#newff

Hold My Hand - part 6

Determined to act, the three walked out of the Dare House. The two friends returned to Jessy's house as scheduled, taking Dan's car. MC said bye to them with a simple wave of her hand and then headed to Alan. She thought she would find him in his car, but when she reached it she hadn't found him. She then looked around and after a moment of bewilderment, she noticed a puff of white smoke emerging from the side of the Dare House.

After the talk they had had, MC was convinced that there was something under Alan's behavior. Maybe he really had a personal problem that was bothering him. But what if that wasn't the case? With this thought in mind, MC acted on instinct. Her leisurely walk became slow and controlled. Her noisy footsteps on the gravel became silent and delicate. As she advanced she perceived Alan's voice getting louder, until she reached the wall of the Dare House. Right there, on the left side there was the policeman. He held a cigarette in one hand and a cell phone in the other. She saw him inhale his cigarette, make his foot click on the ground and snort.

With one thumb he was typing a message, it seemed. She watched him wishing she could see what he was writing that was so important. Then Alan's phone rang and MC saw him hesitate before answering.

A: "Bloomgate."

He sighed throwing the cigarette butt to the ground and trampling it badly.

A: "Yes, we've been here for a while."

Was he telling anyone about their presence? Perhaps his 'friend' who had given him the keys to the house? The man shook his head and put a hand in his pocket.

A: "Then I'll need some more time."

More time for what? The policeman took a step to the side, removing the cell phone from his ear and resting it on his forehead. MC could not see his expression as the only thing she could see from her position was his back. She tried to lean out of her hiding place to get a better look, but was only able to step on some twigs that, breaking, attracted Alan's attention. In fact, the man had brought the cell phone back to his ear and turned in her direction. MC just had time to crouch behind a pile of stacked wood. She waited a few seconds and hearing no noise, leaned over again. Alan was no longer looking in her direction, but to his cell phone. His eyes were fixed on the screen, focused as if something extremely important had appeared. Then he put the cell phone back to his ear.

A: "I can't do it..."

The deal??? What the hell was going on? Whatever it was, the man's tone of voice had changed. He looked alarmed, scared...maybe even desperate?

A: "No, wait! There is no chance i could-Hello? HELLO?"

The other person probably hung up. Alan lifted the phone over his head with the intention, perhaps, of throwing it to the ground, but stopped trying to calm his anger. At that exact moment, MC felt the need to know more so she decided to came out of her hiding place and face the man. From what she understood, Alan didn't feel safe talking freely on the phone. Enough to hide from everyone. She had to talk to him and figure out what he was hiding from her. That didn't sound like a personal issue. That was something big and scary.

A: "Shit...what are you doing here MC?"

She approached him like he was a deer, with slow movements of her body. She doesn't know what to think about him. Half worried half scared.

MC: "I couldn't find you after Dan and Jessy left. Then I saw your cig smoke and i followed it...I guess we need to talk."

A: "No we don't."

He walked quickly past her to get back to the car and she almost ran after him.

MC: "What's going on? You know you can talk to me."

A: "This is my problem MC, you have nothing to do with it so leave me alone."

He was different. Not angry or agitated as before. He seemed tired.

A: "Come on, get in the car."

MC: "Not so fast!"

He sighed as he opened the car door.

A: "I'm not going to tell you anything MC."

MC: "..."

The girl walked around the vehicle, opened the door and got into the car. She closed it and watched the man sitting next to her do the same.

A: "Let's just forget what happened. At this point is useless..."

And again. Alan's eyes changed. They looked sad now.

MC: "...at this point?"

The man started the car and with a couple of maneuvers he turned the car and headed for Duskwood.

A: "Never mind. Now we have to think about your friend, right?"

MC: "You know i'll keep asking you about it, so why don't you make it easy for both of us and just tell me already."

A: "Because it's none of you business. Also either you help me or not it won't change nothing..."

MC: "...but it's bothering you and after what we've been thru I just want to help like you're helping me right no-"

He shook his head and slammed his right hand on the steering wheel in anger making her jump or her sit.

A: "NO ONE CAN HELP ME!"

Alan bit his lip realizing he had gone too far. He put his hand back on the wheel and sighed.

A: "Listen, i appreciate your concern. I know you're a good person and maybe if the situation was different i would have used your help..."

MC remained silent listening to him.

A: "I don't want you all think I'm a bad guy, because I would shot myself in the head before turning like the scumbags I arrest. It's just...a very long day okay?"

She snorted crossing her arms.

MC: "Stop the car."

A: "What?"

MC: "Are you deaf? Stop. This. Fucking. CAR!"

He looked at her in disbelief. She seemed angry now. As she ordered he stopped the car turning off the engine and as he did that, she opened the door and jumped out of the veichle.

A: "Wait MC, where are you going?"

