Tita Rosa had finally put her foot down about the Bontotots, claiming that she could no longer play the host because of her high blood pressure. She had returned to her desk and her endless task of accounting, the ancient adding machine cranking through its gears in regular intervals, this sound the heartbeat of the house. She registered her disapproval about Chet by not asking me where I had spent the night. Maybe she was making peace with it, but by steering clear of the subject she was avoiding complicity in an inarguably immoral situation. It was the correct thing to do.

Originally, I had planned to have the car to myself all day and was going to Bibo’s apartment to help clear it out. But in the morning, one of Carmi’s restaurants had lost power, and she asked if I would bring Miggie to a birthday party in Magallanes.

Miggie sat next to me with her wrapped gift, playing a game on her iPad. Her yaya, Nini, sat on the rearmost seat, quiet, her perfect features set in an inscrutable expression. Nini was very pretty and her prettiness was remarked on, as was her ability to sit through any number of situations without uttering a word. Her stillness seemed to me a form of protest, as if her good looks should have earned her some better station in life, but there she was in her striped yaya uniform, looking out at an uncaring world, waiting to wipe Miggie’s nose or be ordered to do some other thing that other beautiful people were not subjected to. Miggie set the iPad down and fixed me with a penetrating look. “Tita Ting, why are you going to Tondo?”

“I’m doing a favor for a friend,” I said.

“In Tondo?”

“Yes.” I returned her look. “Someone died and I’m packing up their apartment.”

“Why you?”

“Because there’s no one else.”

“Why is there no one else?”

Thankfully my phone started to ring. It was Chet. “Where are you?” he said.

“Just entering Magallanes. Why?”

“I arranged for Cherry to help you.” Cherry was Chet’s maid.

“I don’t need Cherry. I’ll be fine. I have Mannie to help.”

“He’ll carry the boxes for you, but you need someone packing. I’ve already arranged it.”

Cherry was legendarily efficient. “Okay. I’ll come by the apartment.”

“No. Cherry’s at the house in Dasmariñas.”

“She’s back in Dasma?” Understandably, I was wary of anything that brought me into C. G.’s orbit.

“Just for the morning. She’s waiting. And she has boxes.”

“Chet, I’m really fine.”

“Don’t be stupid, Ting.”