The three of them—Visal, Nida, and Dara—sat beneath the shade of a large tree at the farm, the quiet hum of the countryside surrounding them.
"Now that the complaint is ready to be submitted, and you'll get a summons in a few days," Visal said, his tone matter-of-fact.
"Okay," Dara replied, nodding slowly.
Dara glanced at them both. "But here's the thing: all the information we've gathered so far doesn't really support the evidence we have. What's our next move?"
Visal leaned forward slightly, intrigued.
"What about your mother's phone? I need to check it too. Did you find anything?"
"I checked it last night, but..." Dara trailed off, uncertain.
"But what? Can we see it?" Visal pressed.
Dara sighed.
"It's mostly just regular conversations. She talked a lot with Monica, uncle Rith, my dad, and some other friends. Nothing unusual."
Nida leaned back, deep in thought. "Still, we should take a closer look. Even something small might connect the dots."
Visal nodded. "Agreed. Let's go through it again. Sometimes the answers are hidden in plain sight."
Dara stood up, brushing the dust off his clothes. "I'll grab my mom's phone from the car," he said, walking toward the vehicle parked nearby.
A moment later, he returned and handed the phone to Visal, who immediately began scrolling through it. Suddenly, Dara seemed to remember something.
"Oh, Visal, what about the first person who saw my mom that evening?" he asked.
Visal didn't look up as he tapped through the phone. "Oh, that lady—a villager, called Sros. I talked to her. There's nothing more to it, just what she already told us."
Nida, sitting quietly until now, straightened up, her expression thoughtful. "By the way, Aunt Sokhom... I think she knows more than she's letting on," she said firmly.
Dara paused, glancing up at her. "Why do you think that?"
"I don't know," Nida admitted, "but the way she talked... it felt like there's something she's holding back."
Dara frowned. "You think she knows more about what happened to my mom?"
Nida nodded slowly. "Maybe. It would be better to ask her again."
Visal stopped scrolling through the phone. "Ok! Aunt Sokhom, a lotus farm owner, I knew. I'll take a look."
And then he pointed to a conversation on the phone. "Look at this," he said, showing Dara and Nida the screen. "Your mom and Uncle Rith."
Dara and Nida leaned closer as Visal read the messages aloud:
"Rith, I'm going to my hometown tomorrow… have you prepared for it?"
"Oh, sister. My wife isn't well right now, I can't go anywhere…"
"But I need it now!"
"I'll check with them again."
"Will you come to see me?"
"Maly's mother is also sick. I have to take care of them."
Dara frowned and looked at Visal. "What's the matter with that?"
"You told me earlier your uncle was at the construction site, right?" Visal asked, his tone sharp.
"Yes, that's what I heard," Dara replied hesitantly. "But maybe he stayed back to be with his wife."
Visal's expression darkened. "Don't overlook it. We need to check everyone's alibi seriously."
Dara looked at him, startled. "You're suspicious of him?"
Visal nodded slightly. "Not just him."
Nida, who had been silent, glanced between them. "If your mom was arguing with him or pressuring him about something… it could mean more than we think."
Dara's jaw tightened. "Then we ask him. No excuses this time."
Visal leaned back, tapping a finger on the phone screen thoughtfully.
"The real question is," he said, his voice calm but pointed, "what exactly is 'it' that your mother and Uncle Rith were talking about at that time?"
Dara exchanged a glance with Nida, his brow furrowed. "I don't know... My mom never mentioned anything specific to me."
But in Dara's mind, the thought of money lingered, the mention of it by Minea still echoing.
Nida added, "It sounds like something important, though. She seemed pretty urgent about it. Money?"
Visal nodded. "Exactly. Whatever 'it' is, it was pressing enough for her to insist, and for your uncle to make excuses. We need to figure out what 'it' means."
Dara said "Ok! I'll ask him myself."
Visal and Nida nodded. Dara hesitated, then said,
"Moreover," he added, a sudden thought striking him. "Maybe Aunt Sokhom knows more too... She hinted that my mom used to come here often, and that my uncle owed her money. Perhaps this has something to do with the farm, or the lotus."
Visal's eyes narrowed in thought.
"It's worth asking her again. 'It' might be the key to something."
Dara sat in quiet determination, his mind set on his next move. Nida and Visal exchanged a brief, uneasy glance, both sensing something was amiss.
---
Later that evening, as the sky began to darken, Dara and Nida approached Aunt Sokhom once more, hoping to uncover more details before they left for the city.
They asked her again, but her response was the same as before. She simply said, "I know nothing more than what I've already shared."
Nida leaned forward, her voice steady but pressing. "Just to confirm—are you absolutely sure Aunt Saroath didn't visit the lotus field around the day she died?"
Sokhom frowned, shaking her head slightly. "I didn't see her near the field, but that doesn't mean she didn't go. If you can ask others, that might help."
"We've already spoken to some villagers," Nida replied. "No one saw her there either."
Sokhom exhaled sharply, her tone firm. "Well, that's all I know. I have nothing more to add!"
The finality in her voice left no room for further questions, and as they stood there, the weight of the situation grew heavier, unanswered.
—
As the evening set in, just before returning to the city, Dara made his way to his uncle's cottage, nestled in the same village as his grandparents. Rith, his face pale and drawn, sat beneath a tree, smoke curling from his cigarette, while Maly tended to the stove. Dara carried a fresh batch of lotus fruit, heading toward his uncle with a quiet resolve.
"Oh Dara, where are you from?"
"From Lotus Farm. Didn't you stay at my grandparents' house tonight?"
"I thought you'd be here!"
"No, I'm heading back to the city today."
"Oh I see."
"By the way, did you owe money to the village... I mean..."
Rith interrupted him.
"You're asking about Sister Sokhom?"
"Yes!"
"Yeah, I'm preparing the money for her compensation. I missed the job she offered and even got paid in advance."
"You shouldn't. Pay her back. And by the way, did mom owe you anything, too?"
"Your mom owes me?" My nephew... Uncle owes your mother money... I suppose I owe her, since she asked me to withdraw her share from our garage construction fund for your future plans. I didn't want to halt the project, so I put my land up for sale, the one along the main road. But... she passed before I could give it back to her.
Dara listened, his heart heavy with the weight of his uncle's thoughts.
"Now that Mom's gone, you don't have to sell the land. Keep the construction."
"...Yes, I understand, Dara. I really do."
"Just don't forget to pay Aunt Sokhom back."
"Yes! I won't forget!"
"I'm heading out now."
"Drive safe, my nephew."
"Thank you."