Mosa

  Chapter 23

  Titto’s Guilt

  Nina was looking down at Veron in his bed. Veron opened his eyes and panicked, screaming what was going on. Titto started laughing at him and smiling with Melady. Veron attempted to run toward Titto but Nina hit him with the back of the rifle.

  “Long time huh?” said Nina, smiling.

  “Pol… Polchinski! You bitch!” bellowed Veron.

  “Did you miss me? You have been looking for me ever since that night... when you slaughtered my whole family. Didn’t you Veron?” said Nina. Veron stuttered, filling with anger and fear, crying out for Valentine.

  “She’s gone, Veron. She is the one who sold you out.” Nina smiled coldly, looking down at him, pressing his head against the bed frame. Veron heard Melady giggle.

  “You you! I thought you are a mute!” squeaked Veron.

  “Oh I just didn’t want to talk to you, dictator.” Melady giggled.

  “Yeah, who would?” laughed Titto.

  Veron’s head was boiling and spinning with an uncontrollable rage. He almost forgot Nina was there and tried to get to them, but Nina pressed him back with her rifle. Titto grinned as if he received a prize from her kindergarten teacher. Nina looked at Veron, aiming it toward his face.

  “Even the world knows that all men are created equal. Now I tell you slave making bitches who think they are some gods from the ancient world. The bullet speaks truth and the world is a chessboard. Now good bye, Veron Komer, it was a pleasure,” said Nina.

  The bullet fired, Veron screamed and woke up from his dream instantly.

  He was in his room, it was only a nightmare. Veron was shaking. Melady got up too, alarmed, and was looking at Veron from the side of the bed as if he finally went nuts. Veron soaked with sweat, filled with rage and disgust. Tried to shake off the last image he had seen in a dream. Melady was now looking at him curiously, her big blue eyes blinking.

  “You… You are a mute right?” said Veron. Melady frowned and nodded her head.

  “She is a mute… She is a mute,” Veron murmured, laying back down and went back to sleep, snoring.

  Titto heard the scream from Veron’s chamber, but ignored it, sincerely hoped that he was in a real danger. Titto was informed from the officers that Veron brought Melady back from the cell. Dim light was looming inside the room. He was nervously looking at the test tube containing silver liquid. On the table, there were passports, the traveling documents, and a cup tinted with coffee. Rain poured gently outside, cool breeze sneaked into the wooden walls.

  Titto wore his jacket, shuddered a little, and grabbed the cup to drink the last drop, only to realize it was empty. He touched a cylinder containing cold and delicate silver fluid. It was given to him from the underground laboratory. Titto met with the leading inventor who created this drug. His name was Jeffery Danver; he was an old skinny man who had a high shallow cheekbone.

  Rain poured harder, growling thunder made disruptive noise. Titto didn’t know the full background of Danver, but only in secret he knew that Danver sold Simard Polchinski out. Titto was there when Simard violently objected the experiment.

  ‘Desire of power and wealth,’ he thought.

  Initially, Danver came to this country for the pure purpose of saving lives and curing diseases, thought at the time that this drug will save the world. But the situation changed and it end up killing more, as it needed some sacrifices of people’s lives. But he couldn’t just give up on the drug and the thirty years of effort that he put it into inventing this drug. After he sold out Simard, he put all his energy to research, and finally, it is now inside this tube Titto is holding in his palm.

  “I guess no one is perfect…” Titto murmured. He is now looking at the balance inquiry which he printed out from his bank, indicating his retirement money he received from Veron. Titto sighed in guilt, his soul is being tortured, but he cannot give up now, he went too far.

  He sighed and looked into the file which they managed to retrieve it from Polchinski’s house after it got bombed. Simard managed to remove most of the valuable information; after the draining search the soldiers managed to find this paper, which seemed like it was from a diary of Simard Polchinski. It was half burnt, but it was still readable.

  ‘The coldness of wind grasped, it felt suddenly cold and all the horrible things came into my mind. Like a candle flickering in the storm, I’m keeping this on, trembling, and hoping the light will not go off.’

  Titto sighed, and he heard a door knock. It was Valentine.

  “My lady,” said Titto, little surprised seeing her at this hour.

  “I saw the light coming out from your room,” Valentine smiled weakly, closing the door behind her.

  “My lady, it’s late at night. You should rest for the day,” said Titto, with a concerned face.

  “I’ve heard what my husband did to those poor young souls, I couldn’t sleep very well,” said Valentine, her voice mixed with exhaustion and affliction. Titto silenced, looking at her face. Her wrinkles have deepened and the eyes were sunken. Valentine opened her mouth.

  “I heard a horrible thing about this Nina Polchinski from our officers. Nina is madly seeking revenge from Veron, and she kills everyone on her way,” said Valentine, Titto gazed at her bloodshot eyes. “And the fact states that every organization that is thought to be powerful and unbreakable, they did kneel before her. Like some pesticides blew up in an ant lair. Is she really out of her mind Titto? Is it possible for someone to be ignorant and cruel enough to discard one’s life and ours too?”

  Valentine’s face was full of shadows and disturbance. Titto didn’t know what to reply, so he stayed in silence. Valentine continued.

  “One of my renowned psychologists, Dr. Whitefield says that Nina Polchinski lacks emotional part of her brain, suffered by the fear of abandonment and childhood trauma. Dr. Whitefield said all she left in her psyche after the constant distrusts and betrayers, was mere mechanical thinking. Titto, I’m frightened of this fiend! She needs to be removed, Titto! Removed Immediately!”

  Valantine talked really fast, Titto raised his palm in the air, gesturing to calm down. Valentine stopped talking.

  “It will do no good, my lady,” said Titto, coldly.

  “But… if she is schi… schisozof…” said Valentine, trying to remember the words she heard from Whitefield.

  “Schizophrenic,” Titto corrected her.

  “Yes! yes if she is schizafrac, we have to take her out! She will kill all my family and friends!” Valentine screeched, her eyes bulging out as if it is going to pop.

  “… If she is indeed schizophrenic and be able to find patterns inside that delusional mindset, I’m afraid it is beyond my ability to outsmart her, my lady,” said Titto.

  “But you can protect us from her… can you?” her voice trembled.

  “I’m not sure, my lady.” Titto shook his head. Valentine grieved, sniffing and trying not to cry.

  “What a horrible thing! She will use the youngsters who Veron killed as a weapon! She will use media and the public against us! To destroy us!!” Valentine screamed.

  “She won’t do that, my lady,” said Titto.

  “How… how do you know? If she has no emotion then…!” shouted Valentine, her vein in the neck was visible.

  “My lady, she is not a heartless creature, I don’t know what Dr. Whitefield told you but he is dead wrong… She is a child.”

  At this last comment, Valentine made a weird squeaking sound and stopped shaking. Tear formed inside her eyes, she put out her handkerchief and wiped her tears.

  “Wish you good luck Titto,” she muttered and got out the room.

  “Thank you my lady,” said Titto.