Chapter 13 — Steffy’s Predicament

It startled Don Arnulfo when he heard a knock on his office door. He was so absorbed in reading the latest news that it took him a minute to respond to whoever was at the door. “Come in,” he grimly said.

The wooden door made a creaky sound as a man wearing a black tuxedo entered his office. Everybody in the brotherhood called this man Sebastian, although his real name was Carlos Cadavos. He was the Don’s right hand and his most trusted goon. Sebastian took confident steps towards the Don, then placed a sealed envelope on his table. Don Arnulfo ripped the top-most part of the envelope and examined the contents. Immediately, his face turned sour. What he was holding right now was bad news. Terrible.

“The Dragons have interfered—”

The Don raised his finger to silence the man in front of him. “What exactly happened?”

“The Dragons had snatched the partnership with the Rodriguez Clan,” the man stammered. Clenching his fist, Don Arnulfo sucked air and tried to control his temper.

“I already know that, damn it! Tell me why it happened!”

“The encounter killed several men. It turns out there was a mole in the brotherhood.” “Are you saying that someone inside the Alpha has been sending information towards the Dragons?”

The man before the Don nodded his head frantically. The Don could not hold his anger anymore. He slammed his hands on the table and swept the stacks of papers on it. “Who is the mole?” he asked again in a dangerous voice.

“He’s in the torture room, Don Arnulfo.”

“Voy a matar a esa mierda!” (I will kill him!) the Don replied as he took hasty steps towards the door. “Vámonos. Lead me to him, Sebastian.”

“But you cannot kill him yet, Don Arnulfo. He holds the information about the golden key.”

The Don stopped and stared at the man. “The golden key?”

“Yes, Don Arnulfo. The key that will open the treasures of your ancestors.”

Sebastian and the Don entered an average-sized room and were met face to face with the mole inside the Alpha. They tied the man around an electric chair with only his Calvin Klein underwear to cover his private part. He was in his 50s and the Don very much knew who he was.

“Mr. Renato Salcedo. A business tycoon and a successful surgeon who is renowned not only in the Philippines but also in other parts of the world. We have accepted you to the Alpha brotherhood like a genuine family and yet, here you are, sitting on our infamous silya elektrika (electric chair),” Don Arnulfo taunted as he approached the man’s direction. The Don spoke with a heavy accent but the Spanish words that came out of his mouth slipped through his tongue smoothly.

Renato Salcedo groaned in pain as the Don hit his stomach. Blood continued to gush out of his nose, but it did not bother Don Arnulfo. Another jab flew towards the man’s lower abdomen. Anguish got out from the man’s mouth as the Don mercilessly hit his already injured body.

“Tell me,” the Don said, grunting. “Tell me, why have you betrayed your own family?” Instead of answering, Renato Salcedo let out a manic laugh. The Don listened to him for a few minutes before he sent another jab to his face.

“Because y-you’re crazy! Yes, you are, Don Arnulfo!” the man retorted and spat in front of the Don. Sebastian came forward and pushed the button of the electric chair. Renato quivered as the electric currents traveled through his body.

“That’s enough, Sebastian!” the Don commanded. Another manic laugh came out from the mouth of Renato Salcedo, although he sounded weaker this time and almost looked delusional because of the electric shock that his body had been receiving.

“Tell me, Mr. Salcedo, what did the Dragons offer you?” the Don asked again, clenching his fist.

“S-Something that you cannot give me, you son of a b-bitch!” spat the man on the electric chair. “Money… power!”

“You ungrateful and filthy motherfucker! I gave you money, power, and immunity! What else do you want?” roared the Don.

“Greater power, isn’t it?” interjected Sebastian. “Leadership in the brotherhood.” The Don slapped Renato in the face.

“How dare you! If it’s not because of the Alphas, you and your family would have starved to death.”

“Yes! B-but you are equally greedy, Don Arnulfo. You want your daughter to inherit your position when we both know that she is not—”

Another loud anguish came out from the man’s mouth as Sebastian pushed the button again. He quivered again and the electric chair made a rattling sound as electric shocks mercilessly tortured Renato’s body.

“Say it and your family will never see the break of dawn!” yelled the Don. They listened to him as Mr. Salcedo gave out erratic breathing. “You betrayed your Alpha family. Do you know what comes next after we have toasted you in this chair? Your loving wife and cute teenage daughter will also experience an unforgettable death!” the Don said in a sinister voice. “It’s payback time.”

“N-No! Spare my wife and daughter, Don Arnulfo,” Renato said pleadingly. It completely swept away his arrogance and confidence at the mention of his family.

“You should have thought of them before you betrayed the Alphas, Renato Salcedo!” The Don walked away as he ordered his men to kill the mole. But just as he was about to reach the door, a loud wailing from man reached his ear.

“I-I have information about y-your missing k-key. I will lead you to them. Just please, don’t hurt my family.”

