CHAPTER 33
1257 Words
A cold awkward moment followed me and Leandro as we head towards the secret door heading to the floor where the artificial garden is. I remember it as a hotel floor with all the room designs there. But I never had the chance to discover what else is in each of the rooms aside from the secret garden.
"Leandro, I'm sorry for stealing your watch." I finally broke the silence.
"I know you have been plotting that the moment I introduced you to the gadget."
I am quite surprised he actually does. If he knew it then why did he just allow me though?
"I even know you had to waste a five hundred dollar perfume just to clog your toilet." He even said. My face abruptly turned red out of humiliation. So he knew all along and yet he still played along with what I thought a smart plan already.
"But how did you know?"
"Miss Emalia, do you really think the dome is too old-fashioned to have its CCTVs around?" He sarcastically asked.
"I haven't realized that until now—" I haven't finished what was I supposed to say when I hit on a realization that force me to give him a beating. "You mean, you installed a CCTV inside my room and my bathroom, you pervert!" I yelled at him as the idea further embarrassed me so much, I was only left covering myself with my arms.
Leandro gave out a heavy sigh. "There was nothing too much to see. we only installed black and white CCTV's inside private rooms like yours and the master's room. besides, there was nothing to explore from your prepubescent body, Miss Emalia." he said that instantly got my head heated up hearing it. Did he just insult me?
I rolled my eyes towards Leandro and just ignored him for the next moments. The elevator seems to be moving slowly or was I just overthinking again because I can't wait to be away from this butler before I could actually kill him here for stating a mockery out of my body. I know I don't bear a voluptuous body like other women out there, but he doesn't have to say it too bluntly.
My frustration only subsided when I saw Leandro taking his silence back in the air once more. And then, I came to ask him to keep the silence from winning in. "If you knew about these all along, why did you still allowed me to do what I want?" I asked.
He just looks at me with those hesitant eyes. It took him a couple of moments to have the courage of answering me, "I want to teach you some lesson, but I didn't know my master will be the one to suffer the most from my action." He lowered his head out of shame. Was he this devoted to his master?
It gives me the vibes that what he did appear to him as an unredeemable morbid sin from his master. Well, technically it sure is. He had the option to stop me from the beginning but he still chose to allow me to what? Teach me a lesson he said?
"I'm sorry, Leandro. I am to be blamed for this. If I hadn't pursued my plan perhaps it wouldn't go this far." I told him.
He just sighs. I guess there is nothing he can do about it since it's already here.
"Leandro, is this why you wish to detain me back in my room? Are you afraid that the master might find out that you freely allowed me to leave the dome?" I told him. It was as if I hit a nerve that jerked Leandro to look back at me with a contemplative look.
"Well, I never thought you'd actually figure that one out." He just said, sounding a bit reluctant. I find his response still insulting as he still considers me a blockhead, but I just let it past this time.
I walk closer to his side as the elevator finally spreads open and the I told him, "Don't worry, I don't have the intention to make your image look bad towards your master."
"Miss Emalia—" Leandro wasn't able to finish his statements as I headed past him outside the elevator.
When I turn around to check on him, his face is blushing and it was funny how he appeared vulnerable at the thought of mentioning his precious master.
"Leandro, let's go see your master now then." I pitch back at him to help him return to his senses.
And he quickly responds to me back with, "Yes, Miss Emalia." I can't believe he's back on toes with those gleeful faces as we are about to see his master again.
***
I have counted enough ten doors after passing by the secret garden before Leandro and I stood in front of a door that I estimate to be as the third one to the last.
Leandro elevates his wrist enough to expose the new smartwatch he as after stretching up his sleeves. He already has a replacement for the one I just broke. The facilities in this place aren't a joke after all. But before he even sticks it to the censor, Leandro looks at me with a sudden change from his gleeful face just a moment ago. And he said, "You sure are persistent to see my Master, miss Thalia. I hope you can bear seeing him after I open this door."
I had an odd feeling about what he just said. Why tell that to me now when we are about to enter the infirmary? Leandro is giving goosebumps, especially with the way his expression abruptly became so sullen. Amanikable couldn't possibly be dead, isn't he? He is strong and also, he is a Pre-colonial God. He can't simply be defeated that easily. But still, the anxiety won over me right before we could even enter the infirmary and it's all thanks to Leandro.
He pressed the smart watch's led to the sensor after pressing in some digits. I noticed the different commands from the elevators to the rooms' doors. The elevator doesn't require combination codes, unlike the room—as I observe it—still needed some series of numbers before we could enter. If I were to sneak in and try to find out what's beneath in each room, I would need to memories all the codes for each of these doors.
The room or as called by Leandro as the infirmary appeared more to me like a mortuary than a typical infirmary with three morgue tables aligned vertically to welcome us inside. The middle table is occupied by a corpse covered by a black cadaver bag.
My eyes went back to see Leandro and he instantly looks away from my sight as if denying me an explanation. What's more here to explain when I can see it with my two eyes that Amanikable is already dead. The atmosphere became so dull and I felt a heavy vibe is pressing me to tear up--and I did. I started to cry, and it surprised me so much knowing how I used to hate this man yet I am crying before his dead body now. I thought, why can't I? He saved me after all. If it weren't for it, It would've been me who's probably lying here lifeless than him.
But a portion of me still can't believe it. How can he die back there?
- Writer
