Clash Of Crowns I: Shadows Of Love And Sacrifices.

XXX || Report

Please note: This story may contain errors and grammatical mistakes. Your understanding and patience are appreciated as this is a work in progress.

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MAXINE'S POV

Nandito kami nila cole, skye at gian sa headquarters, at hinihintay namin yung tawag ni Dad, expected ko na tatawag siya dahil nag text siya sakin ka gabi, gusto niya makita lahat nang information na nakuha namin this past few weeks.

We’d spent the last few days going through the intel we gathered, at ngayon lang binago namin ang ilang detalye sa files na ibibigay namin kay Dad, hindi niya pa pwede malaman na may connection ang mga alvarez doon sa bagong organization.

Mapapahamak si aiesha at siya lang naman ang iniisip ko...

My phone vibrated on the table. It was time.

Huminga muna ko ng malalim bago ko ito sinagot.“Dad.”

“Maxine,” he greeted, his voice carrying that familiar weight of authority. “Do you have something for me?”

“Yes. We’ve made progress.”

“Good. I expect a full report.”

I could hear the anticipation in his voice. He was eager for results, and I needed to deliver, but I couldn’t shake the unease I felt, knowing I’d have to keep certain things from him.

That wasn’t something I was used to, but I’d made my choice. Aiesha, Yves, Solace, and Shee were part of this now, at hindi ko sila ila-laglag.

“Meet me at the office,” he said. “We’ll go over everything.”

“On my way,” I replied, grabbing the folder I’d prepared and motioning for Cole, Skye, and Gian to follow. We were a team, and I wasn’t doing this alone.

Nakarating rin kami sa office ni dad at pag pasok palang namin ramdam ko na yung bigat nang hangin sa loob. My father sat behind his desk, hands clasped together, looking at us expectantly.

“Let’s get started,” he said, at tsaka niya kami sinenyasan na umupo.

Inabot ko sa kanya yung folder at bumalik sa upuan ko.

Nasa loob noon lahat nang nakuha naming impormasyon, names, pictures, and other information we’d gathered from following the new organization’s members.

Everything except the Alvarez connection....

“We’ve identified several key players in the new organization,” paninula ko. “These are their names, and we’ve included some photos of them in different locations around the city.”

He flipped through the pages, nodding as he scanned the information. “And what about their leader? Have you figured out who’s running this operation?”

“Not yet,” I admitted. “But we’re close. We’ve noticed some patterns in their movements that suggest they’re meeting with someone higher up, but we haven’t been able to pinpoint who.”

Sumandal naman ito sa upuan niya at tumigil na sa pag buklat ng files. “You’ve done well. This is solid intel.”

Nakahinga naman ako nang maluwag dahil dito, pero alam kong hindi pa to tapos lalo pa at marami pa siyang hindi nalalaman.

He didn’t know about our alliance with Aiesha and the others, or how deep we’d actually dug.

We’d uncovered more than we were showing him, at yon ang ikina babahala ko ang malaman niya na may tinatago ako sa kanya, kilala ko si dad kung matalino ko mas matalino siya...

“We’ll keep digging,” I added, keeping my expression neutral. “We’re sure we’ll find more soon.”

He nodded, at ngumiti pa na hindi naman niya madalas ginagawa, huling kita ko ata sa ngiti niya nung andito pa si mom. “I’m impressed, Maxine. You’ve always had a good head for this kind of work, but this is beyond what I expected. You and your friends have done a remarkable job.”

“Thank you,” I said, feeling a strange mix of pride and guilt.

“Make sure to keep me updated,” he continued, standing up and walking around the desk to face me. “We need to stay ahead of this organization. Whoever is behind it is dangerous, and I want them neutralized before they become a bigger threat.”

“We will,” I assured him.

As we stood to leave, I couldn’t help but glance at my friends. Cole, Skye, and Gian were keeping straight faces, but I knew they were feeling the same weight I was. We’d made a choice to protect Yves, Solace, Shee, and Aiesha, but that choice came with consequences.

Once we were outside the office, Skye let out a low whistle. “Grabe yon, yung kaba ko hanggang bun-bunan eh.”

Cole nodded, her arms crossed as she walked beside me. “He bought it, though. Hindi siya nag hinala.”

“Hindi pa,” I muttered, running a hand through my hair. “But we need to be careful. One slip, at mag tatanong narin yan nang mga bagay na hindi na natin kayang sagutin.”

Skye glanced over at me, her expression serious. “You think he’ll find out about Aiesha and the others?”

I shook my head. “No, if we’re smart enough. We just have to keep our alliance quiet until we figure out exactly what’s going on with this new organization.”

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Naka balik na kami sa Headquarters and we settled into our main room, Cole leaned back in her chair, raising an eyebrow at me. “So, ano yung susunod na plano?”

Umupo ako at nag hilot ng sentido bago sumagot.“We keep following the leads we’ve got. We’re still missing a few pieces, but we can’t rush it. If we push too hard, we’ll tip our hand.”

“And the Alvarez connection?” Gian asked quietly.

“We keep that to ourselves for now,” I replied. “We can’t let our fathers know about the connection, or the alliance we’ve made. It’s too risky.”

Cole exchanged a look with Skye, then nodded. “Agreed. But we need to move fast. This organization isn’t going to wait for us to figure things out.”

“I know,” I said, alam kong ikakapahamak namin lahat to, pero kailangan namin gawin. “We just have to play it smart.”

We sat in silence for a while, the gravity of everything sinking in. This mission wasn’t just about uncovering the truth anymore, it was about protecting the people we cared about. And that made everything so much more complicated.

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