Saphyr and Rubi

CHAPTER 2: LOVELESS MARRIAGE

Marriage is the other side of the coin of reality. It makes people realize that the expectations they had before wedlock are just mere phantasm. Nothing will be perfect about it, but the endeavors that the couple face will be something that'll make their bond stronger. Mr. and Mrs. Ramirez, however, are not in that kind of setting.

It has been a month since the newlyweds lived under the same roof. Saphyr bought a bi-level condominium unit at Haruhay, a condominium complex in Makati City. It consists of two floors with a living room, a dining area, a kitchen and a bathroom in the ground floor and two bedrooms in the second. It is designed with a mix of modern and traditional touches in accordance to the man's tastes.

The husband woke up feeling spent. Last night, he came home late again to his wife who was already asleep on the leather sofa of their living room. He was out on one of those assignments where it took much of his firepower to subdue a syndicate. Ironically, Rubi—now his wife—wasn't trying to pry where he was and what he was doing.

"Oh, you're home," she said while rubbing the sleepiness off her eyes. "Have you eaten?"

"Yeah, I already did."

"Alright, I'm going to sleep now. Good night."

Saphyr watched his wife turn her back on him and head for the staircase which led to their separate bedrooms. He doesn't know if he should be relieved that his wife isn't bothering him with a ton of questions about his life and his job, or if he should be suspicious about how she's too complacent about their marriage. Either way, if she still doesn't know what he really is, then he doesn't need to dispose her.

Rubi could be the perfect wife for anyone with a normal job. She is the kind who will not get tired of taking care of her husband, even if he will not give a damn about her. She does all the things that a good wife does. She cooks him exquisite food, takes care of the laundry, cleans the house and goes straight home after work. She could be fine, only if he was conventional.

He sat upright on his bed and relived his job last night.

He fastened his dark gray tie and slightly pulled his black blazer in place with his gloved hands. He was at someplace for business and he shouldn't look dubious.

The metal door in front of him looked more like a gate to hell than a normal door. He knew that devils like him were behind it. When it was opened, he bore witness to a world of profligacy and malice.

The bouncer was a big bulk man with a mean look who searched him before he went inside. He was found clean since he didn't bring a single gun with him here. He was led through the sea of clubbers lost in dancing to the loud upbeat music that blasted on his ears. He noticed images of indecency from people shamelessly making out to inviting nude females boldly swaying their hips on top of raised platforms.

"Here." the man said and directed him to a wooden door leading to a private room. Inside, he was just about time to see a man cupping the full breasts of a semi-naked beautiful woman moaning on his lips.

Saphyr noticed four men standing behind the man and woman making out on the couch. He figured that these were his bodyguards.

"Boss Chap," the bouncer interrupted, "Your client is here."

Chap Gomez, a major arms dealer in Manila, didn't look happy to avert his eyes to a man wearing an ironed black suit. He didn't like the idea of being stopped in the middle of heated things. The woman, on the other hand, gave him one deep kiss before she whispered something to his ear that made him smirk.

"I'll catch you later," she seductively said to Chap.

Saphyr did not only catch the daring sway of the woman's breasts but he also caught how she naughtily winked at him. He just chose to ignore it.

"So, you must be Manny Seradura. Sit down," Chap started.

Saphyr sat on a leather maroon sofa in front of him. "And you're the notorious Chap Gomez."

Only a long wooden rectangular table separated them. After they shook hands, the arms dealer stared at him with a hard expression which he, of course, noticed.

"What? Do I look too suspicious?" Saphyr asked in a playful tone.

"I sense something in you, Mr. Seradura. You don't seem to be a bad guy."

He was quite taken aback by what he said that after he realized the meaning of the statement, he chuckled.

If only you knew why I'm here. He thought.

"What makes you think that way?" Saphyr asked.

"Because I think you're a very bad guy." Though he was just making fun of him, he was right. He is an abomination, and he is extremely lethal.

Two of Chap's men came with a large chest and placed it in between the dealer and whom they think is a buyer. He stood and lifted the hinged wooden lid and exposed a variety of illegal firearms.

"We have here the relatively famous Beretta M9, then the PO8 lugger pistol, M16A2, AK-47, M16A4, and Glock 18. What else do I have here?" Chap lazily presented.

Saphyr just watched how random and careless he rummaged through the pile of different guns in the chest like these were just his clothes. He also sensed that he wasn't really in the mood to do business with him.

"What do you specifically like? So we can get this done and over with," He really wasn't hiding his annoyance.

He was about to answer when Chap suddenly came up with a crazy idea.

"Oh, wait. I think this might fancy you," he gaily announced. "Why don't you try this MK.23 or the Socom Pistol. I'll give you a discount."

