The sun has not gone up yet when Teo left the belfry where Utoy and Sid the Limp were staying. Now standing at the church doors, he recalls persuading Utoy to come with him and have the boy brought back home. Teo knew Aling Nita would be relieved once her son gets back home for their family has been in a gripping pain following his disappearance. To Teo's surprise, the boy hesitated and begged off to be left at the belfry for the reason that he still has a day to finish his cleaning works that he agreed completing
"My payment would only be handed to me at the end of the week, Segnor" Teo recalls the boy claimed, "I shall be home after my work tomorrow. It will just be a day more,"
"You completely missed the point Utoy, you were missing, even believed to have been abducted," Teo answered holding the boy by his shoulders
"But I was not Segnor" Utoy responds, "Tinyo might not pay me if I do not honor our agreement,"
Teo still can recall the boy's eagerness to honor his promise as he stared into his eyes. He admired the boy's dedication to provide sustenance for their family, at the same time, he felt deep pity for having the boy oblivious of the fact that Tinyo and the priest must have conspired in orchestrating the boy's disappearance. That was the reason why he felt the need to confront the friar and his apprentice early that morning. He has questions that needed to be answered concerning Utoy's disappearance and Isidro's revelation being mistaken for the burned man. The town's deepest mysteries both emerged from the church's premises and their proliferation might have been promulgated by the friar himself creating webs of confusion all built from lies. He feels like finding pieces of a puzzle and for the first time, looking at them with cleared eyes, finding where each piece fits the other perfectly.
All suspicions aside, Fray Luciano, and even Tinyo have some explaining to do concerning Utoy's disappearance. Teo could not deny the possibility that it could have been the friar who really abducted the boy with the participation of his apprentice; for reasons which Teo could not really gauge at that moment.
From the church doors, he makes his way into a small door at the end of the altar which leads him to a long corridor adjacent to the friar's residence. Walking further into the long hallway, Teo comes across the priest's apprentice holding a couple of books with the Holy Bible on top of them. The deacon almost drops the documents he is holding upon seeing the young man's grim expression; like that of a vulture which has spotted its target. The young man storms through the deacon's spot; in just a couple of seconds he is able to grab the priest's assistant by his shoulder, causing the books to fall off and scatter into the ground
"What is the matter with you?" Tinyo shudders, "assaulting a servant of the church this early in the morning. What has gotten into you, Teo?"
"I have found Utoy!" Teo responds furiously, his grip stiffens
"You found who?" the deacon pulls his shoulder away from Teo's grasp, "you look worse for wear. What in the world did you submit yourself into, young man?"
"I said I found Utoy. In here, at the old church ruins. He said you asked him to do some cleaning works for Fray Luciano's residence for a week" Teo continues
"I do not understand. The church employs several workers regularly. I am not sure who you could be referring to, Teo" Tinyo quickly gathers the books which has scattered on the floor, and walks away swiftly
Teo comes after him trying to intercept the apprentice's pace in walking; him turning his back on him and walking away makes Teo enraged. Tinyo appears tense as he struggles to keep his distance from the young man causing him to almost hop towards the distant door.
Upon reaching the wooden doors, Tinyo has to catch his breath while he has his back against the door watching the young man coming close to him.
When Teo reaches Tinyo standing with his back on a wooden door, the apprentice priest gestures his hand for Teo to stop from approaching further. When he does, Teo hears a voice from inside the refectory;
"O God, the creator and Redeemer of all the faithful, grant to the souls of Thy servants departed the remission of their sins, that, through pious supplications…"
Tinyo takes Teo's attention away from listening to the voice inside the refectory as he turns the door knob of its wooden doors clutching on the books on his arms, before giving Teo a frustrated look as he utters;
"The Don might have raised you as his own and even sent you to Manila to be refined. But none of that restrained the indio in you" Tinyo finishes as he glides through the room interrupting the friar on his rehearsal;
"...who livest and reignest with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, world without end. Amen" Fray Luciano slothfully closes his journal and slowly lifts his cup of coffee before facing the intruder,
"What did I tell you about not knocking on the door..."
The friar gives his apprentice a curious gaze while watching Teo walking into the reception hall from behind. His stern look and Tinyo's startled posture catch the friar's attention, sensing a conflict building up between the two. As if to break the tension, the friar smiles affectionately to greet Teo;
"We did not expect you would be here this early, Segnor" he turns his gaze at Tinyo, then withdraws it and looks back at Teo, "the Mass for All the Departed Faithful would not commence until later," The friar sips from his cup and carries his journal with him;
"This day is observed to commemorate those who are suffering in the purgatory. If yesterday we celebrated the Saints who are in Heavens, this day we should offer prayers to those who still groan in purgatory so that they may join, the soonest, the inhabitants of Heavens'' he nods
"The young man came here in relation to one of our servants, Padre" Tinyo interrupts looking humiliated,
Fray Luciano walks towards one of the chairs tucked under a long table. He pulls it away and gestures for Teo to take a seat. The young man obeys and reclines on the presented chair and releases a sigh.
