"You think I don't know? Sige! Maglabasan tayo ng baho ngayon, Tita Erica. Sinabi sa akin ni Fer, nasa lungga mo si Tita Ash. Anong... anong ginagawa mo kay Tita Ash?" sigaw ko matapos ko siyang sampalin. Ngumiwi lang siya sa sakit habang may dugong umaagos mula sa braso niya, possibleng galing sa saksak. Inapakan ko ang bangkay ni Chikigem bago tuluyang tumabi sa kanilang dalawa ni Sasha.

"It's really been a long time. You got so violent. Is that what Ash taught you to be? Kaya nga nasa lungga ko siya ngayon, e. Pinaparusahan ang bunso namin dahil mali ang pagpapalaki niya sa iyo!" hindi ko na hinayaan pa at sinampal ko muli siya ng isang beses. While I was busy wanting to hit her another one, Sasha cut me off by exchanging me a slap.

"Stop! Hindi kayo nakakaambag dito. Let's ... let's just clean this mess!" asar na anas ni Sasha. Lumapit siya nang onti sa akin, minata sa mata. "Remember this day, Cassandra. My filthy friend got killed by you. You are the murderer, not me, so the conscience must be accountable upon you." bulong niya bago magtungo kay Tita Erica para utusan na linisin ito. I just swallowed another huge lump on my throat. I trained really hard para maging asintado ang tama ng mga baril ko to kill these people whom I'm having a conversation with, but I ended up killing the innocent one. I managed to step up, but not in this way. Pero hayaan na ang nangyari na. I will take no conscience for this.

"I have a surprise for you pala, Cassandra. Since I banned you from the third floor, I hold my promise that today, you're free to go around. Just promise me one thing." I got surprised by her sudden initiative to converse with me. Itinaas ko lang ang kilay ko sa kaniya. "I want you to have a son with Adrion, and no entering the room at the end of the floor. I hope I did not hear it wrong na you've already moved on from your parents, sana totoo. I'll keep in tact with your words." dugtong niya. Tumango lang ako sa offer niya. Natapos na rin sila maglinis. Sinabihan na rin ako na umuwi na matapos silang umalis. I had to do an eye to eye with Tita Erica dahil kailangan kong i-retrieve si Tita Ash sa kaniya.

"This is hell!" sigaw ko sa abandunadong gusaling 'to, echoing all throughout the building. I roamed myself around, releasing moans from my current distress. Kahit na sabihin kong kailangan kong pumatay, inosente si Chikigem. Ano bang pinaggagawa ko?!

"Got burned out? Deserve." after minutes of spacing out, my solo momentum got humbled down by a very familiar voice. Pagkaangat ko ng ulo ko, there is the smirking Aza.

"Namatay si Tita Oyi? Deserve." I talked back. Nagpanting ang tainga niya, sobrang obvious. I left a smirk on my face and stood up next to her face.

"Tita Erica killed her, right?"

"It was a part of the plan I agreed on. Wala namang pakielam sa akin si Mommy, so why not take the time to eliminate her from the house? Now, I'm no longer the heir, but the owner of that property. I already fixed the documents, naasikaso ko na ang titulo ng mansion." pagmamataas niya.

"Good luck! Make sure na hindi mo iniwan si Zain. I'm sure it's not only your accidental mother who's going to be disappointed at you. It's Tita Taya, the real mother of your lovely stepbrother." I revealed, making her escape a wild gasp.

"What?" she curiously asked, widening the gap between her brows with the sudden apperance of her old wrinkles sa noo niya. I flashed the screen of my phone on her face and showed her a live video from her mansion, nasusunog.

"Baka nakakalimutan mo ang atraso ng pamilya mo sa akin, Aza. I am afraid, nadagdagan pa. It's not only the way your wonderful mother and her cooperative sisters who destroyed the dreams of my mother at ng mga Tita ko, they're complete murderers... at sa susunod na pagkalingat ko, ikaw na ang susunod na mamamatay tao." pagbunyag ko sa kaniya. The video made her panic in static motion, only staring at me from a distance. Then, hindi ko napansin, may tumulong luha na sa pisngi niya, gumagapang paibaba sa baba niya.

