003

CHAPTER THREE

Kieran

~~~~~

Vicente. That should be him, there wasn't a reason to ask.

I stood up from the chair and walked toward the confessional’s curtain. My hands were still a little shaky, even though I tried to steady them on the wooden frame.

His voice.

I knew that voice.

It was impossible, but it sounded exactly how his father sounded when he gave commands.

I stepped out from the booth, ignoring the few people that lingered outside of the church.

“Father?” one of the altar boys called softly. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” I said, forcing a small smile. “You can close up the place. I’ll lock up the door myself.”

He nodded and walked away.

I turned to the side window, looking out through the dim glass. The streetlights were already on, stretching long shadows across the pavement. I searched every corner, every person that walked by.

Nothing.

He was gone.

I pushed open the side door and stepped out, scanning the road again. For a second, I thought I saw a car parked under a broken streetlight, but it drove off before I could even blink twice.

The name I hadn’t said in three years pressed at my tongue like a curse.

“Vicente.”

I hadn’t seen him, but his voice, the way he said 'Father' it couldn’t be anyone else. His voice was steady and deeper now. That same calmness his father once had before everything fell apart.

I rubbed my hands against my robe. They felt cold.

I didn’t expect to hear that name again. Not after what happened three years ago. Not after that night I made the call that ruined everything.

I walked back into the church, the silence louder now. I sat at one of the front pews and pressed my hand to my face.

“Why now?” I muttered. “Why after all these years?”

I didn’t sleep well that night.

I had been thinking about him, even when I was showering, I thought about every word he said until it started sounding like a disease I've contracted.

By morning, I was back in the church earlier than usual. The altar boy lit the candles for the early morning mass, I tried to focus on the prayers, but my mind was elsewhere.

Was it really him?

Or was I losing it?

The Mass began. People filled the benches quietly, bowing to the alter.

My eyes traced the church search for someone and when my eyes finally met him. I gasped in shock, I didn't expect him to change that much but words couldn't express how he looked now.

He was sitting at the last row, beside the pillar. His head was facing down, his fingers resting on his knee like he had all the time in the world.

Vicente Russo.

My throat went dry. The same cold eyes was now sharper now. His chubby cheeks I do pinched before were now plain, his eyes were now scary.

He really had grown into a big man, I smiled at myself as I realised, Vicente wasn't the little boy he used to be before. Now, he looked older, tougher, scary and dangerous in the kind of way that didn’t need to be said out loud.

Our eyes met for a second, I held his gaze but he just remained neutral, he didn't move, didn't smile nor blink at me.

I almost lost my place in the reading I was taking. The words slipped out of my mouth like they didn’t belong to me anymore. I had to look away before I said something wrong.

The rest of the Mass went by slowly. I could barely remember the verses I preached or the prayers I had led. I just knew his eyes were glued on me through the entire process.

When it finally ended, I turned to the side door. He was still sitting there like he was waiting for the last person to leave.

I waited too.

By the time I looked again, he was gone.

I rushed down the aisle, ignoring the few people who stayed back to pray. I stepped outside, scanning the street again, the same way I did last night.

It was the same results, the street was empty, there was no sign of him.

He disappeared like smoke.

I stood there for a while, my chest tight. I didn't know what to do. I walked back to the church pretending nothing happened.

“Father are you going to leave to your house now or wait.” One of my boy asked.

“I'll be leaving by the evening."

~~~~~

Night came faster than I expected. The church was quiet again. I gathered the last few items from the altar and ordered the alter workers to lock up before stepping outside.

I got into my car and started the engine, watching the church lights fade in the mirror as I drove off.

The road was mostly empty, the streetlights flashed past one by one, and for a while, it was just me or Maybe not-

I noticed headlights flashed behind me.

At first, I didn’t think much of it. Maybe it was another driver heading in the same direction. But every time I turned, the car turned too. Every time I slowed down, he do, every time I stopped, they matched it.

What was wrong with them? Are they messing with me?

I ignored them, my hands tightened around the wheel. I took the next left, a shortcut that barely anyone used at night. The car followed.

That was when my heartbeat started to race.

I pulled to the side of the road and turned off my headlights, waiting for it to pass. The car slowed too, then stopped a few meters behind me.

I stepped out, gripping the edge of the door. “Is something wrong?” I called, trying to sound calm even though my voice was shaking a little.

There was no answer. The car door opened, and three men stepped out. I could barely see their faces under the dim streetlights, but I knew from the way they moved, they weren’t here to talk.

“Who are you?” I asked, taking a step back.

They didn't even reply, they just kept walking closer and that was when I registered it.

“Hey! What do you—”

Before I could finish, another one rushed up beside me and grabbed my arm. I struggled, but his grip was strong.

“Let go of me!” I shouted. My voice echoed down the empty road, but there was no one to hear it. "I said let me go." But they didn't listen. I tried using the moves I learnt from Russo estate to fight them but I realised after leaving the worldly affairs I had thrown that too.

I tried to twist free, but the second man covered my mouth with a cloth before I could even shout again.

I tried not to breathe, but it was too late. My body grew weak, my knees started to give way.

The last thing I saw before everything went dark was one of them picking up my car keys and the reflection of their car lights on the road.