ANNIE
"WE requested you here, Annie, because I want you to watch your brother. Ayaw niyang isama ang asawa niya dahil ayaw niyang marinig ito ni Nadia. So we asked for you instead." Ang bungad sa akin ni uncle nang makarating ako sa Task Force HQ.
I put down my bag as I sat in a white chair. In front of me is a big, transparent window where I saw my brother sitting quietly in a chair. Sa harap niya ay isang sundalo.
"What happened to my brother? Bakit niyo siya dinala rito? What is the interrogation for? At bakit ayaw niyang isama si Nadia rito?" Sunod-sunod kong tanong.
"You'll know when you listen to what Apollo has to say. Makinig ka."
Kinabahan ako sa sagot niyang iyon. I worriedly looked at my brother. Anong nagawa niya? Bakit siya nandito? I left my son again when uncle called me for this. Sobra akong nag-aalala para sa kalagayan ni Apollo kaya pumunta ako agad dito. But I don't even know why.
"Welcome back, former Lieutenant Colonel Apollo Valente Santiago." The soldier started by greeting Apollo. May isang puti at malinis na folder sa harapan niya at binuksan niya iyon. He removed the cap of his pen and wrote something. "I know that you already know why you're here."
Apollo remained silent.
"Or do you even know why?"
Apollo's eyes shifted. "Nalaman niyo na."
"Oo." Tumango ang sundalo at direstong tumitig kay Apollo. "Nalaman na namin."
Bumaling ako kay uncle. He also looked at me. Nakakunot na ang noo ko. "What is this? Anong nalaman ninyo kay Apollo? Did he do something wrong? Is he an intel? Or did something happen to him that he didn't want to tell us?"
"Just listen, Annie. You'll know."
Nainis ako roon pero wala akong nagawa.
"Three years ago, you've been pronounced dead by the organization. There's nothing left of you but your dogtag and the ashes. You didn't leave a track, we didn't even see your body. It was understandable since many bombs exploded. Walang natira. Lahat nasira."
Sumandal si Apollo, pinagkrus ang mga braso sa dibdib.
"But then, after three years, you've appeared and chose to reconnect first with Master Chief Sergeant Brian Angeles. We already asked him and he admitted to helping you when you arrived in the country. Siya ang nagpagamot sa iyo, at siya rin ang nagsabi sa iyo tungkol sa mga nangyari sa Task Force. Hindi ba? And so, Apollo Santiago, let me ask you now..."
Napalunok ako. "This isn't right, uncle. Bakit niyo siya pinipilit? What if my brother is traumatized? You might trigger something!"
"Calm down, Annie. We are not."
"How did you escape?"
How did you escape?
Paano nga ba nakatakas si Apollo mula sa kamay ng mga Guerilla? Did a child really help him or is it because a mercenary just came out killing every Guerilla groups in Russia? Tinulungan ba siya ng taong iyon, o natulungan lang siya? Naging pagkakataon ba iyon ni Apollo para makatakas dahil may bagong mabigat na kalaban ang Guerilla?
"Tell me, how did you really escape?"
Hindi ako napalagay sa upuan ko. Lalo na nang makita ko ang mga mata niya. I know my brother. I know when he's serious. I know when he's sad. I know when he's mad. And I know when he's raging. At ngayon, kontrolado niya ang sarili. But there is something that tells me that he's dangerous right now.
BINABASA MO ANG
Task Force Trilogy #1: Bullet
Любовные романыAurora Nadia Valencia, a simple woman who has a passion for teaching and a woman who lives in a simple home, near the woods. She's contented, comfortable, not until a conflict between two groups in the country broke out. She's been living almost wit...
