The Devils Mayhem (Devils #3)

Chapter 6

__Victorique's POV__

"What was that?!"

Bumungad sa akin ang malakas na sigaw ni Elle mula sa kabilang linya. Sa tagal ng pagsasama naming tatlo kasama ni Yna, ngayon ko pa lang siya narinig na sumigaw na naka-direkta sa akin. Ngunit hindi na ako nagulat sa kanyang inakto.

"What's is?" Kaswal na tanong ko.

"What is-- You left me back there! I thought we had a plan?" Muli pa nitong singhal.

Isang malalim na hininga ang aking pinakawalan.

"I got what I need without executing the rest of the plan."

As much as possible, I wanted to drop the call now. I am not in the mood to give any explanations to anyone.

"Pinagloloko mo ba ako?!"

Nang marinig ko ang mga salitang ito ay nanliit ang aking mga mata. Ngunit hindi pa rin ako nagsasalita mula sa kinahihigaan. At mula sa gilid ng aking mata ay tumingin ako sa lamesa kung saan nakalatag ang ilang hindi pamilyar na kagamitan, lahat ng mga ito ay pinagmamay-ari ng isang lalaki.

"I'm not." Sabi ko na lamang saka muling tumingin sa kisame. "You were a great help..."

"And what did you just do?! Did we talk about killing someone?!"

"Then did I talk about not killing someone?" Balik tanong ko, ang tono ng aking boses ay walang pagbabago. Hindi ako papayag na maapektohan ang emosyon.

Pagod ako ngayon, lalo na't labis akong nanghihinayang dahil natupad ang kasalukuyan na pinaplano. If this was karma, which I have expected, then it all happened to fast.

Pero masyado itong mababaw para maging parusa ko.

Because right now, I can not find Pearius in his apartment. Heck, I don't even know where to start searching for him. I couldn't find any single clue in his apartment that could tell me why he suddenly disappeared.

Surprisingly though, his things were left behind, except for some other things like wallets and credit cards.

Agad na akong napadilat nang may sumagi sa aking isipan.

Credit cards...

"I don't know what's happening to you Victorique but I am not helping you anymore--"

"Okay, bye." Agad na putol ko sa iba pang sasabihin ni Elle saka pinatay ang tawag.

Hindi na ako nag-aksaya pa ng panahon saka dinial ang numero ni Tito Knox. I was tapping on my foot while I'm waiting for the rings, but I had already ring his number for the fourth time and still no one was answering.

Doon na ako kinabahan. Kilala ko si Tito Knox. Kung kailangan ko siya, sisiguraduhin niyang tutulungan niya ako. Agad akong kinutuban na baka may nangyari nang masama sa kanya.

Thinking of another solution, I called again, but this time it was another person.

"Thank God, you picked up--" 

"Nasa'n na si Tito?" Agad na sansala ko sa kanyang sasabihin. Alam ko na namang balak niya akong komprontahin sa ginawa ko kahapon.

Simula kahapon pa, pinaliguan niya ng sandamakmak na mensahe ang phone ko. Ilang missed calls din ang ginawa niya.

"What?"

Kinagat ko ang labi ko saka tumayo mula sa pagkakahiga sa kami ni Phearius at naglakad-lakad ako ng pabalik-balik. Hindi ako mapakali sa lugar.

"Hindi ko ma-reach si tito." Agad na sabi ko, ang buhok ko ay magulo na dahil sa paulit-ulit na pagsuyod ko dito gamit ang aking mga daliri. "Diba kasama mo siya sa pagi-imbestiga sa kaso ko? Hindi ko ma-reach phone niya."

"What?!" Bulalas nito. "Okay, okay. Hold on, you mean your uncle didn't tell you?"

Lalong lumakas ang t***k ng aking puso. Kahit na may ideya na ako kung anong maaaring nangyari kay tito ay umiling-iling ako. I've been loosing everyone close to me, I can't afford to lose someone else.

"Calm down, Victorique."

"How can I?!" Agad na bulalas ko at agad na kinuha ang helmet na nilapag ko sa lamesa.

Hindi na ako nag-dalawang isip pa at tinahak ko ang hagdanan pababa.

"Tell me where he went!" I demanded.

"If I tell you can't go there." Gean said firmly on the other line.

Nagtagis ang bagang ko dahil sa sinabi niya. I know he's on my side but after all that happened to me, how can I tell if someone is a traitor not? I've been betrayed so many times. At ngayong ayaw niyang sabihin kung nasaan si tito, lalo lang ako mag-iisip ng masama.

"You're one of them, aren't you?!" Hindi ko na nakontrol ang aking boses at napasigaw na ako. "Isa ka sa kanila! You told me to trust you!"

Mukhang nabigla ito sa kabilang linya, "What are you talking about?! You can trust me Victorique!"

Muli na namang nagtagis ang aking bagang, "Then tell me where uncle is!"

"I can't."

"You liar--"

"He told me not to tell you because he knew you'll do this."

Natigilan ako sa kaniyang sinabi, ang bibig ko ay bahagyang naginginig.

"I said tell me where he is!"

Nang makalabas na ako ng apartment complex ay umupo na ako sa aking motorsiklo.

"Tell me!"

"I can't." Ang boses nito sa kabilang linya ay mahinahon. "Your uncle doesn't want to worry you."

"But--"

"He said you should continue."

Hindi ako nakapagsalita sa kanyang sinabi. Kinagat ko ang aking labi upang pigilan ang namumuong luha sa aking mata.

"But he might be in danger..."

Huminga ito ng malalim, now he wasn't shouting anymore. "Listen to me," Malumanay na sabi nito. "You should continue what you've started without him. You're on your own now. Whatever happens, don't pull back. Just move on, and this way you might really find who you are."

