A/N: shoutout to MallowRabbit! Haha! She guessed that With Ears to Hear will be the book 2- if ever meron hahaha

Happy reading all! Mwah!

Chapter 30: web of deceit

Malakas ang kabog ng dibdib ko nang makita si Sage. It was like I found someone I could share all my struggles with, kahit alam kong hindi kami ganoon kaclose, his presence provided me comfort just by seeing him.

Agad akong napahikbi at itinapon ang sarili ko sa kanya. If he hadn't been strong enough, baka bumagsak na kami. Ibinaon ko ang mukha ko sa kanyang dibdib at hinayaan ang sarili na umiyak. All the things I've endured, everything-I cried it all out in his arms.

I felt him stiffen, his classic reaction to hugs, ngunit maya-maya ay ramdam kong humigpit rin ang yakap niya sa akin, kasabay ng mumunting tapik sa likod ko. He didn't say anything; he just wrapped his arms around me protectively. Umakyat ang tapik niya sa buhok ko. He hesitantly moved his hand over my hair, giving me silent reassurance.

Gumalaw ang mga sundalo at pinulot ang nanghihinang si Seven. The soldiers grabbed him hard at agad siyang pinosasan.

"N-nandito na ako," wika ni Sage nang kumalas ako sa pagkakayakap. I was ugly crying, I know, but I just needed that.

I pulled away at bumaling kay Seven. "Sage, si Seven-"

"H-he will be i-investigated for a lot of things. Sa ngayon, huwag mo muna siyang isipin. Y-you have to rest for now, but j-just like him, you will u-undergo a series of t-tests, for your safety," paliwanag niya.

"What tests?" My stomach churn about the thought of being tested.

"Huwag kang m-mag-alala. I will personally be there t-to make sure you're s-safe. Kailangan lang nating masigurado that y-you're not in anyway m-modified or what." He turned to the soldiers at tumango sa kanila.

The soldiers grabbed Seven at agad na umalis doon. My mind was empty; hindi ko alam kung ano ang nangyayari. Anong gagawin nila kay Seven? What will happen to him?

"Sandali!" Pigil ko. "Saan dadalhin si Seven?"

Sage looked in the direction where the soldiers were taking Seven. "Is that h-his name?"

"Mabuting tao si Seven!" bulalas ko, kahit hindi iyon ang sagot sa tanong niya. I wasn't sure of it, pero pakiramdam ko ay tama ako na mabuting tao si Seven. He saved me not only once. I'm not a good judge of character, pero walang ginawa si Seven na ikinapahamak ko.

"C-calm down, Dani," sabi niya at hinawakan ang kamay ko. "We'll be going to the s-same laboratory kung saan siya dadalhin, kaya wala kang dapat ipag-alala."

I was somewhat relieved. Naglakad kami sa parehong direksyon na magkahawak ang kamay. The blaring alarms slowly faded, ngunit puno ng sundalo ang paligid. Pumasok kami sa isang pinto kung saan naroon nga si Seven. The room was a large space filled with holographic technology.

On the side was a display of 3D DNA strands, with pulsating light as the DNA helix rotated. May iilang tao rin doon na nakasuot ng laboratory gown, and I wasn't surprised to find Dr. Lee. He walked toward us the moment we entered at agad na nakipagkamay kay Sage.

"Welcome to Zone Z, Dr. Ravago," bati niya at ngumiti.

Napatingin siya sa magkahawak naming kamay kaya agad akong bumitaw at itinago ang kamay sa likuran. He smiled at ipinilig ang ulo bago bumaling sa akin.

"Miss Lopez."

Miss Lopez? Bakit hindi Inmate 1101121 gaya ng tinawag niya sa akin? Didn't he say I'm a high-profile criminal who stole an important chemical from Bane Lab? Napaatras ako at agad na napahawak sa suot ni Sage.

"You must be so scared," sabi niya at ibinaba ang kamay bago bumaling kay Sage. "She must have been so traumatized with everything. After all, we didn't keep her in the loop. Pasensiya ka na, Miss Lopez, I had to act that way and treat you like a criminal. I just needed to do what I had to do."

Napakuyom ang kamao ko. My mind was spinning in confusion. Anong ibig niyang sabihin?

Kinuha ni Sage ang kamay ko at muli iyong hinawakan, as if he felt how uncomfortable I was. Mainit ang kamay niya, and I have to admit, it was soothing. I had my defenses up with Dr. Lee's presence. Pakiramdam ko ay hindi ko siya mapagkakatiwalaan.

"I will e-explain everything to you later," sabi ni Sage sa akin.

