Case 8: The Mysterious Friends of
Little Sylvia (The Tale of Colorful
Mansion? Chapter, Part Seven)
ROSALINDA
We stood in front of a magnificent mansion, its grandeur too immense to take in all at once. To truly appreciate its beauty, you had to turn your head from east to west, allowing your gaze to wander across its colorful facade. However, the once-charming cartoon-like characters adorning the walls had lost their luster, marred by dirt and neglect. Cracks had formed, creating fissures in the walls, and the windows were in disarray, some even broken beyond repair.
"The design of this mansion is truly unique," I remarked, stealing a glance at Maryvonne.
"Told you!" She smiled, though her eyes remained fixed on the mansion.
"I don't believe it's simply a mansion," Doyle interjected as he approached the closed porch. "It looks more like an old orphanage to me. But an orphanage is a residential institution, for me, it’s still home, so I’d consider this a mansion?" he asked.
"An orphanage?" Maryvonne turned to me, her face filled with confusion. Before she could continue, she redirected her gaze toward Doyle. "How can you say that?"
He picked up a crumpled page of newspaper that was stuck to the door and showed it to us. "Look, it says here that this orphanage was established in 1950, 69 years ago. No wonder this place smells terrible," he remarked, rolling his eyes and making a disgusted face. He then turned away from us, facing the door. "Besides the stench, there's a hint of something rotten too. Can you guys smell it?"
"Stop with the jokes, Mr. Doyle," Maryvonne retorted, raising an eyebrow. "There's nothing rotten here!"
He twisted the doorknob and pushed the door open. "Shall we go inside then?" he said, smirking as he stepped inside the orphanage, arms crossed and glancing around.
"Mauna ka, Ms. Rosalinda," nanginginig niyang sabi, saka tinulak ako papasok. Wala na rin akong nagawa kundi magpatulak na lang, halatang natatakot siyang mauna. Pagpasok pa lang namin ay agad siyang napayakap sa kaliwang braso ko, parang butiki. "B-Beh, natatakot ako!" mangiyak-ngiyak niyang sabi.
Ikaw 'tong nagkukuwento kanina ng nakakatakot para takutin ang mga kasama mo, ikaw rin naman pala'y isang duwag rin. Napailing na lamang ako saka sinundan si Doyle na walang takot na palakad-lakad sa buong paligid habang iniilawan ang kapaligiran gamit ang flashlight ng kaniyang cellphone. Sobrang lalim na ng gabi kaya napakadilim ng buong paligid, dagdag sa pangingilabot sa katawan.
He was looking everywhere as if he were searching for something, pero napatigil siya nang mapatitig siya sa loob ng vase na nakapatong sa maliit na cabinet, saka bahagya kaming sinulyapan.
"Bat' ganyan ka makatingin sa amin?" Maryvonne asked, tilting her head to the left in confusion.
"Hey, check this out, everyone!" He exclaimed, clutching the vase and approaching where we stood. "This is absolutely fascinating!" His eyes remained fixated on the intricate patterns of the vase, as he peered inside it. But I couldn’t help but squint, sensing something fishy.
Akmang itatapon niya sa amin ang vase, at dahil doon, lumabas mula sa loob ang patay na daga na aming ikinatalon sa gulat. Napatili si Maryvonne nang dumapo sa kaniya ang patay na daga, samantalang nakatitig ako ng masama kay Doyle.
"Sa mga oras na 'to, nakuha mo pa talagang takutin kami, eh noh?"
"Wala akong ginawa ah!" he protested, looking away, pretending to be innocent.
Nagpatuloy kami sa paglalakad para ipagpatuloy ang imbestigasyon. "Let's split up. You guys find information here on this floor; I'll head up to the second floor to investigate. Text or call me if you find anything," he said. Kami ni Maryvonne ay tumango na lamang bilang sagot.
BINABASA MO ANG
Erudition of Doyle: Volume One
Mystery / Thriller(UNDER EDITING/REVISION) Rosalinda Almazan's life turned chaotic once again after a song that left a traumatic mark on the school; signaling the return of the demons, a dangerous organization known as Herald Mortiferum. One day, while investigating...
