DANCING WITH THE VILLAIN

XIV | The Deal In the West

Rhysand Marfori

The West of Sinclaire 

The Corocans, as they all know, are not a friendly bunch. It was true that they almost killed Marcus. But that was because Marcus was the one who did them wrong first. They won't do to you what you don't do to them. 

But during that time when the Ivory Skulls are expanding, Marcus got carried away. Naging mataas ang ambisyon nito. Sa mga panahong iyon, nasa kamay na nila ang hilaga at silangan ng syudad. The South and the West were the remaining territories they left. Gusto ni Marcus sakupin lahat. Kaya naman inatake nito ang and kanluran nang walang sabi-sabi sa kanya. Hindi alam ni Marcus ang kayang gawin ng mga Corocans and it was a mistake he would never repeat. Kaya ngayon habang nagmamaneho siya ay panay ang tingin niya sa likuran kung nasaan nakaupo sina Sid at Marcus. 

Kani-kanina lang ay ngumingiti pa ito. They were teasing him with the new employee behind the counter. Ngunit nang malapit na sila sa lugarng mga Corocans ay natahimik na sila. They didn't bring any men. Mawawalan lang ng saysay ang pakikipagkaibigan nila. Pupunta sila doon para kunin ang loob ng mga Corocans and bringing his men would only make the Corocans they're coming for war. Kaya naman sila lang apat nina Eliza ang naroon. 

"This is insane," Eliza mumbled habang nakatingin sa labas. Umiiling pa ito. 

Rhysand sighed. "You already agreed to this, Eliza." 

Her head whipped toward him. Her sharp eyes staring at him. "I did. But that doesn't mean it's not dangerous. They have grudges against the Marforis, Rhysand." 

"Grudges? The only wrong thing we did was when I attacked them," Marcus said kaya napalingong naman sa kanya si Eliza. 

"Then when we are there, you better tell that to them," Eliza snapped. "I still need to go home and see Rory." 

Napatingin naman siya sa rearview mirror kung nasaan ang kanyang mga kapatid nakaupo. Rhysand groaned and stopped the car abruptly causing an uproar inside. Malutong na mga mura ang natanggap niya mula sa kanyang mga kapatid at kay Eliza. He looked at them. 

"What in god's name are you doing?" Eliza yelled. 

"Come on, Rhys!" saad naman nina Marcus at Sid. 

"If we're going to do this, I need your one hundred percent. I don't need half-assed cooperation. If you don't want to do this, you can go home. But remember Gulliver Woods knows about the existence of Rory and he is our enemy. If he wants to get to us, he will surely come after Rory." 

"Kaya hindi kita maintindihan kung bakit papayagan mo iyang kapatid mo na lumayo sa atin, Rhys. Mas mapoprotektahan natin siya kung malapit siya sa atin--" 

"She's not a kid anymore, Eliza. She is not the same kid that follows her brothers around the house anymore. Kaya na niyang magdesisyon para sa sarili niya. If she wants to leave and go somewhere far from us then it's fine. Kung sa tingin niya'y makabubuti iyon sa kanya, wala akong problema doon," he said and looked at them one by one. "Rory is a grown-up. She can handle herself pretty well. But we have to try our best not to let out enemies after her. This is not her fight and she isn't involved in this. Besides, we did wrong to the Corocans. It is only right that we apologize to them and form our alliance because the last thing we would ever want to happen is to have half of Sinclaire turn their backs against us. We need the Corocans." He eyed Marcus who averted his gaze. 

"You will apologize to them and we shall accept whatever condition they want," he said. Napalingon naman sa kanya si Marcus na tila hindi makapaniwala sa sinabi niya. 

"Rhysand--" 

"Am I clear?" he said, facing the road again. 

"But Rhys--" 

"Am I clear?" he repeated, this time, slower, and sharper. He eyed his siblings in the rearview mirror. 

Marcus sighed and closed his eyes before he leaned back on his seat and nodded. 

He then looked at Eliza and said, "Now, who wants to go home?" 

No one answered so he continued to drive the car. 

*** 

The moment they arrived at West, he could immediately see how the people eyed their car. The Corocans is a huge family living all together in the West. It was said that the Corocans were the first-ever who lived in Sinclaire. At hindi naman kataka-taka iyon. The West is called the Palmere and it is dominated by the Corocans. 

Their current family head, Alexander Corocan, is the youngest family head that was ever appointed in history. Hindi niya alam kung magiging madali ba ang negosasyon ito o hindi. With thier bad history, he has to be careful with his words. 

