A/N: Ito na ba ang start ng sunod-sunod na updates?

LORELEI

MAY ILANG trabaho na hindi dapat inuuwi sa bahay. Katulad sa mga funeral parlor. Dapat iniiwan ang trabaho sa workplace.

But Loki being Loki, kahit saan yata, dadalhin niya ang trabaho. Mula sa execom office kung saan niya binabantayan ang mga galaw ni Augustus, hanggang sa kotse ni Alistair na ginamit na panghatid sa amin, hanggang sa apartment namin, nakatutok siya sa kanyang laptop.

Pagdating nga ng kotse ni Alistair sa apartment, dire-diretso lang siyang bumaba ng sasakyan habang hawak-hawak ang laptop kung saan siya nanonood. Wala man lang "thank you" o "ingat" sa kaibigan kong naghatid sa amin.

"Kapag talagang focused siya sa investigation, parang may sarili siyang mundo," komento ni Alistair na lumabas ng kanyang kotse. His eyes were following Loki as he was entering the apartment building.

"Parang 'di pa tayo nasanay," I chuckled. It's been months since we started working together. This shouldn't surprise us at all. "Pero malay natin? One day, bigla na siyang maging polite."

"Ano ba naman 'yan!" reklamo ni Jamie na hanggang sa gate lang ng apartment namin. Nakaharang kasi ako sa daanan para hindi siya makasunod kay Loki. "Sana nga maging polite na ang Loki dear ko. Sana next time, may goodbye kiss na siya sa akin. I mean, I did a very good job today. A kiss would be enough for me."

Napabuntong hininga ako. Magpa-"thank you" nga hindi basta-basta masabi ni Loki, goodbye kiss pa kaya? I'm not saying na it's impossible. Pero malabo pa sigurong mangyari sa ngayon. O sa mga susunod na linggo. O sa mga susunod na buwan. O sa mga susunod na taon.

Malay natin, magka-himala?

"Lori, best buddies naman tayo, 'di ba?" Humawak sa kamay ko si Jamie at hinaplos-haplos ito. "Baka naman... Pwedeng maki-overnight ako sa inyo gaya ng dati? Masyadong busy si Loki dear ngayon. Kailangan niya ng pampatanggal ng stress!"

Naalala ko pa 'yong isang umaga na nagising ako at nadatnan kong nagluluto ng breakfast si Jamie sa apartment. Magaling siyang magluto at masarap ang inihain niya sa amin. I'd give her that.

"Sabi mo nga, masyadong busy si Loki sa ngayon," sagot ko. "Kahit harutin mo siya, hindi magiging effective sa kanya kasi mas importante ang investigation para sa kanya. So next time na lang."

"That's actually a good idea!" pagsang-ayon ni Alistair. "Baka pwede tayong maki-overnight sa unit n'yo, Lori. Once all of this is over, of course."

"Kailangan ko munang linisin ang apartment namin bago tayo mag-overnight," tugon ko. I hope cleaning the apartment was that easy. Kung sanang may kasama ako sa unit na tutulong sa akin para maglinis, 'di ba?

"Pwede ka naming tulungan sa paglilinis!" sambit ni Jamie. "Kahit mukha akong sosyal at sophisticated na babae, I know how to clean a house."

"Pag-usapan na lang natin kapag wala na tayo masyadong iniisip, okay?" isang pilit na ngiti ang ibinato ko sa kanya. "For now, we need to rest because tomorrow's the big day."

"Sige na nga!" Bumalik na sa loob ng kotse si Jamie. Bago niya isara ang pinto, humirit pa siya, "Basta mag-o-overnight tayong apat sa inyo, ha? Pwede ring sa bahay namin kung gusto n'yo! Hindi pa yata nakapunta si Al doon."

"Mauuna na kami, Lori. Ihahatid ko pa 'tong si Jamie," sabi ni Alistair sa akin bago siya muling pumasok sa kotse.

The car's engine started and slowly drove away. I bade them farewell, waving my hand at them.

Pumasok na ako sa aming apartment at nagpahinga na muna. It was a long day after all.

