Black. Just as it started, just as it ended.
White. The light before the end.
Rachel woke up dizzily. Her head hurt. Her mind slow like a computer booting up. She recalled. Her head hurt. That was what she remembered. She remembered that her head hurt. She winced. Her face was in pain as well. She brought her fingers to her and caressed it. It hurt. The area around her right eye hurt. She got up. She looked around. The room was not much brighter. She got up from the cold floor. The room looked rather small. There was a bed, a dressing table, a cupboard with a television on it, a small coffee table and a closet. It looked like a room in a hotel. The windows, however, were covered off with cardboard or planks. She stumbled her way towards the window and tried to pry off the cover but to no avail.
---Fist. Face. Darkness.
---It hurt her. She did remember the basic necessity such as her name was Rachel and most importantly her case. She regained balance and left the windows shut. With a much better focus, she evaluated the place. It was a hotel room. There were some bags. She went through the bag to look for something. For anything. There was something. She felt a smooth plastic object in her palm. Metallic pieces in bonded it together. She pulled it out.
---A ball of fist into the face. Everything happened slowly. Frame by frame, she could see the jab coming at her, unavoidable. But she still could not put a face to it.
---Rachel grabbed the mobile phone out and scrolled down the digital phone book. Jeremy was the first person she called. She reached his name on the list on her screen and pressed the green button. It was dialling.
Meanwhile, somewhere else, a phone was vibrating. It vibrated softly in the pocket of one. In the darkness, it nudged gently against the inner fabric of the trousers. However, it was not felt. It could hardly be felt when everything else was moving else well. It could hardly be heard as well with all the commotion. There was the sound of a moving vehicle. There was the sound of the breaks, as the vehicle halted. There was the conversation.
"Hey Jeremy," greeted a girl. Jeremy came out from the car and assisted the girl in.
"Hey," he greeted back, "Ready for the ball, T-?"
There was the sound of dialling too but Jeremy did not hear that.
---Rachel scavenged through the room, searching for something of which she was not sure. As she did so, her phone was in her hand, trying to reach Jeremy. There was nothing, both from the phone and from the room. She could not get Jeremy and she could not find anything. She looked through her phone and called the next person. She scrolled down the digital phone book and searched for '
Some time around last week.
"You like the sun, don't you?" said Rachel as she came from behind.
"I like the heat," replied
"So-" she began, "Why couldn't you tell me online?"
"Too many people track the computers in the learning spaces," he enlightened.
"How many is that?" she asked.
"About four," he answered.
"Four?!" she exclaimed.
"Yep," he confirmed.
"One of them is the administrators of the college?" she guessed.
"As if," he laughed, "They don't do anything. The councils, Ben and I are a few of them."
"Ben does it too?" she inquired.
"Ben just likes to keep chat logs in case of anything," he responded.
"Well, the main reason why-" she started.
"I know," he interrupted.
"Then which side do you thing did it?" she questioned.
"No sides. Just that, don't get Jason involved in this," he warned.
"Aren't you being a bit biased?" she argued, "I know you've been friends with him before this."
"Don't get Jason involved in this," he repeated.
"That would mean that the HMC student council is involved," she assumed.
"Critical Thinking Skills. That would be false dilemma," he reminded.
"That's when you have two choices and if one is not the choice, the other must be," she explained.
"Good luck with your case and your exams," he wished.
"You too."
---The last day of the examination. The last paper of the semester.
Scratches of pens and pencils could be heard across the room. It was like machines in a factory, inconsistently working and chaotic. Everyone was at their own desk with booklet of papers in front of them. Carmen, Jeremy, Ben, Eugene, Joe and Rachel were here. The rest of them were not taking History. The paper was no walk in the park. It could be, if the park were infested with hungry man-eating foxes.
One by one, as each one of them finished their papers, they stood up and left the room. Rachel stood up just after Jeremy did and both of them left the room. Then everything was a blur.
---Rachel was done making a mess out of the room. Her mind was not focused. She was trying to recall the event which occurred before her blackout as she tried searching around the room. Her memory was still a blur. Questions filled her mind. For a second, she had forgotten she was on the phone as well.
"How may I help you, Rachel?" the voice came from the receiver of the mobile phone.
"I think I'm in trouble," she hissed into the speaker.
"Why?"
"I'm standing in the bathroom, looking at a soap bar with the name of the hotel where the ball is being held carved into."
That was no all Rachel found. She found a piece of paper next to the sink.
"That's a predicament."
There was a silence for a moment before he continued, "Meet me at basement one."