Bumaba sila sa kanilang sasakyan and the moment they were out, they could hear the whispers of the people around them. Ang ibang may ginagawa kanina ay nahinto nang makita sila. Agad silang nakilala ng mga ito. 

Nararamdaman niya ang matalim na mga tingin na binibigay sa kanila ng mga tao but he doesn't care. So long as they weren't showing any weapons, showing any kind of hostility, or threatening someone, they Corocans would leave them alone. Ngunit hindi maiiwasan na may magagalit sa kanila. Lalo pa at may naging hindi pagkakaunawan na naganap sa kanila noon. 

Leading the pack, Eliza walked down the cobblestoned pathway that would lead to the Corocan main house. The only sounds she could hear were the sounds of whispers and the sound of Eliza's shoes against the cobblestoned pathway. 

They stopped in front of the huge mansion and looked at each other before they stepped into the stairs. The moment they were in front of the double doors, dalawang guwardiya naman ang nakaharang doon. The boys stepped back and let Eliza handle it. 

Bago pa man makapagsalita ang mga guwardiya ay agad na pinatulog iyon ni Eliza. Two points on their necks and they were down. The people who watched from a distance and before they could even protest, bumukas ang pintuan. Agad naman silang natahimik because that door doesn't open unless someone from the inside opens it. And the one controlling it is the family head himself. 

Eliza faced them and smiled. "Let's go, boys." 

And they followed their aunt inside. 

Agad naman silang sinalubong ng isang butler the moment they arrived at the foyer. 

"Greetings," the butler said and it was as if the butler knew why they have come in the first place dahil agad silang pinasunod nito. They climbed the stairs and walked down the halls hanggang sa makarating sila sa harap ng isang pinto. 

The double wooden doors were unguarded and the butler knocked. They waited for a few seconds before the door opened. The butler faced them and said, "Mr. Alexander has been waiting for you." 

That came as a surprise. But Eliza just smiled at the butler before they went inside the office. Kailangan pa nilang dumaan sa isang maliit na hallway bago sila nakapasok sa isand opisina. And sitting behind the table is the man they wanted to meet. Alexander Corocan looks as young as him. 

At nakangiti ito habang nakatingin sa kanila. Then he gestured his hand and said, "Please sit." He walked to the chairs and sat. And the moment he did, agad niya itong tinanong. 

"How did you know we were going to come?" tanong niya sa lalaki. Alexander Corocan stood and went to get some glasses and a bottle of whiskey. Nagulat naman siya nang makitang ang whiskey na inihain sa kanila ay ang whiskey na gawa ng Sinclaire Grande. 

Alexander must have noticed him looking at the bottle kaya tumawa ito. "Our personal grudges aside, I love this whiskey. I was planning to buy more but didn't really get the chance." 

The whole room went silent. Alexander Corocan is known to be someone unpredictable. One moment he was fine and the next moment a war would happen. Kaya naman hindi pwedeng magkamali sila ngayon. 

He didn't say anything--none of them said anything. Alexander looked at them as if realizing what they wanted to hear. Then he chuckled and went back to his seat before he said, "Oh, that." He sipped on his glass. 

"It's simple really. With this big family Mr. Marfori, do you really think I would suppress them here when they could be useful somewhere else?" Ngumisi ang lalaki sa gawi niya and he narrowed his eyes. Doon niya napagtanto that Alexander has been planting spies everywhere. And it is safe to assume that he doesn't have any significant ties with the Woods and its companions. 

"I have my eyes and ears around Sinclaire. I know what had happened with Filip Neinheart and how he came after your sister, Aurora Marfori. And now that Neinhart is out of the picture, another bigger enemy shows up--Gulliver Wood who probably has his hands on certain groups that would certainly outnumber the skulls." Alexander eyed them one by one before he went on, "Most probably, Wood must have all of the North and some in the East of Sinclaire. The only one left untouched is the west. It was quite predictable, actually." 

"With all those information, it would be really obvious," mumbled Marcus and Alexander's eyes went on him. 

"Oh. If it isn't the notorious Marcus Marfori who got too confident and attacked the Corocans with few of his men," Alexander said. He was smiling but there was enough venom in his voice that made Marcus silent. 

The room went silent again and it was Eliza who spoke. "You already know everything Mr. Corocan and you know why we have come," she said. 

Alexander walked back behind his table and sat on his chair before he looked at them again and said, "Oh, yes. I am very well aware. I know that you're here for an alliance against the Woods should they attack, right?" 

"You're right and if you give us a chance to--" 

"Gulliver Woods already asked me about that," he said. All of them went utterly still and Alexander Corocan was grinning from ear to ear seeing their reaction. 

