Matatapos na ang klase at kailangan na naming pumunta sa crime scene. Nagpaalam muna kami kina Athena at Quade bago umalis. It's past 2 o'clock in the afternoon at nag-text na rin si Xavien kay Detective Mori na papunta na kami.

I wasn't ready to solve another case, dahil medyo nabigla ako sa nangyari kahapon. We didn't expect that case, it was an inhumane murder. But I have no other choice. Ang sabi pa ni Xavien ay hinalintulad daw nila ang naging sagot sa papel ng mga suspect, and they didn't expect that the suicidal note is written by different five people, and it was fake at all.

Ilang saglit pa ay napagtanto ko na wala si Nova. Saan naman kaya nagpunta ang lalaking iyon? Parang sinusundan niya yata ang yapak ni Larken na laging lulubog-lilitaw.

Sabay kaming lumabas nang silid at nakita ko na nakatuon sa phone si Xavien.

"We have to go, Mori needs us," Xavien said.

I nooded at him.

"Ingat kayo!" Athena said and waved their goodbye as we reach the gate.

Gusto pa sana sumama ni Larken, kaso marami siyang gagawin at nauna na rin umalis. Zeiro also wants to help, kaya naman sumama siya sa'min. Ginamit namin ang kotse niya papunta kay Detective Mori.

"Do you think Stella's case will finally be closed?" Xavien asked while Zeiro was driving. Tumingin naman ang huli sa kanya. I can see his hopeless reaction in the rearview mirror.

"I'm not sure, but I hope this is the end of her case," Zeiro Answered.

Wala akong kaalam-alam sa pinag-uusapan nila. What I know is Xavien has a younger sister who died three years ago.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Naging tahimik ang buong biyahe namin hanggang sa makarating kami sa isang lumang bahay. May mga pulis at imbestigador na rin na nagmamasid sa buong crime scenes.

"Good thing you came on time!" Detective Mori said, smiling as we approach him. Bumaba na kami at pumasok sa lumang bahay, tumambad sa unang kuwarto ang walang buhay na babae.

"What about this case? How is it related to Stella?" Xavien asked. Napansin ko ang pamilyar na hawak ni detective Mori na nakapagpakaba sa'kin.

"Take a look. It's Vanda Coerulea or should I say blue orchid? Natagpuan namin ito na mismong hawak ng biktima, kung paanong ganito rin ang paghawak ni Stella noong mga oras na 'yun," paliwanag ni Detective Mori.

"This might be the suspect weapon to kill his or her victim. Katulad ng nangyari kay Stella. Pamilyar at kuhang-kuha nito ang posisyon ng pagkamatay niya," Zeiro explained.

Tanging ako lang ata ang hindi nakakaalam sa nangyari kay Stella. Ayokong pangunahan o kulitin si Xavien patungkol sa kapatid niya, but it triggers my curiosity. Hindi naman maipinta ang ekspresyon sa mukha ni Xavien matapos magsalita ni Detective Mori.

"Xav..." I tried to mumble his name, but I think he didn't hear my voice kaya pinagwalang-bahala ko na lang ito.

"Do you have a lead suspect who killed this young lady?" nanginginig ang boses niyang nagtanong. He tried to be calm in his way and proceeded to our case.

It might be hard for him to handle this, buti na lang ay sumama sa amin si Zeiro. He knows Xavien well, kaysa sa akin.

"That's why I called you, I want you to solve this case. It might help you somehow in Stella's case," aniya ni Mori.

Naglibot kami sa buong bahay. Ang unang tinungo ko ay ang banyo, wala naman masyadong kahina-hinala rito. Malinis ito at parang hindi ginalaw ang kahit na anong gamit, kahit sa vanity nito. Puro laman lang nito ay gamot at iba pang ginagamit na biktima. May tatlong kuwarto sa buong bahay at sa unang kuwarto natagpuan ang walang buhay na si Rayne Sarmiento, 24 years old at isang graduating student.

Habang patungo ako sa attic ay narinig ko ang malakas na sigaw ni Zeiro kaya agad naman akong tumakbo papunta sa kanya.

"Anong nangyari?" tanong ko.

Hinihingal pa ako at napasandal sa kahoy. Nanlaki ang mata ko ng makitang walang malay si Xavien habang hawak-hawak siya ni Zeiro na nakatakip ang bibig at ilong.

"Cover your mouth!" sigaw niya. Agad ko naman iyon sinunod. "There is a chemical toxin here, we need to get out as soon as possible!"

Halos mahilo ako sa amoy na 'yun hanggang sa paglabas namin. May natapakan pa akong kung anong bagay. Other crime operatives felt unconscious because of an unknown toxin that spread all over the house. Mukhang sinadya ito ng suspect upang hindi mahanap ang ebidensya.