The conversation ended with endless beeps. Rachel put down the phone and slipped it into her pocket. She was more engrossed in the piece of paper. She flipped it around. Sudoku. The same one which was from the HMC student council.
Jason had a piece of the paper.
The last day of the examination. The last paper of the semester.
Rachel came out of the examination room. Jeremy was already there but had to leave to pick up his date for the annual ball. Carmen, who finished about ten minutes, called Rachel aside. She asked Rachel about the investigation to which Rachel replied that she was about to close. She then asked Carmen about the annual ball to which Carmen replied that she had to finish some business first. The both of them walked and talked, breaking away from the crowd. Suddenly, Carmen stopped and apologised sincerely. Rachel questioned Carmen's intentions.
Fist. Face. Darkness.
A ball of fist into the face. Everything happened slowly. Frame by frame, she could see the jab coming at her, unavoidable. She could see Carmen, with shame, brought her rolled hands into Rachel's face. Knuckles met her flesh and everything else was black.
---Rachel felt a shiver. She was still confused.
"If Carmen was involved, then why was she found fainted?" she pondered.
She was looking at the mirror. She could see her messy black hair through the filthy lenses of her spectacles. Her clothes were crumpled and dirty. There was something different. She noticed a shiner. And also that she was talking to herself.
"Could it be Jason?" she asked. She shook her head to herself. She knew there was something more to it. And she grinned. She knew what that something was.
---Somewhere in the middle of the finals. Possibly the third day of the finals.
Marcus was back. Marcus had a paper he had to sit. Marcus looked healthy with nothing much but a few scars. Marcus was approached by Rachel after he had left the examination room. Marcus was asked the details of the accident. Marcus answered. Marcus was asked about the event during Halloween. Marcus answered. Marcus was asked if he knew anything about Sudoku. Marcus answered. Marcus told her about how he accidentally locked Aris out of his car. Marcus was then asked if there was anything in the jeep. Marcus answered. Marcus told her that there was only his junk. Marcus was asked if he helped anyone to take anything. Marcus answered. Marcus told her. Marcus said she helped
Rachel's trains of thoughts were crashing. She left the room quickly to head for the rendezvous. Any longer and she was bound to bump into unwanted visitors. She opened the door and checked the place through the little gap. The room was at the corner of an 'L' shape. She could either go straight or take a right turn. She opened wider and she was about to head straight but stopped. There were two people heading her way. They were members of the student council. They headed for the room slowly, taking a leisurely stroll across the corridor in their dresses. They opened the door and found the whole room in a mess. One of them checked the whole room while the other went outside to look. No one was outside.
Rachel managed to sneak out to the side as the two approached. She took the right turn but it was a dead end. She turned back but she heard a creak when the door opened. She hid in the small entrance where the door to another room was. She lifted her head slightly to check. The person was gone. She dashed for the lift on her toes, balancing between stealth and speed. She pressed the button, waited and soon the elevator arrived.
The elevator was beautifully designed. The elevator had a grand silver door with a metallic design over it. A bell rang quietly when the digital number above the door was the same as the number of the level. The grand door parted in the centre, each part sliding in the opposite direction. The first thing she saw in the empty lift was the reflection of her messy self with a blackened eye. The top half of each of the walls of the elevator was a mirror and the bottom half was a nice golden base.
Rachel went in and pressed the on the button of the basement on the control panels jutting out on the wall. Floor by floor, the elevator descended, starting with the fourteenth.
The wait was annoying. Impatience was a disease growing inside of her. The elevator moved down floor by floor. Her foot tapped on the carpeted floor of the box dangling above a few lines of cable. She could feel her weight decreasing from the slow fall. And then it stopped. Her heart pounded. Uncertainty was thrilling and scary.
The elevator door slid open. Through the small gap, there was a silhouette of a person in a black suit. As the gap widen, it became clearer. The familiar face was not wearing glasses this moment. He was wearing a blue shirt inside and black trousers on his legs. His hair was handsomely combed.
"Jason?"
Jason stepped into the elevator and pressed the button to close the elevator door. He turned around and stood next to Rachel.
"Good eve," he wished.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
"I'm here representing the A-Levels in your promenade," he answered.
"Is that all?"
"And I'm here on my own terms."
He stopped before adding, "How goes the investigation?"
"It's going fine," she said, "Got into a bit of trouble."
"Ah," he said with comprehension.
"Ah?" she repeated quizzically, "It sound like you know something."
"Nay," he replied, "I try not to get myself involved.
"Are you scaring people now, Jason?" said a different but familiar voice.
As they were having their conversation, the elevator had stopped a few floors below for someone on the fourth floor. The person standing on the outside was wearing a suit with a white shirt and a black tie. He held a black slim cane in his left hand. He stepped into the elevator.
