My plan for today was to delve further into the identity of Stellar Lumina... but my fate for the rest of the day completely changed when Sandro called me via phone.

First if all, gow did he get my number? Well, I don't wanna bother to know. He can be so creepy sometimes.

"Hi."

"Where is Atticus?"

I yawned lazily. "Maaga siyang umalis. He said something about preparing for the first hearing tomorrow. Bakit?"

"Get ready. I'll be there in ten minutes."

Before I could even demur, he ended the call. Though I wasn't docile to do so, I got myself done as fast as I could. After ten minutes, he barged into the unit without without even knocking.

"Are you done? Let's go." naiinip niyang tanong. Hindi ko alam kung bakit inip na inip siya samantalang kararating pa lang naman niya. Akala mo naman isang dekada na niya akong hinihintay.

"Why don't you answer me first?" I crossed my arms, demanding an explanation. "Bakit mo ako pinag-ayos? Are we going to visit Conan?"

"No. There' something that we must do today."

"And that is?"

"To meet Auxen."

My eyes widened in disbelief. Hinintay ko siyang bawiin ang mga salita niya at sabihing biro lang ito... pero naalala kong hindi nga pala palabiro itong si Sandro.

"Why do we need to meet him? Does Atticus know?"

"No, he doesn't. It's not yet time to tell him." mariin niyang sagot. "Why do we need to meet him, you ask? Simple. We have to find the original tool that he used to kill Stellar. My instinct tells me that it's hidden somewhere in his office."

My jaw dropped. "Are you serious?"

"I'm always serious." he replied without even batting an eyelash. "Okay, then. Let me explicate the plan to you, Gaia."

"Wait."

"First, I will keep our prospect busy. We personally know each other, so he wouldn't suspect if I meet him out of the blue."

Okay, he doesn't really give a shit about me.

"As for you, while I'm busy distracting Auxen, you will encroach his office. I will make sure that you have all the time in the world to search for the knife." he said with confidence.

"You make it sound so easy." I stared at him in askance. "This is unfair, Sandro. I never agreed to this collusion."

His face remained impassive. Seriously, he's heartless.

"If we are to acquire an evidence, shouldn't we do it the legal way? That's the proper decorum, right?" I insisted.

"It's a shame that Officer Gomez is not part of this operation, but let me say this on behalf of him." He stared intently at me. "May mga bagay na hindi nadadaan sa batas, Gaia Venice. You have no idea how the law works."

I lost.

I had no choice but to comply. No matter how much I disliked him, Sandro and I were on the same boat. We both wanted what's best for Atticus. Alam kong ginagawa niya ang lahat ng ito para sa kaibigan niya.

Napag-alaman kong isa rin palang doktor si Auxen. To make things worse, he was a resident doctor in our hospital. Hindi na nakakapagtaka kung bakit madali silang nakakapagkita ni Gaia nang patago. Sa iisang ospital lang pala sila nagtatrabaho habang abala naman si Atticus sa pagiging abogado niya.

Nakakagalit. Ang dumi nila.

Sandro parked the car behind the hospital. Dito ako dadaan dahil hindi raw pwedeng malaman ni Auxen na nandito ako. He strictly told me that I should wait for his text before proceeding to Auxen's office.

"Ready?" he thoughtfully asked.

Inirapan ko lang siya dahil masama parin ang loob ko.

Sinigurado muna niyang walang tao sa paligid bago niya ako pababain. "You have to find it, Gaia. I'm counting on you."

Such pressure...

I hurried inside the hospital when Sandro drove the car astir.

Calm down, Stellar.

I couldn't control my elevated heart rate. Kinakabahan talaga ako. Hindi ko alam kung kaya ko bang gawin ang utos ni Sandro. I don't know if I can even walk into the office when my knees are trembling so much. Halos maihi ako sa sobrang kaba.

It was only a matter of minutes when my phone vibrated. My chest heaved upon reading the message of my companion: Go.

Room 327. I silently made my way to the office and looked from left to right before holding the knob. Dahan-dahan ko itong pinihit at bumukas ang pinto. You can do this.

I took a deep breath before rushing inside. Mabilis kong isinara at ni-lock ang pinto. Halos maiyak ako sa kaba nang pasadahan ko ng tingin ang opisina, napakaraming gamit at hindi ko alam kung saan ako magsisimula. What if I get caught?

Hindi ko alam kung tama ba itong ginagawa ko pero wala na, nandito na ako sa loob. Wala nang atrasan ito.

Sinimulan ko na ang paghahanap. I opened all of the drawers then checked them thoroughly. Sinuyod ko na rin ang mga bookshelves, maging ang mga trophy na naka-display ay inalog-alog ko na dahil baka may nakatago sa loob.

Pero wala talaga.

"Shit." I cursed under my breath then wiped my cold sweat. Unti-unti na akong nawawalan ng pag-asa. "Where is it?"

I was just about to enter the bathroom when the door swung open. I stood rooted to my position, unable to make a move. Oh, shit. This is bad. This is really bad. I can't breathe.

My face blanched when I saw him.

Auxen.

"I thought so." he said, not seemed to be surprised by my presence. "Both of you are smart, but not clever enough to deceive a devil, I'm afraid."

His face remained stolid. Auxen slowly approached me, his face devoid of any emotion. I swallowed the lump on my throat when he stopped right in front of me.

"You must be looking for the knife."

So you did kill me, asshole.

"Where is it, Auxen?"

"Gaia Venice," He laughed hysterically. "Seryoso ka ba?"

I gathered all my courage to look at him.

"In case you forgot... you're the one who hid it."

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