Carlos' POV
"What are you doing over there?" I asked Elena when I noticed she had been staring at me from the corner of the room for a while.
"Huh?" she replied, clearly distracted.
"Is something wrong?" I asked.
"Nothing…" she said, quickly hiding her hands behind her back, as if concealing something.
"What's that?" I asked.
"What do you mean?" she countered.
"Are you hiding something behind you?" I pressed. She froze for a moment.
"Nothing," she answered shortly.
I shook my head and turned my attention back to my laptop.
Black Moon Organization, I typed into the search bar. Several articles immediately appeared. This organization was bigger than I expected. They reportedly ran illegal gambling operations across the Philippines—operations the government had failed to shut down. They also owned bars and hotels. Whoever was backing them had to be filthy rich.
I scrolled further until I saw an article mentioning a wealthy family.
"Madrigal," I read.
I was about to click the link when the screen suddenly glitched. The laptop shut down completely.
"Damn it! Of all times—now?" I muttered in frustration. I pressed the power button repeatedly, but it refused to turn on. I ran a hand through my hair, irritated. The laptop was secondhand—bought with my very first paycheck—and already outdated. Sometimes it would just die like this and take hours before it powered back on.
I immediately called Jam.
"Yeah?" he answered.
"Can I borrow your spare laptop? Mine died again," I said.
"Just come over to the house. You know how busy we are right now," he replied.
"Alright," I said before hanging up. I got dressed and headed out.
"Are you coming with me?" I asked Elena when I noticed her sitting on the sofa.
"Where?" she asked flatly.
"If you don't want to, you can just stay here—"
"I'm coming!" She stood up immediately and walked out ahead of me.
This woman—her mood changes faster than the weather.
We rode my motorcycle toward Jam's house.
They lived in a subdivision, so it was a bit far and full of winding streets. When we arrived, I rang the doorbell. When the gate opened, I was surprised to see Jam's grandmother standing there.
"Grandma Rese?" I greeted cheerfully.
"Oh, Carlos! Come in, come in," she said warmly.
I was confused by her words but let it slide.
"When did you arrive, Grandma?" I asked.
"Just yesterday, dear. I came to visit your friend," she replied with a smile.
"Go upstairs and get Jam. I'll make you some coffee," she said.
"Grandma… it's just me," I clarified.
She frowned.
"Then who was that beautiful young woman with you earlier? Where did she go?" she said, peeking behind me.
I froze.
"You can see Elena?" I asked without thinking.
"What are you talking about? Of course I can see her—I'm not blind yet," she laughed.
"But… Grandma, Elena is—"
"Santiago! What are you still doing there? I thought you were borrowing my laptop?" Jam suddenly interrupted from the stairs. He was peeking down at us, wearing nothing but his boxers.
"Go on now," Grandma Rese said, waving me off as she turned away.
I stood there, rooted to the spot.
"Hey! Santiago! What's taking so long?" Jam shouted.
That was when I snapped back to reality.
---
A few moments later, we stepped out of Jam's house, and he walked me to the gate.
"Mayor! Good afternoon!"
I turned around when a car stopped in front of the neighboring house. A well-built man stepped out—his expensive clothes made it obvious he was wealthy. Jam waved at him, and the man removed his sunglasses, frowning slightly as he looked at me.
"Who's that?" I whispered to Jam.
"That's our Vice Mayor—the one who took over after the mayor died. Mr. Chua. He just moved in the other day. He's nice," Jam replied.
"Mayor, good afternoon," Jam greeted when the man approached us.
But the man's attention was fixed on me.
"Have we met before?" he asked.
I was taken aback.
"I'm sorry, sir, but I believe this is our first meeting," I replied.
He paused, then smiled.
"Mayor, this is SPO1 Carlos Santiago—my friend and colleague," Jam introduced.
The mayor nodded.
"Nice to meet you, Mayor," I said, offering my hand.
He shook it immediately.
"Just call me Mr. Chua. And I apologize—I thought you were someone else," he said.
"It's alright, Mr. Chua," I replied.
He continued staring at me, studying my face.
"But you really look like him," he said. "How strange. Do you mind if I ask you something?"
I glanced at Jam, who nodded.
"What is it?"
"Do you have a twin?" he asked, causing me to frown.
"And that ring…" His gaze dropped to my hand.
"Where did you get it?"
I followed his eyes to the ring, suddenly uneasy.
"Do you know—" I started, but he cut me off.
"No. I must be mistaken. I'll be going now," he said with a smile.
"I hope we meet again, Mr. Chua," I said.
"Nice to meet you," I added.
He smiled back.
"Yes. We will meet again, SPO1 Santiago," he replied meaningfully before turning away.