Chapter 11: The boy who cried wolf

Matagal maghintay ng jeep ng mga oras na iyon, naisip ko nang basahin ang email

ni Boss sa akin. Pamatay lang ng oras habang nagaantay. Kaso hindi oras ang

namatay sa akin kundi saya. May tinatago ang lalakeng iyon na nagtulak sakin para

alamin. Mabilis kong tinawagan ang phone ni Hannibal para sabihin ang plano ko.

Dahil sa koneksyon ni Hannibal, natagpuan ko ang sarili ko sa harap ng pinto

ng kwarto ni Gian sa Ina Manor. Binigyan lang ako ng 30 minutes ng isa sa

maintenance na kaibigan ni Hannibal para imbestigahan ang kwarto ni Gian. Pero

kinailangan kong umasta na kwarto ko iyon. Kaya hindi na ako nagtagal sa tapat ng

pinto at agad na akong pumasok para hindi mahalata. Hindi ko rin kinalimutan na

i-lock ito pagpasok ko para kung sakali wala siya, hindi niya halatang may

nakapasok sa kwarto niya.

Madilim ang loob at makabasag tenga ang katahimikan. Marahan akong lumakad

na ang tanging ilaw ko lang ay ang floor lamp na nakatabi sa sofa na malapit sa

maliit na balkonahe. Pero hindi ko napigilan at sinimulan ko nang mag record mula sa phone ko. Aakalain mong babae ang nakatira dito dahil amoy cinnamon ang

paligid. Parang apartment lang ni Makee. At tila takot ang alikabok na tumira

dito dahil sa ayos ng paligid. Hindi niya parin tinatanggal ang mga litrato sa

kurtina ng balkonahe niya na nakaayos pa rin tulad ng huli kong pagpunta rito.

Inuna kong tinungo ang pinto sa kaliwa ko dahil naka ilaw ito. Marahan kong

pinihit ang pahabang door knob at unti-unti kong itulak ang pinto upang hindi ito

magingay. Kuhang kuha ng aking phone ang bumungad sa akin na mga bote ng pain

reliever, sleeping pill at gamot na pampakalma. Pero ng pitikin ko ang isang bote

ng pain reliever, nagtumbahan ang lahat ng bote na parang bowling pins at lahat

ay nalaglag sa lababong katabi nito. Mabilis kong inayos ito nang maka-rinig ako

ng kaluskos ng saradong shower curtain.

Sumipa na naman ang lakas ng kape sa puso ko at buong katawan ko ay tinayuan

ng balahibo. Hawak ang phone ko ng mahigpit, inihanda ko ang sarili ko na magulat

tulad ng horror movies. Mula sa kanang bahagi ng shower curtain, buong lakas kong

inililis ito. At doon sa maliit na bathtub, nakahiga ang nangangalumatang si

Rick. Nakapatong sa dibdib niya ang isang bote ng rum pero isang inom na lang

mula dito at ubos na ito panigurado. Daig pa niya ang mga lasing sa session road.

Nagpatuloy parin ako sa pagkuha ng video.

"Say hi to your soon to be fans, Junkie…" bulong ko sa hangin habang patuloy

ako sa pagkuha ng video.

Dahil siguro sa ingay ng mga ubos na bote ng mga gamot na nag laglagan sa

lababo, nagising siya. Bahagya niyang namulat ang kanyang inaantok na mata. "The

audacity! HA, HA, HA, HA"

Nagpatuloy ako sa pagkuha ng video at hindi siya inintindi. Alam kong lunod

na siya sa alak kaya anumang sabihin niya ay hindi na kasinungalingan. "Did you

really think that I'm like him, huh?" Muli na naman siyang tumawa

ng pagkalakas lakas.

Hindi parin ako nagsalita.

"F*cking son of a b*tch! Don't tell me you didn't remember?"

Muli na namang bumigat ang pakiramdam ko. Lumakas unti-unti ang masama kong

kutob.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about."

"These f*cking drinks... those f*cking pills!" Tuloy-tuloy niyang itinuro

ang paligid niya habang nakahiga sa bathtub. "You don't f*cking remember?"

Nagsimula na naman siyang bumungisngis hanggang sa napansin ko na ang pag

aayos niya ng upo.

"How about this huh?"

Nakasandal na ang likod niya sa pader at nakaharap saakin. Hawak niya ang

bote sa kaliwa niyang kamay at nakatingin sakin ang mapupungay niyang mga mata

taliwas sa ngisi niya.

