HARRIET

WHOEVER THOUGHT that threatening me with blackmail would be a good idea was a complete fool. Una sa lahat, wala akong itinatago na kahit anong sikreto na makasisira sa akin. Pangalawa, kung meron man akong embarrassing secret, hindi sapat 'yon para palabasin na wala na akong mukhang maihaharap sa campus.

I wasn't keen on representing our House in the Quadetective Tournament. But because of this lousy attempt to make me retreat, I was tempted to volunteer and taunt whoever's behind the message. Imagine kung ako ang napili at hindi ako umurong, tapos walang impact ang exposé ng taong 'yon. He or she would be ashamed.

Of course, I couldn't let this transgression pass so I decided to investigate who could have left that for me. I visited the safety and security office of Holmes Hall and asked the personnel to check the surveillance camera on my floor. Pinanood namin ang pagdaan ng mga estudyante sa footage. Then we found a suspicious person. May isang lalaki—kasi pants ang suot at hindi skirt—na naglakad sa hallway. Everything happened so fast that I almost missed it if my eyes blinked even the slightest. Nang tumapat siya sa kuwarto ko, may inihulog siyang card sa sahig at sinipa sa direksyon ng pinto. The card slipped past the tiny gap below my door.

We tried to zoom in on the boy's facial features to identify him. Unfortunately, he's wearing a cap that hid his hair and a surgical mask that covered the lower half of his face. The security personnel also tried to zoom in on his eyes, but most of the time, the cap's visor obscured both of them. Ang tanging na-identify namin ay ang kanyang height at body frame.

Despite what my eyes had witnessed, I wasn't fully convinced that a fellow Holmesian would attempt to blackmail me. Oo na. Biased na kung biased, pero sa tingin ko, may iba pang scenario na makapagpaliliwanag sa nangyari. I could only think of two possibilities: First, the Holmesian caught on camera was really the one behind the message. Second, an outsider asked the Holmesian to deliver the message to me.

Between the two, I was leaning on the latter than the former.

The next day, I decided to do some digging. Gusto kong ma-confirm kung sa House lang ba namin nangyari ang pamba-blackmail na related sa tournament. I had a feeling that if someone or some group had a guts to do it to us, they could have done it to other Houses too. Kaya pagkatapos ng afternoon class namin, nagpatawag ako ng meeting sa Team WHAM. Ay, teka. WHA lang pala kasi hindi ko sinali si Morrie.

Wilhelmina, Aiden and I met at the rooftop of the Baker Building. Mukhang wala naman silang pinagkaaabalahan ngayong hapon kaya naisipan ko silang istorbohim muna.

"Hindi ko alam na may pa-clandestine meeting na pala tayo. Para tayong mag-jowa na ayaw ipaalam sa iba na tayo na," nakangiting komento ni Aiden. He ran his fingers through his messy blond hair. He then panned his head from left to right repeatedly. "Teka, kulang tayo ng isa. Bakit hindi invited si Morrie? I saw him leaving the classroom."

Pasalamat nga siya kasi naisipan ko siyang i-invite kahit medyo duda ako sa kanya.

"I don't feel like having him around, lalo na kung tama ang kutob ko," I answered. "Mas mabuti nang tayong tatlo muna ang mag-usap-usap hanggang hindi pa siya cleared sa akin. We don't want someone like him hearing what we have to discuss."

"Is this . . . related to the tournament?" Mina asked. Minsa'y nalilito pa rin ako sa kanya kasi kapag nasa class kami, ginagamit pa rin niya ang kanyang tablet. Pero kapag kaming tatlo o apat, nagsasalita na siya. But as expected of her, mukhang may hunch na siya kung ano ang agenda ng emergency meeting namin.

I nodded at her. "Alam kong magkakalaban ang Houses natin pagdating sa Quadetective Tournament. But I want us to set aside the competition for a while. What we're about to discuss is much bigger than us." Binato ko ng seryosong tingin ang dalawa. They nodded back at me.

"Mukhang may idea na ako kung ano ang gusto mong pag-usapan natin," tugon ni Aiden. He locked his hands behind his head. "Pero ayaw kitang pangunahan. Baka iba pala ang tinutukoy mo."

"Me too," Mina added.

"Kung gano'n, hindi na ako magpapaligoy-ligoy pa," sabi ko. "Some of my seniors have been asked to withdraw their candidacy or reject the nomination to be our representative in the tournament. Binantaan daw sila na kapag tumuloy sila, mae-expose ang itinatago nilang secrets. Kaya ngayon, medyo challenging sa amin ang paghahanap ng champion. I want to know if the same has happened to your Houses, o kung exclusive lang ang scenario na 'to sa amin."