Saphyr could never be overjoyed about the offer, not when the aforementioned firearm is loaded and pointed at his head.

The arms dealer laughed. "What's with the grim expression, Mr. Seradura? Are you afraid that I might shoot you."

He chose to return a snigger to his maniacal smirk.

Chap's playful demeanor was then replaced with an annoyed look.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Saphyr raised his hand in defense while trying to stop himself from sniggering. "I'm amused at how much I think you'd hurt yourself with that."

Chap frowned and before he could ask what he meant, Saphyr had swiftly snatched the MK.23 from his hand and had turned the tables around. He was now the one pointing the gun at him. This alarmed Chap's men who took their guns out and pointed them at Saphyr.

"Easy, boys" Saphyr said in a wary tone and dropped the gun on the floor. He raised both of his hands in surrender.

"I was just kidding," he added and smirked.

Chap surely wouldn't buy it.

"You're quite surprising, Mr. Seradura," he said, "But I'm not fond of surprises."

Suddenly, one of Chap's big boys came behind Saphyr and smacked a gun against his nape which knocked him unconscious.

"What do you want us to do with him, boss?"

The arms dealer thought about it and said, "Beat the s**t outta him. I don't care."

Two big boys claimed each of the hitman's arms and dragged him out of the private room.

Kssssshhhhhhkkkkkk came the sound of Saphyr's Black Oxford Shoes against the narrow corridor as he was forcefully dragged along by two of Chap's boys, while their boss continued where he was interrupted.

The two bulk men who were as coarse as the corridor's pathway were successful in putting up with the weight of the unconscious hitman towards what they call the "torture room" albeit his heaviness. Abruptly, they came to a halt when they felt that something seemed to have gotten tangled with their cargo's feet along the way.

It turned out that Saphyr has awakened and had purposely stopped them on their tracks by gluing his foot at a protruding pipe. They didn't have the time to react when he completely loosened himself from their firm grip, soared above them, grabbed their heads and smashed them face-first against the damaged floor leaving them totally immobile with guaranteed fractured skulls.

He took the guns of Chap's big guys and armed himself for he was up for a battle.

The way back to his target couldn't be without obstacles. He walked nonchalantly even as Chap's minions came at bay.

"Hey! Who-" One of them started but couldn't finish since the hitman had already planted a bullet point-blank to his forehead, along with two others.

Saphyr kept his nonchalance even amidst the surge of the arms dealer's men; he single-handedly subdued them in a gunfight. It was a clear feat for him until he came against a gargantuan—Chap's man who's two feet taller than Saphyr.

He initiated the first blow on the gargantuan's gut but the latter caught his fist, and twisted his left hand. He felt his hand clench under the big dude's grip, so before he'll lose it, he soared to knee him in the chin. This made the gargantuan fall on his back on the coarse pathway and had freed him from his firm grip.

He proceeded to finish off his gigantic opponent, but to his surprise, this gave him a solid kick in the chest that made him stumble back. The gargantuan quickly recovered his footing, and had positioned in a fighting stance. The hitman, then, found himself cornered in a series of solid blows thrown. Most of these landed on his gut, since he crossed his arms to shield his face. Though he has a tough stomach, he couldn't bear that one big blow that struck him in the bottom of his chest that made him fall on his knees. Gradually, the gargantuan decided to squeeze him to death as the former had snaked his muscular arms around his back and knotted them on his chest.

Saphyr gritted his teeth due to the agonizing grip, but he refused to be overpowered. He raised his right foot and made the hard outsole of his Oxford shoe place a dizzying impact on the gargantuan's forehead. Taking advantage of his disorientation, the hitman wasted not a second to totally finish him off. He then grabbed the back of his head and elbowed him on the face, breaking the gargantuan's hawk nose. He followed this with a strong jump spin kick which made the eight-foot opponent forcibly land his entire weight on the pathway. What little consciousness left in him was eventually nowhere apparent when Saphyr twisted his neck.

Chap was too occupied in his private business with the beautiful woman who was above him that he was oblivious about how his supposed-to-be buyer killed his boys. He was too immersed in his impending c****x that he hadn't noticed how Saphyr came to cover the eyes of the woman with his left gloved hand and pointed a Beretta 92 at him.

Bang!

The woman wasn't given a chance to see how Chap's brain splattered on his pillow, but she clearly heard the gunshot and she heard how her heart raced due to the horror she felt at that point.

"Don't turn around," the hitman whispered to her ear to which she obeyed, as he slowly disappeared.

Saphyr is pulled from his thoughts when he heard knocks on his door.

"Saphyr?" His wife called. "Breakfast is ready."

He stared at his bedroom's door and thought about what if Rubi found out what he does when he's at work. He surely wouldn't even give her a minute to be upset or to even fear him. One bullet is all that it'll take when that happens.