Watching Over You (R18 Tagalog)

Chapter 3

“Aiden, wear your jacket.” Paalala ni Joe sa kanya when he stood up and started to leave the tent. 

Aiden wanted to complain but went back for his jacket. He didn’t understand why they are provided jackets na ang init-init ng Pilipinas. He wore it just the same. 

“Ask the team to do a check again for any place that a 13-year old can hide. I don’t think our unsub found the girl.” Aiden quietly told their middle-aged team captain. (**unsub = unknown subject/ unidentified suspect)

Tumango si Joe. He gathered the team including selected personnel from the local police and gave instructions. 

They waited at the workshop. Aiden looked at the media light beyond the gate. Pinutakti na ng media ang lugar. Kaliwa’t kanan ang mga vehicles set up for a live feed from the site. 

One by one the teams they have assigned to search the house came back and reported negative findings. 

“Are you sure, Aiden?” Tanong ni Joe

Hindi nya sinagot ang tanong nito ang took the stairs going up. 

He entered the bedroom. The bed was drenched in blood. Nandoon pa si Dexter doing some more blood work. 

“What’s up?” tanong ni Aiden dito. 

“I am sure this spot was cleaned with oxygen bleach.” He pointed to the space near where Mr. Rossi’s body was found. “We got a pro here,” Dexter added. Normal household bleach normally still leaves some presence of hemoglobin that can be detected after applying luminol.

“There is no blood splatter where we expect there to be considering their stab wounds. It’s almost like I have nothing to do here.” Dexter continued.

“There is a lot of blood here, Dex. There is a lot to do.” si Aiden 

Dexter rolled his eyes. “I am sure it will just return as blood from Mr. and Mrs. Rossi. Except for the blood from the broken window downstairs. We’ll have to wait for the blood analysis for that.” 

“Did you notice anything else?” tanong ni Aiden. Though Dexter was their bloodstain pattern analyst, bilib si Aiden sa observation skills nito. 

“There is not a lot of struggle here. Like there could be only one person.” 

“Contrary to the footprints in the garage.” dugtong ni Aiden. 

Tumango naman si Dexter. 

“Can you come with me? Let’s check the girl’s room.” si Aiden

“There was nothing there.” sagot ni Dexter. But he still followed Aiden out of the room. 

Ally’s room was across the master’s bedroom with a large family room they needed to cross. They met Joe on their way out at sumama ito sa kanila to the room. 

“ What do you want to check?’ Tanong ni Joe. 

“Just come.” 

Ally’s room was painted white with a large window facing the mango orchard. A day bed in one of the windows with plush turquoise-colored pillows. There was an easel and what looked like a beginning of a painting. 

There was a large wardrobe full of designer clothes, too extravagant for a kid her age. 

“What are you checking, Aiden?” tanong ulit ni Joe. 

“Here.” Lumapit si Aiden to a dollhouse in one corner. 

It was a replica of the house. The dollhouse was a gift to Ally from her father when she turned seven. He always added to it and kept it up to date with the changes to their home. 

“It's a miniature of this house. What do you want us to see here?” tanong ni Joe. 

“Look closely,” Aiden said. Looking at Dexter. “The dollhouse is ALMOST an exact replica.” 

“There is something different?” si Joe. 

Dexter looked at the dollhouse closely. 

“The master bedroom is the exact size as the library in this dollhouse.” Dexter pensively answered. “It feels a little bit smaller than the library in actual.”

Tumangu-tango si Aiden. “I needed another eye to confirm it.” He tapped Dexter’s shoulder.

“Joe, we need a measuring tape to be sure,” Aiden said. 

They measured the entire length of the bedroom at ang katabi nitong library. Aiden wrote the number down on his palm. His heart was pounding. 

They measured the library from the inside and the bedroom from the inside. He wrote the numbers on his palm as they confirmed the length.

“We lost a meter in length,” Jose stated the obvious. 

“Joe, get someone to prepare some light soup. She must be starving and ask someone to get Teacher Lora.”  si Aiden. 

Joe left the bedroom. Aiden approached the wall. He briefly looked at the chalk outline of Mr. Rossi’s body. He was found laying on his stomach here, one of his hands extended but not reaching the wall. 

Aiden and Dexter studied the wall briefly. It was a feature wall made of intricately placed small wood blocks forming a checkered pattern. 

“Ally.” Aiden softly called. “My name is Aiden. I’m from the police. I have asked someone to get Teacher Lora. We will bring you somewhere safe, Ally.” Aiden said facing the wall. 

Dexter pointed at the bottom of the wall. “Air ducts?” he mouthed. 

Aiden nodded.

The baseboard that wrapped around the wall was seamless, the pattern uniform that concealed the air ducts. 

“Ally? Are you afraid? You must be afraid right now. I understand.” Aiden continued to plea. Hoping she is conscious and can hear them.

Keep quiet. Keep quiet. Ally kept chanting in her head. They will go away. They will go away.

She heard a knock on the wall. 

“It does not sound hollow.” she heard a voice softly say. 

“The wall must be thick or reinforced.” narinig nyang mahinang sagot ng nagpakilalang Aiden. 

“Should we force it?” 

“That will destroy the wall.” 

“No!” Hindi nya napigil na hindi sumagot in a weak raspy voice.

