The Academy: Detective Stories - Part II

Chapter 21. Choosing the Paths

That day, Jackie couldn't find peace. She was in the basement of a building, in a room without any windows. She paced the room again and again, like a wild tiger trapped in a cage. She didn't know if Howard had received the letter or if any of the guys had cracked it. She didn't even know what time of day it was. All she had was this gloomy room with shabby walls lit up by the torchlight from the corridor.

Jackie approached the narrow doorway, her hands squeezing the metal rods. She shook it hard, but she couldn't move them aside to get out. Then, a quiet clank of metal sounded at the end of the corridor. Jackie closed her eyes, listening. Someone was at the stairs – two women's voices argued.

"I've told you to use the cloth carefully. You just ruined the material for two jackets!" one of them said. Her voice sounded familiar.

"Sorry, Marta," the other woman replied. "I'll be careful next time."

"You know that I report to the chief, and he counts every coin!"

Silence.

Marta's voice rang out, "This is the guardian uniform! Please, be careful! I won't be able to keep you here if you don't do your job properly." Her voice muffled, then disappeared into silence.

The uniform. Only one factory in the city provided the guardians and cadets with the uniform. Jackie had visited this factory last year with Elisa, shortly after their first semester had started.

As it turned out, making the uniform with golden dragon embroidery was quite expensive. The young guardians never thought about the hard labor that went into creating it when they wore it in their free time, often neglecting to take care of it. In response, Don started organizing tours for the cadets to educate them and teach them to treat the uniform with respect. Hardly effective, but Jackie still remembered the woman who was the main seamstress. She had a stern voice and maintained strict discipline. This woman had a beautiful name that didn't quite fit her stark nature – Marta.

Jackie took a step back and inspected the walls around her. They were made of gray brick, the same as the sewing factory she had once visited, indicating that she was in the basement of this building.

She slid down onto the cold floor. Amazingly, her detective talent helped her establish her location, but this discovery did little to help her escape. Jackie shook her cuffed wrists. The metal hurt her skin, and the scratches tingled. She was still wearing her yellow ball dress, which sparkled in the torchlight. When Howard had seen her in this dress, he had remarked that she looked too beautiful for the dull hall room. If only he could see her now!

The sound of quiet steps made her turn her face towards the corridor. This time, it was Penny, the waitress who worked for Trevor. She carried a tray with sandwiches and a teacup, which was a good sign. At least they planned to keep her alive. Jackie stood up as Penny opened the gate and walked inside, placing the tray on a bench.

"How is it going?" Jackie asked, trying to look nonchalant.

"The guardians came to our club today but found nothing. The distracting maneuver worked perfectly."

Jackie mustered a smile. "Good."

"I brought your dinner. I added more veggies so you can get some vitamins. You should eat well, Jackie."

She almost asked, "Why?" but bit her tongue. Obediently, she sat on the bench and started eating.

Penny gave her a pitying look. "You drank alcohol last night. Why?"

Jackie stopped chewing. "Just two shots won't hurt."

"Listen, I know it's hard for you, and your boyfriend dumped you –"