MISSING: THE LAST FOSTER

Chapter 17

"I didn't receive anything," Raixen said and all of them looked at him.

"How about you, Sheki?" Lizle asked Shekinah who's seriously thinking about these things. She received a package that is named from her father.

Was that a prank as well?

"What about your package Sheki? What was that all about? Was that really came from Mr. President? Who sent that letter to you?" Hedeliza continuously asked while Shekinah's having the same question in mind.

"She haven't open the letter yet." Raixen got to answer Hedeliza's question before Shekinah.

"I have no idea what is in the letter or who sent the letter and I also have no idea if dad's really the one who wrote it," she answered truthfully.

"Who do you think left that note in your car Hiede? What do you think is that thing that caught in the camera, babe? Who do you think sent that letter to you, Sheki? Aah! I have so many questions in mind. I have to look at it, Sheki, we can look at it," Lizle said while holding her head.

They still attended their classes even if their mind wasn't really in their lessons. Lizle's mind still busy and bothered about that girl that passes by but vanished. It was caught by the camera and if what she saw is just a rapt of thinking then what is that image in the video? That was clearly a woman and if so? Where does that woman go?

Hedeliza been watching their professor busy talking while her mind is thinking what was that note that said 'take care' really means. Why would some random strange person or people would leave a note in her car. And it was the first time happened in her entire life.

Shekinah's mind's seems flying to that black box, thinking about the letter and that tiny thing called memory card.

She still hasn't decided if she is going to read that today, maybe after weekend. It's Wednesday so she still have days to prepare her mind for their vacation, she don't want to go on a vacation without putting her mind right with her.

"Are you sure you'll be okay here, babe?" Raixen asked still not convinced with her yeses earlier. He'd been asking her all their way from school until they reach her home.

She smiled at him — for him to calm down. Raixen's became more even worried for her after what Lizle and Hedeliza encountered. They boys didn't encounter anything, it's just the girls.

"Of course, it's my house babe, you have nothing to be worried about me here. You have to go now, Lucas is going to yell at you for being late, again," she said smiling at her boyfriend. Raixen still not convinced yet has to drive back to their home to accompany her brother.

He don't want to lead the decision of Shekinah in terms of the things that are belongs to her family. He may be really worried about the letter that has been sent to his girlfriend but he couldn't just say to her everything he has in her head. He knew Shekinah, he knows how careful she is, he knows how observant she is, he knows how brave she is.

So, if she's having a doubt or second thought of reading that letter, she maybe felt something about it and he is not in the right place to interfer. His job is to make her feel loved and safe.

Raixen's eyes narrowed when he saw his mom beside in her car and seems like waiting for him for she just moved and stand straight from leaning on her car when she saw his car coming.

"Is she waiting for me?"! He asked himself while parking his car in his space. He didn't waste a second and immediately comes out.

His mom is sending him a death glare while approaching him. "Hey mom, I thought you left," he said and kissed his mom's cheek.

"I was supposed to be in my flight now, but my youngest son's babysitter isn't home yet," his mom sarcastically said and looking at him straight to his eyes. He chuckled.

"I'm sorry, there's just something came up that we needed to attend to," he replied in his grimaced face. He almost chuckled when his mom let out a little laugh before going inside to her own car and waive her hand in the window in her way of saying good-bye.

He also waived his hand and mouthed 'take care'. His mom can see him, she's probably looking at the side mirror. Raixen exhales sharply and put his hands in his pocket before entering their house.

He walk straight to the kitchen to check if there's some food and his eyes widened when he just literally saw the "lechon" in the dining table.

"What the f*ck?!" He swears and almost step back. "Why the hell mom would have a very big whole lechon in here when she just left?" Raixen roam his eyes around and walked to the kitchen to ask why the heck they have a lechon?

"Lucas requested for that sir, he said, he won't let Ms. Monica go without a lechon," their cook said with a smile like it was funny.

"That big?" He said in disbelief. Is his mom crazy? Why would she feed this spoiled brat Lucas?

"Oh! Kuya, you're home!"

Raixen turns his back when he heard the hyper voice of Lucas, his brother, only to see him with a huge cut of the lechon's skin. What the heck?

"Why did you asked for that? That's so big, Lucas," He asked his brother in firm tone.

"I just asked mom a few but she said that Ate Lizle, Ate Hiede, Kuya Felix and Ate Shekinah are coming that is why she bought that big yummy pig. Look, do you want some, kuya?" Lucas said very happy and offered him his food. Raixen severely shakes his head and said no.

"Don't you have activity class? Why are you not dressed up yet?" He asked when he noticed that Lucas is still wearing his pajama even if it's 5 pm. He thought he is going to accompany him in his karate class that is 5 pm to 8 pm.

Raixen take a steps upstairs to change his clothes. When he went back down, his eyes narrowed the moment he spotted his brother in the dining table eating the lechon without freaking rice.

"Hey! I told you to change your clothes, are you going to your class in just your pajama?" He asked and pulled himself a chair and get some food.

Lucas was about to speak and answer his question when a loud noise enters their home. His eyes widened because he knew that voices. That's his crazy friends he was with few hours ago. What the hell are these people doing here?

"I know I'm going to have a great dinner tonight," Felix said without minding the confused Raixen why they just invaded here without notice.

"Hi, babe," Shekinah greeted her dumbfounded boyfriend and he just looked at her with his brows raised. "Tita Monica called us, an hour after you dropped me home," Shekinah explains.

