Wrath

Epilogue

"You were so little the last time I saw you." Patricio smiled, looking at Riel. "You look more like Sita than Philip."

"Ano ba talagang nangyari sa magulang namin?" Riel asked. He was young when both their parents died. He remembered his brother telling him that their parents died, he remembered crying, he remembered Rigor comforting him but it was never explained to him how they died. Basta ang alam niya, ang palaging sinasabi sa kanya ng kapatid niya, na si Patricio ang pumatay sa mga magulang nila.

"It's a long and tragic story." Bakas sa mukha ng ginoo ang labis ng pagkalungkot. "I was a good friend of your father. He was my mentor when I was just starting my business. I really looked up to him. He was a very intelligent man."

Nagdilim ang mukha ng matandang lalaki. Humugot ito ng malalim na hininga bago muling nagsalita. "Then he got involved in a huge pump and dump stock scam. Nakulong siya at ako ang sinisisisi niya. Bilang kanang kamay ng daddy mo, alam ko lahat ng ginagawa niya. I knew all about his business ventures. Pinagbintangan niya ako na ako ang nagtip sa mga pulis tungkol doon. And then one day, I got a call from Sita, your mother, telling me that Philip hanged himself in his cell. I went and comforted her and that's when she told me everything. Sinabi niya sa akin na siya ang nag report sa pulis. She did that as a revenge because your father wanted to divorce her. Gusto siyang iwan nito para sa ibang babae."

Riel's head throbbed painfully. He got overwhelmed by everything he'd heard. Everything he believed in since he was a kid was all a lie. "And what happened to my mother?"

"She couldn't take the guilt. Paulit-ulit niyang sinabi na siya ang may kasalanan kung bakit namatay si Philip. She overdosed. I don't know if the guilt drove her to suicide or if it was an accidental overdose."

"I didn't know about that." With his finger tips, Riel massaged his temple. He let out a tired sigh. It felt as if weight had been dropped onto his shoulders hearling all that. It wasn't anybody's fault that their parents died. They both killed themselves and Rigor couldn't handle that fact so he blamed someone else for the death of their parents.

"I didn't kill your parents and I never took anything from you. Lahat ng pera ng daddy mo ay naibalik sa mga may-ari nito na naloko niya sa scam. I tried to reach out to you. Sinubukan kong tulungan kayo noon pero matigas si Leonardo. He hated me, he didn't want any help from me." Patricio explained. "Now I don't want you to think that your mom and your dad were bad people. They were good, wonderful people. Nagkamali lang sila."

He nodded his head, his eyes fixed on the ground.

"Kamusta si Lux?" Riel asked.

"Na trauma siya sa nangyari but she's slowly recovering from it. Kung may kailangan ka, financially or anything, you can call me." Patricio slid a card in front of him. "Ikaw na ang bahala sa kapatid mo. He needs you now more than ever."

"Thank you, sir." Mahinang sabi ko.

"I have to go now." Tumayo ito sa kinauupuan niya at umalis.

He was left alone, trying to take in all the things he found out today. He brushed his fingers through his pounding head.He had a lot he didn't know about his own family. Lahat nang akala niyang alam niya ay kasinungalingan lang pala. He wanted to hate his brother but he couldn't. Hindi ngayon na kailangan na kailangan siya ni Rigor.

Makaraan ang ilang saglit, tumayo na siya sa kinauupuan niya at lumabas sa restaurant na iyon. He went to the hospital where his brother was at.

Pumunta siya sa silid kung nasaan si Rigor. Sumilip siya sa maliit na bintana sa may pinto na nahaharangan ng salamin. He was lying on the bed in the corner of the white room. Nakastrap siya sa hinihigaan niyang kama. He swallowed, feeling a lump rising from his throat. It hurted him to see his brother like that.