"Get down!" Tony yelled, pulling both him and me to the floor as another knife flew from the partially opened elevator door.
"Who are these guys? Why are you chasing them?" I asked, instinctively shielding Mathew's big body with mine. He was surprisingly defenseless for a man of his stature.
As soon as the men were free, they took advantage of our momentary distraction and started towards the stairwell, but Tony had enough sense, probably from experience, to lock the door. They turned back, but Tony and I were ready for them. Mathew was standing huddled in a corner out of reach but keeping sight of everything.
"I see you have changed your partner, detective, tired of carrying that weight already," one of the men jeered, clearly familiar with Tony.
"My partner is currently in your home, making her own arrests as we speak." Tony retorted with a cutting-edge threat that made everything he said sound like a threat. The man, it had been directed to clearly share my sentiments as his face hardened, any trace of mirth gone.
He pulled one foot back, getting to a sprinting position, but as they were talking, my mind began producing images and making connections that seemed complicated, but I immediately understood. Mathew's mind was one hell of a scape seeking patterns and solutions simply by feeling inconvenienced.
I quickly strategized. There were three men in total, one of whom was gearing up to come at us full speed, probably intending to use his momentum to take us down. The two men behind him were armed with a knife and a spanner, respectively, both sharp and would cause serious injury if in close contact. For a second, it seemed the world had slowed down for everyone else but me. I did not question it; I saw an opportunity and ran with it.
I ran full pelt towards the man and collided with him as hard as I could. The moment our bodies touched, time resumed its normal toil. My impact sent the man flying back so hard he dented what looked like a cement wall before crumpling to the floor unconscious, but not before knocking down his companions who had been behind him. They also lay silently on the ground, not moving a muscle.
I stood back, shocked at how strong I was. I expected it to work, but it had surpassed my expectations. I cautiously touched the man's wrist, looking for a pulse, but a vision flooded my mind. This very man was opening what looked like a hidden basement in the middle of the woods. He stepped into the room, revealing close to twenty teenage and little girls all tied up with chains anchored on beds that had no mattresses. The vision changed from a personal perspective to a bird's view, showing exactly where the hidden basement was.
Tony pulled me up, but I was pulled sideways into Mathew's protective frame. I pulled his hands away, and I felt very little resistance as I pulled him off me, but from his face I could tell he had used all his strength trying to keep me in place. I stood on the tops of my toes, cursing my short stature even though I had heeled boots on. Mathew did not resist as I pulled him into a kiss, instead melting against me for a second before lifting me off my feet. It was all a performance for Tony's benefit, but I let him have his say because he would not be coming with us to the bunker. That must have been the reason Tony was pursuing them, and this was a rare chance to get in the male lead's good graces as a newly reformed criminal mastermind.
"Baby, I know you mean well, and I can assure you that there can never be anything between Tony and me. We were childhood friends, but we didn't get together because of our differences, and he also has a girlfriend with whom we used to be best friends. That is to say, you have nothing to worry about, but I will have to leave with him and reschedule that meeting for tomorrow.
'Why does he need your help? I know you used to be friends, but you fell out for a reason, and I think he has feelings for you, which is why your former best friend tried her best to sabotage you. She even tried seducing me once to hurt you,' he used his thoughts to argue, cutting Tony off from the conversation.
"I can't speak for him," I replied to his unvoiced questions, but I can speak for myself, and I would never betray you. Plus, I already have six husbands. I don't have that big of an appetite.
"I don't like the way he is looking at you?" he silently replied, looking back to Tony, who was pacing back and forth, talking to someone on the phone.
I kissed him again before gesturing him towards the door. He whined about not wanting to go in my mind, but I ignored him, encouraging him to go without uttering another word. I watched his retreating fondly, still tickled by how differently he presented himself to others. I tapped Tony's shoulders, drawing his attention from the call.
"I know where his hideout is and where he is keeping the girls," I whispered to him.
He hung up his call, and I did my best impression of a psychic because how else was I going to convince him that I knew where the girls were, despite never having met said girls or any of the men. He bought my story despite how implausible it was, although it was less ridiculous than the truth. The system had given me the seer ability, and this was the first time I experienced it.
"I am willing to try anything. We are running out of time."
I pulled him towards the door, unable to erase the memory of the girls tied together. What these animals were doing could not go unpunished, and if the police couldn't do it, then I would. I, too, had been in a similar position to those little girls. barely self-aware enough to know my name, but already shown the worst life had to offer. It was no longer about gaining favor; those girls needed rescuing. Now that the roles were reversed, I almost fully lifted Tony in my haste to get to my car. It was only after halting at the car door that I noticed that we had covered twenty meters in a fraction of a second. Tony looked winded and a bit in shock, but I shoved him into the vehicle and sped off instinctively towards the forest.