Snow White is a Gangster (Published under Cloak Pop Fiction)

Chapter 8: The Dead Man of Christmas Day

The place was more than thirty minutes away from the Arturia Mansion. Exactly half an hour from Arturia University. Ilang minuto bago mag-alas sais nang marating ko ang lugar. Everyone must still be sleeping due to the exhaustion brought by Christmas celebrations. I parked the car and scanned the area. It was too quiet. Well, there were only very few houses around here and they were far from the road.

Ilang minuto pa ang lumipas subalit wala pa rin akong nakikitang bakas niya. I was about to go out of the car nang isang bus ang huminto sa kalsada sa di-kalayuan. I looked at it intently and waited for the one who would alight. And–found him!

Hindi muna ako kumilos hanggang sa muling pag-andar ng sasakyan. Mukha namang hindi niya napansin ang kinaroroonan ko. I just watched him limping on the ground. Nang masiguro kong sa bahay ng taong iyon sya patungo ay saka ko pinagpasyahan na kumilos. Kinuha ko ang baril mula sa compartment ng sasakyan at saka mabilis na tinakbo ang pagitan namin. He was already on the porch and about to ring the bell nang maabutan ko sya. Mukhang nagulat sya nang dumampi ang dulo ng baril ko sa sintido niya, dahilan upang matigil siya sa akmang pag-doorbell.

"Just because I didn't kill you on your first day doesn't mean that I'm not gonna kill you today," malamig ang tono kong sabi na tila naging dahilan ng pagrehistro ng takot sa kanyang mukha. He was frightened of me. I'm a Reaper. I can scare people whenever I want to. Who said that I couldn't make a monster out of this pretty face?

Gamit ang baril ay iminuwestra ko sa kanya na maglakad palayo ng bahay. Our surrounding was starting to take on a dark grey color and the annoying yellow shades will soon envelop everything. Another start of a long day for me.

Naglalakad na kami patungo sa kotse nang mahanap niya ang sariling boses. "I didn't escape, Henrietta," wika niya. Hindi ako sumagot. Obviously, he was lying.

Itinulak ko sya sa passenger seat at saka isinara ang pinto. Muli kong inilibot ang paningin ko sa lugar bago sumakay sa driver's seat.

"I didn't escape—"

Natigil sya sa akmang pagsasalita nang tiningnan ko siya nang matiim. He swallowed his words and didn't attempt to continue what he was about to say. Binawi ko ang tingin ko sa kanya at pinaandar ang sasakyan. The day hadn't even started yet and I was already tired of it. Tahimik na rin lang niyang itinuon ang paningin sa kalsada habang ako'y nagmamaneho. This drive didn't make me feel comfortable. Ngayon lang rumehistro sa isip ko ang hitsura ng sakay ko. For a Christmas day, he seemed to be a mournful boy in a graveyard. The dark circles under his eyes show that he'd been through a lot. Not physically, though. Emotionally stressed. And he looked like he had been crying all night.

"You're still alive. That's where you should focus your attention," wika ko. I didn't normally give comments about things that didn't concern me. Hindi ko alam kung bakit kusang lumabas ang bagay na iyon sa bibig ko. Tila ako nagsisimula ng isang konbersasyon.

"I'm a dead man. I'm breathing, of course. But I'm still a dead man," malungkot niyang sabi.

I was not expecting that kind of sadness from a traitor. Hindi ako sumagot. Whatever was causing him sadness, I think it was the price he should pay for doing what he did. I pitied him and yet, I knew that I shouldn't pity him. I should only think of my own personal mission. I shouldn't consider anything aside from that. I only had one target. The rest were only part of the shadows.

"I didn't escape." Mukhang nahagilap niyang muli ang lakas ng loob upang magsalita. "I went there to apologize. I felt like I need to tell her I'm sorry. Hangga't hindi ko iyon nagagawa ay mukhang hindi ko kakayaning mabuhay. I'm a dead man."

People were always like this—doing things they'd regret doing. They'd go out of the right path and expect that those they cared about would take them back. Some were fortunate enough but sometimes, that was not always the case.

"So you actually think you can still live?" Hindi ko maiwasang ikomento. Alam kong maaaring kamatayan niya ang kahantungan ng mga plano ko. And I knew that he was aware of that, too. How could he still think of living?

"Even if it's just a day after the forgiveness, I think I will still live. Even if I only have a short time left to live... One day, one hour, one minute... It's worth it to be able to keep breathing," aniya.

I think I understand him. He was willing to cling to the last remnants of life as long as it had meaning. For a traitor, he was probably not that bad after all.

"You're too hopeful for a dead man," sagot ko. He just smiled at me sadly.

Medyo nakakalayo na kami sa lugar nang may mahagip ang paningin ko sa likod namin. It was a black car. This one was definitely following us even though it was three cars away. Kung tutuusin, sobrang layo nito at hindi masyadong mahahalata kahit na mangilan-ngilan lang ang mga sasakyan sa kalsada. But my guts had never failed to give me the right warning signals. I eased up on my driving. A little. Tila naramdaman nito na alam ko na ang ginagawa niyang pagsunod dahil bumagal ang takbo ng kotse at nagbigay daan sa mga sasakyan sa likuran nito. Ilang minuto ang lumipas at hindi ko na nahagilap pa ang sumusunod na kotse. But I knew that move. It was not an ordinary stalking thing. It was more than that. Those cautious moves were tactics done by people like me—like a Reaper or something along those lines. And whoever that was, it was not good.

Hindi kaya dahil sa kanya? Saglit kong tiningnan ang katabi ko. Mukhang wala siyang ideya dahil sa lalim ng kanyang iniisip. Nang masiguro kong wala nang bakas ng kahit anong nakasunod sa amin ay dumiretso na ako sa Arturia Mansion. One of the guards opened the gate nang makita ang kotse ko. It was a good thing that my car was tinted black. Hindi nila makikita kung may kasama ako. Agad akong dumiretso sa likurang bahagi ng mansion. Mukhang alam na niya ang dapat gawin dahil kusa siyang bumaba ng kotse nang ihinto ko ito sa tapat ng tree house. He climbed up first at saka ko siya sinundan. We both stopped on our tracks nang buksan namin ang tree house.

I forgot to replace the lock Ethan broke by trying to get away. And now, a little demon had managed to lurk his way in.

"Hetta! Your love nest is so cool!" Wycliffe's excited squeal froze on his face nang makita niya kung sino ang kasama kong pumasok ng tree house. Oh, God!