With a soft chime, the elevator doors slid open and Rapunzel's mother stepped out onto the top floor of the building carrying a bag full of groceries. She was in a hallway that was lined with several doors leading into other condos. Other vacant condos.
Just the way she wanted it.
Directly in front of her was the door leading into the only occupied residence on this floor, as well as the next fifteen floors down. It had locks, keypads, scanners and all sorts of other security devices that were the best that munny could buy. Standing beside that door was a very large, very muscular, very bald man in a black suit with a stern look in his eyes the color of rusty copper. His sleeves appeared to be on the verge of splitting at the seams due to his bulging biceps and he was tall enough that his head almost brushed the ceiling.
He too was the best that munny could buy.
"Evening, Ms. Gothel," the leviathan rumbled in a deep, clipped business tone.
"Good evening, Pascal," she returned the greeting, stepping up to the door he stood guard over and beginning to punch some numbers into one of the keypads. "Anything to report?"
"All's quiet."
She nodded, pressing her thumb to one screen and waiting for a beep. Then she started typing into another number pad. "Are your children well?" she asked conversationally.
"Very well." His stoic exterior softened slightly when one corner of his mouth twitched up fondly. "Lucius has a birthday coming up, and Tiana made the little league baseball team."
"Isn't that just precious?" she crooned as she leaned forward to have her left iris scanned. Then she pulled out a set of keys and released the last of the locks before checking her watch. "You're almost off?" At his nod, she said, "Well, you have a good night after your shift ends, Pascal."
"You do the same, Ms. Gothel," he replied, expression blank once more, as she finally opened the door and entered.
As the door fell shut behind her with several more clicks and beeps, she called out, "Pumpkin, I'm back!"
The dark condo greeted her with silence.
Walking over to the kitchen area, she opened the fridge and began to transition items from the paper bag into it. "Oh, honey, you know I hate leaving you after a fight, especially when I've done absolutely nothing wrong."
By the time her grocery bag was empty, she still had not heard a peep out of her daughter. Narrowing her eyes as she closed the refrigerator door, she called out once more, "Oh, not speaking to me now, are we?" She stalked over towards the canopy bed, where she could see a large shape under the covers. "Not exactly proving to me right now what a mature, young lady you are… Ha!" she cried as she whipped the covers back, revealing nothing more than a pile of plushies.
Frowning, her eyes went to the bathroom door, which lay open and showed an unlit room on the other side. She wasn't in there. Maybe out on the balcony?
She flicked on the overhead faery lights on her way the glass door. Sliding it open, she called, "Rapunzel?"
When there was no answer this time, her heart went cold.
"Rapunzel, this isn't funny. March your butt out here this instant, Missy!" she snapped.
Again, nothing.
Beginning to panic, she rushed out onto the terrace. She tore through the jungle of plants for the next several minutes, but came up empty handed. Running back inside, she started searching frantically as she shouted her daughter's name repeatedly, her alarm growing with each unanswered call. A messy, scattered trail of books, clothes, DVDs and other odds and ends were left in her wake. She looked inside, under, and behind whatever furniture she could think of, any hiding spot Rapunzel could reasonably fit in, plus many that were unreasonable as well.
She made herself stop and take a calming, if somewhat shaky breath as she realized she was now digging through the silverware drawer. Okay, her daughter was flexible, but not quite flexible enough to fit in there. She needed to think with a more level head. Slowly turning where she stood as she looked for clues, she found she couldn't keep her mind quiet.
Where was she? Had she been kidnapped? Did she fall off the balcony? Was she-
Her questions were silenced as her eyes fell on the fridge door. Something was different… a note! There was a note on it that hadn't been there before! She lunged forward and snatched it up, reading it hastily.
Dear Mother,
I've run away.
Just kidding, don't freak out! I have gone out, but I'll be back in a couple days! I'm with a friend, so you have absolutely nothing to worry about.
Love,
Rapunzel
P.S. Whatever you do, please, please, PLEASE don't open the wardrobe until I get back and can explain.
She blinked once and re-read the letter. Then she read it again. She read it seventeen more times, the sheet crumpling as her fingers gripped it more tightly.
Gone out? A couple days? A friend? What friend? And what was the deal with the wardrobe?
Her eyes went to the piece of furniture in question. Her wild search had not brought her over to that corner of the room, so she had not checked inside it yet. For the first time, she realized there was a chair pressed up under its door handles, blocking it shut. As if… something were being held inside…?
