Investigation (VIII)

12:11 A.M. 

Manila National Police Station. 

July 21st, the year 2018. Saturday. 

Katrina Fajardo's 23rd birthday. 

5 hours and 41 minutes since Katrina Fajardo went missing. 

Zoey, Carmela, Matthew, and Mina all looked at each other as Marcus stood upright in the center. He swallowed as he said, "Auntie Karyn." 

Auntie Karyn clenched her jaw right away and took a step forward. One officer tried to barricade him from the woman. Marcus signaled they should stay back and that he can deal with it. 

"Lieutenant, you will be in danger," one officer whispered right through. Marcus shook his head. 

"No, Mrs. Fajardo was not the dangerous one here. We should all calm down," Marcus retorted. Auntie Karyn halted after taking two steps forward. She clenched his jaw more rigidly as she sarcastically stated Marcus's name and title. 

"Lieutenant Dela Rosa, I thought you will do everything to protect my niece.... and your best friends," Auntie Karyn hissed. Marcus froze at his place. He breathed, and couldn't help but to feel nervous about what she was gonna say.

Marcus's stunned at his place, waiting for Auntie Karyn to vent out her anger first before moving. It still pointed the ball pen at him and he saw how she looked straight at his eyes. 

It was the look of disbelief and distrust. Auntie Karyn must have been losing every ounce of trust towards him as a lieutenant. Also acting as the best friend of her niece. 

Auntie Karn gritted her teeth as she knuckled her left hand over her side and inhaled an enormous amount of air. The officers hunched their breaths, waiting for the Lieutenant to signal them 

Lieutenant Lirio also shoved the officers away, stopping behind Marcus. Marcus swallowed constantly. Auntie Karyn panted like a ravenous tiger, captured in the wilderness. 

"You are a lieutenant, but you didn't have time to protect my niece from that person who wanted her to kill her?! How dare you step in front of me, showing off your badge?! You are an incompetent and negligible police officer I had ever met!" Auntie Karyn shouted. Marcus halted Lieutenant Lirio from stepping up, glimpsing at him. He shook his head. 

"Lieutenant, please do something," Lieutenant Lirio mouthed the words to Marcus. He stood on what he was doing. Auntie Karyn still fumed by promptly raising the ball pen over her hands. Marcus stared emotionless in his eyes, thinking of what was his next move. 

Matthew and Mina looked strained over their faces. They observed Marcus's frozen hand over his front. 

"And why was Xian saying something about Katrina killing someone?! Can you please explain it thoroughly to me, Mr. Lieutenant? I don't know why Xian barged in at our house. He was playing a recorded message over his cell phone. He said that the fingerprint results over that goddamn bracelet matched my niece!" Auntie Karyn puffed her cheeks, trying to calm herself down. 

"So, tell me, is the police now suspecting my niece that she murdered someone?! How unskilled must have been the detectives here. Especially you, Lieutenant Dela Rosa!" Auntie Karyn shrieked over the center of the station. It wasn't the first time someone was like this, but in this case, it was the actress's aunt. 

Auntie Karyn scoffed, holding the ball pen still. She yelled, "My niece killed Margo?! How nonsensical! She can't even hold a knife steady, yet all the police officers are blaming her for Margo's death! And now, what has your case led up to?! My niece got abducted because of you, Lieutenant Dela Rosa!" 

"Auntie Kary---" Auntie Karyn's raging voice cut Marcus off. 

"Don't even dare to call me Auntie Karyn, I'm not even your aunt, you piece of scumbag!" Auntie Karyn repulsed, as Marcus pursed his lips and swallowed. Zoey and Carmela both exhaled, as they didn't know how to calm her down. Matthew and Mina gawked at Auntie Karyn's back. Marcus stood still. The officer behind his back exhaled. 

"And that Xian, that Xian Santos, the famous painter, he was the one responsible for all of this! He even dared to go inside our house just to shout obscenities towards Katrina! He didn't even know what happened to Katrina the day Margo died!" Auntie Karyn shouted over the confines as the tears trickled down her cheeks. 

