Note from the author:
I posted CHAPTER 15 weeks ago. I know chapter 16 was long overdue but I have been busy with Helium, which I find to be an amazing site for writers.
This chapter was also written weeks ago, but I had wanted to polish it to perfection before posting. I was unable to do this though, even now, due to time constraint (work is at its peak).
I hope you do forgive the typos. If you see one, send me a PM…lol… or you could mention this in your comment.
Welcome back to the adventures of the Kalinga Man. I hope that you’ll be able to connect this story to the previous chapters. Enjoy!
You may want to read Chapter 15 first.
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It was past 9 pm when Benny arrived home from school.
He stayed out late on purpose because he still was not prepared to talk to Julia.
The eerie silence that greeted his footfalls cloaked him with a sense of foreboding. The lights were all turned off, save for the one at the living room. The night was as silent as a catacomb, except for the chirping of some cicadas .
His heart did a double flip when a sudden thought struck him.
Where were Julia and Andre?
His footsteps quickened as he unlocked the door and walked into the shadows of the empty living room. Surely, Julia would still be awake?
His heart drummed steadily now in his chest. He could hardly breathe.
Scaling the stairs in three big strides, he flung the door to their bedroom.
Julia and Andre were curled up in a blissful slumber.
His breathing had stopped for a brief moment and was now laboring to go back to normal.
Weak at the knees, he groped for the chair and sat down.
For a second he had thought they had gone away – away from him.
His eyes were wet with relief. It was apparent they had been asleep for several hours now.
He stared at the two most important people in his life and realized that he would not be able to survive without them.
They were his life – his bloodline!
Julia shouting at him was a reflex reaction to the anxiety of what might have happened to their baby. He should have understood that. Of all people, he should have had an idea of how Julia would react.
Slowly, he approached the bed and stood there just watching them.
Julia looked lovelier than ever, her face was that of a nymph in repose.
Photo by Perfecto Insecto
He knelt and caressed Julia’s hair and touched his son’s tiny hands. He closed his eyes with gratitude and basked in his loved ones’ physical presence.
“Ben? “ Julia mumbled, blinking the cobwebs of sleepiness as she awakened to Ben’s touch.
“I love you , “ Benny whispered .
Julia was fully awake now. “Did anything happen?”
She sat up worriedly ant stopped Benny’s caressing hand in midair.
“No, nothing happened. I said I love you.”
He persisted, finding her mouth, searching for her tongue.
Julia struggled at first but, the gentle prodding of Benny’s tongue in the sensitive areas of her mouth made her respond.
They clung to each other like two thirsty travelers who had finally found the much desired oasis in the middle of the arid desert.
It had been days since they made love!
No words were necessary after that.
They made slow, passionate love exploring once again the territories that they had once claimed and knowing exactly what carnal, blissful acts could bring them both to a blinding and explosive orgasm .
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“Anecdotal evidence comes in two specific meanings. First, is when the evidence comes in the form of an anecdote or hearsay,” The professor was doing his rounds , as usual.
“What is the second meaning?” His eyes scanned the room and focused on Benny.
Benny stood up. “The second is evidence that may in itself be verifiable and true. But this stems from generalizing an insufficient amount of evidence. If I’m a heavy drinker and die of an airplane crash at the age of 60, this would not disprove the proposition that drinking alcohol causes irreversible liver cirrhosis and eventual death. This is a perfect example of the evidence being true but not warranting the conclusion. ”
The professor was nodding vigorously, “ Yes, yes,” he was happy with the answer. “ and in these two cases, both conclusions are unreliable and therefore are called anecdotal because they don’t follow from the evidence itself.”
Photo by imjoshdotcom
After their class, the professor instructed Benny to stay. “Now, what does he want this time,” Benny wondered.
“ Mr. Lomiwan, I understand you had close ties with the outside forces?”
“ I beg your pardon, Attorney?” he had not heard that term for months now. “outside forces” was a discreet term used in civilized society to refer to the NCA rebels.
“You have been a kumander…and…”the professor was talking in sotto voce now.
“I’m listening ,” Benny urged him not so gently.
“and I have heard from a reliable source that your ex-comrades have put up a prize for your head.”
Benny looked at the professor for some interminable minutes, sizing him up and allowing the ominous words to sink in.
Of course, the professor knew who he was. His picture had been splashed all over the headlines of newspapers more than a year ago.
Even his classmates in law school must have known about him. How could he assume that he was incognito?
He was wary of the professor , remembering how he meant to embarrass him during their first week in class.
“What’s your take in all these, Attorney?”
“I want you to be safe.”
“Did they pay you for this?”
“I’ll accept that rudeness for the shabby way I treated you before, but listen to me -”
“C’mon professor, don’t tell me you’re concerned now about my safety?” Benny interrupted him.
“Listen to me, “ the professor fixed him with an angry glare, ignoring his sarcastic comment
“Don’t take this as a joke. Be careful, carry something for your protection, ” and he left Benny without a backward glance.
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At home, Benny stared at the menacing glint of his colt 45 which has long been kept in the closet. The only gun which the government had left in his possession. “For your protection,” General Aman had said.
The gory violence he went through for several years in his life in the mountains however was certainly no longer welcomed. He would never go back to that way of life again. It had been a constant struggle to stay alive; always on the look-out , always on the move.
He have been forced out of circumstances to that path, and now that he has the freedom to choose between violence and peace – he would always choose the latter one. He would never succumb to using his gun – ever again.
Photo by eperales
He closed the box with a final vow and returned it to the closet. He sneaked a peek at Andre’s bedroom.
The baby was smiling in his sleep. He caressed Andre’s cheek and felt warm joy creeping through him.
Tiptoeing back to their bedroom , he enclosed the drowsy Julia in a warm, loving embrace and realized what a lucky man he was.
Outside the apartment, in the shadows of the trees, the lurking figure stood watching, as the light in the bedroom was finally turned off.
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