Armando almost fell from where he was standing when he lost his balance in his stance. His hands fell on the tiled space of the admin desk. While regaining his strength, he was panting badly and sweat was forming on his forehead.
He immediately left the hospital and quickly went straight outside to start his rented car. He didn't miss a second, he felt it was too late. However, he will try to give chase, hoping that not even traffic will stop his search for Hale.
His feet were almost numb from walking. Every step he took was heavy but with speed. He started the car engine, but unluckily, when he was in a hurry he ran out of gas.
He cursed out of exasperation. It looks like fate itself makes him feel that he will never succeed in what he plans.
He went out for a while and walked around to find a nearby gas station. If it's not a gas station, he is hoping to find a store that sells bottled gas.
After a short walk, he arrived at a big store. How fortunate, he found what he badly needs right now. The lady in the store offered him the bottled gas at a cheap price. He immediately grabbed those and filled them in his rented car.
His problems never end. Just after the previous one, another one has come. He was supposed to pay for the bottled gas he bought; unluckily, he didn't have any cash with him. He checked his wallet but only debit cards were available.
He asked permission from the owner of the store to go to the nearest bank to have cash. The seller responded to him that it was okay he would just have credits on it. However, Armando declined the deal. He has high respect for the small businesses.
It's been ten minutes but he is still not leaving and starting the travel. He ran like a horse just to reach the nearest bank.
The good news, the ATM didn't have long lines. He got his wallet from his pocket and then pulled the card. He immediately submitted it on the machine. In just a few seconds, he had a successful cash withdrawal.
After he got the receipt, he immediately crossed the pedestrian lane. He approached the lady in the store and handed her a one-thousand peso bill. He didn't wait for the change, he just departed the place quickly.
Finally, the engine of the car started. He drove slowly and calmly while deeply breathing. His mind formed a thought that if he acted like he was in a hurry, the universe wouldn't allow him to have a smooth trip.
After he opened the air conditioner, he turned on the radio and tuned in to FM frequencies that play love songs.
When he arrived in the most trafficked lane, he noticed the face of Hale in a black car. He bit his lip and brushed his eyes. He looked carefully at the person sitting in the back seat.
He swallowed twice and unexpectedly felt nervous. He has many questions regarding that middle-aged woman with her. He is wondering why his girlfriend is with her. He suspects that woman, he assumes that she might be the one who kidnapped his girlfriend.
"Thank God I finally found my partner. Please bless my trip and help me with my plans. I need to follow that car no matter what..."
~~~
Madam Zorraida yawned, she got bored waiting for the traffic to dissolve. Staring around the lane, she accidentally gazed at a guy beside her car. She observed that the guy was looking at her orphaned girl.
She felt alarmed and activated her alertness. She has a gut feeling that maybe this guy was one of the kidnappers who hurt Hale. She immediately checked her handbag to look for her sil*ncer g*n.
The lane eventually became clear. She started her car and drove fast. She raised the speed and then went in another direction.
Just how bad it is, the man is really tailing her car. She felt irritated and getting nervous as well. She has two girls with her, and she needs to ensure the safety of those.
Luckily, she arrived at a place with many crossings. She followed the car with the same color as hers. She blurred the glass so that the guy following her could not recognize her vehicle.
Armando didn't catch up after a short distraction. The tire of his car got pricked by a spike because of his misuse of car speed.
He is now doomed. The car he was using is not personally his. He panicked and shouted so loud.
"Arrrgghhh! Why did this happen today? Goddammit!"
He still has cash in his pocket after he checked. There is a taxi passing by where he stopped driving. He waved his hands and immediately went inside the taxi after he was noticed by the rider.
"Will you help me to follow someone's car? That car is black. I will pay you thrice the amount of the fare. Please..." he asked for a favor from the driver.
Definitely, the driver immediately accepted the offer. Armando just used his manipulation skills through money. He is very aware that some poor people will bite the luxury foods offered by the wealthy.
He is not a wealthy person, he is just wise in saving money. He received the early salary yesterday with additional overtime pay and a bonus. So it's so easy for him to hire some people to help him.
Madam Zorraida became successful with her tricks. She escaped the stalker who had been following her car lately.
After she arrived on an unplanned route, she instructed Carolina to transfer to a taxi. She commanded to lift Hale's body and brought her to the back set.
Carolina was nervous about what she said. She promised that she would explain later what was really going on today.
"Here is the written address. Just give it to the driver, he already knows what to do. Please take care of Hale, huh. Have a safe trip!" Madam Zorraida hugged Carolina after she handed the address.
The taxi has left. Now, Madam Zorraida has the chance to confuse the stalker. She has a gut feeling that that guy can still catch up.
Definitely, she arrived on a silent road. The place has the vibes of a small forest and mountains.
She explored the place until she reached the lowest part of the mountain. She was startled when she saw a sign written "Accident Prone Area".
As weird as it seems to just smile after seeing that sign, she is really happy that her plans just work surprisingly well.
"I need to find a murdered victim here in this area. I will put a personal thing that will prove that the dead body I can find here is Hale's." She whispered.
She walked and walked further. Gotcha! After she crossed one kilometer away, she finally found a dead body.
The body was freshly dead. It has similarities to Hale. It has male genitalia, long hair, and is a little bit slimmed. However, the situation of the face was tragic. It looks like the transgender's face was burned by the kill*r.
While she was staring at that poor dead body, she couldn't control her emotions until she ended up crying. She was reminded of her tragic past when the time that she almost died at the hands of her rivals.
She moved fast after she realized that she needed to accomplish today's plan. She put a medical certificate of Hale on the hand of the dead body.
Next, she climbed the mountain. She went in her car and she planned to push it until it fell.
She took a deep breath and gained her energy. She exerted her strength pushing the heavy car just to make the fall successful.
"W-Wait... I forgot to remove the plate number." She stopped for a while to fix something.
Now that everything has been cleared, she continues her plan. She pushes and pushes harder. And voila... the car just slides dramatically after a minute.
She picked up her gun from her handbag. "Goodbye, my precious car."
Boogghsshhh!
Armando heard the massive noise from the road. "Sir, did you hear what I heard? Something doomed."
The taxi driver made a worried face. "I think the car just crashed."
"W-W-What? Just what? Huh?"
"If the person you are looking for was inside that car, I am saddened by what happened. Condolences, sir."
Armando quickly showered the ten thousand bills inside the taxi, then he rushly left.
He ran so fast until he arrived at the silent road. He is gasping and trying to catch his breath.
When he arrived, he accidentally slipped on the mountain. Surprisingly, he landed on a dead body.
"H-H-H-Hale... Hale... HAAALLLEEE!" he randomly shouted with bursting cries after he noticed the medical certificate located on the dead body.
"HAAAAALLLLEEE!"