"May I offer you anything, Segnor?" the fray sits on a chair opposite Teo, "coffee, perhaps?"
Teo twitches his head to disapprove;
"I did not come here for that, Padre" he claims watching the friar blowing the heat off his coffee cup, "I found Utoy in the old church ruins, Padre. Utoy is the missing boy. He has been missing for days. It turns out he has just been staying at the burned church belfry with the bell ringer. He claimed to have been working at your house as a cleaner all the while we were looking for him"
Fray Luciano settles his cup at the table and looks back at Tinyo, who is still standing in a corner,
"Would you happen to know a servant by the name of Utoy?" the friar enquires
"As I have advised the young man, we do employ several servants on a regular basis, Padre."
The friar withdraws his attention from his assistant and faces Teo again
"If I may explain that further Segnor, this town maybe small and people seems to know each other well; neighbors even know their other neighbors' secrets. As a busy servant of the church as I am, I'm afraid I do not have a strong grip of all the children of this parish, the same way I seem to know their parents, those parishioners. People in this town conceives and gives birth to a new offspring faster than any animal known to man can, that must have even been their preferred past time," the friar shakes his head in disbelief, "anyway, my point I guess is that, Tinyo might be right. We do have several servants of all ages, and we are unsure who you could pertain to"
"It was the missing boy whom you offered a mass for a week ago, Padre!" Teo forcefully taps on the table, making the friar's cup of coffee shivers with its force,
The friar reaches for a piece of cloth from the center of the table and wipes the coffee spill with it on his mat. While dabbing the cloth, the priest studies the fuming face of the young man who is obviously repentant with the spill that he caused which can be traced by his startled reaction;
"Utoy is the child of Aling Nita and Mang Gener, the family whom you donated the church goers tributes to" Teo answers calmly
"I remember them. That woman was devastated, having to lose a child can make any mother totally devastated. If indeed her child is in here, then praise be to God!" Fray Luciano spreads his arms apart and points them up, smiling gently, "God has been true to His promise of not letting danger happen to his children. If he has been here all along then God must have lead the boy into this church to shelter him from perils, be shielded from harsh days and cold nights, and be saved from severe hunger being out in the streets. our God is truly a compassionate God,"
"Amen" Tinyo agrees
Teo is in bewilderment with the melodrama that is happening before him. The Friar and Tinyo both looking up in the sky, with their hands raise in the air as well, both giving praises to the Heavens.
"The boy needs to be reunited with his family the soonest," Teo claims
Fray Luciano clasps his hands together with his smile on display;
"By all means" the friar responds, "his mother would be relieved. Right after the mass a week ago, I prayed to God each night to reunite the grieving mother with his lost boy. My heart is filled with joy knowing my prayers are answered,"
"But the boy would not come with me. He claimed he still has until today to finish his cleaning work, otherwise, Tinyo might not give him his wage," Teo furiously glance at Tinyo's way
Tensed, the priest's assistant ineptly walks towards the long table and rests the books that he had been clutching to:
"Padre, it has been the same with every other servants that we employ" he asserts, "Segnor, we have had experienced in the past when we hired a group of servants and handed them their salaries for the week even if it was still just the middle of work week. These servants then left us one evening with their works still undone. I hope you would understand if I set out policies to protect the church from opportunists after that mean experience" Tinyo awkwardly gazes at Teo
"I am sure the Segnor will understand, Tinyo" Fray Luciano nods at Teo, "I will personally talk to the boy, and have him come home this afternoon. I can have Isidro come with him and I will make sure that he will get just the right wage for his works"
"I know the truth about Isidro, too" Teo interrupts upon hearing the Limp's name
"Which truth, Segnor?" the friar responds gathering his hands together, resting them on the table as he arches his back forward as if leaning in closer to Teo
"About Isidro being the burned man, Padre" Teo calmly answers
The priest withdraws his body from leaning in on the table;
"The Limp is literally a burned man. Have you not seen the scars and burned marks on his arms, his legs, on his feet, and at his back?" Fray Luciano pauses, "the man almost had his entire body torched. Add to it his disabled right foot, then it is obvious why the man was mistaken to be the mythical creature,"
"What is the matter then, Segnor? Tinyo intrudes, "do you still believe in the Maranhig even at your age?" he smiles rudely
It is now Teo who leans his body forward, almost leaping off his chair, with his hands against the table:
"But the burned man killed Lito,"
Fray Luciano looks at Tinyo and nods his head as if having an agreement with him. The priest takes in air and exhales heavily;
"I thought you knew the truth," the priest takes another air in, "Isidro might have been the burned man's manifestation but he is not a murderer. He might appear revolting to some which makes him an easy target of accusations, just like how all other men who appear differently from us are. The Bible spoke of the lepers who lived in isolation, rejected by society and were treated like monsters; easily blamed for catastrophes that befell their towns, all because of their appearance"
The friar pushes his chair away and stands up to move his cup of coffee from the central table to a nearby basin:
