Abduction (w/ story)

Cheryl was a 50-year-old hardened detective based in the city of Birmingham, Alabama. She had made national headlines for several high-profile arrests and was highly regarded among her colleagues. She was a tenacious and dedicated woman, two traits necessary to succeed in her field, especially as a woman. Although rough on the surface, with a large, burly physique and masculine demeanor, Cheryl was in fact a kind-hearted soul, always eager to help those in need. She took her job very seriously, one might even say she was obsessive, and she had managed to crack a number of cases which were believed unsolvable. She specialized in serial murderers and kidnappers, an area she was especially fascinated by. Many highly-wanted criminals had met their ends at the hands of this fighting woman. That’s why when Birmingham was struck with a sudden wave of disappearances, none other than Cheryl herself was called in to put an end to it. This criminal was smart. Cheryl knew that much for sure. There had already been 10 disappearances and not a single possible suspect could be identified. Cheryl hunted down every possible lead with the thoroughness of a hyena licking the meat from the bones of a wildebeest, but found herself at an impasse. Months went by, and she had gotten no closer to solving the case than when she had first started. “This sure is a tough nut to crack,” she thought to herself. But then...she finally got the break she had been waiting for. One of the believed victims of this mysterious abductor had managed to escape and went to the police with a few juicy details. She was female, about 60 years of age, average in height. What she revealed made this possibly the most intriguing case Cheryl had ever worked on. According to the woman, her captor did not fit the typical profile one would expect of a violent, serial criminal. It was not a large male obviously capable of physically overpowering his victims. No, it was just the opposite. This was a small, slender, Asian girl, no more than 20 years old, probably younger. Cheryl wanted to be incredulous, but the victim was clearly not lying. She was rather badly beat up, with bruises all over her body and face, and rope burns around her wrists, ankles, and neck. Cheryl proceeded to question the woman. “But how on God’s green earth does a petite girl like that manage to kidnap a gal like you? You look like you could handle yourself,” she queried in a thick southern drawl. A tear streamed down the woman’s face. “I did everything I possibly could to protect myself, but this girl seemed inhuman. She was highly-trained, that’s for sure, and moved her body in ways I ain’t never seen before. She beat me real good, and she did it without breaking a sweat. She knocked me out and when I woke up, I was tied up, in some kind of dungeon. It was...it was terrifying. The things she did to me. I’d really rather not say. Cheryl wrapped up her questioning about an hour later. This was definitely the culprit they were after. The woman revealed she wasn’t the only prisoner there, there were at least 5 others, though she wasn’t sure the exact number, as they were all kept in their own cages. They were tortured and humiliated in a variety of ways which the woman didn’t go into in detail. Unfortunately, the location of this so-called dungeon remained unknown. The woman was tied and blindfolded when she managed to escape, and couldn’t see anything of use. She fled for several miles before being picked up, she said. “Well, this sure is shaping up to be a hell of a mystery,” Cheryl thought to herself as she left the station. Cheryl wasted no time following up on her leads. She spent the next week tracking down anyone who matched the suspect’s description and who lived in a several-mile radius of where the victim was found. But much to the chagrin of this determined detective, she once again found herself at a dead-end. None of her leads ended up going anywhere. She was stumped. And then the news got even worse. The victim who she had questioned a week earlier suddenly turned up missing again. This was a truly unprecedented case. “Aw nuts!” Cheryl said to said herself, exasperated. She wasn’t used to being so stumped, but she was never one to throw in the towel. “This bitch isn’t gettin’ away with these shenanigans on my watch!” she said resolutely. “I don’t care how smart or dangerous this little Asian gal is, she ain’t no match for Cheryl.” That night, Cheryl locked herself into her study and began pouring over all the evidence, desperate for a breakthrough. She examined all her leads again with the fervor of a starved packed of wolves fighting over caribou meat. She looked at when and where all the