TWENTY-FOUR SECONDS (NO LONGER COMPLETE)

CHAPTER FORTY

A/N: The first part, you may be confused, is a detailed retelling of what happened in the meeting between Shelby and Lyndie's friend. Just to give you an idea about what they talked about. :) Please don't forget to vote and comment para ganahan akong mag-upload uli. Hindi na ito lalampas ng Chapter 50.

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"Flynn Schlossberg never liked Ms. Amy Brown," patuloy ng kaibigan ni Lyndie. "For him, she was the barrier towards his goal---to be the closest human to Mr. Henry Klaus Albrecht."

Sinubukang alalahanin ni Shelby ang hitsura ni Flynn Schlossberg. Pero kahit anong gawin niyang pagkilatis sa isipan, he didn't strike her as somebody who has a questionable sexual orientation.

Napakurap-kurap si Shelby nang biglang humalakhak ang mama. Bumalandra na naman ang sungki-sungki nitong ngipin na puno ng tartar. Bahagya siyang napangiwi. Wala siyang naalalang sinabi o pinakitang maaaring pagtawanan nito. Ano kaya ang nangyayari sa lalaking ito? Nababaliw na ba?

"No, no, no. Mr. Schlossberg is NOT gay. That's not what I meant." Humalakhak ulit ito.

Pinamulahan ng mukha si Shelby. Nababasa ng lalaki ang kanyang isipan! She felt very uncomfortable now. Ganoon ba siya ka-transparent?

"Ang ibig kong sabihin kanina, gusto niyang maka-close si Mr. Henry Albrecht not because he liked him as a lover would, but because he wanted to gain more financial rewards. You see, Mr. Albrecht was a very generous man especially to people he likes. I think he still is," paliwanag nito sa magkahalong Espanyol at English.

"Before Mr. Albrecht found Ms. Amy Brown again, solong-solo ni Mr. Schlossberg ang simpatiya nito. Alam mo ba na dahil lang sa pagsama lamang nito dito sa Amerika binigyan siya agad ni Mr. Albrecht ng shares sa kompanyang itinatag nito? At that time, he was just a mere assistant."

"Why did you know all these?" biglang tanong ni Shelby.

Ngumiti ang lalaki. "Sabihin lang natin na matalas ang radar ko," sagot nito sa Espanyol at humalakhak na naman. Napangiwi nang bahagya si Shelby sa kanya. Matalas ang radar? Ibig sabihin ba'y nakapasok ito sa circle ng ama nila Marinette at Gunter? Pero paano?

"You look so suspicious," sabi ng lalaki. Napailing-iling ito. At bigla itong nagseryoso. "All right. Kaibigan ka rin naman ni Lyndie. I will let you in a little secret." Sinenyasan siyang lumapit dito. Tapos bumulong sa kanya. "I used to be Flynn Schlossberg's driver! There. Alam mo na ngayon kung bakit ang dami kong alam?"

Napatitig si Shelby sa lalaki. Driver ni Flynn Schlossberg? Na-hit and run daw si Amy Brown. Hindi kaya----? Dumagundong bigla ang puso ni Shelby.

Ngumiti nang makahulugan sa kanya ang lalaki. Hindi ito nagkomento, pero may kutob si Shelby na alam nito ang naging laman ng kanyang isipan. Tumikhim-tikhim siya at tumingin muna sa paligid nila para kunwari'y hindi siya naalarma sa bigla nitong isiniwalat.

"Mr. Albus Smith Senior passed by that road on that fateful day. Amy Brown could still move at that time. She even managed to get at the center of the road and flagged the first car that passed by---that was Mr. Smith Senior. He simply slowed down and looked at the victim. Had he helped Amy Brown right there and then, she would have survived the accident."

"Mr. Albus Smith Senior?" ulit ni Shelby. Gulat na gulat. Napanganga siya.

"Yes. You know that t-shirt guy who allegedly started his business from scratch? Our self-made millionaire? Our golden boy?" Humalakhak na naman ang mama. Nang tumangu-tango si Shelby saka lang nagpatuloy. "He's the only son of Mr. Albus Smith Senior."

Napalunok nang sunud-sunod si Shelby. Ang dagundong ng puso niya'y tila dumoble pa.

"Mr. Smith received ten million dollars from Mr. Schlossberg for not stopping by to help Amy Brown. He was also the one responsible for hiring two fake witnesses that testified against Mr. Henry Albrecht. You see, a few minutes after Mr. Smith left the scene, Mr. Albrecht came. He was shocked to see his beloved woman lifeless and bloody in the middle of the road. That was when two men in motorbikes came and photographed the whole incident. Henry Albrecht asked them for help, but instead of helping him they ran to the nearest police station and reported that a German billionaire had hit and killed somebody on the road."