Traces
1690 Words
The dark curtains were moved to the side and let the sunlight come to the messy room.
“Ugh! What the!” with dark circles around her eyes and haggard look, the newly awakened and exhausted looking Gabrielle complained and shield her eyes with her hands against the strong lights.
“You need some light in here.” A man in white shirt with a long cardigan and pants said.
“Go away… How did you get in here?”
“You left your door open. I bought you food.” The man waved the paper bag to her.
She sighed and grumpily grabbed the bag and opened it. Inside is a bagel, she turned to look at him and that person showed her a cup of coffee in a cup.
“Why are you here, Holland?” Still frowning, she reached for the hot coffee and took a sip.
Americano double shot. Just her coffee.
“I heard about the suspension. Did you really hit Major Kelly?”
Gabrielle was once again reminded of what happened two days ago. She had gathered all the missing person files for the past years. With that on hand, Gabrielle set up a meeting with her direct superior for the district. Major Kelly.
“You said it’s important? What is it? I have golf meeting with the Colonel. Make it fast.” Major Kelly is an obese military officer. He usually stays inside his office or goes on various activities with higher ranking officers.
Gabrielle, didn’t make remarks on his activity especially since it’s technically still working hours.
She had to show different printed pictures of a resident. They are the missing person filed and were never found. They were stuck as missing persons over the years.
“What are you trying to say?” Major Kelly tilted on the side as he supported his head with his fingers. Not bothering on hiding his uninterested and bored attitude.
Apparently, the number of people that have gone missing keeps increasing every year but only from the outer parts of the walls have gone.
“Then it must be because the number of people going out increases too.”
Gabrielle almost bared her canine but she chose to just grind her teeth underneath her closed lips. ‘It must be nice to be stupid.’ She commented internally.
“I found several cases where people received money before they disappeared. Two people might be a coincidence but I found at least five similar cases in the past 3 years.”
“Why concern yourself with those people? They can all disappear for all I care besides, they only have a little to none contribution to the wall.”
“...” Speechless not only at Major Kelly’s attitude but all his low intelligence
“Is that it? Okay, I’ll be off to golf now.”
“Wait sir! Please let me finish.” Gabrielle slides her body infront of her superior to prevent him from leaving.
“Move.” Major Kelly glared at her but she didn’t bat an eye and just continued.
“I think someone is paying and making the people go outside, the evidence is from the last case…Someone might be…”
“Haaaaaaaah! I am not interested in your fantasy. Move, I don’t want to hear it. Have you gone crazy from venturing out all the time? If you are…” Major Kelly put his hand on her shoulders and squeezed it while giving her strange smiles and looks.
“...I know a place to...destress yourself.”
She grasps his hands tightly and removes it. “I only reported it out of respect but since you are clearly interested in other things except your duty, I’m going.”
“b***h! YOU REALLY HAVE NO RESPECT TO YOUR SUPERIORS HUH?” turning red from anger Major Kelly rubbed his hand before raising it to hit her.
She moved away to dodge and then another incoming slap was headed her way.
‘How did this dumbass become an officer with these crappy skills?” She dodge again and it made her superior even angrier.
“STOP MOVING b***h!”
‘See, he keeps getting dumber and dumber? Who the hell will be willingly hit by those fat hands of yours?’
She internally complained but she did stop. As Major Kelly smiled victoriously he put strength to his next slap but she kicked him the shin.
“ARGHHHH!” Major Kelly fell on his own in pain.
‘Pathetic.’
“If there is nothing else, I’m going now.” She respectfully saluted and exited the room. Though she can still hear the buzzing sound of curses and her name altogether she didn't react much.
“Gab, did you really...hit our superior?” Pulling her off to her reminiscing of the event two days at Holland’s repeated question.
“Yes.” She nonchalantly answered.
“Why would you do that? Even if its you, hitting someone higher rank than you, will give you imprisonment or death penalty. You are lucky that it ended up in just an indefinite suspension.”
“Hmm..” She took a bite on her bagel and stared at the files she gathered. Somehow she kept being led to a dead end.
“I will try to get you off the suspension before the next venture out.”
“Ah?... No, don’t do that. I… I will take this as vacation. I’ve been working tirelessly all these years... ”
“That’s true…”
“So get out, I am busy.”
“You are a heartless friend. I just got here and brought you breakfast, now you are chasing me out.”
“I am not your friend, I am your captain.”
“You are suspended…. Ah! Ah! Ah! I get it, please stop twisting my hand.”
After chasing her visitor, she quickly changed to her black jacket and jeans. She also covered her hair with a cap and grabbed sunglasses.
It didn’t take long after she arrived at her destination, with her jeep parked near the Wall 103 hospital, everyone passing turned to it and gossips.
It was not common for a fancy looking car to be seen here.
“I am looking for the doctor.” She said the nurse was obviously eyeing on the car at the hospital’s entrance.
“Ah… Yes this way please.”
*Knock knock
“Doctor, someone is here to see you.”
“Come in.” The doctor said on the other side.
Entering the doctor’s office she was welcomed and offered a seat and drinks.
“I had my coffee earlier, thank you. I’ll be quick.”
The doctor smiled and gave her water though before returning to his seat.
“What can I do for you, Sir Gabrielle?”
“You know me.”
“Of course, Wall 103 knows you. In years you’ve been leading Renaissance ventures. It will be odd if we don’t recognize you.”
“Ah… I see. That’s why… by the way I am here because I need your help.”
“My help?”
“This is the person you are looking for right?” She showed the picture of Lucas and the doctor agreed.
“I think he is outside the walls. Someone might be paying for people to go outside and I intend to find who and what is his purpose. In the past months alone there have been missing cases.”
“...”
“You also think I am crazy? I get it, there is not much left in the previous world out that’s why I am thinking of a logical reason why send them outside. What are they after?” Now that she voiced it out, it’s been frustrating for her all this time, as if there were a thousand puzzles she needed to put together to make sense.
“I believe you. As someone who was placed in the higher caste, $10,000 is something that can be given away, the price for it might be at least someone’s life… so what can I do to help? Lucas is like a family to me.”
The fatigue came to her as soon as one person had believed in her. For once after the building and hundred undead sightings, she was not treated like a disillusioned soldier.
“Please open the gates for me. I will move and trace them myself.”
“Okay, I get it but I have my conditions.” The doctor was confident at least that is among his power vested.
She frowned a little but agreed to hear it. “First, you will not move alone, take at least 4-5 people. Surviving alone in a dead world is harder than you imagine.”
“Okay.”
“Second. Take a good rest.”
She was taken aback by it but what can she expect from a doctor?”
“Noted.”
She left on the back door of the hospital after seeing several people waiting by her car. They look like they are waiting for her. She then remembered what the doctor said.
‘...W all 103 knows you. In years you’ve been leading Renaissance ventures. It will be odd if we don’t recognize you.’
Walking on the streets, she moves on the farthest side of the wall, where the slums are located. She turns the corner and sees a house.
‘Basement.’ Spotting the little way down on the side she went down and pulled a key out.
Inside is musky and smelled like garbage, just like Victoria and Brandy’s home but unlike theirs, this house’s state is worse than a stable.
Aside from a bed, table, a sink and a broken glass mirror there is no furniture inside. The rest are trash.
The man that used to live here seems to be surviving on expired bread.
She thought maybe coming to that house will give her some clues but, all she took is a pity.
He got $10,000 dollars but he didn’t take even a dollar for himself.
“What an idiot.”
- Writer
