Chapter 9: Dangerous

"Aren't you supposed to be at the lab, investigating?" tanong ko habang pinapanood si Wolff na ayusin ang seatbelt niya.

Hindi ko na pinilit ang sarili kong magmatigas nang sabihin niyang ihahatid niya ako pauwi. Medyo late na dahil halos limang oras din kaming na-stuck sa loob ng elevator.

"That's the police force's job, not mine," sagot niya.

Hindi ko naiwasan ang pagngiwi. Sabagay, pero he's supposed to be there, worrying about the theft case, yet here he is, offering to drive me home.

I find it odd.

Or maybe I'm just too suspicious of his intentions.

"Hindi ka nag-aalala para sa Bane Lab?" tanong ko

He started the engine after turning on the purple light on top of the car- a sign used by government officials and Sanip VIPs so that they will not be stopped by the automated checkpoints. Tsk, freaking privileged!

"Nag-aalala," walang emosyong sagot niya. "But not because I offered to drive you home doesn't mean I don't worry about it. Of course, sisiguraduhin kong mahuli ang defector. I'll make sure the drugs, formula or any asset he stole will be returned. I'll make sure he will regret being bold and choosing to mess with Wolff Bane."

Bigla kong naalala ang nangyari kanina. No one knew he was Wolff—Bane Lab's founder and CEO. Totoo kaya iyon o may maling nalalaman ako?

Napabuntong-hininga ako. "But are you really Wolff Bane?"

He glanced at me for a moment. Saglit na sumilay ang kakaibang ngiti sa labi niya. It was a smile that was hard to determine what it truly meant. "Dani, I told you not to strain yourself with mysteries, right? Curiosity kills the cat."

Napalunok ako at nahintakutan. Anong ibig niyang sabihin?! Did he offer to drive me home para... para madispatsa ako? No way!

"But you're real right?" kinakabahang tanong ko. "I mean... You're not some sort of artificial person, a robot... a clone... or what." I don't know what to think anymore.

I began questioning my own sanity because of what's happening. Paano nangyaring hindi alam ng mga nagtatrabaho sa Bane Lab, that this- this Wolff Bane is wandering freely around the place! Yet they didn't know it!

"Curious, Dani?"

"I deserve to know some things Wolff," I told him. We're in a world where almost everything is possible; where everything has an explanation but here I am, so confused of what's around me.

Naka-focus pa rin ang atensyon niya sa daan. "Do you know why I love Science? It's because I think things are interesting. A petri dish can actually hold something that will become so great after some time of monitoring. A tube can develop a microscopic organism into an enormous monster. You can raise something and make some genetic alterations for the sole purpose of science- and that's what makes it so evil."

Napahawak ako nang mahigpit sa kinauupuan, unsure of what to do next if he decides to do any means to harm me in every way possible.

"But come to think of it, you can actually make something good out of the evil Science," he continued.

"Hindi kita maintindihan," sagot ko. I'm not suppose to stick my nose on others business but this matter somewhat concerns me. He is making me so confused and curiosity is killing me. Sino ba talaga si Wolff?

"That's why I told you countless times not to strain yourself about it."

An idea just popped in my mind! I'll deal with the consequences later. "Stop the car."

"What?" he sounded surprised.

I sighed. "I need to do something, pull the car on the side." My voice barely came out as a whisper. Hindi ko pa man nagagawa ang binabalak ko ay natatakot na ako sa magiging kabayaran niyon. But again, I will worry about it later. I just want to confirm something before I go insane on thinking different theories about him.

Surprisingly, he was obedient enough to pull the car to stop on the side. I took something from my bag and held it firmly in my hand.

"What are you plan--"

He turned his head towards me and I moved as fast as a lightning, holding my signature pen to stab him. He was taken aback and wasn't able to dodge my attack. I successfully managed to stabbed him on the arm.

I wasn't expecting it to bleed but it did.

Bahagyang nanlaki ang kanyang mga mata at tila hindi makapaniwala sa ginawa ko. Nagpalipat-lipat ang tingin niya sa akin at sa ballpen na nakasaksak sa kanyang braso. He blew some air and unbelievably shook his head as he slowly withdraw the pen on his skin.

It went deep, damn. His face contorted as he tried to pull it. When he successfully did, he tossed it somewhere on the car at halos hindi pa rin makapaniwala sa ginawa ko.

I gulped. "I...I was just trying to prove something."

"What?" he asked, dryly.

"That you are not a robot or something!"

I know I will definitely regret stabbing him, but looking on the positive side, I am sure he's not some any form of metal under that pale skin. The pen went half way through his skin. By being optimistic, a pen stab wouldn't kill him. That's it, at least that's the good news. Now that I already proved it, ano kaya ang magiging kaparusahan ko?

Will he stab me back?

Hardly.

Will I lose my job?

Certainly.

Will I lose the house?

Definitely.

Damn, I really didn't think this over!

"Your curiosity will kill you someday, Dani," he said, trying to fold the sleeve of his blood-stained shirt. Bahagya siyang napapangiwi sa ginagawa but he never said it hurts. Well, I'm sure it does. I stabbed him deep!

