When Kuya Tonyo woke up, I was sitting beside where he was. Laughing while the duwende and Paula were bickering with one another. And the duwende was losing every argument.
"Anthony?" Kuya Tonyo said, as he slowly sat up, clutching his head.
"You're awake? Your body's sore, isn't it?" I said looking st him.
Kuya Tonyo stretched his arms, like he was battered down, and trying to loosen his muscles.
"What happened?" He asked, confused.
"You don't remember? Or just trying to escape your crimes?" I said, firmly.
I looked at him, without blinking. Making sure he remembers everything. Even if he was possessed.
"I....I....I don't remember." He denied. But couldn't hold my gaze.
"You don't? Then let me refresh your memories." I stood up, towering over him.
The duwende was snickering, seeing Kuya Tonyo's expression.
"All six ghosts. Show yourselves in front of Kuya Tonyo." I activated the skill Let Them See.
And they all appeared in front of him. He scrambled backwards, till his back hit one of the mahogany trees. Where Sharon's body was buried in between them.
His hand touched the bone that was now showing, after days of continuous rain, this week.
He looked where his hand landed and finally screamed.
Kuya Tonyo was terrified. Of the truth. Of his crimes. The raw, emotions he own. Not the demon's.
He retracted his hand and stood up, staggering. He was trying to ran away. But he stumbled when his foot got caught by a tree rot and his landed beside Paula's skeleton this time.
He covered his ear, when the ghosts started whispering, hovering around him.
And me?
I'm enjoying it. Not because, I love seeing someone's misery, but because he was a criminal. And his victims are asking for justice.
"Look at us."
"Remember the night you assault me?"
"See the face you disfigured."
"I was begging you to stop when you cut off my head."
"Don't you forget what you did."
"You said, I was beautiful. That's why you can't stop yourself."
The six of them huddled over him. And kept refreshing his memories.
Kuya Tonyo was looking pale. His eyes were bloodshot and was murmuring to himself now.
They managed to break him. To the point of no return. But I need him stable. And pay for his crimes.
"Anthony, I can keep him stable for a while. Just enough for him to confess and surrender himself to the authorities." The duwende said, crossing its arms.
"And then what? Trap me into something? No way." I countered. Looking at it with such suspicion.
"No. No. I swear. It's free. Or not. Don't make Paula bully me. And I'll help. Free of charge." It said, tugging at my shoe.
I smirked. This guy doesn't know that, when Kuya Tonyo surrenders, and all six of them got their bones excavated and be transferred in a cemetery, where their relatives can find them. That means, they're also gonna be able to crossover.
They'll have their peace.
So, I accepted its offer, with no intention of spilling anything.
"Alright. If you do some tricks, I'll let Paula spin you again." I reached out my index finger and we had a deal.
"Deal." The duwende hopped forward, and used its magic, perhaps. Stabilizing Kuya Tonyo.
[TARGET TONYO'S EMOTIONAL STATE HAS BEEN TEMPORARILY STABILIZED.]
[DURATION: THREE HOURS]
Three hours. It might look long but it wasn't. It takes an hour to get back towards the residential area. And another hour to go to town.
There's only one hour to spare, for Kuya Tonyo to confess. And we didn't waste any time.
"Kuya Tonyo. You know what to do right? It's time for you to come clean with your crimes." I didn't bother helping him up.
The one minute skill already passed. But the ghosts were still following us.
We didn't stop from our walk, the duwende was sitting on my shoulder. Like I'm some personal donkey.
"Walk." I said, grabbing him, and putting him on the ground.
"What? It'll take forever for me to match your strides." It said skipping, to catch up.
"Then what can you offer? I'll let you sit on my shoulders everywhere. During your stay with me. Until you leave. Or never. I'm not letting you sit comfortably, for free." I stopped and looked down at it.
"Fine. Fine. I'll help you with whatever you're doing. You seem like you're on a mission or something." It was already climbing up to my jeans.
"Alright. Deal." I helped him up, and made him sit on my shoulder comfortably. Even handing him some biscuit i brought as emergency food in my pocket.
Kuya Tonyo wasn't speaking at all. He was like a programmed bot, following a signal.
When we reached the main path, I went to Lola Aurora's house. And Kuya Tonyo continued his walk to his destination.
Sharon and the rest followed Kuya Tonyo. From here on out, it's gonna be him, going to the police station to confess his crimes.
Lola Aurora looked at me, then behind me. Like she was searching for something. Or might be, waiting for something to appear.
"Lola. It's gonna be fine now. They're gonna be set free." I said as I melted into her warm embrace.
"Anthony, you child. You always make me worry. You set free six, but you got yourself another one." She was looking at my shoulder.
"Oh, she can see me?" The duwende exclaimed excitedly.
"My lola was blessed with an open third eye. But she can't exactly see something vividly. Just a figure or silhouette. She can't communicate too." I explained patiently.
Lola Aurora was listening to me talking to the figure on my shoulder.
"This one's white. Which means he's a good duwende. But also playful. They love pranks." Lola smiled and patter my other shoulder.
"So there's different kinds of them too?" I was surprised to hear it.
This news was new to me. And I'm gonna listen to more.