suspects had last been seen and cross-referenced it to all those matching the suspect’s description who had been in the area at the time. After hours of work, she was left with just one possible suspect. “Holy smokes!” she screamed, her heart pounding with the speed of a cheetah desperately chasing a baby gazelle. “It’s gotta be her!” she shouted in glee. But Cheryl’s ecstasy was short-lived. Just after her major breakthrough, she heard something come from behind her. It was a voice. A soft voice, a girl’s voice, calm and unhurried. “Nice job, Cheryl,” said the voice. Cheryl jumped up out of her chair in a frenzy and span around, nearly having a heart attack in the process. What she saw was the most baffling, inexplicable thing she had ever witnessed throughout her 30 years as a detective. It was the very woman she had suspected, comfortably stretched out on the couch in Cheryl’s office. No one, not even Cheryl, could deny that she was a stunning beauty. She had long, black silky hair, smooth, pale skin, and was wearing a large black hoodie with the sleeves pulled up to her elbows. It appeared as if she wasn’t wearing any pants, though they may have just been concealed under her hoodie. She had removed her socks and shoes, which sat at the foot of the couch. According to the info Cheryl had dug up, she was an 18-year-old South Korean girl studying abroad in the US, the last person anyone would ever suspect of such heinous crimes. “What in God’s name...how did...what...when...?” Cheryl was speechless. “I must say, I’m impressed. It’s been fun watching you work these past few months, but there was no way you were ever gonna win this,” the girl said calmy. She didn’t seem nervous in the slightest. Cheryl managed to pull herself together and gave a genius retort. “If you think I’m just gonna roll over and let you take me, you’ve got another thing comin’!” she said as she grabbed her handgun, which lay just a few feet away. But before she even knew what happened, the girl had leapt from the couch and disarmed her, all in the blink of an eye. Cheryl was dumbfounded. “Aww come on Cheryl, play fair. I don’t have any weapons,” she said with a smirk as she tossed the gun aside. “Fine, if that’s the way you want it, I don’t need no gun take on a tiny bitch like you,” Cheryl said bombastically, desperately trying to conceal the fact that she was actually terrified, despite the fact this girl was only a fraction of her size. Cheryl wasn’t one to stand by idly. She quickly raised her arm and through a powerful punch toward the girl, who effortlessly evaded it, and then landed an elbow to Cheryl’s face. “Ow! You damn bitch, I’m gonna kill you!” Cheryl screamed in a fit of rage. She then began throwing punch after punch at the girl, who continued to skillfully evade them, each time returning with a painful blow to Cheryl’s body. The girl’s speed and skill were like nothing Cheryl, who was a skilled fighter in her own right, had ever witnessed. Cheryl grew angrier with every blow she received, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t even make contact with this girl, who danced around her like a gleeful child, giggling all the while. “How the hell is a young gal like you so strong? This don’t make a lick of sense!” Cheryl yelled, exhausted. The girl had a sadistic, self-satisfied grin on her face. “Give up?” she said, half giggling. This was nothing more than a game for her. “Like hell I do!” Cheryl said defiantly as she lunged at the girl, finally getting her arms around her. When it came to brute strength, Cheryl had a strong advantage due to her sheer size. “Oh you’re in trouble now,” she said as she lifted the girl into the air, preparing to knock her unconscious with a single slam against the hard wood floor. Unfortunately, the girl’s technique proved too much for Cheryl, as she deftly maneuvered out of the hold mid-air, wrapped her skinny legs around Cheryl’s bulging neck and flipped her onto the ground. “Gonna have to do better than that, Cheryl,” she said tauntingly. Cheryl struggled to her feet, exhausted from the gruesome beating she had received. Deep down, she knew it was over. Nevertheless, she continued throwing punches, and continued to be punished badly. Her face and body were covered in bruises. She was drenched in sweat. The tiny girl before her, on the other hand, seemed to be having a splendid time toying with her prey. The girl could clearly see she had won. She jumped up onto Cheryl’s shoulders from behind and sat upright, her legs placed on either side of Cheryl’s neck. Cheryl moaned in pain, but was too weak to do anything. The girl placed a hand over her mouth to silence her. “Shhh...you’re mine now detective.” TO BE CONTINUED