Victorina Academy

Prologue

Prologue:

The fire is roaring and I can't see anything else. The thick smoke is covering my sight, and yet my feet keep walking like I'm in a trance. My mind is rebelling against my body. It's telling me to turn back and bring her with me, but the fear in her eyes and the endless tears coming from it made me realize one thing: she's not afraid for herself. She's never been afraid—she was scared for me.

Hindi ko alam kung may mga luha pa bang lalabas sa aking mga mata. Ever since I heard those gunshots, I never stopped crying. The only strength I had is now left in that room—wounded, bathing with her own blood, helpless ... and alone.

Unti-unti ko nang nakikita ang pintuan sa dulo ng hallway. I'm already a few steps away from it but I can feel my body slowly giving up. I'm losing my strength and I can no longer breathe. The fog is becoming more and more suffocating, my head is starting to spin.

I forced myself to take the last two strides and finally grasped the doorknob. Ibinuhos ko ang natitira kong lakas upang pihitin ito at buksan. I felt my whole weight collapsing onto the cement floor of the hotel's garage, and that's when I realized that I am finally out, away from the fire—away from her.

"It's Miss Ylona!"

The blurry image of some people wearing black suites is the only thing that I can see. I'm catching my breath when a warm hand suddenly held me, elevating my head from the ground.

"Ylona, it's okay. Kuya's here." Everything is starting to get hazier, but I can never forget that face. Even though I can't speak or see clearly, I know that my brother is crying.

I heard more shouts coming in our direction and I can recognize them. My cousins. They will save her.

"Ylona's here! Get the oxygen mask and ready the ambulance!"

"She's suffocating from the smoke inside the hotel!"

"What about Claire?! Where is she?! Where's Claire?!"

My heart shattered like glass when I heard her name. The pain in Kuya Darron's voice is like a blade piercing every inch of me. I don't have to look at him to know that he's very devastated. The guilt is creeping furiously inside my heart like an infectious disease that could kill me anytime. I tried to speak but the only sounds I am capable of producing are mumbles—unfathomable cries of how I wanted to stay with her. I wish everything is still not too late.

The shouts of commands are becoming more forceful. Everyone is facing a precarious situation tonight. The Crosswoods are in a big dilemma of saving the chosen heir to the biggest business that its head founded. There is chaos everywhere, even among the men who I know are great at controlling everything. They are searching for a passage to the hotel with our family's personal security team, but everything got quiet when a massive explosion suddenly shook the earth. And then, a monstrous fire emerged from above the building where all of the guests are in—where I left her.

"Claire!!!!!!!"

I wanted to stop breathing when I heard the scream of agony from her brother. But the only evidence of the grief I'm having are the tears that seemed to be endlessly streaming down my face. My eyes slowly closed themselves, and then there was darkness ... and her.