“Ally?” Lumuhod si Aiden and placed his ears nearer the air duct. He was not sure but he heard a voice say no. 

“We have to destroy the wall so we can bring you to a safe place, Ally,” Aiden said softly. 

He waited for an answer but there was none. He was starting to stand up when he heard her speak up. 

“No, please. Not Papa’s wall.” he heard a girl’s voice cry out. 

“How did you get in there, Ally?” 

No answer. 

Aiden stood up. Si Dexter naman ang lumuhod and brought his ears near the air duct. 

“It’s a secret room,” Aiden said. He started observing the wood blocks on the wall and randomly pressed the blocks trying to find a block that works as some sort of a locking device. 

“Keep talking to her.” Aiden mouthed to Dexter. 

“Ally, Teacher Lora will be here in a little while. They will be bringing some food also. We have water here for you. Hindi ka pa ba gutom?” Dexter said softly. 

Aiden and Dexter saw one of the blocks at about Aiden’s knee height move slowly and immediately moved back into place. 

“Peephole?” Dexter mouthed to Aiden. 

Aiden nodded and closely looked at the block. The cut was made right at the wood grain. It was completely incognito. It was even difficult to spot which block it was even when he saw it move. 

Aiden dropped to his knees again. They need to change tactics here. “Ally, I am sure your papa does not want you to act like this. He’ll want you to be safe. He is waiting for you to say goodbye, Ally.”

He can hear sobbing from behind the wall. 

“Ally, please,” Aiden pleaded. 

He heard the girl murmur something but he did not quite catch it. 

“Library?” Dexter said, frowning. “I think she said library.” 

They quickly moved to the library, tama namang dumating si Joe and they gave him a quick round-up of what they were doing. 

“I asked the team to bring Teacher Lora to the tent once she arrives.” pagbigay alam din nito. 

They went to the bookshelves that they estimated na katapat ng air duct that they found in the bedroom. Agad na sinilip nila if there were air ducts on that side too. It had air ducts there too. 

There was enough room for the shelf to swing out if it was a door. They tried to pull it but it wouldn’t budge. 

“Remove the books.” Utos ni Aiden kay Joe and Dexter. 

He kneeled again to talk to Ally while the two took books from the shelf and placed them on a sofa sa di kalayuan. 

“Ally, tell us how to open the door, please.” 

“I can't,” Ally softly answered. She coughed and sobbed. “It was papa’s rule. You can’t get in if you don’t know the answer.” She said in between sobs. 

“It must have some sort of a keypad somewhere,” Aiden said while standing up. 

Dexter replaced him from his position. 

“Ally, tell me the question?” 

Narinig ni Aiden na tanong ni Dexter. 

A question?, “Damn, It’s the riddle on the board at the workshop!” bulalas ni Aiden.

Joe looked at the notes he made on a small notebook he was carrying and read it:

I have cities, but no houses, 

I have mountains, but no trees. 

I have water, but no fish. 

What am I?

“It has been too long since I was in school.” dugtong ni Joe. 

“A map!” sabay na sagot ni Aiden and Dexter. 

“Now, try to find some keypad or something.” si Aiden

They spread out and looked inside the library. Aiden stayed at the shelf trying to check the mechanisms on how to open it. 

“Dex, try 627 on that phone.” Utos ni Aiden to Dexter who was nearest to a landline phone. 

Dexter understood right away, 627 on the dial pad spelled out M-A-P. They waited for something to happen but nothing. 

Itinuloy nila and paghahanap.

“Stop!” Aiden said. Natigil naman ang dalawa. Aiden was looking at a stool near the encyclopedias. “Was that stool always there? Did someone move it?” Aiden can imagine Ally probably needed a stool to reach the A book. 

No one confirmed or denied. 

“Dex, try to move the books.” 

Aiden watched Dexter take out one of the books with M. 

“Aiden, try to check this,” Dexter called. 

Lumapit naman si Aiden and Joe to where Dexter was. There was a small wooden block at the far end where the book would normally rest. 

“I think she doesn’t pull it out all the way,” Aiden said.

Aiden replaced the M book and tipped it halfway and moved to A then P. They all looked at the bookshelf across the room but nothing happened. 

“Maybe we need to put it back again after tipping. The books were in place when we found them.” si Dexter. 

“Try it.” Aiden agreed.

Dexter tipped M to release the switch and put the book back then A then P. They held their breaths as they waited, then there was a very soft click. They saw the shelf slightly move like it was released from the force keeping it close. 

Agad na lumapit sa shelf si Aiden nakasunod si Dexter at Joe. 

“Secure the property, Joe. Is the ambulance there?” si Aiden. He removed his NBI jacket and slowly opened the shelf. 

It was a small room. Reinforced with thick metal walls. It was built like a vault. One length was full of paintings and in another corner, a girl with pixie hair, had her knees to her chest facing the wall. 

“Ally?” 

Dahan-dahang lumapit si Aiden. He kneeled near her and slowly placed his jacket around her shoulders. 

“You are safe.” 

“Mr. Policeman, I - I wet myself.” 

.

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Author's Note: 

Please comment if you are interested or enjoying this book. I am planning to rest after my Waiting For You if there is not that much interest in this story.