"Good morning, Auntie," Liz said, standing behind me, sleepiness still lingering on her face.
"Good morning, Liz. Do you know it's midday ? Were you planning to spend the whole day sleeping?" I said, giving her a light tap on the back. Go brush your teeth, breakfast is ready.
She ran off laughing and said, "Today's my day off, I can sleep as much as I want!" after she came back she asked What are you doing? What are all these papers?.
I told her without looking at her it's my CV .
She began eating her breakfast in silence, then said, "I think CV is for job searching ?. Right , What will you do with it? You already have a job."
I gathered the papers and stood beside her, patting her head. "It's nothing to worry about. Finish your breakfast and tell me what you'd like for dinner; I'll cook whatever you like."
She said enthusiastically, "Really, really, anything I want!"
Her enthusiasm scared me a little, so I hesitantly said, "Yes, anything you want.
I want a large pizza with lots of cheese and meat, and a large glass of soda. After dinner, I want to go buy ice cream. (Her mouth started to water slightly.)
I said anxiously ، This seems extremely unhealthy ,, I wanted to cook for you, and you know that's bad for your health.
She looked at me with a pleading eyes , and said, "I love your cooking And it's delicious, but I want pizza for today. It won't harm my health if I eat it once in a while .
It was hard to refuse when she looked at me with such an innocent face. I sighed and said, "Okay." But just this time
She chuckled and said " No promises ."
We spent the whole day eating, watching movies, and relaxing.
Hey Alex, I heard you're going to quit your job, is that true? said the boss.
Good morning, boss. Yes, that's right, I told him with a smile.
He asked calmly, "May I know why you decided to leave ?"
I was about to answer him when Jess intervened.
She said in surprise, "You're leaving . Why ? When did you decide, and why didn't you tell me?" Why, after all the hard work, effort, and years that you put in to get here. and grabbed me by the collar , Wasn't this your dream? Her facial features were a mixture of anger and sadness.
I looked at her with a sad smile. You're right, this was my dream and it still is. But what if something happens to me in the future, who will take care of Liz? I'm the only family she has.
So what will you do if you quit your job?
I said ,, I have sent my resume to a number of companies I am waiting for their response. Once they reply, I will submit my resignation. Jess remained silent beside me and didn't say anything.
Well, if that's what you wanted, I won't interfere, but it's unfortunate that we'll lose someone as talented as you. And know that you're always welcome here., he said that and left.
Thank you boss . And i turned to Jess , I'm sorry I didn't tell you beforehand. You also know how much danger we face every day in this field? In my last mission, I was one step away from dying. "Literally" . From that moment I decided to change my job . Are you still angry? I'll buy you something delicious today
Jess shook her head and said, "I'm not angry, just a little sad." You'll be busy, and i'll be busy; We will no longer be in contact or meet as we are now .
I laughed and hit her on the shoulder, We can meet at the weekend , and you can come visit us at home whenever you like…
She just said " okay"
aunt i will be late at school today; I have a math exam. Liz said when we were on the way to school
Okay, but don't forget to call me when you're done so I can come pick you up.
She got out of the car and waved to me . Bye bye auntie until she disappeared from sight.
What's wrong, Alex? Why are you frowning? Jess asked, "What's on your mind?
It's Liz. I've called her so many times, but I can't reach her. I said , She did said she would be a little late at school, but not this late; all the students must have left by now.
She said ., Don't worry, she's probably hanging out with her friends and forgot to check her phone.
I don't know, maybe, but I have a bad feeling about this. I will go to her school to see , I was about to leave when my phone rang. It was Liz. I felt relieved. I said , Hey Liz, what are you doing? I called you so many times and you didn't answer. Tell me where you are so I can come and pick you up.
Hi Detective Alex, it's so nice to hear your voice at last! A strange voice came from the other side of the phone. It's very hard to reach you.
Who is this? Where is Liz? I said in a quiet voice, "Can you pass the phone to Liz?"
She laughed sarcastically and said, "Don't worry, she's fine."for now".If you want to see her alive, come to this address alone, or the little one will pay the price.
I shouted loudly, "Who are you and what do you want?"
She simply said, "You'll know when you get here," and hung up.
Jess asked anxiously, "What's wrong, Alex? Why were you shouting ?"
