Sin of Lust

CHAPTER 13

Sin of Lust by Swapie Achilles

CHAPTER XIII

OCTOBER

“Father Daleon?” a feminine voice interrupted them and this cut him off from what he was about to say, “what’s happening here?”

Daleon hastily yet gradually let go of Mary’s shoulder and pats it a few times before giving her a fake smile, so the newly arrived nun will not get any suspicion. “Please, take care of yourself sister Mary Jane, we don’t want you to get sick.” He said with a sickening concern.

“What happened Sister Mary Jane?” Gregoria asked as she saw her looking at her with her hands trembling on her chest. “Are you okay?” she proceeded to walk towards them and held her shoulder.

“Sister Mary Jane?” she asked once more, cupping her cheeks. “Sister, can you hear me?”

Daleon step back to give them space but his watchful eyes remain on Mary Jane’s terrified ones.

“Hey, sister Mary Jane are you alright?” Gregoria asked once again.

The nun chose to nod her head, afraid that if she speaks her voice will crack. Daleon can see the fear on her eyes and the unwillingness to answer from the other nun’s inquiries. Thus, he replied for her.

“Sister Mary Jane just put Melody on her bed but I saw her wobbling around I caught her when she was about to fall.” He lied. “I think she must have overworked herself.”

Gregoria bought it, “Oh my goodness, sister.” She sighed and caresses her cheek, “don’t force yourself and take rest too. You’re human, you know.”

The high priest grew tired of the dramatic concern being poured in front of him thus he cuts it off, “Sister Gregoria, what is it that you want?”

Gregoria shifted to face the reverend, “I am looking for Melody since Rod and Marben are searching for her. They say they didn’t saw her today and she’s not playing with them as often as before.”

“Oh, is that so? Don’t worry about it anymore.” He reassured her, “Melody is safe. She just has a fever but she’s fine now. She just needs to get proper sleep and rest. After she get proper nutrition she’ll be back on her feet in no time.”

Gregoria felt Mary Jane trembles under her touch when they heard the word safe from him, but she shrugs it off thinking that this is just her imagination.

However, Mary Jane literally felt the shivers crawl down to her very core to the point that she felt the atmosphere getting colder the longer she stays under his gaze. She can feel his intense gaze, for these reasons she took refugee behind the figure of clueless idea.

“I see, that’s all good to hear.” Gregoria replied, “please excuse me. Father, I’d like to assist Mary Jane to her bedroom, she seems not fine.”

“Okay…” Daleon replied and watch them walk away.

But with the last chance, Mary Jane look back to Daleon. He didn’t have to say a word for her to understand, that if she tells anyone about what happened he will not hesitate to kill her or Melody, and that’s the worst thing could happen.

Thus, it is enough for her to fall on her knees when she’s finally out of his intense gaze, her sweats cascade on her body as if she’s being poured by icy water.

“Sister!” Gregoria gasped, “can you stand?”

Mary Jane cups her hand on her mouth when she felt her stomach turning upside down from nervousness. However, all the pressure and anxiety bring her to the edge and it made her throw up. And the only thing she heard before she collapses is Gregoria shouting her name in fright.

Meanwhile, a corpulent woman in her room stares at the wooden photo frame of hers along with another woman beside her on their youthful days. She holds it against her chest as a lone streak of tears cascaded on her cheeks.

“Why did you have to do that?” she whispered as she caresses the face on the photo, “You know we can’t do anything about this. So why did you have to throw your life away?”

“We are just nuns, Novelyn.” Her voice starts to quiver, “nuns shouldn’t do heroes’ job.”

She grips the photo frame tighter against her plump bosom, “It should never end like this, it’s your fault you died this way.”

For the last time, Marga look at the kids playing around on the playground as it reflects on her sorrowful eyes, “But it would be great if I have just an ounce of your courage.”

On the other hand, Mary Jane is at her room being watch by her fellow nun as her chest heaves up and down in an erratic manner, and she’s profusely sweating yet whenever Gregoria removes the blanket she’ll starts to shiver.

