Notorious

Chapter 2

I locked myself in a closet and ignored my surroundings. There was nothing to see, no window or light to guide me. The only sounds I could hear were my sniffles and whimpers. Just as I realized I was all alone, the door swung open, and an old man with a flashlight appeared. As I heard him approach my hiding place, I could hear his heavy footsteps and the thud of his gun hitting the floor. The man turned on a flashlight and directed it at me. I squinted reflexively as the beam of light fell across my eyes. Suddenly, he grabbed me by the shoulders and spun me around. My eyes were transfixed on the gun aimed at me, and I realized I was about to die.

“I’ve been looking for you,” the man said. His voice was so loud that it made my ears hurt and ring louder than ever before. I coughed immediately after that. I try to speak, but nothing comes out of my mouth except for a soft whimper. He has me cornered and there’s nowhere for me to go. He says he wants to kill me. My heart starts beating faster and I feel nauseous; sweat covers my forehead, even though I’m cold all over. It takes everything in me not to pass out as he focused his gun on me without warning. I thought about running away from him, but my feet felt like they were glued to the floor.

The man shook his head. “I can’t let you go,” he said. His voice was calm, but his eyes had a wild look to them. He raised his gun and aimed at me. I closed my eyes and waited for it to be over. He shot me with his gun and my dead body fell on the ground, blood splashes on the floor.

I screamed and woke up covered in sweat. It was another nightmare. I let out a sigh and ran my hands through my hair while cursing under my breath. I sighed and looked at my clock—3:56 a.m. I closed my eyes, hoping to fall asleep again, but it never happened.

I stood up from my bed and walked into my kitchen. I took a glass of water and while drinking it; I looked around my house. It’s dark and quiet—a reminder that I’m all alone in this house. I suddenly felt a pain in my heart—the realization that nobody else is here with me. It is so sad, but I wonder if life would be better if I had my parents here with me.

At 7:15 A.M. this morning, I prepared for my day. I’m a fourth-year Architecture student. I am a consistent dean lister, getting mostly As. This is because when I was young, my parents hired teachers to tutor me for hours every day on things like mathematics, English, and architecture subjects so that I would be well-versed in all topics by the time I entered school. I guess it really worked. Both Nathan and Kit are also studying in the same school as me — but they’re in Business Administration and International Relations, respectively.

As I entered the classroom, I took my seat and read. I didn’t want to be distracted by my classmates. I didn’t have a close friend here, and I wasn’t looking for one either. As the professor started to talk and I was looking down at my book, I heard my classmates whispering about a girl who had just walked in. To be honest, I didn’t pay much attention to them because they were always talking about one thing or another and occasionally repeating themselves. But whispering turns into loud noises. Curious, I looked up to see who it was. The woman was looking around at everyone as if trying to find someone. When she saw me, she glanced over at me with a smile. It was her! The woman who had given me her number asked me to save it! Clearly, she, too, recognized me. When she walked towards me and asked if it was okay that she sat with me, I didn’t respond.

It turned out this girl is also studying here. She’s a business administration student and is taking one of Professor Julie’s classes. She’s trying to talk to me, albeit in an annoying way. I ignored her; I’m not interested in talking to anyone right now. It’s too bad, though. She sounded nice, but I don't want to make conversation with someone who is so noisy and annoying. Why would she be so loud and obnoxious? She asks questions I don’t want to answer. To be honest, I’m really upset right now.

I was walking out of class when the business ad student behind me asked if I had saved her number. Puzzled, I turned to face her, but before I could respond, she continued. “I was wondering if you could call me later. I have a few questions about the homework.” She looked uncertain, and like she was waiting for my response.

“Look, I’m not going to talk to you, period. I didn’t save your number. At this point, it would be better if you asked someone else.” I was ready to walk out when she spoke again. “Come on, Justine! Your Lola pleaded with me to look after you. So here I am, fulfilling my promise to her by looking out for you. Let’s be friends." She smiled at me and looked crazy as hell by then.

I was about to walk out again when she talked. Grrr!

“Look. I know you’re probably confused, and you may not understand why I’m talking this way and why I’m here. But let me tell you something—I gave you my number because I wanted to talk to you. And though I thought it would be better if we didn’t talk because we don’t like each other --- I know that! But I’ve been thinking about what your Lola told me. She said that you may need my help and I should stay by your side at all times.” She smiled at me and continued, “So… just thinking about that, you don't want to upset her by saying no, do you?”

I scowled at her. "Whatever."

