Chapter 30: Strangled and Naked (Introduction Chapter)
"Good Morning!", masiglang bati ni Math sa akin and she kissed my cheeks. Nakasanayan na niyang gawin iyon but I never do the same. Kapag nakikita ko siya ay parang wala lamang. Siya lamang ang gumagawa niyon sa akin and even to Gray and Jeremy who always refuse. I sat on my spot, the one I had in Bridle.
Yup, balik Bridle na kaming dalawa ni Jeremy. Kahapon kami bumalik since our two-week stay at Athena has ended. After the event at the old mansion where we had a bad experience ay naging tahimik na ang lahat. We didn't reveal so much about the case at nanatiling tahimik lamang. Ang mga nalalabing araw namin doon ay simple lamang at balik sa klase na. No cases encountered at naging payapa. I have befriended some students but others especially girls, hated me. Tinawag pa nila akong malandi sa hate letter na natanggap ko. Ayon doon ay nilandi ko na raw si Gray, pati ba naman si Khael at Zywon? Uh, girls! I don't understand them! Hindi ko na lamang pinansin ang sulat na iyon, they're just some bunch of insecures who hated themselves because they can't be me na malapit sa mga gusto nila kaya ako ang napagdiskitahan.
Jeremy received many letters too. Unlike mine, his letters were of admiration and praises! Nakatanggap din siya ng sulat mula sa dati ng sumulat na si Mimosa, who said that he will know her soon kapag nagkalakas ng loob na itong magpakilala.
"Good morning too Math", wika ko sa kanya. Naupo ito sa kanyang upuan at inilabas ang kanyang tablet at nakinig ng music. Math is a techie, marami itong useful na naimbento which was very handy. Her bugs with the transmitter and wireless tap na nagamit namin noong pimuntahan namin ang warehouse—
The wireless tap! The last thing I remembered was tinapon ko iyon sa loob ng conference room dahil nagkaroon ng problema sa tawag ng babaeng nakatayo sa may pinto kung nasaan ang pinagtataguan kong drum! If I remembered it right, Math said na automatically itong mare-record sa naka-konekta niyang tablet! I was so depressed with Phobie's death kaya hindi ko naalala ang tungkol doon!
"Math!", wika ko sa kanya. I pulled the headset from her ears kaya nagtatakang napatingin siya sa akin.
"What?"
"Diba sabi mo automatic na narerecord ang lahat ng nasa wireless tap na ginawa mo? Do you remember when you went to Athena with Gray? I need to hear the recordings from that night!", naeexcite na wika ko sa kanya. Maybe if I'll hear those ay mas makakakalap pa ako ng iba pang impormasyon tungkol sa Genesis!
"Yes. I thought Gray lost it. Nang pakinggan ko kasi iyon ay ingay ng kulisap lang ang naririnig ko", sagot niya. "Sandali ha, hahanapin ko." She scanned her files in her tablet for a while at ibinigay sa akin ang headset. "Here."
Agad ko iyong sinuot at pinakinggan.
"Gray?"
"Amber."
"Anong ginagawa mo dito? Particularly here on the back part of the girls' dormitory?"
"I—"
"Hoy."
"I just came to see A—Athena. Right. I wanna see Athena. How about you? Why the hell are you jumping down from the windows? Plano mo bang maging Spiderwoman? No. It should be Catwoman."
"I have something to do. Sinong kasama mong pumunta dito?"
"I'm with Math."
"Madalas kayong magkasama?"
"Yeah. We're on the same circle and since pansamantalang wala kayong dalawa ni Jeremy, kami na muna ang madalas magkasama."
"Gaano kadalas?"
"Madalas, minsan?"
"Gaano kadalas ang minsan? Oh, never mind. Mauna na ako sayo Gray. I have some things to accomplish tonight. Enjoy your walk around Athena."
Napalunok ako nang marinig iyon. Uh, marahil ay narinig iyon ni Math! Diyos ko, baka ano na lang ang inisip nito! Baka naisip nitong pinagseselosan ko
siya!
"I missed you."
"Gray, baka amoy-pawis ako..."
"No. You smelt like strawberries and melon."
Bahagya akong napakurap ng marami ng marinig ang bahaging iyon ng recording. Damn! Math really heard everything! It's so awkward Pinagpatuloy ko na lamang ang pakikinig.
"Khael."
"Madaya ka Silvan. I summoned you here and you see Special A first than me? I should be the one that you're hugging, not her."
"Hug yourself Alonzo."