That shit killer!

"We've found a strychnine in the kitchen and Xavien accidentally inhaled it before we caught the culprit," Zeiro said.

There was no ambulance nearby at wala ring signal ang phone namin.

Pinipilit ko pa rin gisingin si Xavien, but eventually after 20 minutes his hands and eyes starts to move.

"Xavien!" I mentioned his name when he suddenly wake up.

"The culprit—fuck!" he cursed. Medyo napangiwi pa siya dahil sa sakit ng ulo.

"Huwag ka muna gumalaw," ani ko.

"We didn't catch him. He also tried to kill us," Zeiro Added.

"Nagtatago lang ang salarin sa loob pero nakatakas siya, I felt something weird nang hagisan niya kami ng isang chemical powder. It must have been strychnine," Xavien confirmed.

"Strychnine?" I asked.

"It is a highly poisonous compound obtained from nux vomica and related plants. An alkaloid to be exact, and it has occasionally been used as a stimulant that prevents the proper operation of the chemical and controls nerve signals to the muscles," Xavien explained at naintindihan ko naman agad ito.

Buti na lang ay hindi gano'n karami ang nalanghap ko, kung hindi ay nabiktima na rin kaming tatlo.

"Can you describe the culprit?" Detective Mori asked him. Hindi makapasok ang ibang crime operatives dahil puno ng usok ang buong bahay.

"He's 6-foot-tall, has a tattoo on his left arm and is a little bit older. Mukhang siya nga ang pumatay kay Rayne dahil may bakas pa ng dugo sa damit nito, if we can catch that culprit, we can test the blood and match it to Rayne's DNA"

Detective Mori instantly nodded and agreed to him.

"Palibutan niyo ang paligid marahil ay baka nandyan pa ang pumatay sa biktima," utos Mori sa mga pulis.

"Stay here," Xavien said, but Zeiro held his wrist to stop him.

"It's dangerous, Xavien. I should be the one who caught that fucking culprit!" Zeiro exclaimed.

"We should be careful now, baka mamaya ay nagmamasid lang siya sa paligid at naghihintay ng tamang oras para umatake. Protect Amie while I'm not around," saad pa ni Xavien.

Xavien immediately went back to the old house to find the culprit at naiwan lang kaming dalawa ni Zeiro. Umalingawngaw ang katahimikan sa aming dalawa kaya nagpasya ako na magsalita.

"I wanted to know what happened to Stella. Ano ang koneksyon niya sa kasong 'to?" tanong ko.

"Mas maiging siya ang kausapin mo sa bagay na 'yan. I don't want to have a conflict with my cousin. At isa pa, don't ever mention that name again in front of him, it could trigger his trauma," saad ni Zeiro.

Has Xavien been experiencing trauma because of his past?

I know he doesn't share much information about himself. Tanging pasok-uwi lang ang ginagawa namin o kaya puro kaso ang laging topic kapag kasama siya. I don't remember him talked about his family or even about Zeiro and his dad.

Ilang saglit pa ay nakarinig kami ng putok ng baril mula sa loob, kaya agad kaming tumakbo ni Zeiro. Nakita namin na sugatan at dumudugo ang kanang kamay ni Xavien habang ang isang lalaki ay walang malay na nakabulgta sa sahig.

"He's the culprit, the one who killed Rayne Sarmiento!"

Agad naman na pinosasan ng mga pulis ang salarin.

"Kami na ang bahala rito," Detective Mori said. Lumabas na kami at saktong dumating ang ambulansya.

"P-Paano mo siya nahuli?" tanong ko habang pinupunasan ang sugat niya sa kamay.

"I tricked him. Habang sinasakal niya ako ay nahawakan ko ang ginamit niyang strychnine na nahanap ko sa isang cabinet, ginamit ko ito at isinaboy sa kanya. That's why he's unconscious now. As for the evidence of this crime, he left a note to the victim that led to my deduction. May nahanap akong note." Pinakita niya ito sa amin ni Zeiro. It was a random cipher, and I think it's a morse code.

"What code is this?" Zeiro asked.

"A simple code that everyone can cipher. Morse code. She simply describes the killer and the one who stalk her, at hindi nga ako nagkakamali. It's Francisco Zerano, siya lang ang leading suspect sa pagpatay kay Rayne." Saglit siyang tumigil at napakunot-noo. "But he's not the one who put the blue orchid in the victim's hand."

"That means...he's trying to play the game we started," Zeiro added.

"Who?" I asked.

Naging seryoso ang ekspresyon ng mukha niya at bahagyang nilingon ako. "The ex-founder of Valmoris Mafia. Augustus Cohen Donovan."

