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Twofold Warning

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THE PLACE was dank and dark and at once, the searchers turned on their flashlights. A steep incline led them to a door which opened into a wine cellar with many kegs. It was apparent that the place had not been used in some time.

At the same instant, she and Ned heard a sliding door scraping open. They looked towards the sound which came from the opposite side of the room. A concealed door was slowly being opened. Two men in Indian dresses walked in. Jahan and Dhan! The latter was carrying a whip which he began to brandish.

"So you thought you would spoil our little game?!" Jahan said. "You underrated us."

He reached toward Ned's hand and grabbed the jewel box. Nancy had a fleeting hope that he would not open it, that the men would leave, and she and Ned could escape.

But her hope was shattered when Dhan ordered excitedly, "Open that box!"

Jahan did so. He gave a cry of dismay upon finding it empty. He screamed at Nancy and Ned, "WHERE'S THE SPIDER SAPPHI—"

Before Ann could finish reading the last sentence of the paragraph, her focus was ruptured by a shrill scream.

Napaangat ng tingin ang dalaga mula sa libro na kaniyang binabasa. She hadn't realized she was already in front of her dormitory room — where the screams seemed to be coming from. Kahit na weekend ngayon, ay naisipan muna ng dalaga na huwag umuwi sa kanila. She wanted to avoid any conversation with her parents as of the moment.

Shutting her book and pushing it inside her body bag, agad na binuksan ni Ann ang pintuan ng kanilang kwarto.

"Sera! Anong nangy—" The young girl demanded, but soon stopped amidst her tracks when she came inside the living room.

Sa gitna ng sala ay makikitang nakatayo si Sera at Queenie na mukhang kakapasok lang rin sa dormitoryo. They had looks of horror as they looked around their living room that seemed unrecognizable now.

"What. The. Hell." Ann muttered under her breath as she stepped over remnants of books strewn across the floors.

Papers and different other items were scattered as well. Some of the pillows seemed to have been ripped out as their stuffings spilled all over the room. Furthermore, the cupboards and drawers were opened as if someone was looking for something, and even their clothes and uniforms were thrown mercilessly around like worthless rags.

"My experiment!" Queenie cried out in alarm. Bigla itong napatakbo sa kaniyang kwarto na nakabukas ang pintuan.

The curly-haired young girl didn't have to run that far inside though because by the time she had stepped in, it was evident that her room was also ransacked.

"No, no, no, no..." She whimpered, kneeling down to gather the pieces of glass shards on her room's floor. Most of her burners and test tubes were shattered and now unusable.

Binuksan rin ni Sera ang kaniyang kwarto at hindi na nagtaka nang makitang binasura rin ito. Ann on the other hand, immediately looked for her burner phone. Nang makitang nasa loob ito ng kaniyang bulsa ay nakahinga siya ng malalim.

Whoever had trashed their rooms was clearly looking for something, and if she had left her burner phone inside the box under her bed, baka natagpuan na ang sikreto niya kasama ni Rein.

"Ugh, they ruined all my fucking makeup!" Sera cried out in annoyance as she picked up a broken compact mirror. In the mirror's reflection ay may nakita itong kakaiba.

"Ann." She muttered under her breath, causing Ann to look sharply towards her direction.

"Look at the wall." Sera said through gritted teeth, at agad na lumingon ang dalaga para tignan ang sinasabi ni Sera.

Hindi mapigilan na mapabalikwas ito nang makita ang isang nakakadiring sitwasyon sa sentrong dingding ng kanilang sala.

Written in dark red ink were the words: STAY OUT OF THE CASE. THIS IS YOUR FIRST WARNING.

"I can't believe this." Sera muttered under her breath.

But what was even more horrendous was the fact that there was a big, fat, bloody dead rat just below the letters — as if threatening them that their fate could be similar to the dead animal if they didn't heed the warning.

Ann's forehead creased further as her heartbeat thumped anxiously against her ribcage. "Is that... blood??" Sera asked in disgust, wrinkling her nose. "And oh my God pumatay pa talaga sila ng daga!"

Ann ignored Sera's rants about the rat and stepped closer to examine the writings on the wall. "Who the hell are you..." She murmured grimly, swiping a finger against the tip of the first letter. Inilapit nito ang daliri niya sa kaniyang ilong upang amuyin.

