Gun 12

Third Person

Elaine woke up because of the light. She saw the white ceiling, making her immediately sit up.

“Elaine, you’re awake. Thank goodness, I thought I was going to lose you,” her father said. He immediately embraced her. Kaizer was beside him, smiling at her, clearly aware of what had happened between her and Louis.

“I-I’m fine. Where’s Louis?” she asked, but Kaizer and her father only exchanged glances as if neither of them wanted to answer her question.

“D-Dad?" she called Mr. Natividad, but he just smiled at her and gently placed his hand on her head.

“It’s better if you rest for now. The nurse said you shouldn’t move too much, especially since what happened to you is very traumatic,” Mr. Natividad answered, but Elaine couldn’t rest until she was sure Louis was okay. This was the reason she was still alive, and she wanted to thank him.

“But,Dad, I want to see him. Is he alright? Tell me!” Elaine asked in a panic, trying to get out of bed slowly, but her father stopped her.

“Rest for now, Elaine. Louis is fine. He’ll be mad if you force yourself to see him,” her father said.

Kaizer approached her to calm her down. “Shhh, Elaine. Bad weeds take a long time to die, so just chill,” Kaizer assured her, smiling at her. But they were shocked when she suddenly slapped him.

“Louis is still human!” Elaine shouted. She quickly realized what she had done and lowered her head to apologize to Kaizer.

“Sorry, I was just so worried about Louis. H-He got hurt because of me,” Elaine stammered and started to cry. Kaizer immediately embraced her to calm her down. It was clear that Elaine was traumatized by what had happened, and he wasn’t there to defend her.

It wasn’t long before Elaine fell asleep in Kaizer’s arms. He gently lowered her back into bed to speak with Mr. Natividad.

“It looks like this has traumatized Elaine. Has something like this happened to her before?” Kaizer asked Elaine’s father to confirm if the information he had gathered about Elaine’s past was accurate. He knew that Elaine and Mr. Natividad had been seeing a psychiatrist to help treat her condition.

Kaizer was very interested in Elaine, so he had the investigation done. That was when he learned that Louis had also been taking similar steps. Before any information reached Louis, Kaizer scared the investigator. The truth was, he should have had his cousin Lucas, who was a private detective, handle the investigation, but Lucas was on a mission, so he had to find someone else.

“What else can I hide from you, hijo? You’re the one I trust most when it comes to my daughter.” Mr. Natividad slowly turned the door handle, signaling to Kaizer that they should talk outside about this matter because Elaine might overhear.

Kaizer took out ten pesos and dropped them into the vending machine to buy coffee for Mr. Natividad. They sat on the cold metal bench in front of Elaine’s room.

“Honestly, I didn’t want my daughter to marry Louis Montemayor because of his life situation,” Mr. Natividad began as he sipped his coffee. They could see people passing by, each in their world. Some were listening to music through earphones, while others were holding flowers and fruits to give to the people they were visiting.

The older man took out a cigarette and lit it up, his paper cup sitting between him and Kaizer.

“But I couldn’t do anything about it except trust the Montemayors because that’s what my wife, Serena, asked of me,” he continued. Kaizer listened intently because he was interested in the life of the young lady and her family before he met her.

“She took Elaine when she was only seven to show her to her brother. She said she was ready to abandon their father to stop the illegal activities he was doing. But all that came back to me was my daughter in bloodstained clothes. And she no longer speaks. My cheerful daughter who was always smiling, has become silent and unresponsive. So when we searched for Serena, we found her lifeless. We also confirmed that the blood on my daughter’s clothes was her mother’s, so I didn’t hesitate to take her to the hospital to be treated. The doctor told us to take her to a psychiatrist because Elaine had been deeply traumatized,” Mr. Natividad detailed, having already smoked two cigarettes. This was the only thing that calmed him whenever he remembered what happened to his wife and daughter.

“Why didn’t you ask for help from Uncle Izaak? He surely could have helped you catch your brother-in-law and pay for Elaine’s bills,” Kaizer asked. If Mr. Natividad knew about the deal between Izaak and his wife, why didn’t he ask for help?

“Because I wanted to keep my daughter away from the mafia life!” Mr. Natividad shouted, immediately making Kaizer stop. The older man’s anger was intimidating.

“Don’t you understand that as long as my daughter is close to the Montemayors, this situation will never leave her? That’s why I ignored my wife’s wishes and kept Elaine away, but Izaak still found her," Mr. Natividad said seriously, drinking his now cold coffee.

The information Mr. Natividad shared wasn’t enough, but one thing was clear: Louis should never know what he had said because it would change how he viewed Elaine.

“If you don’t need to know anything else, let’s go to my daughter’s room,” Mr. Natividad said. Kaizer stopped him when he saw his cousins waving at him.