Sa pagkakataong iyon, napilitan akong itigil ang video. Naging seryoso na

ang tensyon sa loob ng C.R. Naalala ko na. Malinaw na malinaw.

"Bakit kilala mo-" natigilan ako bigla dahil hindi ko parin pala nakalimutan

ang pangalan ni Gian.

"Bakit mo alam yan."

"Bakit? Hindi ko ba dapat malaman?"

Hindi ko na alam ang dapat kong isagot. It was a confidential job. It should

be. Tumitig nalang ako sa mga boteng nasa ibabaw ng lababo.

"Maayos na ang buhay niya. Bakit mo pa ginugulo?"

He suddenly hissed like something happened opposed to what we expected to

happen. Napatingin tuloy ako sa kanya.

"Did… he changed?" Tanong niya sakin na may exaggerated na pagaalala habang

iniimbestigahan ang tableta ng vicodin na hawak niya.

"F*ck you... Sir Rick Cua."

"Ah come on Jerrylyn! We both know this was not a one-time job only. "

Nagtagpo ang mga mata namin.

"Aalis nako." Tumayo ako para lumabas. Hindi ko na gusto ang maaaring

sumunod na mangyari.

"I don't know what to do anymore! Jerrylyn!" He mimicked the wail of that

broken man. Like a boy who cried wolf. He knew I knew that memory. That very

moment. It felt vivid like it happened just yesterday.

"To calm the waves, you gave back the sea its fishes. Quite heartwarming

isn't it?"

Hindi ko na napigilan ang sarili ko at hinarap siya upang sagutin ang

paratang niya. "Ramdam kong totoo yun! Walang nakakapagsinungaling sa harap ng

bote ng alak. Oo! Binuksan ko kaagad yung tableta at iniabot sa kanya. Hindi ako

ang

nanay niya para makialam sa mga problema niya pero hindi ko kayang pigilan ang

sarili ko na tulungan siya!"

"Still, you know what you did." He mockingly stated.

"I can't look at him in that state."

I could clearly remember. I came to the side of the bathtub and knelt down to hug

him. I felt his arms wrapping around my back. Hinayaan kong ipahinga niya ang ulo

niya sa kanang braso ko. Doon niya

ibinuhos ang natitira niyang mga luha sa gabing iyon. Tanging nagawa ko lang ay

hagurin ang likod niya. I knew it wa right thing to do. That would Damien do to

whoever needed it.

"Umasa nalang ako na sa paraang iyon, sisipa na yung gamot."

"Is this the time I'll pity you?" sinundan ito ni Rick ng nakakainis na tawa.

Mapangasar at nakakairitang tawa.

Tanda ko pa, mga dalawa o tatlong minuto ang lumipas, tanging paghinga ko

nalang ang nangibabaw sa pandinig ko. Maluwag na rin ang pagkakayakap ni Gian sa

akin kaya madali ko nang nai-higa ang ulo niya sa dulo ng bathtub. Dahil nakita

ko na ang pinto ng kwarto niya kanina, mabilis ko itong napuntahan. Nakuha ko ang

kumot at unan niya. Marahan kong inilagay ang unan sa ilalim ng ulo niya at sa

ibabaw naman niya ang kumot.

Walang awkwardness na nangibabaw sa akin dahil sanay na ko kay Marilyn.

Nakakaawa lang talaga siya.

Buti nalang at nagtext sakin ang kakilala ni Hannibal na three minutes

nalang ang natitira sa thirty minutes na ibinigay sa akin. Buti nalang talaga

kung hindi ay baka sa kulungan ako umuwi dahil sa pagiging trespasser.

Since that day

Chapter 6: The boy who cried wolf

… All he could do was to cover his face with the stainless tray he was

holding. Drunk audiences cheered around him like they were watching a boxing fight.

He couldn't fight back. He couldn't stop those huge men punching his torso and

arms. One by one, it reached every tissue muscle on his torso and arms that rattled

his organs. He still tried to standstill until he fell on his knees. He stayed

laying on the cold hard floor as the drunks laughed at him. His arms were so numb

and sore that he couldn't lift it up. His sight started to blur and he couldn't

tell who was talking to him anymore and who grabbed the frontal part of his hair.

"In our industry, you're just a piece of sh*t, kid. Don't you dare f*cking

take out your father's issues in our business."

Damien replied, coughing with blood. The two huge men let go of him and stood

up.