"We should be embracing them, instead of being disgusted with them. As Saint Augustine taught us: 'For God, the creator of all, knows where and when each thing ought to be, or to have been created, because He sees the similarities and diversities which can contribute to the beauty of the whole. But He who cannot see the whole is offended by the deformity of the part, because he is blind to that which balances it, and to which it belongs'. This church is a house of God, hence, the Limp was welcomed in here with arms wide open and was hired as its bell ringer to earn wages for his sustenance, and including him in our society"
"But Isidro killed Lito. I saw it when I was still an altar boy" Teo claims, much more tensed
"Did he? Fray Luciano walks across the room, "You said it was the Burned Man who killed him, The Burned Man who has been a figment of people's imagination, a resurrected corpse. You see, people in this town tend to fear what they do not comprehend. They tend to fall into the trap of their own fears. Then have someone else; someone horrible, someone who do not look like them; to be blamed for falling into that trap; when it was them who created the trap to begin with,"
Teo remains silent on his seat, looking unease exchanging glances between Tinyo and Fray Luciano. His breath is frantic with drops of sweat forming from his forehead into his brows
"You seek for the truth, and it is the truth you shall find" Tinyo quips
"Lito was killed by having his head hit a solid ground, take the marble flooring of the old church for example, hitting the ground for being pushed. That fateful night, Isidro was there, you were right, the Limp was with Lito in the old church ruins, but you were there too. The Limp was regularly visited by Lito each night to bring him his left over supper for the boy had a soft heart and was more accepting of people who was different from him. Isidro told me that you were frightened upon seeing him, with his burned body on display, so frightened you wanted to run away from him. Then Lito, the innocent and gentle boy he was, wanted to calm you, even invited you into the ruins. But you were hysterical, all you wanted was to run so you pushed Lito away; made him withdraw his grip from you. Then there were blood after a strong push, lots of it, the marble flooring was even covered by his blood when he hit his head on it. Right in the cold flooring, it was there where Lito died"
The young man slumps on the chair as confusion takes over him. He feels like being buried into the wooden chair with both his hands nailed to the arm rest; both feet nailed to the floor. He feels like every muscles on his body are unable to move like when he is having nightmares, only now he is awake, but the terror that he feels is the same either way.
"How could that be possible?" he murmurs, "the burned man walked away with Lito into the ruins"
"It was you, who killed him, Teo" Fray Luciano confirms, "You were already being considered to be adopted by the Don having been delighted by your eloquence even as a young boy. He opposed to have such a young boy be convicted for murder of another child, and it should be considered as an accident, he claimed. We obliged with the Don's suggestion, having promised to donate an enormous amount to the church and as donation to the family of Lito on the day of his burial. His family was made to believe their son got lost in the ruins, tripped and hit his head, and his body was later found by you. When you claimed that your friend was killed by the Burned Man, its myth started to spread across town. With his burned skin and his peculiar way of walking, it was easy to make lsidro your Burned Man to conceal your own trails and cover your conscience with. At such a young age, I found your twisting of the truth admirable yet dangerous. The burned man used to keep young altar boys be in bed on time, then monster turned into a more terrifying myth, that of a resurrected corpse abducting children. Indirectly, it was an opportune period for the church to use the myth of the Maranhig, the town's monster right off their nightmare, to make the townsmen regularly attend the mass. The more terrifying a monster gets, the greater the impact it will cause. The Maranhig was the trap was created and you helped to propagate that kept the people flocking the church"
Teo has his head down almost touching the table with only his hands supporting it with his elbows planted on the table. He is running out of breath while recalling for the first time the events of that fateful night. He seems like trying to remember them with every pull he does to his hair with his hands. The truth, like water in a leaking dam, started over flowing until the barrier fails to handle it anymore, it breaks and causes flooding and destruction
"Only now can the burned man retire as the town's keeper of faith for his fright is now replaced by the bandits. People fear the bandits attack and the possibility of their possessions be taken away from them more than they feared the Maranhig before. The bandits are the new reason the parishioner flock the church nowadays. Finally, the people see that humans can be so selfish and more dangerous than any figments of their imagination. It is about time for Isidro to be saved from the shadows of the Maranhig once and for all" the friar exclaims
"Are you sure you do not need anything, Teo?," Tinyo intrudes
"Let him gauge everything at his own pace, Tinyo" the friar rebukes
"Our secret will remain just like how your foster father wanted it," the priest exclaims
Teo silently glances into the table as if his sight can get passed the wooden table. He is still panting for breath when he lays his hand on arm rest to grip it
" I still have to meet your uncle before the mass, so gather yourself," the friar taps the young man's back "you have always known the truth. You just hated it"
Teo takes some air in before he gets off the chair. With his head down, the young man walks towards the door and leaves the refectory sillently