I said, terrified ، They took her, Jess. They kidnapped Liz. Jess, I'll send you an address. Gather men and follow me, but do so discreetly and without any alarms. i rushed out of the police station ،
The weather was very cold and snow covered everything. I drove fast and arrived at the address in 15 minutes. it's was in an abandoned building on the outskirts of the city. I went inside to the first floor, but no one was there. I went up to the second floor, which was also empty, and then to the third floor. I was surprised to find a large number of gang members. In the middle of a room, a woman in her early fifties was sitting in a chair with a cigarette in her hands.
When she saw me, she said "well well well look what we have here"
She pointed her finger at two men and said, "Take her weapon and tie her hands tightly behind her back." We don't want her to cause any problems .
Where is Liz? What have you done to her? i shouted loudly. Where is she ?
She laughed sarcastically and said to one of her men, "Show her"
He took his phone out of his pocket and showed me a video of Liz. She was in a large glass tank filled with water up to her knees. She was crying and screaming loudly, "Save me, Auntie!"
Came the woman voice saying , Every minute the water level rises and it will not stop until it is full.
I said angrily and loudly , "Who are you , why are you doing this?"
"Daniel Smith" said calmly , Does this ring a bell?
After a moment of silence and thought, I said " Victoria ." !!
She smirked , and said, "As smart as I heard." I also heard that you were the one who arrested my little brother.
She approached me slowly, holding a dagger in her hands, and her voice became as cold as ice. My brother died two days after entering prison. He was murdered in cold blood. I know you didn't kill him, but you are the reason for his death .You shouldn't have arrested him , You took someone dear to me from me; it's only fair that i take someone precious to you.
I knelt down and begged ,
"No, please," i pleaded in a trembling voice. "She's only 10 , Take me instead , You can torture me, you can kill me, you can do whatever you want , I won't resist.
OOh, you really won't resist? She said , amused. Let's see if you are ture to your word .
She brought a dagger to my face made a cut from my jaw to the middle of my cheek. and said what a shame that a beautiful face like this would be disfigured ,
I clenched my teeth hard; it really hurt ، but I have to endure, I have to endure, I kept repeating to myself
.
she made another cut between my eyebrows until she reached under my eye. she giggled and said ، You really didn't resist
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She stood up and turned back to her seat. and She sighed ,said, "This is boring."
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I heard a low scream coming from an upper floor. My heart stopped , It's Liz. She's here. I have to help her. I have to save her.
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I tried to stand up, but two men pushed me from behind forcefully to the ground. I tried to resist and push them away, but it was no use; they were too strong.
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Please, please don't do this. I beg you, kill me instead. I shouted loudly.
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After a period time of resistance and pleading, she finally spoke: "Come on, boys , it's time to leave."
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Before leaving, she turned around and said, "Now we're even."
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No, no, that's impossible. She can't be dead.
.
. I ran quickly to the upper floor , and there were liz ، In a tank full of water, She wasn't moving, I carried an iron pipe and struck the tank forcefully , once, twice, three times until I was able to break the glass. She wasn't breathing , Five minutes, ten minutes, Passed I tried to revive her heart. I began pleading, tears streaming down my face. "Please, Liz, breathe. Please, I know you're stronger than this. I beg you, open your eyes."Please don't leave me,come on، breathe. There's still so much Do it together. And many places,i want to show you , Please, God, don't take her from me. I beg you, save her.
.
Her body became as cold as ice, and her lips turned blue. she's gone , I lost her
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After a short while, Alex, where are you? I heard several footsteps from below. Jess has arrived, but it's too late.
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Alex, what happened? Why is your face bleeding? Why aren't you talking? Is Liz okay? Alex, say something!
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She tried to get closer to Liz, but I hugged her tightly to my chest and kept saying, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, , I'm sorry.
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Alex, what are you doing? Let me see her, she said shouting .
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I pushed her away forcefully and said in a low voice, "It's cold, Liz will catch a cold. I have to keep her warm."
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She fell to her knees in front of me and began to cry, "Please, Alex, let me take her." She said in a loud voice.
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I looked at her with a blank face and tears streaming down my face. Keep your voice down , you'll wake her up. I said whispering .
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She slapped me hard and said, "Come to your senses!" She called for police officers to help her take Liz's body from my arms; i tried desperately to hold on to it.
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But they managed to take her. Jess hugged me tightly from behind so I wouldn't resist and begged me to calm down.
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I stopped resisting and started laughing loudly. she is dead, jess . Liz is dead, and it's my fault. I killed her. And I kept laughing , and started saying ، I will kill them, I will kill them all, I said between my laughs.
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i pushed her hard Until she stumbled and fell i hurried out of the building , She tried to catch up with me, but I got into a car and drove off quickly..