"
"Jason," replied Eugene, "And Rachel."
There was silence and he added, "I see you two have met. And sorry Jason, I didn't see you the entire evening."
"Not a worry," said Jason.
"I thought I suppose to meet you in the basement," spoke Rachel.
"Not really," said
"Oh," she said, pondering about the phone call, "Just so you know, I've solved most of the case."
"I'm not surprised there."
"Well done," congratulated Jason.
"And you're involved," continued Rachel.
"Shocking, eh?" commented
It was somewhere around the end of October, on a Wednesday afternoon, about half an hour before one o'clock in the afternoon. It was the universal period for the department of HMC to have no class at all. It was the period when most club and society meeting occurred and the period when the incident happened. Most of the classes were empty except for a few replacements.
He walked down the corridor casually. He thought it would be good. It was relaxing to walk down the fully air-conditioned tunnel. It was a nice feeling when the cold air flowed against the warm body. He also had something to do at that part of the corridor, more specifically seminar room ten. He wrapped his fingers around the chilled handle bar and pulled the door open. He rotated his arm and checked the digital screen of his wristwatch. It was a few minutes before twelve thirty. He was ready.
Soon after patiently waiting, Carmen entered the room and she checked her mobile phone. He appeared behind of her and wrapper his arm around her. The piece of wet cloth in his hand met her mouth and nose. He felt her weight falling against him. He gently let her body rest on the ground. He headed for desk but he heard footsteps in the corridor.
---"You left the Sudoku for us to find. You left the clues hidden on the white board. You left the photographs as clue cards. You infected the computers in the learning space to show the message. You also place the poem where Carmen fainted."
Both of Rachel and Eugene had parted with Jason and were in the basement of the hotel where the cars were parked.
"More or less," he replied, "And congrats."
"That's not an accurate answer," she pointed, "Which means there is more to it."
"Smart," he commented.
"So what do you mean by it?" she asked.
"I did have help," he said subtly.
"Help?" she said, "Did Jeremy help you?"
"One of the many few."
"How much did he know?"
"Not much," he said, "As much as I wanted him to know."
"I don't get it," she admitted.
"What don't you get?"
"If you knew all this, then you could have stopped it," she said, "You could have saved a life. You could have reduced the damage done."
"You don't get it," he pressed, "First you need to know why Ashikin had died."
"She heard something she should not have heard. It was a conversation between Victoria and Jason during the Halloween event. That means Jason's involved as well."
"If only you knew what the conversation was really about..."
"Why don't you tell me?"
"I can't."
"If you did tell someone, you could have stopped this whole thing!" she argued.
"You don't get it. There was nothing I can do. No one would believe the whole HUC had two rivalling criminal organisation. I knew this was coming. I knew all this even before joining HMC. I have thought of multiple situations how everything will turn out. None of them was a happy ending," he explained.
"Then why did you tell me?"
"You went searching for the truth. You'd never given up until you found out. And now you have. You know who knocked Carmen out. You know who killed Ashikin. You know who planned Marcus' accident. That's all I have to offer."
Rachel stood there and sighed. There were tears in her eyes she was holding back. It was sad; the sad truth.
"Come on," he beckoned, "I'll drop you off to the train stop."
"No, thanks," she said discontentedly, "I'll hang about for a bit."
"Suit yourself. Just don't get caught again," said
She stood there on the concrete pavement of the basement, alone. She felt useless. She did know what to do or what could be done. She felt powerless. She had forgotten about the migraine from the knock. The pain in her chest overwhelmed the actual pain her head.
She headed back for hotel, dragging her legs as though they were bricks, and took the lift to the floor where the grand ballroom was. People in suit and dresses stood outside at the waiting area, patiently chatting as they awaited the ceremony to start. They all were happy. It was hard. None of them would be if they knew the sad truth. Water leaked from her eyes and rolled passed her cheeks. She was trying to hold everything in. She was looking from a distance, trying to avoid people. It was a dark ending and an unexpected one.
"So this is how it ends?" she thought as she walked away from it all.
---Everyone thinks differently. It is only of the many characteristics of being an individual. And because of that, no matter how close everyone is to one another, everyone still feels alone.
---Meanwhile at an unknown location.
"You," he cried, "I have been looking for you."
"What a pleasant surprise, Jeremy."
It was dark, secluded and empty.
"This ends now," said Jeremy.
"Yes, it does."
Bang. It was a gunshot. Red flowed out from the body into darkness.
White. The light before the end.
Black. Just as it started, just as it ended.
End of Chapter 5
The End
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