55 Du Lu enters the picture (1/2)
In the next three months, An Ning spent most of her time dealing with construction plans and interviewing people for teaching and other jobs. It was not easy. Nyra told her she needed help so the four queens were hired to be her assistants.
The four queens, representing summer, autumn, winter, and spring, were Alira, Amaya, Kaeyla, and Dawn. Besides their youth and uncommon good looks, the queens did not resemble the prettified interns commonly found in most corporate offices. For one, they were uncommonly strong and very good with their fists. They also unnerved An Ning because she had recently noticed a worshipful glint in their eyes whenever they looked at her. It was unnerving because although her kids were practically teenagers she, their mom, had two more years to go before she reached her middle twenties. It made her feel old, she told Nyra, who merely laughed.
”They look at you like you're their savior, you mean,” Nyra said. ”And it's true, if it weren't for you...”
”Stop that,” An Ning warned. ”Stop thinking of the past. It's over and done with.”
Nyra nodded, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye. She then looked at An Ning a little apprehensively.
”Can I ask you a question?” she said after a while. ”I'm not being inquisitive but merely curious.”
”You want to know where the kids' father is,” An Ning guessed with a crooked smile.
”Ye..es,” Nyra stammered, deathly afraid of offending An Ning.
”He's with a woman he's been in love with for a long time,” An Ning said calmly. ”He saw her again when we were in M City and he went back to her.”
Nyra was so shocked she stared at An Ning as if she had spouted another head on her shoulder.
”Han wouldn't do that. I've seen how much he cares about you. Surely you must be wrong. Han loves you.”
An Ning was silent then another smile lighted up her face.
”It's funny but I never believed in that love. It was too pat, to convenient.There are things that even I don't understand, Nyra. So, I refused to believe what is often told me. Han...he was never real. Not on this planet we live in actually. He was just someone that a person once close to me used to manipulate me for revenge. I think he realized now that he didn't succeed so he's thinking of another way to get to me and that's thru my children.”
Nyra gaped at her. She opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. She was so surprised by what An Ning said that she remained frozen in her spot for more than a minute.
An Ning saw the disbelief in her eyes and patted her shoulder.
”Don't worry about it. Han will be back and he will again act like there is nothing wrong and ask for forgiveness. But we both know it's all fake and really I've run out of patience with him.”
”An Ning, what are you talking about?” Nyra looked bewildered while she asked the question.
”I'm talking about the fact that Han is not really Han and I don't know who the hell he is. I've lost my memory of the last twenty-two years so I don't know what happened before that. I woke up and people told me I was married to Richard who turned out to be Han who claims he is Han but he's actually Richard. I don't know anymore. So, I just ride with the flow and live my own life and ignore everything else. The only thing I'm really thankful about is that I'm not married to him or either of them.”
”This story is so weird,” Nyra bitterly complained. ”Are you sure you're still on the same page? The amnesia could have affected your sense of reality, too, you know.”
”Me finding my real mother after twenty years and realizing I'm the daughter and granddaughter respectively of two fucking amazing Amazon women is the reality I'm living in right now. Everything else is a lie.”
As if to give lie to her statement, An Ning picked up a call one morning and realized that the world outside was still somehow tied to her however much she wanted to forget its existence.
”Long time no hear, An Ning,” greeted Du Lu on the other end. ”How are you?”
”Cut the bull and tell me why you're calling me so early this morning,” An Ning groused sourly.
It had been a long night and she had just gone to bed an hour ago.There had been an outbreak of measles in the village and she and the rest of the women had to fly to the mainland to buy medicines and other stuff. They also had to isolate the infected to contain the spread of the disease. Dawn was left with the kids but Cas, bullheaded and stubborn Cas, had gone to see Doctor Peng. Luckily, he was already immunized so he was okay.
But of course since he disappeared for some hours, Dawn panicked. They then had to spend an hour looking for him. By this time, An Ning had gone home to rest but had to go out again to search for Cas. Doctor Peng, who had been busy the whole day, finally remembered about Cas and called An Ning, who had to drive to the hospital again to pick him up. Since she was too tired to scold him, she tiredly told him to go to sleep and they'll have it out when they're both awake and in better minds to discuss his behavior.
”Moira was attacked,” Du Lu bluntly said.
”What?” Barely awake and needing sleep, An Ning was slow to understand what he was saying.
”I found her in the store last night. Somebody attacked her.She's okay now but the doctor told me if I had been a minute late, she would have died.”
”What are you talking about? Is this a joke?”
”No, this is not a joke. An Ning, I'm telling you, Moira nearly died.”
”Where is she now?”
”At the hospital.”
”Well, anyway. Thanks for telling me. Give me the address of the hospital and I'll go visit her the day after tomorrow.”
There was silence on the other end.An Ning looked at the phone, wondering if the signal had been cut.
”Hello? Are you still there?”
”I'm flying her to Saravia today. I think you need to see her to help her.”
”Help her? Why, what's wrong with her?”
”You'll see when we get there.”
”Wait a minute, why me? You said she's in the hospital? So, she should be okay, right? I'm not a doctor, Du Lu. Better let her stay there just in case.”
”These doctors can't help her. I've seen you long enough to know that something strange had happened to her. She was not merely attacked, An Ning. Someone or something tried to steal her soul.”
At that point, all An Ning really wanted to do was cut the signal and ignore the call. She was tempted but Du Lu was saying something else.
”So, who do I need to contact to accompany us to Saravia? I called Matt and he told me I can't enter the village unless I'm invited. Who do I call then?”
An Ning sighed and gave up. She reluctantly gave him Nyra's number.
”She manages a company I own in M City. I don't know if she has time to accompany you but you can try if she's free or not.”
”Thank you.We will see you later then.”
”Alright.”
Again, silence.
”What?” An Ning prodded.
”You do know that he's with her, don't you?”
”Yes.”
”Oh.”
”Anything else?”
”No.”
”That's it then. See you later.”
The helicopter landed some five hours later. An Ning did not go to meet it because she was again busy looking for a site on which to build the school. An entire crowd went with her, the twins, the queens, Taey, a dozen or so villagers, and the architects An Ning hired to oversee the project. They looked at a spot on a hill that overlooked the village and the sea.The architects said they might have to flatten some mountains and clear a large swathe of the jungle if the building were to be build there. There were arguments and protests, of course, which gave An Ning a headache and consumed most of her time.
It was late in the afternoon when she got back. She had almost forgotten about Du Lu and Moira so she was a bit suprised to see Nyra sitting outside the cave house when she and the kids arrived.The twins enthusiastically welcomed Nyra. An Ning, however, went inside after greeting Nyra.Du Lu, who was eating a plate of fruits in the dining room table, looked up when he heard her come in.
”Is that all you're having?” An Ning asked without preamble. ”Sarai, we're having guests tonight as you can see. I think I'm in the mood for shepherd's pie. Is that okay, Du Lu?”
”Whatever,” Du Lu shrugged.
”With the veggies and other stuff, Ms Liu?”
”Yes and some grilled meat and cassava cake?”
”Okay, Ms Liu.”
”Ms Liu?” Du Lu grinned when Sarai left.