"What is it?" Sera asked in disgust.

"It smells like blood." Ann said, shaking her head. "But I'm not a hundred percent sur—"

"Akin na."

Agad na napalingon ang dalawang dalaga kay Queenie. The curly-haired lass had a stony, hard look on her face which made Ann step backwards, letting her take a sample of the pigment on the wall using a cotton bud.

After taking an ample amount, Queenie then dabbed the bud into a small test tube containing clear liquid that she was holding in her other hand.

"Thankfully may natira pang mixture sa loob ng cabinet ko." Queenie grunted, letting the cotton bud dip into the tube for a few more seconds.

"Para saan?" Kunot-noong tanong ni Ann.

Queenie shot her with a glare. "I've been experimenting on simple household mixtures that would determine whether or not a certain stain contains blood." Taas-noong sabi ng dalaga.

At that moment, the mixture turned into a light shade of blue; dahilan para mapatingin si Ann at Sera kay Queenie, waiting for her explanation.

"What does blue mean?" Sera inquired, still covering her nose with a handkerchief to cover the ugly smell of the dead rat.

"Dark blue correlates to a stain made out of pure blood." Queenie replied in a matter-of-fact tone. "Light blue on the other hand, pertains to a stain with only a few components of blood, but isn't made out of pure blood. And if the mixture turns green, then there isn't a sign of blood at all."

She then raised the test tube in her hand. "This one's light blue. So ibig sabihin, may halong dugo yung ginamit sa pagsulat n'yan." Queenie frowned, staring at the letters. "They probably used the rat's blood, whatever — that isn't the big question here."

She then angrily faced Ann and Sera who suddenly realized why Queenie seemed to be so hot-headed.

"So anong ibig sabihin nito?" She said sharply, feeling immensely betrayed. "May alam ba kayong dalawa na ako nalang ang hindi pa nakakaalam?!"

"Queenie I—" Ann stuttered, feeling guilty now that Queenie had been caught up in the mess. "We should've told you sooner, hindi ko alam na idadamay rin kay—"

"So Sera knows." Queenie spat out in anger. "Sinabi mo sa kaniya pero hindi sa'kin. Dahil ba mahirap ako? Walang kwenta? Not enough for your standards, little miss perfect??"

Ann's eyes widened in surprise. "Queenie," She scoffed. "Hindi umiikot sa'yo yung buong mundo. The reason why I was sneaking out was because I had a deal with Maccio to be partners for the Writers' Schism."

"Oh, I get it." Queenie nodded, her eyes flaring.  "Hindi mo sinabi sa'kin because you didn't want your beautiful reputation ruined. Is that it?"

Ann felt her eye twitch in annoyance. "Ayokong sabihin kahit kanino, kahit sa inyo — because the consequences are deadly!" She yelled back, frustrated with Queenie's indignant tone. "I have no one to trust, okay? Napilitan lang rin akong sabihin kay Sera kasi kailangan namin siya para tulungan kaming imbestigahan kung sino 'yung nagnanakaw ng mga entry novels sa Schism!" 

"Ooohh, so that's what they mean by 'stay out of the case'." Queenie said sarcastically. "Well, since ngayon nadamay na 'ko, I'm guessing you guys are only telling this to me now kasi wala na kayong choice. Nabunyag na yung sikreto niyo."

"That's where you're wrong." Sera interjected, stepping in between Ann and Queenie who looked as if they were going to strangle one another's hair. 

"We were about to tell you this evening." Sera said sharply. "Nagkataon lang na nangyari ito."

"I don't believe it." Queenie sneered, and with one sharp turn, she haughtily left the room in a fit of anger.

"QUEENIE!" Ann and Sera yelled, running after her into the night.

The evening was still young and many of the students were taking advantage of it by by strolling outside the campus grounds and enjoying the start of the weekend. Street lamps of the campus were lit like a plethora of fairy lights that shone around the grounds. Napatingin ang iilang mga estudyante sa kanilang wagi nang makitang hinahabol ni Ann at Sera, dalawa sa pinaka-tinitingalaang estudyante sa paaralan, si Queenie Rose Gintuan — an unpopular academic scholar.

"Queenie!" Sigaw muli ni Ann nang makitang tumakbo palabas ng main gate ang dalaga.