He followed her outside the car and when she walked around the veichle to be in front of him, he took a step back. He slapped his calf on the left front of the car as she put a finger on his chest.

MC: "First of all: don't you ever, EVER raise your voice at me again! I'm not one of your subordinates nor your sister. If you feel the urge to yell at someone look in a fucking mirror!"

He was a little surprised by her confidence and strenght. Then looked down at the space between them, feeling sorry.

MC: "Second, from what i've heard you have a problem, a big one and i don't like how bad it sounds. I don't know if it has something to do with Jake's kidnapping, but either way I need to know and you need to take the weight off your chest. Now. What happened? Did you do something bad?"

A: "...why do people always think i did something wrong..."

MC: "Because you act sus instead of talking to us."

A: "And what was I suppose to tell you, uh?"

He picked up his cell phone, typed something and handed it for her to look at. He smiled bitterly with shining eyes.

A: "Ehy MC, some scumbag kidnapp your friend..."

She looked at the small screen. It looked like the image Dan described earlier. An empty room and a person tied to a chair. Only that wasn't an adult person. She had long blond hair, a green and white dress and classic shoes.

MC: "A...little girl?"

MC saw Alan's eyes fill with tears as he turned the phone to look at that photo himself.

A: "...and because I couldn't free him by myself, they took my baby girl..."

MC: "What!?"

Alan covered his eyes with a hand, trying to hide the tears.

A: "They took Sarah from me and they will kill her if i don't give you to them."

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Hold My Hand - part 8

MC: "What?"

Alan was silent, lowering his hand with the cell phone and putting it back in his pocket. He knew it was wrong, that he couldn't give in to the ransom. He had taken an oath, as a man and as a policeman. But that was his little girl and he had fallen in love with her from the first day he saw her big eyes open to reciprocate his. He had sworn to love and protect her always, even at the cost of his life.

A: "I'm sorry MC...I don't know what to do."

MC opened her eyes wide in disbelief.

MC: "You're not really considering the exchange! They won't give you back your daughter. If they really have Jake, they'll want something from him. If they've asked for me maybe Jake hasn't given up yet and they're thinking of using me to make him talk."

A: "You really think I have not made these considerations by myself? Their plan is obvious and since the first threat they sent me I didn't respond, they took my daughter."

Things weren't going well. Alan was a policeman but his daughter was in danger. Certainly she couldn't ask him to abandon her daughter. But these guys were smart and had access to a lot of information. Surely they had found some connections between Alan and Jake, they had followed the cop probably thinking that whatever they were looking for he had it. Perhaps they had even entered his house to search it. Having found nothing and presumably having seen the little girl's room, they thought about threatening him.

MC: "Did they kidnap her from home?"

A: "No. Sarah lives with her maternal grandparents, the house I'm in is just for me. As a police chief I get a lot of unwanted visitors and it's not safe for her."

MC: "So where did it happen?"

A: "At school. The teacher said a girl came to them saying she was Julia's sister, Sarah's mom. She gave her a document and a proxy with my signature on it."

No, it didn't fit.

MC: "How old did you say Sarah is?"

A: "Eight and a half...but what does this have to do with it?"

MC: "She doesn't know her untie?"

A: "No. She saw her when she was like only a year old. But then Julia's sister moved to Paris with her husband for work."

MC: "Then it's impossible for a girl of that age to go smoothly with a stranger. Especially a policeman's daughter."

A: "If she pretended to be my sister-in-law it could be..."

MC: "Only if Sarah had seen her several times before that day though."

Alan's eyes widened in disbelief. Why hadn't he thought of it before? He was a cop what the heck!

A: "Oh my God, I'm an idiot! I assumed she trusted her without thinking that these people might have been watching me and my family for days!"

Like a fury he took the car keys and rushed to the vehicle along with MC. He got in, started the engine, and spun out of the lane of the Dare House.

MC: "Wherever we're going, let's get there alive please!"

MC yelled, holding one hand on the dashboard and one hand on the car door.

A: "We're going to Jessy Hawkins' house. I'll need the laptop once we're there. With my credentials, I can access the CCTV cameras of every building in Duskwood. Once I find that woman, I can see if she's in the system."

He hit a hole at high speed causing MC to jump almost to the roof of the car.

MC: "What if it isn't so?"

A: "Could you please be a little more optimistic?"

MC: "It's kind of hard to stay positive when you're in the car with Doc Brown trying to drag you to another era!"

A: "Are you calling me old again?"

Alan took a downhill curve and accelerated again. The car skidded sideways a couple of times giving MC the impression of being on a plane rather than a car.

MC: "You're missing the point! SLOW DOWN!"

Needless to say, they arrived in less time than expected. Alan parked the car in the driveway and once the engine was off, MC pulled out of the car at full speed.

MC: "Who gave you your driver's license!?!"

A: "A bald and short man, with big biceps and a fixation for the word 'familia'."

