Witnesses said that there were three men who declared a heist. Two of them went to the back office behind the counter. The remaining one acted as a watcher.

When the SWAT swept through the building, they had found two of the hostage takers on the floor, dead on the spot.

Nobody knew what happened inside the back office except for one witness.

The witness claimed that he got dragged into the room by another man. But that man was not one of the hostage takers. The man engaged with the hostage takers and killed one of them.

When asked further about what happened, the witness claimed that he suddenly fell unconscious, and could not provide anymore details.

No video had been recorded on the CCTV throughout the incident.

Henry placed the report on the table.

From his jacket he took a black box and pulled a stick.

From the opposite side, Andre shuffled over and flicked the zippo lighter.

Henry sucked the smoke into his mouth. He inhaled as he leaned back on the black leather sofa. Smoke slowly flowed from his mouth.

His suspicious mind was bothered. There was more to it than meets the eye, and he was determined to find out.

The CCTV footage inside the bank was most likely deleted. It would take  time before they could recover some evidence, if it was even possible.

The scent of tobacco mixed with mint filled the office.

Kasumi and Andre gauged the boss’s reaction. Years of working under Henry enabled them to understand his subtle expressions. But eventually they realized that they were able to do this only because Henry allowed it. The man had an impervious mask.

“I want that footage retrieved, but keep it under wraps. Yours and Andre’s personal expertise is highly appreciated.” Henry instructed his chief of security.

“As you wish.” Kasumi replied. The boss’s words meant that they should not use their men to gather information. They had to do it themselves.

Henry dismissed his two subordinates.

In Kasumi’s office, the two held a brief conversation.

“Should I investigate him?” Kasumi asked.

“Even if you asked him a question, I doubt he knows something. He’s just a migrant worker.” Andre lifted his spectacles.

Kasumi nodded.

“But, just in case…”

“Alright, I’ll tell him…”

 

A piece of paper suddenly blocked his view.

Miguel put the paper down and saw yellow swirls.

“Miggy, don’t be sad. I drew a sufwower for you.”

The voice of a young boy snapped him out of his stupor. Miguel smiled at the four-year-old boy. The child was close to him and would follow him around, often asking for cuddles before nap time.

“Thank you, Benjie. Can I… Can I keep it please?”

 “Yesh, you may. Just wook at it when you feew sad. Sufwowers make sad people happy. Daddy said so.”

“Let’s pack your bag. Your guardian is waiting for you outside.”

After sending their last pupil out, Miguel helped the teacher tidy up the room. They were about to go to lunch before going home. But his phone rang.

“Hello Miguel?”

“Yes, Ma’am Glinda?”

“Miguel, I have a big favor to ask you. Can you please come immediately to the office so that I could tell you more about it?” Her voice sounded shaky.

Miguel sensed that something was wrong. Could it be that he made a mistake, and now they want to fire him from his job?

Suddenly he was filled with dread.

What if…?

No, he couldn’t lose a job now. It was the only company that was nice enough to accept an employee to work part time. Plus, his immediate supervisor was nice. Glinda was patient with him as he learned about the company.

“Yes. I’ll be there Ma’am.”

He waited until the call was dropped. Then he apologized to the teacher, and told her that he would not be able to join her for lunch.

The teacher did not mind. So, Miguel rushed through the streets. When the bus arrived, he quickly climbed the stairs and chose the seat closest to the door. Only then was he able to relax. He wiped the sweat on his brows with a blue handkerchief.

As soon as the vehicle dropped off at his stop, he got off and brisk walked to the building.

“Hi Ma’am Glinda! Sorry I am late.” Miguel said when he reached the office. He was breathing hard from the short marathon.

The older woman felt bad when she saw him sweating and panting. She made him sit and handed him a glass of water. After the young man took big gulps of the cool liquid, she finally talked.

“I’m sorry that you had to rush here.”

“No. It’s alright. I… Did I -  Is it something that I did? Are you going to fire me?”

Glinda was taken aback.

“No. No. I’m sorry if I did not explain it well through the phone. You did nothing wrong. In fact, you had been excellent in all the work that you did. If it weren’t for your part time status, I would have recommended a pay increase for you. Sadly, our company only allows it for regular employees.”

Miguel sighed. So, it wasn’t like that. In his mind, he thanked the Divine Being.

“I called you because I wanted to ask if you could help substitute the other assistant who is working under me. She called a few hours ago, and told me that her daughter was brought in the hospital today. There is a scheduled party later in the evening that our company will attend.”

Miguel nodded in understanding. But his boss’s next statement made him freeze.

“I need you to attend together with us.”

Glinda waited patiently for his response.

“It would be an honor that you share with me this task. It’s not that I don’t want to. The thing is Ma’am Glinda…” Miguel’s voice faltered.

“It’s alright. Don’t be scared. Just tell me.” She gave an encouraging look.

“I don’t know what the party’s theme is. I don’t think I have the appropriate clothes for it. My only clothes are this.” Miguel pointed to his simple white long sleeve shirt with a collar.

Glinda exhaled in relief and smiled.

“That is no problem. I’m sure the company will pay for your dress. I’ll make sure that Stephen will approve of it.”

“Oh. Okay Ma’am.” Miguel was relieved.

Glinda stood up.

“I think we have shopping to do. We have the whole afternoon to prepare for the party.” She smiled. There was a sparkle in her eyes.