"Nah. I'm gonna get that hug of yours from special A. Uhh. What was that for?"
"My way of saying I missed you",
"I missed you too Silvan. Where are you going Special A?"
"Don't tell me you're doing something dangerous again? Are you planning to search for Phobie?"
"Special A, the reason why I summoned Silvan here is to help me in finding her, you don't have to engaged yourself in such danger. We can handle—"
"Khael she's my roommate and whether you liked it or not, I will help in finding her. Isa pa ay masyadong delikado ang paghahanap sa kanya. It involves so many risks and I can't leave it all to you."
"If you're referring to those drugs, I knew all about it. Silvan told me about it. Isa pa, I'm the one who stole the notebook from Zywon and —"
"Just as I thought."
"Hello, old buddies. It's not nice to see you again, especially you Silvan. It's a reunion. Shall we open some champagne then?"
"Deltran", wika ni Gray. Sumeryoso ang mukha nito as he looked at Zywon. "What are you doing here?"
"I should be the one asking you such question. You don't belong here in Athena anymore, oh. Sorry. My bad. You owned Athena right? So basically, you have all the right here. How rude of me, disrespecting a mafia heir."
"As of you, give me back the notebook."
"No way! That was for me, you stole it from me on the first place!"
"I'm not yet done with you Amber Sison but you're least of my concern. Kailangan kong makuha muli ang kwaderno and look for Phobie."
"I should possess that notebook. It's not for you. Isa pa ay ayokong gamitin mo ang notebook ni Phobie for your personal purposes. Whatever resentment you had with the mafia, don't use Phobie and her notebook! What are you doing here anyway? Plano mo na naman bang akyatin ako sa kwarto ko?"
"WHAT?! What is he doing in your room?"
"Oh I see. You're important girlfriend huh? What do you think a guy and a girl would be doing in a room at this hour –"
"Learn to respect ladies. She's not yet my girlfriend but you don't have the right to invent things which are not true."
"Alam mo ba kung ano ang tumatakbo sa isip ko ngayon Silvan? I just had a reminiscence of a young Ae-ae telling a younger Aywon with his words which were 'I won't let anyone punch you Aywon. You've got Ae-ae and Mikmik's back for that, but it never occurred to me that you will be the first one to punch me, I shouldn't have believed you."
"When you stopped believing in me, I did too. Why don't you just forgive and forget?"
"Some things can never be forgotten nor forgiven."
"We're wasting our time here. We should have started searching for Phobie now."
"There you are!"
The next part were the recordings when we followed the car hanggang sa makarating kami sa warehouse. Dumating na sina Jeremy at Gray at nagtataka sila kung bakit seryosong-seryoso ako sa pakikinig sa tablet ni Math.
"Bestie—"
"Ssssshhh. She's listening to something", wika ni Math kaya nakatunghay na lamang sila sa akin.
I forwarded the recording dahil panay walang kwentang usapan lamang iyon. It was when I threw the bug inside. Ilang saglit lamang ay tumahimik saglit at may boses na nagsalita.
"Good evening everyone. This is an urgent meeting na pinatawag mismo ni Brain."
"Nandito ba siya?"
"Do you really expect na magpapakita siya sa atin?"
"I wanna meet the brain behind this organization."
"You'd better not. Anyway, we're called for an agendum which is concerned with this organization. Our existence. I think we're almost revealed. Cyanide said na may estudyante ng Bridle na muntik ng makakuha ng impormasyon but luckily, he was able to retrieve the evidence about us. Ayon din sa kanya ay hindi na ligtas ang Athena bilang kota. We can't risk everything. If the Vander Mafia will know about our Athena invasion at malalaman nilang may traydor sa mafia mula sa board of regents na siyang nagpapasok sa atin ay masisira lahat ng plano natin."
Cyanide? He. Ibig sabihin ay lalaki ito and who knows if I had been friends with him at hindi ko lamang alam na bahagi pala ito ng Genesis!
"Ibig sabihin ay aalis na tayo ng Athena? Mabuti pa. By the way, I hate that student who's a son of a chief police. They roamed around one night with some students at muntik na nila akong mahuli one time. He's with the Bridle student na naging pasyente namin sa infirmary."
He's referring to Khael and me! He must be the doctor na gumamot sa akin noong hinimatay ako sa PE Class!
"Kung ganoon ay saan na tayo?"
"I'll contact Brain".Tumahimik ito saglit bago muling nagsalita. "Brain... Hello Brain... I can't hear you... Wait."