MC: "WHAT?"

A: "Oh, don't be so dramatic!"

Suddenly they heard gunshots and Alan raised one hand to MC, pulling the gun from his waistband with the other.

MC: "What are you doing? What do we do?"

A: "Get in the car and start the engine. I'll go inside, if I'm not the first one to get out of that door, go away!"

They heard a scream and Alan rushed into the house, not before throwing the keys to MC. The girl stood outside, instead of doing as the policeman told her. Not very smart, she thought, since she was in plain sight. She heard two more shots and then Dan shout something to Alan.

MC looked at the keys she was holding thinking about what to do.

MC: "Of course!"

She went to the car, opened the passenger door and rummaged in the glove compartment.

MC: "Come on, I know you have another one, Alan."

She closed it and went to the trunk then opened it and looked everywhere. Meanwhile, noises of objects breaking and sounds of struggle came from the house. Then MC noticed a small handle on the bottom of the trunk, she pulled it and was amazed at what she saw. There were a lot of weapons in that trunk.

MC: "...is that a grenade launcher?"

She heard Jessy scream and shooking her head she grabbed a gun, some bullets and two smoke bombs.

MC: "Okay MC. You can do it. It's just like Halo. Just point and shoot. Nothing more. Oh, and be stealth!"

In that instant he heard a shot and Dan shout Alan's name.

MC: "What the fuck am i doing!"

She ran into the house slowing down once she entered. Walking through the hall and on the left, beyond the door to the parlor, she saw a scene that made her blood run cold. Two armed men were holding her friends at gunpoint. One was pointing the gun at Dan, the other at Jessy. The girl was kneeling on the ground with her hands on Alan's back, lying unconscious.

??: "Let's try this again. Where is the girl?"

She allowed the panic to take 10 long seconds. What could she do? She wasn't a policeman and didn't know how to use those weapons that now weighed tremendously in her hands.

After those seconds she looked back into the living room and in that tiny moment, she managed to exchange a look with Dan. She raised the gun just enough for him to see it and the man lowered his face imperceptibly. He knew how to use it.

MC took a deep breath, placed the gun on the ground in front of her feet, took the safety off the grenades and threw them among those people.

??: "What the fu-"

MC then kicked the gun which hidden by the thick smoke rising from the floor came to Dan.

Hold My Hand - part 12

He woke up slowly, as after a simple afternoon nap. Heavy eyelids that didn't want to open wide at all. He didn't remember where he was or why everything seemed cold and damp around him. He blinked a couple of times to focus on the ceiling of that room and soon the memories resurfaced. It was not a room, it was a stone prison buried in a mountain. He barely sighed, trying to express his resignation, but his ribs protested causing him to hiss in pain.

At that moment he felt something fresh and wet touching his forehead and turned to the left to understand what it was. A little girl? Right, Sarah. Bloomgate's daughter. Thanks to the constant absence of light, his eyes had become accustomed to the dark. Of course, he didn't see the child's face perfectly, but he distinguished her features. She was there by his side, focused as if she was doing something extremely important. Near her legs, right between their bodies, was what appeared to be a bucket. He didn't understand whether it was made of wood or metal. If it was dark because rusty or it was colored. The only information he could get from that object was that it was filled with water. This was because the little girl had just turned to the bucket, put something in it and when she raised her hands, Jake had clearly heard the roar of the water.

What the little girl had in her hand seemed to be a piece of cloth. And after wetting and squeezing it carefully, she put it on his forehead. Maybe she didn't notice that Jake was watching her, because she kept making those movements like she was in a trance.

Jake: "Hey..."

As it wanted to demonstrate, the little girl jumped on the spot, slightly surprised to hear his voice.

S: "You scared me!"

Jake: "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. Are you okay?"

S: "It's too cold here. Reminds me of that little hut on the mountains where my dad used to take me for the holidays."

As she spoke, she continued to wet the cloth and pass it over Jake's face. She did it gently, as if she had been afraid to break him. Her eyes and slow movements suggested to Jake that the kid was tired. She had probably been taking care of him for quite a while.

S: " But I had my warm clothes, not this dress."

Jake saw her face saddened and so, weakly raised the only good hand left to reach her hand, before it reached his forehead. She looked at him and her mouth curved slightly, making him realize that she was crying.

Jake: "I have never seen snow...I guess it's nice."

She pulled up with her nose making a small smile and shaking her head.

S: "Mhm..."

Jake: "I'm sorry they got you involved in all this...but we will get out of here."

S: "Why is Dad taking so long? Doesn't want to save me?"

At those words, Jake felt like a punch in the stomach. He pulled up slowly, trying to pry his still healthy arm. He held his breath as his body shouted at him to stop, not to move, but he didn't care. That little girl was suffering and needed comfort. Of course, he wasn't the world's greatest expert in emotions and things like that. Physical contact for him was often limited to a classic handshake. But he remembered that in a truly terrible moment, MC had told him that she would like him to hold her in a hug. To console her and make her feel safe. He had no way of fulfilling MC's wish, but he knew she wouldn't get angry if his hug was for that little girl.