"Ang haggard-haggard na natin!" Sera cried out in dismay as they too, ran out of Castillo High's main gates, running further and further from the school.

With their heels thudding across the cobblestones, the two girls were starting to catch up with Queenie as they ran past by countless vendors and passerbys walking across the sidewalks.

"That is the LEAST of our problems Sera!" Ann hissed as Queenie immediately turned into a dark alleyway.  Habang tumatakbo ay lumaki ang mata ito nang makitang may isang grupo ng mga lalaki ang biglang pumalibot kay Queenie.

It was a gang of misfits.

"Sa'n ka patakbo, ganda?" One of the men sneered, grabbing Queenie's arm. The young girl's tear-stricken face that was once a mixture of anger and sadness a few moments ago, turned into fear.

"Hmm. Castillian siya base sa suot niya. Marami 'yang pera sigurado." Sambit ng isa pang lalaki na naka-mohawk ang buhok. 

"Wews." Another man whistled.

"Magkano ka kaya?" Ngisi naman ng lalaking nakahawak kay Queenie habang hinihimas ang mukha nito.

"SHE'S WORTH MORE THAN YOU CAN EVER BARGAIN FOR." Ann yelled as soon as she and Sera had come near. Agad na napalingon ang grupo dahil sa sigaw ng dalaga. Bago pa sila maka-react ay biglang tinadyakan ni Ann ang lalaki nakahawak kay Queenie sa mukha. 

"ARGGHHH!" Sigaw nito at agad na binitawan si Queenie. Ann immediately pulled her away, much to Queenie's hesitance.

"Hakawan n'yo sila!" One of the men shouted. Ngunit bago pa nila mahablot ang dalawang dalaga ay inilabas ni Sera ang kaniyang pepper spray at itinapat ito sa mga mata ng mga natitirang lalaki.

"Filthy men!" She yelled in disgust while continuously pressing the pepper spray's button. As the gang cursed out in pain, tumakbo na ang tatlong dalaga pabalik sa Castillo High. Ngunit bago pa sila makalapit sa main gates ay biglang pumiglas si Queenie.

"Ano ba?!" Sigaw nito, much to the two girls' surprise. "Hindi tayo magkaibigan diba? So walang pakialamanan!"

"Seriously?!" Sera scoffed. "We just saved your life!"

Ann, who was breathing heavily, shook her head. "You're right," She said grimly. "We weren't friends before." She then stepped forward and placed both hands on Queenie's shoulders.

"But whether you like it or not, we're in this together now." Ann said in a serious tone.

Queenie let out a sarcastic laugh. "Sinasabi mo lang 'yan kasi nadamay na 'ko! You don't even trust us — me. You don't even trust me!"

Ann softened at her words. "I do." She said before pausing.

"Sinabi sa'kin ni Sera na nakita niyo ako na lumabas sa opisina ng Gazette, snooping around. Pero kahit na ilegal yung ginawa ko, neither the two of you reported it. So Queenie, I do trust you. Even if my actions were suspicious, both of you didn't snitch me. And if that's not someone I can trust, then hell, I don't know what is."

At her words, Queenie's shoulders trembled before tears started springing out from the corner of eyes.

Hindi mapigilan ng dalaga na umiyak.

"Hey," Ann said softly before squeezing Queenie's shoulders. 

"Does that mean you both consider me as a friend now?" Queenie asked silently.

"It was a mistake not considering the both of you as one." Ann whispered, and they both glance at Sera who winked whilst shaking her pepper spray.

For a moment, the three girls stood there under the light of a single lamp post, consoling Queenie who had never felt welcomed in her whole life — not until now.

As Queenie was just about to speak, bigla namang tumunog ang ringtone ng cellphone ni Ann. Kunot-noong inilabas ng dalaga ang telepono mula sa kaniyang bulsa at saka sinagot ang unknown number.

"Hello?" She frowned. "Sino po sila?"

"Ann!" A familiar voice cried out. 

"Quinn?" Kunot-noong tanong ni Queenie, which made Ann frown further.

"Quinn? Bakit ka tumatawag? Anong meron?" Sunod-sunod na tanong ng dalaga. "And how did you even know my number??"

