Chapter 9:Deep Connections

Here I am, in my condo room, staring at the ceiling.

After our conversation, Rian entered and announced that we could go home. We tidied up our belongings and handed the paper Mathia had signed earlier to the librarian. We retrieved our bags from the locker that Mathia had placed them in. Upon reaching the gate, we parted ways.

*Ringggg*ringggg*

I picked up the phone beside me and answered it without looking at the caller.

"Good evening, Moriarty," the voice on the other line said. "We have the information about the whereabouts of the girl you mentioned. They will have a party at the bar, which is 55 blocks away from your condo. The party will start at 7 PM sharp."

"I have a question. Is she with her boyfriend?" I asked.

"Yes, Moriarty," they replied. "The varsity team will also join the party with the cheerleaders and the Butterfly Gang."

"Good, take care of everything," I commanded.

I ended the call and checked the time.

5:46 PM

I got up from the bed and walked to my closet. I took out my black hoodie, a white polo, and black pants, throwing them onto the bed before rushing out of the room. I proceeded to the living room and turned on the TV.

I didn't notice the time and ended up falling asleep, only to wake up with my stomach rumbling. I looked at the clock above the TV.

6:20 PM

I went to the kitchen to get some food. I grabbed a pack of instant ramen from the cabinet. I heated up some water and waited for it to boil. After a few minutes, it was already boiling, so I poured it into the instant ramen. I covered it and went to the bedroom, grabbed my clothes, and headed straight to the bathroom.

After getting dressed, I went back to the kitchen, holding my hoodie. First, I ate the instant ramen that I had prepared. After finishing my food, I washed the dishes.

I grabbed my phone, keys, and wallet before putting on my shoes. I wore my hoodie after locking my condo.

After leaving the building, I walked about 10 blocks away from the building and dialed the usual number.

"Fetch me. I'm 10 blocks away from the condominium," I said on the line before hanging up.

"Hey, Aze," a voice called from the racing car parked a bit away from me.

"Hey, Xian."

I opened the car and sat in the shotgun seat.

"New eyeglasses?" he asked before starting the engine.

"Yeah."

We reached the said bar.

I'm standing beside the railing here on the second floor, looking at them.

"Drinks," he offered me a glass of alcohol.

I took the glass and looked at them while drinking it. He stood beside me and also observed them.

"The basement is ready, Aze."

"Let them party well," I said. "Let them enjoy before the storm comes."

"Who will we take?"

"That girl and that guy," I answered. "And pick someone interesting from the gang."

He nodded and went back to our table. He would inform them.

The punch you threw equated to kneeling and begging.

I will gather a lot of information from you. If the investigation will be done through integration, the extraction of information from you will be through blood.

I took one last glance before going to our table.

"No one knows you here?"

"They don't know me, but they've already seen me at school," I said, referring to the group on the first floor.

"We're going to get the targets now, Aze. You need to be out of the picture."

"They would not know me, Xian," I said while looking at my wine. "Let the others take care of it." I sipped my drink and looked at him. "You're thinking too much, Xian. I think you forget why I chose you to be my right hand. And who I am."

"I didn't forget, Aze," he twirled his finger in his glass before picking it up and drinking. "It's better to be careful than to regret later. After all, you're our only Moriarty."

"Good. Clean up the mess after finishing the job. We will give justice to Colleen," I said before finishing the alcohol in my glass. "It's late. I better go to my condo. Send everything to me. I'll let you handle everything. You'll stay here in Laguna until I say so."

"Everything will fall into place, Aze."

I stood up and walked out of the bar without anyone noticing me.

I walked down the empty sidewalk, with the street lights illuminating the darkness. It's been a while since I walked alone at night, feeling the night breeze surrounded by the beautiful yet dark scenery of the land.

While I was mesmerizing the scenery I was looking at, I saw a familiar figure walking down the sidewalk.

"It's night, yet you're here alone," I said to the person I saw.

"W-what are you doing here?" she asked nervously.

"That would be my question to you, Mathia," I said while looking into her eyes, which she avoided. "Do you know how dangerous it is for you to walk alone at night? And dressed like that."

"Disgusting," she whispered, but I could hear it.

She was just wearing a shirt and shorts. I looked to my left and saw a group of guys looking at her legs.

Tsk.

I took off my hoodie and handed it to her.

"Here, wear it."

"Thank y—"

Tsk. I didn't let her finish what she was saying and just put the hoodie on her. She had more complaints.

I took her hand and interlaced our fingers. I started walking towards the bar. She had no choice but to follow.

"Where are you going anyway?" I asked. "To the bar?"

I didn't receive any reply from her, so I stopped and hit her head with my back.

"S-sorry."

I looked at her.

"I'm asking."

"I was planning to go to the bar," she said with her head lowered, looking at our hands.

"And?"

"I just wanted to meet up with Rian."

Rian?

"Why?"

"He's there looking for information about the gang."

Tsk. Another headache.

"Stay here, I'll call someone."

I distanced myself from her.

