Chapter 36

Dox Kiel Avelo

Dinaanan namin si Dreadmore sa harap ng condominium tower niya. Naka-suit ang loko habang suot-suot ang kanyang glasses. Pasado alas dose na pero nagawa pa nitong magsuot ng pormal na damit. Si Kaiden ay mukhang gusgusin pa rin sa suot na boxers, maruming shirt, at night slippers. Pareho kami ng suot ni Den pero mas malinis lang akong tignan.

"So what the hell's happening again?" tanong ni Dread pagkapasok sa kotse. Kalmado nitong binuksan ang pagkakabutones ng suot niyang black blazer at saka prenteng naupo sa backseat. I glanced at him at the mirror and rolled my eyes.

"Mavis is missing. She's pregnant and she might be in danger. Maselan ang pagbubuntis niya."

"What?" Dread asked in confusion. Bumaling ito kay Den. "What the hell did you do? After you punching me, you let her go?"

"She ran away alright!" bulyaw ni Den. "That fucking new secretary of mine did some shit and now I'm fucked!"

"What new secretary? You cheated on Mavis?" ani Dread at saka ngumisi. "Or Mavis thought you cheated?" Muli na namang nagpatuloy sa pag-iyak si Den kaya mas umingay pa ang byahe namin. "Man, could you shut up?" ani Dread pero nagpatuloy pa rin sa pag-iyak si Den. He looked at me and spoke again. "Eh kung itapon natin 'to palabas? Ang ingay eh."

Napahalakhak ako at binuksan na lang ang radyo para makinig kami ng music. Sakto namang nag-play yung soundtrack ng White Chicks na A Thousand Miles.

Nakita ko si Dread na napangisi saka pareho naming sinabayan ang kanta.

"Making my way downtown
Walking fast
Faces pass
And I'm home bound~"

Nag-head bang ako habang si Dread naman ay parang baliw na ginalaw-galaw ang mga daliri na para bang may kinakalabit na gitara.

"Tenenenenen tenenenenenen~" ani Dread at saka naghead-bang na rin.

"Staring blankly ahead
Just making my way
Making a way
Through the crowd~"

Ginawa kong mikropono ang phone ko at saka kumanta ulit.

"And I need you
And I miss you~"

"I-I mishyu Mavis!" sigaw bigla ni Kaiden kaya napatingin kami rito. "And now I wonder~"

Napailing na lang kami dahil nakisabay ang ngumangawang baliw sa amin.

"If I could fall
Into the sky
Do you think time
Would pass me by
'Cause you know I'd walk
A thousand miles
If I could
Just see you
Tonight~"

"Tenenenenenen tenenenenenen~"

Nagpatuloy kami sa pagkanta ng iba pang mga musikang tumugtog hanggang sa umabot kami sa harap ng mansyon nina Mavis at Amon. Natahimik na rin si Den at parang lutang na lang na kaluluwa. Nasa labas na naghihintay si Dem slash Demonyo slash Amon nang makarating kami.

Hindi na kami nagulat nang paulanan nito ng sapak si Den. Serves him right. If he didn't let that woman get his hands on him then Mavis could've been home safe and happy right now.

Both Dread and I lazily watched the platinum-haired demon beat up our other friend. Nakasandal lang kami sa gilid ng kotse habang pasipol-sipol na nanood sa palabas. Mabuti naman at marunong sumapak itong si Dem dahil baka tinulungan na namin siya ni Dread kung hindi.

It took a few minutes before Dem finally cooled down. He dragged Den towards the mansion so we followed. The next thing we know, Den was already sprawled on the tiled floor of the large sala. Sinipa-sipa pa ito ni Dem nang ilang beses pero wala nang kibo si Den at titig na titig lang sa mga chandelier sa kisame.

Bumaling na ako kay Dem.

"Long time no see, Dem," I said with a grin so he stared at me in shock. Ngayon lang yata niya kami napansin dahil pokus na pokus siya sa pambubugbog kay Den.

His jaw dropped and he looked at my stomach then back at my face. Okay. Figured Dread or Den might've told him about my situation.

"I heard you're pregnant so why are you here?! Dapat hindi ka nagpupuyat!" His tongue rolled with his Russian accent whenever he says something in English but his Filipino's straight as heck. "Umuwi ka at magpahinga! Nasa'n yung baliw mong boyfriend? Ba't pinabayaan ka?"

