THE CULPRIT'S VERDICT

1.1.1.1.1

Weeks later.

I couldn't help but stroll my eyes at the amazing atmosphere indoor. Filled with monochromatic accents, the interior looked very serene and understated. The fresh blend of neo-traditional and sophisticated embellishments dominated the cafe. A fine lady in her white polo uniform and black pencil-cut skirt approached. "Here's a marbled ice white coffee for you. Enjoy," she said, placing my order on the table.

"Thank you," I mumbled.

She lowered her head and returned to her post, attending to the other two customers' needs.

Alone, I resolved on focusing my attention on the escaping movements of cars from the transparent glass wall panel of Bella's Grand Café.

A few minutes passed, the jingling sound of bells outside and a pull from the metal door disturbed my trance.

A respectable gentleman in a white t-shirt coated with a black leather jacket entered the café. He ran his gaze and walked towards the corner upon spotting me.

I moved my black Gucci cap up to get a clear picture of the guy who had just taken his spot opposite to the couch I was sitting at.

"Nice to see you again, ms. Max, I mean, Nam," he greeted.

"Likewise, agent Doe. Do you have what I need?"

"What are you paying me for if I can't do my job well, right?" he answered, coating his 'yes' with slight humor.

"Here."

He handed over a brown envelope which I abruptly open. The first thing I saw was a graduation photo. The girl in the middle was wearing a black toga with some medals hanging on her neck. She, together with an older man and woman on both sides, was genuinely smiling.

"That girl in the middle is Claudia Marie Loaña. An excellent student of her time. Standing beside her is her mom and dad. She disappeared on July 22, 2017, and that's three years from now."

Three years.

I checked the other pictures as he continued to spill the information he gathered.

"What about her parents? Were you able to locate them?" I asked.

"Unfortunately, not. I went to their town, but some who knew them said that they fled outside of the country after almost a month of their daughter's disappearance."

"Why would they leave if they haven't found their daughter yet?"

"That question triggers an intriguing side of the story. But it can only be answered by them."

Unbelievable.

"No worries. We'll know the answer soon as I'm working with the best hacker in town to help me locate them."

"Please work hard. Lately, I've been hearing weird gossips from my co-workers about other employees' disappearance. For an unknown reason, I suddenly got curious."

"And so I am. Anyway, here's another interesting piece of information I've got. " He placed another folder on the table which he took from his black suitcase bag.

I looked at him before taking the envelope, imploring a hint.

"It's an in-depth research about the Llenada Corporation. And to tell you honestly, I've never been so nosy with facts I've gathered in my 20 years of being a private investigator as I am right now. There must be something fishy with the Llaneda Family."

~..~

"Wow, that's fantastic!" Wanda commented as Gregg put the final gem in the middle section of the silver cocktail dress.

"That dress is quite an art. The new face of the company will definitely love it, " I said, plastering a satisfied smile.

"Surely, IU will look fantastic and elegantly beautiful in that glamorous dress!" Norie exclaimed.

"Thank you, thank you," he responded with his hand on his chest; pleased with the compliments he received.

All of a sudden, a loud applause from behind snatched our attention.

"Sir Val, you're here!" Wanda greeted, her cheek partly blushing.

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I turned from observing her action to looking at the CEO's expression, but I didn't expect to see his eyes on me.

His presence reminded me of my conversation with agent Doe.

"Every after three years, the Llaneda Corporation is gaining ownership of distinguish corporations. Since the year it was established, they have bought and subsidized five more establishments, Forex Mall being the fifth." "What's fishy about that?"

"Well, there are various reports of missing persons in which six can be traced as employees in the different branches and sister companies of Llaneda Corporation. At least seven more young ladies had been reported missing, who was last spotted in different malls they have connections with.

"Where did you get this information? If there is this issue, why didn't the company get investigated for this?"

"I got it from the NBI private files. There seems to be an initial investigation about the company. But for some plausible reason, it stopped."

"Good morning, sir Val!" The greeting of the other staff brought me back to my senses.

"Good morning! Great job, Gregg, and to every one of you who are part of this project, thank you for your effort."

"Anything for the company, sir Val," Gregg said as he inserted his imaginary long hair onto his ear, making me crinkled my forehead and raised an eyebrow at his action.

Wanda approached, "Anyway, sir Val, Mr. Heinz called today to confirm his appointment with you and he mentioned..." The rest of their conversation became inaudible as they started to move away from us. Though, at a distance, one could see the cheerful behavior of Valmier's secretary.

The staff gathered in the middle; their gaze followed the two.

"Is Wanda trying to flirt with Mr. Val?" Ezra asked.

"Urgh. She's so clingy!" Gregg commented.

"She's undeniably beautiful. She must be Aphrodite's twin who's sent to fascinate men on earth." Dubie probably didn't notice that he brought his thoughts into words. Hence, everyone near him who had heard what he mumbled- diverted their surprise gaze on him.

"You like her, don't you?" Norie accused.

He just released a deep breath, realizing that his dream would only happen when pigs fly.

"In your face, dude!" Gregg said. "She's more likely to fall for me than to you. But she's not my type!"

I cleared my throat and interrupted them, "I believe we still have works to do. Let's finish it before sir Ryle arrives."

"Yeah, right," Norie snapped. "Everybody, let's get ready for our presentation."

We all scattered and prepared the materials which Gregg and Norie would use.

While double-checking the hard copy of the proposal, Dubie approached "Hey, Nam! S-seems like your boss is not around yet."

I threw him a smile and said, "He's already on his way."

"Oh, I see. A-ahm, Nam, c-can I ask y-you something?" he said in between stutter.

I looked him in the eye and assessed the possible question he would ask. He was not the type of person who would approach anyone. From my almost a month of working with the team, rarely did I hear him actively joining the conversation. "About what?"

"Y-ou and W-anda are close, r-right?"

"A little. Why?"

He grabbed his blue necktie and played its tip with his hands. "D-do you think I'll stand a chance o-on her?" I found his way of confessing funny as stutter didn't leave his mouth. I wasn't shocked by his confession as everyone, except for Wanda, had noticed it.

"Let me see." I narrowed my eyes and assessed his facial feature. Unconsciously, I altered his parted hair into the side. After checking him, a smile crossed my lips.

"It's not too late for a change, Dubie. You can still unleash that hidden charisma of yours. If you like, I'll help you."

"Really?" he asked in a slightly raised voice. He hid his face, realizing that he just grabbed everyone's attention. A bit shy, he whispered, "Thank you very much." "I'll say welcome when it's done," I said and winked at him.

"Dubie!" Sir Val called, and every worker in the hall diverted their gaze on him.

"S-sir?" Dubie asked. He looked me in the eyes and asked what he had done wrong.

"To my office, now!"

To be continued