Puppet Town (Cold Case Series 3)

Chapter 14: The Guide

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"I feel nothing but happiness that my parents are gone— and I'm guilty that I do," I said while looking at the church ruins on the other side of the cliff.

Napatingin sa 'kin si Roman. "You don't look like one, though."

"Kahit hindi ko man kayang aminin noon, alam kong gusto ko silang mawala sa buhay ko. Pero siguro, hindi ko rin ginustong mawala sila sa gano'ng paraan."

"O, Saint Lovelace of Esperanza, such things are beyond your control. What happened to them resulted from their actions, which has nothing to do with yours."

I looked at him and smirked. "It's Renee."

"Hmm." He shrugged.

Kapwa kaming natahimik habang nakatingin sa malayo. My fight was over, but our fight wasn't over. There was still Eloi, and we had no idea what he was planning. The silence of the town... the ignorance of the people on what's going on is bothering me. Anyone could be a victim, and yet they were able to sleep soundly.

"You said your best friend was a part of Everlast, too... w-what will you do now?" Halata ang pag-aalinlangan sa boses ni Roman.

I answered with a deep breath. "Honestly? I don't know."

And there was this unspoken question that remained in the air. What if Eli was one the killers of the previous victims? Hindi man niya masabi pero nararamdaman ko na naaabala siya ng tanong na ito.

Baliktarin ko man ang sitwasyon, hindi ko na maitatanggi pa ang katotohanang may kinalaman si Eli sa mga pagpatay. She may not have blood in her hands, but her membership in the cult that did the killings were enough to taint her innocence. The more I realized these things, the heavier my heart becomes. Hindi ko lang ito napagtanto no'ng una dahil sa sobrang saya kong makita siya.;

"She's not the Eleanor you used to know," sabi lang ni Roman.

"Maybe, there was still that version of her somewhere..." But my words only felt like a fantasy.

"Are we interrupting?" I heard Aurelia's voice from our back.

Nang lumingon kami, nakita namin siya kasama ang isang lalaki na ngayon ko lang nakita. He was also about our age. Magulo ang buhok niya at may kadiliman sa ilalim ng kaniyang mga mata. Nakatulala lamang siya at mukhang nawawala.

Roman stood up and approached the guy. Inakbayan niya ito at parang doon pa lamang nabalik sa realidad ang lalaki. He looked at us and then to Roman who was grinning.

"A new member has joined the Roman's Fanclub while you were away. Renee, meet Carlos Adlawan. I met him during our little chase with Everlast. He was an ex-member of the cult and he will help us with our investigation," sabi ni Roman.

Carlos shrinked upon Roman's mention of his affiliation.

Ex-member? Chased? Ang dami na agad nangyari.

"Wait, Roman's Fanclub? Ugh! Count me out if that's the case." Kusang nagwalk-out si Aurelia sa 'min.

Carlos extended his arms towards the leaving Aurelia. "H-Halla..."

"Hahaha! Just let her be." Pabirong hinampas ni Roman si Carlos sa balikat.

"Now, you need to tell me what happened these past few days," Sabi ko.

Habang hinihintay naming mahimasmasan si Aurelia, ikinuwento na nga sa 'kin ni Roman ang nangyari. Turns out, his brother also did the same thing as Aurelia did to me. 'Yung titigan portion hanggang sa paghabol niya rito patungo sa gubat ay parehas. He was also chased by the cult members who was wearing a silicone mask of his face who was asleep. I told him the same thing happened to me— except their victim was Aurelia. And instead of Carlos, it was Eleanor who saved me.