The road to the mountain had not changed much in five years.
It was still the same narrow trail of red soil that twisted between thick walls of green. Tall coconut trees leaned over the path like silent guards, and the air smelled of wet earth and leaves slowly rotting on the forest floor. The only difference was the silence. Grass had grown over parts of the road, and small shrubs now pushed through cracks where motorcycles once passed every day.
Rogelio “Roger” Santos walked slowly, his boots sinking slightly into the damp ground.
He had forgotten how steep the climb was.
A worn backpack hung from his shoulders, and sweat darkened the back of his faded blue shirt. The morning fog still clung to the mountainside, drifting lazily between the trees. Somewhere deeper in the forest, birds called to each other in sharp whistles that echoed across the valley.
Roger stopped for a moment and looked down the slope.
Far below, the small houses of Carranglan looked like scattered toy blocks. Smoke curled from a few chimneys. People were starting their day, cooking breakfast, preparing to work in the rice fields.
Five years ago, he had walked this same road full of hope.
Now he climbed it with a heavy feeling in his chest he couldn’t quite explain.
Behind him, Mang Tino followed slowly, leaning on a bamboo walking stick.
“You remember this turn?” the old man asked.
Roger nodded faintly.
“This is where the truck got stuck,” he said.
The memory returned clearly. The day he had brought the first thirty piglets up the mountain, the small delivery truck had struggled to climb the muddy road. They had pushed it together for nearly an hour, laughing, sweating, convinced they were building something important.
Roger had believed that day was the beginning of a better life.
He had been thirty-four then, young enough to believe that hard work always led to success.
When they reached the final rise of the mountain, Roger slowed.
The fog thinned, and the view opened.
In the distance stood the old piggery.
At least… what used to be the piggery.
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