I heard a cracking sound at mukhang naapakan nito ang bug! Damn!
"A bug? Sino ang naglagay ng listening device na ito dito?"
Umiingay ang paligid at pinag-usapan nila ang tungkol doon. Damn! I hope he cannot trace us!
"Au! Someone had taken the girl but no need to worry. There are bombs strapped in her body!"
Narinig ko ang pagtawa ng babae. "Hey, you must be listening. I had bad news for you. You can't live a longer life dahil sa ginawa mo. You can't escape the organization. See you in hell."
Bigla na lamang naging maingay ang recordings bago iyon naputol! Mukhang sinira nila ang bug na iyon hanggang sa wala na akong marinig mula sa recordings. Agad kong tinanggal ang headset mula sa tenga ko. Good thing they destroyed the bug, ibig sabihin, they can't trace us.
"What was that?", tanong ni Gray
sa akin at nakatunghay naman sina Math at Jeremy.
"It's a recording when we went to the warehouse. They found the bug that I threw at sinira iyon", sagot ko.
"Good thing at nang hindi nila tayo ma-track", Gray said. Yes, that's what I thought too. Hindi na kami nag-usap pa dahil pumasok na ang guro namin para sa umagang iyon. I missed Bridle and it's so good to be back.
I sat on a chair at nilantakan ang pizza na in-order ni Jeremy sa akin. Even the Bridle's pizza ay namiss ko.
"Grabe si Bestie doon sa Athena! Pinana niya yung target tapos ang layo niya! Nadaplisan pa niya yung guro, napanganga lahat. Grabe ang galing!", pagbibida ni Jeremy. After the class ay agad kaming nagpunta dito sa cafeteria at wala na itong iba pang ginawa kundi ang ibida ang lahat ng adventures namin sa Athena.
"Talaga?", Math asked but she doesn't seem interested with Jeremy's stories.
"Maya, could you atleast pretend that you're interested?", Je asked. Uh, he always say what's on his mind, eh?
"Who's Maya?"
"Ikaw syempre."
Tumaas ang isang kilay ni Math. "And why is that? My name's Math."
"Maya, short for —"
"Jeremy", saway ko sa kanya. He looked at me and pouted. Isa pang pout nito ay mababasag sa mukha nito ang lata ng Sprite na nasa tabi. Yep, coke's out of stock so I chose Sprite instead.
"Maya, the ex-national bird. Ikaw talaga Math! Para ka kasing ibon, free and can fly anywhere. Ready for her journey in a vast world", wika ni Jeremy and he sounded like a poet. Lumawak ang ngiti ni Math. Uh, nauto.
"Talaga?"
"Yup, Maya." Jeremy said at sinubo ang malaking cake na nasa plato nito.
"Jeremy! You're so sweet!", Math said at niyakap si Jeremy na bigla na lamang nabulunan sa kanyang kinain. He reached for his bottled water at panay ang pag-ubo niya.
"Oh my God! Jeremy are you choking?", Math asked. Mukhang nag-aalala talaga ito.
"I'm serious", Jeremy said and he gave Math a deadly glare. Binatukan ito ni Gray and he turn out bursting into his laughter.
"Ano to Je? Joke mo, tawa mo?", tanong ko sa kanya.
"Hindi ka talaga supportive Bestie, ka-badtrip! At ikaw naman Maya, wag mo nga akong mayakap-yakap. Magagalit ang ka-redstring ko", Jeremy said.
"Red-string?", Gray asked. "What's that?"
"God! Gray! Hindi mo yan alam?", Jeremy asked. "Two people connected by the red string are destined lovers, regardless of place, time, or circumstances. It may stretch or tangle, but never break. It's tied on their little finger. "
Gray raised his little finger. "But I don't see any strings. How can we identify who's our partner? Well, I have watched an anime about this, Detective Conan's first movie, I guess."
"Nanunood ka ng anime?", I asked. Hindi kasi ito nakakarelate sa amin dati kapag usapang anime.
"I did. I just started DC. Nakakainis kasi si Alonzo, he's been bugging me to watch it."
"Sandali", Math said. "Ibig sabihin ay taga dito sa Bridle ang ka-red string mo Jeremy?"
Je shook his head. "No, but I can't let anyone hug me dahil baka malaman niya. I'm still working on this unrequited love. I don't want this love to fade bago pa man maging kami."
Jeremy sounded so serious. Kung gayon ay totoo nga talaga ang sinabi niya sa amin ni Khael about her unrequited love.
