✔ 03 | Point of Exposure

CAPITULUM 42

"Polar coordinates."

Ang polar coordinates ay isang coordinate system (much like the rectangular coordinate system, the Cartesian plane) na karaniwang ginagamit sa mga RADAR system ng mga eroplano at ships.

Nova looked at the map again, with a new perspective, and noted how the places were arranged. Kung iisiping isang "circle" nga lang ang sinusundan nito at equal ang distances ng mga lugar mula sa sentro ng bilog, then the numbers could actually be angles..

135°

225°

270°

Marking the polar coordinates with the location of the crime scenes on the map...

Sumakto ang lokasyon ng apartment building at mall.

"This is just messed up," Nova concluded, raking a hand through her tangled hair. Ang ibig sabihin nito, may pattern nga si UD sa kanyang ginagawa. This only proves how smart and meticulous his is. "Kung ganoon, sunod siyang magpapakita sa lugar 270° sa mapa base sa polar coordinates. Our next crime scene is---"

"The church," Nico finished, not even glancing at the map.

Hindi na magtataka si Nova kung nakabisado na niya ito agad. Kahit pa sabihin nitong isang sumpa ang kondisyon niya, Nova couldn't help but think that it acts more like an advantage, especially in detective work.

"I'll tell Inspector Ortega," she announced, getting up from the bed. "I know you want to be part of the action, pero mas makakabuti kung magpahinga ka muna diyan. Don't want you collapsing at the scene, do we?"

"I'm fine."

"Shut up. Balikan na lang kita mamaya."

Nakatitig pa rin si Nico sa kanya nang tawagin siya nito. Nang lingunin ni Nova ang kanyang kasama, her heart skipped a beat when he spoke, "Noong niligtas ako ni Min... I don't know whether my oxygen-deprived brain was playing tricks on me or not, but for a minute, I wanted it to be..."