So once seated, with a couple of really painful maneuvers he reached the nearest wall. When he got there, he leaned his back against the wall, feeling the cold and the jagged surface pricking his skin through his shirt.

S: "Ah! What are you doing!? You shouldn't move like that."

Jake, panting, raised a hand towards her and told her to get closer.

Jake: "Yeah...I know...I know."

The little girl got up and before going to him, she wet the piece of cloth again and squeezed it.

Jake: "But you were right. It's too cold there. Here is way warmer."

S: "Really?"

Jake: "Sure. Sit here next to me and try. It's really great."

The little girl, a little wary, did what he had told her and with slow movements sat a few inches from him.

S: "Mmm. Liar. It's not warm at all."

He opened his arm inviting her to approach.

Jake: "Maybe you should be closer to me."

She was doubtful for a moment. Then a chill of cold shook her body and she approached Jake, hugging him and clutching him. Jake smiled in the darkness of that cell and then settled in better, carrying his arm on the girl's shoulders. His ribs protested when they felt the kid's arms and body crush him like an octopus.

Jake: "Ow, ow. Don't squeeze me too much, I'm not a Teddy Bear."

S: "...I'm sorry..."

Jake: "It's okay. Now, I have to tell you something."

The little girl didn't look up, busy finding the best position so that her ear could hear the rhythm of Jake's heart.

Jake: "Your dad is doing his best to come here to save you. You have to trust him. Right now he might even be out here."

S: "Really?"

Jake: "Yeah, why not? But we have to believe in him. We must also rest, so when he arrives we will be ready to leave."

At that precise moment the little girl yawned and then rubbed one eye. Then she snuggled up at his side and closed her eyes.

S: "But...what if dad comes to save me and finds me sleeping?"

Jake: "Then I'll wake you up. Don't worry. You took care of me, now it's my turn."

Jake stood still for an indefinite time, until he felt the child's breathing become calm and regular. She had finally fallen asleep. Holding her close to himself, he sighed, resting his head on the wall. Alan would surely come to save Sarah, but Jake wondered why they had taken the Chief of Police's daughter. It was a risky move and worried him. The fact that Sarah was there with him probably indicated that they were holding Alan in check. Maybe they were blackmailing him and that couldn't be good. Not for him at least. If that was indeed the case, they probably thought Jake had entrusted Dedalus to him. But that was not the case.

Jake knew there was only one person that program would be safe with, but he hadn't been able to contact her. MC had disappeared from the radar and as much as he had tried, he had to give in to the evidence that he had been too good a teacher. MC had learned from him to disappear, not to be found. But he always had a plan B. Sending the program to Lilly through Nymos was the only possible alternative. And then he was lucky that there was a camera in his prison. Nymos was programmed to follow him through every kind of device possible. It was so quiet that it would go unnoticed in any system. Most likely he would have managed to sneak into a government system as well, if they had been the kidnappers. But that was not the case. The man who held him captive and tortured him was not from the government. Indeed, if it had been for him he would have gladly thrown the whole world into chaos.

Markus. He hadn't heard that name in years now. He never imagined that he would see him again in such circumstances, nor that he would be his torturer. They had met many years before. He didn't remember very well where. It seemed as if Markus had always been in his life. They were best friends at the time, almost brothers. They were simple nerds who cared about everything and nothing. They spent their days programming computers and eating junk food that Markus' mother, who was too busy with work, ordered online. It wasn't great, of course, but he liked it. Then one day Markus' grandfather died and Jake thought his friend wanted to abandon his passion to help the family. Not having a father to raise him, it was his grandfather who took care of him and his mother. She did a humble job, but it didn't allow her to bring enough money home to support her family. The grandfather then worked hard to help as he could. But after his death, something had changed. Markus' grandfather had left him a box with lots of photos and documents. "History teaches us" was written on top of the lid. Perhaps it was his way of ensuring that what was written in there was never forgotten. As a reminder. But when Jake, convinced by Markus, took a closer look at what the man had left behind, he realized that this was not the case. That legacy told a story of punishment and torture. Of wars and destruction that only a fool would have allowed. It turned out that Markus' grandfather had been enlisted, as a young man, in a secret government project. "Protection and containment" was written in one of the documents, but it had nothing to do with those two words. All that was in that box was the account of a historical period that had been almost completely erased.

