Under the Skin of a Platinum

I looked at the paper in front of me with so much frustration. Parang sa sabunutan ko ang sarili ko. I thought my father was already done with this s**t. I've passed this era and why bother coming back. "Yaeko, calm down," Clem said while cooking. She gracefully sliced the onion and garlic in the chopping board. "I'm going back to that f*cking field again, Clem! How can I calm down?" I slammed the folder on the table and stood up. Hindi ko gustong sigawan si Clementine pero nagawa ko dahil sa frustration. Pinilit kong pakalmahin ang sarili ko pero hindi ko kaya. Bakit kasi hindi na lang ibigay sa akin ang position? I've already proven myself for a long time. Anong pakulo na naman ito? I've been working my ass off ever since I've entered this  organization. Napabuntong hininga na lang ako ever since I started working here, my life has never been normal. Everything is in chaos and the people around me are always dangerous. My father is giving me a hard time. Marami na ang problema ko at dumagdag pa tong babaeng to. "Where's Inna?" tanong ko kay Clem. Sabay taas ng kilay. Ang delikado na nga at may oras pa rin siyang lumabas. Hindi na talaga nakikinig ang babaeng yun sa akin. Paano kung may mangyaring masama sa kanya? I'm not worried because she's my liability, I'm worried because she's my younger sister. "Hindi ko alam," sabi niya habang naglalagay ng pagkain sa lamesa. We're here in the Philippines for a while, Clem is still finding our little sister. Hindi parin kasi ito na hahanap and it's almost been a decade since that incident happened. Hindi ko alam kung ano ang gagawin ko. I'm already losing some hope. Hindi ko naman matutukan ang paghahanap sa kaniya, dahil utos ng utos si papa sa akin. Last time I checked she is still in the Philippines, bantay sarado na namin ang buong labasan ng pilipinas kaya mahihirapan siyang umalis dito. "Eat up, I know you have a lot of things in your shoulders," she smiled softly before leaving the dining area. Doon lamang ako nabuhayan at nakaramdam ng gutom. Hindi pa ako nakakain ng maayos simula ng dumating ako dito. Kakagaling ko lang sa Japan para ayusin ang kompanya ni Papa don at ngayon ipapadala na naman ako sa Italya. I'm off to Italy on Friday, I have to finish this f*****g thing already. Masyado nang marami ang nakalagay sa balikat ko. I want that position badly. I'm the eldest at hindi naman ata fair na sa iba yon ibibigay. Kinain ko na ang inihandang pagkain ni Clem habang naghihintay binuksan ko ang folder. The folder contains some information about my new mission. I'm already the queen. The thing is in our organization is based on the rankings of cards. Joker as lowest and Ace as the highest. Before you become an ace you have to encounter every level. Kaya panay ang reklamo ko dahil dapat ay hindi na ako nakikialam sa field. I don't know why dad wants me to be on the field again. The Queen or the King is next to the Ace. Hindi na dapat ako pinapadala sa field dahil mataas na ang posisyon ko pero wala rin akong magagawa dahil si papa na ang nagsabi. Napa-iling na lang ako at nag simula nang basahin ang pangalan ng tao na kailangan kong patayin. When I opened the file tumambad kaagad sa akin ang larawan nang isang lalaki. His hooded eyes and pointy nose didn't leave my vision, especially those plump lips. Hindi ko maikakaila ang kanyang kagwapuhan. He's aristocratic nose and the coldness of his eyes. The thickness of his brown eyebrows complemented his strong feature perfectly. His hair is a little curly and his tanned complex is so fine. In general he's a fine man pero hindi ako magpapadala sa kanya. I licked my lower lip and looked at other information about him. Inayos ko ang mga papeles at sinira ito sakto namang dumating si Clem kasama ang isa ko pang nakababatang kapatid na si Inna. "Where have you been? Alam mong dilikado lumabas kapa," inis na sabi ko sa kanya. She simply rolled her eyes and went to her room immediately. What a brat! Kung hindi ko lang kapatid yun ay baka kinutusan ko na. Alam kong kaya niya ang sarili niya pero hindi mapapanatag ang loob ko kapag hindi ko alam kung nasaan sila at sino kasama nila. "Calm down, Yaeko. Kilala mo yang kapatid natin," Clem said softly. Ang kahinhinan ng boses niya ay hindi pilit. She is really born with that kind of grace and posture. Siya ang pinaka mahinhin saamin. She can't use or hold any gun because she hates violence. My father didn't exposed her in our world. She's like precious pearl to us. Napa-iling na lang ako at pumasok. Tinapon ko ang folder sa higaan ko at hinubad ang mga suot ko para maligo. I prepared relaxing bath. I put on my headphones on and relaxed my naked body on the lavender scented bath water. I'm going to be an Ace soon. I just have to finish this assignment. Biglang pumasok ulit sa isip ko ang impormasyon tungkol sa lalaking ito. Alessadro Nathaniel Ricci. This will be fun. I closed my eyes as I hummed the music. I'll play with him for a while. Wala naman akong dinadalian. I smiled devilishly while formulating a plan on how to kill that mafia