Zor: Kidnapping - Part Two

Zor had to sit down. The Krawk she had been interrogating had disappeared. She rested herself on the table in the steel walled room. How? How did he get out? It...it was... Then Zor remembered something. She didn't lock the door. A careless mistake set the case she was working on back at square one. And it was all her fault.

          A knock at the door made Zor look up from the floor. "Come in," she muttered lightly and saw Fred walk through the door, smiling. A Wocky stood beside him, a plastered smile on her face. "Who is this?" Zor asked, pointing at the Wocky suspiciously.

     Fred smiled widely and exclaimed, "She's back! She returned to me!"

     Zor was puzzled. The one who had been kidnapped returned? How? "Can I speak to her?" Zor asked, looking at Freds' facial expression change from joyous to agitated.

     "What's your problem?" he snorted in a rude tone. "She's here. Leave us alone." He went to turn his back on Zor and walk out, but the Faerie Zafara jumped up from where she was sitting on the table and grabbed the owners' shoulder.

     "I need to talk to her."

     Fred looked Zor straight in the eye and nodded fearfully.

          ***

     The two sat in the interrogation room, eyeing each other suspiciously. Zor was wondering how she had returned. The Wocky was wondering what was happening...maybe. Maybe not. Maybe the Wocky knew exactly what was happening and was playing mind games. Zor glanced back at Fred, who was standing outside the door. "What is your name?" Zor asked calmly. A basic question but one she didn't know the answer to.

     "I refuse to talk to you," the Wocky said in a cold voice.

     Zor shook her head. "That's not how it works. You answer my questions, understand? I could care less if you refuse to talk to me. You will talk. Now, answer the question."

     The Wocky emitted a chuckle. "No."

     "What are you doing?" Zor asked. "We're trying to find out who kidnapped you and put him away. Why won't you talk to me?"

     Another chuckle and then a stern look. The glare made Zor shiver and turn away. She was playing mind games. She was getting Zor angry, readying her for an attack. And if Zor attacked...

     "Answer my question," Zor said sternly. "'No' isn't an answer in this case. Either you answer me by choice or I'll force you to answer me."

     Chuckling echoed through the room again. "Oh, no, please don't hurt me!" she said sarcastically, pulling her hands back and waving them in the air. "I'm scared!" Then she laughed again.

     Zor sighed. "You're going to start answering me right now."

     "No." And a chilling stare. A stare...trying to manipulate Zor. No...it wouldn't work...

     "Stop it!" Zor yelled. "You can't play your mind games with me. No manipulation here...none at all. Answer my question!"

     "No." And the strange stare again, burning a hole in Zors mind.

     Zor ran out of the room, holding her head. No...no...no...no...I refuse to talk to you. The answers to her questions rung throughout her head, repeating and repeating - trapped inside her mind. Zor fell to her knees in the hallway, still clutching her head. "ANSWER ME!" she screamed, her yell echoing down the long corridor.

     Zor took a few deep breaths and decided to go back into the room. She was armed and ready for anything that the Wocky may throw at her. Once the Wocky saw the mind games wouldn't work anymore, she would talk. She'd have to. The Faerie Zafara entered the room ready, but when she caught her first look at the Wocky, her heart dropped. She wasn't ready anymore. She was far from ready when she saw the blue pet sitting there, wandering around the room, examining the empty walls, a crazed look on her face. "Sit," Zor muttered, pointing to the chair.

     The Wocky ignored her and continued to look around on the walls. "Sit," Zor repeated. The Wocky then faced her and smiled, quickly taking a seat. Was she insane? Why would she be acting this way?

     "Are you ready to answer my questions?" Zor asked, leaning on the steel table.

     The Blue Wocky nodded and smiled. "Of course!"

     Zor stared at her for a moment. Was she serious? "What is your name?"

     "It's...it's Mary," she said calmly and looked at Zor. There was still an insane and delirious look present on her face. Was she lying?

     "Okay...Mary," Zor said and hesitated, still looking at the Wocky. "What happened?"

     The Wocky shuddered. "I was in my room and I heard a boom...and, well, I went downstairs to check it out and I saw a really big person outside the door. I...figured it was Fred so I let him in. Then I ran when I saw it wasn't him. And he broke a lot of things and smashed a lot of stuff and I ran up into my room and sat back down and wrote in my journal. I hoped that if I went back to normal, there would be no scary man down there but...he came up and he took me. And he dragged me down the street in a sack...and all of a sudden it was all black.

     "I woke up and I was in this small room with no one in it and there were steel walls and a table and...hey...that's here. And then this crazy looking Faerie Zafara came in here and...hey...that you! And...and then she asked me who I was and what had happened and I told her and...hey...that happened! And...I was talking and talking and then...I don't know..." The Wocky finished her story nervously, looking around.

     Zor looked at her questioningly. "And you were never here before?"

     "Never ever. I don't lie, Mrs. Zafara Lady..."

     "Excuse me for a moment," Zor said and walked out of the room and saw Fred on a bench adjacent to the room, laying down. Zor quickly walked over to him and tapped him on the shoulder. He flimsily flew up out of the bench and onto his feet. When he saw that it was Zor, he quickly sat back down on the bench.

     "What is it? Did she tell you everything you need to know?" Fred asked.

     Zor could see concern in his eyes but...there was something else. "Does she have any...erm...mental problems?"

     Fred eyed her in concern. "Why? Is that an issue here?"

     Nodding, Zor muttered, "Yes," and continued to stare at Fred, trying to figure out some conundrum in his eyes. He was hiding something.

     "She...suffers from some sort of disease. The doctors never told me the extent of it but...she usually makes up stories to divert from the truth... So I guess she can't really help you, can she? You can't prove that what she is saying is either true or false...so...we can go now, right?"

     Zor sighed. There was no use keeping her here. Though the information seemed realistic, she had no people to check the story was truthful. "Yeah, you should," Zor said, though she didn't like the words that had uttered out of her mouth. It felt like she was giving up...but there was no way the information could be any help.

     Fred smiled. "I hope she may be of some help," he said and then walked into the interrogation room and fell back, falling to the floor. Mary pounced on him, growling. Her teeth bared and her eyes seemed to glow a faint red. The Wocky then walked across him and out into the hallway, slowly heading toward Zor, who was now backed against the wall.

     "You..." the Wocky said in a gravely voice. "Arkados."

     Zor looked at her and a flood of memories came back. How did she know about Arkados? Who was she? Was she involved in his death? She was no one familiar to the case - no one of possible relation to Arkados. Yet the Wocky knew his name. The Grarrl that had been Zors partner. "Who are you?" came the terrified squeak from Zor.

     The Wocky chuckled. "You should know me. Think back. Think long and hard. You should know these things. I changed. I changed so very much. And I wanted revenge. Revenge on you for befriending that creep. Think...think..."

     And Zor thought. She searched through her mind. Through all the files, through all the cases, through all the suspects. Through the night... And then the shocking realization hit her. "Oh...no..." she moaned and stared straight at the Wocky. It couldn't be. It wasn't...no...no...no...

     "Have you guessed?" the Wocky growled and moved closer as Zor hardened her back against the wall. "Have you?" Then the Wocky jumped onto Zor and tore into her fur.

     Zor screamed and wailed, flailing around, running up and down the hallway as the Wocky attempted to reattach herself to Zors fur. Then the Wocky stopped and Zor turned around and stared at her. "Why did you do this? Why?"

     "Because Arkados was an evil man...and you had no idea. Are you evil to? Do you work for them?" the Wocky asked as she pranced around, circling Zor. "So? Have you guessed who I am yet or do I have to tell you?"

     "Seremdra."

To be continued...