Tinyente Gimo’s Story

During blackouts, our elders would tell us scary stories, and this one is unforgettable for me.

A long time ago, a high school girl got invited by her friend, Tinyente Gimo’s daughter, to attend a festival in her hometown in the Visayas region of the Philippines. We don’t know their names. We don’t need to know their names for this story either.

What we know is, the town she was going to is known for witches and the supernatural. Folks from other cities were wary of and avoided them when they came to town.

Tinyente Gimo’s family, specifically, was surrounded by horrible rumors. He was supposedly a retired military man with evil roots.

Her mother was not going to permit her, but since she knew the friend, she was finally allowed to go. Her mom just warned her and asked her to come home before it gets too dark.

She traveled by bus through the dusty back roads. The scenery was relaxing though, with the sunrise just peeking through the trees. She needed that break. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

After an hour or so, she was jolted awake by the sound of a marching band. She finally got into town and it was quite a sight with the colorful banners and flags. She walked to find her friend’s house. It wasn’t hard to spot. It was noticeably larger than the other houses near the town plaza. She can tell that her friend’s family was wealthy and the townspeople she asked for directions deeply respected Tinyente Gimo.

Everyone she met was nice and welcoming. Food was abundant. Lechon or roasted pigs lined up the sidewalk and were free to eat.

She danced with a few young men and enjoyed the day. She thought to herself, people should be careful with how they talk about others. This town was idyllic and the people were very friendly.

She was having a really good time so her friend asked her to stay the night.

She agreed, though reluctantly. She met the entire family and most of the townspeople at that point, and they all seemed normal, so she was safe. Right?

She phoned her mother and advised her of the change of plans. Her mother was furious but couldn’t do anything. The bus stop was closed at that point and she had no way of getting home unless someone drove her back or picked her up.

Later that night, while her friend was sleeping, she was kept wide awake by her mother’s warnings in the back of her mind. She looked around the dark room that was only lit by a small lamp. The window was open and the breeze was playing with the curtains.

Her friend’s vanity had the usual trinkets - a silver hand mirror with matching comb and brush. A pot of rouge. Possibly a dozen bottles of perfume. She smiled. She will have to ask her to try those tomorrow.

She still felt a pit in her stomach though. Dread. So at the last minute, she decided to take her friend’s family ring and wore it on her finger. She didn’t know why. She just felt that she had to.

She finally fell asleep.

After some time, she was startled when a man came into the bedroom. She held her breath and kept her face out of sight as much as she could. He touched her hand. She almost screamed.

Without warning, he smothered her friend with a pillow and carried her away.

Scared out of her mind, she jumped out of the window and ran for her life, as soon as the man was gone.

Meanwhile, Tinyente Gimo was in his kitchen, cooking a big breakfast.

It was dark so he didn’t see until that morning — that the girl he hacked and cooked in the cauldron was his daughter.