You're Still My Man

Chapter 20 : Deal Or No Deal

RED

Pinagod nya talaga ang sarili sa pagtakbo sa umaga na yon. For almost two weeks of sharing space with Garrie had given him a short fuse and running really helped him upang mabawasan nga ang tensyon sa kanyang katawan.

Arghh..Garrie was the cause of it all.

Labis-labis na nga ang ginawa ni Garrie para sa kanya. She cooked his meals and ironed his clothes. Ito rin ang palaging naglilinis sa kanyang kwarto at nag-aayos ng kanyang bedding.

Kagabi nga habang pinapanood nya itong nagtatahi ng isang negligee for Missy's new line ang tagal nitong natulog dahil tinapos nya talaga ito. Tapos iniwan pa nito doon sa kwartong inokupahan nya ang mga naka hanger na nightie at mga tabas ng lace,leaving also the scent of her that he could smell when he woke up in the morning.

Lately,he also noticed that Garrie stopped teasing on him. Maybe,she was only waiting for him to make the next move.

But his need for her intensified,na kahit unintentional ang pag kembot nito sa kanyang beywang or ang pagngiti nito sa kanya ng ubod ng tamis ay nakakaakit pa rin tingnan.

Sana ganoon nalang ang pakikipag deal kay Brandon Harlem na kung pwede akitin nalang ito para pumayag,sabi nya sa sarili.

Nang makarating na sya sa may eskinita,huminto na sya sa pagtakbo at naglakad na lamang. He was half a block away from Garrie's boarding house ng mamataan nya ang isang black BMW na naka parada sa harap mismo ng bahay ni Garrie. The tinted window of the passenger door glided down as he approached. Yumuko naman sya ng konti upang makita nya ang nasa loob nito,pero bigla nalang nyang naalala na wala pala syang dalang baril.

"Mr. Duterte,join me for a minute"

Brandon Harlem could make a command seem like a party invitation,he thought.

"Tagaktak kasi ang pawis ko baka matuloan ko yang upholstery mo."

"Get in" matigas na wika ni Brandon sa kanya.

He opened the door and slid in,activitating the mini recorder in his pocket as he settled in the seat. Binigyan naman sya ni Brandon ng isang towel,kinuha nya ito at ipinahid sa kanyang pawisang mukha,then rubbed his hair leisurely while eyeing the man who was dressed impeccably.

Brandon leaned back and crossed one leg over the other."Hindi ko pa naitanong sayo kung kumusta na pala ang honeymoon nyo?"

"Too short"

"Why didn't you take some time? or go somewhere exotic?"

"Alam mo naman ang sagot nyan"

"Ah yes"anito sabay kuha ng isang stick ng sigarilyo mula sa bulsa ng kanyang suit, tapos sinindihan ito at ibinuga sa kanya ang usok."So,you're waiting for me to decide."

Tumango na lamang sya bilang tugon.

"Your terms are generous. And my current supplier has gotten greedy. But something niggles me about you."said Brandon.

Hinawakan na nya ang door handle at binuksan ito."You've danced one,but too many two-steps for me. Sasabihin ko nalang sa boss ko na mas mabuti pang humanap nalang sya ng ibang ka partner."

"Step out of this car and you're dead."

Napahinto sya. Marami na nga syang mga nakasagupa na mga low-profile na tao. But none of them set him on edge like this educated,intelligent and sophisticated high profile man. At least the scumbag had been predictable."Ano bang problema mo Mr. Harlem? Don't you think that I'm highly recommended to you? Malinis akong magtrabaho Mr. Harlem. Ni wala ngang isang pulis na nakaamoy sa illegal na transaction namin kamakailan. Besides,I've already facilitated your transfer amounting to millions."

"Parang hindi pa rin ako kumbinsido sa mga sinasabi mong yan Mr. Duterte. I've checked you out but it's nothing I can put my finger on."

"It's reasonable that we don't trust each other" he angled towards Brandon."I'll be honest to you Mr. Harlem,sa ganitong klaseng trabaho ako mas nabubuhay. Kaya kung ayaw mo talagang makipag deal samin,pwes sabihin mo sakin ngayon..Alam mo bang tinanggihan namin ang iba naming dealer dahil nakipag arranged ka na samin ng deal. Kung tutuusin magkatulad lang naman tayo ng pakay rito Mr. Harlem."

