Chapter 19

“Malaya! Malaya!” Emilio’s voice echoed across the concrete as he hurried after her.
“Leave me alone, Emilio! Don’t follow me!”

“Please, just tell me why you’re acting like this. You begged me to open up, to talk to you. What happened to your big speech about friendship?”

The night wind howled between them, stirring her hair and making the hem of her dress flutter. They faced each other beneath the cold fluorescent lights—two people who had finally run out of pretense. Malaya had become the mirror of everything Emilio refused to confront.

“I regret it, Emilio. I regret asking you that. If I’d known what would come out of your mouth, I would never have asked.”

“Malaya, I know I made a mistake.”

“A mistake?” she laughed bitterly. “A mistake is lunging at one person, not systematically targeting several!” She took a deep, shuddering breath. “Tell me, Emilio… please, tell me one thing: did those people have a choice?”

He froze, unable to answer.

“Were their grades really a reflection of their work,” she pressed, “or of your dirty secrets? What about me? Was I going to be the next name on your list?” Her voice trembled, then steadied. “I was a fool to think Dr. Emilio cared about Dr. Williams’ little intern with no ulterior motive!”

“Malaya, please—”

“You’re not answering me, Emilio…” she screamed, her voice trembling with irritation.

Emilio couldn’t speak because she wasn’t entirely right or wrong. The damage was already done. No explanation could clarify it. He knew full well that one of his actions, in particular, would definitively strip him of all credibility as a doctor and, even worse, his right to practice. He was careful not to expose himself, thereby tarnishing his reputation.

“Madam!” A breathless voice broke the silence. “Madam, I saw you leave!” It was the chauffeur.

“You’re still here?” Emilio snapped.

“Yes, Sir. I have to drive Madam Malaya home. Madam’s orders.” He meant Williams.

“Can you give us a moment?” Emilio asked, trying to regain control.

But Malaya objected: “No. I’m going home.”

“Malaya, please!” Emilio forcibly restrained himself from grabbing her arm.

She hurried away with the chauffeur, and they drove off, the sound of the engine covering the last of Emilio’s protests.

The night had reclaimed its calm in one part of the city, but in another, it pulsed with a quiet intensity.

Evelyn and Kannika waited outside a dim building, watching the empty road.

“There,” Evelyn said suddenly. “That’s him.”

“Finally,” Kannika muttered. “Time to get some answers.”

They stepped out of the car as the detective approached. He confirmed their identities with a curt nod and gestured for them to follow. Without a word, he led them down a narrow, unlit alley and stopped before a chipped metal door different from the one they had knocked on earlier. Inside, the smell of old paper and cigarettes lingered. Kannika scanned the room, her eyes catching on every small detail. The air smelled of old paper and cigarettes. A half-finished cup of coffee sat beside a stack of disorganized files. A gun safe stood slightly ajar in the corner.

“Well, Madam,” the detective said with a dry laugh, “you come late in the evening.”

“Actually, it’s about the search I asked you for,” Evelyn replied, attempting to steer the conversation.

But Kannika got ahead of her. “First of all, I would like to see what you have gathered so far concerning the lady she is looking for.” She intended to verify the detective’s credibility instantly.

The detective was skeptical of Kannika, who had clearly understood the game. “I don’t keep client documents here,” he hedged. “Then tell us what you know,” Kannika insisted.

“I told Madam that the lady she was looking for was indeed here, and I was still on her trail.”

“How do you know she is here?”

The detective frowned. “Excuse me, who are you?”

“Someone who wants to make sure you’ve actually done your job,” Kannika replied coldly

“Well, I traced the school Madam said she was part of, and I followed the name of the lady she is searching for. I found out that she and her mother had traveled here.”

Kannika crossed her arms. “And yet, after three years, you’re still chasing shadows, even with both names?”

“She is nowhere on social media. And there are several people with the name Williams and her mother, so… It’s not as easy as you think, ” the detective sounded genuinely annoyed by the scrutiny.

“And her mother?” Kannika pressed. “She wasn’t exactly hiding, was she?”

The detective exchanged a quick, nervous glance with Evelyn.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Evelyn asked, turning to Kannika.

“I did research since the day we got back from the hospital to have more information in case we needed to cover our backs. In fact, if he had given you her mother’s full name, Miss Kai Malee, widow of the late Isaac Williams, you would have easily found the daughter, Niran Williams,” Kannika said, the conviction in her voice absolute.

Evelyn’s eyes widened. She remembered now — how every time she’d asked for names or documents, the detective had dodged her questions, giving vague excuses about “lost traces” and “changed identities.”

The detective’s jaw tightened under Kannika’s steady gaze.

“So, what was it?” she said, leaning forward. “Three years of taking Evelyn’s money? Or did you deliberately choose to hide what you knew?”

“Where did you get that information?” he asked, his voice low. “That’s not public.”

“Answer the question,” Kannika shot back.

He didn’t. The silence stretched, heavy and suffocating. Kannika had him cornered.

“Mr. Detective, what really happened?”

Evelyn looked between them, confused and frightened. “What’s going on?”

Well, Kannika added slowly, “he’s been lying to you from the very beginning.”

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