"Anong pangalan niya Jeremy?", Math asked.
"Victoria."
Uh, there he goes again!
"Victoria?"
"Secret."
Gray and Math made a face. "We're serious."
"Hindi pwedeng sabihin. Isa pa, she's not here and she doesn't love me back yet", wika nito sa malungkot na tono. "We're childhood friends and I love her since then but the feeling's not reciprocated."
"Nakakaiyak naman Jeremy", wika ni Math.
"I thought you're gay", komento ni Gray. Jeremy clenched his fist.
"Tsk. Bestfriend nga talaga kayo ni Khael. Ano, suntukan na lang tayo? Kahit 2 vs 1 pa! Bakla ha? God, I hate drugs!", Jeremy said and Math laughed.
"Oh, by the way I received an e-mail from my relative. Tita Anabelle told me to investigate some case. They're an owner of a couture and they're kind of wondering why their mannequin lies on the floor, naked. It's been two weeks since she emailed me ngunit hindi ako nakapunta", wika ni Math.
"What do you mean?"
"They thought they just forgot to fix the mannequin ngunit hindi talaga. They're sure that they had displayed the mannequin with clothes ngunit tuwing umaga ay wala na itong damit at nasa sahig na", kwento ni Math.
"Hindi kaya magnanakaw lang iyon at ninakaw ang damit ng mannequin?"
"That's what I thought too ngunit walang nawawala sa kanila. The clothes were there. Just the mannequin lies on the floor", pagpapatuloy ni Math.
"Hindi kaya multo yun?", Jeremy said with wide eyes.
"Jeremy we're on the 21st century and ghost stories are not that believable nowadays", bara ni Math kay Je. Ghost stories? Meh! I can't relate.
"Just the mannequin? But it doesn't make sense", wika ni Gray.
"Yan din ang iniisip ko. What do you think Amber?", Math asked.
"Uhmm. Baka nakalimutan lamang nilang ligpitin", wika ko. If it's a bulgar, then bakit walang ninakaw?
"Yan ang akala nila but it's always like that for a week and they don't know kung bakit ganoon since wala silang CCTV camera doon", Math said.
"May mga tanim ba na gulay sa likod ng shop nila?", Je asked na ikinapagtaka naming tatlo.
"What's the connection Puns?", Gray asked.
Bahagyang lumapit siya sa amin at bumulong. "Baka kasi gumagalaw yung mannequin tuwing gabi kasi THE ZOMBIES ARE COMING! Zombie yung mannequin! Kailangan pa nilang magtanim ng maraming gulay lalo na ang sunflo— Aray Gray ha!"
Bigla na lamang kasi itong binatukan ni Gray. "You're not making any sense."
"I'm just preempting every possibilities! Posible naman kasi na zombie nga ang manne—"
Sinubo ko sa bibig niya ang pizza. "Je, that's the dumbest possibility that anyone could come up with."
Napalabi si Je at patuloy na nginuya ang pizza na isinubo ko sa kanya. "Tsk. Unsupportive friends. Can I unfriend all of you?"
"Seryoso na kasi. Ano sa tingin ninyo?", tanong ulit ni Math sa amin.
"It's a serious matter, I guess", Gray said.
"I think it's just the maintenance cleaner's fault", wika ko but Gray and Math thinks otherwise.
"I think I'm full", singit ni Jeremy at nagburp ng malakas. He raised both arms nang sabay namin siyang tingnan ng masama.
"You know what I think? I think we'll have to ditch class and visit their shop, let's go!", Math said at hinila si Gray, and Gray grabbed me too so I did grabbed Jeremy.
***
"Hijo, saan ka?", tanong ng humarang na guard kay Gray. We were on his car at nagtatago. We removed the car seat's cover at tinalukbong iyon sa katawan namin ni Math while Jeremy hid on the car's compartment.
"I'm— going home", nagkandautal-utal na wika ni Gray. Shit! Hindi nga pala namin na-orient ito kung paano lagpasan ang guard.
"Dahil?"
"It's— it's because my cat died", he answered and his voice sounds so worried. He's acting worried or he's really worried if the guard will find out that we're lying. And uh, let's face it. Gray's not a good liar kaya mahihirapan kami nito ngayon.
"Pusa? Uuwi ka ng class hours dahil namatay ang iyong pusa?", the guard asked and oh, have I told you that he's not the same guard na kaibigan ni Gray and the other Vanders too? Bago ito at daig pa nito ang librarian dahil sa sobrang istrikto.
