Chapter 4
Don Sebastian Monterio must've been kidding when he said that the party would be simple and private.
Halos hindi ako makagalaw sa kinauupuan ko nang dumating na kami sa mansiyon nila. It's like a scene ripped straight from a fairytale book. May nakasabit na fairylights sa kabuuan ng kanilang bakuran. May tumutugtog ng Cello sa hindi kalayuan. Malamig ang simoy ng hangin.
Women in long gowns and men in expensive suits are slowly pacing around, clearly enjoying the moment. May dalawang malaking buffet table sa magkabilang dulo. The round tables are covered with a crimson mantle with an intricate design. It's like I'm thrown into Cinderella's wedding reception or Sleeping Beauty's birthday celebration held at the grandiose mansion of the Monterio's. The atmosphere is very civil ang elegant with a tinge of malice.
Huminga ako nang malalim at lumabas ng sasakyan na pinadala ni Don Sebastian Monterio para sunduin ako. I glanced down at my own gown. It's a crimson transformer skirt gown. Mahaba ang nasa likuran habang maiksi naman ang harapan, hindi na umabot ng aking tuhod. My mother said that this gown will allow me to step on the pedal freely. The fabric is soft and it clungs into my body like a second skin. Bare-back and gown kaya naman nilalamig ako sa tuwing tumatama ang hangin sa aking likuran.
One of Don Sebastian's men guided me inside the mansion. May ilang napapatingin sa direksyon ko habang naglalakad ako papasok. Wala akong makitang ka-edad ko rito. All of them must probably in their late 20's to 40's. All of them are attractive and screams luxury and money in their gowns and jewels.
Biglang kumirot ang namamaga kong mga daliri. I bit my lower lips and tried not to wince in pain habang naglalakad ako.
Nang makapasok na kami sa loob ng mansion ay mas lalo itong gumanda sa paningin ko. The floor is shinier, the antique items looms proudly, and even the grand staircase is newly-polished. Pumapasok na din ang ibang bisita sa loob ng mansion.
I looked around. Hindi ko makita si Sage o si Don Monterio. But I saw Zian. He's with a young woman clad in a satin navy blue gown with a long slit. Nakakapit sa kanyang braso ang magandang babae. Sumunod naman sa kanila ang kambal na babae't-lalaki, their curly hairs bouncing.
Naningkit ang mga mata ni Zian nang makita ako. Umiwas kaagad ako ng tingin. The piano is placed on the center. It's between the two grand staircase. Naroon na ang nagtutugtog ng cello.
Mayamaya pa ay bumaba na si Don Monterio at ang kanyang asawa. Natigil sa pag-uusap ang mga bisita at itinuon ang atensiyon sa kanila. The billionaire loomed in his ful 6 feet height. His intense eyes is a splitting version of Sage's orbs. I know for a fact that it is a bespoke suit he's wearing right now. Kulay pula ito may mga detalyeng prayle. I squinted to get a better look. Mga prayle ngang talaga.
On his other hand is a fat tobacco and on his left is his wife, looking gorgeous in her black gown. Napalunok ako.
What am I doing in a place like this?
"Everyone, I am pleased to have you in my simple and private welcome party." wika ni Don Monterio nang makarating na sila sa baba, kung saan nakalagay ang piano. "And to make this ocassion more sentimental for me, my sister finally accepted my invitation after all these years." Tumingala siya sa taas ng hagdanan. Pati na rin ang lahat ng bisita. "She's been out for the public for the past 10 years. But now, she's back. Ladies and gentlemen, my only family, my sister, the real witch of this family..." he chuckled. "Erica Monterio..."
Nalaglag ang panga ko nang may lumabas na isang matangkad na babae mula sa pinakaunang kwarto. She looked like a princess in her red and black ball gown. Halos sumabit na iyon sa magkabilang dulo ng hagdanan. Nakalugay ang kanyang kulot na buhok. She gracefully glided down the stairs, her eyes fixed on her brother smiling tightly at her. Sobrang intense ng kanyang mga mata. Matatas din ang pilantik ng kanyang pilikmata. Kahit na naglalakad lang siya ay ramdam na ramdam ko ang malamig na awra na bumabalot sa kanya.
"She's a real Monterio, right?" narinig kong bulong ng isang babae sa katabi ko. Hindi ako lumingon. Nanatili lamang akong nakatingin kay Erica Monterio na nahuli ang atensiyon ng lahat. She's like the central piece of this party. The Prima Donna.
"Yeah, so bakit pinasa niya kay Zian ang chairmanship?"
"I heard that woman is not interested. She's turning her back to billions. Must be out of her mind." Naghagikhikan silang dalawa.
