Nang makalabas ako ng sementeryo bitbit ang bangkay sa sako, agad kong natanaw sa 'di kalayuan si Sadako. She sat down on the sidewalk, raven black hair contrasted her pale complexion. Kung may taong makakakita sa kanya, baka pinagkamalan na siyang white lady. 

'Kung may bangs din ang mga white lady.'

Otherwise, I wouldn't be too surprised if even ghosts will be afraid of her. Ni hindi man lang siya tumingin sa'kin nang naupo ako sa tabi niya. Abala siya sa pagtitig sa screen ng kanyang cellphone. I suddenly had the urge to brush her bangs just to see the color of her eyes, but I stopped myself just in time.

'Tangina, Everick. Pagod ka lang.'

I cleared my throat. "What are you looking at?"

"Malabo."

"Ang?"

"Ang pictures nila. See? This is so disappointing..." Ipinakita sa'kin ni Kleo ang mga larawang kinuha niya kanina nang atakihin kami. Indeed, all of them were blurred. Nakasimagot pa rin siya. "Sayang. Ang akala ko pa man din may makukuha akong matinong picture nila."

Nang mapansin niyang hindi ko pa rin maintindihan ang koneksyon nito, Kleopatra sighed and patiently explained, "May scrapbook kami ni Roberta."

"Err...ano naman ang kinalaman ng scrapbooking?"

Seriously, I have no idea what she means.

"Yung mga nakalaban natin kanina ay demon hounds. They were recently discovered by the Eastwood Paranormal Experts Society last year, pero wala rin silang malinaw na picture. Nagpunta na ako sa deep web, pero wala talaga. They're quite rare, you know? It would've been cute to paste their pictures on the page."

Matagal akong nakatitig sa kanya.

Ilang sandali pa, hindi na napigilang matawa. Kamuntikan ko pang matukuran ang sako sa tabi ko---not that it matters since the corpse inside is probably twisted in odd angles already. Nakasimangot lang sa'kin si Sadako habang nakahalukipkip.

"Why?"

"Hahaha! How interesting... Ang ibang babae, baka nauna pang kumaripas nang takbo. And here you are, worrying about some stupid scrapbook even when death is staring at you straight in the eye." Napapailing na lang ako.

"It's a simple psychology trick, crow-shifter. When someone stares at you in a threatening manner, just stare back at him. Magugulat ka na lang na ang kamatayan na ang unang iiwas ng tingin," she replied. "Not that I'm a girl who gets stared at often..."

There is a fine line between being brave and being brainless, and I guess Kleopatra Claveria defied all logic. Suddenly, there was that urge again. Dahil dito, napaiwas na lang ako ng tingin sa kanya at naunang nang tumayo.

"Kailangan na nating umalis."

Tumango naman siya at binitbit ang mga pala. Ayaw daw niyang iwan ang mga ito, kaya hinayaan ko na lang din siya. Natuklasan kong mahirap makipagtalo sa babaeng ito, dahil hindi mo alam kung anong tumatakbo sa isip niya. I usually know how to handle women and their occasional mood swings, but Sadako is clearly a different species.

"Bakit ba tayo inatake kanina? Siguro naman may dahilan kung bakit sumulpot na lang bigla sementeryo 'yong bata, 'di ba?"

Mahinang tanong ni Kleo nang makarating na kami sa kwarto niya. We laid the corpse of the dead man on an examining table (don't ask where we got that) and ignored the rotting smell.

Paniguradong mahihimatay ang tiyahin niya kapag nakita niya ang bangkay sa silid ng pamangkin niya.

Yup, this was a different kind of madness.

Nang mapansin kong hinihintay niya ang sagot ko, doon ko naramdamang tila lalong bumigat ang invitation na nakatago sa bulsa ng trench coat ko. My mind reeled back to the words and the eerie feeling that came with the message. Sa huli, pinilit ko na lang ngumiti.

Hindi na niya kailangang malaman pa ito.

She's already getting herself too involved with my case by reviving this man, and I don't want her to venture any deeper.

I don't. I can't.

"Hindi ko rin alam. Baka napadaan lang siya kanina at pinagtripan tayo. Paranormal beings tend to do that for the sake of entertainment."

Tahimik niya lang akong tiningnan. For a moment, I felt uneasy under her gaze, kahit na hindi ko nakikita ang mga mata niya.

"No. Paranormal beings don't act like that without a sane reason, crow-shifter. Hindi kayo mangugulo para lang sa 'entertainment'."

'Tell that to my brother,' I thought in amusement. "Sinasabi mo bang may mas malalim na dahilan pa ang pag-atake sa'tin kanina?"

"Siguro," sagot niya. "Puno ng kababalaghan ang buhay. Twisted things happen on a daily basis, that's why you should be prepared for anything." Sunod namang bumaling si Sadako sa bangkay ng lalaki. Inayos niya pa ang kwelyo ng barong nito, at huminga nang malalim. She placed her hands on his chest, and stared at him for a minute.

Kabado kong pinanood si Kleo sa kanyang ginagawa. Hinawakan niya ang naaagnas nitong kamay at unti-unting nilapit sa kanyang labi. Ramdam ko ang paglabas ng enerhiya niya sa katawan, pero sa hindi inaasahang pagkakataon, nawala rin ito. Before her lips can even make contact with the flesh, she was out of breath and her hands were trembling with fatigue.

