Zeke's Secret Obsession

Chapter 5

Zeke's

Ardon Fuerte, one of the most influential business tycoon in Asia, owned one of the biggest clothing company—the Breeze Groups of Company—and had been on the list of the Top Ten Best in Europe for five consecutive years.

Mc. Melo—who was a friend of Ardon—owned the Rich Inc., a bank company. On the survey last year, Rich Inc., had been acknowledged as the most trusted bank in the Philippines and in Malaysia since it started 10 years ago.

On the other hand, Kevin Solis owned a shipyards company—the Ottawa Shipyards Company—and was known for its high class ships and yacht that was often used by the royals.

Napasandal ako sa kinauupuan at napabuntong-hininga. I massaged the bridge of my nose, a sign of being stressed. Kanina pa ako nagbabasa pero wala akong makuhang clue. Hindi sila na-involve sa kahit anong illegal transactions. Wala rin silang issue na kinasangkutan. No criminal records. Lahat malinis. Or maybe there's something more. Hindi ko alam.

Magkaibigan sina Fuerte at Melo pero hindi naman kaanu-ano ng dalawa si Solis. Kahit sa business, malayo rin ang connection ng mga ito. They never shared the same industry, no competition between the three. 'Di naman pwedeng sila ang magpatayan since they all have the same cause of death. Who murdered the three? Bakit kailangang dukutin ang puso nila? May nakaaway ba ang mga ito o nakabangga nang hindi sinasadya? Anything can happen in the business world, but this one surely was disturbing.

"Hey." tawag sa'kin ni Elrick. He took the seat beside me.

"Oh," I uttered shortly to acknowledge his presence. Hinilot ko naman ang sentido ko. Nabuburyo na ako rito sa ginagawa ko. "Nandiyan ka pala. 'Sup?"

Inabutan niya ako ng gatas na ngayon ko lang napansing dala niya pala. I was too focused on the files I was reading. He's very much aware that I don't drink coffee. Noon pa man kasi ay nakahiligan ko na ang uminom ng gatas, maybe I got it from my parents. Somehow, it reminded me of them whenever I drink one.

"Inom ka muna at baka matuyuan ka na riyan."

"Yeah, thanks." Kinuha ko sa kanya ang cup ng gatas at dahan-dahang uminom. The warmth of the drink awakens my taste buds, travelling through my throat. I quickly felt relaxed, sighing from the familiar taste.

Umupo siya sa harap ko at tinitigan ako. Humalumbaba siya sa table at mabilis na sumulyap sa hawak kong papeles. "Ano nang nangyari diyan sa ina-analyze mo?"

Inabot ko sa kanya ang binabasa. His forehead creased after scanning the content. "Pretty hard, isn't it?"

I nodded, pursed my lips a bit, and shrugged my shoulders. "Hindi ko maintindihan kung bakit sila pinatay, kung ano ba ang reason ng murderer ng tatlo."

I admit that there can be plenty of possibilities out there and I just have to choose the right one by crossing out options that won't fit the scenario. I have to deduce this right. There should be something more appealing, more reasonable. It was a meticulous and bloody crime, too much that I find it creepy.

"Imposible na co-incidence lang 'to dahil pare-parehas sila ng cause of death at pati na rin ang oras ng pagkamatay nila. Therefore, there is a high chance na iisa lang ang mastermind."

"Siguro may kailangan sa kanila yung mastermind?" he suggested.

"Naisip ko na rin 'yan," I answered in a low voice. I clicked my tongue. "Pero kasi, kung may kailangan sila, ano 'yon? Pera? Parang hindi, 'di ba?"

He nodded in agreement. "Revenge, then?"

"Pwede, lahat ng theory naman ay posible." I caressed my chin instinctively. "Pero ano namang atraso ng tatlo sa kanya at kailangan pa nitong pumatay?"

Nagkibit-balikat na lang si Elrick, wala na sigurong maisip. We were embraced by silence for a good minute. I shouldn't drag this guy into thinking but I admit I needed someone to brainstorm with.

"Pwede rin naman na may nalalaman sila na ayaw ipaalam ng salarin?" he guessed. "And the only way to shut their mouth is to kill them."

"Business connection?" I raised a brow.

"Possible, but not quite." he answered vaguely. "They all excelled at different fields. Kung si Fuerte at Melo lang ang pinatay, mas mataas na posibilidad. Pero pwede rin namang dahil mismo sa status nila. They're so big anyway."

I couldn't agree more. He had a point. Anong dahilan kung bakit nangyari 'to? Bakit naman sila—wait a minute. Something clicked inside me, like a puzzle piece getting put in the picture. I was not sure about this though. The guess sounded proud and ridiculous. It may just be a senseless assumption with no basis at all but it just suddenly hit me.

What if their deaths symbolized something? Like, a message? What if their deaths weren't connected with the business field at all? It happened before, a few times, to be honest. It can happen again. People getting killed because of...this organization. I can't cross out this wild guess.

"Zeke?" Elrick called but I ignored him.

Going back, those three victims owned one of the biggest companies in Asia namely the Breeze, Rich, and Ottawa. Given by those names, if I was to focus on the first letter of the company names, mabubuo ko ang three letter word na B, R, and O.

