CHAPTER 03

TWYLA’S POV.

“NARITO na po sila,” I heard the private secretary of my boss, Mr. Cameron, announce.

Mr. Cameron turned his head to look at me. Walang buhay ang mga tingin niyang nakapukol sa akin. I wasn’t sure if he was pleased to see me arrive, o baka gusto niya na akong tapusin dahil mahigit dalawang oras akong late. Tss, alam naman niyang hindi ko ugali ang iwanan ang trabaho ko para lang sa ganitong pagtitipon.

Primo swiftly removed the fabric covering the couch and helped me sit down. Walang emosyon kong nilibot ang paningin ko sa lahat ng taong narito sa loob ng mamahaling kwarto. This was one of the executive rooms here at Black Sun. Black Sun is a high-end club here in Spaña where VIPs are served. To be honest, I still didn’t quite understand what else this bar had to offer.

I just found out earlier that one of these VIP rooms here costs millions. When I say millions, I don’t mean just one or five million, but thirty to fifty million pesos for a single f*cking room. It’s incredibly expensive, as if the contents and interior design of the room were made of gold. Masyadong malaki ang perang iyon, sabagay, barya lamang iyon para kay Mr. Cameron.

“Alam naman namin na mayabang ka at mataas ang tingin sa sarili. But it’s still unacceptable to keep the higher-ups waiting— tauhan ka pa rin ng organisasyong ito, Twilight.” Ayon na ang mga salita ni Keshi Demir na parang parati na lamang akong gustong ipahiya sa grupo. I didn’t understand why he was so angry with me; it was probably because he was deeply jealous of me.

Paano naman kasing hindi siya mai-inggit sa akin? Kung gaano karami ang mga kasong napagtagumpayan ko at ng team ko, ganun din karami ang mga kasong binitawan niya dahil pumalpak siya. In short, naiinis siya sa akin dahil siya ang mas matagal na sa amin sa organisasyon, ngunit palagi lamang siyang pumapangalawa sa akin. Wala pa naman din kasi akong binibitawang misyon dahil lahat ng iyon kinaya kong pagtagumpayan. Ginawa namin ng team ko ang best namin para solid ang binabayad sa amin ng mga clients namin, nang sa gayon ay hindi masayang ang pera nila para sa hustisyang hinahanap nila.

Sa organization namin, hindi libre ang serbisyo namin. Kailangan nila kaming bayaran para gumalaw ang kasong pinapahawakan nila sa amin. Ngunit hindi rin kami namimili ng mga magiging kliyente namin. Kung may pera ka man o wala, gagawin namin ang lahat para lang makamit nila ang hustisya.

Keshi is one of the team leaders in our organization. Kagaya ko, siya ang kumikilos o ulo sa grupo nila. Pero kung bobong kagaya niya ang namumuno sa team, their team is bound to fail.

Tsk.

Alongside us in the room were all the high-ranking members of the organization—individuals highly skilled in their professional careers but who have yet to be given the opportunity to fully showcase their talents. Take Mr. Grant, for example, isa sa mga taong narito sa loob ng kwarto—a lawyer who came close to losing his life fighting against a wealthy family. Dahil sa ginawa niyang paglaban sa pamilyang iyon, pumanaw ang buong pamilya niya nang ipasunog ang bahay nila habang mahimbing at payapa silang natutulog. At dahil nga walang ebidensya, naging isa lamang iyong ordinaryong sakuna.

Keshi is also one of the victims of the powerful people na palaging pera ang pinapagana at pinapantapal sa bulsa ng mga nakaupo sa batas. So, I don’t understand why he gives up so easily on every mission assigned to his team. He should be the one to persevere, especially since he has experienced being a victim himself.

“Bakit? Ikaw ba? What time did you arrive?” I asked Keshi without any emotion.

“Ano? Ako? Para sabihin ko sayo, nandito na ako dalawang oras bago ang call time. Hindi naman ako katulad mong masyadong mayabang at mapagmataas,” nanggagalaiti na kaagad niyang sabi.

I gave a sarcastic smile, lifting the right corner of my lips as I locked eyes with him.

“No wonder none of your missions ever get completed—because you prioritize showing up here first. Keep that up, and maybe one of these days, instead of being a secret agent team leader, you might just end up as an appointment setter, mukhang doon ka kasi mas magaling.” I said with a playful smirk, casually playing with the steak knife between my fingers.

“What did you say?” he asked loudly, clearly insulted by my words.

“Ahem!” Malakas na pagtikhim ang ginawa ni Mr. Cameron na siyang nagpatigil sa amin.

I leaned back against the couch, smirking sarcastically while locking eyes with Keshi.

Nasalubong ko naman ang mga tingin ng dalawang kumag kong kasamahan na sina Primo at Koby, parang gusto nilang matawa dahil sa naging sagot ko kay Keshi. Batid kasi nila kung paano ako magsalita, talagang walang preno ang bibig ko kapag hindi ko gusto ang kaharap ko.

“Twilight,” Mr. Cameron called me in a firm and commanding tone.

