CHAPTER FORTY — HANDCUFFED

“Ma’am…”

Elaine opened her eyes. Anne was Infront of her with an uneven smile. She looked around her surroundings. She wasn’t in Tan’s rented house but inside Ainsdale. Tan wasn’t there as expected. She thought that was real a while ago, but it was just a dream.

“I was hesitant to wake you, but your phone keeps ringing. It might be important.”

She moved. Locating the cell phone in the handbag.

“Sorry, I must have dozed off. What time is it?” she asked while going through her bag.

“I must have dozed off.”

Elaine was surprised to hear herself say that. She never once felt sleepy while on the job.

“Almost closing time, Ma’am. Seven o’clock.”

She slept for almost half an hour. She was waiting for Tan for almost eight hours already. According to Drew, his husband would certainly ask her to eat out. But why until this time, he hasn’t showed up or even called?

Elaine felt disappointment. The guy is busy at work. One more thing, she still doesn’t know what to say once they’re face to face again.

They hadn’t talked anything about the past yet. She isn’t sure which one of them is more unprepared than the other. Her, with all the secrets or him who she’s still hurting until now.

She slightly got startled when her phone rang again. She somehow got disappointed upon seeing it was Marco and not Tan who called.

But her face lit up when she remembered he owes her a payback for pranking her.

Relief flooded on Marco’s handsome face when Elaine finally picked up. He was calling since yesterday and she hasn’t answered his calls.

“Did you call to complain about the quality of our products again, Sir?”

A smile touched the corners of Marco’s mouth. Unconsciously, he touched the left side of his chest. As usual, his heart started to beat a little faster again. That is the side effect whenever he hears Elaine’s pretend snobbish voice.

“How are you?” he asked. “I’m worried so I tried calling.”

There was no answer. The line was silent for so long he needed to check if the call had been dropped.

“Hey…”

“I was just worried that if I didn’t answer your call, you and Anne might collab again to prank me.”

Marco grimaced. The store manager already admitted to conniving with him. “I’m really sorry about what happened, Elaine. It won’t happen again.”

No reply from the other line. The truth is, he has been restless since yesterday. His heart was aching to see her, hear her voice and confirm that she is okay.

Many times, he tried convincing himself to forget her but with every blink, everywhere he looked, Elaine would enter his thoughts. He couldn’t stop thinking and worrying about her no matter how hard he tried not to.

The look of sorrow and anguish on her face, the suffering, hurt, and tiredness that she’s trying to conceal from everybody. He wanted to break down and enter that world she made.

It wasn’t the first time Marco saw that emotion in the girl’s face. The first one was three years ago. When she heard from the doctor that she lost the baby.

Marco watched her secretly. He was there when she first tried to hurt herself. He was also there the second time. Even the time she was discharged from the hospital despite the doctor’s advice for her to stay a few more days. He saw how little by little grief eats up the heart of the first girl he loved.

And it pained him as well.

“Are you still at work?”

“Why? Are you going to ask me out to pay me back for your sin? Forget it. I’m not hungry.”

Then the line was cut. Marco checked his phone. He ran out of battery. He was about to find a charger when SPO2 John Ramos suddenly dropped a very thick file on his desk. He took his black leather bag and kept searching for the charger of his cell phone.

“Check these.”

His eyes went back to the file on the desk he pointed. He opened it. He got interested when he saw whose profile was attached there.

“Jack Gusto, thirty-eight. There are a lot of charges against him. Rape, theft, attempted murder. It’s been a month, but he hasn’t shown himself to his family. Why? Most probably he has a new case he is hiding from. This one is hard to catch.”

Marco tightly closed his fist. Harassing Elaine and scaring the hell out of her. That was the crime the son-of-a-gun committed that’s why he’s hiding. He didn’t expect the bastard wouldn’t even cool down before committing another crime. Did the bastard know Elaine didn’t file a case against him, so he was feeling brave?

