Blood Menace

38- Where is Cole?

Kam woke up with a severe headache. Pero hindi iyun ang tuluyang nagpagising sa kanya.

It was the tight shackles around her wrists and ankles.

She groaned in annoyance as she kicked and struggled to free herself.

"Kam..."

Napatigil siya sa pagpupumiglas nang marinig ang boses na 'yun.

Sobrang dilim ng paligid kaya napakurap si Kam para makapag-adjust ang kanyang paningin.

"M-Mom...?"

"Kam... ikaw nga..." mahina ang boses ng kanyang ina at halatang may iniinda itong sakit.

"Mom, you're gonna be fine. Nasaan si Daddy?" her sight finally cleared up. Nasa kabilang sulok ang ina at katulad niya, nakagapos din ito gamit ang metal na kadena na naka-attack sa brick wall.

"I'm here..." napalingon si Kam sa kabilang sulok. Parehas lang ng sitwasyon niya ang ama.

"Are you both alright?"

"Okay lang kami," ani Kenia Caedis. "Kailangan mong makalabas dito. Malaki ang galit sa amin ni Kray Hayes."

"Mom... why does he hate us so much?" tila may bara sa lalamunan ni Kam nang itanong 'yun.

"H-Hindi ko alam. Hindi ko s'ya kilala bago siya naging sikat na artista. Wala akong alam na connection ng pamilya natin sa kanya."

"Pero sabi n'ya, he was Cameron's lover. Sabi n'ya, you disowned Cameron and that made him miserable until he died. He said you forced Cam to marry a woman of your choice. Kray wants revenge for Cam's death," naguguluhang sabi ng dalaga.

Saglit na natahimik si Kenia hanggang sa pagak na tumawa si Darrick.

"Lover? He is delusional, isn't he?" anang lalaki.

"Dad... please, tell me. Naguguluhan ako."

"He lied, Kam," mahina ang boses na sabi ni Kenia. "Kray and your brother were not lovers. I haven't heard of him. Cam had a wife, Misna. She was a lovely woman. Although, Cameron mentioned once that Misna had an obsessed stalker. Dati yatang roommate ni Cam."

The story just got complicated.

Sumasakit ang ulo ni Kam habang pilit na ina-absorb at tinitimbang ang bawat bagong impormasyon na natatanggap.

So, Kray was not Cam's lover.

"Ano ba talaga ang totoo?" mahina niyang sambit.

"Kray Hayes is destroying our family," matigas na sabi ni Darrick.

"I'm going to tell you what I know," ani Kenia, "thirty-one years ago, our family was happy. Your father and I, we were not rich, but we were happy. Sapat lang ang kinikita niya bilang isang city clerk."

City clerk? Literal na bumagsak ang panga ni Kam. She didn't know. Akala n'ya, old money sila.

"Then we found out na buntis ako. After six hundred years, nabuntis ako uli. Alam mo naman na hindi malakas ang reproduction nating mga Purebloods. We were ecstatic. Sobrang saya naman."

Narinig ni Kam ang panginginig ng boses ng kanyang ina. She was talking about happiness, but all she could hear was pain in her voice.

"When you were born, your father and I started blacking out. Noong una, hindi namin maalala ang mga nangyari. Hanggang sa dahan-dahang bumalik sa normal ang lahat. Our family is happy again. Nasubaybayan namin ang mga achievements mo. We are so proud of you. Your father's business ventures became successful until we became the richest family in the continent."