the walls around this compound are high and the barb wires on top are electrified. Tanging ang gate lang ang entrada at labasan ng lugar na ito." Sakaki asked. "He cannot possibly get away... so, where is he?"

"Well, isn't it obvious?" Mavis shook her head in response. "Am I looking at brainless idiots? Do you all think?" She retorted. "Are you all using your heads or brains? If not, then use them now! Think, all of you, think! The answer to that is obvious already!"

Nag-isip ako dahil sa kanyang sinabi. There was a total silence. Then something hit me. It was only an assumption, but... can it possibly... tumingin si Mavis sa akin na tila may napansin.

"I see somebody finally gets it!" She gave me a wicked smile. "Tell them what you think, Lucent." She insisted. How did she know that I already found out?!

I nodded reluctantly at her and looked at Sakaki and Raphael, "Magento is still inside the place."