Chapter 57: Embroidery
"The next time you get into a brawl again, I’ll have you run with kaings of coconuts on your backs!" I hollered from my window, a cup of coffee in hand, as the offending recruits passed by below. At the head of the pack was Montiano, who had taken a blow during the fight that left his right cheek swollen. None of them dared to look up or make a sound, though I knew they clearly heard me.
Eight recruits had been listed as participants in the fistfight—three from the 2nd platoon and four from the 3rd. Triviño and Dimalanta managed to piece together what caused the incident. The 2nd platoon had immediately moved back after seeing my ’retreat’ hand signal, but the 3rd platoon failed to do the same, resulting in a crash—several recruits from the latter were trampled by soldiers from the former. Tired and irritated by the heat, tempers flared and fists flew.
If I’m being honest, I actually liked that it happened. Things were starting to get too quiet. The officer cadets—with their well-mannered ways and sharp minds—made instruction almost too easy. In just two days, they’d hit decent marksmanship. More surprisingly, during the march, they didn’t even look tired and followed my hand signals with the precision. It was so smooth-sailing that I felt more like a university professor than a general.
This little dose of chaos was just what I needed.
I took a sip from my coffee and realized it was my last. My little entertainment at the window had come to an end.
I turned to see the dying rays of the sun spilling into the empty and silent sala. I sighed, my mood swinging from amused to melancholic. The sala had never been this empty. It was either Vicente, sitting too lazily on the couch with a book, or Isabela chirping noisily about the events of her day.
It reminded me that I hadn’t talked to my daughter much since returning from Manila. I had anticipated this when I received my appointment, but only lately had I realized how sad it was to set aside my greatest treasure in this life for yet another so-called noble cause. The situation felt uncomfortably familiar.
I still had about half an hour before the senior officers arrived below for our evening classes. I decided to spend that little time for myself.
"Belang? Are you there?" I knocked on Isabela’s door.