04 | Bones Of Terror

CAPITULUM 08

La Prima Ballet Studio
2:12 p.m.

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"YOU CAN'T be serious..."

Nag-iwas ng tingin si Detective Briannova Carlos, suddenly feeling the weight of her companion's reaction an anchor to her conscience. No doubt, her parents would react the same. Pero hindi naman ito ang unang pagkakataon na mapapalayo si Nova dahil sa trabaho. 'Pero ito ang unang beses na mapapadpad ako sa isang isla na walang nakakaalam ng lokasyon nito,' a voice inside her head reminded her.

"It'll just be a few days. Susunduin kami ng barko bukas ng gabi, just in time for the event on Sunday. Uuwi rin kami ng Tuesday."

At this point, she doesn't even know who she's convincing more---herself or the man frowning in front of her.

'Pero sino bang niloloko ko? Abogado ang kausap ko. It'll take more than this to even convince him to stop being concerned about my welfare.'

Maya-maya pa, napabuntong-hininga si Atty. Lelouch San Andres. He raked a hand through his brown locks in frustration, the worried expression on his face still remained.

"And the police can't trace the location via call?"

Umiling si Nova. "Believe me, they've tried. Noong tinawagan ni Nico ang telephone number sa imbitasyon, he wired it up with all the tech geeks and tracking experts he knew from their agency... Mukhang inaasahan na ito ng kung sinuman ang nasa likod ng imbitasyon dahil matapos magbigay ng instructions ang butler na sumagot ng tawag, the signal vanished without a trace."

It would be a fool not to be nervous with the recent events. Pero sa kabila nito, buo na ang desisyon ni Nova. As serious she was with her declaration that this case is 'theirs' to deal with, the pink haired detective admits that this mystery also captivated her in more ways than one.

An inexplicable pull for the unknown.

'Nahahawa na yata ako kay Nico.'

For a moment, Lelouch was silent. Nakatingin ito sa silid kung saan nag-aayos na ng gamit ang mga bata. Kakatapos lang ng ballet lessons. Nova can already see a glimpse of Nirvana untying her shoes. Indeed, Lelouch had no reason to be here.

He was her high school sweetheart and they got together some time in the past.

But she called it off years ago.

Ngayong nakakapag-settle na ulit si Lelouch dito sa Eastwood after spending a good time abroad and being involved in several of their cases, muling nagpaparamdam ang kanyang ex-boyfriend. And although Lelouch wasn't pressuring nor rushing her with anything, Eastwood's youngest attorney was making it very clear that he wouldn't mind staying by her side unconditionally. Kanina lang ay nag-volunteer pa itong samahan siyang sunduin si Nirvana kahit na may naka-schedule pa itong meeting sa isang kliyente mamaya.

"Kung hindi talaga maiiwasan, then I'm going with you. Pwede kang magsama ng plus one sa event, hindi ba?"

Nova sadly smiled at him. She knew he was just concerned for her safety, pero kung may nakaabang ngang panganib sa islang 'yon, she didn't want to be the cause of another person's life to be on the line. Not him.

Not after everything Lelouch has been through because of her.

"I appreciate the gesture, attorney, pero mas mapapanatag ang loob ko kung mananatili ka rito. Look after Nirvana for me."

"Brian, please---"

"ATE!"

Upon hearing Nirvana's voice, Nova smiled cheerily and greeted her sister. Sa kanyang tabi, nararamdaman pa rin niya ang nag-aalalang tingin ng abogado. Lelouch looked like he wanted to try to convince her again, but he knew her enough to simply drop the subject. For now.

Because once Nova made up her mind, there isn't anyone in Eastwood who can convince her otherwise.

*

DEATH's headquarters
2:12 p.m.

"I have to warn you: this is still just a prototype. Hindi pa kami tapos sa testing but from the data we've gathered so far from twenty test subjects, it's fairly reliable," Film reminded him. Naupo ang King of tech geeks sa upuan katapat ng kay Nico, just across the desk and the small black box between them.

Nico glanced at the device again, impressed at how discreet it looked.

"And it's rechargable?"

"But of course!" The teen proudly huffed, "via USB cable. When fully charged, the buzzers can operate up to 12 hours maximum. At bakit mo naman natanong? Ang akala ko ba ite-testing mo lang sa isang kaso?"

"Just curious. I'll bring it back in one piece, no need to look at me like that."

"Dapat lang, at baka sisantehin ako ng uncle mo kapag nalaman niyang nilabas mo agad ito!" Film dramatically exclaimed. "If that gadget falls into the wrong hands---or worse, in the hands of those filthy SHADOW techs---milyon ang mawawala sa'tin!"

"Damn Sherlock. Calm down will you?"

Naningkit ang mga mata ng binata sa kanya, but Nico quickly replaced the device inside the box and packed it inside his backpack. It's bad enough that he had to ask for help from Rayleigh Filmore a.k.a. "Film", DEATH's best and most introverted tech geek who's usually spending his every waking hour inside his small room on the third floor of the building. Mas bata ng ilang taon sa kanya si Film, pero hamak na mas magaling kaysa sa sinumang imbentor ng kanilang henerasyon.

Like their rival agency SHADOW, DEATH takes pride in technological advancements and how they can utilize these during investigations.

Although Nico already gave the kid a hint that he wanted to test this, but he (innocently) omitted the part where he was going on a trip to the Devil's Island for a few days.

Nang makaalis na ng kanyang opisina si Film, he lazily eyed the mess on his desk. Tatlong mugs ng kape, dalawang styro ng takeout na binili niya---a few days o weeks? ago---at isang bundok ng mga papeles at folders na malapit nang mahulog sa gilid.

Admittedly, organizing physical objects and cleaning wasn't in his area of expertise.

The exact opposite of his partner's habits.

'I can only imagine the petrified look on her face if she sees my apartment,' he sighed and closed his eyes. Hindi pa rin mawala sa isip niya ang imbitasyong natanggap nila at ang misteryosong isla. As a matter of fact, his mind has also been preoccupied with the recent cases in Eastwood. Hindi na bago ang makabasa ng krimen sa The Eastwood Daily, but an odd addition left to the random crime scenes caught his eye in the pictures...

"This office is a mess."

Without even opening his eyes, Nico knew the person who casually waltzed into his room just to castrate him for the unfinished paperworks and reports.

"Hello, Uncle X."

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