Tourniquet

Chapter 11

"Mr. Edgeworth."

'…….'

"Mr. Edgeworth, wake up."

'W-what…? Who…?'

"I think he's awake now."

"Edgeworth!"

'Wh-where is…?'

"Edgeworth! Say something! Come on!"

"F-Franziska…"

"He's awake!"

Miles groaned miserably as he tried to open his eyes. His eyelids felt heavy as did the rest of his body. Just speaking that one word had taken nearly all of his energy. But…where was she? He didn't hear her voice.

"I've managed to stop the bleeding, but he needs to get to a hospital. Ares, could you make the call?"

"Sure."

No, that wasn't her. The first had been a female voice, but it definitely wasn't Franziska. Finally, he forced his eyes open, thankful that the lighting overhead was dim. His vision was blurry and the unfocused faces above him seemed to swim in and out of view, making the nausea he felt worsen. He blinked a few times then looked again, now able to recognize those same faces.

Phoenix Wright, Dick Gumshoe, and Agent Tilea were all crouched around him. He still lay on the hard oak floor of the ballroom and he began to feel a terrible pain in his side, which slowly spread through his body as his nervous system finally returned to functioning properly. He hissed in response and gritted his teeth, trying not to cry out.

"Oh, thank God!" Wright exclaimed. "We were really scared there for a minute. How are you feeling, Edgeworth?"

"W-where's… Franziska?" he moaned, finding speaking increasingly more difficult. He was struggling to remember exactly what had been happening before his black-out, and so far the recollection was not a good one.

Wright and Gumshoe looked at each other, and the expressions upon their faces told Miles all he needed to know. However, Tilea confirmed it for him.

"She's been kidnapped, Mr. Edgeworth. I'm very sorry."

The other agent came up beside her. "The kidnapper and your shooter was Brad Sanders, the escaped serial killer."

Miles stared between them in horror. "I th-thought… he had been captured."

Ares shook his head. "He was caught, but he got away again. His goons incapacitated Phoenix and I when we were trying to bring him in."

Though both of them knew this didn't make sense, Miles and Gumshoe glanced over at Phoenix Wright, all three sharing a look of confusion.

"My name is Phoenix," came the girl's voice, the shadow of a smirk on her face. "To tell the truth, I found it odd that there was another person with that name."

Wright scratched his head in thought. "That is weird…"

"I-is anybody even bothering…to look for her?" Miles could care less about having two people in the same room named Phoenix; he wanted to know where Franziska was and if she was safe.

"We've sent out a search team," Tilea replied. "However, Ares and I didn't wake up until they had already left, so we don't have very many leads as of yet."

"Goddamn it…" Miles cursed miserably.

"Hey," Gumshoe looked over at the two agents, just having remembered something. "Didn't you two get shot?"

Ares nodded. "Bullet-proof vests," he responded simply before turning to see the chopper in the distance. "The medical team is here," he told Edgeworth. "They'll take you to get some professional help."

"N-no…" Miles made an attempt to sit up, but Wright pushed him back to the ground. "G-get off me!"

"Mr. Edgeworth," said Tilea firmly. "You've been seriously injured. You need medical assistance. Save your strength."

Miles shook his head violently, making himself dizzy. "No… I need to find her. I-"

"We will find her," Ares cut him off. "Keeping Miss von Karma alive and capturing Brad Sanders is our mission, and we will not rest until it is completed successfully."

"We give you our word." Tilea finished the statement and began to pull Miles off of the floor. With strength that none of them had expected of her, she lifted him and stood up, appearing to have no trouble whatsoever in carrying him toward the helicopter waiting outside.

Ares watched her leave and then turned to the other two men. "Are you sure you two are all right?" he asked, looking them over.

Phoenix fingered a bruise on the side of his face. "Yeah," he replied. "Nothing major, though he got me pretty good."

"You're a detective, aren't you?" he inquired, looking now at Gumshoe.

"Uh, sure, pal," the detective replied. "I'll definitely be helping in the search for Miss von Karma once I get back to the-"

"The police department no longer has any part in this," Ares told them. "They will only aid us if we request it. Tilea and I can authorize your assistance, but the rest of your department cannot be involved. The same goes for you, Mr. Wright."