“What’s happening to you?” she asked as she wipes the seat accumulating on her forehead with wet towel before dubbing it on her the basin of water beside the bed.  

“Sister?”

“Oh, my f*****g dog!” Gregoria yelled out loud that the wet cloth that should be on unconscious woman’s forehead plops on her face instead. “Oh, it’s just you, Blanche. You scared me. Please knock before you enter someone else’s room, okay?”

“Okay… I’m sorry sister Gregoria. I will not do it again.” She replied with both of her hands on her back and her foot twitches from side to side indication of her embarrassment.

“Okay… now what are you doing here?” Gregoria neatly place the cloth on Mary’s forehead.

“I’m here because I want to talk to sister Mary Jane.” She replied with her small chirpy voice.

“Oh, I’m sorry but you can’t talk to sister Mary Jane right now. She needs to rest for a while, she seems like to have a fever.”

“Oh, is it now?” another voice interrupted from behind them.

“Sister Marga!” both the nun and the kid were surprised from the sudden appearance of the most terrifying nun in the whole convent.

“Hi Blanche, how are you?” she asked, and the kid wasn’t that intimidated at all in fact the opposite of it.

“I’m okay!” she chimed as she was picked up by the nun.

“So, what do you want to talk about with Mary Jane?” Marga queried her.

“I just want to asked her about something…” the kid trailed, not wanting to lie but also not wanting to tell her that she wants to talk about Melody’s strange behavior. “I want to asked her if we could bake another type of bread if we’ll be tasked at the kitchen again.”

“Oh honey, of course you can,” Marge poke her nose, “but you can’t talk to sister Mary Jane as of now, because you see, she has a fever.”

Th kid whines, “I hope she gets well soon. So, it means, we will not have any lesson for today and tomorrow?”

“Unfortunately, no. You can enjoy your day today and tomorrow.” She answered.

“Don’t you want to teach us instead?” she asked her

“I’m sorry honey but sister Marga can’t, she has a lot of work to do. I am the one who manages the donations here you know, so it’s always busy for me.” She sweet talked the kid. “And, besides it’s best for you minds to take a day off or two from studying.”

And this made Gregoria grew warm on her, she learned that Marga isn’t always angry nor intimidating, she was just intimidated.

“By the way, I heard sister Gregoria said f*****g dog? What was that mean?” the little girl asked.

“Crap…”

Blanche proceeded to tell her siblings that they don’t have any class today and tomorrow thus most of them play the whole day after, however, Blanche decided to approach Micah for she has noticed that Micah and Melody are not quite close these passed few days.

“I don’t know what’s happening to my sister anymore,” Micah mumbled as she slid down on the floor of the library. “As if I was talking to a giant statue.” She remembers the gaze she receives from her twin sister the time she confronted her.  

Blanche just listens to her.

“I sometimes see her getting out of our room in the middle of the night and I don’t know where she’s going, there was this one time that I tried to follow her but I don’t know, she just disappeared in to thin air, as if she’s just a ghost.” If confusion and concern have voice then it was her voice.

“And when she gets back, she couldn’t even talk to me, she couldn’t even look me in the eye. She’s not even taking bath with us she’s usually alone. And even how hard she tries to hide her bruises I can always see she’s getting new ones under her sleeves and… and …. I don’t know what’s happening to her anymore!” she whisper-yelled and her eyes shows puffiness indication that she’s crying her eyes out.

“I know my sister is going through something but I can’t help her like this!” she put her hand on her head, thinking as hard as she can on how she can help Melody like this.

Blanche is contemplating the signs that was said, she can’t help but get the similarities of her case to Hannie, “Do you think…” she trailed.

“Do I think what?”

“Do you think these things you’ve noticed to her, isn’t it the same thing that happened to Hannie?” She whispered seriously.

“And so, what?” Micah creases her eyebrows, but Blanches lack of response made her think, “Wait… you mean…”