Pareho silang walang imik habang nasa loob ng sasakyan. She stayed alert the whole car ride. She made sure her gadgets strategically placed on her pockets are in tact. Her hair was braided. Nakatago roon ang ilang pins niya. Tinulungan pa siya kanina ni Cloud na iayos ang mga 'yon bago siya umalis ng bahay nito.

Itinigil ni Clyde ang sasakyan sa tapat ng isang gate na may puting arko. Tanaw niya mula sa kalsada ang malawak na damuhan sa loob. May mga nakalinyang puno ng akasya sa paligid at benches sa ilalim.

Sinundan niya ang binata nang pumasok ito sa loob ng nakabukas na gate. Saka lang niya napansin na memorial park ang pinasok nila.

Tinayuan pa siya ng balahibo. Paano pala kung may balak itong ilibing siya ng buhay? She must not forget he belongs to NoKor and it may be possible that he's lying when he said that he's no longer under their shadows. That thought made her stop walking.

"Ano'ng gagawin natin dito? Bakit dito mo ako dinala?" Tanong niya. Clyde also stopped walking and looked at her. Kahit anong gawin niya, wala talaga siyang mahinuha sa awra nito na may binabalak na masama.

"Mas tahimik," tugon nito. He went to the bench under a tree and sat down. It took few minutes of contemplating before she went to his side.

Nakatingin ito sa hile-hilerang lapida sa harapan nila nang umupo siya.

"Ang totoo niyan nagtaka ako kung bakit lumitaw na naman ang mga kasamahan ko sa NoKor nang gabing 'yon kasi nagkasundo na kami na titigilan na nila ako," umpisa nito matapos ang ilang minuto. Tinitigan niya ito ng mataman.

"Paano mo sila napapayag na tigilan ka?" she asked skeptically. Clyde stared at her for a moment. Then, he inhaled deeply.

"I gave up our gold mining in North and South Korea," he said inhaling deeply. Napakunot-noo siya. It doesn't sound convincing to her.

"What's with your gold mining? Bakit gusto nilang makuha?" tanong niya. Tumingin naman ito ng mataman sa kanya.

"Konti na lang iisipin ko nang secret agent ka na ipinadala ng kalaban ng NoKor para makakuha ng impormasyon," nanunudyo nitong wika sa halip na sagutin ang tanong niya.

"What do you mean?" she asked shaking her head. She mentally noted that he did not entertain her question about the gold mining. May parte ng utak niya ang nagsasabing hinuhuli lang siya nito pero habang titiningnan niya ito sa mata, nakikita niyang mukha naman itong walang alam sa trabaho niya. Well, who knows?

"Do you remember Emma? The girl who broke my heart?" he asked back.

She nodded. How could she ever forget agent Gabrielle. Sabi ni Cloud nilansi raw ito ni Clyde para mapasok ang FBI. Poor woman.

"She was sent by US to spy on me. She lured me into breaching FBI so they could corner me." He inhaled deeply and pursed his lips for a moment.

"Unfortunately for them, I learned about their plan earlier," dagdag nito.

Napakunot-noo siya. That was opposite of Cloud's report. Sino ba ang dapat niyang paniwalaan?

She looked into his eyes. He really looked sincere. Nagkamali lang ba ang intel nila sa imbestigasyon?

Clyde's claim is quite believable plus she can't see any trace of dishonesty in him. Was he telling the truth or he had just perfected how to appear honest all the time?

Kung sakaling totoo ang kuwento ni Clyde, posible rin talagang hindi aaminin ng FBI na naisahan ito ng isang outsider dahil isa iyong sampal sa kanila.

"Why are you telling me that?" tanong na lamang niya para mahinuha ang sinseridad nito.

"I wanted to tell you everything about me from the very beginning. I just didn't have the chance," malungkot nitong tugon.

She's not sure whether to believe him or not, but she remembered him taking her to his hideout before. Iyong mga panahong iniimbestigahan ng mga ito ang peke nitong lolo.

