VISION OF MOTHER

CHAPTER FIVE

Aliyah came to the airport to bid me goodbye. The presence of my friend lightened a little of the burden I felt, despite the grim situation. Aliyah managed to coerce a smile from me while her suggestive jokes kept my brother at the edge and uncomfortable. A sigh of relief escaped from Samuel when the airport announced our departure. I hugged my best friend the last time. I was still keeping the secret to her. It's not yet time to tell her; I console myself silently. A solution to my curse is at hand. Telling my friend would only complicate things between us.

"Where are you going?" she asked me curiously. She glanced at my small backpack and said, "You're only bringing those? So, you're coming back right away?"

"Yes, Aliyah. Papa would be bringing me to a good eye doctor. When I return, I hope to see you."

"Really? I don't know that it could only take a few days to have an operation."

"Papa said this doctor is very...capable. I would probably see you two days or a week from now." My lie was stinging my ears. "Aliyah, please don't ask me another question... I'm not sure I can answer you. We will be back, I promise."

Aliyah takes off the beautiful necklace she always wears to school. It was a gift from her grandmother to her. "Here, I will loan it to you. Keep it always and wear it all the time. It's like being with you." My tears rolled down from my eyes. I hugged her tightly.

"Thank you, Aliyah. I'll treasure this. Until then, please be safe." I left her with a heavy heart. She was watching us as we entered the airport with a smile. I wave back at her madly while I keep on crying.

Samuel sighed and wiped my face with his hand. "Don't cry. You will see her again."

"Promise?"

"Yes, I promise." I nod. I am trusting him right away. When Samuel promised to me, he always kept it. No matter what. Like my Papa, he was a steady and dependable person in my life.

We boarded the plane to the Capital. It was my first time flying, but to my surprise, I was so comfortable flying. I dream of having a vacation with Papa and Samuel but not in these circumstances.  I was seated at the center between them. Sitting on the window side was my brother. I leaned over him to peer out at the clouds surrounding us.

"Samuel..." I whispered. "Do angels enjoy flying?"

"Yes, they do." He closed his eyes, trying to avoid my questions.

"Your friend ...does he have a name? The one with the red suit?"

"Yes, Sam,  but I'm not going to tell you. Please sit properly. You're cramping my space." I glanced at his whole body squeezed in the economy space. He was very tall and very handsome. His long legs were trying to fit inside the area of the airplane. He was wearing tight jeans and a leather thong sandal. He looks casual with the black hooded jacket he wore. "Why are you looking at me like that?" Samuel looked at me with those beautiful blue eyes fringed with long lashes. I always envy his eyes. It was beautiful and kind.

"You know what...I just realized that you two look alike. He has deep blue eyes, and yours is light blue, yet it looks perfectly the same, only with different coloring. I mean, you might be brothers. You have the same long, lithe body, and you are the same height. The way you move with lightness even with your height was so alike with him."

"We are not the same, Sam, remember that. If ever you met him again, I want you to run away from him. He is a dangerous creature."

"How did you befriend him, Samuel?" I asked curiously. "I mean, your human, and he is an angel..."

"Shut up, Sam. People might hear you. This subject was not the place to talk about him."

I pouted at him. He stared at me and sighed. "I don't mean to snap at you." He gently touched my face and smiled. "Why do you always tug my heart like this? My beautiful sister..."

Papa watched us for a moment, then he closed his eyes and slept. A gentle smile passed on his face. I looked back at Samuel, but he, too, pretended to sleep. "I know you're pretending..." I whispered and kissed him on the cheek.

A smile forms on his lips. I watched him for a while; then, I lay down my head on his shoulder to sleep.

***

I saw her walking the sidewalk, hugging a bag of groceries. Her long black straight hair swings gently as the soft breeze blows over her hair. Her beautiful face looked radiant when she raised her face to receive the warm sun. She was humming a song as she walked towards the chapel. Her white dress printed with pink flowers looked beautiful on her pregnant form. She crosses the sidewalk looking from left to right to check for any vehicle. While crossing the street, she stumbled. An apple falls from the paper bag. She gently bent down and reached for the apple that dropped from her paper bag when a black car suddenly appeared and was speeding so fast towards her. The grocery spilled over the road.

The car impacted her body, and blood started to ooze down her legs. She lay down helpless, but the driver took off without stopping. She was murmuring a prayer when out of nowhere, a man walked towards her. He looked down at her with those dark blue eyes. The same eyes that had looked into mine when he visited my home. The red suit guy.

"You going to live but not your child." He said gently to the pregnant woman. He gently touched her cheeks, caressing them lovingly.

"My child...I don't want her to die. You have to help me." Her tears fell from her soft brown eyes as she pleaded with him.

"Do you know what it means if I give your child life?"

"I'm willing to take the risk. Let my baby live. I begged you, please." She gripped the man's arm desperately. "I will serve you completely. You can have my life if you like; just let my child live."

"If I agree. Your life will not be the same. I will take your child when she is eight. You will never see her again. She will be mine completely." He said softly.

The woman cried but said in a trembling voice, "I understand...give her life."

The man took something from his chest. He screams when he pulls out part of him. The light he took from his heart glowed alive like a beating heart. He gently rests it on the pregnant woman's womb. The bleeding stopped flowing out from her body. She felt the kick of her child in her womb. She smiled and kissed the hand of the man.

"Thank you...thank you very much."

"Your promise... don't forget." Then, he left her on the road and disappeared from her vision.

***

"Hey...wake up. We are here now in the Capital." I opened my eyes and saw Samuel smiling face looking down at me. "Time to go. You sleep like a baby in my shoulder."

"Samuel, I think...I know now why the seeker was looking for me."

Samuel's eyes suddenly looked wary. "What do you mean, Sam?"

"I dream of mom. She showed me what happened during the time she had an accident."

My father fidgeted uneasily. "Whatever your dream is simply a dream—nothing about it. We must go now. We still need to catch up a train bound to the Capital."

"Papa...mama made a promise. She did not keep it, did she?" My father avoided my gaze.

"Your mother has an excellent reason. She did it to protect you from harm. Let's go. We are in a tight schedule."

I ignored him and looked straight into his eyes." So, my dream, the promise it's true?"

My father looked at me painfully. "We love you so much, Samantha. We never want to break the promise, but one day your mother had a vision about you. We made up our mind to keep you."

"What did she see?" I asked, my throat tightening.

"She won't tell me. Only that, she will make sure you will be protected all your life."

I looked at the two of them. Samuel seemed distant, and my father looked aloof. My brother grabs my small bag. He tugged my hand firmly and said coldly, "The train is leaving soon. Hurry up..."

They disembarked on the plane and rode a train bound for the inner central. I am now more determined to know what my mother has seen of the future. She was a powerful seer and priestess. She must have seen my lot. What bothered me was why she did not honor her promise. A priestess and seer were bound with their words, yet her mother defied the promise she made.