บท 13: No secrets lasts forever

Anna Mendoza.

Elena Almodiel stared at the family photo in her hand. She was not mistaken.

It was Anna Mendoza, the woman in the photo with her son.

Initially, she was uncertain, but her eyes reminded her too much of the Mendoza senior. Elena was glad that she was right.

Additionally, she noticed that Anna had left quite an impression on his son. If anything, it would be incredibly beneficial if the two of them get past being mere acquaintances.

This made her smirk. Business-wise, a marriage between Anna Mendoza and her son, Kristofer, would not be a bad idea.

"Martha," Elena stated, calling out to the person on the other end of the line.

"Elena, it's been a while," Elena smiled upon hearing the response from her long-time friend.

Martha Lewis was editor-in-chief of one of the biggest broadcasting companies. She has always been Elena's go-to person whenever she needed to find someone.

Martha Lewis has a better knack at finding people and gathering information than a private investigator.

"Ah, yes. How have you been, Martha?"

"Oh, you know, the usual. Work is work."

"You should also take a vacation, Martha. Taking a break once in a while would be good for your health," Elena heard her friend sighing on the other end of the line.

"If only it were that easy. Alas, I'm always swamped," Elena clicked her tongue.

"I shall request your leave of absence sometime soon if you still wouldn't take that break yourself. If that would be the last thing for me to do to help you get some vacation, I should do it."

Martha Lewis chuckled from the other end of the line. Elena waited for her mirth to subside, knowing that this was the part when she would ask her why she had called.

"It's good to know that you still haven't changed, Elena. Now, to more pressing matters, how may I help you?"

"You really know me well enough, Martha," Elena listened to her friend chuckle again.

"Of course. You rarely call unless it's important. So, what can I do for you, Elena?"

Elena smiled.

"I need information on someone."

"Need," Martha Lewis noted. It was Elena's turn to chuckle.

"Yes, Martha. That's how badly I needed your help."

"Oh?"

"Yes. And please, keep this between us. I am going to send you her name. I hope you get back to me as soon as possible,"

"Well, that's what I do best."

—

Kristofer covered his face with his hands. The search engine had shown so many Anna's, but none of them seemed to be the Anna that he was looking for.

"Of course, she had to have such a common name," Kristofer muttered.

Anna.

That was all he had and nothing more; there were thousands and billions of other Anna's around the globe.

How was he supposed to find the same woman whom he met?

"Ah dang it," Kristofer threw his hands in the air as he glared at his computer, which showed the list of several Anna's. He let out a frustrated sigh.

A few minutes later, Kristofer found himself laughing. What was he even doing? What will happen if he finds information on her? What would he even do when he does?

It was not like there was anything he would do in particular when he found out who she was.

But either way, Kristofer was dying to know her identity. The mystery around her was eating him from the inside.

Kristofer then briefly remembered how she had bid him good luck. It made him realize that she was hiding something to make her that confident.

Drumming his fingers on the desk, Kristofer pondered what he should do next. Suddenly struck with an idea, he pulled himself close to his computer desk.

He searched for the media's photo of the two of them, saving a copy to his drive.

Kristofer then grabbed his phone and dialed a number.

"Fancy, you remembered to call me," Grace teased him the moment she picked up.

"I'm sorry. You know me. Busy, as always," Kristofer listened as Grace clicked her tongue. She knew him. She knew him too well.

"Debatable. Totally debatable. Anyway, to what do I owe this honor, Mister Almodiel?" Kristofer can't help but chuckle.

"We are being formal now, huh?" Kristofer shook his head. "Well, alright. Straight to business. I will email you something. Can you help me figure the mystery out?"

"Send it away. I'll see what I can do."

Kristofer clicked his email and sent Grace the photo.

"Sent. Check your email."

"Oh," Grace stated.

"Oh, what?" Kristofer asked, uncertain why she made that comment.

"I did not expect this. Huh. It seems like someone has been smitten," Kristofer chuckled, shaking his head again.

"It's not what you think, Grace,"

"I will bet everything I have that it is what I think. Else, you would not be calling me to help you find this woman."

Kristofer muttered a curse. He had no defense.

Grace was right to point out that if this were of no importance to him, he would not have asked for her help.

Grace was not a detective. But, the next person that had a way of finding people and any information on them, second to his mother, was Grace.

The story behind that was not something Grace was proud of, but Kristofer commended her for being brave anyway.

It was no secret that Grace Inolan's father had an affair.

Not just with one woman but a lot. And Grace took it in her hands to track them down behind her father's back to make them back off.

Grace pitied her mother, who often waits for her father to come home but never does. Although it made little difference, Kristofer let Grace do what made her feel better.

Besides, who was he to stop her? If he had been in her shoes, he might have done the same or worse.

"Come on, Grace. Between the two of us, you are the one who has a way of finding people. Any information you get would be appreciated."

"Oh no. Your mother is the best detective of all. You might have forgotten. But I will also bet you are trying to hide this from her. And that's why you called me."

"Oh, Grace. You still haven't changed."

"That's rich coming from you."

Kristofer chuckled yet again.

"Well, are you going to let me die of curiosity, or are you actually going to help?"

"Let me see. I have wedding preparations going on right now. I can help you, but it won't be a priority. I'm sorry, Kristofer."

Kristofer almost forgot about the wedding. Grace was scheduled to be wed soon, and it slipped his mind.

"Ah, right. I'm sorry. I almost forgot about that. Take your time Grace. But not so much. I will forever be indebted to you."

"Please. We already made it past that debt thing Kristofer," Grace scoffed. "Alright. I will update you when I find something."

Kristofer smiled.

"Thank you, Grace."

"Don't mention it. Though, I'm curious about one thing."

"What is it?"