Beneath the Veil

v. work with me

chapter 5: work with me

I LOOKED away, avoiding his gaze. I inserted my hands in my pocket and started to continue walking fast.

Isa lang ang nasa isip ko ngayon. I should get away.

I know he'll come to me. Sigurado akong tatanungin niya ako tungkol sa nangyari noong nakaraan sa Principal's Office. And now that it's just the two of us here from the school, I know he'll reach me out.

He's a police, after all. His job is to know everything about his case.

"Wait!" As expected, I heard his manly voice even though I'm wearing my headset.

Pero imbis na tumigil ako at lingunin siya, nagpanggap akong walang narinig. Kunwari naka-full volume ang kantang pinakikinggan ko.

I just kept walking. Maybe he'll change his mind and he'll let me go home now.

But to my disappointment, he appeared in front of me. Napatalon ako sa gulat sa biglaang paglitaw niya sa harapan ko.

Natulos ako sa aking kinatatayuan. He removed the headset from my ears, ignoring my shock complexion.

"Why are you running away, Miss Fuentes?" panimula niya.

We locked gazes. His eyes are piercing through mine as if he's looking at it for something deeper.

Napalunok ako nang magsimulang magtambol ang dibdib ko. The officer slightly tilted his head.

"I-I am not, Officer."

"Uh-huh." Tumango-tango siya, hindi kumbinsido sa sagot ko.

Pero kahit na kulitin pa ako tungkol do'n ay pinakita niya ang kaniyang ID at naglahad ng kamay.

"I'm Detective Martin Castillo. Nice to meet you, Miss Fuentes."

Bahagyang nanlaki ang mga mata ko. He's not a policeman afterall?. That explains why he's not wearing the police uniform. Detective pala siya.

Nagdadalawang-isip pa akong tangapin ang kamay niya pero sa huli ay tinanggap ko pa rin.

"I'm Ziane Fuentes, Sir. Nice to meet you, too."

I broke the hand shake and shifted my head away. Napatingin nalang ako sa mga taong nagkukumpulan sa crime scene.

This is awkward. It's my first time introducing myself to a detective and it feels like I'm guilty of something I did not do.

When I was a kid, I used to be very scared of the police. Tinatakot kasi ako nila Mommy at Daddy na huhulihin ako ng mga pulis kapag may nagawa akong hindi maganda.

And now that I'm introducing my grown up self to a detective who's actually more than a police, I couldn't help but reminisce the memories I had with my parents. Parang gusto ko na lang bumalik sa pagkabata at matakot sa mga pulis.

Detective Martin Castillo noticed my gaze at the site kaya nagsalita siya.

"That's Tunying Reyes. He died last night due to strangulation and his skull was destroyed. Unfortunately . . . it's the same case with your schoolmate."

Natulala ako sa sinalaysay niya, hindi inaasahang sasabihin niya agad sa akin ang impormasyong iyon.

And when I tried reading his expression, it was the same as the first time I met him. His eyes are cold and his jaw defined more when it tightened.

He looked away with full of revulsion. Na para bang masyado siyang nababahala sa kasong ito. Na dapat niyang masulusyunan agad ang problemang kinakaharap niya.