Lumapit ang isang doktor sa amin. He said something to Dr. Lee at tinuro ang nanghihina pa ring si Seven.

Dr. Lee excused himself. I watched him walk toward Seven and give some instructions. Agad namang kumilos ang mga sundalo at doktor sa kung anumang sinabi niya. The soldiers picked Seven up from the floor, stripped his shirt, at pinasok siya sa malaking glass tube.

My mouth gaped open at bumaling ako kay Sage. "Anong gagawin nila kay Seven?"

Inayos niya ang suot na salamin at napatingin sa direksyon ng mga doktor. "P-probably containing him and running some tests t-to learn m-more about his augment."

Napakunot ang noo ko. "Ano?!"

It was like he spoke a foreign language dahil kahit napakasimple ng sinabi niya ay hindi ko iyon maintindihan.

What augment? I thought it was Bean who had augments? What exactly is happening? Mababaliw na ako.

Seven was strapped, standing inside the glass tube. Unti-unting sumara ang salamin ng capsule kasabay ng pagkabit ng mga wire sa ulo niya. Seven struggled upon the contact, fog from his breath filling the glass tube when he screamed in pain. Dahan-dahang umikot ang glass capsule na kinapapalooban niya, making his back face us.

Napaawang ang labi ko nang makita ang kanyang likod. Something glimmered at the back of his neck down to his spine. It was like a geometric web pattern snaking downward with a low, pulsing glow. May ilan ding tumakbo sa gilid ng kanyang balikat.

"What's that?" hindi makapaniwalang tanong ko.

"It's an a-augmentation," sagot ni Sage. "It looks like a g-glowing t-tattoo, but it's nano-circuits connected to his brain for neural connection. W-we will find out what that thing does aside from enhancing his brain's a-ability."

I sighed, shaking my head in confusion. That intricate, tattoo-like thing is an augmentation? Hindi maproseso ng utak ko. I felt pity for my brain; for the past hours, it has been exposed to things I cannot quite grasp.

Seven has an augment? But didn't he just expose Bean for having that thing, only to find out he has one too?

Sage offered me a seat-thank goodness he did dahil parang mabubuwal na ako sa lahat ng nalalaman. He also handed me a bottled water na agad kong ininom.

"I'm s-sorry if you suffered," he said with sincerity. "I k-know that's not what Wolff wanted to happen, b-but thank y-you for enduring."

Napatitig ako sa bawat sulok ng mukha ni Sage. He looked like he was really sorry for me, ngunit wala akong maintindihan sa mga nangyari.

What exactly happened? How did he find me? Where is Wolff? What will become of Seven? Nasaan na si Kruger? Si Bean? Can I really trust Dr. Lee? What's an augmentation? Why me?

Sa dami ng katanungan sa isip ko, hindi ko na alam kung saan magsisimula. I stared once again at Seven inside the glass tube. He was struggling inside, trying to resist hanggang sa tuluyan siyang nawalan ng malay. The doctors clicked something, making his body suspend in a relaxed standing position. May mga usok na lumabas mula sa taas ng tube na kinaroroonan niya, and the tube glowed in a soft blue hue as the doctors murmured to each other.

My heart twisted, and I got dizzy watching all of it. "Ano ba talaga ang nangyari, Sage?"

He looked down and sighed. "T-things got out of hand, so Wolff made some intervention."

I shook my head at him. "Hindi ko maintindihan, lahat. What intervention? What is he trying to achieve? I... I don't know kung kaya ko pa siyang pagkatiwalaan."

"I'm s-sorry, pero hindi ko rin alam kung paano sasabihin sa'yo," sagot niya. "But...but I w-will try to explain as m-much as I can. Wolff, being himself, didn't really tell m-me what's happening. Why...why are you here, D-Dani?"

"Pinabalik ako ni Wolff dito," sagot ko sa kanya.

Kumunot ang kanyang noo. "P-pinabalik?"

Ah, right. He doesn't know-and it will be so complicated to tell him about it.

"Ang ibig kong sabihin ay si Wolff ang nagpapunta sa akin dito. Nasaan siya? I need to talk to him," I said, standing up under so much pressure. Nagpalakad-lakad ako upang kalmahin ang sarili, but Sage pulled me down to sit.

"C-calm down, Dani. K-kailangan mong magpahinga-"

"I can't rest unless I get answers!" sigaw ko, dahilan upang bahagya siyang mapapiksi. The doctors and soldiers inside the lab also turned in our direction dahil sa pagsigaw ko. "I'm sorry. Kailangan ko ng kasagutan, Sage. Please."

Huminga siya nang malalim bago tumango. "I understand w-why you feel that way. Let's just trust Wolff's plan."