The manager walked out from the counter and stood at the main door holding his

phone. "I believe everything… is settled here. Or do you want to settle it in the station?"

One of the men silently growled at Damien who was still coughing blood and

stomped on his face one last time before walking out the pub. Then those drunks

rushed towards Damien to help him get up on his feet before he totally passed out.

Damien slowly opened his eyes but something was blocking his right eye. He

tried lifting each of his arms but he couldn't. The woman who was sitting on a

chair next to the window silently observed him while taking a drink from her

stainless flask. Damien tried to move his left eye around his head to his bed.

There he found the nurse button. He thought that he could use it to seek help. Yet

even his fingers were covered with bandages like mummies. His high hopes shattered

from that realization. The woman then quietly gets up from the chair as she

continues to observe how Damien struggles to get help. Without any strength left,

Damien chose to look up directly at the ceiling. He wondered how the hell things

got f*cked him up. He planned everything and executed it perfectly yet he still

ended up with broken bones and damaged right eye.

But all of that deep thinking ended when he suddenly noticed a figure standing

at the feet of his bed. He immediately tried rolling down his left eye to figure

who it was.

"E-e-excuse me? Nurse? Doc? Sir? Ma'am?" he asked hopefully.

But the woman just replied to him with a hysterical laugh. "Geez dude! The

f*ck with the stuttering? Huh?" She continued drinking from her flask as she

approached Damien's bed side.

"You're drinking in broad daylight? Pardon but can you get out of here--

Nurse!" "Si, Mama, I'll stop drinking. You're such a buzzkill." The woman closed

the

flask and inserted it into her blazer's pocket. "FYI, I brought you here.(Spanish)

Ungrateful asshole."

"Tha-thank you. So-sorry. Sorry I still suck at this."

The woman's mood suddenly shifted to a wide sparkling smile. " Glad to hear

that. By the way, call me Kelly, mates call Sober. One of the regulars… and--"

"Sh*t… Am I dreaming?" Damien's eyes sparkle like a child seeing his idol

superhero. "The Chick who kick d*cks."

They both shared the same joyful laugh. They laugh like they've known each

other that long.

"Ok-ok, so why those motherf*ckers almost killed you back at the pub?"

The laughter Damien enjoyed gradually faded and turned to silence.

"I know you're Wolfram Morrison. So are you going to talk or what?"

"Can you keep this secret to yourself?" Their eyes met and somehow Kelly

understood that look and responded to him with a nod. Damien continued. "I thought

I perfectly tricked those men to cause discord in Maxwell's life of fame and

reputation yet at the end, I still fail."

Kelly shook her head slowly. "I knew something was up. I've once dealt with

them. No issue, no violence(Spanish)." Then she stood up to dig the flask inside

her pocket. " From what I can tell with your story, that motherf*cking Governor

ain't up to something good again."

His eyebrows furrowed. He couldn't figure out what Kelly was talking about.

"How can you tell all this? and what do you mean 'again'?" He questioned her out of

confusion.

Kelly looked at him smirking before taking a drink from her flask. She then

hid her flask back to her pocket before answering Damien. "You know the story of

the boy …" Then she gestured two on her hand." who fooled the town people twice…"

She slowly walked by the bedside as she cupped her mouth with her hands. "... by

repeatedly crying for help! the wolves are feasting on my flock."

He cut her off by continuing the story. "And on the third time of his cries, no one believed him anymore. He was forced to watch his flock/fleece be brutally

eaten by the wolves."

Kelly, on the other hand, clapped hysterically and suddenly. "Good for you

kid, same like your father (Spanish). She rolled her sleeves and looked at her

watch. "Well, lucky you, my time is up."

"Wai-wai-wait!Wait!" Damien tried his best to move his head to get a good view

of Kelly who was about to step out of the room. "I-I couldn't follow. I didn't even

understand… what you said in spanish. "

Kelly felt a tickle that made her chuckle. "Work for me and eventually, you'll

understand."

Damien's eyes and mouth widened. "Sh*t! I lost my job at the pub? Shit! for

real?"

Again, Kelly replied to him with a chuckle. "I'm just fooling around… but your

job." A sudden hissing sound followed.

"F*ck, f*ck. What's wrong with meee!" Damien continued trying to bash his head

on his pillows.

"Geez, stop being a f*cking loser ok? I can help you, don't worry." Kelly

tried her best to console him without breaking into laughter.