From there they began their searches to find more information. They learned about MKULTRA and how the "subjects" were conditioned to do what the powerful wanted. They discovered that Markus' grandfather had been one of those subjects and that he had done terrible things in his life. But then, in one of the notes in the grandfather's notebook, they found a name. "The Minotaur". Under this name an annotation with the calligraphy of the man "saved my life". From that moment on, the two searched for the Minotaur far and wide. For Markus it became an obsession, to the point that he lost his mind. He hacked into numerous government computers and found the physical location of the archives where they kept the MKULTRA project segregated. He formed a team of criminals experienced in stealing sensitive data and succeeded in stealing that project. He wanted to use it to give those who had corrupted his grandfather's life the well-served.

Jake tried to dissuade him several times but without success. So, remembering the notes of the man who had raised Markus, he decided to take action to stop him. After finding secret information about the Minotaur project, he managed to steal it. He always kept it with him, taking care to let Markus know that if he ever even tried to bring that crazy project back to life, he would stop him. He remained in the shadows for years, waiting and hoping that Markus would never make his move. But he didn't know that his former friend was on his trail. When he decided to let his guard down to find his missing sister, Markus had already located him. On the one hand he expected it, Markus was unable to surrender. On the other hand, he had always hoped that with the passage of time Markus would think again. Unfortunately, however, that was just a dream. Now he was there, stuck in a situation he couldn't get out of without help. Luckily for him, Markus hadn't turned off the cameras that watched him and Jake still had an ace up his sleeve.

Hold My Hand - part 9

Like a fury the two mysterious men threw themselves on MC, who, however, assisted by the dense smoke of the grenades, dodged them and went outside. She ran at breakneck speed to Alan's car and as she had seen only in movies, she jumped the trunk of the car and hid behind it

MC: "Holy shit, it worked!"

The two men came outside and, while the first tried to figure out where MC had gone, the other stopped outside the door. he leaned forward and put his hands on his legs coughing violently.

??: "Where are you?"

Of course, as if MC could have answered 'Oh, sorry, I'm here behind the car.'. Anyway he was advancing dangerously towards the car and would eventually notice her. She didn't know what to do, but then the situation changed. Dan had gone out and put the gun to the neck of the coughing kidnapper.

D: "Hey, Beauty. Why don't you turn slowly and put your weapon on the ground, before I make a Beast omelette?"

The man slowly turned around as he watched Dan point his weapon at his partner. However, instead of doing as he had been 'kindly' asked, he pointed his weapon at partner and before Dan could do anything, a shot went off and his hostage collapsed to the ground lifeless.

D: "What the fuck!"

Then the enemy pointed his weapon at Dan and began firing a barrage of endless bullets, fortunately missing the target. Dan was a big man, but he had some really remarkable reflexes. MC saw him pull back and throw himself into the house through the front door. The girl breathed a sigh of relief knowing that her friend was safe, but unfortunately there was still a big problem.

??: "Get out. NOW!"

MC tried to quickly think of another solution. Since the man was slowly advancing against the car that was her hiding place, it was clear that he understood that she was hiding there. She could buy some time and hope Dan would regroup to help her, but honestly she got tired of that situation so she stepped out of her hiding place, facing the masked man in front of her.

MC: "With all the noise you have made, I am surprised that no one in the neighborhood has yet called the authorities. But I wouldn't be so quiet if I were you."

??: "We put them all to sleep. Can't you hear them snoring?"

MC: "...that's...clever."

??: "Narcotic bullets. But they work little if you hit the bulletproof vest. Stand up Mike, we have a mission to complete."

The man MC believed to be dead, got up barely shaking his head. He approached his friend lowering his weapon and instead pulled out handcuffs from his pockets.

MC: "Oh right you're here to kidnap me. Uhm, nope. I pass."

??: "You're really starting to get on my nerves..."

MC: "You know? That's exactly what my Boss said last week. Are you two related?"

??: "You little-"

His friend blocked him by the arm when he saw him snap forward towards MC.

Mike: "Ehi, ehi! She's just messing with you. Let's just take her!"

The two snapped at her and MC turned to the street and began to run.

MC: "No! No! Bad dogs!"

The problem was that she didn't know the streets of Duskwood very well, so she had no idea where she was going. But she was much faster than them. She turned right straight to the main road and began to see cars passing by. She thought of stopping one and asking for help, but her two pursuers would probably return to Jessy's house. They would take her friends hostage and the situation would return to the way it was before.

??: "You can't run forever!"

At that precise moment MC stopped, blocked by two cars that had nailed right in front of her. Panting she looked frightened at the two vehicles trying to figure out what to do, but then the doors opened.

L: "Looks like problems always finds you!"

H:"You shouldn't speak since most of the time you are the cause of her problems."

C: "Behind you MC!"

MC turned around and the two men were now a few steps away from her, completely oblivious to the presence of the newcomers. They would have captured her if another person had not come to save the situation. A black motorcycle arrived stopping right between her and the two pursuers. The driver turned off the engine and took off his helmet smiling at the two armed men.

T: "I hope you don't mind if I invited some friends."

