Taming the Darkness (Series 3)

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

"FINALLY... nahanap din kita," a deep baritone voice spoke from behind with a huge sigh of relief.

Zenaia jumped up from where she was crouching on and whipped around. There, just a couple of meters away from behind her, stood the man that she was dying to see. Her chest throbbed as the rush of longing went through her heart.

Hindi niya alam kung gaano niya na-miss ang lalaking ito. The way he pulled his facemask down to reveal his handsome face; his brown cloak swaying with the wind; his golden eyes shifting back to their natural grey shade... she had been dying to see all of it once more. Ang akala niya ay hindi na niya ito masisilayang muli.

"B-Billius! W-Why... h-how...?" Hindi makapaniwalang tinitigan niya ang lalaki.

Eversince she passed out because of that undescribable pain after being tortured multiple times, she woke up and found herself in this place. Hindi niya alam kung nasaan siya. This place is frightening her; it's full of women wearing the same face as hers. They have been hunting her down that's why she was hiding there, behind the bushes. Hindi niya alam kung gaano katagal na siyang naroroon kung kaya't, hindi siya makapaniwala na nasa harapan niya ngayon si Billius.

Instead of answering, Billius ran towards her and pulled her into a very tight hug.

"I'm sorry for always being late..." he whispered, his face buried into her hair.

She had never been so relieved to see him. Ngunit medyo nag-aalangan pa siya kung tunay ba ang nakikita niya at hindi isang ilusyon lamang. Isa pa, paano nito nalaman na siya ang tunay na Zenaia?

"I'm so sorry..." Sobrang higpit ng yakap nito. She could feel the warm temperature coming from his body that it assured her that this is all real. Dinig din niya sa tono nito ang matinding pag-aalala. "I failed to protect you again. I don't deserve to be your beloved..." she could feel the pain and guilt from his words. He pulled away and gazed down at her, studying her from head to toe as if searching for injuries.

"This is not your fault, Billius. Whatever happened is beyond your control," agad niyang tanggi sa sinabi nito. It's hurting her that he's blaming himself again. "P-pero... paano mo ako nahanap? Paano ka nakapunta rito?" Takang tanong ni Zenaia.

"I'm your beloved. Do you really think that I will fail to recognize you?"

Tears began to form in her eyes soon as she heard those words. Gosh, how bad did she miss him?

"T-They wouldn't let me out..." she told him, talking about the women who has the same face as hers. "They're blaming me for being weak." Dahan-dahan siyang lumayo sa lalaki. "They wanted to get rid of me, too."

"Who?"

"T-Those w-women who looked like m-me..." Napalunok siya at luminga-linga sa paligid. Sinisigurong walang naligaw roon.

She felt him gently held her arms. Muli niya itong nilingon. Her heart fluttered as she saw the warmth in his grey eyes.

"Don't worry about them, the seven deadly sins are already handling them. They won't bother you anymore," he said reassuringly.

"The seven deadly sins? They are here, as well?" Gulat niyang sabi.

Tumango si Billius. "We all came here to look for you. We've found your unconscious body from the forest, but you stayed unconscious after days of waiting. Kaya nagpasya kaming hanapin ka at tulungang makabalik."

Zenaia's eyes widened. Bigla siyang may naalala. Bukod sa mga babaeng kamukha niya ay mayroon pa siyang ibang inaalala roon. Her dark side... or in a much simpler term, the real her that she had abandoned hundreds of years ago.