"Bakit ako ang inaatake ng mga nakaitim na lalaki? Bakit lagi kang nandoon?" tanong niya. His story creates more question inside her head. Hindi na rin niya masundan ang nangyayari idagdag pa na maraming loopholes sa mga kuwento nito.

"I thought they are after you because of me inspite of my agreement with them," saad nito. He stared at her trying to weigh things out.

"I'm sorry, pumasok pa ako sa bahay ninyo para itesting kung fully secured kayo," pag-amin nito. That explained the CCTV footage of him roaming inside their house. May isang camera na hindi nito na-hack kaya nakuhanan pa rin.

"I didn't know that," sambit na lamang niya. Hindi na niya sinabing nakuhanan pa rin ng footage ang pagpasok nito sa bahay nila.

Clyde nodded.

"When they showed up again, I went to confront them," hayag ng binata.

"Hindi pala ako ang dahilan. It's your ex, Klein Rich. Do you really know him?" he asked. Natigilan siya sa tanong nito. Her forehead creased again.

"Hindi ka ba nagtataka kung bakit may mga tauhan ang ex mo na basta na lang namaril noong gabing kinuha ka niya?" tanong nito.

That part isn't knew to her because those men were IF agents, but his tone made her think twice.

"His father is an ally to NoKor, siya ang may pakana ng lahat ng pag-atake sa 'yo noong nakaraan. He wants to get you," sambit nito.

"What for?" She asked trying to ingest everything. Pakiramdam niya ay ang gulo na ng lahat.

"I don't know. 'Yon din ang inaalam ko. Kaya rin siguro may mga armadong tauhan ang ex mo. Baka alam niya ang nangyayari at hindi sinasabi sa 'yo," sagot ng binata.

Ang parteng iyon ang hindi na niya pinaniwalaan. Maybe Clyde is really clueless of her boyfriend's line of work or he's only prentending to be clueless.

"What else do you know about Klein Rich?" tanong niya rito.

"Maliban sa nalaman ko tungkol sa ama niya, wala na," Clyde said shaking his head.

Hindi na siya nagsalita pa. Even if she tries to convince herself that he's lying, the man seems to be telling the truth and she could feel in in her veins as a human and as an agent.

"Iwasan mo na siya para hindi ka nila guluhin. You don't know what kind of father he has." Clyde looked at her. She could see concern in his eyes.

"And you don't know what kind of mother he has," she thought.

Nanatiling tikom ang bibig niya sa kabila ng naisip. Batid niyang maaaring nagsasabi ng totoo ang binata. She had to tell Cloud about what she learned about his father.

"As of now, I have convinced them that you already dumped the guy a long time ago kaya baka tigilan ka na nila," saad nito.

Hindi na lamang siya nagsalita. If those people are good enough, they probably knew who she is in Klein's life.

She inhaled deeply. Nakatulong ang malamig na simoy ng hangin sa paligid sa pagpapakalma niya ng sarili. What she heard from Clyde was too overwhelming to digest.

Ilang minuto silang tahimik bago muling binasag ng binata ang katahimikan.

"Bakit ka nagpanggap noon na tutor? You are Vanna Lei, an heiress to a business empire," tanong nito. Kumalma na rin yata si Clyde dahil magaan na ang tono nito. Hindi katulad kanina na sobrang bigat ang bitaw ng mga salita.

"I wanted to know how it feels to live as poor," she answered. The man stared at her assessing her sincerity. She had to tell that especially that he shows no indication that he knew her job.

"I was right when I told you that you don't look like you can't afford to buy a car," natatawang saad ng binata. She smiled as she remembered that time. Unang beses siya nitong sinundo noon sa apartment.

"Hindi ka ba nagtataka baka naka-undercover ako that time at isa akong pulis o secret agent?" tanong niya rito. She made her voice sound like teasing but she actually wants to see how he'd react.

Napailing naman ito. "If you were an undercover agent, you wouldn't have used your real face. That's so amateur," he told her.