"He's— he's not just a cat! He's a family! Hindi niyo po kasi alam ang pakiramdam na ganoon", Gray said and he sounded hurt. Oh, he joined the wrong club, he should have joined me in the drama and theatre.
Nagkatinginan kami ni Math at halos matawa na kami. Uh, pusa huh? Pretty lame.
"Anong pangalan ng pusa mo?"
"Po?"
"Sabi ko anong pangalan ng pusa mo?", the guard asked at saglit na natahimik si Gray. Damn! Think faster Gray!
"Limousine." There. Did he say Limousine?
"Limo— ano?"
"It's Limousine. Now tell me Manong guard, papadaanin nyo ba ako at ng makaabot ako sa burial?"
We heard the guard sighed. "Sige. Condolence hijo para kay Limousine."
"Thanks Manong guard. You know I've been so down for such loss and that message somewhat helped me feel relieved. Thanks", wika ni Gray at pinaharurot palabas ang kotse.
Natawa kaming dalawa ni Math sa kanya at umupo ng maayos. Sinamaan niya kami ng tingin mula sa rearview mirror. "What's the two of you are laughing at?"
"Ikaw. Gosh! Pusa talaga Gray? At Limousine pa!", sagot ni Math at natawa ulit. We heard loud thud noise at malamang si Jeremy iyon mula sa compartment.
Nang medyo malayo na kami sa Bridle ay huminto si Gray at pinalabas si Jeremy.
"Oooooh! I thought I'll die of suffocation", wika ni Jeremy at bumaba. "And what the two of you are laughing at?"
"Gray's cat is dead and her name is Limousine", natatawang wika ni Math.
"And? What's wrong with that? My dog is Porsche and your dog is Medicol. I don't see any wrong in naming your pet after a car or anything", wika niya.
Meh, slow. Naningkit ang mata ko ng tiningnan siya. "Je, what's funny is that it's the lamest idea that he ever got."
Napatikhim naman si Gray mula sa tabi. "It's not lame."
Bigla na ring napatawa si Jeremy at hinampas pa si Gray habang tumatawa. "It's really lame!"
"You cannot just say that it's lame", wika ni Gray at nag-iwas ng tingin sa amin.
"Actually we can. Lame. Lame. Lame. Lame. Lame. Lame. Lame. Lame. Lame. Lame. See?", Jeremy said.
"Shut up puns." Sinamaan siya ng tingin ni Gray bago muling pumasok sa kotse. Our travel lasted for ten minutes at narating na agad namin ang sinasabi ni Math na couture. The owner greeted Math with a kiss in the cheek at binati din kami.
"Oh, Thilde hija, you have brought friends with you", wika ng babae at ngumiti sa amin.
"Yes Tita. This guy is a known high school detective so I'm sure that he will help you a lot. This is Gray", pakilala ni Math.
Gray greeted the forty plus-year old woman. "Gray Ivan Silvan Ma'am", he said at nakipagkamay sa babae.
"Kay gwapong bata. You look good with beautiful Thilde here", kinikilig na wika ng babae. She looked at me and Jeremy. "And the other two?"
"That's Amber and Jeremy, my classmates, this is Tita Anabelle", pakilala ni Math. Jeremy rolled his eyes. As what we expected, Math will not recognize us as detectives. Not even the imaginary Detective Triumvirate.
"Hi po", bati namin ni Jeremy sa babae. She gave us a fake smile at muling bumaling kay Math at Gray.
"So, hijo. Don't you know that Thilde is very famous in her previous school? She's the perfect epitome of beauty and brain. Mula sa mga academic contest hanggang sa beauty pageants, wala siyang sinalihan na hindi niya pinanalo. I remembered when she won as a runner up in the Miss Teen—"
"I brought home the crown Tita. I was never a runner up", pagtatama ni Math. I saw Jeremy pouted and he whispered to me.
"Oh, Bestie. If Math got a furniture shop, itong si Tita Anabelle eh, antique furniture shop yung business. Akala ko pa naman couture! MyGod", he said at sinamaan ko siya ng tingin dahil baka marinig pa nila kami.
The area was wide at naikwento na sa amin ni Math that Tita Anabelle owned the building which was its first floor was intended for the shop and the other floors were for residential rentals which was 3 rooms at pawang may nag-ooccupy. The tenants have to passed the shop upang makapunta sa kanilang mga kwarto.