What the hell had been going on in her absence?!
She took a hesitant step towards the closet. Then another. As if in a trance, she approached it, reaching a hand out for the chair.
There was a crackling buzz. "Ms. Gothel?"
She just about leapt out of her skin. One of her hands flew to her chest to cover her pounding heart as she spun around. That had been Pascal's voice that had come through the intercom affixed next to the front door. She'd never heard him use the intercom before, why would he? Unless-
Her eyes went wide. Was Rapunzel out there? She raced over to the door, crossing the large room in the blink of an eye. Her fingers were a blur as she released the locks and disabled the rest of the security measures faster than she ever had before, faster than should have been humanly possible. Then she threw the door open. "Rapun-!"
The rough, chiseled face that greeted her was most definitely not Rapunzel's.
"Evening, Ma'am. Detective Colt," the man in a trench coat introduced himself, holding up his badge. He was not short by any means, but with the way Pascal loomed over his shoulder, he may as well have been a hobbit. "May I have a word?"
"A- You- I-" she stammered, unable to form a coherent thought. This was the first time a cop - scratch that, this was the first time anyone besides herself or a security guard had ever shown up on this doorstep. What was a detective doing here? Suddenly, her mouth went dry. Had something happened...? Had something happened to her daughter? Holding the doorframe for support, she asked, "Wh-what is this about, officer?"
"May I come in?" he asked, his voice flat and gravelly as he tucked his badge back into his coat.
Her gut instinct was to demand a warrant, which she suspected he did not have, and then slam the door shut in his face. But she squashed that instinct. It's how she would, and should, have reacted if Rapunzel was inside, but she wasn't. She didn't know where the girl had run off to, and this man might have information relating to that.
The bodyguard seemed to sense her agitation and looked ready to hurl the officer out the nearest window, but she stayed him with her hand. "It's alright, Pascal. Yes, please come in, Detective."
Pascal seemed surprised as he reluctantly backed off. Opening the door wider, she gestured Colt inside and he complied.
Closing the door, she turned to find him inspecting the space from where he stood with a critical eye. The room looked like a hurricane had blown right through it - the aftermath from her discovery of Rapunzel's disappearance. "Gave the maid the day off?" he asked casually.
"Ah, no, just…" she cleared her throat, "...doing some… spring cleaning."
He gave a curt nod. "You live here alone, Ma'am?"
She looked at him sharply. If he was asking a question like that, then maybe his visit wasn't regarding Rapunzel after all. Maybe he had no idea of her existence whatsoever. She ignored his question. "What is this about?" she inquired a second time.
If he thought her lack of answer odd, his steely face didn't show it. "I'm investigating a crime that took place in the vicinity. The perpetrator may have escaped into your balcony."
She blinked, eyes darting from the man to her terrace. A terrace that was a little over eighty floors up off the ground. "...okay… how?"
"I'm not at liberty to discuss the details of the case, Ma'am."
She folded her arms over her chest and eyed him warily. "I see."
"Have there been any suspicious characters in the area this evening?"
"No... but I haven't been home for long."
"Notice anything missing when you got back?"
Yes, an unruly teenager about yeigh high and hair long enough for, let's say, three hundred preschoolers to play jump rope with.
She shook her head. "Everything seems to be in its place."
His gaze returned to roving the catastrophe that was the condo. "Is that so?"
"I have a system," she nodded. Since it seemed the detective knew nothing of Rapunzel, she wanted to keep it that way. She'd find her daughter on her own. It was time to wrap this up and send Detective Colt on his way. "Now, if that's all, I-"
A thunderous crash reverberated around the room, making her jump and him reach for the holster under his coat. Her wide eyes immediately went to the armoire.
"What was that?" he growled, glancing around. It seemed the detective was less keen as to the exact source of the noise.
"That was the cat," she stated quickly. With Rapunzel's warning about the wardrobe, she seriously doubted she wanted Colt anywhere near it.
He raised a dubious eyebrow at her and opened his mouth, but before he could utter a word, there was more loud thrashing noises. This time they both watched as the wardrobe shook violently several times before settling down again.
"...do you always lock your cat in the closet?" he deadpanned.
"Oh, yes. Fluffy loves it in there, go figure."