What were they doing here? They were supposed to be studying abroad, but why were they suddenly in the Philippines? What was even more shocking was that they hadn’t even told him they were coming home.

“Go ahead, Uncle. I don’t have anything else to ask,” Kaizer said, which Mr. Natividad acknowledged with a nod. Kaizer then approached Alexa and Juliana who were both wearing red dresses as if they were going to a party.

“And what do you think you’re wearing? If you don’t change into something proper now at the nearest restroom, I’ll have both of you sent home to Aunt Serendipity!” Kaizer threatened, and the two immediately shot him a disapproving look.

They had prepared so much for the occasion. They had even made the venue look beautiful to surprise Elaine, but this was ruined when they received a call that the surprise for her would take place at Uncle Alexander’s hospital because something had happened to Louis.

“Oh my god, this is so expensive and very fitting for me. You’re such a spoiler, Kaizer!” Alexa said while still glaring at him.

“Oh well, you’re dead if Aunt Serendipity finds out you’re dressed like that,” Kaizer teased, imitating Alexa’s tone, making her pout.

“Tch! Let’s go, Juliana. Let’s change our clothes before Kaizer tells Mom,” Alexa said, glaring at Kaizer, but Kaizer only laughed.

“Fine, this is just so embarrassing. See you later, Kaizer!” Alexa said as they went to change.

Kaizer had forgotten to ask why they were in the Philippines. It seemed the two had snuck away again, just like the last time he saw them at a party where one of his flings had invited him. He had even called Aunt Serendipity to ask when Alexa and Juliana came back, but she didn’t know they were in the Philippines and skipping classes to go to a party.

Since then, Aunt Serendipity has made it a rule to tighten security at every airport to prevent them from running away and skipping school.

A few minutes later, the two emerged from the nearest restroom, now wearing crop tops and cargo pants.

“You took forever to change,” Kaizer complained. He had been waiting for them.

“Who told you to wait for us?” Juliana asked sarcastically, making Alexa laugh and high-five her.

Kaizer immediately took out his phone and pretended to call their aunt when they stopped him. “Just kidding, we were just teasing you,” the two said sweetly.

He quickly hid his phone. “Why are you two here?” They started walking toward Louis’ room.

“We didn’t escape, duh? Louis just asked us to bring the most expensive dog and cat in the world,” Juliana said while calling the people they hired to set up the balloons. Surprise! Louis hadn’t told them they were doing this. Still, they wanted the gift-giving to be romantic for the girl who had captured their cousin’s heart.

“Where’s Louis’ room?” Alexa complained. Her feet were starting to hurt from wearing heels. Juliana had told her not to wear them, but she insisted, and now she was struggling.

“And why did Louis ask you to buy the most expensive dog and cat? Who is he giving them to?” Kaizer asked. He already knew the answer, but he wanted to be sure who the surprise was for.

“We’re going to his room because we don’t know. He didn’t even say it on the phone,” Juliana replied. That was their biggest problem, so they hadn’t been able to put names on the cake and balloons.

“Tss, come here, Alexa. I’ll carry you,” Kaizer said when he saw his cousin struggling to walk. She immediately climbed onto his back since she couldn’t walk anymore.

“Next time, bring spare shoes.”

Alexa only  nodded.

When they arrived at Louis’ room, Kaizer immediately opened the door. They saw Louis sleeping soundly while three of his men were keeping watch.

“Shit, you’re here already, I thought the boss’ operation wouldn’t be successful, but he’s fine. You know what they say, bad weeds take a long time to die,” Volstrige said, approaching Kaizer. When he saw Alexa, he immediately introduced himself.

“Wow, you’ve got a new fling, and you brought her to Louis.. Smooth!” he shouted at him. Kaizer simply slapped him and motioned for Brennon and Alex to leave the chairs. He then put Alexa down and started speaking.

“She’s my cousin, idiot. This is my sister Juliana. Try flirting with her and you’ll eat dirt,” Kaizer said. Juliana slowly walked over to Alexa who was now wearing heels again.

They knew how their family’s organization worked, and Louis wasn’t the only one involved in the Montemayor mafia. Many of their cousins were also in it.

So every time they would attend a family reunion, it would be one of the coolest events they went to. It was often held on a yacht, depending on which family was hosting that year. The Montemayors valued only one thing above all else—dignity—because they grew up with responsibilities tied to each new birth. Also, once you were born with the Montemayor surname, you’d receive expensive gifts starting from when you were a baby. And your godparents would be billionaires from various fields.

“I’m ready to eat dirt just to be with your cousin,” Volstrige joked. He slowly walked up to Alexa to introduce himself, but Kaizer quickly stepped in front of him.

“Fuck you, womanizer!” Kaizer shouted.

Volstrige laughed because Kaizer seemed serious now.