"Not quite the same" at binugahan na naman sya sa usok ng sigarilyo nito."I'll be in touch"

"Ok bibigyan pa kita ng isang palugit,sabihin mo lang,alam mo naman kung saan ako hahanapin."

"We'll deal when I say so,Mr. Duterte. At sabihin mo din sa asawa mo na mag-ingat sya. Kung ayaw mo maging byudo pagkatapos mong maging groom."

"Is that a threat Mr. Harlem?"

"Paalala lang yon Mr. Duterte. Accidents might happen. Brakes fail. Drive-by shooting are becoming rampant now a days. Nakakastress diba? Ano pa kaya ang pwedeng mangyari kinabukasan? Kaya ngayon palang Mr. Duterte sasabihin ko na to sayo,pagsawaan mo na ang asawa mo dahil baka isang araw sa paggising mo ay wala na ito sa tabi mo."

Oo nga Red,bago mahuli ang lahat,sabi ng kanyang isip.

Tuloyan na syang bumaba sa kotse ni Brandon being careful not to slam the door or show any emotion at all.

Tinawagan nya agad ang kanyang boss na si Mr. Dela Fuente upang ipaalam nito ang naturang pag-uusap nila ni Brandon. Pero pinayohan lang sya nito na ilayo muna si Garrie or di kaya magpa reassign na lamang sa ibang lugar.

"You're too personally involved here Agent Red"sabi ng kanyang boss.

"If you pull me out sir,you'll never get Brandon Harlem. I will tell the parents of those three women that we found their killer,don't you?"

"Not at the expense of your wife's life,or yours"

"Honestly sir I'm much more afraid for her. Just like yesterday when her car broke down,good thing that Agent Noah and Agent Melbo already watches her when I can't. But I can tell you now sir that she would never agree to leave to town. Not without concrete facts."

"Maybe you should tell her"

"No sir,if you only knew her. She's a kind of girl who wants to be involved. Maybe she'd want to help to catch him. She isn't trained for this,sir. I can't take that risk."

Mula sa kabilang linya ay narinig nya ang pagbuntong-hininga ng kanyang boss,and it made him wonder at his chance for career advancement.

"Okay.We play it your way for now. Let's talk tomorrow morning about some extra security."

"Thank You Sir"

Pagkatapos ng ilang minutong nakaupo habang nag-iisip ng estratehiya,hinubad na nya ang kanyang basang damit at pumasok na sya sa banyo para maligo. Brandon Harlem must be dominate and control,at hinding hindi nya hahayaan na sasaktan nito si Garrie dahil magtutuos talaga sila.

Pinwesto na nya ang kanyang ulo sa shower spray,then squeezed some shampoo into his palm. When he was done shampooing,he soaped his body and rinsed off,then stayed a little longer under the shower,letting the cool water loosen his muscles. Atleast meron pa syang isang oras na allowance bago pa nya susunduin si Garrie sa school.

Pero bigla nalang syang nagulantang sa pagtunog ng security alarm. Naghintay lang sya at nagbilang. After more than twelve seconds ay huminto rin ang pagtunog ng alarm. But its too long. More than eight seconds must be too long. Hindi naman kasi tutunog ng ganoon katagal ang alarm system pag alam ng taong papasok ang security code nito.

Hinayaan nya lamang ang patuloy na pag-agos ng tubig, then he stepped out of the shower,wrapped a towel in his waist and picked up his gun from the vanity. Three doors accessed the bathroom,one from the living room and one from each bedroom. Pero lahat ng yon ay nakasarado. Basang-basa din ang kanyang mukha habang naka antabay lang syang pagbuksan ang main door. Huminga sya ng malalim ng pinihit na ang seradura sa taong nasa labas. Humakbang naman sya ng konti sa main door. And when the door eased open. Agad nyang itinutok ang baril sa kung sinumang pumasok at binulaga ito. "Freeze"

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