Chapter 02

The captor's speech caused most of the officers around to go into a state of total shock. Everyone was staring at that empty, confused part.

— San... San... — Slezzy was totally confused.

— Calm down! In my view, this man must be facing serious psychological problems — replied Sanches, not showing any emotion.

The negotiator who was ahead, with the aid of his megaphone, confronted the kidnapper again, screaming and with a timbre of fear:

— WHAT THE HELL... ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? THERE'S NOTHING IN THAT EMPTY PART YOU POINTED OUT!

The hijacker, frightened, alternated his gaze repeatedly between the void to which he had pointed and the policemen of the front line, who approached the main entrance of the establishment, using shields.

The kidnapper yelled again:

— THE CREATURES... ARE APPROACHING! STOP THEM... PLEASE! I BEG! OR... I SHOOT THAT WRETCH!

That desperate man held his pistol flickering.

The woman cried and cried, begging both for the life of her son, who was still in her belly, and for her own.

Slezzy, totally hooked on the scene, decided to face Sanches for a moment by his side.

The agent was completely focused, as if he was thinking of some kind of strategy to deal with the whole situation as quickly as possible.

— Boy, get away from here! I don't want you risking a stupid death, like a stray bullet! — alerted Sanches, walking next to the other police officers.

Slezzy obeyed Sanches' order, without thinking twice, and set off behind the car. He didn't even have a weapon to act against such a scenario.

The kidnapper, now agitated and with double despair, dominated by his strong emotions, still embraced the woman, warned once again:

— It's the last warning! Get rid of these freaks now... or I swear I'll put a bullet in this woman's head! — He glued the tip of his gun to the victim's skull.

The chief negotiator, for the last time, asked desperately:

— YOU NEED TO HELP ME! — took a brief pause and resumed his speech, still screaming. — WHO IS IN THAT FUCKING EMPTY SPACE?

Finally, the kidnapper looked again at the controversial corner, shouting:

— THEY... THEY LOOK LIKE DEMO...

"Bang"

The sound of a gunshot, which echoed over the entire site, appeared to come from one of the nearby buildings, where one of the snipers was positioned.

The people who lived in the region, and who watched that scene through the windows of their homes, stopped, as well as the pedestrians who moved away from there.

Finally, all the drama had come to an end.

Soon after the confirmation of the fatal shot, the police entered the establishment at rapid speed.

Some policemen went to help the pregnant woman. Others, on the other hand, left the body of the kidnapper, shattered on the ground, confirming his death.

Outside, Slezzy noticed that a car approached at the end of the street. A desperate man came out the right door, screaming, as he ran towards the police. He claimed to be the husband of that woman.

After the exit of the pregnant woman from the pharmacy, leaning on the shoulders of police officers, she shouted the name of that man.

After a few seconds, the couple reunited with a tight hug, amid many tears.

At that point, the place was already surrounded by reporters.

Sanches returned quietly to the area where he had parked his car, reuniting with Slezzy, who was a little amazed.

— What a day, boy! You must be my lucky charm!

— You call that... lucky!?

— I could no longer stand still without a drop of adrenaline! At least everything ended well!

A known figure approached the car shortly afterwards. It was Lieutenant Jan:

— Agent Sanches! It's been a long time since we've faced a large—scale case like this!

— I agree. We must not forget that we have had total success thanks to Saith. The bastard does not waste a single round of ammunition!

— Saith? — asked Slezzy.

— Ah, of course! — Sanches put the whole upper part of his body into his car, to hunt something. Then he took out a binocular. — Take this! And... watch that building, boy!

Sanches handed the binoculars to Slezzy, pointing with the other hand to where the young man should watch, with the aid of that device.

Slezzy was able to observe the distorted figure of Saith, because in addition to the camouflage, the sniper was also leaving from the top of the site. He captured only a few details: a slightly yellowish hair and an unknown kind of rifle in his hands, which he had never seen before.

— That's Saith! The commander of ground tactics... and the best sniper in the Armed Forces.

Lieutenant Jan directed his gaze at Sanches, ordering him:

— I think we should get Slezzy out of here as soon as possible. Don't forget that we may still have trouble with paperwork... if a simple NCC secretary is on a case this size. Tomorrow, that shit will be all over the TV, not to mention the papers. So, Sanches, why don't you give the kid a ride?

— No problem! It's a shame that I haven't shown all my extraordinary potential. Next time! — said Sanches, smiling convincingly.

— Right... — Confirmed Slezzy, with a slight tone of comfort and shame.

Slezzy and Sanches got in the car and drove off to the younger agent's house.

On the way, while guiding the route to his home, Slezzy asked questions:

— Sanches... what was that guy so afraid of?

