The Missing Files (Book 1)

Chapter I: HUNDRED KING’S RD.

This is a terrifying story for me; I’m not sure how it will be for you, dear readers.

It happened a few years ago as well. On the occasion of my college friend’s birthday, which we celebrated in the Philippine city of Alabang. After that, we took a drink and became really wasted. It was around 1:30 a.m. when they decided to return home because the others had work scheduled for the following day. Given that I was drunk and didn’t have my car with me, I asked my brother to come and pick me up.

A friend of mine had a car and asked me to join him and his friends, but there were six of them there and it was clearly too crowded. I understand that driving while drunk is dangerous, but I also understand that JJ (not his real name) is not so drunk and is still capable of driving a car. That is, at the very least, reliving. Plus the fact that we only had one route to travel, they waited for my pickup to come so that we could all travel together.

Then, we’re on the Hundred King’s Road (Daang Hari). JJ’s car and my brother’s car were right next to each other on the road and there was a stop light. The light changed from red to green when JJ and I were already ahead of them. Even though they were a few meters away, we were still next to each other.

It was easy for us to see my brother’s car because there were no other people but us passing by. I was about to fall asleep in the car when my brother suddenly slammed on the brakes. There was an old man walking across the street, and he walked very slowly. It was weird that an old man was still awake at that time. So we stopped and waited for him to get to the road, and then he kept going. The old man gazed at us when he was right in front of my brother’s car. Maybe he just wanted to thank us that way. I made a bet. Then we continue driving the car. I couldn’t see JJ any longer, and I assumed they had gone ahead first and decided to go back to sleep.

When my brother called out to me, “SISTER! SISTER! SIS!” I awoke. And as I looked at him, one of his hands was gripping the rosary that was hanging on the rearview mirror.

M stands in for me, and H stands in for him.

M: Why is that? What’s going on with you? What’s the problem?

H: Can you tell me what time it is?

M: (checking my watch) 2:30!

H: Oh, no!

M: Why is that?

H: You’ve been sleeping for how many hours and it’s still 2:30?

M: What’s the point?

H: It was 2:30 a.m. We should be home by now. But we’re still stuck on this Hundred King’s Road (Daang Hari)

M: Wait, what?! We might be lost.

H: Even though I pass by here every day, I can still get lost? (She checked her rearview mirror) Damn!

Of course, when I turned around to see what was behind me, I was taken aback. I was expecting another vehicle to chase us down, but I saw something else. The old man from earlier was already seated in the backseat! I screamed at the top of my lungs, but there was no sound. I simply closed my eyes and prayed. My brother, on the other hand, was still in shock; he picked up the pace and I could feel his grip tightening on the brakes, but we didn’t come to a halt. Damn. We no longer have brakes! And I’m not yet ready to die. The engine abruptly shut off. And then, when I turned around, the old man was no longer in the rear seat. However, we are unable to start the car anymore. My brother is angry with me and blames me for everything. He quickly told me to get help because we sensed something was amiss. I called my friends who were ahead of us since I knew they would be the most helpful, but they were all unavailable. My mother is also unavailable to reach me. I won’t be able to contact everyone. Even the time stamps on my phone were off. 11:00:22 a.m?!

My brother and I have just prayed together. The only strange part was when we realized there was no vehicle passing by or meeting to ask for help. Also, it took some time for the car to start. We’ve been traveling for more than an hour since the car broke down earlier, but we’re still not at the end, the one on SM Molino. My brother and I were all in tears; we had yet to see any other cars. We didn’t get to our destination until about a half hour later. Thanks to the shortage of traffic, we returned home immediately. When I entered the house, mama was in the living room, and she was, of course, angry.

Bratatatatatttttttttttttttttt…

When I saw our wall clock, I clearly didn’t understand mama’s nag. It is still only 3 a.m.! I simply wept in front of her, and when my brother entered the house, he, too, gazed at the wall clock and wept. Mama, on the other hand, was confused by us crying. We told her of the incident. According to what he heard, there were scary ghosts who showed up there.

We three chose to sleep and attempted to put our fear aside. My brother and I slept for barely a few hours before mama awoke us. She stated that police officers were looking for us downstairs.

The police inquired as to the last time I was with them; they saw one of my pals, JJ; they stated that they wanted my statement in order to help. Obviously, I wondered why.

According to the authorities, my pals were pronounced dead at the scene on the Hundred King’s Road (Daang Hari). They were already dead when they arrived at the hospital. There were no accidents that we witnessed or experienced! I told the police about what happened while I was still with them and till the last time I saw them. Also, I explained what happened to my brother and me earlier that day. Because it is possible that they experienced the same thing. I’m not sure if they believed it, but I doubt it. Because the newspaper article stated that they were drunk at the time of the accident. My brother and I went to the accident scene, where their car lay destroyed.

I am still in mourning to this day. Recently, in March 2016, I heard of another accident involving another group of friends, in which everyone died. Now, I’m not sure if the old man tried to save us or if he also intended to kill us; and he just failed to do it.

The story was long. I apologize. It’s just their death anniversary is approaching, and I just suddenly remembered them.

Shalom.