Mina was quick to nod. "I heard the same . . . from our officers."

"Ganyan din ang narinig ko sa amin," dagdag ni Aiden. "Looks like wala kaming choice kundi mag-rely sa mga taga-lower year."

Sabi ko na nga ba, tama ang hinala ko! Someone's messing with the representative selection. Someone wanted to eliminate competition or reduce our chance at winning.

"I also received the same message yesterday," I said, making their eyes go wide at me. "They threatened to expose my secret if I choose to be the representative."

"Really . . . ?" Mina's eyes blinked for a couple of times.

"Talaga? Ang lakas naman ng loob nila!" reklamo ni Aiden. "Teka, meron ka nga bang sikreto na ayaw mong malaman ng campus?"

I shook my head. "Wala akong ginawa na kahit anong makapagpapahiya sa akin. They might be gaslighting me, making me doubt my memory on whether I did something awful or not. But they picked the wrong mind to mess with. I know for a fact that I'm clean."

Even if I did something embarrassing, I wouldn't let it define me or my worth. But I was confident that they got nothing on me.

"I can smell the stench of a particular House in this move." I sniffed so hard. "I still have no clear idea how they pulled this stunt off. But they're the only ones who could have done it."

"House Moriarty," Aiden finished.

"Now you know why Morrie isn't invited here," I told him. "Kahit kailan, kontrabida talaga ang mga Moriartian na 'yan. They'd do everything to win! I bet they've been collecting secrets since the academic year started in preparation for their massive blackmail campaign."

"Aha!" Aiden's eyes grew wide as if he had realized something. Napapalakpak pa nga siya. "Kaya pala . . ."

My left eyebrow arched. "What is it?"

"Nothing!" He shook his head repeatedly.

"You sure? Parang may itinatago ka, eh."

"Wala! Wala! May naalala lang ako."

"Gusto mo bang ipatikim ko sa 'yo ang kamao ko?"

Aiden held up his hands. "Wala 'to! Hindi 'to importante! Nag-make sense na sa 'kin ang lahat ng points na nabanggit mo."

Lalo pang umangat ang kilay ko habang lumawak ang ngiti niya. Hayaan ko na nga.

"But do we have . . . proof?" Mina asked. "Not taking their side . . . but it's still possible that . . . it's not them."

She had a point. Mabuti pa 'tong si Mina, may sense kausap. I touched my chin and looked down. "This is just my gut feeling. Alam kong biased na pakinggan na sila agad ang pinagsususpetyahan ko. But of all four Houses, which is the most capable if not them?"

"Still, we don't have proof," Mina insisted. "If we want to take action . . . we need to have something concrete. Without proof . . . everything is just hearsay."

May punto na naman siya. We could argue the whole day on the probability that House Moriary was behind the series of blackmails. Pero kung wala kaming ebidensya na makapagpapatunay nito, parang nagsasayang kami ng laway.

"Then we have to get hold of proof," I said, my eyes flicking up at them. "I want the tournament to be played fair and square. Kung may isang House na gumagamit ng ganitong karuming taktika bago pa man magsimula ang mismong competition, what else could they do just to win? Everything. That's why something needs to be done. Someone or some people need to take action."

"Is that your indirect way of asking us to help you?" Aiden asked. "If yes, then hell yeah! I'm in! Ayaw kong masira ang fun sa tournament kaya game ako riyan. Isa pa, kawawa ang mga senior natin na nagkaroon ng anxiety dahil sa blackmail. It might give them a peace of mind kung maaaksyunan natin."

Mina looked away for a second. "If this is for sake of a clean and honest competition . . . I don't mind lending a hand."

"Great!" I clapped once with a wide smile. "So how are we gonna do it? Obviously we can't walk straight up to them and say, 'We know the truth. Hand over the materials to us.' That will alarm them and raise their guard. By them, I'm referring to primary suspect number one: House Moriarty."

"Kung talagang meron silang hawak na blackmailing materials, siguradong may malaking storage sila n'on." Napakrus ang mga braso ni Aiden at napatingin sa sahig. "Ang pwede nating gawin ay hanapin kung saan itinatago at kumuha ng ebidensya mula roon. But this won't be an easy task. They must be keeping the files somewhere far from anyone's reach."

Knowing those Moriartians, they wouldn't hide the storage in a place that's accessible to everyone. Tuso ang mga 'yan. Baka kailangan pang dumaan sa butas ng karayom para maabot 'yon. Sa dami ng mga lugar dito sa campus, bilang sa daliri ang kanilang choices.