"Huh?" Wright looked at him oddly. "I'm… not a detective. I'm a lawyer."

"I'm fully aware of that," Ares said as he pulled a PDA from one of his many pockets. "However, I know of your skills as an investigator. Besides, you know Miss von Karma and Mr. Edgeworth personally, correct?" He began typing something into the device as he waited for the response.

"Well… Sort of…" The attorney hesitated, trying to decide if he wanted to get involved in something like this or not. "I… suppose I could help out if you find any use for me."

"All right then." Ares looked up after finishing whatever he had been doing. "We'll take that chopper back to HQ; Tilea and I will brief you there."

"O-okay…" Wright was a little nervous, and could tell that Gumshoe was as well, but they both followed the young man outside and climbed aboard the helicopter, seeing that Edgeworth had been placed upon a gurney and strapped in for safety purposes. He gave them a strange look when he saw them, at a loss for why they were coming along.

"Uh…" Phoenix tried to explain. "Ares… I mean… Agent Taylor… wanted us to help find Franziska."

Miles sighed but didn't say anything. He felt useless and small; she needed him and he couldn't help her.

"Let go of me!" Franziska made another attempt to flee, but Sanders' grip on her wrist was too strong and she almost wrenched her arm from its socket. He pulled her toward him again and his free hand connected with the side of her face, leaving a white mark on her cheek that slowly started to turn dark red.

"I suggest you start cooperating, Little Lady," he growled threatening, his face just inches from hers. "I could easily make this so much worse for you." With that, he continued to drag her toward the house before them.

When he pulled her inside, she was met with a very unpleasant sight. The house was dark and dingy, as if it had been abandoned years ago. A thick layer of dust covered everything, matching the numerous cobwebs rather nicely. The scene was expertly enhanced with a powerful smell that reminded Franziska of something rotting.

"Not quite what you're used to, Miss von Karma," said that slimy voice from behind her. "But, it's only for one night after all. I think you can handle the downgrade for just that long, can't you?" He laughed with sick satisfaction as he saw a shiver run through her body. "Come and let me show you around."

She gasped as he moved forward again, roughly pulling her along. However, she was not taken for a complete tour of this Hell-hole; she was taken directly to the end of a long hallway and forced into an old, dusty bedroom. "I think this is really the most important room of the house right now," said Brad, closing the door behind them. "After all, this is where we'll be spending our time together for the remainder of tonight."

Before she even had a chance to protest, she was pushed hard up against the wall with Brad's tongue in her mouth. She tried to scream, to push him away, but it was all useless.

First, he reached up to remove her headband and proceeded to work the braid out of her hair. Then, he made to undo her necklace and untie the strap that was around her neck, which connected to the back of her dress. After finishing this, he pulled his face away from hers and placed a hand on her throat, keeping her pinned against the wall.

"What's wrong, Miss von Karma?" he smirked, a deranged look in his cold, black eyes. "You seemed so much tougher behind that little prosecutor's desk of yours when you got me convicted of serial murder. Now I see who you really are." He reached down with his other hand and grabbed her between the legs, making her entire body lurch.

"Just a scared little girl."

When he released his hold on her, she ducked and tried once more to run from him, desperate to escape what she knew was coming. As expected, he easily caught her and pulled her to him, beginning to unzip her dress. He removed the belt from around her waist, and when he reached the place where the zipper ended, he tore the fabric the rest of the way down, casting the garment aside and leaving her in nothing but her underclothes.

She made one last desperate rush for the door, but this time he stopped her with the side of his hand to her head, sending her sprawling on the filthy floor before him. Sobs of fear shook her small, fragile body as she lay there at his feet, helpless and waiting for the worst.

"So, are you ready to cooperate now, or do I have to make you incapable of moving?" The voice she had come to despise with all of her being boomed around her, reverberating off of the bare walls of the large bedroom. She didn't say a word, feeling that there was no point. It didn't matter anymore; he was going to have his way with her regardless.

"On your knees, whore!" He dealt her a sharp kick to the side of her ribs before reaching down and taking a handful of her light blue-gray hair. He wrenched her up from the floor and forced her into a kneeling position before him, using his other hand to undo his pants.

"It's too bad that other prosecutor got to you first, but I suppose I can deal with not being the one to break you in."