And he was gritting his teeth. Because it would mean that they have walked right into their enemies' trap. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Alexander. But judging from his look, alam niyang totoo ang sinasabi ng lalaki. Gulliver Woods has indeed come and proposed an alliance. 

"You were stalling," he said which made Alexander's grin wider. "Hindi mo muna tinanggap ang alok ng Woods dahil naghihintay ka sa alok namin." 

Alexander shrugged. "What can I say, Mr. Marfori? I am a businessman. I need to find better deals. Always." He folded his hand on top of the table and continued, "The Woods offered me money and territory in the North once I side with them. Aside from that, he offered to invest in my orchard." Alexander eyed all of them but his gaze stopped on him. "What can you offer?" 

Rhysand gritted his teeth. When it comes to riches, the Woods are on another level. They have been in the business industry since the world began. What could he offer? What could the Skulls offer? 

But then Alexander said, "I have something I want, actually." 

Napatingin naman silang lahat sa lalaki. Sid was looking at him and so was Marcus. Eliza was clenching the handle of her bag a little too tightly and he knew what Alexander was going to ask would not be too easy for them. 

Napatingin naman si Alexander sa gawi ni Marcus as sinabing, "Galit ang mga tao ko sa iyo. After what you did, they couldn't just forget it. But..." he tailed. "I can convince them all that you are not the enemy. You will apologize to them." 

Napataas naman ang kilay niya. Too easy. It's too easy. There has to be something more. The room went silent again and it was Marcus who said, "What else is there?" 

Labis namang natuwa si Alexander. "Oh, you aren't that stupid!" He laughed and then he said, "It's easy, really. There's nothing more to it. You just need to apologize...by marrying one of my sisters." 

Rhysand could have sworn Marcus almost dropped on the floor. 

"Marriage?" Marcus asked, wide-eyed. "Marry...your sister?" 

Alexander nodded and rested his chin over his folder hands. He was clearly enjoying it. The taunt. 

"Why the heck would I do that? What makes you think I'd do that?" Marcus protested and stood. But then Alexander's face became grave serious. 

"Or..." he trailed and looked at him. "I could marry your sister. I'll give you that choice." 

Silence covered the whole room until Rhysand decided to speak, "If we agree to one of those, would that mean your loyalty?" 

Alexander smiled before he nodded. "See, I don't care about riches. All I care about is for this family to expand. And being the most powerful group in Sinclaire as of the moment, I would love to have someone from my family marry one of you." 

"And Gulliver Wood wasn't able to give you that?" Eliza pressed but Alexander waved his hand dismissively and scoffed. 

"Gulliver Wood is an asshole and someone that can't be trusted. I don't want to have my family get tangled with him or with anyone in his circle," Alexander said and looked at them. "Now, make a choice. Your brother Marcus Marfori marries my sister or I, Alexander Corocan marry your sister." 

Nagkatinginan naman silang magkakapatid. It was a difficult choice indeed and it was something that would defnitely challenge his family. Hindi niya alam kung anong pipiliin. Because he had known Marcus's gender identity for a while now. Hindi man ito sinasabi ng kapatid niya sa kanya, alam niyang hindi nito tipo ang mga babae. And somehow, he has got a feeling that Alexander Corocan must have known about Marcus too. 

This is a punishment. Something that would make Marcus suffer for what he did before. 

And as for Aurora...he couldn't even imagine what it would be like if let Alexander marry Aurora. Rory is someone who hungers for freedom and being trapped in this marriage to bond the Marforis and the Corocans would be enough for her to take her own life. Or perhaps start a war. It would be chaos. Rory might not be part of the Ivory Skulls but she is part of the family. 

He met Eliza's eyes and he could see that even her couldn't decide.

"Fine. I'll do it." 

Napatingin silang lahat kay Marcus nang magsalita ito. Nanlalaki ang mga mata niya habang nakatinign sa kapatid. 

"Marcus--" 

Marcus faced him and said, "It's fine, Rhys. Ako naman ang may kasalanan ng lahat ng ito. And it is only right that I should be the one who should do this. Rory doesn't want to get involved, right?" Then he faced Alexander Corocan who looked like he wasn't expecting it to happen at all. 

Then Marcus said, "I will marry your sister. What I did that time was idiotic and selfish. I apologize for the damage I inflicted. I will marry your sister and the Marforis and the Corocan's shall be working together to defeat a common enemy." 

Alexander's surprised face was replaced with a smile before he said, "Then we shall plan the wedding as soon as possible." 

* * *