MC looked in the direction Thomas had come from and saw flashing blue lights approaching, followed by the familiar sound of police sirens. The two enemies seemed for a moment to think about what to do, but in the end they turned around and ran away.

??: "That's not the end MC!"

MC saw them disappear around a corner. Luckily they didn't seem interested in returning to Jessy's house, so she breathed a sigh of relief. She looked at her friends and shook her head.

MC: "How the hell..."

L: "You're te only one that could run away from two armed men in the middle of a new city without knowing your way."

H: "Oh come on Lilli. You did the same thing in Spain with that guy."

L: "Fair point. But he had a knife and he wanted to rob me."

MC: "Uhm...hello? How did you know it was me?"

C: "Jessy took a picture of you back in the Dare House without you knowing...then she sent it in the Group Chat."

MC: "I guess i should thank her..."

T: "Ehy, are you okay? You hurt?"

MC: "I'm fine, but we have to go back to Jessy and the others. I think Alan is hurt."

L: "And no 'Hi, finally we can see each other!'..."

H: "Lilly, this isn't the best time for celebrate. We'll do it, but first the important things..."

T: "I'll go there, you follow me with the car."

MC: "Thomas, wait! What about the cops?"

C: "Oh right. That's just a coincidence I think. There were cops already in front of the museum. Apparently there is an outdoor demonstration and since the works of art are very valuable, they involved law enforcement."

H: "We got lucky."

MC frowned in confusion but then burst out laughing. Meanwhile, Thomas had put his helmet back on and roaring the engine had started at full speed towards Jessy's house. After a few minutes, all four of them entered the cars and went to their friends.

When MC got out of Cleo's car, he saw Dan and Thomas talking in the driveway and approached.

MC: "Here's the coolest bodyguard ever. You okay?"

D: "And here's the fastest girl alive. What the hell do your parents feed you with? Lightningbolts?"

MC: "Are you saying I'm The Flash?"

D: "Who?"

T: "Really? You know Batman and Superman but not Flash? How disappointing..."

J: "Oh! I'm done! Do whatever you want you stupid stubborn Giraffe!"

Jessy comes out of the house slamming her feet to the ground as she screamed furiously.

C: "Whoa Jessy, what's going on?"

MC: "...I have a hunch..."

She passed Jessy and entered the house, finding it not in the best condition. Some furniture was burned, probably as a result of the explosion of smoke grenades. Others were intact, but she had no idea how Jessy would open them, as all the objects inside them had probably fallen against the doors. She entered the living room and not finding Alan she headed for the only direction from which she heard sounds. The kitchen. She walked in and saw Alan in front of the sink wetting a patch and cleaning up his forehead.

A: "I said I'm fine Jessy!"

He turned around, bent slightly forward and hissing in pain. As soon as he saw that was not Jessy, he opened his eyes wide in surprise.

A: "God, you're good."

MC: "Better than you from what i can see."

A: "It's...nothing. I think one of them was a wrestler in another life..."

MC: "Or maybe you're better at guns than at punching. Rather, why do you have a grenade launcher in the back of your car?"

A: "Crazy people requires crazy means."

He laughed and then froze to feel his left side and hiss again.

MC: "I think you need a doctor."

A: "Not until I have my Sarah back. I'll be good."

At that very moment Dan entered the kitchen with a long glance at Alan. Then he made a gesture to MC asking her to follow him. She looked at Alan to make sure he was okay and when he nodded she turned around and followed her friend.

D: "You know right that we still need his help with the Mayor?"

MC: "Of course I know, but he needs some time to...recharge. In the meantime we need to find out who that person tied up was. To be sure if it was Jake."

D: "Wait, why? You have doubts? The wonder twins that came here, they did to take you. And what could have been the point? To make Hackerman speak. Cause probably he didn't till now and they know that torturing him was probably pointless. They need you to make him talk."

MC: "Maybe...but what we need to find is what they want him to tell them."

D: "I bet it's that thing...Dedalus?"

MC: "You said it wasn't from Jake..."

At that moment Thomas also entered the house, followed by Lilly.

T: "I think we were wrong. That's what I was telling Dan outside before."

D: "Where are the girls?"

T: "I sent them to Phil. He's going to take them safe until we find something to help Jake. Then we'll regroup."

D: "A bit weird, but I'm glad that asshole decided to do something nice for once."

T: "...actually I might have paid him."

D: "That explains a lot..."

L: "Ehi, focus! Tommy might be right on this. Just think about it. We assumed that the app was some sort of spying device they used to send me the pictures and the recording. And we also assumed that the purpose of that was to scare us and let us know they have Jake...but what if that was a 'parachute'."

MC: "A what now?"

T: "Like a lifesaver. A program that is activated only in case Jake is in serious danger."

MC: "But...it's not like Nymos, it's not helping us. It just gave us little clues and honestly I feel a little lost."