I sighed and walked towards her, pulling Sadako away from the corpse.

Bakit ba hindi ko 'to naisip kanina?

"Reviving the dead drains too much of your energy, doesn't it?"

Magpo-protesta pa sana siya kung hindi ko lang siya agad na inalalayan nang mawalan siya ng balanse. Damn. Bakit ba hindi niya 'to sinabi sa'kin? Kleo shoved my hands away and pouted at me, "Nonsense! I can handle this. Kaya ko namang---!"

"Rest." I firmly said and forced her to sit down just when she was about to make a move.

Bakit ba ang tigas ng ulo niya? Tsk.

Seryoso ko siyang tinitigan.

"Do you really think you can lie to me, Sadako? Alam nating parehong ang ganyang kapangyarihan---wherever this came from---drains the life force out of everyone. You need to recover before you can pull off another stunt like this."

I know this all too well.

Kung ako ngang kailangang magpahinga nang isang araw pagkatapos kong bumuhay ng patay (within the sixty-minute range, of course), siya pa kaya? I've also read books about this before. The longer the time a spirit departed with its body, the greater energy it needs to pull it back and revive that person completely.

And when I say "completely", I mean it.

Ayon sa mga nakausap ko sa Tartarus, may mga naitala nang "incomplete" resurrection processes. Sa mga pagkakataong kagaya nito, nabubuhay ang patay, pero wala na ring saysay dahil nagiging zombies na lang sila.

At lalong hindi namin mapapakinabangan ang lalaking 'to kung magiging zombie lang siya.

"Since you're an avid fan of the paranormal, I think you already know the consequences if you keep being stubborn, sweetheart."

Tumango si Kleo, kinuha ang pumpkin pillow niya, at niyakap ito. "Can I still keep the corpse in my room for tonight?" Sabay hikab niya.

Napangiti na lang ako.

"Sure."

Gustuhin ko mang hawiin ang buhok niya para makita ko nang maayos ang kanyang mga mata, I stopped myself and cursed under my breath. I buried my hands in my trench coat's pockets, just so I can resist that weird urge.

'Goddamn it, Everick!'

Nang dumako ang mga mata ko sa wall clock, doon ko napagtantong alas tres na pala ng madaling-araw.

"Ituloy na lang natin 'to bukas. Magpahinga ka na."

But when I turned to Kleo, she was already snoring lightly. Her gray sweater wrapped around her petite figure. Katabi pa niya si Roberta na nakatitig lang sa'kin, her eyeless sockets were enough to give anyone a nightmare. Magkukumento pa sana ako sa amoy ng naaagnas na bangkay sa tabi namin, pero mukha namang hindi ito problema sa kanya.

"You're a really weird girl, you know that? Tsk."

I grabbed her Illuminati printed blanket and tucked her in before closing the door behind me.

*

"You already sent him the invitation?"

There was a pause on the line. Makalipas ang ilang sandali, tumango ang babae. A satisfied smile graced her lips as she glanced at her clipboard.

"Good job. I'm sure the boss will be delighted."

Pinatay nito ang tawag at ibinalik sa bulsa ng kanyang corporate suit ang telepono. 'Everything is going according to plan,' isip-isip niya at inubos ang laman ng kanyang wineglass. She savored the burning sensation down her throat. Indeed, ever since the Neverwoods ruined their first venue, they had a rough time relocating their annual event.

Thankfully, their boss has a lot of connections.

And a lot of money.

Sa ngayon, habang hinihintay nila ang sunod na gagawin ng magkakapatid, marami pa silang kailangan asikasuhin.

Binalingan niya ang kanyang pamangking abala sa paglalaro ng chess kasama ang isang kriminal. Nakakapagtakang-isipin na kanina pa nila tinititigan ang chessboard, pero hindi nila ginagalaw ang chess pieces. If her niece had telekinesis like The Phantom, it wouldn't be as confusing.

"Nica, may ipapagawa ako sa'yo."

The girl's sharp eyes darted to her. Walang-gana naman niyang iniwan ang kanilang laro. She hoped out of the booth and landed on the bottle-covered dancefloor. The glass crunched under the weight of her combat boots.

"If I'm going to recruit another killer, I'll demand extra on my next salary." Nica boredly said, brushing the short strands of hair away from her face.

Napabuntong-hininga naman ang sekretarya. Hanggang ngayon, nagtataka pa rin siya kung bakit ayaw nito sa mga mamamatay-tao sa kabila ng katotohanang mga mamamatay-tao rin ang nagpalaki sa kanya. Kaya nga't walang problema sa kanya ang pagtanggap ng assassination assignments. If anything, shouldn't she be used to their company, by now?

"Hindi killers ang hahanapin mo."

"Eh, ano?"

"Isang referee."

Nica raised an eyebrow. "And why would we need some shitty referee?"

Lalong lumawak ang ngiti ng sekretarya.

"Because the first match of the new Elite Killing Tournament will be scheduled soon."

---

I never won against myself,
in every game we'd always play;
So I accepted defeat and admitted,
"I can never cheat myself, anyway."

---Kleopatra Claveria