The Antiquity of Us (La Fortuna Series #2)

Kabanata 35

Kabanata 35

Trust

The authorities started tracing Kiro's whereabouts. Ako lang ang nakakaalam sa totoong relasyon niya kay Yona kaya sa lumipas na mga taon ay hindi naimbestigahan ang posibilidad ng pagkakasangkot niya sa kaso. Besides, he wasn't in La Fortuna that tragic night. He was totally off the hook.

Totoo rin ang hinala kong sinusundan nga kami ng taong naka-motorsiklo sa gabing 'yon. And as surprising as it might be, the one driving that motorcycle was actually Ionna. Magpapakita na siguro siya sa 'min, ngunit naudlot 'yon nang mapagtanto niya ang nangyayari sa loob ng ancestral house.

She was Dad's favorite but she had always openly told me that Dad's way of raising us was sick and inhumane. Hindi na nakakapagtakang nakaya niyang barilin ito. And if it wasn't evident enough at our sea travel trip, she had the tendency to resort to impulsive and unexpected measures when something gets in her nerves. Ako nga noong gabing 'yon ay nasaksak si Dad kahit na sa pagitan namin, ako ang mas mahina ang loob.

If I were to be honest, I didn't blame her for killing him at all. I stabbed him with the intention to hurt him... may posibilidad na mamatay siya dahil sa saksak ko. It just so happened that Yona's method of hurting him was the cause of his death.

"Are you done yet?" Atlas' low voice pulled me out of my trance.

I glanced at him over my shoulder while running the tip of my fingers through the queue of chic-looking clothes that hung on a gold metal rack.

My face twisted in irritation. "No. Kararating lang natin dito, ah?"

"We've been here for thirty minutes and you haven't even tried on any piece of clothing in that rack," he calmly noted and leaned his elbow on a rack near him. Walang ekspresyon ang kaniyang mukha pero alam kong iritado na siya.

"Magfi-fit na ako, okay?" nguso ko at bahagya siyang inismiran. May kinuha akong isang naka-hanger na damit bago siya muling sinipat. "Wait on the sofa in front of the fitting room. Be there in five... or maybe ten."

He tssed. "Aight."

Nang tuluyan na siyang umalis upang sundin ang utos ko'y ibinaling ko na ang atensyon ko sa paghahanap ng dress na ifi-fit. Nasa isang boutique kami ngayon dahil nag-insist si Tita Lucy na samahan niya ako sa pamimili ng mga damit. It's 2 PM and after this, he would also accompany me to our ancestral mansion. I smirked at that. Atlas, the good dog.

Well, everything's starting to simmer down now that the truth about the case was finally coming into light. Pakiramdam ko'y handa na akong bisitahin ang mansiyon namin at balikan ang mapapait na alaala ko roon. Kuntento na naman akong buhay si Ionna at nakita ko na ang totoo naming ama. Believe me, I was more than grateful for everything that's occurred recently. And yet despite that, I still needed closure because there were things I couldn't seem to let go.

Atlas' face flashed at the back of my mind. Napailing ako sa sarili ko. I guess, he's one of those things, too. But goddamn, let's pretend I didn't realize that.

"How is it?" I asked, eyes sparkling in anticipation as I showed Atlas the fit of a green sleeveless dress with a corset styled-top and lacy fabric.

It's not like I wanted to get all chummy all of a sudden, but who else would I show the fit of the dress on my body other than him?

Bahagya akong pinamulahan ng pisngi nang makita ang nakabalandra niyang mukha sa harap ko. He was doing a manspread with his elbows folded against his thighs. Naka-puting dress shirt siya, itim na trousers, at itim na wingtip shoes.