re: INITIATIVE [Detective Fiction]

[#19] Dorothy and Her Sparkling Red Stalker

THERE WAS a rusty pole by the corner of the main hall. In the middle of it was a dirty cloth that kept two debilitated wrists tied together, fingers dangling lifelessly as it was held up.

Much as how Axel had been held up by his dilemma. Days turned to weeks, Axel never stopped feeling indebted. There were even times when he blamed himself for not looking out for her, knowing she could've been in danger given her venturesome request. The fact that only a day after her request, she went missing, was definitely something hard for Axel to bear.

On the base of the pole sat a very familiar feminine body that stayed in place. Her legs bent so that she was sitting on the sole of her feet. The legs he struggled not to glance at when she regularly visited the math club for her mathematical queries.

She wore a deactivated dybafabric that covered her whole body, which curiously didn't look torn or tampered. A dirty piece of cloth was wrapped around her head so that it would cover her eyes.

From the moment they opened the main door, the body seemed to have been lifeless, but Axel noticed that her lips twitched, as if she was trying to open her mouth to say something.

Chelsea, blindfolded, was alive.

Finally, they've found her. All those sleepless nights, Axel had been having visions of Chelsea being kept somewhere, still breathing; still alive. He had thought that maybe he was beginning to become too obsessive; that he was going mad. Everyone believed Chelsea Armstrong to be dead, and Axel was starting to think he was crazy to believe otherwise. He could see in everyone's eyes that, though they're having a hard time dealing with it, they had truly believed Chelsea was already dead.

Even Yana believed so. Axel could tell when he stared at her nostalgic and pitiful eyes back when they spoke of Chelsea.

Yana, who was beside him, gasped, taken aback by the sight of Chelsea. She tried to mutter her words of perplexion, but her lips trembled and her voice disappeared before she could even say a word.

"Get detective Valdez," Axel exclaimed as he rushed to the weak girl tied to a pole before them.

"Now!"

Yana quickly sprinted towards the gates to inform detective Valdez of the situation.

Axel hurriedly, but carefully, untied her, removed her blindfold, and glanced at different parts of her body to look for any injury, but there wasn't any. She was still breathing, he could feel her pulse, but she was still unconscious.

"Chelsea, Chelsea! Wake up!" Axel exclaimed, lightly shaking the shoulders of the unconscious girl. He even tried tapping her soft cheeks with the back of his hand, but to no avail.

Feeling her joints to make sure there weren't any dislocations, Axel was trying to get her to stand up when her voice finally returned.

"A-Axel..." she muttered with a very faint voice.

Axel was taken aback. A huge gasp of relief filled his lungs, and he soon replied.

"Y-yes, it's me! I'm here. I'm here. You're safe now." He said softly.

The siren of an ambulance emanated from outside, and multiple footsteps made their way inside the abandoned electric plant. Chelsea's eyes were still closed, but she seemed to have started regaining her consciousness. It wasn't long before the emergency response team took over the rescue.

The detective, as well as Yana, were soon beside Axel, left speechless by his rescue. Almost speechless.

"How... did you know she'd be here?" The detective asked.