***

Nakapagpahinga na ako't nakapag-shower, nasa sala pa rin si Loki. Halos 'di na siya gumalaw roon magmula nang madatnan ko siya kanina. Nakaupo siya sa sahig habang ang laptop niya ang nakapatong sa couch.

"Meow!" Lumapit sa akin si Freya pagkalabas ko ng bathroom. She was rubbing her body against my right leg. Nang umupo ako sa couch para magbasa ng notes, humiga siya sa lap ko.

I don't wanna disturb Loki kaya hinayaan ko lang siya umupo na parang estatwa doon.

Mag-a-alas-siyete na ng gabi nang bumisita si Tita Martha sa unit namin. Pagbukas ng pinto, lumapit sa kanya si Freya. Naramdaman kong kumulo ang tiyan ko nang may masarap na amoy na pumasok.

"Meow!"

"Good evening!" maingat na bitbit ni Tita Martha ang isang malaking mangkok. Naging maingat siya sa paglalakad sa sala dahil baka matapakan niya si Freya. Pagkalapag ng mangkok sa mesa, napatingin ang tita ko kay Loki. Subsob pa rin kasi ang mukha niya sa laptop at paulit-ulit na nagki-click.

"Masyado yatang busy si Loki sa video project niya, ah?" tanong ni tita. Hininaan niya ang kanyang boses para hindi marinig ng kasama ko. "Antagal na yata noong last ko siyang nakitang busy sa schoolworks. Mukhang nagbabagong buhay na siya."

Iko-correct ko sana si tita kasi hindi naman video project ang ginagawa ni Loki. He was reviewing the footage from the security cameras we installed in the Clarion's office. We stopped the surveillance for today after Augustus left the office. Pero Loki insisted that we might have missed something.

Naalala ko tuloy ang sandaling pagtingin ni Augustus sa camera. I wonder if Loki would find that suspicious or not.

"Meow!" Tumalon si Freya sa upuan at inabot ang mangkok sa mesa. She's been feeling better since she was wounded by one of Moriarty's goons. Maingat ko siyang hinawakan sa katawan at ibinaba sa sahig.

"Sabihin mo sa kanya, huwag siyang magpapalipas ng gutom, ah?" sabi ni tita sa akin. "Kahit school project man 'yan o ano, minsan napapabayaan niya ang sarili niya."

"Ako na hong bahala sa kanya, tita."

Nagpaalam na si Tita Martha sa akin at lumabas na sa aming unit. Hindi na siya nag-bye kay Loki kasi ayaw niyang maistorbo.

Ilang beses namang sinubukang umakyat ni Freya sa mesa para abutin ang pagkain. I can't really blame her. Amoy pa lang nakakatakam na ang nilutong ulam ni tita.

"Papakainin kita mamaya, okay?" sabi ko sa kanya.

Parang bata siya na nakinig at nakaintindi sa akin. She didn't attempt to climb on the table again. Nanatili lang siya sa sulok.

Sumandok na ako ng kanin nang maluto na ang sinaing ko sa rice cooker. I was planning to cook fried tofu and pork strips, but thanks to my aunt, hindi ko na kailangang mag-effort. Tinanggal ko ang takip ng mangkok at inamoy ang aroma nito. Adobong manok. Lalo tuloy akong nagutom.

"Loki, kain na!" sigaw ko. Walang response mula sa kanya.

Araw-araw, ganito ang senaryo tuwing dinner time. Laging ako ang nagsasaing. Laging ako ang sumasandok ng kanin. Laging ako ang nauunang kumain. Laging ako rin ang naghuhugas ng plato. Sometimes I think that I'm his housekeeper, not his unitmate.

Well, what can I do? Loki is Loki. Minsan pinagsasabihan ko siya, pero laging pasok sa isang tenga at labas sa kabila ang mga salita ko. Maybe if his mom was here, mas mabilis ko siyang mapapasunod sa kung ano ang sabihin ko.

"Your food's getting cold!" sabi ko nang nangangalahati na ako sa aking pagkain. I can't believe I have to say that to a boy around my age.

