At Least I’M Free
XXI

"Sir, there are many things I want to report. How's it?? Do I write or meet in person??"

Suga stared at the chat message he received with a smile. He had expected that Lilya could quickly obtain information. The potential of the girl is indeed no doubt, especially when it comes to 'reading' people.

Although Huga wanted to reply to the chat immediately and invited Lilya to meet to listen to what information he had obtained, but there was still one other important thing that Huga had to face first now.

30 Minutes had already passed, and the man who in this one day had already driven to those various places had wasted his precious time by waiting. Surrounded by storybook shelves mixed with textbooks with bright colors, Huga can only sit quietly on a short bench made specifically for children to easily ride it.

To be honest, this place is far more terrible than the scene at night. His reason? Of course because smoking in this place is the same as committing moral crimes.

"Ah sorry mas Huga, so long waitin.." suddenly a woman's carefree voice was heard along with the arrival of her figure wrapped in a teacher's batik uniform on her body that was somewhat contained.

"It's okay. Being an elementary school teacher is not an easy job. It should be me who apologizes for coming suddenly without notice" said Huga politely after standing up and shaking the woman's hand.

After shaking hands, the woman sat in the chair opposite Huga. Their distance was only blocked by a small table.

"Yeah.... I understand, why do I tell you? You're a detective" she casually chimed in.

Indeed, after Huga found the letters he immediately left for the sender address listed. Elementary School 3 is a bit far from the port, even so when it turns out teaching and learning activities are still ongoing. As a result, Huga was told to wait in the perpus by the woman who was allegedly named Anggia.

"Thank you for understanding. Then I will explain my needs here." Without waiting any longer Huga reached into something from inside her over coat pocket.

8 white enveloped letters also Huga lined up in front of Anggia. "What do you think of these letters?"

Anggia folded her arms around her chest while her head jutted forward observing the letter one by one. He was surprised to see the address written on the envelope. "Interesting.. Can I see the contents?"

"Please" said Huga, whose eyes were still sharp, observing the movements of the Anggia.

With her slender hands the 30-year-old woman opened the envelope and pulled the paper inside. He briefly read the contents before moving on to another letter. After arriving at the last letter, Anggian lined up the paper in sequence and observed it in its entirety.

A smile on her red lips.

"Wah-wah.. mas Huga nemuin where is this from?" Anggia asked with her eyes still focused on the writing on the papers.

"From an unexpected place." Huga smiled wryly, reluctant to reveal.

"For sure," Anggia chimed in as if understanding, "and my opinion of these letters is 'sucks'."

I don't know why Huga caught the sarcastic tone of that sentence. Even the expression of Anggia shows more admiration than disturbed.

"Well, so you wrote these letters?" Tanya Huga continued.

Anggia raises shoulders, does not answer. His ambiguous attitude continued with his hand reaching into his pocket and putting a banknote as well as a pen on the table. Not stopping there, he casually started writing something on the banknote and showed it to Huga.

"Very identical" Huga commented, comparing it to the one written in the letter, "then what is your purpose in sending these letters every year? Don't tell me you don't understand how a phone works."

Anggia. "No-no, Mr. Huga doesn't understand. A medium of romantic feelings. Even today, people still use it."

"That's it." Huga smiled knot. "You have a unique way of conveying romantic feelings. At first I thought it was all threatening letters..."

Anggia links hands with elbows propped up to the table. He seemed to be about to reveal something, but his lips even smiled ignorantly. "Not wrong anyway\~”

"I actually had some assumptions, but after meeting you in person, I realized how arrogant my thinking was." Huga leaned against the back of the chair while replying to the mischievous gaze of the woman before her. "So what happened 8 years ago, until Ian Kurniawan got kicked out of here and divorced his wife? Then what about you? People who know the victim in the past, had one place of work with him, know the victim's personal address after he divorced, even sent him a letter for the past 8 years.”

“Do you think?” Challenge Anggia.

“The affair is indeed the most effective diversion in this case. But, if that's the reason why Ian did not just marry the woman he cheated on? The answer is simple, because the woman never really existed. Or at least the love of the victim never really existed for the woman.” Huga ended her explanation and leaned over to look at Anggia whose smile was beginning to fade.

“You think I did it, right?” Anggia asked half a whisper.

“You will be very suitable to hold that role. But no, in this tragedy you are the key to the truth that I have been searching for.” Huga re-enforced her body and smiled. “What happened 8 years ago, Anggia?”

Shaking weakly, Anggia tenders the body to the back of the chair. “That's why I said those letters sucks.”

“Please, do not rush,” said Huga while putting a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, then pushing it in front of Anggia.

“Know where I like smoking?” Ask Anggia.

“Easy, inner connection between smokers.” Huga smiled knot.

“Can-can I get in trouble because of this,” Anggia snort despite still receiving it and light a cigarette “Oh yes, mas Huga engga follow?”

Suga took out and opened an iron box in which there was a lot of ash and the rest of the cigarettes that had been short. Again he thrust it in front of Anggia.

“As you said. I might have a problem. So, no thanks,” politely decline Huga.

Anggia stared in disbelief. “Dasaran devil.”

For a moment they were silent. In silence Anggia continued to enjoy his cigarettes, letting smoke wander past shelves and between books.

“Ian, Ian... was dead was still a problem..” Anggia dumped his cigarette ash into the iron box. He looked at Suga and smiled. “Start from here, your work will be more exciting.”

Suga smiled triumphantly. “Tell me.”