"To answer your last question, Rein has a copy of the class record here in our dorm containing all our contact details. And to answer your first and second question... Well... is there a chance that your room was raided?"

"What?!" Sabay-sabay na sigaw ng tatlong dalaga.

Ngunit hindi na sila sinagot ni Quinn, abruptly ending the call. Nailipat rin ang kanilang atensyon nang biglang may isang sasakyan ang pumarada malapit sa kung saan sila nakatayo.

Confused, the three girls glanced towards the car and was even more confused to see Jarrell pulling down the window of the car. He was seated in the driver's seat.

Surprisingly, nakaupo naman si Quinn sa passenger seat.

"Quinn! Sa'n kayo pupunta??" Queenie demanded as soon as she saw her twin. In reply, Jarrell merely opened the car's back doors.

"Hop in. We'll tell you everything on the way." Jarrell said in a serious tone. Despite being a frazzled mess, the three girls obeyed and settled down in the car's backseat.

"Whose car is this?" Sera asked curiously as the girls glanced at one another in confusion.

"Sa'kin." Sambit ni Jarrell, inciting a raised eyebrow from Sera.

"Impressed?" Jarrell grinned as he drove away.

"Ahh I see. Benefits of being the son's mayor." Sera answered playfully.

"You said your room was raided." Ann said in a serious tone leaning forward to eye both boys in the front seats.

"Yeah." Quinn responded grimly before glancing back at the girls. "With a threat written in blood. Kayo rin ba?"

"Yep. The asshole even gifted us a rat." Sera said, rolling her eyes before fixing her appearance through her reflection on the car's window.

"Anyway," Jarrell interjected loudly just to annoy Sera. "Naisip agad namin ni Quinn na may kinalaman sa inyo ni Rein yung nangyari."

"Ang hindi namin maintindihan ay bakit." Quinn said with pursed lips. "Did your parents suddenly find out that you two were partners and sent someone to threaten you both? At anong ibig sabihin ng 'stay out of the case'?"

"Alam mo rin??" Singit ni Queenie. "Ako nalang ba talaga yung huling nakakaalam?!"

Napailing naman si Ann habang nag-iisip ng malalim. "No, no, it can't be our parents. They won't threaten us that way."

She then raised her head and frowned in realization. "Teka, hindi pa ba sinabi ni Rein sa inyo?" Tanong nito at nagkatinginan muli ang dalawang lalaki.

"Ang alin? May iba pa ba kayong sikreto na tinatago bukod do'n sa pagiging partners niyo sa Schism?" Kunot-noong tanong ni Quinn.

"May iba pa?!" Queenie exclaimed incredulously.

"Look," Ann groaned, rubbing her temples. "I'm sure Rein was supposed to inform you both, but didn't have the chance. Pero ayun nga, para sa kaalaman ng lahat, Rein and I are investigating the case of the missing novel entries to prevent the thief from stealing ours. Alam niyo naman na 'yun diba, the drafts and entries of the participants of the Writers' Schism are reported as missi—"

"We get it, it's all over the Gazette." Quinn interrupted. "So kung gano'n, pa'no nalaman agad ng mastermind na iniimbestigahan ninyo yung kaso??"

"I don't know, okay?!" Ann cried out in exasperation. "He or she, must've, I don't know, heard us discussin—" Hindi na natapos ng dalaga ang kaniyang sasabihan at agad silang nagkatinginan ni Sera.

"The janitor." She and Sera said at the same time.

"Anong janitor??" Yamot ni Jarrell na muntikan nang sumemplang sa daanan dahil sa stress.

"Kagabi, may nakita kaming janitor habang nag-uusap — Ann, Rein and I." Sera explained. "Umalis kami agad because we were already suspicious that a janitor was cleaning at a time like that, pero hindi na namin siya sinundan."

"He must be the mastermind. Or a spy — or an accomplice of the mastermind." Ann muttered under her breath.

"Edi wanted na kayo?" Kunot-noong tanong ni Jarrell. "At kami rin? Since dinamay niyo kami?"

"They must've assumed na kasama kayo since your Rein's friends, and Sera was with us — wait, teka." Ann frowned. "Nasa'n nga ba si Rein??"

"That's where were going." Quinn said under his breath. "Umuwi siya kanina sa mansyon nila para bisitahin yung kapatid niya. Tinawagan na namin siya patungkol dun sa nangyari."

