Discerning Retribution

iii

The Ill-matched Partnership

THE CAR JERKED ROUGHLY TO A STOP, which had Reagan reaching for the grab handle like her life depended on it. The folders on her lap slid down from the sudden movement, their contents spilling all over the car mat.

She glared at the agent sitting beside her behind the wheel of the unmarked police car before maneuvering out of her seat belt to reach down for the mess of papers. Just as she was arranging them back into their proper folders, the car lurched forward again, propelling her back on her seat.

"Do you need to go or something?" She hugged the folders containing the reports the chief gave her tightly against her chest.

"What?" The man glanced at her before turning the car sharply to the left at another intersection.

Reagan kept one hand on the grab handle and the other on the documents as the car continued to weave expertly through the other vehicles on the road.

"The toilet. I asked if you needed to go to the toilet. 'Cause you're driving like we don't have time; which we do, by the way."

"It's still better if can make it there soon. Time is always of the essence, Detective." He stepped on the gas again, overtaking a truck.

"Time won't be much of an issue if we're dead." She could feel herself starting to panic as she watched the agent's precarious steering.

She knew she should've brought her own car instead of accepting the ride the man offered her. His blue customized hatchback screamed trouble the moment she laid eyes on it. No cautious driver in their right mind would spend money to improve a car. What purpose would that serve if it wouldn't be driven past eighty?

In the first place, the guy shouldn't have gotten to come. She was supposed to check in with the club owner with Wesley, but then the chief told her the agent was going to be her partner for the case. The least she could've done was follow her instinct and stick to her own ride, even if it would've taken her twice the time to get there.

"I'm very skilled at driving. I assure you, we'll get there in once piece." He turned sharply at another corner.

Reagan never thought she'd be praying for traffic, though as she watched the speedometer hit the one hundred kilometers per hour mark while on national road, she couldn't help but beg for there to be one.

She tore her gaze away from the road and forced herself to go over the initial reports one more time. The agent didn't seem like he'd be slowing down, no matter how much she pleads with him. She'd do well to distract herself and make better use of her time.

There wasn't much to gather from the reports though, so she knew the distraction would be short lived. She only wished they'd get to their destination soon. Otherwise, the coffee she drank at the scene would soon be staining the agent's precious leather seats.

She flipped the first folder open and read the responding team's short recap of what they came across at the scene when they arrived. The time of the incident and information on the club was written first on the page.

Time of Call : 01:32
Establishment : CERBERUS
Category : Commercial - Bar and Nightclub
Location : Quezon Avenue corner Evangelista Street, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Owner's Name : Mr. Roberto Kang

The report then went on narrating the incident.

One of the first to arrive at the club was the middle-aged officer on duty at the local police station that night who had written the report. He arrived approximately five to ten minutes after getting the call, and was welcomed by a crowd of more or less a hundred patrons, club hoppers, and employees, some of them already standing outside on the streets and some still running from inside the establishment.