"I'm fine, dude," natatawa kong sabi rito. Daig niya pa nanay ko sa pagbubunganga nito. "Giyo had to do something important and he trusts you guys."

"Really, huh?" ani Dem at umiling. "I doubt he'll trust me after he suspected we got something going on. Damn. Hindi ko makakalimutang tinutukan ako ng gagong yun ng dalawang baril."

"Tinutukan ka ng baril ni Giyo?" tanong ni Dread nang may pagkamangha. "Wow. It's a miracle you survived."

"I know," Dem murmured. "Anyways, we gotta look for Mavis, right?"

Tumango-tango kami.

"We thought you could, you know, hack for us?"

He burst out laughing and said, "What? Because I'm Russian?"

"Yep."

"Dude. I don't do that kind of hacking," aniya at nagkibit-balikat. "I don't even know why Kaiden preferred to not contact anyone other than you guys. Eh mas mayaman pa si Kaiden kaysa sa atin."

There was silence for a long while. Rinig namin ang pag-tick-tock ng orasan kaya alam naming marami kaming nasasayang na oras.

"You know, I've also suspected something weird is happening. Parang mamatay-matay na si Den kakaiyak eh," ani Dread at saka umiling. "I think there's something else going on."

Tumitig ako sa kanya nang maigi. May punto nga ang naging obserbasyon nito. Masyadong sobra ang reaksyon ni Den na para bang siguradong-sigurado siyang masasaktan si Mavis kung hindi namin ito mahahanap.

Isa lang ang naiisip kong nangyari kung hindi boluntaryo ang pag-alis ni Mavis kung sakali.

"You think Mavis has been kidnapped? But because of what?" I murmured.

Cause she's a cold-hearted woman?

"No, the question is because of who," Dread said and sat on the couch while still thinking deeply. "She probably got kidnapped because of Den."

What the hell?

"At bakit naman?" taka kong tanong.

Dread looked at me weirdly.

"Dude, nobody told you?"

"What?"

"Kaiden was part of a mafia organization based in the US. He quit and came back here."

Ilang beses akong napakurap bago bumagsak ang panga ko.

"Tangina what?!"

—

Iritado akong tumitig kay Den na ngayo'y natapos na sa pagpapaliwanag kung pa'no siya naging parte sa isang mafia organization. Hindi ko man lang magawang sapakin ang loko dahil halos hindi ko na malarawan kung gaano ka bugbog-sarado ang kanyang mukha.

He didn't tell us how freaking serious this is. Kaya pala kahit marami siyang puwedeng paghingan ng tulong, kami lang ang sinabihan niya. Delikado masyado ang kalagayan ngayon ni Mavis kung sakali mang matagpuan siya ng mga humahabol kay Kaiden.

"I don't fucking get it why they're still after me. Klaro namang wala na akong interes bumalik sa mafia," aniya at saka sinapo ang kanyang noo. "Naging kampante ako masyado."

"Yeah, yeah," Dread murmured and shook his head. "The question is who are we going to call right now when Lambarde is busy with something?"

Sinabihan ko na kasi silang hindi makakatulong sina Giyo at Pacé ngayon. Sinigurado ko ring hindi nila tatawagan ang mga 'to dahil ayaw kong ma-distract sila.

"Don't you have some Russian friends who hack, Amon?" baling ni Dread kay Dem.

"They're part of the mafia so it's a huge risk to ask a favor from those guys. I'm sure you don't want some mafia war to happen," ani Dem at ngumisi. "Or should we ignite a battle between mafia organizations?"

Kaiden clicked his tongue and spoke.

"No, we need someone unaffiliated to avoid misunderstandings. Ayokong may magamit sila laban sa atin sa hinaharap. Ayoko na nang gulo." Ginulo nito ang buhok. "Tangina. Wala ba tayong kakilalang mapagkakatiwalaan sa pagkawala ni Mavis?!"

I thought so hard. Inisip ko ang mga kakilala naming maaaring makatulong pero pulos mga baliw ang mga kakilala ko. Partida, hindi pa kasali roon ang mga taga-Lambarde.

"Tangina. May trust issues ba kayo?" ani Dem at saka bahagyang natawa. Tinapunan namin siya ng masamang tingin pero mas lalo lamang siyang bumunghalit ng tawa. "I'm sure we can call somebody. Hahahahaha! Kayo lang talaga 'tong walang tiwala sa kanila."

"This is Mavis we're talking about, MY woman," Den said. "I couldn't trust her safety to just anyone."

