ICE. ROCK. FIRE.

Chapter 2: The 'Truth Fairy'

Friday 12:54 PM

As usual, the streets of Little Italy was filled with people rushing to eateries and bakeries. But because it was Valentine's Day, the outlets managed to provide a lot of seating for the couples trying to enjoy their time. One of the most important things for growth in any aspect, be it love, body, or quality, is time. And providing time to something or someone is one of the best actions you can perform. The little chats, the smiles you exchange, the stories you tell, all combined forms a bond none can break. And that bond creates a life unimaginable.

    But not all blessed with a life like that. Some, are meant to stray as far as they can, alone or with short-lived companies. Such was the life of the NYPD Captain, Derek Joseph. A tall dark man, with wits like none, and thoughts unparalleled. Fond of food and lover of one.

    It was too rude to not remember his late love Janice's favorite donuts, that too on Valentine's Day. So he went into the red and white colored store of an Italian Baker, who knew him from a, well, considerable amount of time. The sweet smell of caramel and the deliciously baked loops all just made a delightful scenery in front of the customers.

    The parcel was packed, all set to be devoured, but life, you can chuckle all you want...life never lets you enjoy at the times you want to the most. And if it lets you enjoy, boy are you in trouble.

    The moment Derek leaned to receive the pack, the static radio chatter called up.
" Be advised a hostage situation is under activity, suspects are unknown and are confirmed to be armed and dangerous. No SITREP can be obtained. The victim is a well-known businessman named Zidane Rafa. Any units nearby are requested to report immediately. The site is at 3rd block Hudson Square."

    Now that was some name for everyone, but for Derek, it was family.
Zidane may have had a habit of poking his nose in businesses he wasn't required in. But he made sure to compensate for the trouble he caused. His name always reminded Derek of the times when he paid for Janice's Cancer treatment. But unfortunately, true love either fades or is ended by death.

    Derek left the donuts, rushed back to his ride, and rode off to Hudson Square, thinking of all the men Zidane has pissed off in all his years of business. But the funny thing is, the familiarity comprised of a few years, so basically he had to start finding scratch and THEN build his theories. A tough job indeed, but worth it, for tricked puzzles and riddles was what Derek was now living for.

    The venue of the situation was vastly covered up by police patrols and private security. At first, it was baffling for Derek, but the involvement of a high profile V.I.P. in such a situation was not a mystery to him any more why private security was involved.

"What's the status here? Are any units available for the mission or it's just us on our own?" Derek inquired hopefully.
"We got multiple snipers covering all the directions in order to eliminate the suspects if needed. The room is having a lot of heat, probably b'cuz of a heater or high light energy, hence thermal scanners are deemed to be useless. We managed to pull off an EMP strike but the heaters were back online in a couple of minutes. We thought of cutting the lights off but that might just infuriate the kidnappers. As of now, that's all." Replied an officer.
"And Cap...It's good to have you with us here" He stated before leaving.

    Listening about the deployment of snipers and managing to detonate an EMP in a neighborhood full of people, that's a risk taken unusually. The "status" itself, was a warning for Derek. His mind couldn't stop thinking about Zidane. For anybody won't dare to mess with him unless they have a strong reason. So he called up his partner, Aveline Mark.

    Now most of us have this perfect image for women who are on duty, blonde hair, messy blue/grey eyes, perky lips, feminine figure. But all of this seemed to be false for Aveline. She wasn't just some normal policewoman, she was known as THE policewoman. Only because she messed up in a bank robbery, she was not honored with the badge of a captain, else the place was good as hers.

"Aveline, it's Zidane, we got work to do. Without further delay, bring out his call records. See if he has some unusual call, someone threatening him or something." Ordered Derek.
"Or HIM threatening somebody" Added Aveline.

    There was a pause. The truth may be, that people aren't exactly as they seem to be. Or for the possibility that sins can be committed by righteous men. Whatever it was, clearly provoked the will of finding answers.

For the next 20 minutes, all Derek did was scout, for openings, windows, hatches, and especially, the culprits. Unfortunately, nothing was found. He wasn't able to believe that his eagle eyes weren't able to find any clue. But that's the reality of life, isn't it? Our failures aren't our biggest disappointments, the inability to be better than the past or to cope up with someone else is.

"I knew you'd come to me, here's the number. One single call, less than a minute, never to be seen again. Exactly one year ago. The caller was some Mariana. Apparently, she's a PA at Bloomingdale Franchises." Informed Aveline excitingly upon her arrival.

"And what do the franchises do?"
"They are into apparels and footwear"
"I don't have a good feeling about her. Anyway, let's see what our friend has to tell us."

"There's the catch Cap, she was found hanging in her apartment a few hours after the call. We need to hear what they spoke of, I am sure we will find the truth out of it." Said the grey-haired, muscular woman.

"Truth is nothing but a lie unveiled my friend" Derek laughed off.

Friday 09:30 AM

    When his eyes opened, the room was full of light, and all of them focussed on him as if he was the host of some show. In another unusual scenario, Zidane was drenched in sweat. By this time, his face had developed a visible burn, due to the direct application of chloroform. He felt like he was knocked off for hours, but in reality, it was just some 15 minutes.

"What was in that syringe?" Asked Zidane with a heavy head.

"You know what's funny Mr. Rafa? People don't verify things they get told about. They, just know it for the sake of outshining others. Most people think that truth serums make people speak the truth. But in reality, the chemicals like sodium thiopental, weaken the brain's activity so bad, that you can't form any lie, hence blurting out the plain truth out." Camilla replied, but with scary optimism.

"Truths and lies" Zidane laughed.
"Every goddamned lie you tell is a truth, if...spoken in the right manner. We all are so keen to find the truth, but it is the lies that matter. Lies, show the true value you hold in someone's life. Lies...my friend, are the mirror to one's soul. But the truth is simply a fact one can't hide. After all, truth is nothing but a destroyed lie"

"Enough of the talking sweetheart. We don't have much time with us. Let the truth fairy do her work" said Camilla.