Bigla na lamang bumukas ang isang pinto at iniluwa niyon ang isang lalaki na nakabusangot ang mukha. His dark eyes darted on us bago ito lumabas sa pintong pinasukan namin and now he was walking on the streets.
"Pasensya na. That's our tenant Eric. He's an on-job trainee at a bank nearby at kasalukuyan niyang ginagamit ang isang silid sa taas. He just moved here two weeks ago", Tita Anabelle said.
"He's a trainee? He looks like a bum", wika ni Jeremy at siniko ko siya ng mahina. The guy who just came out is really weird. Nakasuot ito ng itim mula sa sapatos hanggang sa bonnet nito sa ulo. His shirt was printed with a big skull at medyo mahaba ang buhok nito. Uh, emo or whatever they call it. But Jeremy saying he looks like a bum is not necessary!
Bigla na lamang nahulog ang isang mannequin kaya napalingon kami doon. A young guy who was aroud 22 years old smiled at us. "Pasensya na Ma'am Anabelle, nahulog kasi", wika niya at pinulot ang mannequin at muling ipinatong iyon sa glass case.
Tita Anabelle scoffed at him. "Tatanga-tanga! Siya si Leo, ang maintenance crew namin na bago pa lamang dito but I'm planning to replace him kasi masyadong careless! It's not yet a month since he's employed pero balak ko ng palitan. Tsk."
"Wag naman po Tita. Anyways, maari niyo po bang ikwento sa amin ang nangyari dito noong mga nakaraang araw?", Math said.
Leo gave us monobloc chairs at naupo kami doon habang nakikinig kay Tita Anabelle. "It's been a week mula nang unang beses naming mamataan ang mannequin on that part of the floor", kwento nito at tinuro ang liblib na bahagi ng sahig. "Nakahubad na ang mannequin sa tuwing nakikita namin iyon and it has strangled marks on the neck. Basta may mga marka roon na tila sinakal ang mannequin."
"Araw-araw bang ganoon?", Gray asked. He was taking notes on his small notebook.
Hindi agad nakapagsalita si Tita Anabelle dahil muling bumukas ang pinto at pumasok ang isang lalaki na nasa mid-30s.
"Hello Tita Anabelle", bati nito sa babae and he smiled at us.
"Magandang umaga Doc Rosauro", bati ni Tita Anabelle. The guy smiled at lumabas sa isang pinto which was probably the door towards the rented rooms upstairs.
"Who's that Tita?", tanong ni Math.
"Si Dr. Rosauro Abrea, a veterinarian. He's working in a nearby Animal Clinic", sagot ni Tita Anabelle. "So, where are we?"
"Doon po sa mannequin", Gray answered. Sila lamang dalawa ni Math ang nagsasalita. Je and I remained silent but I'm taking heed those things that Tita Anabelle said.
"Ah yes, the mannequin but we don't have to worry about it. That mannequin is already delivered far away and since that day, no mannequin was found on the floor", Tita Anabelle said which made the four of us surprised.
"Kung ganoon po ay iisang mannequin lamang ang nakikita niyo noong mga nakaraang araw?", gulat kong tanong.
"Oo. Isa lamang and it's the same mannequin for the four days na nakikita namin sa sahig", sagot niya.
"Sabi ko na nga ba! Multo yung mannequin na iyon! Just as I thought", palatak ni Jeremy na sinagot namin ng masamang tingin. Err, he's really out of the topic.
"That's remarkable", komento ni Math. "And after that, no other incident like those?"
Tumango si Tita Anabelle. "Wala na talaga. Sorry Thilde, I haven't inform you about it pero mabuti na rin at nabisita mo ako."
Napalingon kami ng nakarinig kami ng itinapon na bagay sa sahig. It was a rubik's cube and it was thrown by a guy who was hiding behind the door. Mukhang nasa 20 plus na ang edad nito but he looked like a little childish for his age. Masama ang tinging ipinukol nito sa amin bago lumapit ang kanyang ina sa kanya. He was holding another rubik's cube on his hand and he closed the door when his mom approached him. Ilang saglit lamang ay bumalik sa pwesto niya si Tita Anabelle.
"Hey Tita, is that Kuya Arnel?", tanong ni Math at bahagyang ngumuso sa direksyon ng lalaki kanina. "I knew him based on the letters and pictures that you've sent us."
"Yes Thilde. Pasensya na at hindi siya nakikipag-usap sa iyo at medyo ilap siya. He's suffering from Asperger Syndrome", the woman said.
"Aspirin what?", tanong ni Jeremy.
