Ms. Liza became our guardian angel. She took the evidence, her hands now steady with resolve. "You should not have this. It's too dangerous. But you were right to bring it to me."
She had a plan. She had a college friend who was now an investigative reporter in Manila, someone beyond the Alcantaras' reach. She would send the documents to her, along with the whole story.
"This will get out," she promised us, her eyes fierce. "But you two—and your… friend—need to disappear from this. Do you understand? You need to act normal. Go to class. You never saw this."
She was putting herself on the line for us. For Luna.
As we left her classroom, a massive weight lifted from my shoulders. We were no longer alone. The fight was no longer in the shadows of a dusty store; it was moving into the light.
But as we turned the corner, we almost bumped into Hector Alcantara. He looked from us to Ms. Liza's closed door, a suspicious glint in his eyes.
"Getting extra help, Santos?" he sneered. "Don't bother. Some people are just destined to stay at the bottom."
He walked away, but the look he gave us was a clear message. The watchers were still watching. And the battle was far from over. We had an ally, but we had also just made the enemy more suspicious than ever. The clock was ticking.