Few days after that incident, they found the body of a famous surgeon and business tycoon floating in the dirty waters of the Manila River. They also found his teenage daughter and his wife dead at their mansion in the Green Valley subdivision, a place that the Salcedo’s own. Autopsies revealed that the two women were raped and flogged to death.

“This is what they get when they mess with the Alphas, Sebastian. They won’t be given any mercy,” said the Don as he played with the flash drive that contained all the information he needed. Finally, he now knew where to locate the long-lost golden key that would take him to greater power.

“The Alphas don’t give mercy,” repeated Sebastian as he raised his wineglass to his lips.

Steffy slammed her locker door and repeatedly cursed herself. ‘Shit! Why did they elect me as their classroom president? This is stupid!’

Steffy’s class elected their classroom officers for this school year and she won the hearts of her classmates without exerting much effort. Most of them voted for her and she felt they threw her into a complicated situation. She immediately darted to the locker room right after the first period to control her heated emotions. ‘Damn it! The situation has stretched so far. I need to end this already.’ Sensing that footstep was approaching in her direction, she pretended to rummage through her belongings inside her locker.

“So, you’re the president now?”

Steffy raised her eyebrow when she heard a familiar voice behind her. Plastering a fake smile, she replied in a mocking tone, “Charlotte! What a surprise.”

The two girls looked at each other seriously. Charlotte was wearing a shoulder-length wig and Steffy immediately remembered that day she made Charlotte and the rest of her gang beg her for mercy.

“So, what about it?” Steffy eventually asked, breaking the silence. Charlotte raised her left eyebrow before answering.

“I just want to congratulate you.”

Steffy rolled her eyes and let out a sarcastic laugh. Being elected as the classroom president was a nuisance to her. It is not part of her game plan, but what could she do? Her classmates were already treating her like a goddess. “Stop being a hypocrite, Charlotte. I know you hate me, especially after what I did to you.”

Charlotte was silent for a moment. Then she started tearing her facade down. “I was always the president before,” she said in a hysterical tone. “I was the goddess and my classmates were afraid of me. Ever since you came, everything changed!” Tears cascaded in her eyes. “And this! You did this to my hair! You ruined me!”

“How could a campus bully become a president? Oh, I see… through intimidation and bribery. But now, you cannot do that anymore because the school finally has its new queen,” Steffy countered. This was the first time that Steffy had ever stared at her mortal enemy in this school. Charlotte was pretty and yet she could feel anger and resentment in her persona. A clear example of a young, troubled bitch. Steffy only glared at her while Charlotte sniffled and continued to spit hurtful words at her, except that Steffy was not easily swayed. She felt nothing but apathy for this girl.

“You ruined me, Steffy,” Charlotte continued, “You snatched everything away from me! Tell me, isn’t it hard to pretend and act like a kind girl when we both know that underneath your skin, you are a monster?”

Steffy snickered, then let out a creepy grin. ‘Monster? Is that how she sees me?’ “Well, I’m having fun actually,” Steffy replied with nonchalance.

Charlotte scowled at her in return. “Well then,” she retorted with a sigh. “Enjoy it while you still can. You’re not getting away with this, Steffy. Never!”

Later in the afternoon, Steffy was already heading for the door to leave. Most her classmates were already in the hallway, exchanging stupid banters while they waited for the bell to ring. It was already the last period and the flag retreat ceremony will be up in just a few minutes. But just as she was about to reach the door, Teacher Greg approached her and they almost bumped with each other as the teacher shoved his way inside the classroom. It took aback Steffy for a moment.

“Jeez, you startled me.”

“Sir. You startled me, Sir,” the teacher corrected her. “We are on the school premises. Address me appropriately.”

Steffy scoffed and shoot him a mocking stare. ‘Yeah, whatever.’ She walked past him as she felt her heart beating like crazy, but the teacher braced her right elbow. “Ouch,” she moaned. “Get your hands off me!”

Teacher Greg slowly dropped his firm grip. Tucking his hands inside his pockets, he faced the girl with a serious look. Steffy scowled at him in return. “Go back to the library after the flag retreat,” he said. “Mrs. Amparo still has an errand for you.”

“What?” she asked in an irritated voice. “That’s impossible—”

“You were not yet finished with your task, remember?”

Clenching her fist, Steffy recalled that day where Teacher Greg brought her to the barbecue stand. “You’re bluffing, aren’t you? You just want to trick me.” “Just like what you did to me?”

Teacher Greg retorted. His face was just three inches away from her. She could even smell his Aficionado cologne and could see how his coffee-brown eyes stared at her with such intensity she could feel her heart burning. Everything around her stopped, and it rooted her from where she stood. The kiss they shared just two nights ago made her cheeks burn even more. ‘What the fuck is happening to you, Steffy? Why can’t you react sensibly?’ As if on cue, the bell rang suddenly, making the teacher back away from her. Steffy’s face was already a bright shade of crimson.

“Go on now, Miss Rivera.”

Without a cue, she hastily sprinted to the hallway, as the teacher chuckled and shook his head in amusement.