I am very sorry for the long wait. I have been very busy lately and I could only write in the late evening :)
The plot is unstoppable and we are slowly approaching the highly emotional part of the story. I want to thank everyone very much for the beautiful reviews of all my stories. In the near future, you can look forward to many other chapters of "My Theories About Inspector Gadget"
I want you to know that I am constantly writing, even though I am not publishing any new chapters. I wish you all a nice summer holiday. Enjoy it!
7. Dr. Claw
It was already evening. The light of the street lamps illuminated the empty street and there was silence everywhere. Sophie could only hear the clatter of her heels making their specific sound as she walked on the sidewalk. In order not to be so conspicuous among the people in the bar, she wore a cocktail dress and used evening make-up. She looked beautiful, but she was also very sad.
"She didn't want to do it. My mother followed the rules all her life, and this was against all the rules. Plus... her brother was a policeman. His job was to arrest the people she was going to deal with. She knew that if John found out, he would never forgive her. But did she have a choice?"
As Sophie approached the place, she heard loud music. She hated bars. They were full of cigarette smoke and drunk people. As she entered, she saw a man in a black suit sitting at one of the tables. He was drinking a glass of wine and had a bright red handkerchief in his jacket pocket. He noticed her immediately.
"Oh, so it's you. Sophie Dollar?" he asked.
"Yes," Sophie answered briefly. She was uncomfortable talking to this man.
"I wonder what YOU have for our boss," the man said contemptuously and laughed.
"You may not be interested in that at all. I want to talk to Dr. Gordon!" she was angry.
"Shhh... Calm down, Sophie. We're not alone here," the man said softly. He didn't need other people to listen to them.
"I'm Mrs. Dollar for you," Sophie said in the same contemptuous tone. "So where is he !?"
"Follow me." the man said and walked towards the back exit.
Behind the building stood a parked red car with dark windows.
"Dr. Gordon is waiting for you at his castle. Get on!" he said and opened the car door. There was no driver inside.
"No, I'm not going anywhere," Sophie disagreed. "We didn't talk about this ..."
"Do it!" shouted the man in the jacket. He was running out of patience.
"NO!"
"Get her there," he said, and two MAD agents grabbed Sophie tightly and forced her into the car. The young woman fought back, but didn't stand a chance. The door closed and the car drove off.
After half an hour's drive, the car stopped in the courtyard of a haunted castle. The sky was overcast and there was a terrible storm. Two other men were waiting for her. Each of them grabbed her arm on one side and led her inside. They walked down a long dark corridor until they entered a small room. Agents ordered Sophie to sit in a chair, and they locked the door so she wouldn't run away. The computer screen in front of her lit up. A dark figure of a man sitting at his desk appeared on it. Sophie couldn't see his face. He had a huge iron glove on his hand and was holding a cat.
"We brought her here, exactly as you ordered, Dr. Gordon," said the man in the black suit proudly.
"IDIOT, I've told you a thousand times to call me Dr. Claw!" his boss shouted and slammed his iron fist on the table. All the agents began to tremble with fear. His voice was terrifying.
"Of course Claw... Dr. Claw," the man tried to correct his mistake. "I... we're... This is the woman who wanted to talk to you."
His boss turned his attention to the young seated woman. "Sophie Dollar, am I right?"
"Yes you are," Sophie said coldly, crouching in her chair. She was very scared.
"My name is Dr. Claw. I own this criminal organization called the Malevolent Agency of Destruction. Among people, it is known as MAD. What can I do for you?"
"This is Dr. Claw. Historically the biggest criminal in Metrocity and a terribly evil man. After my uncle blew up his first devilish plan, he was severely wounded. Instead of his right hand, he began wearing a steel glove and calling himself Dr. Claw. He hated Uncle Gadget wholeheartedly. They were terrible enemies. This cruel monster destroyed almost everything I cared about in my life. He ruined my childhood, killed my parents and badly hurt my uncle. I never stopped hating him for what he did to my family.
"I'm a scientist," Sophie said. "I came to offer you my services. Look. I'm working on this," she said and showed Dr. Claw one of her technical drawings. It was a scheme of her old invention that she never completed. "It's a small super-powerful computer. It has the most advanced technology yet, including several high-performance chips. It can be used to remotely control any system in the world."
"Wonderful, you're a really talented young woman, Mrs. Dollar," said Dr. Claw, stroked his cat.
"Thank you," she thanked.
"I am very interested in your invention. What do you ask for your work on it?"
"Money," she said firmly. "A lot of money."
"How much?" he asked, ordering one of the agents to open his personal safe.
"It was the only option..."
"Do you know what you did? It's a crime! If your brother knew about it..." Frank shouted.
"He must never know! Never! Do you understand ?!" his wife interrupted, checking to see if the lab door was closed. She didn't want anyone to listen to them. "It's at my own risk," she continued. "I'm responsible for that myself."
Frank was angry with her.
"You're a great mechanical engineer. We can do it together. I believe it!"
Her husband was not looking at her.
"Frank, please," she begged. "I... I don't want him dead."
She sat down on a chair and began to cry. Frank wondered for a moment what to say. He stroked her hair and sat down next to her.
"Sophie... do you still remember our first date?"
"Are you kidding? Of course I do. I remember. John came back from school earlier then and you wanted to run out the window," Sophie laughed.
"Yes, that's true. He threatened to arrest me if I ever broke your heart," Frank said with a smile.
"And he didn't even have the police badge at the time," she added.
"It took me a lot of work to convince your brother that I wanted to marry you. I promised him that I would never leave you and that I would take care of you if anything happened to him."
"Don't say that..." Sophie told him and started crying again.
"I just want you to know that whenever you need help, I'll always be here for you."
"I love you, Frank." Sophie said, hugging him tightly.
"I love you too." he said and kissed her.
"So there are two of us for this job," she said.
"No, there are three of us," said someone's voice
"Professor Von Slickstein!?"
"Did you think that you would write the history of modern science without me?" said the white-haired man standing in the doorway.
"Professor, what are you doing here?" Frank asked in surprise.
"When my best student asked me what she needed to do her project. I couldn't shake the suspicion that you and Sophie were planning something," the professor replied with a smile.
"And where do we get the components? Frank asked. "Metal, wires, cables,..."
"I know where," Sophie replied and she dialed a phone number.
Metrocity Military Air Base
There were a lot of guards at the entrance to the complex. Sophie made an appointment with the local colonel by phone in advance. After checking the documents, she waited impatiently at the gate for the soldiers to let her in. Suddenly, all the guards saluted. A tall man in an elegant uniform stepped out of the barracks door. He walked toward her.
"Hello, my name is Colonel Higgins," he said politely, shaking her hand.
"Nice to meet you, Colonel Higgins. My name is Sophie Dollar. I'm Johnathan Brown's sister. My brother worked for your force as a cadet."
"Oh yes! Johny! I remember... How is he?" the colonel asked with a smile. "I heard he joined the police."
"That's true, but... He had a nasty accident. He searched on his own and ..."
"I'm very sorry," he said sadly. "Is there anything I can do for you?"
Sophie looked at one of the hangars.
They went inside.
"That's it!" said the colonel, pointing to one of the old planes.
"Did my brother really fly with it?" Sophie asked in surprise, staring at the plane, or rather what was left of it.
"Yes... you could say that," he said uncertainly. "What do you need it for?"
Sophie looked at him with a smile. "I will fulfill his dream."
To be continued...