He sighed heavily and angrily.

For the second time, Elaine let the person who hurt her be free. The first time happened three years ago. This whole time the police didn’t have a lead because Elaine herself didn’t have an interest in the case, so it never really prospered.

Three years ago, Marco was stunned and bewildered seeing Elaine walk past him weeks later after their first meeting. She quietly asked two lady officers to assist her from the investigation room to her cell. Hands handcuffed behind her back, she didn’t even blink when their eyes locked. That pair of confused, scared, dark almond-shaped eyes struck his heart. Elaine kept her silence because she worries the De Marco name might be dragged. She even tried giving the police her maiden name.

She pleaded with Tito Ralph, who holds the case before, when they confirmed she was the wife of a prominent family in the Philippines. According to Tito Ralph, Elaine almost begged not to call and tip off the press about the crime. With the help of his uncle and his uncle’s friend, who was a high-ranking officer, they were able to pull the press and media blackout.

Elaine knew people would ask and talk about her—which family she had come from, why she was kidnapped, how she lost her child and how scary it was for her when she was sexually harassed. People would judge her for allegedly killing her own father and would pity her once they learn that she just caught the sins of her mother.

Talking about that night would need a lot of courage. Elaine would go back and remember the nightmare of that night. Her silence cost her dearly. Elaine held it all inside even when she already knew it was too painful for her to bear.

Elaine was released and cleared of the homicide case because of her mother’s suicide note. That was the last time he saw her.

“Why are you seriously looking for this person? Did he do something to you?” asked John.

“Personal,” was his curt reply between clenched teeth. The other policeman frowned, but just shrugged and went back to his desk.

Marco moved and stood when he saw the clock. Ten minutes past eight o’clock. He cleared his things including Jack’s file in his bag.

He reached for his keys and went straight outside. He was about to get in his car when he recognized the guy who just went down the police mobile next to the uniformed police.

Tan De Marco.

Though his hands weren’t handcuffed, he knew he came from a terrible fist fight based on his unruly hair and crumpled coat which was usually ironed.

“I’ve served your family for a long time. You are the only De Marco I went to the police station to bail out because of assault and physical injury,” Atty. Ramas said, shaking his head. He carried his attaché case and started leaving the station. “Don’t worry, I will not tell your father.”

Tan lost count of the numerous times the lawyer asked why he got into a fight. He could not talk, because if he did, he didn’t know what could come out of his mouth. His heart was heavy with emotions up until now and rage was one of those.

The guy who hurt Elaine inside the elevator was Vincent Elizalde Fuego, the only child of the famous fashion designer Margaux Elizalde and business mogul Juan Miguel Fuego.

Juan Miguel Fuego was one of the major shareholders of the De Marco Group of Hotels apart from the multinational corporation owned by their family.

Vincent lived abroad for almost three years. It’s just been two months since he returned to the Philippines.

After he watched the CCTV footage of the elevator, only God knew how he tried to stay calm. But it still came down to a fist fight when he greeted him with, “I know why you’re here. Bitches like your wife needs to be punished as they deserve.”

Tan felt blood rushed to his head. He went blank. The son-of-a-gun dared to call his wife that. If the security wasn’t quick enough to block and restrain him after he went and punched the guy, he swore he could do more than punch him on the face. He didn’t retaliate with a punch, but he got to smirk and spit the blood in his mouth in front of him.

“Those bastards don’t even know the word remorse. Men like him who abuse the weak deserve to die a horrible death.”

Seventeen-year-old Elaine Martinez once told him that. And he couldn’t agree more now.

Vincent didn’t appear in the police station, just his lawyer spoke with Atty. Ramas a while ago. If he showed up there, Tan would throw all the restraint he had. He’d kill the asshole right then and there. No more talking.

Carrying his coat, Tan walked out of the station. He was waiting for a taxi outside when a red sports car parked in front of him.

His eyebrows crossed when he recognized who owned it.