I paused for a second to let that thought sink into me deeper. I know that assumptions were nothing but mere deductions out of observation, a little scientist game. But that's where we can basically start things to progress. All starts from assuming whether something can prove another, whether it's correlated or not. We have no tangible evidence yet. But I won't lost something kung ganoon ang naiisip ko.

Those three letters, it must mean us. I can't just ignore it. The letters may function as an acronym to our organization—Blue Royalty Organization. Now, I added another guess. Whether it's all about business or not, whether it's about us or not, still, I have to go and seek the truth.

They were killed brutally, thrusting out their hearts and the said organ was sent to their families. It must mean something. If this was really connected to us, I'm afraid the Blue Royalty might encounter some heavy nemesis in the near future. Kung tama itong naiisip ko, I know something will happen. Hindi ko lang masabi kung ano at paano.

But then, it was normal for us, like it had been our stemmed environment to be a prey to anyone—to any organizations out there. It's just too bad that we're naturally the predator and not the other way around.

Inubos ko na ang inumin ko—hindi alintana ang paglamig ng gatas—at tumayo. Bahala na kung anong mangyayari. Wala pa rin naman kaming lead kaya hindi pa kami pwedeng kumilos.

"Zeke, saan ka pupunta?"

"Kay Kuya." I patted his shoulder, smiling a bit. "Ciao."

--

"That can be possible." sabi ni Kuya pagkatapos kong maikuwento ang lahat. "Very well." he beamed, "Tumatalino na ang suwail kong kapatid. Aba, marunong nang mag-isip. Very good!"

Pinanlisikan ko siya ng mata at namaywang. "Duh. Kuya, matalino talaga ako—"

"Hindi mo lang talaga madalas na ginagamit?" He smiled teasingly after cutting me off, much to my annoyance.

Tinitigan ko siya nang masama. I'm always using my brain, you, dumbass. I chose to keep the thought inside, knowing that I wasn't here for jokes and further teasing. I just want this to progress, hopefully ending the case sooner. "May lead na ba?"

"Actually, meron na." he informed. My face lit up. "I guess the suspects for the crime were not smart enough. A hair strand was found at the crime scene. Nakita 'yon ni Red noong nagpunta sila sa ginanapan ng krimen kay Melo. May possibility na sa suspect 'yon."

So Red have gone already to investigate. We haven't met for a while, I hope she's doing good. We've been friends since high school, along with Ivy and Monicka. Hindi nga lang kami gaanong close. But who will have thought that we're ended like this? Agents. Knowing I never once told them about this side of me. May bagay talagang kusa na lang nangyayari.

Red has an extreme sense of sight. Walang takas sa paningin niya ang kahit ano—baka nga kahit bacteria nakikita na niya rin, if I was going to exaggerate her keen skills. Sabagay, she needed that for work. Ever since we're young, her capability to see things through had always been exceptional.

"I see. That's still plenty."

"We are already running a DNA test at kapag na-identify na 'yon ay saka natin hahanapin yung tao na may same DNA ng buhok. It'll be complex but I know our team will be able to do it in a snap, they're trained for it anyway, searching's just a small thing. Let's just hope na sa suspect nga 'to."

Napatango na lang ako. Mas madali sana kung hindi na-hack ang CCTV. Ni-retrieve nila ang mga videos pero lahat blangko. But that small evidence might be a good sign. I will just hope for the best.

"May pasok pa pala ako." I muttered when I saw the time displayed on his wall. I kissed him on the cheek before turning my back.

"Wait, Zeke." Habol na tawag ng kapatid ko.

I stopped and stared at him, reclining my head a bit to the right. "Yeah?"

"Nalaman na ni Timberlake ang nangyari."

"Oh..." I was left speechless for a moment. No doubt, malalaman naman talaga niya 'yon, knowing that he needed to be informed as per the agreement.

"He wants you to guard her daughter twenty four hours."

"I am watching her at most times—"

"And when I say twenty four hours, it means you have to live with her."

Natigilan ako ng ilang sandali sa narining. Kasabay no'n ay ang mabilis na pagragasa ng kabog sa dibdib ko. My thoughts suddenly became rejoicing with the good news. It's something far from what I imagined.

"Really?" I almost said it on high pitch. Tumikhim ako at nagkibit ng balikat. Nag-smile ako na mukhang hindi interesado para 'di halata. "I mean, yeah. I'm good with it. Kung wala naman nang choice kung hindi iyon."

Baka mamaya mawirduhan siya sa'kin kapag nagtatalun-talon ako rito kahit kanina ko pa 'yon gustong gawin. Mamaya na lang. Pero, gosh, ang hirap magpigil ng kilig! f**k, I feel so delighted I won't be able to contain it kung hindi pa ako aalis!

"You'll be oriented later on how it'll be explained to her."

"Sure thing." Pilit kong pinanormal ang tono ng boses ko. "Paano, aalis na ako."

"Ingat, bubwit."

Napailing na lang ako at lumabas na. Nagtatalun-talon pa ako nang tuluyang mapag-isa. It took me a while to finally wear off the kilig in me. Tiningnan ko ang oras at napabuntong hininga. Quarter to seven na ng umaga, wala pa akong tulog. It's alright though, I can still work no matter how sleepless I can be. Sa ngayon, kailangan ko pang pumasok. Babantayan ko pa si Amber.

_____