"Jeremy, it's Asperger not Aspirin. It's a developmental disorder characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction and in communication with restricted and repetitive patterns of interest", paliwanag ni Math. Uh yeah, psychiatric terms eh?
"Parang autistic?"
"Similar but not a variant of autism", sagot nito. Bigla na lamang itong niyakap ni Tita Anabelle.
"Thilde! You're really smart just like me when I was at your age", wika ni Tita Anabelle at bigla na lamang napaubo si Jeremy and he whispered to me.
"See?! Like Tita, like niece! Damn!"
"Je. Sssh."
We heard the wail of a police siren outside the shop. Napalingon kami doon and there were two police cars outside. Huminto iyon sa harap ng apartments na nasa kabilang kalye. Sinulyapan ko ang suot kong relo. It's ten in the morning. A crime this early?
"Excuse me, titingnan ko po muna ang nangyayari sa labas", paalam ni Gray at agad na lumabas doon upang makiusyoso. Uh, I don't know. We call it 'pakikiusyoso' but for him maybe it's a detective calling.
Nag-excuse din kami ni Jeremy at agad na sumunod kay Gray. The police found a dead body on one of the apartments across the streets. It was a white and beautiful woman. Nakahubad ito at nakahiga sa sahig. Her eyes were bulging at bahagya pang nagulat ang reaksyon ng mukha nito.
"Please don't touch the body", wika ng isang pulis but it was too late, Gray was checking every detail of the body. Tinanaw ko na lamang siya mula sa labas ng pinto.
"Hey, Amber."
Napalingon ako sa nagsalita. It was Detective Tross! "Hey Detective Tross."
He gave me a wide smile. "Just Kuya Tross, out with the detective because I already resigned as a police detective though I'm still accepting detective works from a personal request of a friend. Hey, where's Ivan?", tanong niya sa akin kaya ininguso ko ang labi ko sa direksyon ni Gray na abala sa kakatingin sa babae.
Natawa si Detective Tross nang makita niya si Gray. "Don't you wanna know if he's checking the naked girl's private parts or just investigating the case?"
I gave him my deadly glare. "And?"
"Oh, nothing. Hey young man", bati niyo kay Jeremy na nakatayo sa gilid ko ngunit nakatalikod. Anong problema nito?
"Hi Detective", sagot ni Jeremy ngunit hindi man lamang ito lumingon. Nagpaalam na si Detective Tross sa amin at lumapit kay Gray.
Nang makaalis si Detective Tross ay kinalabit ko si Jeremy. "Bakit ka nakatalikod? Anong problema mo? Humarap ka nga."
"Ayaw."
"Hoy Jeremy."
"Ayaw sabi Bestie!"
"Bakit?"
"My eyes."
"Anong nangyari sa mata mo?", nagtatakang tanong ko sa kanya. Did he got a sty?
"My virgin eyes", sagot niya and I rolled my eyes when I understand what he meant. Virgin eyes? Pfft.
Binatukan ko siya ng mahina. "Aray ha! Relationship goals niyo ba yan ni Gray na batukan ako?" The fudge? Relationship goals? What the hell is that?
"Walang relationship at walang goals. Anong virgin eyes ang pinagsasabi mo? And that's for the Maria Ozawa thingy! God, alam mo bang ini-research ko talaga iyon and it's uh— disgusting. Naisip tuloy ng mga roommates ko na I'm into pornography!"
Napabunghalit ito ng tawa. "Hindi ko na kasalanan Bestie kung ni-research mo. At saka virgin naman talaga ang mga mata ko. Tumitingin ako ng mga porn paminsan-minsan but I haven't seen an actual female's body kaya hindi ko magawang tumingin sa bangkay."
"Whatever Jeremy."
"Uy Bestie, speaking of porn, grabe yung nakatabi ko sa sasakyan kahapon nung pumunta ako sa mall", kwento niya. "Iba na talaga ang mga tao ngayon. Wala ng pinipiling panahon at lugar."
"Bakit? Ano bang nangyari?"
"May sumakay kasi kahapon, babae at lalaki. They sat beside me at panay ang halikan nila. My God, sa tuwing hahalikan nung babae yung lalaki, tumatawa ang lalaki! Gustong-gusto naman! At Bestie, hindi sila nakatiis! Tinaas ng babae niya yung damit niya at inilabas ang kanyang boobs na agad namang nilantakan nung lalaki!"