"And because we knew you won't like it when Shekinah — the racer — drive her car alone on the way here, I picked her up," Hedeliza remarks and Raixen hissed but Hiede just rolled her eyes unto him.

"Are you really going to just eat?" Raixen asked Lizle and Felix sitting each other incredulously.

"You know, it's been a while since I tasted this kind of food. Thank you so much, brother Lucas," Felix said and bump a fist with Lucas making the girls laugh a little.

"This is my favorite, Kuya Felix. What is your favorite?" Lucas innocently asked Felix.

"Everything is his favorite, Lucas. Don't ask him, he is some kind of a dead without food," Lizle took the chance to answer very quick.

By judging the smile and laugh of her friends right now, Shekinah would say everything is to divert everyone's mind from unnecessary stress they are getting from unimportant people that are pulling some prank like a coward bull.

Those unknown people thought they were strong and scary because they are hiding in the terms "stranger and anonymous" but the truth is, they can't show themselves because they know that's the end of them. They can't go fight against the power of her friends, they are way too powerful that people would bring them down by simply scaring them with nonsense prank.

Indeed what Lizle and Felix encountered scared them as well as Hedeliza, that scared the hell out of them but just that end that there, they won't go let get drowned by the feelings of fear.

But also, that doesn't mean they are forgetting everything and just roam around the city complacent with everything and the environment. That was also their wake up call to stay and be more attentive and because of that, Felix made a pack times 10 to his previous pack that Lizle is not allowed to really drive a car, specially her driving skill is incomparable — slowly yet scary.

"Ate Shekinah when will be visiting Jasmien?"

Shekinah's attention was caught by Lucas' question. She smiled at him when she saw how excited his eyes are. They always bring Lucas with them once a week to visit her family. Well, she personally is visiting them every other day.

"We will not be available this weekend and because you have activity classes during weekdays, we can visit Jasmien next weekend," she said smiling.

She still can't take away the feelings of missing her family everytime she hears their name. The emptiness she has in her heart is getting filled by the people around her and by her home. She didn't change the arrangement her mom made in their home. She still want to feel the ambiance of preference of the first Lady, Carmen Foster, herself.

"Sure!" Lucas replied cooly. They all looked at the kid with a wide smile.

When the house helper came with a huge bowl in her hand and to surprise them with a macaroni salad, everyone cheered even Raixen.

"What the heck? Mom made this?" Raixen asked to their helper and the woman smily nodded her head in amusement. She looks amused with his friends reaction.

"Lucas, I think you should let your mom leave you at home everytime she have an out of the town meeting so we can have plenty of foods," Felix said and give Lucas a high five and the kid give it back.

"Mom said, I am not allowed to come with her anymore because there's a bad guy," Lucas said quietly and that caught all their attentions.

Hedeliza's spoon froze in the air, Lizle stopped chewing her full of meat mouth, Felix slowly put the glass of water down, Raixen's eyes abruptly turn serious and Shekinah's eyes narrowed seriously with her spoon frozen in the air.

"What did you just said, Lucas?" Lizle seriously asked. Lucas is not looking at them instead looking at his food and continue eating.

That's a good thing of being a child. You can't sense the problem or tenses of the environment. They don't have a problem. Their tantrums can easily be gone with just giving them what they want and they want things that are easy to have and with no complications.

"Mom said there's a bad guys outside, that's why she called my last activity class off." The kid answered and that caught Raixen.

He was asking Lucas several times why and just thought maybe he don't like going to his class. Damn!

"Why did your mom told you that there's a bad guy?" Hedeliza asked.

Shekinah and Raixen couldn't pull a word to speak, they're both seriously listening their brother answering their friends question.

"Mom fetched me in my badminton class and I saw a black teddy bear in mom's car. Mom threw it in the bin and rushed me to enter the car and she said she will just buy me a toy because that toy was came from a bad guy." Lucas answered

Raixen wanted to slam the table but because he is facing with a kid, Shekinah held his hand and squeeze in gently. Shekinah can feel the anger in Raixen. Felix clenched his fist and Lizle breathe sharply while Hedeliza lean her back in and gritted her teeth.

They couldn't imagine how scared their tita Monica felt for Lucas that time.

Shekinah can imagine, because her fear when the dead body of Jasmien transfered from the van to the stretcher drained her strength. She even wasn't able to say a single word.

"Rex, call your mom, now. She must be attending in very important meeting that is why she still goes outside," Lizle said.

"I'll do it," Hedeliza volunteered and get off from her chair to talk Raixen's mom in the phone.

"Your mom said that?" Shekinah sweetly asked Lucas and the kid innocently nodded.

"So instead of doing their prank on me, they did it to my family," Raixen said in hard tone.

Silence filled the whole dining and they continued eating seriously and when Lucas' done, he immediately said goodbye to them and went upstairs for his online game.

Hedeliza went back to the table when Lucas's gone.

"Tita said she had it investigated and they also found out that the cctv camera in that area isn't working," Hedeliza said.

Raixen massaged his temple in frustration. Indeed a long day and all of them encountered strange things.

"Stick to the first plan, guys. Whoever is doing such nonsense prank, don't let them know that they scared us, that's their f*cking ace, they're just having a good time and they chooses the wrong family to messed up with," Felix said in irritation.

"Do you think it has something to do with my parent's death?"