Chapter 22: Chapter 22

A MONTH LATER

“Mart! — Mart..?” A voice called out from the yard outside the window as he slowly emerged from the washroom. Although it sounded familiar, he was yet in doubt since he had no idea why his mother will call him from out there at such an early hour- it's totally an absurd thing. It was something she'd never done. But as it persisted, he went on to respond as he approached the direction of the voice.

“ Who's there?” Mart asked with a doubtful gaze. With a glance outside, he noticed his mother, all dressed and ready to hit the road. “ Mum..?" The word softly eluded.

“ Why calling from out there while my door is unlocked~ it's barely 7 am” His voice echoed with uncertainty.

“Sorry, honey. Just had an urgent call from your dad, saying my presence is needed in the city for a few weeks but I forgot to inform you earlier before coming out due to the rush. ” She went on to explain. “ I'm in such a rush~ Got to go now. I might miss the bus.” She briefly added as she hopped unto the cab which had waited earlier for her departure.

“Uh...alright. Safe journey regards to dad. Tell him I really miss him.” That's the only thing he managed to audio out as the cab sped off. “What could be so urgent to make her act like this?” He mumbled to himself as he turned back into the room.

AUSTRALIA

LILIA'S HOME

As restless, tensed, and furious as she felt, Lilia just kept pacing in the room~ engulfed with rage for unknown reasons. She suddenly looked like a mentally retarded patient.

“ What's taking these girls so long?” She screamed in frustration. “This isn't any big deal to waste time on.” Her restlessness was verbalized in a heated breath.

Just then, a buzz from her phone brought her to an abrupt halt. Her eyes instinctively fixed on the phone like a wild wolf — just at the sight of the caller ID, she snatched it from the bed.

“ Yes...Vicky, quickly, gist me.” She stuttered in a single breath. “ Tell me you're through with her~ are you ?” She said amidst giggles. But then, all those cheers were suddenly drawn into a rage. “Meaning?”

“ Umm..., No, Lili, not yet.” Her disappointed voice echoed over the phone. The smiles in Lilia's eyes instantly dissipated along with Vicky's last words. “ It's not as easy as you think, girlfriend~ but no worries, everything will be in place by the close of the day.”

Vicky assured but then, Lilia wasn't in for any of that.

“ What do you mean by it's not easy?” She furiously cut her off before she could finish her sentence. “ How long do you wanna take to complete such a small task, huh?~ Damn!... this is freaking annoying!” She shouted.

Agitated by Lilia's rude and harsh words, Vicky blazed with fury as well. She was trying her best to hold up with her but then, not any longer— she couldn't stand it.

“ If you think it's that easy, why not fly over and finish it off, huh~ such ungrateful, ruthless bitch you are. The earlier you hurry down here, the better for us all...”

Fumed with anger and rage, they both argued for some time. Suddenly, the chaotic atmosphere was buried in dead silence. Both ends of the phone were engulfed with just the sound of faint breaths.

Eventually calmed and tamed, Lilia finally broke the awkward silence. “ Umm, Vicky...” She said as she raked her hair backward. “ Let's just stop quarreling over this since we've got a common enemy ~why not verge on her rather .”

“ I guess you're right... Sorry, here as well. I was just stressed out with the whole turn of events. ~ I'll call you again when all is done, okay?”

Upon coming to a common conclusion, both ends were finally dropped.

VICKY'S HOME

Unpleased and devastated, Vicky just faint on her bed as she scanned through her phone for Martha and Rita's contact. Soon, the three were on a conference call.

“Hey... girls, what's up with you and how far with what I asked of you?” Vicky popped the question.

“Well, Mart and Aims won't be meeting today due to his busy schedule at home and Aims will also be busy with her sick mother at home. This is what I've gathered so far...” Martha announced.

“That's great... Which makes the job, even more, easier~ Rita, you take charge from here. You can go visit Mart as planned and do what you got to do, huh?”

“ Sure, noted~ I got you girls covered. Just leave it for me and expect a clean one.” Rita said with a chuckle which made the former two laugh.

“ Alright then, just call me when all is set. We'll meet at the abandoned hospital at the outskirt of the town~ agreed?”

With this, Martha and Rita answered in affirmation. “ Yeah, well said. Let's talk later.”

AIMSCIOUS' HOME

It was already past 3 pm. Aims were helping her mother in the kitchen when a ring from her phone caught her attention. In a haste, she rushed to the hall for it~ just then, she noticed it was Mart. With a broad smile, she answered.

“ What's up, Aims... Hope mum is much better now?” His voice instinctively invaded.

“Yeah, we were even making dinner when your call came.” She chuckled. “ So, what's it....need anything?”

“Well, nothing..... Just wanted to let you know that I wouldn't be making it to your end for the assignment today because my mum travelled and I ought to handle one or two things for her in town so I'll be back pretty late. If you're free tomorrow let's work on the assignment.” He briefly explained.

“Alright, let's do that ~ see you, tomorrow then but don't forget to call or text when you return, okay?”

“ Sure, later...”

MART'S HOUSE

As he was about to hang up, a ring from the door drew his attention. He instinctively turned toward the direction of the door with uncertainty written all over his face.

“ Why... Is mum back, already ?” He faintly mumbled as he hurried to the door, dropping the phone on a table in the hall.

Slowly, as he threw it open, his face was drawn into a stun at the presence which met his eyes. “ Wow... Who do we have here?” Mart exclaimed with a chuckle. “ Rita?~ oh, goodness. To what do I owe this pleasant surprise ... ”

Full of smiles, she instinctively waved at him. “Hey, Mart...” She giggled. “ Sorry for not calling before...”

“Oh, no...no, nevermind~ I'm practically okay. Come on, in ” He warmly welcomed her in as he fell blind to her real intentions for the visit.

In short steps, she scanned through the hall, covering her detective eyes with a smile. “ Such a lovely place you got here.” She complimented.

After she had settled in, Mart offered to get her some snacks. Just then, she found what she wanted, his phone. Sure enough of her surrounding, she immediately picked it and checked for Aims' contact. Due to their constant communication, it wasn't stressful. With satisfaction written all over her face, she went on to complete her mission.

. . . . MESSAGE TO AIMS...

“Hi, dear~ Let's meet at 8 pm. We can complete our assignment then.” The message read.