She sobbed right away as she dropped her head down and looked over at the floor. Mina heard footsteps over the hallways of the FBI. He widened his eyes when he saw Xian standing aloof over the end.

Matthew also glimpsed over where Mina was looking at. He's surprised to see Xian there. No emotions were crossing his face, and he was staring at Auntie Karyn, who was now sobbing. 

She fell down on the floor as Lieutenant Marcus walked up so fast to catch her. Lieutenant Lirio immediately grabbed the ball pen from her hand. Her shoulders were shaking as Marcus clasped her. Auntie Karyn was howling while holding Marcus's arms as she looked up at the officers. 

The police officers were scrambling in and out of the hallways. Lieutenant Lirio took the commands to be back at their post. One officer got her bottled water over the clinic as Auntie Karyn averted her eyes from the floor. The police officers were dissipating as Xian stood so erect over the end of the hallways of the FBI. 

Zoey and Carmela also looked over there in astonishment. 

Lieutenant Lirio raised his hands over an officer while putting his hands over his hips. He glanced at the person standing a distance away from them. Marcus also glimpsed over there and can't help but gasp. 

"Mr. Santos, how did you...," Lieutenant Lirio breathed. Auntie Karyn screamed right through Marcus's arms and came over to Xian. 

Xian was looking at her with blobs of tears in his eyes as Marcus stood up hurriedly from the floor. Matthew and Mina came over as Zoey and Carmela did the same thing. Auntie Karyn abruptly grabbed the top of his shirt. She clutched the shirt, glaring right through his eyes. 

"Mrs. Fajardo, we need to calm down," Marcus whispered as she tried to unclasp her hand from his shirt. 

"What did you say to Katrina, huh?! Tell me everything now that you said to her that made her go outside of the house without notice!" Auntie Karyn shouted right in front of his nose as Xian stood there while she was pushing him so hard.

Zoey felt the tears on the verge of her eyelids while looking away at the scene. Carmela can't do anything right now, but watch. 

"I was calling her several times earlier, and she wasn't answering! And I was so shocked by the news that she was now missing! All because of what you said, Xian. It made her anxious with herself and she didn't know what to do but to blame herself too! It was her birthday today, her birthday!" Auntie Karyn shrieked as tears fell down over Xian's eyes. Lieutenant Lirio breathed and held his forehead as Marcus put his hands over his hips. 

He glanced over at his girlfriend, Zoey, who was now crying while witnessing the scene. He can't help but walk towards her. Marcus wrapped his arms over Zoey's. She sniffed, wiping away the tears quickly. 

"Katrina can't kill anyone. You should know that Xian, she may have been loathing you for what you did to Carmela, but she was your best friend! Your dearest friend!" Auntie Karyn muttered by raising her voice one last time and unclasped the shirt from her tight fist. She slapped Xian's face so hard that made them all gasp. 

"Auntie Karyn." Mina stared worriedly at Xian. 

"That's for the pain you caused on my niece," Auntie Karyn whispered, turning her heel around. She looked up and saw that Marcus was still staring at her.

She pointed right at his face and said, "Find her, Lieutenant Dela Rosa. Just to remind you, I can withdraw my invested money for your company that's owned by your parents. It's not even yours. It looked like you adore the police field so much that your aunt and uncle have to do the work all the time. If it weren't for Fajardo Inc., your company would have fallen apart a long time ago. It's like Torres Productions." 

Auntie Karyn glanced at Carmela, who was clenching her jaw right away, and she pursed her lips. Auntie Karyn bumped her shoulders to Zoey. Carmela followed her steps with her eyes. 

The reason for their Torres Productions' bankruptcy... It was a mysterious case that had been on hold for a few months right now. Carmela looked down at her feet as she remembered the paper that Marcus brought the day Margo died. 

"Cece, 1998," Carmela whispered to herself.