L: "Just like a Dedalus."

The three confused looked at each other without understanding, until Alan entered the living room sighing.

A: "Daedalo or Dedalus, in ancient Greek, is a character in Greek mythology. Great architect, sculptor and inventor, best known for being the builder of the famous Minotaur's labyrinth in Crete. Precisely because of this last fact, his name is still used today as a synonym for 'labyrinth'."

D: "How do you know this stuff?"

A: "I went to school..."

D: "Pff...Nerd..."

MC: "This makes sense, but why they want it?"

A: "Well the labyrinth was a great structure built for as an offer to Gods but it was used for many things. Like to protect humans from beasts or monsters. The most important, though, is to take the Minotaur inside. He's the bastard son of a God and he's not a good guy. Most of the time Gods used the labyrinth as punishment for those who had offended them. The ways out were known only to Daedalus who always kept the secret. Eventually people either died of hunger, thirst and fatigue, or at the hands of the Minotaur."

MC had an enlightenment and looked at Alan worried.

MC: "So, Jake used Dedalus to keep the Minotaur from wrong hands. That's what they wants."

Hold My Hand - part 7

(This time i have to say some things first. From now on,there could be torture and some other bad stuff for Jake. So if you don't like, don't read. Enjoyyy ^^) (I said 'there could be' cause even I don't know xD)

It was cold. Very cold. Dark and damp. If he tried he could hear drops of water falling from the rotting ceiling. His body slowly woke from the numbness. The chains holding his wrists to the wall were hurting his wrists and he felt his skin burn there. He slowly opened his eyes, but saw nothing. Dark. Black and creepy. He tried to move his feet, got on his toes to give respite to the arms that had held the weight of his body for who knows how long. When he managed to push himself slightly with his feet to pull himself up, he let out a cry.

Jake: "Ahhhh."

The right shoulder hurt terribly. Maybe it was dislocated, maybe it was broken. He didn't quite remember what had happened. His senses were still numb. He heard a constant ringing in his ears. As the memories began to return and like a jackhammer, in his mind, the blows he had received resounded. He could feel the sticky blood on one side of his face. From the pain he felt he probably had a gash on his forehead. The blood had run down almost to his chin. He turned his head slowly, still dazed, to look around. Nothing. Only the terrifying and silent darkness. He moved his hands, rattling the chains that held him. His whole body ached and from the noise his ribs had just made, making him hiss in pain, he suspected that some were broken.

All of a sudden he heard a noise. He stopped slowing his breathing so that he could hear better. He waited a few more minutes and heard it again. It seemed as if someone was crying silently, with their mouths covered by their hands.

Jake: "Is...anyone there?"

The sound stopped suddenly.

Jake: "I heard you..."

Still silence. Then a rustle caught his attention making him turn his gaze slightly to the right. He still couldn't see anything but his instincts told him that there was someone sitting on the ground.

That someone approached him and Jake despite the darkness was able to recognize the contours of his body. He was small and short. He approached slowly but from the sound of his footsteps he didn't seem to have trouble walking. So those people only took it out on him. Great. When he got close enough Jake felt that person sniffle once again.

Jake: "...you're a kid?"

??: "Daddy said...i shouldn't speak with strangers."

Jake: "Your dad is a wise man..."

Jake thought about moving away, about pulling himself up. He was already on his feet, but the body was abandoned against the wall. Legs slightly bent and arms painfully pulled into an unnatural position. He pushed himself with his feet until he was able to place them well on the ground. He gritted his teeth because his shoulder and ribs, as well as the rest of his body, hurt so much it made him dizzy. When he was satisfied with the position he tried to regulate his breathing slowly. He heard a rustle coming from the kid, as if he were moving quickly away from him.

Jake: "I'm...not going to hurt you. I promise."

??: "They said if I don't stop crying, the chained monster will eat me..."

Jake: "Oh. So, am I the monster?"

??: "Mhm.."

Jake: "Well, I am hungry to be honest. But i don't eat kids...or humans. I prefer other things."

??: "Like what?"

Jake: "Like cheese flavoured Doritos...dipped in a choccolate and banana milkshake."

The kid, at first silent, begun to laugh.

??: "Eeeewww!"

Jake: "Ehy! Try before saying 'Eeew'. It's good."

??: "No thanks. That sounds gross."

Jake: "Then tell me, what is your favourite thing to eat?"

??: "Daddy's special salted pancakes."

Jake: "And why are so special?

??: "In the batter are bits of toasted bacon, scrambled eggs and sausage. Then when they're ready, he puts a lot of maple syrup on them!"

Jake: "Oh wow...they really sound special."

??: "Told you!"

Jake: "Yeah, i kn-"

At that moment Jake's stomach gurgled loudly and the two fell silent.

??: "You were telling the truth...you are hungry."

Jake: "No big deal. I can take it."