Ngunit wala pa ring response sa kanya. Nagpatuloy lang siya sa pagki-click sa kanyang laptop at paulit-ulit na panoorin ang mga kilos ni Augustus. Hindi ba niya naisip na no matter how many times he watched the video, walang magbabago roon? He could resume watching and observing later.

"Kakain ka ba o hindi?" tanong ko. "Ipapakain ko na kay Freya ang pagkain mo."

Loki raised his left hand without turning to me. "Sherlock once said that the brain—"

"—that the brain works better on an empty stomach," I finished. I'm not really a fan of Sherlock Holmes, pero dahil lagi 'yong ginagawang palusot ni Loki tuwing sinasabihan ko siyang kumain na, na-memorize ko na tuloy.

"Ergo, I don't need to eat right now because it might affect my cognitive processes," sagot ni Loki.

"But that's not entirely true," I rebutted. "According to my science instructor, the brain is highly dependent on glucose. Kapag hindi ka nag-consume ng dietary carbohydrates at kapag nagamit mo na ang glycogen reserves ng katawan mo, maapektuhan na ang pag-function mo. Kaya nga nahihimatay ang mga tao dahil sa sobrang gutom, 'di ba? When was the last time you ate?"

"At recess time in the morning," Loki answered. His tone hinted that it wasn't a big deal. That was, what, nine hours ago? "I'm not hungry for food. I'm hungry for more information and observation."

"See? You haven't eaten anything since ten in the morning!" Parang ate akong nangangaral sa nakababata kong kapatid. Thank God, he isn't my younger brother. Talagang puro sermon ang aabutin niya araw-araw.

Teka, parang 'yon ang lagi kong ginagawa sa kanya, ah?"

Loki turned his head to his left, taking a pause from watching the footage. "Did you know that researchers at Yale Medical School found out that mice can take in information more quickly and retain the same information better upon stimulation of hunger? Empty stomach equals becoming smarter."

"Pero hindi tayo mga daga," sumbat ko sa kanya. He was citing an experiment made on rats! "At meron bang sinabi roon sa research na dapat sobrang magpalipas ng gutom para mas bumilis ang process ng utak?"

Natahimik si Loki sa kanyang kinauupuan, mukhang wala nang agad na mai-rebutt sa akin. Kahit saan kasi tingnan, mali ang sobrang pagpapalipas ng gutom. Maybe the brain can really work better on an empty stomach—but not when it's too empty!

"Kumain ka na muna bago mo ituloy 'yang panonood mo ng Augustus videos," paalala ko sa kanya. "The footages aren't going anywhere."

I heard him heave a long sigh before standing. Pumunta na siya sa table namin at umupo na parang batang napilitang kumain ng dinner. He was still in his school uniform! Ako, nakapag-shower na at nakapagpalit na ng pambahay.

"Teka, kaya ba ayaw mong kumain kasi nagda-diet ka?" tanong ko. I don't intend to insult him. Dumaan lang talaga ang thought na 'yon sa isip ko.

Ilang segundo niya akong tinitigan, na parang ininsulto ko ang buong angkan niya. I could feel contempt in his eyes. Nang mahuli ni Maggie ang pag-uusap namin ni Alistair tungkol sa "katotohanan," I mentioned that Loki might be sensitive about the topic of his weight. That was just a joke. Pero mukhang totoo nga.

"Do you think I'm like those idiots out there who would not eat so they could lose some weight and look thin?" he said with an appropriate amount of scorn. "I thought you know me better than that, Lorelei. I can't say if I'm disappointed or not right now."

Well, I don't know him too well, but I know enough about him. Loki isn't a petty person who's always concerned about how he looks or how he presents himself. Kaya nga hindi niya laging inaayos ang buhok niya tuwing papasok sa school. Kung ano ang ayos nito paglabas niya ng bathroom, 'yon na ang magiging hairstyle niya.

"Nakausap mo na ba si Hershey tungkol sa fake layout?" tanong ko. Masyadong awkward kasi ang katahimikan sa dining table. He isn't the type to start a conversation kaya ako na ang nagkusa.