Ni hindi ko alam na kaya ko palang manaksak ng ganoon kalalim. Maybe the desperation of wanting to know something made me do it, but damn, I'm really screwed.

"May first aid kit ka ba rito sa sasakyan mo?" I blurted out in panic. "Anything to clean the wound? A gauze? A-alcohol? A bandage?!"

Wolff froze from folding his sleeve, his cold eyes sliding at me. "Stabbing me one time, and then what, helping me to dress the wound? You are the mystery here, Dani."

Normally I would have argued, but then the amount of blood scattered on his white sleeve was getting out of hand. Is it possible to die from that stab wound? No, right?

But still, I panicked. Bakit kasi puti ang suot niya, pwede namang itim o 'di kaya ay pula—or any color basta ba hindi mahahalata ang dugo!

I rummaged through his glove compartment, hoping to find anything that could help, but none! There were only flyers and other stuff inside the compartment.

"D-don't you have anything here?! Anong klaseng may-ari ng laboratory ka?! You don't even have—"

He cut me off. "Relax, Dani. It's not something to panic about. I survived a deep wound from shattered glass with a high content of lead and cadmium in a vital area; a mere pen stab on the arm wouldn't kill me."

He what?!

"Ano?! How did you even get stabbed??" mas lalo lamang akong nagpanic sa narinig.

"Forget I said that," he said.

Without thinking much, I ripped the hem of my dress and pulled off a strip. When he heard the ripping sound, he turned to me wide-eyed.

"What are you doing—"

The ripped cloth came out properly, enough to cover his wound. "At least that would stop the bleeding." Hindi ko siya pinansin at sinimulang itali ang tela sa sugat niya.

He remained silent hanggang sa natapos ako ay saka lamang siya nagsalita. "It will stop the bleeding or may infect the wound. Seriously, did you even consider that the cloth is old and dirty? And you're in the lab for the whole day, exposed na exposed sa kahit anong chemical—"

"Ungrateful jerk," I mumbled under my breath at tinangkang bawiin ang braso niya para tanggalin ang tinali ko. Well, I really didn't consider that, he makes sense alright, but seriously, can he just be thankful for what I did?

Uhm, Dani, you stabbed him, that's why he got that wound. Don't expect him to thank you for covering up the wound you made yourself.

Bago ko tuluyang mahablot ang braso niya ay inilayo niya iyon. "Never mind," he said at muling binuhay ang makina. "I should take you home. It's already late."

Napanguso na lamang ako at tumingin sa labas. In case he decided to kill me and throw me somewhere, I should be ready for such a possibility. Plus, I'm good at screaming; I can just scream for help. I'm sure people will not hesitate to beat the hell out of him lalo na't hindi nila alam na siya si Wolff Bane.

Right, I can count on that.

So far, the way was familiar. He didn't do any trick to scam me by taking me home. Hindi kalayuan ay bahay na namin. I'm a bit relieved knowing he's not set to dispose of me or what.

I silently watched him focused on the road. His bloody sleeve was folded and the part of my skirt that was tied on his arm was also covered in blood. Bumaba ang tingin ko sa palda—it's gotten shorter!

Of course, what do I expect?

I became conscious and put my bag on my lap, moving stealthily to pull my skirt downwards.

The car pulled to a stop. "We're here."

"Salamat," I said in a whisper. It's up to him if he heard it or not. Sinubukan kong lumabas ngunit hindi ko mabuksan ang pinto. "It's locked."

Nilingon ko siya at gaya ng inaasahan ko ay nakatingin siya sa akin. "I hope the things you found out when you stick your nose remain there."

"H-huh?"

"The theft at the lab, my fear, my identity at Bane Lab, and other stuff you know. Keep that to yourself, Dani, and leave it that way. You might know things you cannot handle," seryosong sabi niya.

Humigpit ang hawak ko sa bag ko. "And w-what?"

He just shrugged.

"Are you threatening me, Wolff Bane?" direktang tanong ko. I'm seriously shaking in fear right now. His car is the latest model; even if I scream at the top of my lungs right now, he can kill me here without anyone noticing!

Damn it, bakit hindi ko iyon naisip kanina?

"It's a reminder, Dani."

I heard a click sound kaya napatingin ako sa pinto. When I tried to open it, it wasn't locked anymore. Mabilis na bumaba ako at isinara ang pinto, walking fast as if my life depended on it. I need to get away from him. My knees were shaking but I made it to the front door. When I heard his engine, I turned to see his car leave the premises. Nang makalayo na ang sasakyan ay saka bumigay ang tuhod ko.

Napaupo ako sa sahig at habol ang paghinga.

His words were simple, but they were enough to make me shake like this.

I had established that Wolff Bane is a dangerous person.

And here I am thinking that he's Seven.

Seven was a lot nicer than him.

They may look alike and be insanely smart, but I think the free Wolff is more dangerous than the caged Seven in Zone Z.

It was really stupid of me to even consider that they're the same person. It's just impossible. I gathered all my remaining strength to stand up at pumasok sa loob ng bahay.

Now I have to think of how I'll act cool tomorrow knowing I stabbed him with a pen.

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