[Mor—]

"Call me Aze for now," I said with a monotone voice. "There's a guy named Rian Echavez inside that bar. He knows me as Hade. He's there seeking information about the gang. Don't harm him. If he finds something about the gang, get the information. You know what to do."

I ended the call and looked at her. I saw some guys eyeing her from behind, keeping their distance.

Tsk.

"Let's go, Mathia," I said firmly.

I held her hand and walked faster.

"Wait—" she tried to speak up.

"Just walk faster."

We reached the bar and I took her to the parking lot.

I pushed her against one of the cars and acted like we were kissing.

We heard footsteps approaching, and they passed by without noticing us.

Once I couldn't hear the footsteps anymore, I stood up properly, keeping a little distance from her.

"Get your friend already," I commanded. "There are a bunch of rapists here. Sorry about this."

She walked towards the bar without saying a word.

Damn.

"Call him out," I said.

She looked at me with confusion.

"Come here. Call him out to come here."

She didn't speak and called Rian.

"Rian, I'm outside," she said on the line.

"Come out," I replied.

"Hurry up."

"That's enough. Even if you kill someone, you can't bring Colleen back," I said.

"I'm with Hadeon here. Outside."

"Alright, Rian. Colleen wouldn't want you to become like this. Okay."

Is there something deeper between Colleen and Rian?

"If I were to die, I know there's someone who will be deeply hurt by my loss. And I know that person will do everything to seek justice for my death, Moriarty."

"What do you mean you're gonna die?" I asked.

"Everyone in the world will eventually die, Moriarty. Even us," she replied.

"Stop saying nonsense. Your friend is safe."

"Thank you," she said with a hint of farewell in her voice. "For everything. I know you have a reason why you chose to be Moriarty. Why you stay in the shadows while your pawns move around. I'm grateful to have met all of you. A group of people working for justice yet being villains to others."

"That's how our world seems. Judgmental, unjust, and filled with chaos."

"Goodbye, Moriarty."

I remembered our last conversation.

Is it you, Rian? The person she's referring to?

Tsk.

There's something I need to find out. Maybe I'll cancel the task they have.

I took out my phone and dialed the usual number.

"Xian, I'll cancel the task. There's something I want you to find out."

[What is it, Aze?]

"I think there's a deep connection between Rian Echavez and Colleen," I said, glancing at Mathia, who was still on the phone. "And this girl named Mathia Khim Mendez."

"Noted, Aze. I'll leave them alone."

"Good. Update me once you have information about their connections."

I hung up at the same time Mathia finished her call.

"He's coming out," she announced shyly, unable to look at me. Is she still thinking about—

Damn.

Who wouldn't be embarrassed after what I did earlier?

We waited in silence for Rian to come out. He didn't move far from me. He was just a bit distant, looking up at the star-filled sky.

I saw Rian's figure walking out of the bar.

"He's drunk," I said as I watched him walking towards us. "Let him sober up before we take him home."

"Thank you."

"M-Mathia," he said, looking at me. "H-Hade, I didn't know you were here."

"Do you have a car, Rian?"

"Yes, I have a jet. Why?"

Mathia frowned at her friend's response.

"Yes, I have one. Besides, I'm not drunk, so I can still drive," Rian replied.

"It's fine. Where's your car?" I asked.

"You and Hade can go home. I still want to drink," he pleaded.

"Come on, Rian. Give us the keys, and we'll take you home."

I watched them playfully argue.

"The blue car, and it's the third one from where we're standing," he pointed. "Here are the keys. Can you drive, Hade?"

"Yeah," I replied.

He handed me the keys and leaned on the car next to him.

Drunk.

I walked to the blue car he was referring to and opened the driver's seat. I sat down and started the engine.

I pulled up in front of them. Mathia and I helped Rian into the backseat, while Mathia took the shotgun seat.

"Your condo is only about 20 blocks away from Rian's house. It's in the nearby village," she provided directions.

"What about you?" I asked.

"My house is also near the village," she replied.

"You're going to walk alone? I can accompany you; I'm just going to walk home anyway."

"Sure. Thanks."

Silence filled the car as I drove.

We were almost near the village when I remembered something—Rian's ID card.

"Do you have Rian's ID card?" I asked.

"It's not necessary," he said. "The security there knows me and Rian."

I nodded.

She was right. The security immediately opened the gate for us.

"Colleen."

"I miss you."

Those words.

"That's his house, Hadeon," she pointed to Rian's house.

"He's living here alone?"

"Yes."

After helping him up to his room, a picture caught my attention. He's living alone now because she's dead. I looked at the picture frame on a table beside his bed.

After finishing everything, we locked the door and left his house.

We started walking out of the village, feeling free and embracing the cold breeze. The only sounds were the rustling of leaves in the deep silence.

I dropped Mathia off at her house, and now I'm at the condo after Mr. Mendez drove me. I'm staring at my ceiling. That's why he didn't want to talk about the gang. There's a tragic story behind him—a tragic love story between him and Colleen.

So you're the person she's referring to—you and Mathia.

What a deep connection between the three of you.