"That place might be in their Manor," Mina spoke. "That's the safest and most secure place in this university . . . for Moriartians to hide anything."

Tumango kami ni Aiden. That's also the first answer that came to mind because that's the most obvious choice. Kung may gusto akong itago, una kong iko-consider ang Holmesian Hall kasi may layers of security roon. Hindi basta-basta makapapasok ang outsiders at malayang makakikilos sa loob.

The same must be applicable to the Moriartian Manor. I hadn't been inside and I had no plans to pay them a visit. Wala akong idea sa level of security sa labas at sa loob, but I could safely assume that it would be heavily guarded.

"Ayaw kong i-suggest ito dahil ilegal, kaso kung gusto nating makakuha ng evidence, baka kailanganin nating pasukan ang kanilang Manor?" may pag-aalangang sabi ni Aiden. I'd already thought of the same thing. "Sakaling i-consider natin ang gano'ng option, meron pa tayong problema. Hindi kasi basta-basta bahay ang tatangkain nating pasukin. Hindi natin alam kung ano ang layout nito."

My arms folded across my chest. That's the first roadblock, if we were to consider this course of action. "Unless . . . we make someone tell us the secrets of their Manor. Someone who is familiar with its blueprint. Paniguradong may security features ito na hindi natin basta-basta maba-bypass."

"Pero sino namang makikipagtulungan sa atin?" Palipat-lipat ang tingin ni Aiden sa akin at kay Mina. "Moriartians are bound by secrecy. Walang magtatangkang i-volunteer ang mga impormasyong kailangan natin."

I smirked. The answer to his question was quite obvious. It only took me a split second to realize it.

"Kung hindi nila ibibigay sa atin nang kusa ang hinihingi natin, we might need to resort to other means. If we have to force the information out of them, then we shall. And I have one person in mind who might be able to help us, whether he likes it or not."

Bahagyang nanlaki ang mga mata ni Aiden. Mukhang alam na niya kung sino ang tinutukoy ko. "Rie, huwag mong sabihin—"

"May number ka naman siguro ni Morrie, 'no?" tanong ko sabay tingin sa kanya. "Can you please ask him to meet you at . . . saan ba natin siya pwedeng i-interrogate nang walang makaiistorbo sa atin? At saka for the nth time, hindi kita binigyan ng permission na tawagin ako sa nickname ko."

"Are you sure . . . about this?" Mina asked, hesitating.

"If there's another way we can get the answer, I wouldn't mind entertaining it," I explained. "Kung pwedeng idaan 'to sa maayos na usapan, gagawin ko. Pero hindi, eh. Time is not on our side. We need to go for the most expedient solution."

Mina looked down. "I see . . ."

Medyo nakokonsensiya ako kasi idinadamay ko ang tulad niya sa ganitong kakomplikadong mission. She didn't strike me as someone who's into rule-breaking. She's timid. She's obedient.

Muli akong lumingon kay Aiden. "Ano? May naisip ka na bang meeting place?"

"Ang abandonadong clock tower ang number one sa list. Dahil condemned na ang building, wala nang pumupunta roon.

That's right. Naalala ko noong araw na ni-rescue namin ni Morrie si Mina sa clock tower. Nakatatakot na rin kasing pumunta roon dahil anytime, pwedeng gumuho ang gusali.

"Clock tower, it is." I nodded. "Siguruhin mong hindi siya maghihinala sa message mo, ah? We need him to be there. We need to ask him questions about the Manor if we want to stop this blackmail spree."

"Teka, bakit pala ako ang ko-contact sa kanya? Pwede namang ikaw, 'di ba?" tanong ni Aiden pagkalabas ng kanyang phone. "It won't sound suspicious kung sasabihin mong magpapatawag ka ng meeting para pag-usapan ang case na involved ang Team WHAM."

"Mas magiging comfortable siya at mababawasan ang suspicion niya kung ikaw ang makikipag-communicate sa kanya," paliwanag ko. "At saka, close naman kayong dalawa, 'di ba? Mukha nga kayong friends minsan. Thanks to whatever bond you've established with him, we can use that to our advantage."

"Okay, fine! But just to set the record straight, Morrie and I are not friends."

"Yeah, whatever."

Sorry, Morrie, but desperate times require desperate measures.

Teka, bakit ako nagso-sorry sa kanya? If he had a hand in this madness, he's equally guilty and accountable. He must be punished.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

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