Project LOKI ②

Chapter 32: The Haunt of Bascoville (The Case)

CONTENT AND TRIGGER WARNING: This chapter contains content that might be troubling to some readers, including, but not limited to, depictions of and references to death, self-harm and suicide, graphic violence, sexual assault, strong language and more.

Please be mindful of these sensitive themes and other possible triggers. Remember to practice self-care before, during and after reading.

LORELEI

LOKI WAS no doubt disappointed with the recent developments. Another mystery was presented to him by a not yet identified culprit. Handang-handa na siyang i-solve ang kaso na malamang ay konektado kay Moriarty. But thanks to Inspector Morales, he could no longer meddle with cases. During Inspector Estrada's term as campus police chief, he could offer his assistance and enter any crime scene whenever he wanted. Ngayon, parang naka-blacklist na ang club namin sa lahat ng pangyayarihan ng krimen sa Clark High.

Thus, he became extremely frustrated. He tried to entertain himself by playing a crime investigation app as a substitute, but he was not satisfied. A case in a game would not be enough to satiate his hunger for something to solve. Jamie attempted to soothe him, but to no avail.

A case. That was what he needed. Kailangan niyang i-distract ang sarili sa ibang bagay. Mabuti't may naisip akong kaso na puwede naming pagkaabalahan. Initially, he would have rejected it because of how absurd it sounded. But he got no choice at the moment.

"I thought na mare-reject ang request ko!" Tuwang-tuwa si Rosetta nang ibalita kong iimbestigahan 'yon. Kung wala kaming isyu sa campus police, she would be right. Loki had no taste for cases that involved the supernatural. "Mabuti't pumayag kayong imbestigahan ang Haunt of Bascoville."

Nitong Sabado ng hapon, nagkita-kita kaming members ng QED Club at ni Rosetta sa tapat ng campus. This was the only day when we got nothing on our schedule. Alistair brought his car so we would not have any problem with the transportation. Nakabalik na siya noong isang araw matapos ang kaniyang business sa Manila.

I sat on the shotgun seat, fastening my seatbelt. Loki, Jamie, and Rosetta sat at the back. Naalala ko tuloy noong muntikan nang maging member ng club si Rosetta kung hindi ni-reject ni Loki ang application niya. Nakapag-move on na siguro ang classmate ko. Hindi rin siya nagpakita ng kahit anong sign na may tampo siya sa club president namin.

"So we're going to investigate if something supernatural caused the deaths of two people in a certain subdivision?" Sumulyap si Alistair sa client namin sa rearview mirror. "That's quite refreshing. Ito yata ang first supernatural case na iha-handle natin."

"If we count the rumored ghost in the abandoned school building that Loki and I have solved, this case is going to be the second one," komento ko habang pinagmamasdan ang mga nilalagpasan naming sasakyan at gusali. Come to think of it, Rosetta was also the one who referred that case to us. Little did we know that we would meet the enigmatic Moriarty inside that forsaken building.