THE CULPRIT'S VERDICT

The wind was gently blowing the edge of my midnight dress and I didn't mind at all. Lost on the sparkling beauty of the stars and of the beautiful view from the veranda of my condominium, I let my spirit wander and explore the new world serenity had let me into. But as I close my eyes and think deeply, emptiness and pain started to scrutinize me. I clenched my fist, remembering that I wouldn't feel this way, that I wouldn't be alone and lonely if it wasn't for the ones who plotted the death of my family.

While I was on the verge of overthinking, three loud knocks on my door perturbed me. Who would visit at this time? I headed to the cabinet to get my hand-gun, then gradually moved toward the door. I looked through the peephole to see who was outside, but there was none. Thinking that maybe, my hearing just toyed with me, I turned my back and decided to have my rest. But a loud knock made me bit my tongue. I took a good grip of my gun and moved its slide backward. Hiding it behind me, I faced the door and slowly turned the knob to check who was outside.

"Surprise!" Juliet's voice reverberated in the narrow hallway, thus startling me.

"Juliet? You're here!"

"No, it's just my picture! Duh!" she said sarcastically.

"I missed you," I said as I wrap my other arm around her. "W-When did you arrive? Why didn't you tell me? I should've fetched you in the airport!"

"Chillax, Max. I asked Lexter not to inform you about my arrival, because first, I know you are busy, and second, I want to surprise you. I missed you, girl!"

Sensing no harm, I moved the slide of my gun forward and inserted it at my back. "Yeah, right. But I would love it if I went to the airport to fetch you!" I pouted.

"Oh stop pouting! Someone is falling," she commented.

I raised my eyebrow at her remarks, then she stared at Lex who was leaning his back lazily on the wall, and diverted her eyes at me.

"Are you not going to let us in, Maxine?" she asked.

"Oh! No! You're not welcome here," I said and crossed my arms. But knowing Juliet, she wouldn't ask permission on things concerning me. She was keen on intruding and owning the life I have.

"Well, your permission is not needed," she said as she shooed and made her way into my room.

She scanned the place, partly nodding at what she was seeing, and when she reached the bedroom, she plunged her back on my bed and exclaimed, "heaven!" I rolled my eyes and smiled thinking about the silly things my best friend was off to. "We're going to spend the night here, Max. Oof, we must buy some real good snacks."

"I'll do it. Just wait here," Lexter proposed.

"Oh, you're a total gentleman, Lexter. I hope the girl of your dreams notices you," Juliet commented.

"You are admiring someone?" I inquired. "Was she the girl we met in the training room?"

"No! Juliet's creative and wide imagination is just working, don't mind her," he clarified. "Anyways, any specific food you like?"

"Chips, cookies, and chicken joy please. And oh! Don't forget to buy tequila," Juliet said as she sat on her butt.

"Noted. How about you, Max?"

"I guess you already know what to buy," I winked at him. He knew I like pizza very much, so I didn't bother saying it to him. "Got it. I'll leave the two of you here for a while."

"Yeah, be back real quick!" Juliet shouted.

He waved his hand as he closed the door.

"So, when did you arrive?" I asked, while I opened my cabinet to return the hand-gun on its hidden spot."

"I arrived last week. I had to attend to the needs of the company that's why I wasn't able to visit you in an instant. Sorry about that"

"I see. It's okay."

"How's your work at Llaneda Corporated? Is your boss giving you hard times?"

"Hmm, on my few first days, yes! But he changed and became a little more lenient."

"Really? But what's with the smile, girl?"

I threw an inquisitive stare at her remarks.

"Is it possible that you are liking your boss?" she asked.

"No way! I don't have time for that," I didn't know what popped in her head to formulate such an idea.

"Good," I heard her mumble. Just when I thought she was done with it, she teased, "But why are you so defensive, girl?" so I had to throw her a deadly stare. "Just kidding. How about the CEO, how is he? Have you met him?"

"The company is too small for the employees and employers alike, so what do you expect?"

"Well, I'm just curious. From what I heard, he is just a little older than us. Is he a rugged, rude man or a handsome, jaw-dropping gentleman?"