??: "I wish i have some of my granny's candy to give to you...but they took them from me."

Jake: "So they're also stealing candy from kids...don't worry, If we'll get out of here I'll get them back for you so you can make me try one."

??: "Well it won't take long. My father is coming to rescue me, I know."

Jake: "Your father?"

??: "He's the bravest man of all! Also he's the Police's Chief of Duskwood. He'll save us."

Jake: "The...Chief? It can't be...what's your name?"

S: "Sarah Bloomgate and i'm 8 and a half...but it's a bad thing to ask for other's name without saying yours first."

Jake: "Your dad is..."

For a moment he felt relief. Alan was probably on his daughter's traks and that meant that he had a chance to survive.

But then the two heard the lock of a door unlock and Sarah turned abruptly towards the noise.

S: "No! They're here! I'm scared!"

Jake: "Hey,hey! Come here, hide between me and the wall. I can't move but I promise they won't touch you."

The door opened and a bright light flooded the prison they were in. Jake, blinded by the glare, squinted trying to see who was entering. Then he heard Sarah scream and a sharp thud told him that she had fallen to the ground. He forced himself to look up at her and saw her face for the first time. She was terrified of Jake. Or maybe the way her body looked. It wasn't supposed to be a good show probably. Then Jake's eyes widened in horror. A dark bruise darkened the white skin of her cheek and blood dripped from the side of her mouth. How could anyone hit a little girl so hard to leave such a mark on her?

??: "Come on girl, he's not in such a bad shape. Wait and see what we have in store for him."

Jake focused on the figure, but recognized the voice immediately.

Jake: "Markus..."

M: "You finally recognized me, Jake. It only took two hours of extra torture."

The man raised what looked like a black stick and pointed it at Jake.

M: "Now that your memory is back, you'd better tell me where the Minotaur is."

Jake looked at him menacingly and bit his lip. His torturer, however, smiled. Markus pressed a button on the stick and it lit up with electric sparks.

song of the chapter: in my head by ari 

The sun was shining bright and with the light blue sky which was complemented by some clouds, it looked like the perfect picture. Saemi 5 years ago would have gone crazy about this, picking up my sketchbook and would have instantly copied it. But now? It annoyed me. I had no interest in it. It didn't match my mood and it didn't make me feel better. I hated it. Hatred. A strong word which I would only use with caution. For me, you are only able to hate something that you had once cherished. And I did, I really did. The sun at its strongest time, shining the brightest, I had loved the view, the light it gave that peeked through tree leaves. Until I fell for the shadow. He swallowed me up and took away everything that I loved deeply and I didn't care, at least back then. I let it absorb me and squeeze out every last ounce of sunshine held inside me, I just let it. I didn't know how to help myself any better so when It all got too much I needed to escape reality, that the easiest way possible even if only for a short while. There was no one who could have stopped me anyway since I was selfish. And how was I supposed to accept help when I couldn't help myself. Exactly, I couldn't. Sometimes I think loosing everything  I once cherished had it's perks, too. I mean, at the end of the day It brought me up here, at this status with people having nothing but respect for me. My phone rang but I ignored it, instead, I watched the sunshine peek through my fingers as I held my left hand high up in the air. The ringing didn't stop so I gave in. Lifting my hips, I tried to get my phone from my back pocket, but when I realized I quickly turned around and picked it up from the grass. Making myself comfy on the ground again, I picked the unknown call up.  "Saemi eonnie! I called a dozen times, It seems like your busy, aren't you?" How the fuck did she get my phone number? "Oh, Mari-yah, annyeong. No, I wasn't that busy. Why did you call?" I asked through gritted teeth. "How have you been? One of your biggest art suppliers resigned, right? I mean, you're Saemi eonnie, you probably have something greater coming but still, I just wanted to make sure." "I'm doing great, thanks for asking. Yes, you heard right but we're signing a new deal this week, so everything is in check, as always. But you're not only calling to ask me 'bout that?" I knew she wanted confirmation about the deal that outsiders were gushing about, the deal was nearly done so no need to not be prestige. "No, in fact, I was calling because you hadn't answered to the invitation yet.", ah, the dinner invitation. After this call, it sure wasn't a normal dinner. Chwe Hansol was planning to expand his business and make some great deals with high-selling people, and my deal with the Louvre was making my entreprise nothing less. "Ah, yes. I was quite busy past weeks, so I hadn't reached out to you yet." "Eonnie! You have to come. You didn't even come to my wedding!", there was a small pause from my side before I answered with a soft voice. "Mari-yah, I'll let you know 'til the end of the day. Let me see what I can arrange." "Thank you, eonnie. I'm looking forward to seeing you again." Unlocking my phone, I saw that I had received a message from Ms. Jang.

Ms. Ji got your phone number through the new employee. It was his third strike, he's fired, ma'am.

Rolling my eyes, I packed my phone and went to my car.