THE CURSE OF THE BETA

IT was raining hard that night. Ngunit hindi nakaligtas sa aking paningin ang isang matangkad na lalakeng may mahaba at kulay gintong buhok na tumatakbo palabas ng Adamson Premier Hotel. Kasunod nito ang apat na kahina- hinalang mga nilalang na pawang mga naka-itim na kasuotan. "The hell!" I cursed to myself as my jaw clenched tight. Agad akong nag-U-turn upang sundan ang mga ito. The golden-haired guy who seemed freaking out suddenly ran across the street. I immidiately hit the car's break that created a loud scretching sound as I stopped right infront him. Lumarawan ang pagkagulat sa mukha ng lalake dahil sa biglang pagsulpot ng isang mamahaling kotse sa harapan nito. Samantala, mabilis naman akong kumilos at binuksan ang pinto ng passenger seat ng aking LaFerrari Ferrari. "Get in," I ordered him in a deep unlady like voice. Hindi na dapat pang tanungin kung bakit hindi feminine ang aking boses. It was my deceased mother's fault for bringing up a woman with a man's voice in this world. I sniggered and settled my eyes into the dude in front of my car. I noticed how drenched his clothes were while the rain was still pouring down on him. Some strands of his golden hair covered half of his face but he immidiately combed them with his long sleek fingers. Hesitation appeared from his blue-green eyes as he took steps backwards. I rolled my eyes at him and snickered. Mabilis kong binuksan ang pinto ng driver seat at hinagilap ang aking rattan sticks sabay labas ng sasakyan. I walked towards the man and I saw him gulped in fear. Muli akong napalatak sabay iling. "Better if you just stand back, Prince Killah," I ordered the prince once again and walked passed him. The pouring rain made me soaking wet but thankfully I was wearing my leather vest and black cardigan. Kaya naman hindi masyadong bumakat ang aking strapless bra sa loob ng aking puting T-shirt. Ngunit hindi naman kalakihan ang aking dibdib, so no f*****g big deal, really. Kinalimutan ko muna ang aking flat na dibdib at hinarap ang papalapit na apat na mababahong mga nilalang na agad huminto nang mapansin ako. My eyes squinted. Rogues. Their unpleasant smell just confirmed their identity. "Huwag ka nang mangialam dito bata. Ibigay mo na lang sa amin ang prinsepe nang wala ng gulo," kausap sa akin ng isa sa mga ito na may ka-itiman ang balat. Nadoble ang paniningkit ng aking mga mata. I heard Haede growled from the back of my mind cause my silent wolf didn't like the idea of being threatened. "N-No, dude. Don't ever think about it. Don't give me to those mutts!" nanginginig ang boses na paki-usap ng kamahalan na nasa aking likuran. I sighed and clicked my tongue. Bakit ko naman hahayaang tangayin ito ng mga mababahong rebeldeng asong lobong iyon? Two hundred freaking million ang pinag-uusapan dito kaya kahit isang batalyon pa ang humarap sa aking mga rogues sa sandaling iyon, I'm won't let that big sum of money turned into ashes. "I'm sorry filthy wolves," I tilted my head sideward then smirked. "But the prince is mine!" Sapat na ang deklarasyon kong iyon upang ipaalam na wala sa magandang plano ko na ipa-ubaya ang wolf prince sa mga ito. Sa gitna ng walang katao-taong kalsada at malakas na ulan ay sabay sabay na umangil ang apat na mga rogues. I made a tsk sound. Galit agad, ganern! "Get inside the f*****g car now, highness." Nilingon ko ang namutla sa takot na dugong bughaw. His blue-green terrified eyes settled into mine. "And y...you?" Napataas-kilay ako nang 'di sinasadyang mapatitig dito. Infairness, the wolf prince is f*****g gorgeous huh. I grinned mentally. Although, mukhang may problema ito sa isang bagay na tinatawag na 'tapang ng kalooban' pero pogi naman ito kaya sige, carryboom na. I licked the rainwaters that was dripping down on my lips then winked at him. "I'll just finished these mutts off first, highness." Bumaling ako sa aking unahan bago pa man sa kauna-unahang pagkakataon ay mag- drool dahil sa kaguwapuhang taglay ng prinsepe. And just like hearing a loud 'CLICK', the rebel wolves moved and attacked me. Narinig ko ang pagbukas at pagsara ng aking kotse. Hindi na kailangang alamin pa kung sino ang pumasok roon. It was the wolf prince. Much better anyway. Walang aabala sa akin. "Now bring it on, rouges!" pina-ikot ko sa aking mga kamay ang dalawang rattan sticks. I jumped into the air for a counter attack and they growled loudly in surprise not expecting that I will face all of them. "No shadow tricks for now, Haede," utos ko sa aking wolf. I swiftly spun around hitting all of the rebel wolf's necks with full force. Bone crashing and painful cries filled in the air afterwards while the heavy rain that was still making noises washed the streetfloor. Ang umaagos na tubig buhat sa ulan ay nahaluan ng kulay pula hanggang dirediretsong tumuloy iyon patungo sa kanal na nasa isang tabi. Hindi ko na kailangang gamitin pa ang kapangyarihan ni Haede para tapusin ang apat na mga rebeldeng aking kaharap dahil masyadong mahihina ang mga ito upang harapin ang Beta ng BloodyPaws. In less than one minute, bumulagta ang mga ito sa kalsada. Necks were broken and blood escaping out of their mouths. I landed into the ground gracefully and shook my head in disappointment. "Tapos na?" I kicked the sides of those stinking mutts lifeless body para alamin kung kaya pa ng mga itong lumaban. Pero wala na talaga. "Damn it. Bunch of weak rascals." Dismayadong tinalikuran ko ang mga ito saka humakbang patungo sa aking luxury car. Dumiretso ako nang pasok sa driver seat at nasorpresa nang tuwang batiin ako ng kamahalan na nasa passenger seat. "Thank you,man! You were sb f*****g great out there earlier!" bulalas nito na larawan ng paghanga. Awtomatikong bumaling ako dito sabay ngiti ng malawak ngunit agad ding nafreeze iyon nang may mag-sink in sa aking utak. Napanguso ako. Teka... Tinawag ba ako nitong... man? Ngunit hindi pa man ako nakarerecover sa pagkalito nang magulat na naman ako nang pabirong suntukin ng royal prince ang aking braso. A simple body contact but brought sparks, tingles and great electricity into every fiber of my nerves. Prince Killah and I both gasped in utter mortification. Parehong napa-awang ang aming mga bibig dahil sa isang bagay na tila bombang biglang sumabog sa aming harapan. "The hell, man! What's the meaning of this!" the wolf prince shouted right into my very horrified face. I groaned aloud not knowing what to say. Damn it! Is this fuking real! Kasisimula pa lang ng kuwento ng lola n'yo pero mukhang mai-stress agad. Alpha Alva's words suddenly came back into my mind as her small childlike voice echoed in my ears. 'Your time will come, Beta Yuri Hanna'. Napahilamos ako sa aking mukha sabay iling. Shit! Ito na ba ang tinutukoy ni Alpha Brat? Na darating din ang panahon ko? I didn't realize back then that she's talking about my grand vacation. Damn it. Sinong mag-aakala na ang pagkikita pala namin ng mate ko ang tinutukoy nito!