"Ladies, please." Nang makarinig ako ng boses ng lalaki ay tuluyan na akong napalingon. Nakadikit ang kanyang mga mata kay Erica. Isang maliit na ngiti ang sumilay sa kanyang labi habang pinagmamasdan siya. "Erica Monterio wants a simple life. She doesn't want to stick her nose to her brother's affairs. Let her be."
Nang makarating na si Erica Monterio sa baba ay marahang hinalikan ni Don Monterio ang kanyang kamay. Her wife stepped up and gave her a quick peck on the lips. Nginitian lamang ni Erica ang mga bisita at tumango nang isang beses.
Don Monterio scanned his eyes to his surroundings. Then it landed on me. Bumilis kaagad ang tibok ng puso ko. I kept on pressing ice bag earlier against my fingers to stop it from swelling. Pero namamaga pa rin sila. Some of them are just reddening. Pinilit kong itago kanina kay Mama ang mga kamay ko dahil ayaw kong mag-alala siya para sa akin ngayon.
His lips curled into a small smile. "Governor Generoso is such an interesting gem. During my first week here, I met a child prodigy at playing piano. And she gave us her luxury of time to hear her play. Everyone, Mallory Rose Castillo."
Nagpalakpakan ang mga tao. I forced myself to stepped out even though it's uncomfortable because all of their eyes are on me. Maging si Erica Monterio ay marahang pumapalakpak at nakatingin sa akin.
I bit my inner cheeks. Nanginginig ang mga tuhod ko hanggang sa makarating ako sa kinaroroonan ng piano. Don Monterio handed me a wineglass. I stared at the red wine swirling slowly for a while before I accepted it and smiled gratefully.
Pinilit kong lunukin ang matapang na inumin nang sumimsim ako. I placed the wineglass on the lid of the piano and sat down on the piano bench. Nagtanguan kami ng lalaking magp-play ng Cello.
Humigit ako nang isang malalim na hininga at pinilit na alalahanin ang pinag-ensayuhan ko nang mabuti nitong mga nakaraang araw. When I sensed that my body is ready, I pressed the first key.
My fingers throbbed in pain. I nearly winced out loud. Nakatitig sa akin ang lalaking may Cello hanggang sa sinabayan na niya ako sa pagtugtog. Every time I pressed on the keys, it hurts more than the last. Nanginginig ang mga daliri ko.
Focus, Mallory, focus.
"May I have this dance?" through my pheriperal vision, nakita kong inilahad ni Don Monterio ang kanyang kamay kay Erica. She contemplated for a while before she accepted it. Her brother gracefully led her to the dance floor. "Why didn't you bring Josh here? I'd love to see my nephew."
To everyone's horror, inirapan ni Erica si Don Monterio. Hindi tuloy maalis sa kanila ang tingin ng mga tao habang nagsasayaw sila. No one dared to talk back to Don Monterio, let alone roll their eyes at him. "No thanks, Kuya. I'd rather keep my little boy away from your extravagant life."
The billionaire smirked. "But he ain't a little boy anymore, Erica. He could easily take the position of Zian if he wants to."
His sister gave him a deadpanned look. "Not my son, Sebastian. Not my son."
Hindi ko na narinig ang usapan nila nang lumayo sila sa kinaroroonan ng piano. Narinig ko lang ang marahang paghalakhak ni Don Monterio sa inasal ng kapatid.
Nagfocus na lamang ako sa pagtugtog nang maayos. I winced to myself every time my fingers hurt. Halos hindi na ako makasabay sa Cello. The guy was generous enough to slow down his pace. Nagpatuloy ang sayawan. Nagpatuloy ako sa pagtugtog.
Muntik na akong atakihin nang mamali ako ng pindot. I quickly recovered. The guy playing the Cell shot me a sympathetic look. Focus, Mallory. Focus.
I tried to lose myself in the music. Every single dynamic changes, the phrasing, the tempo... I can do this. God, I need to do this.
When we were nearing the end of the piece, pinilit ko ang sarili ko na tumugtog nang maayos. Even if it hurts a lot. With one swift of my throbbing fingers, I ended the Tchaikovsky's piece with an applause from the audience.
While the music is out, everyone changed partners. I took a shaky breath and ready myself for the next piece. Suddenly, a pair of expensive leather shoes stopped next to me. May naglahad ng kamay sa akin.
"May I have this dance?"
Tumingala ako at nakita si Sage. His once messy hair is tamed tonight. The boy clad himself in an expensive suit with a red and black tie. I craned my neck to get a better view of his face. He's alluring as usual. Kahit na nakadikit pa rin ang gauze sa kanyang sugat sa panga, napakamisteryoso niya pa ring tingnan.
"Pero..."
"It's okay." He assured me.