Nanlaki ang mga mata ko sa ikinuwento niya. "What the hell? They should get a room!" Iba na talaga ang mga tao ngayon, masyado ng PDA!
"Kaya nga eh! Tapos alam mo ba Bestie? Mga 28 na yung babae tapos yung lalaki naman, batang bata!", Jeremy said with his most serious face.
Age doesn't matter kaya okay lang kahit gaano pa kalayo ang age gap but making out in the public? A big no-no!
"Talaga? Sa tingin mo Je, ilang taon?", tanong ko sa kanya.
"Batang-bata talaga Bestie. Mga 6 months, ganoon! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!", he said and burst out into laughter. What the hell!
Uh, I was joked, eh? Argh! Wala talagang kwenta si Jeremy Martinez, kahit kailan. Iniwan ko siya at lumapit sa nag-uusap na sina Detective Tross at Gray. Panay ang tawag ni Jeremy sa akin ngunit hindi ko siya pinansin.
"This is a personal request from my friend Chona. Her bestfriend Maddie, who works as a part time model was killed too. She was found naked on her flat na hindi kalayuan dito three days ago so I investigated the case and found out that there's a similar case that happened to a girl na nakatira ilang kalye mula dito. Both their autopsy said that they died because they were strangled to death and they're both naked. A medical report said that their wasn't any sexual intercourse so they concluded that the victims aren't raped before being killed kaya nagtataka ako", the detective said and he handed Gray some photos. Nakitingin na rin ako sa mga larawang iyon. It was the photos of the victims na sinabi ni Detective Tross.
"So this is the third case. Do you think they have the same killer?"
Gray smiled and he handed the photos back to Detective Tross. "Ah, no doubt. Based on the pattern, it's no doubt that it's made by the same person. Strangled to death and the victims were naked."
"Do you think that's connected to the strangled and naked mannequin at Tita Anabelle's shop?", tanong ko kay Gray and he nodded.
"It's probable lalo na at hindi na iyon nangyari when he sent the mannequin to his other branch", wika niya.
The corpse was removed and the apartment was sealed kaya wala kaming nagawa ng pinaalis na kami ng mga pulis. Bumaba na kami mula sa apartment na iyon.
"Hey, detectives. Got another matters to attend so I'll go ahead. And please, stop ditching your class. Ivan, I'll call you for more developments", wika ni Detective Tross at sumakay sa kotse niya matapos magpaalam sa amin.
"So, how about we'll ask the neighborhood about this?", tanong ni Gray sa amin ni Jeremy. Hindi kami nakasagot nang biglang huminto ang isang itim na motor sa harap namin. The driver removed his helmet at nagulat ako ng makitang si Zywon iyon and just like us, he was still wearing his Athena uniform.
"Hey Dude!", bati ni Jeremy at bahagyang tumango lamang ito. Uh yeah. They're not really close— I mean they're NOT close.
"Just Amber", he said and he tossed me a pink helmet. Mabuti na lamang at nasalo ko iyon dahil kung hindi ay tumama na iyon sa mukha ko.
"What's this?", I asked.
"Bestie, helmet yan", wika ni Jeremy. I scowled at him and he acted like he zipped his mouth. Alam kong helmet ito! Duh! Ang ibig kong sabihin ay para saan?
"Ang ibig kong sabihin ay para saan?", wika ko sa kanya. Gray was stading on my side at nakakunot ang noo.
"It's a head protection Just Amber", sagot niya at pinigilan ko ang sariling pag-umpugin silang dalawa ni Jeremy. "Sakay na."
"What? Why?"
"Deltran, she doesn't go out with strangers. Just because she became your classmate for two weeks doesn't mean you're not a stranger," Gray said at nagsukatan sila ng tingin ni Zywon. Natigil lamang iyon nang tumikhim si Jeremy.
Humarap si Zywon sa akin. "You don't go out with strangers? Good thing I do. So let's go and I have a lot of important things to tell you so you'd better hurry", wika niya.
Mga importanteng bagay na sasabihin sa akin? It might be about the Genesis! Agad kong sinuot ang helmet at nagulat si Gray at Jeremy.
"Amber...."
"Bestie...."
"I'll be right back", wika ko at umangkas sa likod ni Zywon. Agad naman iyong pinaharurot ng huli at hindi man lamang ako nagkaroon ng pagkakataong magpaalam ng maayos kay Jeremy at Gray.
Oh, wherever we're going, I hope one of the things that he will be telling me is about a development of the case in Athena concerning the Genesis.
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-Shinichilaaaabs ♥