I couldn't say anything, my hands on the handle of the bike tightened as I listened to Gean which I know uncle's own words. But even though I understood this, I can't help but wallow in pain.

Is there no way for the people important to me to stay?    

"Victorique?" Gean called, pulling me back to reality, to my reality.

Umiling-iling ako saka pinigilan ang pagpatak ng mga luha ko.

"Are you okay?"

I took deep breaths and pulled myself together. "Yeah. I'm okay."

Pagkasabi ko n'on ay pinatay ko na ang tawag saka inilagay ang phone sa bulsa ko. I put my helmet on and started the engine.

Now that Phearius is nowhere to be found, there is nothing left but to do my own tracking. And I hate to think of this but, maybe, they also got Phearius.

Muli akong huminga ng malalim saka pinabilis ang aking pagmamaneho.

It's time to think of another plan, which I think isn't going to be easy, and Ynalee might hate me for this. Nang makarating na ako sa destinasyon ko ay pinatay ko ang makina at tinignan ang malaking bahay, may kaunti itong kalayuan mula sa kinaroroonan ko.

I removed my helmet off and walked towards the fence and climbed on it with ease.

I landed on the ground without any sound and made my way towards the window, the blinds are half-drawn, allowing me to see what's happening inside.

There were three people at that time, chatting while happily having their late-night meal. The mother was scooping a spoonful of rice to place it on their child's plate, the father on the other hand was talking to the child about I can't understand. And there was Elle, who acts as if two of her friends weren't missing, or being hunt down because of a crime she didn't do.

It's a picture of my family when all of this didn't happen.

Life is really that unfair. Sino ba ako para magreklamao?

Tinignan ko ang itaas na parte ng bahay, kung saan matatanaw ko ang kwarto ni  Elle. I know where it is because we visited her one day.

It isn't worth remembering though. I don't have the time for it.

It was hard but I found ways to climb to her room without making too much sound. Feeling a little exhausted, I made myself comfortable into her bed, not before pushing all of her colorful plushies out of the way. Looking at those teddy bears made my blood boil even more. Even my room was not that colorful.

I just lay there thinking of the things that happened until now. Avoiding certain memory, especially about a devil that I can't help but remember again.

I tried pulling him out of my mind because he doesn't belong there.

But I ended up falling asleep with him in my mind.

It takes me back to that time. He was fixing a wound on my finger, sore from repeatedly being hit, and there are cuts and bruises. Painful as it seems, I thought it was okay as Chauslte applied for some medicine on it, careful and gentle. Just like he said.

"There are things you should probably know." I looked at him. Abala pa din siya sa paglalagay ng gasa sa making nanginginig na kamay.

"Hmm?"

"About this whole thing."

Ngumiti ako. "Mafia, you mean?"

Napansin kong natapos na siya sa paglalagay ng medical tape kaya hinila ko na ang kamay ko at tinignan ito. It was neat, tanda na ilang beses na siyang nasaktan at ilang beses din na siya ang naglagay nito sa kanyang sarili.

He was fixing the medical materials as he continued.

"We have people working in different ways."

Kumunot ang aking noo, "Different ways?"

Nang matapos na siya sa pagliligpit sa kagamitan ay muli na siyang lumingon, ngunit hindi na siya humarap sa akin. He was only looking at the floor.

"Everyone has their own role, there are some who serve as our protectors. They're the ones who notify us if a raid is going to happen, or if the police suspect us."

Tumaas ang magkabila kong kilay, "They sounded as if they could be anybody."

Tumango si Chauslte. "Yes, they could be.  But other times, they could be someone close to you."

He looks at me as if he was trying to tell me something.

"And that someone could be...?"

"Could be a family member, a lover...a friend."

Tinitigan ko siya. "Then do you know someone?"

Huminga siya ng malalim saka kinuha ang aking kamay. His fingers slid to each bandage, drawing circles on it, avoiding the area where I had the wounds. His hands were big that I never wanted him to pull away.

"That is why once you are out there, without anyone, you should be very careful. Be observant, be alert, you may not know who is the traitor at first glance, but if you pay attention carefully, you might avoid them. They could blend into a crowd and you might not know it."

All of the things he said were engraved on my mind. And I knew that in those words hides so much pain, that it also pierces me. Because I knew why he was telling me those, and I dreaded the time that I would be able to use the things he thought me.

"You can not trust everybody. Even in the league, you will encounter traitors even those who are closest to you." Chauslte said. "Pick your allies carefully. But if you have many branches in the family, the higher risk that you might get exposed."

Kumunot ang noo ko. "What do you mean? Diba kapag madami ang nasasakupan mo lamalaki ang impluwensiya mo?"

Ngumiti lamang siya sa akin, "Yeah, good girl. You're right." He squeezes my hand gently and planted kisses on my ring finger, specifically to the place where our make-believe rings were placed.

"But you'll have a disadvantage. The more connections you have, the more it is easy for someone outside your territory could find you." Sabi niya. "And believe me, even the smallest details could even lead that person into your league."

I looked into her hands, intertwined with each other.

He was giving more information than he should. Chaustle was one of them yet he entrusted me with this information. But then there is one that I think he must have lied about.

"But why did you trust me and said me this?" I asked.

He didn't say anything but only looks at me, as if he was already telling me the answer to this question. And it was obvious what it is but he just won't say it.

But I understood very well, Chauslte.

I woke up with a lone tear in my eyes.

And when I looked up I caught Elle in front of me. And on my wrist was a handcuff, Elle was pulling on it, about to lock the other cuff by the headboard.

But she wasn't fast enough as I stood up and pulled her by the hair causing her to scream out loud.