I turned toward Mr. Cameron, waiting for what he had to say.

Twilight is the codename I use in our group. Primo goes by Moonlight, and Koby is Starlight. Actually, we have another member with the codename Sunlight, Ha Joon—ang koreanong hilaw naming kasama. Wala lang siya ngayon dahil may emergency sa bahay nila na kinailangan niyang um-absent ng ilang linggo.

The codenames might sound corny to you; even I find them cheesy. And it’s funny how it all started when they began calling me Twilight after hearing my real name, Twyla. Then they each followed suit, saying it was to make us a matching set of four. Pretty corny, right?

“I congratulate you on your success. Your entire team will receive payment before the end of the night,” Mr. Cameron declared, looking straight into my eyes.

“No need for that. Just donate my share to the group’s charity foundation,” I declined. “It’s not money that I need,” I added.

“In that case, what do you want in return?” Mr. Cameron asked.

“A man,” I answered directly.

Everyone turned to look at me as if I had just said something unbelievable.

“What? A man?” Mr. Cameron asked in disbelief.

Mr. Cameron is the founder of the organization. Hindi ko alam kung bakit niya binuo ang organization na ito, but I’m certain there’s a deeper reason behind it. Mr. Cameron is wealthy and among the most influential individuals in the Philippines. He also maintains a good public image. Ngunit hindi alam ng lahat na siya ang nagpapagalaw ng organisasyon naming ito, siya ang ulo naming lahat. Ang provider sa bawat misyong ginagawa namin sa tuwing hindi kayang magbayad ng kliyente namin.

Keshi let out a sarcastic laugh, casting a disdainful glance my way.

“A man?” he mocked. I raised an eyebrow at him, a slight smirk playing on my lips. “Nakakatawa namang marinig na ang isang mayabang na katulad mo ay nangongontrata ng isang lalaki. Hindi ko akalain na may itinatago ka rin palang kalandian, Twilight.” Walang preno at bastos na wika pa nito.

Several men beside him, presumably his entire team, burst into laughter. The saying “birds of a feather flock together” is indeed true. Mukhang pare-pareho sila ng leader nilang may maruming imahinasyon.

“Watch your words, Keshi,” Primo warned in a firm tone. “And stop calling her arrogant.”

“Why? Isn’t what I said true?” Keshi defended himself.

“Mayabang ka rin naman, pero hindi namin iyon pinakialaman.” Sabat naman ni Koby.

“Hoy, Koby! Hindi naman tamang kausapin mo ng ganyan si Keshi. Tandaan mo na naging leader mo rin siya noon,” pagtatanggol naman ng isa sa miyembro ni Keshi.

“Matagal na akong umalis sa team niyo,” depensa naman ni Koby.

“Kahit ganon, mas mataas pa rin siya sayo kaya kailangan mo siyang igalang sa ayaw at sa gusto mo. Mayabang ka rin eh, dahil ba nakasama ka sa ilang misyon nila?” Wika naman ng kasama ni Keshi. If I’m not mistaken, he’s one of Keshi’s loyal team members, like a dog ready to obey any command without question.

“Tama na ’yan, pwede bang mamaya na lamang kayo mag-away kapag wala na ako sa harapan ninyo?” Mr. Cameron intervened in an authoritative tone.

Sabay-sabay naman na tumiklop ang mga ito at palihim na lamang na nagpapatayan ng tingin sa isa’t isa.

Mr. Cameron shifted his gaze toward his private secretary, Sanz, and whispered something that only the two of them could hear. Sanz nodded repeatedly, as if fully understanding the instructions given.

We remained in the room for several more hours. Siyempre hindi rin natapos ang palitan ng maaanghang na salita sa pagitan ng bawat team namin ni Keshi. Mabuti nga at mukhang sanay na rin ang mga nakatataas sa amin sa ganitong pagtatagpo namin. Normal naman kasi ang paligsahan sa grupo. Basta huwag lang na kami mismo ang magpatayan.

After discussing various matters, Mr. Cameron and the other senior members excused themselves to leave. I was about to follow when Sanz stopped me, saying he had prepared something for me and my team. Since I was still wide awake, pumayag akong maiwan sa kwartong iyon kasama ang dalawang kumag kong kasamahan.

“Tres? Ano’ng ginagawa mo rito?”

Napalingon ako sa may labas ng kwarto kung saan ako nagpapahinga nang marinig ko ang boses na iyon. Bahagya akong sumilip sa labas mula sa nakabukas na pintuan na hindi ko alam kung sino’ng tanga ang nakaiwang bukas ito.

Time seemed to slow as I recognized the man outside, wearing a simple white t-shirt and black pants, engaged in conversation with a beautiful woman dressed in black shorts, a black crop top, and a black jacket. Mukhang seryoso ang pinag-uusapan nilang dalawa, hindi ko ito marinig dahil hindi sapat ang distansya ko sa kanila.

“Twy, let’s go,” Primo suddenly appeared.

I nodded in response, but before following him, I took one last glance at the man outside the room. He felt familiar to me—I just couldn’t place where I had seen him before.