"I have all the documents, demanda na lang ang kulang." muli kong sabi sabay sampal sa kaniya. "Kung sa tingin ninyo, wala akong alam dahil inabanduna ako ng mga magulang ko, nagkakamali kayo. I am more than intelligent enough to hide my secrets at hindi ako tanga para palagpasin ang hustisya nang gano'n gano'n na lang. Congrats, Aza. Ikaw ang susunod na biktima." I powerfully added while having a hard grit on my teeth as I watch her vulnerable face, staring at the video. I cut the chase off, sabay sa pagkawala rin ng panic niya.

"Anong ginawa mo kay Zain?! Wala kang pinagkaiba kina Sasha, demonyo ka!—"

"Relax, relax! Sinunog lang naman namin ang mansion mo, there's no big deal with that! Your little fluffy teenage mascara baby brother, Zain, is safe and sound with your father, Tito Victorino and the one and only, Ferlin, the guy you always had sex with without knowing he is your fucking brother—"

Sinampal niya ako, magkabilaan.

"You will pay for this. You will pay for this!"

"Make me, Aza. As if I'm gonna pay for this. Kulang pa nga 'to sa ginawa ng pamilya mo at ng mga Parriño sa mga magulang ko—"

"Akala ko ba, naka-move on ka na?" someone distracted my sentence from behind. "You thought I'll leave you two behind? Silly me, that's never going to happen." I turned myself around from that someone, only to notice the unnoticeable, Tita Erica, grinning depth to depth.

"Pareho lang kayo ni Chiki. Huwag kang mag-alala, Aza. Pinapa-track na namin ang coordinates ni Ferlin to retrieve Zain. Don't you also worry about your mansion, it's up for a schedule for renovation tomorrow. I know all in advance. You are practically dumb, Cassandra. Pasalamat ka, Tita mo ako, or else, I'll have your dirty secrets be revealed to Sasha—"

"Oh, oh my God. There's no point of hiding my secrets from her, Tita, dahil doon din naman ang punta ng lahat ng 'to, except, kahit pamangkin mo ako't second cousin ako ni Aza, I will never have the doubt to kill you two both at the same time." I exchanged with another grin. When I was about to speak, Aza held me from behind, interlocking both of my arms to hers, then I saw Tita Erica pull out a shivering long spade. She traced its end on my neck before slightly slicing a bit of my skin, causing me to feel a little bit of pain saka nagsugat nang bahagya. I remained poised, yet alarmed. Nang hihigpitan pa ni Aza lalo ang kapit niya sa akin, I kicked her gut from behing bago bumwelo kay Tita Erica para kunin ang espada. Sinakal ko siya gamit ang braso ko habang tinututok ang espada kay Aza.

"Now, choose who to sacrifice." banggit ko. Tumawa lang si Tita Erica na tila isang dakilang demonyo na ngayon lang gumising matapos ang ilang bilyong taon na hibernation.

"You're joking, right?" hinigpitan ko pa lalo ang pagsakal ko sa kaniya, dahilan para maubo siya. Nang makita kong namumula na siya, I released her from my grip and lost the spade, surrendering it to her.

"Let's meet each other again next time, and I swear that the next time we intertwine our paths again, isa sa atin ang mawawalan ng buhay." sabi ko sabay alis sa putanginang abandunadong gusali o kung anumang lungga ito, basta't sure ako na sa mga Parriño ang property na ito.

Sasha's Point of View - Parriño's Mansion

"

Baka ikaw, niloloko mo rin ako. I saw how lustful you can be, Valentine. Anyway, I saw your Mama kanina sa secret room, she's slowly becoming alive day by day." sabi ko sabay tungga ng glass of red wine.

"Niloloko. What are you saying, Sasha? We've been married for more than a decade already, yet wala ka pa ring tiwala sa akin?—" all of a sudden, the news about our business went broadcasted sa 56-inches TV namin dito sa living room. The news flashed to defame our business with its corruption, may mga na-interrogate pa ngang mga employees, stating our mind games and other tyrannical forms of governing them.

"Tangina! Sisantehin mo 'yang mga 'yan, Valentine! Who the fuck in that company spied on us! Your Mama will be disappointed in you, Val. You're not crucially scrutinizing each and every employee doon! Kaya nga pinatanggal ko si Cassandra sa'yo roon, 'di ba? Kasi, hindi siya katiwa-tiwala, then you have all these ruckus?! Unbelievable!"