I walked away, and she didn't try to stop me. Good. She's getting into my nerves. When I arrived at the apartment, I saw her following me, but I just ignored her instead. I continued to walk. I pressed the button of the elevator to open and make my way in. The elevator was about to close when she walked inside as well.

“What are you doing here?” I asked in disbelief, clearly annoyed by her presence.

“I’m going home,” she said. “Obviously,” she added, clearly annoying me.

“You can’t be serious. You won’t stay at my house? Don’t you have any shame?”

“Who said I’ll be staying in your condo? I have my condo here, you twit.”

She called me a twit. Then, the door opened, and she walked outside the elevator. She made her way, and I followed her. I looked at her condo number, 26, and I realized she lives on the same floor! She walked inside and slammed the door without saying anything. Oops!

When it dawned on me that we shared a floor, I smiled and went inside my own condo.

After that day, Nathan and Cristoff visited me at my condo. Their presence surprised me. I didn’t expect them to visit uninvited, but I was glad they did. They sat on my sofa. Nathan walked to the kitchen, opened the fridge, and took out a bottle of water. While Kit lay down on the sofa and said he would sleep. He yawned widely and rubbed his eyes with his hands. It seemed as if he was tired from a long day at work. He was always dedicated to his business, even when he found it hard to wake up for his early shifts.

“I’ve gathered some information regarding the accident,” Cristoff finally said after several minutes of silence. He placed a bundle of paper on the table quietly, as always be. “And I found similarities in the case. Look.” He handed me the papers. He asked me to read through the papers, saying that it may bring some insight for me and I read it through thoroughly.

“Do you remember anything about the men who killed your parents?” he asked. Nathan and Kit avoided this kind of conversation because they didn’t want to upset me. We stopped talking about it since then, out of fear that I would break down again. But I had already accepted that my parents were gone and that I needed to face this fight.

“They were in military uniforms and their faces were masked, so I couldn't recognize them,” I said.

“Can you remember anything about them?” Cristoff asked in a concerned voice. “It’s unusual that someone can be the next victim and yet not remember anything about the killer. I know it hurts, but try to think back to the night your parents were killed. Justine. I need to know more about them".

I looked at Cristoff in surprise. He had never spoken to me with such care in his voice before.

“..But I do remember one thing: there was an eagle tattoo on one man’s neck and a snake tattoo on his arm. He was the one that I shot with the gun.”

As I recalled the scene, I felt a twinge of pain. Although it was hurting me to do so, I tried to remember everything that happened. It had been raining and thundering that day, too. And although it was dark, the flashes of lightning make his tattoos visible. That’s when I saw him: the man with the eagle tattoo on his neck and a snake tattoo on his arm. He was the one I shot with my gun. As soon as I realized what was happening, I told Cristoff about my suspicions. Then he wrote everything that I could remember in his notebook.

“This is more interesting than I thought,” Cristoff thought as he listened to my story. “Why would anyone leave a young boy alive to deal with such tragedy?”

I thought the same thing. If they wanted to end the business, they could have shot me, too. And why keep me alive? It didn’t make sense. Maybe it’s not about the business after all. Cristoff continued to ask me questions about the accident. I was surprised how he could connect the idea and give a hypothesis to it. He was a genius in his craft.

“I want you to continue working in your dad’s company,” he said. “You might get a clue there. People with a higher rank should be your concern. They have the power to eliminate their enemies in the worst way possible. You never know what they’re thinking. I think maybe Max thought you were already dead.”

Cristoff asked if I had a spare room so we could keep evidence and documents in the room. I do, fortunately. When we were inside the room, he pulled out pictures of his suspects, as well as ten investors in our company. Though I didn’t know how he got those, I knew he was awesome. He pasted the pictures on the whiteboard, including a picture of my Uncle Angelo.

“Wait,” I said. “My uncle Angelo is my father’s brother. Why would we investigate him?”

I didn’t understand why he wanted to investigate my uncle. I told him that there was no way I would hang his picture up on a suspect board. That’s when he tells me it is “just a frame of mind” and that no one is supposed to trust anyone until they have reason to trust them. I let him do what he wants. I know for sure he knows what he's doing.

“Why are you helping me?” I said, curious. He looked at me.

“Nathan asked me to help you and besides, this one is challenging for me. That’s why I took it,” He said. I was at a loss to understand why Nathan had asked his brother to work on this case; it wasn't in his nature to be so helpful. I realized I was lucky to have close friends like them who supported me in my time of need. It was clear now that we were all working together, and things seemed to be going well.

For the first time, I think we have some clear aim now and have clues, all thanks to my friends and Cristoff.

We will eventually find the truth, Ma, Pa.

I promise.