"And??" Ann asked, pursing her lips.

"He's..." Quinn said, his voice trailing off as he glanced towards Jarrell. "...in pain. Hindi niya kayang bumalik sa academe ng mag-isa."

"What do you mean?" Ann asked slowly, her voice softening.

"Mr. Maccio isn't exactly a loving father — not the way the media paints him to be." Quinn muttered. Before Ann could further ask what he meant by that, Jarrell parked near the gate of a familiar high-class subdivision.

They were near the Maccio residence now.

"Kami na kukuha kay Rein." Bilin ni Jarrell na lumingon sa tatlong dalagang nasa likod. "Dito lang kayo, at takpan niyo agad si Ann pag may dumaan. Walang kahit na sinong Lobris ang nakikita dito sa residensya ng mga Maccio, alam niyo 'yan." He said, nodding towards Ann who chided herself for forgetting.

"Kaya ingatan niyo si Ann. We don't want another fight between the Maccio and Lobris families, do we?"

Without another word, the two boys then stepped out of the car to talk to the one of the guards stationed in front of the subdivision.

"Ann, one of the guards are coming over." Queenie muttered under her breath at agad na tinulak ng dalawang babae si Ann pababa sa sahig ng sasakyan, covering her with everything they could find — Jarrell's jacket, and the backseat pillows.

"Don't worry, I got this." Sera remarked, rolling the window down to greet the guard coming over.

"Good evening, ladies." The large, buff guard said with a huff. "Are you with Mr. Jarrell Marquez?"

"Of course." Sera smiled charmingly. "I'm actually his girlfriend."

The guard grunted as he surveyed the inside of the car before nodding. "Hmm." He huffed once more before turning around to signal his co-guard that Jarrell and Quinn were allowed to enter the subdivision.

"Girlfriend?!" Ann snickered incredulously, removing Jarrell's jacket as she playfully grinned at Sera who rolled her eyes.

"It's the only I could think of para 'di siya tumingin sa pinagtataguan mo!" Sera hissed in defense. For good measure, they made Ann stay her in crouched position until all three boys finally arrived in order to avoid suspicion from the two guards who were still watching them.

"Ayan na sila!" Queenie said, pointing towards Jarrell and Quinn who was helping up a bloody Rein.

"Oh my God, anong nangyari sa kapogian ni Maccio?!" Sera cried in aghast as they opened the door to help Rein settle beside the girls.

"Careful," Quinn said as Rein sat down, wincing in pain. Buti na lang at pang-apatan ang backseat ng kotse ni Jarrell.

Ann looked up in horror from where she was crouching, blinking as she took in the horrific sight of her rival. He was bruised and bloodied to the point that he was barely recognizable. Gone was his charming aura and smug features. Ang natira nalang ay isang batang lalaki na mukhang tinalikuran ng mundo.

Just as she was about to reach out to him, Rein grabbed her hand and pushed it back down.

"Guard." He mumbled at agad na bumalik ang dalaga sa kaniyang hiding spot.

"Aalis na kami kuya." Paalam ni Jarrell sa guwardiya. Bago pa makita ng guwardiya si Ann ay inikot na ni Jarrell ang manibela at tuluyang pinaharurot ang sasakyan.

---

The view in the boys' dormitory was as ugly as it was in the girls' dormitory room — with their things ripped and scattered all throughout the place as if a hurricane visited their room.

"Wow," Sera snickered as she stepped over a pile of the boys' underwear. "At least diba, hindi lang kami yung agrabyado."

At the same time, Jarrell and Quinn gently dropped Rein on one of their couches, with the young man grunting in pain.

"Same bloody message." Queenie remarked as she saw the writings on the boys' wall. "And same rat. Different species though."

"Ew." Sera wrinkled her nose. "God Queenie, stop talking about the rat already."

Habang nag-uusap-usap ang mga ito ay sinarado ni Quinn ang pintuan ng kanilang kwarto at dumiretso naman si Ann sa kanilang cupboard para kunin ang medicine kit ng mga lalaki. She knew that every dormitory room had a mandatory medicine and first aid kit in the first floor of the first cupboard on the right wall of the kitchen area.