"So anong gagawin natin dito? Tutunganga na lang tayo at hihintaying ang kapatid ko na ang bumalik sa atin?" sarkastikong ani Dem.

"I just thought of someone," biglaang sabi ni Dread. "I can't fucking believe I forgot that fucker."

"Who?" sabay-sabay naming tanong sa pa-suspense na mokong.

"Si Son Goku." He paused as we squinted our eyes at him. He shrugged. "Kidding. Si Sun Dion Alazar ang tinutukoy ko."

Sun Dion... Alazar...

"Isn't he a photographer?" tanong ko kay Dread. Naalala ko tuloy yung profile pic ko sa FB na nagustuhan ni Giyo. Dion was the one who took the photo.

"He is but he used to do some sideline job as a computer programmer. He likes binary too." Hindi na ako nagulat na naalala ito ni Dread. He's kinda a nerd back then. Sila ni Dion ang laging nagkakasundo. Simula noong magtapos kami ng kolehiyo, wala na akong narinig mula kay Dion. Akala ko nga patay na ang isang yun. "Kalalabas lang niya sa preso nung isang taon."

May mga kuliglig na tumunog sa paligid matapos marinig namin yun. Bumunghalit kami ng tawa ni Kaiden. Si Amon naman ay nagpipigil matawa.

It's rude but heck. Hahahaha.

"Ba't siya nakulong?" I mumbled. It's surprising though. A murderer like me is walking free while the supposed to be innocent Dion got imprisoned.

"Ayun. Nahuli nagbebenta ng pirated DVDs."

We all burst out laughing. Hilarious!

Hah. I can't believe this. Sa dinami-rami ng pwedeng dahilan ng pagkakulong. Dion... Dion... I should've gave him some tips on how to be a cool criminal. I wonder what kind of pirated DVDs he sold. Porn panigurado. Hahahaha!

"Let's call him!" masigla kong sabi kay Dread. "Malay natin baka makatulong siya sa paghahanap!"

And then something happened.

A tune, so slow and creepy began playing from somewhere. I got gooseebumps when the melody was mixed with an awkward beat.

Lahat kami ay napatingin sa phone ni Den na nasa pabilog na mesa. Lumiliwanag ito at kitang-kita namin ang nag-f-flash na numero sa screen. Nakatayo kasi kami palibot ng mesa habang nagtatalo. Tanging ilaw ng lumang chandelier ang nakasindi. Dahil sa madilim na ambiance ng mansyon, pakiramdam ko may susulpot bigla na multo sa gilid.

The strange melody stopped playing and we clearly saw how the screen slid by itself. Naestatwa kaming lahat dahil sa nasaksihan. Napayakap ako sa sarili dahil parang lumamig bigla.

Then a voice from Den's phone began cracking in laughter.

Tumaas lahat ng balahibo ko at sumiksik na ako kay Dreadmore na nasa aking tabi. Maging ito ay sumiksik sa akin. Si Kaiden naman ay napalayo sa mesa habang si Amon ay napatakip sa sariling bibig.

"W-What the fuck?!" bulalas ni Den matapos namin marinig ang patuloy na pagtawa.

What the hell just happened?! Wala naman sa amin ang sumagot sa tawag pero na-receive ito. At sino itong baliw na tumatawa?

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" The laugh reverberated around the house until it finally stopped after some choking sounds. "Okay, okay. I've laughed enough. You should've seen your faces."

"Dion?!" bulalas ko at nanlaki ang mga mata naming lahat.

"The one and only Sun Dion!" anang boses at mahinang natawa. "Mabuti't kilala mo pa ang boses ko, Doxy baby."

What the—

"It's been a long time, Dion," Dread said and smirked. "Musta buhay sa preso?"

"Ayos naman. Dream come true," maloko namang sagot ng boses.

"Quit kidding around Dion. Can you help us or not?" seryosong sabi ni Den at saka sumimangot. "Pero putragis. Takot na takot ako sa pinagtugtog mong music, gago!"

"Hahahaha! Syempre, alam kong takot kayo sa multo and yeah... Of course, I'll help!"

—

"Sige mga prends," panimula ko at saka tinanguan silang tatlo. "Simulan na natin ang Operation: DDAKS saves Mavis!"

"Ba't DDAKS, Doxy?" takang tanong ni Dion mula sa phone.

"DDAKS, samahan ng may malalaking kargada: Dox, Dreadmore, Amon, Kaiden, at Sun. Oh 'di ba? Pwede rin 5D. Dox, Dread, Dem, Den, and Dion."