Trust-I've had enough of that. Hindi ko na alam sino ang pagkakatiwalaan ko.

"What plan, Sage? Anong plano?"

He shook his head while looking down. "Hindi k-ko rin alam."

Tiningnan ko siya, feeling helpless and all. Hindi ako mapapanatag hangga't hindi si Wolff ang nakakausap ko.

Tinapunan ko ng tingin ang tube na kinaroroonan ni Seven. "Are we not gonna talk about Seven looking exactly like Wolff?"

"It's...it's not uncommon," sagot niya. "D-Dani, hindi ito ang unang beses na may nakita akong k-kamukha ni Wolff. And I believe it's not your f-frst time seeing someone who l-looks like him."

I stared at him, trying to process what he said. Malamang si Odin ang ibig niyang sabihin. He's aware Odin looked exactly like Wolff, but why didn't he warn me the first time? With what I've been through, I've become so suspicious of everything.

Si Sage, mapagkakatiwalaan ko nga ba siya? He's a loyal lapdog to Wolff, and Wolff is still debatable whether I should trust him or not.

"So alam mo ang tungkol kay Odin Gozon, pero hindi mo ako sinabihan? You let me think I was losing my mind," hindi makapaniwalang wika ko.

Sino nga ba ako para sabihan niya? I'm just his secretary-not someone he can confide in.

"D-Dani, surgery and cloning is not uncommon. Genetic e-engineering, DNA tagging, modifications, and everything else-it's not new, kaya hindi nakakapagtakang h-he has the same face as W-Wolff," sabi ni Sage sa akin. "I didn't tell you b-because it doesn't matter. Kahit ilang c-clone, kahit ilang beses pang gayahin si Wolff, I... I know h-him better than anyone."

For once, I admired the bond they have. Unlike me, Sage doesn't start losing his mind over Wolff's identity dahil kilala niya ito.

"Nasaan si Wolff?" I know I'm getting nowhere unless I talk to Wolff himself.

"Probably at work. At his h-home. H-hindi ko alam-"

"Damn it, Sage!" Tumaas na naman ang boses ko at napatingin muli sa amin ang ibang naroon, pero wala akong pakialam! I have to think only about myself right now dahil mababaliw na ako sa kaiisip!

"H-hindi ko talaga alam, Dani. I'm just f-following orders. If it makes y-you feel better, I can set up a q-quick call with him."

I crossed my arms at hindi sumagot. With shaking hands, Sage pulled a small device from his pocket. He pressed something, and a holographic display of Wolff appeared. He was wearing a laboratory gown, his gaze downcast.

"Sage, I'm busy-" He looked up, his expression serious as he put down the pen he was holding. "Dani."

If only it was possible to punch someone through a hologram, Wolff Bane would be bruised like a peach right now. There he is-so different from the now miserable Seven. While he sits comfortably in his office, Seven was struggling.

Bakit ba pumasok sa isip ko na iisang tao sila? Compared to him, mas tao pa si Seven-considering he even has an augmentation! Seven saved me while Wolff was the one who put me in this hellhole in the first place. Seven did everything to help me, like smashing the glass walls where I was kept, cutting his flesh to stay awake, enduring whatever he's been through just so we could escape Protocol One. It was unimaginable to lump him together as one person with Wolff Bane.

Wolff is so self-centered, why didn't I realize that sooner? He used me for his own satisfaction, and now he has the nerve to look at me as if he's disappointed in me?

"So, I guess the plan was a failure, Dani. My fault for trusting you," he said, which only fueled my anger. I was shaking, wanting to punch him, stab him, and make him go through everything I went through.

In my rage, I grabbed the device Sage used to connect to Wolff's hologram and threw it as hard as I could. It hit one of the machines before it shattered.

"D-Dani..." Sage's voice trembled, surprised by what I had done, but I knew he would understand. He held my hand again, and only then did I realize I was trembling.

He soothed me by pressing my palm, looking at me gently.

Napabuga ako ng hangin at napatitig sa kanya. At the back of my mind, I started wondering why Sage was lying to my face.

The one who answered the call?

That's not Wolff.

"My fault for trusting you."

They almost got me-until he said it.

The real Wolff is too smart and selfish to trust anyone. Bumalik sa isip ko ang sinabi niya sa akin nang pinaplano pa lamang namin ang pagbalik ko rito sa Zone Z.

"But to tell you honestly, I trust no one but myself. I know better than to trust anyone other than me."

That settled it.

Sage is lying- trapping me in this tangled web of deceit.

At si Seven na ngayon ay nasa loob ng malaking glass tube?

That's Wolff.

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