[Chapter 33]
Muli akong nakatulog pagtapos kong maligo at gabi na ng muling magising. Naabutan kong mag isang nakaupo si Matilda sa counter table habang binabalatan ang saging sa kanyang kamay. Nakikita ko sa mga mata ko ang masayang si Mariele na nakangiting nang iinis kay Matilda. Iniling ko ang ulo ko at tumabi sa kanya. Saglit niya akong nilingon at nginitian. Umikot ang tingin ko sa paligid.
"Where's Carver?" I asked. I remember how i treated him earlier. I should've done that.
"On his room. Are you hungry? I prepared the dinner already."
"I'm fine." I smile a little. The silence embraced us again. Malalim akong bumuntong hininga.
"Why is he like that?" I said in annoyance. She looks at me before she take a bite of her banana.
"Who?" I sigh.
"Carver."
"Why? What did he do?"
"It's like he doesn't care about her death." Humina ang boses ko pagkasambit ko ng huling salita. Napayuko ako at pinaglaruan ang mga daliri ko.
"What are you saying?" Her eyebrows twitched. Like she can't believe what i just said.
"He told me to accept it but i can't." I heard her sigh.
"He told you that because he knows what it feels and he wants you to overcome the sadness right away." She paused for a moment.
"Kasi kung hindi mo agad ito matatanggap, the devastation will worsen the pain." She looks at me.
"The pain will drown you in the depths of darkness. If that happens you might lose your will to be happy again." Hindi niya inaalis ang tingin niya sa akin. I can see the sincerity in her eyes. Like she mean what everything she said.
"If he can do that, well I'm not like him. I just can't do that. It's hard."
"Kung meron mang mas nasasaktan ngayon ay si Carver iyon." Aniya dahilan para mapalingon ako sa kanya. Her eyes are now captivated by the banana in her hands.
"He helps her. She was like a sister to him." Kinagat niya ang natitirang kapiraso sa saging at inilapag ang balat sa counter bar table. Nanatiling nakatulala ang mga mata niya sa kawalan.
"Mariele temporary replaced the empty room for his lost sister." My lips were partly half open. Sister? He has a sister?
"So don't say he doesn't care about her because he did." Muli niya akong nilingon."He did more than we ever did."
"I-I'm sorry." That's all i can say. I didn't know. I remember what i said earlier and i sounds like a brat. I should've have said anything like those things. I suddenly felt embarrassed.
"What about you? Did you accept it?" I asked. "That Mariele is gone?"
"Deaths are part of our lives Tara."
"You're part of it did you?"
"Part of what?"
"The organisation." I saw a bit of surprise flashed on her eyes. She didn't expect that from me.
"Mariele told you?" I nodded.
"Carver told us not to tell you." Pumangalumbaba siya at muling tumitig sa kawalan. "He wanted to protect you."
"What?"
"That's the first thing he told us when he brings you here. He wanted to protect you."
"Why?" She shrugged. "I don't know."
"Since you found out who we really are. I wanna tell you everything you want to know." She said without looking at me. Napaisip ako saglit, what do i still want to know?
"What is this organisation really is? Why do you guys have to kill people?" Tumango siya ng ilang ulit bago nagpakawala ng malalim na buntong hininga.
"His father was the one who founded the mafia organisation. His father did everything to reach the highest rank and pass it to Carver before he died." She stated. "We kill because his enemies wanted to take his father's hardwork."
"It's like a power." I said and she nodded.
"A super powerful power. You can rule every single man in every group once you get the throne."
"Why does he need to continue what his father started if he knows it's inhuman thing?"
"Even if he want to stop and abandon it, he can't."
"Why?"
"What do you think will happen if he let those greedy people get the power in their hands?" A sudden realisation hit me. It'll be a catastrophe.
"That's how powerful his position is. People are ready to face death just to take that power he has on his hand."
"Why people keep on calling him Hugo? Why did you tell me before that if i call him that he wouldn't like it?" This name can also make people shiver in fear. If he wanted to protect me then why did he gave me his surname? People might come for me and use me against him!
"Hugo was his code name and every mafia group knew that name with the words attached to it." She paused and gave me a quick glance. "He was known as 'Hugo who only ask once' and 'The merciless one.' you know like people in every mafia group loves to spread stupid rumors."
"M-my name was attached to his surname. Is he using me as a bait?" She let out a laugh.
"What? No ofcourse not. His surname will be like a shield for dangers. His enemies can't use you because they can't harm any family members of their enemies."
"What do you mean?"
"There is this one and only rule on every mafia organisation. They can't harm anyone from their enemy's family that wasn't part of a group. Mawawalan sila ng ranggo at aalisin ang kapangyarihang meron sila sa underground. Mawawalan ng silbi ang pakikipag patayan nila kung hindi rin naman nila makukuha ang kapangyarihang inaasam nila. If you harm anyone from the blood related family na hindi naman kasama sa isang organisasyon, the lives of your whole family will be the exchange. It's like you're giving everyone in the underground organisations the power to kill all of your family. Kahit malayong pinsan ka pa, as long as you had the surname attached in your name, you won't be excepted from the sin that was made." Paliwanag niya. May ganun din pala. Ibig sabihin pala non ay tanging buhay lang ni Carver ang nanganganib at maging ang mga tauhan niya. Base sa sinabi ni Matilda ay mukhang maraming taong ganid sa kapangyarihan ang nagnanais na pumatay kay Carver.
"But there is this family who chose to break that rule." She finally look at me. I felt a pang on my heart as soon as i saw the sadness on her eyes. "The Lertex Camorra Organisation."
"They take the most important ladies on Carver's family." Saglit siyang tumigil.
"They killed his mother and take his little sister."
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Kimonokun
BINABASA MO ANG
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