Marami pang mga bagay ang dapat kong tuklasin lalo na sa pagkatao ni Xavien. I wanted to know who's behind the blue orchid? At bakit siya patuloy na nagpapadala nito?

❛━━━━━━•(⚖)•━━━━━━❜

"GOOD MORNING!" masiglang bati ni Athena pagpasok ko ng silid. Tila busy ang lahat sa pakikipagchismisan.

Hindi ko namalayan na nauna na pa lang pumasok si Xavien, hindi man lang ako nito nilingon.

"Morning, Ms. Sungit." Someone just set my mood off. I hate that familiar voice and nickname. Nakakairita!

"Himala pumasok ka ngayon?" sarkastikong sabi ni Quade kay Larken. Ako naman ay naupo na. Napansin ko na panay ang bukang-bibig nila ng Iliad.

"Anong mayroon? May nangyari ba kahapon?" Kinalabit ko si Quade na abala naman sa paglalaro ng mobile games.

"Ah, tungkol sa iliad may nawawala raw kasi kahapon na isang mahalagang libro sa office ni Mr. Morris. Which what I think it's The Iliad," sagot niya habang nakatuon pa rin sa phone niya.

I remember that book pop-up when I searched through the internet last month about the Trojan war, which was our topic.

"I heard it's a very rare classical book that Morris had, and he kept it for almost half of his life," Xavien added. Napalingon naman ako dahil nakikinig pala siya.

"Hinahanap kayo kahapon ni Mr. Morris. He wanted the both of you to find that book. Ang alam ko pa ay may mahalagang bagay raw siya na ibibigay sa makakahanap n'yon," Athena said. Well, that piqued my interest.

What would be the prize if we found that book?

"Let's find it after class," masigla kong sabi na ikinabigla naman nilang tatlo habang wala namang reaksyon sa gilid ko si Zeiro.

"Pass," sabay-sabay na sabi nina Athena, Quade at Xavien.

"Then I will do it with Zeiro, I'm sure his interested—" Hindi pa ako tapos magsalita ng biglang tumayo si Zeiro at ginulo ang buhok ko.

"Fine, Amie. I'll help you with my great deduction skills. That's just a piece of pie," Zeiro smirked to Xavien like he was trying to challenge him. Bigla na lang tumayo si Xavien at sinamaan ng tingin si Zeiro.

"Fine, I'm on it too," Xavien retorted.

Lumawak naman ang ngiti sa labi ko habang nagsusukatan pa rin ng tingin ang dalawa.

Mayamaya lang ay pumasok na ang Biology teacher namin at nagsimula nang magturo. Nagkaroon kami ng long quiz at mabilis lang na natapos kaya naman may oras na kami para simulan ang Operation: Finding Iliad.

Paglabas namin ay sumalubong ang isang babae. Namukhaan ko agad ito and I don't want her presence. It's Morris' secretary, Kiara Mae Santiago. The last time I saw her was my first day here at Amethy.

"Long time, Amie," wika niya at lumapit sa akin.

"Nice seeing you again, bakit ka naparito?" walang gana kong sabi.

"I guess Morris wants us to see him," litanya ni Zeiro. Kierra immediately agreed to what he said.

"He's right, he needs your help. Siguro naman nabalitaan niyo na ang nangyari?"

I nodded lazily. I really don't like her presence, para bang may masamang mangyayari kapag nakikita ko siya.

"Good! Follow me," sabi niya. Sumunod naman kami at nanatili lang siya sa labas ng office, umalis rin ito agad bago pa kami makapasok.

As usual, pumasok pa kami at wala rin kaming madaratnan na tao. Morris is not here, but he left a book with a message. I noticed that the ambience and things in his office seem to have changed since the last time we went here.

Morris usual things in his office have been replaced. Kahit na ang lumang maliit na barko na nakita ko noong huling pumasok ako rito ay napalitan na ng isang lumang laruan.

"You noticed that too," Xavien stated, and I nodded. Iginawi ko ang tingin sa paligid. I know there are hidden clues in this room.

"There's a hint in this book." Agad naman akong napatingin sa hawak niya libro at kinuha niya ang isang maliit na papel.

"Trojan war?" kunot-noong sabi ko.

"Ah! It's all about greek mythology, naalala mo 'yung sinabi sa'tin ni Mrs. Valdez tungol sa kwento na 'to?" tanong ni Xavien.

Tumango naman ako. "I heard this. It's about a war fought by the Greeks against the Trojans to avenge the abduction of Helen from her Greek husband Menelaus by Paris, son of the Trojan king. It lasted ten years and ended in the sack of Troy."