Sanches sighed for a moment and then replied:

— Probably, that man had some psychological disorders, as I had said earlier. What damned bad luck! After so many days without receiving any communication of an infraction, in the central region of the city, the only one that appears to me is stolen by that cursed... Sniper! — laughed ironically.

— The kidnapper... seemed to be so believing that there was something there, in that empty corner..., like a supernatural being... no! Two beings, maybe!? He said they were "freaks"! In the plural! — Slezzy insisted on the subject.

— Boy... you didn't catch the evil anyway.

After a brief silence, Slezzy snuggled up on the bench and resumed the conversation, while observing the urban landscapes surrounding the Western Region of the city.

— I thought only the NCC was fighting local crime. This... Military... didn't you just take care of terrorist attacks or something?

— Today, there are three organizations that fight crime in the city: the Crime Fighting Center, or NCC, which you know very well; the Armed Forces, or FMA, which handles cases such as terrorism or major assaults, in addition to the new government measures, He's been helping with some of the heavier local crime cases, like the one we just witnessed tonight.

— And what is the third?

— This is the newest and also secret, among the others. I myself... have never even seen such a member, not counting Edward. Maybe... he's the group's representative.

— Are you talking about government security?

— Exactly. The government already had its own security guards, but now... decided to create its own "private squad". And apparently, it was created earlier in the year due to the increased number of crimes committed in downtown Maple.

Slezzy started laughing, non—stop, all of a sudden.

— What are you laughing at, boy? — replied Sanches, confused.

— What the hell are you still doing at the NCC, Agent Sanches? Do you have enough experience to hold a high office at the FMA, for example, no?

— It's not that simple. You're disregarding the entire authority of Don Cernuno over the city's armed troops. Besides, even if I was promoted to another institution... who could replace me? Who would be able to put order around the central streets of this city?

"Um... you really like to brag..."

— How was this man elected... to the office of governor of the city? — The young man suddenly changed the subject with a tone of indignation.

— Go for it, do not try to understand the politics of this city, young man — Sanches replied, ending the conversation.

They entered an area considerably far from the city center, where there were many buildings and some commercial establishments still open. Then, they parked on the edge of a large street, not a bit busy, next to the entrance of a simple condominium composed of small buildings.

— It's a great apartment, kid! Does your family live there?

— Yes. But only my brother and my companion! My mother... preferred to "live" in the North Region, with her only biological child.

— Oh! I get it...

— So... tell me, Sanches, why did you choose this police life? — asked Slezzy, distinctly curious, after holding the inner handle of the car door and getting ready to leave.

— It's simple, kid. I'm the best at what I do! Now get off my car!

Slezzy got out of the car immediately after that order. Sanches still forced the engine noise, provoking the young man.

— Until another day. Even if, probably, I... don't come back to work the streets of Maple, the NCC.

— So use your precious time to take care of your family! — Sanches said, speeding up his car and leaving there in a matter of seconds.

Slezzy sighed. Then walked down the sidewalk into his condo.

Arriving at the door of his building, which was not one of the most distant in relation to the entrance, he opened it, leaving for the stairs then.

Upon arriving on the third floor of the apartment, Slezzy walked to the last door of a side corridor to the stairs and unlocked it.

Upon entering there, the young man noticed that almost all the lights were off. There were toys left on the floor. He checked the first rooms, but everything was quiet.

As he opened the door to his little brother's room, he was filled with peace when he saw him sleeping peacefully. Interestingly, even though he did not share the same blood, the boy had a similar appearance to his, both his face, and his black—pointed hair.

Slezzy walked to the edge of the bed and covered him with a green blanket. Then he returned, closing the bedroom door, leaving for another room.

As he walked towards his own room, he was surprised to open the door of the same room.

From there came who he was looking for:

— Zzy!? — said Emmeline, with a tone full of joy.

The girl ran towards the young man, hugging him then strongly for several seconds.

She grabbed Slezzy's back, almost scratching it.

— They called me earlier... from your work..., saying that you had been scheduled for some kind of street operation. Then... later... I saw it on TV... — She was whining through her words.

— Emmy, I'm here! Take it easy! — Slezzy tried to calm and comfort the girl, still surprised by his such concern.

Still hugged, Slezzy noticed that she calmed down slowly.

The girl's big black hair, accompanied by a few purple strands, fell on Slezzy's arms.

— Listen to me, Emmy... I'm really very tired. We can talk about this... tomorrow morning? Before work... how about!?

Emmeline confirmed that question by nodding her head positively. Her skin tone was whiter than normal.

— I didn't want to show it to Rainn... so I told him that you had to stay late at the office! — His voice still reflected some sadness.

— Hey! Just... relax, Emmy.

Sanches' words began to surround the young man's mind:

"So... think about what you really want."