Ray's Karate Kid Journey Part III

Chapter 8: Piecing Together

"Where did she go?" asked Diona.

"I don't know. I thought she was with us," replied Ray.

"The last time I saw her, we were going with Brian to the office," said Bon Dieu.

"Perhaps, she's sneaking out of this dojo for some reason. She could be anywhere or maybe somewhere even more hidden than this dojo. And as for this reason, it could be because she had something planned about the thief or perhaps, she went out to get some backup for us," said Brian.

Hmm. That girl is really a mysterious person, Ray thought as he looked deeper into why she would sneak out of the Cobra Kai Dojo like this without him even knowing it.

His thoughts were cut off when he heard Bon Dieu suggesting,"I think we should go out there looking for her."

"Great idea, Bon Dieu," replied Brian.

And so they went to the door to get themselves out of the office. But as soon as Brian's hand reached the doorknob, it twisted it. And you know what happened next? You could hear multiple clicks. Brian kept pushing the door open, but it's not working.

It's locked, Ray thought.

Brian then, turned to the others. "It's locked," he echoed Ray's thoughts.

"Wait, locked?!" Ray heard Diona reacting in shock.

"Do you have any keys to open it?" Bon Dieu asked him.

Brian's head turned to his right where the keys might be, then he turned his head back to the others. "It's Bonnie. She took the keys when we weren't looking."

"Seriously?" asked Ray.

"Yes, seriously. If there's only one person who would lock us in, it's her. That's before she sneaks away to do something mysterious. She doesn't want to let anyone invade her privacy."

"How did you know who Bonnie really is?" asked Diona.

"Her brother is one of my students. He only came here because he needed some help to defend himself and the others. Especially Bonnie. He wanted his protection to grow in him for a bit, so that he will be a responsible brother to her."

"How are we gonna get out of here?" asked Bon Dieu.

"Perhaps we could call for help."

As Ray heard his words, he began thinking of the clues he heard from the officers, the manager and the suspects. For some reason, his conversation with them ran through his head. Although, few like Diona, Luke and Jonathan can be heard conversing with the victims and the suspects.

"Have you got any details on what he or she looks like?"

"This person was about..." Her hand raised a bit higher than her head. "...this tall. I'm sorry. That's all I know."

Then another...

"Last night, when I was about to close down the House of Pancakes, a man barged in without any permission."

"Seriously?"

"Yes, seriously. He had a talk with me and he told me the deal about the coffee beans."

"What kind of deal do you two talk about, sir?"

"He told me that if I were to give him the coffee beans, every last bag, then the income will rise higher. If not, it will soon go back to zero pesos and we have to keep working hard on this business for years. I told him I will think about it. But... the next day, when I came here, they were gone. Right now, I'm a hundred percent sure that man must've stolen the coffee beans."

"Who's this man you were talking about?"

"I didn't see his face nor knew his name, but the only thing I see is a shadowy figure standing before me. He wore a cap and the leather jacket. I assumed he wore a shirt, pants and rubber shoes. And as he walked away, I noticed that the cap he was wearing is from American Boulevard."

...and another...

"I just saw a man with a black cap and a black jacket! He also wears dark green shirt with dark blue pants and he's wearing white rubber shoes. And that man is smoking cigarettes!"

"Whoever he is, he must pay the penalty."

"I think you have a point there, Jonathan. Smoking is illegal."

"I'm assuming the man you just saw was the thief, right?"

"I think so. I think he went that way."

...and another...

"Did you get any other details for the looks of the thief?"

"If I'm not mistaken, I think I briefly noticed the Nike symbol on the side of his shoes. It means his shoes come from the clothing shop called 'Nike'".
"So we got another place to go apart from American Boulevard and whatever the other place the thief is going."

"Yes. Detective work can be difficult and tough especially when it comes to solving cases."

"Okay. Thanks for giving me information."

"Anytime, Ray. Anytime."

...and another...

"When that man came here, he asked if he should buy the shoes no one else recognized. Then, I asked him what he means. He answered something about another man who actually recognized him. That's why he came here to buy shoes that can make everyone think he's from here. The Philippines. And so, I showed him this white rubber shoe. Then, he payed for it. After that, he went out of the store. I know there's something suspicious going on, so I went to the exit just to see where he's going."

"Where's he going then?"

"He went somewhere in a place where it should be open soon. Whatever it is, it seemed like he's burrowing it or even worse, using it. I saw him going left after he exited the store. Then he went straight. After a few blocks away from here, that's the place. You might wanna follow the directions I've told you about. Then, you'll find him. Now, I have one question to ask. Why are you looking for that man?"

"Diona and I were eating breakfast at the House of Pancakes when we discovered that the coffee beans there were stolen."

"The officers tried their best to handle things up. Then, they discussed things in a private place along with me, Ray and the business company."

"But we managed to settle this plan and now, we're looking for a thief behind all this."

"Not only the man stole coffee beans in the House of Pancakes, but they're also stolen in Starbucks."

"If we can't figure out who the real culprit is in time, we'll never be able to drink kinds of coffee in the morning."

"Which is why we're joining forces to look for the thief. I've only covered a few traits about the real culprit."

"That man must be put in the police truck to have a talk with the policemen. We need to know the reason why he would do such a thing." You can hear his sigh as he continued, "I don't have anything else to say, but..." He looked back up to the quartet. "Good luck on finding the culprit and keep looking for clues and keep finding evidence and leads."

"Thank you, sir. I promise you won't regret it."

...and finally, the words Brian said when it comes to traits of the real culprit...

"Whoever that thief is must have quick-thinking, skillful fingers and overall, a good snatcher."

As Ray pieced things together on who the real culprit is, his eyes widened in shock as he finally realized who the coffee bean thief really is.

No, it can't be, he thought.