"Dami mong imbento," komento ni Dread. "Ba't 'di mo sinama si Giyo sa may malalaking kargada?" bulong nito sa akin.

Kinunutan ko ito ng noo.

"Pa'no mo nalaman?"

"Malamang. Faster~ Harder babe~ Ahhh~" maarteng bulong pa ni Dread kaya nabatukan ko na siya.

"Gago."

Sumeryoso na kami nang magsimula nang magsalita si Dion.

"Oh, right. Some motherfuckers from your former mafia organization really did kidnap Mavis Estrella. They're in a warehouse. I've dispatched drones. You'll see and hear the situation right now. I'll send the live feed towards your television, Amon." Kusang bumukas ang malaking flat screen TV na nasa gilid at tumambad sa amin ang isang sitwasyon.

Di masyadong maaninag ang mukha ng mga kidnapper dahil nakatalikod ang mga ito sa mga drones. Nakapalibot ang iilang mga babae at kalalakihan kay Mavis na mahinahong nakaupo sa isang silya. Nakatali ito.

A woman was closer to Mavis.

"So, you're Kaiden's slut?" The woman said with disgust. "You don't look that pretty. I'm sure Kaiden's gonna throw you away once we slice those pretty lips. Your eyes can catch a huge price in the market too."

Oho. Selos pala ang ugat ng mga 'to. Tsk, tsk. Iba talaga magselos ang mga babae, parang yung nasa mga pelikula. May pagkapsycho.

"Who's the psycho?" tanong ko kay Den na namumutla na.

"That's Vicky Greyson."

"How antagonistic," nakangising ani Dread.

"Yeah, parang pambaliw talaga," ani Dem.

"Fuck, I should've known," ani Den at saka mapaklang natawa. "She was kicked out of the mafia a year ago because of me. Now she's here for revenge. Typical."

"So, still gonna hold back?" Dem asked. "We're gonna be facing a dangerous person. You gotta trust some people, you know."

"Hold back? Why the fuck should I? And dangerous?" Ngumisi si Den. "My Mavis baby is more dangerous than that disgusting whore." Pagkatapos ay humalakhak ito. "Call some fucking reinforcements. Susugod tayo."

"That's more like it," ani Dread at saka binuksan ang sariling phone. Ilang segundo ang lumipas ay may kinakausap na ito sa kabilang linya. "Hello, Ains. We've got a situation. Bring the guns."

Holy mother of— Marami pa akong hindi nalalaman sa mga tropa ko.

"Ah, guys... Can you teach me how to shoot a gun?" Lahat kami ay tumingin kay Dem na nakataas ang kanang kamay at nakangisi.

"Huwag kang magjoke, pre," I told him and chuckled. "Hindi mo na kailangan ng baril."

"Bakit naman?" nakanguso nitong sabi habang nakasimangot.

"Bayaran mo lang ako. Ako papatay sa rasyon mo," sabi ko rito.

"Dude, you'll really kill someone while you're pregnant? Baka naman maging kriminal ang anak mo?" Kumibit-balikay si Den. "But it's your choice though."

"I'm still thinking how Doxy got pregnant," Dion mumbled over the phone.

"Come on, dude. Bang bang and then there goes the baby," ani Dread at saka kumindat pa sa akin. "I was there when they—"

"Look at the screen," biglang sabat ni Dem na ngayo'y seryoso na. "It looks like they're just talking to Mavis. Are they waiting for something?"

"Maybe, someone," Den said. "Sa tingin ko'y naghihintay lang sila ng utos sa nakatataas kaya hindi magawang saktan ng baliw na babaeng 'yan si Mavis."

"That's good!" I chirped happily. "We've got time to prepare fucking those motherfuckers."

"Ah, Dox, shouldn't you stop cursing?" ani Dion. My ears perked up because I've told this to myself a lot of times. I ended cursing though. "Because you're pregnant?"

But I still wonder...

"Anong konek?" tanong namin sa kanya.

"Well, they say babies are angels. When you curse or do something bad, it's like you're tarnishing their purity."

Natahimik kaming lahat at saka binigyan nila ako ng nag-aakusang mga tingin.

"Pero dati ka na namang marumi, Dox eh," Dread murmured.

Nasapok ko ang noo nito.

Hmm. So I shouldn't really curse for the baby. That answer about purity makes sense. It's just a matter of perspective though. Still, I wouldn't curse then.