Grabbing the kit, she then returned back to the living room and sat beside Rein who eyed her carefully.

"I'm fine Lobris." He managed to chuckle, building up his walls again as the young girl dabbed the Betadine ointment on a cotton ball.

"You're clearly not." Ann snapped. "Now sit still." She then proceeded to tending his wounds, with Rein wincing everytime his rival touched a painful area.

"Umalis na kaya kayo sa mansyon? Do'n niyo nalang ipatira si Noah sa'min." Jarrell offered to Rein, placing a pillow under his head.

"That won't be legally allowed unless you adopt us." Rein laughed dryly, shaking his head. "Seriously guys, I'm fine." He insisted, smiling weakly.

"Ang problemahin natin ngayon ay yung magnanakaw. They must be a dangerous person to cross if they bothered to threaten us like this." He said, whilst staring at Ann who seemed very focused on her task of tending his wounds.

Sure, there were many times that Ann's face was near his, but all those times consisted of an angry Ann who wanted to kill him. Ito lamang ang unang pagkakataon na kalmado ang dalaga habang malapit ang kanilang mga mukha.

As if she had read his mind, napabuntong-hininga si Ann at saka ibinaba ang hawak na cotton ball. "Maccio's right. Now that the four of you are involved, we need to work together as a team." She then stared at each one of them.

"We apologize for dragging you into our mess," Ann said sadly. "Puwede natin 'to itigil ngayon din kung gusto niyo. We can go back to our normal lives and pretend that none of this ever happened. We'll pay you four for all the trouble we've caused yo—"

"Lobris." Sera interjected, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Hindi namin kailangan ng rason o premyo para tulungan kayo."

"Indeed." Quinn agreed, folding his arms. "What are friends for?"

"You don't understand." Iling ni Ann, her voice breaking. "Being with us is risky. The six of us can't be acquainted with one another yet here we are. Tignan niyo 'yung nangyari kay Rein. Our fathers—"

"Will be handled after solving this case." Queenie finished with a determined tone. "Ann, Rein — for once in your lives, make choices without thinking about what your fathers or what your families would say. Think about yourselves, kung ano ba talagang gusto niyo, hindi yung gusto nila."

Sa mga salitang iyon ay natahimik ang buong kwarto. The four then stared at both Rein and Ann, who glanced at one another before staring back at the four of them.

"What do you say Lobris?" Rein grinned cheekily, despite the pain of the bruises on his face. "They're game, I'm game. Ikaw nalang."

Napakurap ang dalaga. "You're still willing to risk this?? Pagkatapos kang ganyanin ng tatay mo?!" She asked in disbelief. "He's going to do more than a punch when he finds out we're partners! He'll kill you."

Rein smiled — the most genuine smile he had ever shown to Ann, before nodding. "Lobris, I don't want to live in my father's shadow anymore."

Hindi makapaniwala ang dalaga. Here he was, her greatest rival; who despite after being used as a punching bag by his own father, was agreeing to defy his family for the sake of their deal.

"O-Okay," Ann breathed slowly, still a litte hesitant as the others cheered.

"Alam ko na kung anong team name natin!" Jarrell grinned deviously and Quinn instantly groaned. "The great super Marquez and his five sidekicks." Sambit nito habang nakataas ang dalawang kamay na para bang nakasulat sa hangin ang sinasabi niyang team name.

"That's the ugliest shit I've ever heard in my entire life." Sera said dryly, to which the others agreed.

"More like the five heroes and their sidekick." Rein grinned, throwing the pillow under his head towards Jarrell.

Habang nagkukulitan yung iba ay nakatitig pa rin ang dalaga kay Rein. Ann didn't know, but unconsciously, her eyes glistened at him in both awe and admiration.

In her view, Rein at this moment looked like the bravest man she had ever met.

---

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The first italicized section from this chapter is a paragraph from the book that Ann is reading. This book is entitled, "Nancy Drew and The Spider Sapphire Mystery". I do not own this book and only included it in this chapter to further showcase Ann's love for mystery books, particularly the Nancy Drew series. All Rights Reserved to Carolyn Keene and Simon & Schuster.

Also, Queenie's bloodstain experiment is inspired by Sherlock Holmes' bloodstain experiment. All Rights Reserved to Sir Arthur Conan Dyle.