A/N: This is to clear confusions about some characters' real identities. Ako rin naman, nalito noong una, kaya siguro nalito rin po ang iba sa inyo. Hehe~
Then, and Now:
° Real Timo - Nathaniel Devila
° Real Nathaniel - Lemuel Castillo (Book 5)
° Real Lemuel - Valentino Estacio
Hope this clears up! Here's 35th chapter for y'all. Enjoy reading! 📖
Chapter 35. Codename Jia
HIGIT tatlong buwan na nagpabalik-balik si Timo sa iba't ibang bansa dahil tinotoo na niya ang paggawa ng bagong mga documentaries. 'Mga' dahil lima ang mga iyon, bukod pa sa mga in-upload niyang videos sa kaniyang online channel.
At ngayo'y nakabalik na siya ng bansa. Nasabi na rin niya sa kaniyang boss sa VBS na aalis na siya sa evening news at magpapalit naman sila ng slot ng News Anchor tuwing weekend news. It'd be his junior who reported about Arellano and the Devilas' case. She unmasked the truth and spoke to the whole world what truly lies behind those 'kind and generous' people... Even if one of them was her own father.
Natigil siya sa pagbabalik-tanaw nang may tumawag ng kaniyang pansin. Nasa dagat siya ng taong mga lumalabas sa arrival area para salubungin ng mga sundo o minamahal sa buhay.
"Hey, dude! Long time no see!"
Why was this fucker at the airport? Timo was a bit confused because he wasn't informed that Rexton and Sinned would be there. May bagong trabaho na naman ba? But, damn, he's quitting already just as the other agents of Phoenix Agency.
Umakbay si Rexton sa kaniya at hinigpitan nito ang pagkakahawak sa kaniya. Napailing naman ang abogadong si Sinned dito.
Kung walang trabaho ay ang mga ito ang nakakasama niyang mag-party dahil wala naman siyang maituturing na talagang kaibigan. Ilang beses din silang nag-inuman ng mga ito, kasama ang iba pang agents ng Phoenix, lalo na tuwing abalang-abala sina Jinny noon at wala siyang magawa. Ayaw niya rin namang patayin ang oras o ibuhos ang sarili sa pagiging sunud-sunuran sa dating leader ng AIA.
Speaking of AIA, it was already taken down by Nikolaj Devila. Kung siya kasi ang tatanungin ay okey lang naman kung magpatuloy iyon lalo pa't marami-rami ang magagaling na agents doon. Iyon nga lang, karamihan ay bumaluktot na ang paninindigan at umanib na sa kademonyohan ng dating head niyon. Isa iyon sa mga dahilang nalaman niya kay Peach, na kasa-kasama na ng pamilya ni Jinny ngayon para alagaan si Luella. Kaya pala umalis ang babae roon ay pinagtangkaan itong bayaran ni Arellano na tumrabaho sa ilalim ng mga masasamang gawain ng dating head ng AIA.
Kung hindi pa kinuha ni Rexton ang atensyon niya ay malamang na hanggang mamaya ay iniisip pa rin niya ang mga nangyari.
"Stone is waiting for you! May misyon ulit tayo."
His friendliness was getting into his nerves. Naaalibadbaran siya lalo na sa tuwing naaalalang may tsansang baliktarin na naman siya nito. Mas mainam pa kung nasa trabaho ito, eh, seryoso't nakakakilabot. Pero hindi siya apektado sa siraulong ito kahit subukan pa nitong i-brainwash siya ulit.
Oddly, mind control wasn't working for him no matter how many times they tried. May mga ganoong tao, at isa siya sa mga iyon.
"Let's go now, they are waiting."
"They? Didn't I tell you that I'm already quitting this job?" He'd focus being a news anchor, but as expected, he would take the weekend spot because aside from his desire to settle down with Jinny and Luella, he wanted to continue doing documentary reports. That's what he enjoyed in the industry the most.
"We'll see if you're still going to say that later."
Damn dela Costa, his menacing stares and cunning smirk could be seen on his face. Ano na namang binabalak nitong gawin?
They went straight to the parking lot and he's surprised seeing his 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB out there.
"Why is it here?"
He heard the unlocking sound of his car before Sinned called his attention and when he pivoted to look at him, he threw his car key fob towards his direction and he immediately caught it.
"You drive, I'm lazy," he idly stated as he walked to his car and opened the backseat door.
Humikab naman si Rexton. "I drunk a bit. So..." Eksaheradong humikab ulit ito at tamad ding naglakad, sumunod kay Sinned papasok sa backseat.
He cussed aloud and opened the door again to throw the key fob to Rexton. Ito kasi ang pinakamalapit sa lugar niya.
"I'll just ride the shuttle."
Akmang tatalikod na siya nang tinawag siya ni Rexton. He smirked because he knew he's not going to drive anymore. 'Tangina, pagod siya sa haba ng binyahe niya, pagkatapos ay ipagmamaneho niya lang ang mga ito? Mga siraulo.
But the next thing he heard wasn't about who's going to drive.
"Jinny is in Phoenix right now," seryoso na at hindi makikitaan ng kalokohan si Rexton nang isiwalat iyon.
He glanced at Sinned who's now almost slouching and his eyes were shut. Then, he looked back at Rexton.
"Why's she there?"
"Why don't you drive us there and find out the reason?"
"Bilisan ninyo! Masakit ang ulo ko!"
Napalingon ulit siya kay Sinned. Mukhang sa dalawa ay ito ang tunay na nakainom.
Iiling-iling na inagaw niya ang key fob at sa huli ay siya rin ang nagmaneho ng sasakyan. In the whole duration of travel, Rexton didn't crack any jokes, nor irritated him. He was wearing that face he always had when he's in the middle of a job.
He suddenly got nervous remembering what was mentioned awhile ago. Jinny's in Phoenix Agency right now. But, why was she there? Did something bad happen? Come to think of it, she still didn't text nor chat him. Inisip naman niyang baka pagod ito at nagpapahinga dahil maaga pa naman. Alas otso pa lang kasi ng umaga at may gig ang banda kagabi. Isa pa, hindi nito alam ng ngayon ang balik niya. Balak niya kasi itong sorpresahin mamaya at aalukin na niyang magpakasal. Everything was set up at C'est La Vie Rooftop Restaurant that's in Sandoval Hotel Manila.
Hanggang sa makarating sila ay hindi na sila nag-imikan. He fucking asked right away Jinny's exact location. Ano ba kasi ang nangyari?
"Follow us. You'll see."
Lalo siyang kinabahan siya nang ang daang tinahak nila ay ang papuntang laboratoryo kung saan dinadala ang ibang mga agents kung i-a-activate na. He frowned and thought about why would she be there? Kinutubuan siya at hindi niya iyon gusto.
Rexton cleared his throat when they're almost at the lab entrance. Once they went in, he said in a very formal voice, "I'd like you to meet our new sleeper agent—Jia."
They went inside the laboratory and he saw Jinny wearing just a hospital gown while sitting on the edge of the bed. On the other bed, Bree was lying down and she's almost done being brainwashed.
One of the staffs greeted them via speaker. He guessed she's in the monitoring room just beside the laboratory. Then, she announced the following words:
"Agent One-nine-nine-four, Codename: Jia, is ready to be activated."
If you're curious about the book covers, check them on the title page of each stories—sa comment section po ;-)
P.S.: Changed the title of book 6 back to “Hidden Identity”.