As far as I can remember, the Iliad is an ancient Greek epic poem attributed to Homer. It narrates the events of the Trojan War, focusing on the hero Achilles.

"Well, you're definitely correct," Zeiro commented. "A 10-year war between the Greeks and Trojans, it was connected to The Illiad book."

I still can't understand the meaning of this message. Paano naman namin mahahanap ang libro sa isang salita lang na iniwan ni Mr. Morris?

"May deduction ka na ba?" tanong ni Xavien kay Zeiro. Base sa mukha niya ay parang hirap din siyang intindihin.

"It might be an alphabet code, I guess?" hulang sagot niya. Halata naman na hindi pa siya sigurado sa kanyang tinuran.

Sinubukan kong maghanap pa ng ibang clues sa buong office at nang mapansin kong may papel sa loob ng isang glass cabinet, binuksan ko ito at kinuha.

"I found a clue!" sabi ko. It has random numbers and letters on it. Agad naman lumapit ang dalawa.

"Alphabets, right. This is the clue," Xavien stated. Inilapag namin sa desk ni Morris ang papel.

Odysseus

Menelaus

Sparta

Rome

Paris - 3

Ovid - 0

Troy- 4

Magkakasunod-sunod ito, at sa baba nito ay may mga random na numbers which is 9, 7, 1, 3. Ilang oras na naming sinubukan I-decipher ito pero hindi pa rin namin nahuhulaan.

"I'm done! We can't decipher it," sabi ni Zeiro na sumusuko na. Sumasakit na rin ang ulo kakaintindi pero hindi ko pa rin mahulaan ang message.

It's already past 9 o'clock in the evening at hindi pa ako nakakabalik sa girl's dormitory. Naghanap pa ako ng impormasyon sa library tungkol sa mga greek mythology.

Achilles, Zeus, Athena, and Hephaestus. Iilang mga greek gods lang ang nahanap ko, pero hindi naman nito nasagot ang mensahe na nakalagay sa papel. I don't even remember such names as Odyssey or whatsoever.

"We should continue this tomorrow," Zeiro muttered. Nauna na siyang lumabas at nagpaalam, kaya naiwan na lang kaming dalawa ni Xavien.

It was a bit weird when silence echoed throughout the room, walang nagsasalita sa'ming dalawa. Tanging ingay lang ng paglipat nang pahina ang naririnig ko.

"Odysseus, Menelaus, Sparta, Rome," mahinang litanya ko habang hawak ang papel. Nakita ko ang paglapit ni Xavien sa table ko. My heart starts to pound faster when our eyes met.

Agad ko rin namang itinuon ang tingin sa binabasang libro.

"It's Sparta, Menelaus, Odysseus, and Rome. Amie, it's a caesar cipher if we look at it and understand word per word," aniya. Napalunok naman ako nang madiin, but he gave me an idea.

"So, the book was in...?" I asked.

"Look." Itinuro siya isa-isa ang mga salita. "Sparta has five letters, but if we took the letter R in reverse, we get the number 9," saad niya. "In Menelaus is U, Odyssey is 1 and its O, and last is Rome which is 3 or M."

"The Menelaus is just a distraction word which should be a letter O, but Morris might have changed it to U, so the word should be Room and the rest number is 304," he explained.

"Then it's in Room 304?" I confirmed it to him, and he immediately nodded.

Nagulat kami nang pagbukas namin ng ilaw sa silid ay bumungad ang nakangiting mukha ni Zeiro.

"You're both late. I already decipher the message, but the book isn't here," aniya. Napalaglag balikat naman kaming dalawa.

Sayang ang laway at pag-iisip namin!

"Akala ko nasa dorm ka na?" tanong ko sa kanya. He walked forward and pat my head, but Xavien immediately stopped him.

"I told you it's just a piece of pie. Ang bagal niyo kasi," pang-aasar niya pa.

I rolled my eyes to him. "Nahanap mo ba 'yung libro maliban diyan?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Hindi pa, I can't find any clues here. Ibig sabihin ay trick questions lang ang mga iyon."

"It's impossible to be a trick question," Xavien objected, so am I. Hindi naman magbibigay si Morris ng ganun-ganun lang and he didn't even bother to face us. He just gave a message, and we decipher it.

Medyo madilim na rin sa labas at kailangan ko na talagang makabalik agad sa dorm baka hindi na ako papasukin ng guard dahil marami nang nagbabantay kapag takip-silim na.

"Nandito lang 'yun—!" Napasigaw ako at napatakip ng bibig nang may nakita akong nakabulgta at duguan na estudyante habang hawak ang isang libro.

"The Iliad book!" Zeiro shouted.