"The latter," I answered shortly, remembering my encounter with him at the Villa. Yeah. He was indeed a gentleman, but still I must not let my guard down on him.

"Really? I want to meet him, soon. You know I've always wished to meet a handsome CEO that'll treat me like a princess. He might be the answer to my prayers," she said, fantasizing about the whole new world she formed in her head.

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I laughed at the reaction on her face. "You wish!" Though it's likely to happen since she's the only heir her family had. I knew, deep within her, she's worrying about the man her grandparents will choose for her, but she had no choice. "How about you, Max? Are you not thinking of indulging yourself to someone else?"

"Nah, not in my head yet," I responded uninterestedly.

"Life is boring, Max, if all that's in one's mind is revenge. Why don't you try bringing up some color in your dull life, hook with someone else while keeping your plans intact," she proposed.

I grabbed the pillow and jumped on my bed. "You know what? That's a great idea!"

Giggles escaped out of my mouth as Juliet's eyebrow curled at my response. She wasn't probably expecting my response, but I wasn't done yet. "However, that's not going to happen!" I said and threw the pillow on her face. "Oh, so that's what you want, huh?" she mocked and threw back the pillow.

"I missed you, girl. Will you be living here for good?" I asked.

"My parents are not getting any younger and they want me to replace their position. So, yeah. I'll be staying here for good. And you'll not be alone in your fight, I'll be at your back. I promise."

"Thanks," I said and embraced her. I appreciated their support, but I didn't want her nor Lexter to get involved in the case.

"Wait," she interrupted. "What is that?" she asked, pointing at the direction of the safe Lexter and I recovered from my uncle's place.

"Oh, it's a safety box."

"Hmm-so, that's what you have recovered from sir Danny's house?"

"Well, y-yes. Have I mentioned it to you before?"

"N-no. But Lex did."

"I'm sorry, I wasn't able to update you about such a thing."

"No worries, Max. I completely understand. Anyway, did you try opening it?" she said and walked toward the cabinet; I followed behind.

"I did, for heaven knows how many, but I couldn't get the right combinations."

"Oh, I see. Did you try any of your family member's birthday?"

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"Yeah, all birthdays and anniversaries actually."

"Hmm-" she released a deep thought. "How about--, some essential dates like when your parents died?"

I bit the inside of my cheek as I remembered that horrible day.

"Oh, sorry, Max. I didn't mean t-"Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

"I haven't tried that one." I cut her words. I didn't want to open the topic to her, I just want to forget about it for a while, "but let me try." I cleared my closet to reveal the safety box clearly and type the combinations, 11-13-18. I was actually getting tired of trying to open the safe, besides, I didn't know if there's something I could get from it or none.

"Nah, wrong combinations."

"How about 131118?" she suggested and I did so.

"Still not the correct password. Then I remembered something. "Let me try once more, 1813," My heart started to pump out loud as a beam of hope sparkled in me. Uncle usually used inverted passcode patterns, so, maybe this one would work. "1 1." I released a deep sigh. To our surprise, we heard a click, indicating that we succeeded in opening it.

"Omoo, we did it!" I squealed not barely expecting to unlock it.

"Oh- did I miss something?" Lexter barked from behind us, carrying three plastics full of food.

"Look! I unlocked the safe!"

"Really? What's inside?"

"Let's see." We checked the inside of the safe, but to our dismay, there's another mini vault inside. I took and examined it, it's made of heavy metal and not easy to be broken. I had my hopes high, but it was for nothing. "Look, it has a keyhole!" Lexter noticed. "There are two possible ways to open it then."

"But we don't have a key. We will be needing to type passcodes again," I said.

"We'll keep trying, Max. We'll figure it out soon."

I gave them a warm smile, their support was enough to keep my fire burning. We tried several times and listed the probability of getting the correct code. It took as a while as every five wrong codes take 30 minutes to be able to try again. The night ended so as our chats and attempts. Juliet fell asleep on my bed while Lexter laid himself on the sofa. I fixed our mess and returned the box to my cabinet. What's inside of it bothered me much. Why would uncle keep it sealed this way? To be continued