Cross and Conflicts

CHAPTER XV: Abducted

It was past 4 A.M. when Aeon entered the lobby of the Intramuros Police Headquarters with a wriggling captive. The officers who were there received him with quizzical stares because whom he had in tow was draped with a towel. It appeared that the lieutenant needed to conceal who he was.

 The shambles back at the hospital was covered by his colleagues; nevertheless, he thought that there would be a right time to introduce a confounding character to others. Exposing Zard—especially if the public gets a whiff of his existence—may flood them with pestilent drama from curious individuals, or may instill fear to those who aren’t welcoming of something deviant. After all, he isn’t the only one who looks nonhuman; there was that companion of his who possesses bovine qualities, and that woman—though she wasn’t like them—who can manipulate paper. 

 It didn’t take a genius for him to realize that it was her who assailed his junior officers when he saw the sheets stabbed to their bodies. Although it’s astonishing how she was able to that, it became repugnant for him since she used it to harm others. He plighted that he will do everything in his power to make her pay for what she did to his comrades.

 At the moment, nevertheless, there was a more pressing matter. However he’ll be able to, he needed to wring the whereabouts of Sister Lita and Noumenon from his reptilian detainee.

 Along a sea of cubicles, Zard occasionally glared at the police officers he passed by, spooking them. He walked bitterly since his hands were cuffed on his back, and more significantly and out of vital caution, the policeman tautly taped his mouth to prevent his tongue from rampaging. 

 Aeon was leading him towards a huge hallway until they came to a row of cells. The former kicked him inside an unoccupied one, and he grunted when he fell to the coldness of the rough floor. He glowered back at the lieutenant as he locked him up. 

 He regretted that he underestimated Aeon; he should have known better after he had watched headlines of his achievements. Still, he remained indignant.

 Whatever they do to me, he thought, I won’t be divulging anything to these pigs. Besides, those two are probably as good as dead.

 True to that thought, he refused to answer anything the lieutenant asked about even with his face beaten to a pulp. It didn’t matter to him if the police kept him jailed for as long they can, yet he won’t be selling off anything to them.

 He observed that there were two police officers who arrived outside his cell. Like the lieutenant, their reaction when they first saw how he looked, though shocked, was mixed with distaste. He hated those eyes—the kind that branded him like a pest: they feared what harm he could do to them, yet at the same time, they were disgusted. This brought back undesirable memories, and he detested the inferiority complex associated with it. Even though he boasts about his supernatural might, he never wished to be born less human; it isn’t his fault that he was made to be like this. 

 “Watch over him for now. I’ll come back here later,” he heard Aeon say. He glanced at him. “If he ever does something funny, shoot him till he’s dead.”

 Zard’s eyes widened in lividity towards him.

 “Don’t worry; I’ll take responsibility,” Aeon finished and left.

 The reptilian squirmed and groaned. He was beyond mad. If he ever gets out of here, he’ll definitely murder his captor in the most gruesome way possible, and that’s the only thing on his mind now.

 Whatsoever, it seemed like his stay here won’t be long anyway, especially after he saw someone very familiar among the officers. He was confident that a co-worker will surely assist him. 

Plok. Plok. Plok.

 She awoke hearing continuous drops of water. These were from the broken tap at one corner of the room where she was confined in. As soon as she sat up, she realized the reality of the double bind she was entangled in. She was abducted, and the memory the previous night couldn’t be her fondest. Zard was nowhere to be seen, but she and Sister Lita were inconsiderately thrown in here like bags of waste by a horned man. If she hadn’t met Zard who has peculiar features beforehand, she would have mistaken the one with horns as a huge demon sent from hell. She hadn’t allowed herself to think much about it considering her current situation, but she surmised that their unforeseen acquaintances have dubious origins. 

 Noumenon spotted her adoptive mother right next to her. She was still sleeping, but it didn’t look like she was comfortable with the damp floor. She approached her yet decided not to disturb her. She thought that she might need to sleep some more especially after the immense stress they were given yesterday. Accordingly, she sat by her and placed her head on her lap.

 Sunshine seeped through the gaps between the ceiling and the wall behind them. This made her clearly make out the place where they were forced to stay unlike during the evening where the darkness totally blinded them. 

 It is a typical four-cornered room with nothing but them and a broken tap. There isn’t a single window. The walls were left unpolished, and a plenitude of moss crept at the bottom. The metal door in front of them, however, was newly furnished with red paint, and it looked sturdy. 

 She definitely had no idea who would take interest in abducting them. Cross could qualify for her suspicion, but there was a part in her that highly doubted that; majorly because from the news she heard, he goes to eliminate his targets alone. Definitely, he wouldn’t need to employ the help of other able-bodied men.

 Aside from him, there was no one else. It greatly concerned her, for she doesn’t know what the person who authored this wants from her. 

 “Hmm” groaned Sister Lita as she awakened and recognized Noumenon’s face.

 “Ma.”

 She is relieved that her adoptive daughter is with her, yet as she sat up, worry struck her as she registered where they are.

 “Lord Jesus, Virgin Mary, this can’t be true,” she uttered as she warily looked around them.

 The novice also hoped the same, but they’re not inside a nightmare which they can choose to wake up from.

 With a sullen countenance, Noumenon placed a hand on the extern sister’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Ma.”

 Confused, Sister Lita replied “What are you sorry for?”

 “If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t have been dragged into this. The person who attacked us at the hospital said that someone ordered him to kidnap me.”

 “Anak, don—”

 Noumenon angrily crumpled the hem of the hospital gown she’s still clad in. “He could have just taken me if I was the target. He didn’t need to include you.”

 Obviously, she was frustrated. The aftereffects of the horror that transpired at the Saint Peter the Fisherman Parish continue to encage her. Her lament on the deaths she witnessed there won’t be short-lived. And it hasn’t been long for her to recover. She felt that fate is being unfair that even her adoptive mother had to be caught in another adversity of hers.

 Sister Lita caressed her face. “Noumenon, Anak, don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m actually glad that I’m here with you. At least you’re not alone in this stinking room.”

 Noumenon couldn’t help but smile and embraced her. “Thank you, Ma.”

 “Now then,” Sister Lita said when she broke away, “We better try and figure out how to get out of here.”