Lumingon ako sa gilid at nakitang nakaabang na ang isang lalaking papalit sa akin sa piano. He nodded at me. Nakahinga ako nang maluwag. I don't think I can make it through the next piece. I slid out of the piano bench and prayed to God that my gladiator heels wouldn't betray me. Nanginginig pa rin ang tuhod ko.
The man started playing piano. I immediately recognized it as Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy by Tchaikovsky. It's a piece for a nutcracker dance but the intensity is seeping into my bones. Sage rested his hands on my waist, never tearing my gaze from me.
Sinipat ko ng tingin si Don Monterio. Nasa kabilang dulo na siya nang malaking hall. Ang kasayaw niya ay ang batang babe may kambal na lalaking nakita ko kanina.
Inilapit ni Sage ang katawan ko sa kanya kaya napatingin ako. He bore his intense eyes with me. Abot-abot na naman ang tahip ng puso ko. He leaned and whispered into my ears with a husky voice.
"You know what you are doing is dangerous, right?"
I opened my mouth to speak but no words came out. Tinitigan ako ni Sage at bumuga ng hininga. Umiling siya na para bang isa akong napakalaking problema.
His hard and callous hand grazed my fingers. Biglang tumalim ang kanyang tingin nang makitang namamaga ito. He squeezed it gently. I winced. Umigting kaagad ang kanyang panga. Muntik ko nang bawiin ang mga kamay ko sa kanya. "You played the piano with broken fingers?" he growled.
Iniwas ko ang tingin ko sa kanya.
"What you are doing, Mallory, is no doubt, a suicide." He gritted his teeth.
Hindi ko siya sinagot. I wanted to lean into his chest but I'm afraid I would hurt him. Kaya naman nakontento ako sa distansiya naming dalawa. The music is intense. Halos lahat ng nagsasayaw ay tahimik at wala nang tawanan.
He harshly spun me around, following the intense beat of the music. Kinikilabutan talaga ako. Sa musika. Sa matatalim na tingin ng mga Monterio. Maging kay Erica. Kahit ang mga inosenteng ngiti ng asawa ni Don Monterio. Lalo na sa kanya...
"Ayos ka na ba?" I took a deep breath and gaze at his face. His expression darkened.
"What do you mean?"
"Yung sugat mo..." I bit my lower lips. "Are you okay now?"
Isang tango ang isinagot niya sa akin. Sage can really dance. I can see the way he held my gaze and dominate the steps. His graceful steps and his strong arms. This is not the first elite party he attended and probably would not be the last. I wonder if he grew up in this kind of parties?
I wanted to protest when the piece ended. Binitawan ni Sage ang kamay ko. Nakatayo na lamang kaming dalawa sa dance floor. Nagtititigan. The pianist continued on his next piece. Sage is the one to break the eye contact between the two of us. He turned his back at me and disappeared in the crowd of people.
Gusto ko sana siyang habulin nang maramdaman kong may marahang humigit sa aking braso. Halos atakihin ako sa puso nang makitang si Don Monterio pala iyon.
Nginitian niya ako. "Are you enjoying this party?"
Alanganin akong tumango.
"It's a shame I have to drive you home now. I promised your mother to bring you back in one piece before midnight." Binitawan niya ang braso ko. "Let's go."
I throw Sage's direction one last look before I followed the elder Monterio outside. Most of the guests greeted him as he passe by. Dire-diretso siya sa kanyang sasakyan. Iminuwestra naman ng lalaki ang backseat. Kinakabahan akong tumabi sa kanya.
Umikot ang sasakyan sa highway. It only took 10 minutes to get into our house. The engine stopped but the no one is moving. Is this the part where I get killed? Natatakot naman akong buksan ang pintuan at lumabas. Tanaw ko na ang bahay namin sa labas at si mama na matiyagang naghihintay sa terasa.
"I understand that you're seeing my son, Mallory." came his authoratative voice.
Napaigtad ako at nanuyo ang lalamunan. "P-Po?"
His expression darkened. Katulad na katulad talaga ng kay Sage ang kanyang expresiyon.
"You are lucky I was impressed by your play tonight." then his features softened. Abot-abot na ang tahip ng puso ko dahil sa sobrang kaba. Pakiramdam ko ay sasabog na ito. "So, do you think we can keep this a secret? Sage's existence?"
Kaagad akong tumango. "Yes, Sir."
"Good girl." Siya na mismo ang nagbukas ng pintuan mula sa kinauupuan niya dahil malaki at malakas ang kanyang kamay. "You may now go."
"Thank you, Sir." I silently climbed out of the car.
"And Mallory?"
Nilingon ko si Don Monterio. Nakatitig siya sa akin.
"I would appreciate if you use the door instead of the window the next time you're going to visit my son."