"I already sent him a photo of the quotations. He said he'll be done with the layout tomorrow."

Sunod-sunod siyang sumubo ng kanin at ulam. Parang diretso lunok na, wala nang nguya-nguya. Within three minutes, tapos na siyang kumain. Parang magic na naubos ang laman ng kanyang plato. Sasabihan ko sana siyang 'di rin maganda ang bilisan ang pagkain lalo na kung ilang oras na walang laman ang tiyan. But he might just ignore me.

"Satisfied?" he asked before taking a gulp of cold water. He stood, dragging his chair and returned to his spot. Muli na naman siyang nanood ng video ni Augustus.

Ipinakain ko na kay Freya ang tira naming pagkain at naghugas na rin ako ng plato. In a span of twenty minutes, Loki didn't move from his position. Once he's really onto something, he would forget for a while that there are people around him.

I stared at him from the kitchen while wiping my hands dry. Sumagi sa isip ko ang nabanggit ni Maggie kaninang nasa printing press kami.

"I still remember the last thing she told me. 'M might be trying to be a Samaritan,' she said. Sasabihin niya raw kay Loki kapag nagkita silang dalawa."

We may be dealing with Augustus right now, but soon we would deal with the big bad himself: Moriarty.

"Loki?" I called him as I went to the couch nearest to him.

"If you're going to ask me to sleep now, sorry but I can't," he said. Wala pa nga akong sinasabi, sinupalpal niya na agad ako. "It's eight-thirty in the evening. Too early! And I won't sleep until I'm done scrutinizing every frame of this video."

"I won't ask you to sleep early. I know that you won't listen to me anyway," I replied. "May gusto lang akong itanong sa 'yo. I hope it's okay."

"As long as it's not about the exact time of my sleep, I can entertain your question," he said.

"It's about Rhea."

His finger froze from clicking on the mouse and his eyes stared blankly at the laptop screen. After a few seconds of being frozen, he slowly turned his head to me. "What about her?"

Umupo ako sa couch. Sinundan ako roon ni Freya na kakatapos lang na kumain. I have to approach this topic carefully. "Nagkausap kasi kami ni Maggie noong chineck namin ang printing press. Medyo naging seryoso kasi ang usapan namin, tapos nabanggit si Rhea."

"And?"

"She mentioned what Rhea's last words to her were." I weighed my words cautiously. Ayaw kong ma-trigger ang pagiging emotional ni Loki. Rhea is someone close to his heart. It's a sensitive subject na iniiwasan kong i-bring up dahil sa impact nito sa kanya. But right now, I felt like I had to ask this question. "Did she tell you anything about that?"

Loki reclined his head, tilting so he could look up at the ceiling. "Ever since Rhea's... you know, Maggie told me nothing but 'It's your fault' or 'I already warned you.' Whenever she finds the opportunity, she expresses how much she hates me. What did she tell you?"

"M might be trying to be a Samaritan," I said. "'Yan daw ang huling sinabi sa kanya ni Rhea bago siya... I don't know if Maggie misheard the last word, but it doesn't make sense to me."

Napahawak si Loki sa kanyang baba at napatingin sa malayo. He muttered the exact words, "M might be trying to be a Samaritan, huh?"

I wonder if those words also do not make sense to him. "Samaritan" is a word reserved for good people. And we all know that M or Moriarty does not deserve that honor.

"I can only guess why Rhea said those words," Loki said, turning to me. "We now know that Moriarty accepts requests from people, right? He's like a genie who grants their wishes. If a person wants to exact revenge on another person, M is their go-to guy. If a person wants to remove another person from being considered for an award or recognition so they can a hundred percent claim it, M is just one call away."

I remember the late Officer Bastien telling me that their organization and our club are somehow similar. We act on people's requests but our methods are entirely different.

"So you think na dahil ginagawan ng pabor ni M ang mga client niya, naisip ni Rhea na tawagin siyang Samaritan?" tanong ko. I found it difficult to wrap my head around that reasoning. She could have used another term, but why "Samaritan"?