He frowned, then started walking towards the wardrobe in long strides. She moved to stand in his way, but he just pushed passed her, pulling out his firearm. "Please stand aside, Ma'am."
As if sensing him drawing near, the armoire rattled again with even more enthusiasm, beginning to careen from side to side. As she watched, she had to wonder what on earth her daughter had trapped in there. The officer furrowed his brow at the chair lodged up against the doors, then aimed his pistol while using his foot to knock the chair out of the way.
The doors banged open and a small blur of white charged out at him. Muffling a curse, he ducked and it flew over his head. It zipped through the air, doing a few loops as if caught in a tiny invisible cyclone before slowing enough to land delicately on its feet.
Though it lacked eyes, the pale little monster with a zipper for a mouth seemed to look back and forth between Colt and Ms. Gothel a few times, swaying hypnotically where it stood. Then its whole body shuddered and began to vibrate, convulsing in on itself. A few seconds later, it stopped just as suddenly as it started. The creature looked around once more. It seemed to be… confused?
"Lady, that's one strange cat you have," the detective murmured, not taking his eyes off it.
"It's… a rare breed."
The thing abruptly took flight once more, slithering through the air towards the sliding door leading out onto the balcony. Glass seemed to be a foreign concept to it, as it collided with the transparent pane with a loud thud!
It shook off its daze before launching itself back the way it had come from. It flew wildly about the space, zigzagging to and fro, forcing them to duck several times to avoid being struck by it as it passed.
It seemed to be searching for something. And when it finally slammed into the front door, it became apparent what that something was: an escape route. It slid down the surface until it hit the ground. Then it flattened itself against the floor and slipped out through the paper-thin crack under the door.
Silence filled the room for a second as they both just stared at where it had disappeared. Then her eyes shot to Detective Colt. Laughing nervously, she clapped her hands together and said, "Would you look at that? The cat learned a new trick!"
"That is no cat!" he snapped.
A surprised yelp from Pascal could be heard from the other side of the door. Detective Colt leapt into action, holstering his gun once more and running at the door. He fumbled with the locks for a few seconds, before rounding on her. "Get this damn thing open right now!"
She hurried to comply. After several clicks and beeps, she pulled the door open. The creature was nowhere to be seen, but Pascal stood there, back pressed against a wall and mouth hanging agape.
"Which way did it go?" the detective demanded. Wordlessly, the bodyguard pointed down the hallway to the left. Colt ran a few steps in the direction indicated, then came to a screeching halt long enough to shout back at her, "We're not done. Don't leave town!" Then he took off sprinting once more. They lost sight of him as he turned down a corner at the far end of the hallway.
Ms. Gothel stared at the spot where he had disappeared, narrowing her eyes and pursing her lips. Then she spun on her heel and swiftly marched back into the condo, her mind racing. She was beginning to get a clearer idea of what had happened here while she was gone. She may not yet have the whole picture, but the pieces were slowly beginning to fall into place.
Where had Rapunzel been pestering, pleading, begging her to take her for the past several weeks? The Starlight Festival. Was her daughter desperate - nay, boneheaded enough to run off with some wanted criminal that just fell into her lap simply for a chance to go to that inane celebration? You bet.
A minute later, she stepped back out into the hall now wearing a long coat and carrying a large shoulder bag packed to the brim. She looked at Pascal. The normally intimidating guardian with a fearsome scowl was currently hovering uncertainly nearby.
"Come, Pascal," she said cooly. "We're heading out."
"We are?" he asked as his eyebrows shot up his forehead. His gaze shifted to the condo door as it clicked shut behind her. He never left his post, not while he was on the clock. "Where?"
Eyes hard as flint, she raised her chin. "To bring my rebellious, runaway daughter home, even if we have to drag her back by the hair, kicking and screaming."
Author's Note: The plot thickens xD How does Gothel plan to hunt down her wayward daughter? And where oh where is our little Dusk going to lead the Detective on this merry little chase? Sorry, I know you're all excited for the big Snuggly Duckling meetup and expected it this chapter, but not quite yet xD It's coming tho, I swear!
Special thanks and much love to Spiderfan626, Amarxlen, SoraKairiRikuNamine, and Miss PandaManga for reviewing, as well as to everyone else who have shown support for my quirky little story! Thank you all for reading, hoped you liked it, please leave a review and let me know what you think! Be back for next week's update! :)