Chapter 17: Aftermath
I was told that I had hibernated for an entire year, pero sa dami ng aking mga nalalaman, pakiramdam ko ay isang dekada akong nawala. Paano humantong sa ganito ang lahat?
"Katulad ng sinabi namin sa 'yo, marami ka pang dapat na malaman," kalmadong sambit ni Brienne. "I wouldn't say the world has completely changed when you were gone. Hindi naman sa ganoon. Lumalabas lang ang katotohanan ngayon."
I shook my head, umupo ako sa sofa at sumandal doon. Tumitig ako sa kisame habang kinakalma ang sarili.
How could she say that there were still things I needed to know when, in the first place, these were things I had never even considered to happen? Everything sounded so absurd to me.
"I will get you a drink," I heard Brienne say.
"Kailan niyo ba sasabihin sa akin ang lahat?" tanong ko nang hindi siya nililingon. "Why cannot you just tell me everything?"
"Kapag handa ka nang tanggapin ang katotohanan," malabo niyang sambit. Narinig ko ang mga yabag niya palayo.
Kapag handa na akong tanggapin ang katotohanan? Hindi ako kailanman magiging handa pero kung malalaman ko nang mas maaga ay baka agad ko ring matanggap.
Si Lord Wenson ang pumalit sa akin bilang pinuno ng Nightfall Clan? It doesn't make sense to me. I have a list of vampires who would dare to take my place or plot something against me, but I had never considered him.
Lord Wenson never showed any interest in power. In fact, siya nga ang gumabay sa 'kin no'ng mga panahon na walang naroon para sa akin. There must be something wrong here.
Bumalik din si Brienne matapos ang ilang minuto. Inabot niya sa akin ang isang inumin na may amoy ng dugo at iba pang hindi ko kilalang sangkap. Marahil ay may halo itong mga halamang gamot.
"I am ready," I said.
"Then, drink that."
Kumunot ang noo ko, pero ginawa ko ang gusto niya. I drank the whole glass. It tasted so good. I couldn't blame Callum if Brienne had also tricked him.
"Where's Callum?" tanong ko no'ng mapagtanto na wala silang nabanggit tungkol sa kaibigan ko. "Is he around here as well?"
She sat on the sofa across me. Sa hitsura ng mukha niya ay alam kong hindi maganda ang kanyang sasabihin. I don't think he's here.
"When Lord Reggar found out our whereabouts, I only managed to save you. Naiwan si Callum. Unfortunately, I still have no news about him," she said with a heavy heart.
My mind raced with worry and fear as I tried to imagine what might have happened to Callum. Malamang na nahuli siya ni Lord Reggar. Isang taon na ang lumipas matapos ang insidente.
"He's safe, right?" I asked.
She sighed and looked away, unable to meet my gaze. "I'm not sure about that. I'm sorry," sagot niya sa mababang boses.
I bit my bottom lip as I felt my frustration and helplessness come rushing back. I couldn't bear the thought of not knowing what happened to Callum, but I also couldn't imagine facing the truth if it was the worst-case scenario.
"We need to save him," I said with desperation. "Listen, Brienne. Tutulungan ko kayo sa gusto niyong mangyari. Ngunit kailangan niyo muna akong tulungan na sagipin ang kaibigan ko."
Fuck! Nadamay lang naman siya dahil sa akin. Hindi ko siya maaaring pabayaan na lang.
Brienne stared at me with such weight. Tila tinitimbang niya kung gaano ako kadesperado sa gusto kong mangyari.