It was intended to be joke but she blushed at the thought. Pakiramdam niya ay napahiya siya sa sinabi nito. That was really a bad move on her part. Kaya nagkanda-loko-loko ang lahat. Hindi na lamang siya nagsalita.

Hindi na rin naman nagsalita ang binata.

Nanatili silang tahimik. She's thinking whether what he said earlier were all made up stories. Pero parang napakaimposible naman. She tried to recall what happened during her mission five years ago. Parang consistent naman ito sa mga kuwento nito ngayon.

Muling namayani ang ilang minutong katahimikan sa pagitan nila.

"How are your niece and nephew?" she asked breaking the silence. Tiningnan niya ito. Gusto na rin kasi niyang ibaling ang usapan sa mas magaang topiko.

Clyde's eyes became wary and distant. Ilang beses itong huminga ng malalim bago tumayo.

Ngumiti ito ng tipid sa kanya bago iniabot ang kamay. His actions puzzled her. Inisip pa niya kung hahawak siya sa kamay nito o hindi pero kalaunan ay tumayo na lamang siya. Clyde withdrew his hand and put it on his pocket. Then he started walking.

Malalaki ang hakbang ni Clyde habang binabaybay nila ang kahabaan ng memorial park.

Sumunod siya nang maglakad ito sa damuhan at tintunton ang puntod sa gilid. There are fresh flowers on the tomb. Magkatabi iyon na may nakatayong estatwa ng dalawang anghel.

Her heart trembled when she saw Devine and Cherine's names. She gritted her teeth and convinced herself that Clyde only wants to divert her attention. From what? She is not sure.

Baka nililito lang siya nito at may masama talagang binabalak kaya nagpakita na naman ito, pero siya ang nagbukas ng usapan tungkol sa mga bata, imposible namang napaghandaan nito agad ang tanong niya at may nakahanda nang habing kuwento.

"I wasn't able to protect them," Clyde muttered. His voice broke. Her heart sank when tears fell down his cheeks. Napakagat siya sa labi. She wasn't able to say a word.

She never imagined him being vulnerable and much more in tears. And she stood there convincing herself that Clyde is only making up stories. Pero bakit kailangan pa nitong sabihin na patay na ang mga bata kung balak lang siyang lituhin? Sobra naman 'yon.

"Gusto ko na kasing umalis noon sa NoKor. Ayaw nilang pumayag, marami pa kasi akong dapat gawin. They threatened me and took the twins. Hindi ko sila naligtas."

Clyde wiped his eyes. She could see pain as he stared at the tombs. Kumirot ang dibdib niya nang maalala ang dalawang batang tinuturuan niya dati. The kids were so nice to her then. She remembered them hugging her when they were almost abducted. How their hugs felt like they really yearned for a mother.

"Bakit?" Hindi niya napigilan ang paggaralgal ng boses. Pinakang ayaw niya rin sa trabaho kapag may mga batang nadadamay. She doesn't want any kid getting hurt in whatever manner, and learning that Cherine and Devine were killed pains her.

"I was so stupid. They tried to do that to you. Dapat natuto na ako, napabayaan ko sila." She could feel his anguish and regret as he speaks.

"Bakit? Head ka ng intel nila dapat ikaw ang pinakamagaling. Bakit hindi mo sila nailigtas?" She wasn't able to control her tears from streaming down her cheeks. Kanina pa niya iyon pinipigilan habang iniisip na gawa-gawa lang ng binata ang lahat.

Sana pala kinuha na lang nila noon ang dalawang bata para alagaan ng ahensiya. Bakit ba hindi niya naisip noon na hanapin ang dalawa matapos mawala si Clyde? She could have done something to protect them.

"Kahit sinong pinakamagaling kung mag-isa lang na lalaban, natatalo rin." Clyde's tears fell down again as he uttered those words. She could feel his agony in her soul.

Namalisbis ang luha niya. Pakiramdam niya ay mga pamangkin niya ang mismong napatay.

Even if she is not sure about Clyde's intention, she didn't know why seeing him wallow in tears added pain in her.