guy. I already handled a lot of missions and assignments, so this would be easy. Unless I fall in love with him, which is impossible. Masyadong mataas ang standards ko para lang magustuhan siya. He's too strong for my taste. I don't like guy like that, I preferred softer guys. Masyado na akong matigas kaya kailangan kong maghanap ng tao na may malambot na kalooban para balanse. As the music ended I started cleaning and flushing the water from the get tub. Wearing my red bathrobe, I walked outside the bathroom. Kaagad akong pumunta sa bagahe na dala ko upang maghanap ng isusuot. I came across a red silk nighties with a sexy slit revealing my thighs. I feel so naked wearing this, that's why I liked it. I feel so free and at the same time sexy. I blow dried my hair and read more about his company. He's a pretty rich guy with a lot of connections. Marami na itong mga kaso na nalusutan. Pero malakas ang loob ko na mapapatumba ko ang lalaking ito. How hard could it be? When my hair was completely dry, kaagad akong humiga sa kama ko para matulog. I was about to close my eyes when I heard a creaking sound coming outside my room. Kaagad ako na alarma. Pinihit ko ang handgun sa ilalim ng unan ko. I slowly walked without any sound. When I reached my door, I immediately put my ears on the door. Tama nga ako at may narinig akong pumasok sa kwarto. I couldn't warn the girls so I have to do everything to keep them safe. I check the bullets in my gun before preparing for my next move. Naramdaman ko na may pumipihit sa door knob ng kwarto ko. Ako ang pinakamalapit na kwarto sa main door kaya ako talaga ang unang papasukin. I hid behind my door and when the door hung open. I immediately attacked the guy but before I could point him the gun, mabilis niyang sinalag ito sa kamay ko. I throw some punches pero naiwasan niya lahat nang ito. I gave him a small punch before pulling back and give him a spinning back kick, pero kaagad niyang nahawakan ang paa ko. I was mortified to see someone blocking my kicks. He gripped my legs and pulled my waist. I have good reflexes kaya hindi naman ito masakit. He pushed to the nearest wall with the position. I'm wearing a very thin silk kaya ramdam ko ang init sa mukha niya. His gaze slowly went down to my lips. I saw how he licked his lower lip. He was distracted by it. Hindi ko makita ang mukha niya dahil may mask itong suot, but I can see his eyes perfectly and I can see desire from it. I grinned and gave him a headbutt at sakto naman tumama ito sa ilong niya. Kaagad niya akong na bitawan. He groaned while touching the bridge of his nose. Mabilis kong inikot ang paningin ko para hanapin ang handgun ko kanina. I saw it, akmang kukunin ko na ito nang hinawakan niya ang balikat ko at hinampas ang buong katawan ko sa dingding. I groaned in pain, the impact made me dizzy pero hindi parin ako tumigil para protektahan ang sarili ko. I saw him walked towards the place where my files are located, mabilis akong tumakbo at tumalon sa likod niya. I choked him using my arm. I wrapped my legs around his waist while doing that. Mas inipit ko pa ang leeg niya. He struggle a bit, mas lalong napahigpit ang hawak ko sa kanya nang hinampas hampas niya ang katawan ko sa pader. He held the back of my neck and slowly spun me. Napakalas ang hawak ko sa leeg niya dahil sa pwersa nito. When I felt the soft mattress mabilis niya akong pinatungan. I tried resisting but he caught my hand and slammed it above my head. He leaned closer and I can already feel his heavy breathing in my face. My heart was beating rapidly as heat was spreading like a wildfire in my body. The door slammed open. Mabilis kaming napabaling kung sino iyon. Nilukob agad ako nang kaba nang makita ko kung sino iyon. It was Clem and I can already sense the shock and fear in her body. I immediately slammed my head to his face. Kaagad niya akong nabitiwan. I went as fast as I could para maprotektahan si Clem. We heard a few gunshot kaya napababa kaming dalawa. We both crawled to the other room, beside mine at mabilis na nilock ang pinto. Kaagad kong naalala na may isang kasama pa pala kami sa bahay. Luckily there is a gun hidden in Clem's room. Mabilis ko itong kinuha at chineck ang bala. I walked towards the window. Bago pa ako lumabas ay sumenyas muna ako kay Clem na wag lumabas ng kwarto. Unti unting kong pinihit ang doorknob. Nang mabuksan ko ito ay mabilis kong tinaya ang baril ko. Dahan dahan akong pumasok sa kwarto ko. When I opened the door I immediately checked the room. Wala nang tao doon pero nagkalat na ang mga papeles ko sa sahig. My room was rampaged over and over again. Para itong dinaanan ng buhawi. Kaagad kong hinanap ang file para sa bagong mission ko at buti na lang ay natago ko ito sa file bago ako maligo. Napabuntong hininga na lang ako. We have to move out fast. Alam na nila kung saan kami nakatira. I'm not going to risk any civilian because of this. Kaagad kong kinuha ang earpiece ko na nakatago sa loob nang telepono. I have to warn the others. I took a deep breath before putting it on. "The queen has been compromised."