“Fine, this is Brennon. He has no vices or women, maybe you two will like him so this idiot can have someone else to focus on,” Volstrige said while pushing Kaizer toward Alexa and Juliana.

“Come on, I don’t want to shorten my life. Look at Kaizer, he looks ready to pull out a gun,” Brennon joked. Juliana slowly approached the young man and introduced herself, which surprised everyone, especially Kaizer.

"Hello, I’m Alexa, but you can call me baby for short," she said, winking at Brennon. It seemed she caught his attention.

"Hey, Alexa. What are you doing? You’re embarrassing me!" Juliana whispered because Alexa was staring at Brennon’s face, which made them all laugh.

"I can’t do anything about that, Kaizer. Looks like your cousin is struck by Cupid," Volstrige said, laughing hysterically. Brennon scratched his head because of what Alexa did.

“That’s fine, Brennon is a nice man compared to you. But, Alexa, have some decency. You’re a Montemayor for Pete’s sake,” Kaizer said and pulled his cousin away from Brennon.

"I’m just introducing myself. He’s my type, and besides, he looks decent," Alexa said while giggling at Brennon. The young man immediately walked up to her and extended his hand.

“I’m Brennon, but you can call me by any name you’re comfortable with,” he said. Kaizer glared at him for making a move on his cousin.

"Hey, weirdo, I just said you’re a nicer person than Volstrige, not that I’m allowing Alexa to get to know you," Kaizer muttered. Alex cleared his throat, which stopped everyone.

“Here comes the bitter one.” Volstrige shrugged. They all turned their attention to Alex who seemed impatient.

“I just need to answer the phone,” Alex said. They all exchanged looks when he went out.

“Is that a joke, bro? No one’s calling his phone,” Volstrige said, making everyone laugh. Kaizer immediately approached Volstrige to ask what had happened at the resort.

“Brother, the staff is already here. Where’s Louis’ surprise girl?” Juliana asked. Volstrige gave her a look because of what she said.

“Are you talking about Ma’am Elaine or his ex, the actress?” the young man asked because even he had no idea who Louis was planning to surprise.

“Louis didn’t mention anything. Why don’t we just go check on them and surprise them? Volstrige, why don’t you ask him when he wakes up? Then call us so we can stop the surprise if we’re wrong,” Juliana said. Kaizer scratched his head at what his sister had just thought. This was going to be a big mess if they made the wrong guess about who Louis wanted to surprise.

“Son of a bitch. I’m worried about you guys, but fine. Mariella’s room is on the ground floor. As far as I know, she’s still there because she’s still recovering. If you’re looking for Elaine’s room, ask Kaizer,” Volstrige said. Juliana slowly nodded and thanked him. She then pulled Alexa who was still talking to Brennon.

“What the hell. You’re so annoying. Can’t you see we’re talking?” Alexa complained when Juliana suddenly pulled her away from her conversation with Brennon.

But it was fine because they had exchanged social media accounts. Thankfully, Kaizer’s attention was focused on Volstrige, allowing her to talk to Brennon

The first place they went to was Mariella’s room on the ground floor where they prepared the surprise. A lot of people passed by and admired the surprise they were setting up.

They planned to just knock on the door, have her come out, and reveal the surprise because they were running out of time. They still had another place to go in case this wasn’t the woman Louis wanted to surprise.

When they finished, they immediately took the Ashera cat and Samoyed puppy they had bought to give to Mariella, but they weren’t sure yet, so they hid them behind.

They knocked on her door, and the young woman in a wheelchair appeared, assisted by a nurse. She was wearing shades, possibly because of the paparazzis around.

She was immediately shocked when she saw the surprise they had prepared. “Who sent this?” Mariella asked as they handed her various brand-name clothes and the cake.

“Sir Louis did,” Juliana answered formally, but they were stunned when she threw the cake.

“Don’t ever say his fucking name to me. Leave now!” she screamed. The paparazzi relentlessly snapped photos.

“Miss Mariella, have you and Sir Louis reconciled?”

“Do you have someone else now, Miss Mariella? Why did you throw the cake Sir Louis prepared for you?”

“Is there someone else you like, Miss Mariella?”

They bombarded her with questions, but she ignored every one of them.

Juliana and Alexa scratched their heads as the paparazzi asked them questions about the surprise. Once this news spread on television, they would be in trouble.

It seemed Louis wasn’t planning to surprise Mariella, but what was shocking was her reaction—why was she so angry at Louis? Did he do something to her?

They thought their cousin was planning to get back together with his ex since they had heard her name from Louis before.

Now, they needed to figure out how to clean up the mess they had created because if not, Aunt Hacel was going to be furious with them.

“When I count to three, we run,” Juliana said, which made the staff nod. “One, two, run!” she shouted. They ran out of the hospital, still being chased by the paparazzis.

They just hoped they could escape.