A Prostitute For a Mate

89

Sherkinm/Luisa POV

I awoke with a pulsing headache.

I kept my eyes shut, letting my senses take in my surroundings before I announced to the world that I was awake. 

Wherever I was, it was quiet, and damp, and cold, and reeked of dirt. Saan na ba ako?

Ang huli kong naalala ay minarkahan ako ni Kaizen pero bakit nasa ibang lugar na ako?

I knew three things before I even opened my eyes.

The first was that at least six hours had passed, because I could wriggle my toes and my fingers, and those movements were enough to tell me that all of my weapons had been removed. Pero hindi kaya si Kaizen ang gumawa nito? Ngunit bakit wala man lang akong maamoy na Kaizen sa buong lugar.

Masakit pa rin ang parte kung saan ako nito kinagat pero ewan ko ba mas dinadaga ang dibdib ko sa kaalaman na ibang lugar ang kinalalagyan ko ngayon.

I opened my eyes, finding myself indeed in a dungeon, dumped onto a rotten pallet of hay and chained to the wall.

Damn! Definitely I am not with Kaizen. Posibleng halimaw ang lalaki. Pero hindi naman niya siguro ako dadalhin sa mabahong lugar at ikakadena sa pader pagkatapos niya akong markhan hindi ba?

My feet had also been shackled to the floor, and both sets of chains had just enough slack medyo mahaba ito para bang sinadya para magawa kong lapitan ang maliit na timba sa gilid kung saan amoy na amoy ko roon ang baho ng ihi.

Are they expecting me to do it in that bucket?

Nandidiring napaupo ako sa isang gilid at pinagmasdan ko lamang ang paligid.

No windows, and not enough space between the iron door and the threshold for anything more than light to squeeze through. I couldn’t hear anything—not through the walls, nor coming from outside. I could be anywhere—still beneath anyone's cell.

Pero sinong gagawa nito sa akin?

Asan na ba si Kaizen?

Nauuhaw na rin ako. What I wouldn’t give in exchange for a mouthful of water to wash away the lingering taste of blood. My stomach was painfully empty, too, and the throbbing in my head sent splinters of light through my skull.

Sobrang sakit ng ulo ko. Pero hanggang ngayon hindi ko maalala ang mga sumunod na nangyari pagkatapos ng tagpo sa pagitan namin ni Kaizen.

I tested the chains on my wrists and ankles, examining where they were anchored into the stone floor and walls, looking over every link, studying the locks. They were solid.  Mukhang mahihirapan akong makaalis lalo na't gawa ito sa pilak.

The door groaned open, and a man filled the threshold, three others behind him.

Kumunot ang noo ko habang pinagmamasdan ang tatlong lalaking pumasok.

His tunic was dark and embroidered with golden thread. Pero ang ganitong klaseng pananamit ay nasusuot lamang ng isang kawal ng kaharian.

Hindi kaya si Kaizen ang may gawa nito sa akin? O pwede ring ang kawal na ito na ngumingisi sa akin ay isang traydor?

The guard in the doorway placed the food he was carrying on the floor and slid the tray toward me. Water, bread, a hunk of cheese. “Dinner,” he said, not stepping one foot in the room.

He and his companions knew the threat of getting too close. Napaismid ako. Ako ang nakatali pero mukhang mas takot sila sa akin.

I glanced at the tray. Dinner. How long had I been down here? Had it been nearly a whole day—pero kung umabot na ng ganoon? Ano na nangyari kay Kaizen?