"Bakit mo nililipat sa Fuentivas na 'yan kung si Chikigem na ipinasok mo ang nagnakaw ng mga dokumento. Nakalimutan mo na ba ang binunyag niya kahapon? Is that how you take your own mistakes? Passing them to another person, so you don't take the blame?—"

"It is not even about that! How come na hindi mo nakita na iniinterview sila?! How come na nasa tapat lang ng kumpanya itong mga lintik na reporters na 'to, hindi mo pa nakita?—"

"It was taken yesterday. I allowed them." Adrion meddled in, making us go down in disbelief.

"What?" sabay naming banat ni Valentine sa anak namin. Adrion just shrugged and put out a C-hand sign.

"Anong C na pinagsasabi mo?" buntong ni Valentine.

"It's for Cassandra's parents. She does not deserve to have an objectifying father and mother in law." pagbabarumbado niya, dahilan para masampal ko siya at dinamay ko na rin si Valentine.

"Assholes! Why would you care about her parents! Mga manggagamit 'yon!" huminto muna ako bago tumigil sa harap ni Valentine, suppressing my tears.

"Kasalanan mo 'to, e. Kasalanan mo 'to! If you did not just cheat on me with Izaryn, hindi mangyayari 'to!—"

"What do you mean? May itinatago ka ba sa amin, Sasha?" bigla na lang tumulo ang mga luha ko nang hindi ko nalalaman. I suddenly had a flashback sa kung anong nangyari decades ago.

I saw the bodies of Cassandra's parents, lingered between my legs sa kuwarto ko doon sa abandunadong building kung saan namatay si Chikigem. That was the old mansion of the Parriño's. I could hear how they screamed for help when no one was there, but only the killer.

I saw their faces, their bloody tears as the rain drops down the stream of flood on the outside while thunder escapes the room second by second. I saw how they wanted to escape from how deep their clasped hands were. There, I saw Erica and another unfamiliar lady, stabbing them one by one. I saw myself at that unfamiliar lady, putting out a chainsaw, having the last laugh by unaliving both of them, dismembering their body parts. I reminisced the way I pretended to not know who the killers were when Valentine came. Nakauwi na rin kasi si Erica bago pa sila makarating. I made a considerable fake panic inside the car while completely pretending that it was not me who cut their breath off. I heard my lines again when I initiated a conversation with Valentine about his cheating allegations with Izaryn while having a secret partnership sa asawa nito, to hide his little secrets from me rather than talking about the bodies inside the trunk of the car. I remember myself coming to Tarlac, and I forgot where and why, basta't alam ko lang na may naiwanan ako sa lugar na 'yon. Then, someone called me inside an unknown house, no evident reason why I got so emotional from the call. Minutes after, I went back to reality.

"What, Sasha? WHAT?! Don't tell me na tama ang akusasyon ng mga tao at nitong anak mo, kasama na rin sa kung anong naging paniniwala ni Cassandra at ng mga Valentine? Na ikaw ang pumatay sa mga magulang ni Cassandra? Sa mga Fuentivas!—"

"I killed them, Val. I killed them. I... I don't know. I-I killed them, Valentine. I killed... I saw, I saw my own two hands rushed down with blood, streaming down my legs... I saw a chainsaw. I... I brutally killed them—"

"Ignorant bitch!" matinding sigaw ni Valentine sabay sampal sa akin.

"Papa!" Adrion yelled from a distance before going to Valentine, pero hindi pa rin niya mapigilan ang Daddy niya from hitting my face and my weak body, dahilan para mangubo-ngubo ako.

"V-Val. Tama na... tama na!—"

"Anong tama na?! You deserve all these violence!—" right about then, we heard a crack of a cup. When I, together with my family turned our head on our side, we witnessed a crying figure of Cassandra's silhouette at the entrance.

"Naka-move on na ako because I refused to believe you guys were not the murderers, and I believed it would be someone else. L-Liars!" she introduced herself in the scene before getting away. We were frozen from her sentiments not until Adrion rushed running towards her.

"We are fucked up, Sasha. This is your fault!" agresibong bulong sa akin ni Valentine while holding my collar.

Acrimonious Heart, Chapter 18