"Maybe once we drive Augustus into a corner, he'd tell us how on earth did M become a Samaritan," Loki answered. Bumalik na ulit siya sa panonood ng video footage.

Or maybe, Rhea's last words have a deeper meaning.

Tomorrow is the event that the student council has been preparing for. Magagamit na rin namin sa wakas ang mga pinaggugupit naming crepe paper para gawing confetti. Bukas na rin isasagawa ang aming plano laban kay Augustus. This is going to be our all-out offensive against the editor-in-chief.

"Hmm..." Loki hummed. He clicked his mouse with emphasis. Paulit-ulit niyang ibinabalik sa parehong time marker ang pinapanood niyang video.

"What is it?" napatayo ako at umupo sa tabi niya sa sahig. Sumunod din si Freya sa may hita ko. "May nakita ka bang kakaiba?"

Loki paused the video. Sa naka-freeze na frame, nakatalikod pa rin si Augustus sa camera at nakaupo sa kanyang swivel chair. Loki clicked the play button at muling gumalaw ang editor-in-chief. May kinuha siyang maliit na bagay mula sa kanyang bulsa at yumuko sa kanyang desk.

"What's so suspicious about that?" tanong ko.

"Watch closely." Loki zoomed in on the frame. The video wasn't in high definition but I could see na may drawer sa desk. Augustus inserted what looked like a key into the drawer's keyhole.

Inilapit ko pa ang mukha ko sa kanyang laptop screen para subukang makita kung ano ang ginagawa ni Augustus sa kanyang drawer. Hinila lang naman niya 'to at parang may inayos sa loob. Then may inilabas siyang notebook mula roon at inilapag sa kanyang desk.

"Something doesn't seem off," I commented, looking at Loki.

He returned my gaze and sighed. Muli niyang ibinalik ang video sa frame kung saan bubuksan pa lang ni Augustus ang kanyang drawer. Mas maa-appreciate ko sana kung sasabihin na lang niya sa akin kung ano ang dapat kong tingnan.

Halos idikit ko na ang mga mata ko sa screen para matutukan ang gusto niyang makita ko.

Augustus inserted the key into the drawer's keyhole.

Augustus carefully pulled the drawer.

Augustus fixed something inside the drawer.

Teka, parang may iniangat siya sa loob ng drawer?

"Can you go back ten seconds?" utos ko kay Loki na ginawa naman niya.

Parang may nakita akong bagay na manipis, matigas at kasing lapad ng drawer. Dahan-dahan itong iniangat ni Augustus at may kinuha sa ilalim nito.

"A secret compartment?" tanong ko kay Loki. Nagtagpo ang aming tingin at marahan siyang tumango.

"Now tell me: Why would our dear editor-in-chief hide a notebook in the false bottom secret compartment of his desk's drawer?" he asked. Tama. Ano bang meron sa notebook na 'yon at pinakatatago ito ni Augustus?

"That notebook might contain confidential information related to Moriarty's organization," I muttered. Napatitig ako sa naka-freeze na frame kung saan kita ang pagkuha ni Augustus ng notebook sa drawer.

"He might have recorded some of his exploits as Moriarty's general in that notebook. He would be needing a perfect hiding spot for it, and he thought his desk was a good choice," Loki said. "If we didn't install the hidden cameras, we wouldn't have known existence of a false bottom secret compartment. Our surveillance effort has paid off."

He's right. Kahit pasukin namin ang office ng Clarion at kalikutin ang desk ni Augustus, baka wala kaming mapansing kakaiba sa loob ng drawer niya kung 'di kami aware tungkol sa secret compartment.

"Tomorrow, we will retrieve that notebook and see how we can use it against Augustus and Moriarty himself," Loki smirked. I've never seen him this confident in the past few days. "If the contents are juicy, we might take down their organization in one fell swoop."

Augustus may be smart in looking for a hiding place, but Loki is smarter in finding it.

Everything seems to be going according to plan. One could hope that nothing goes wrong.

Sana nga.

q.e.d.

Don't miss the next updates because the clash between the QED-4/Execom and Augustus will finally begin!

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EXTRA: A "false bottom secret compartment" of a drawer looks like this: