So happy I got this done ^_^ I have a week (and a random day) left of exams and then I'm FREEEEE! :'D For the summer at least. And once I'm done with exams my updates will finally be regular again (hopefully - no promises!)
A massive thank you to sonicathehedgehog, hot pink123, shirinuigoddeviantart, Skyelara, Alexandra the Leopard, November Ember, SilverDawn2010, Danielle Fenton, Whitefire Gamahz, Hollie the hedgehog, Jayjay0219, Super-Shadow1248, ShadAmy4Eva, Chilly Night, Rosy the Spazz, Xanelia the Cat, Romantic Person, Sam Breanna and me, Mi123 and kuki62. You guys are lovely, thank you :) And ridiculously patient. :P
So, here's chapter 16! ^_^ Hope you enjoy it!
Chapter 16 - Accusations
The door clicked shut behind Sonic as he entered the Chaotix office. He greeted the trio and sat down in one of the armchairs, locking his fingers together on his lap to stop himself from fidgeting. He felt jittery, from both anxiety and excitement. This conversation could be all that he needed to find Amy and end this frustration. Vector shuffled through papers on his desk, nodding to himself as he collected some together. Then he looked up at Sonic and leaned forward in his oversized armchair, clearing his throat.
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"So," he said, in the grand voice that he used for business. "Since ya came to us on Tuesday, we've made a list of evidence related to the case. We've taken into account everything you've told us, as well as our own research."
"And you've got a lead?" Sonic asked.
"A vague lead," Espio said, and Vector glared at him.
"A solid lead," the boss insisted. "But before I tell ya, I thought it was best if you gave us some more details. Just to make sure, ya know. I'm always thorough with these things," he said proudly, "which is of course why you came to me in the first place!"
"There's no 'I' in 'team'," Espio muttered. "Plus, that was my idea."
"There's no empty-headed boss in 'team', either," Charmy added, though Sonic and Vector paid no attention to them.
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"Okay," said Sonic. "What do you need to know?"
"We need to know about your new friend, Andy," Vector said, quickly scanning over his papers.
Sonic leaned back slightly, surprised. "Andy? Why? What's he got to do with it?"
"Well, you mentioned that he was Amy's childhood friend, right? And he's been helping you search." The crocodile flicked through the pages again.
"Yeah," Sonic confirmed slowly, wondering where this was going.
"But no matter where you looked you couldn't find her. And it says here that Andy apparently doesn't know anything about Amy leaving. That's weird. It really got my intuition going."
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Vector stacked his papers loudly on the desk, and returned his gaze to Sonic. "You've been searching pretty much constantly, haven't ya? But there's not a trace of her. And Andy has no idea why she left?"
Sonic clenched his fists and frowned uncomfortably, feeling like he was being criticised for not finding her.
Espio must have noticed his expression, as he explained, "What Vector means is, it's strange that there's no clue of where she went. And it's even stranger that Andy doesn't seem to know anything about it, if he and Amy are so close."
"Exactly," Vector said. "So, what I wanna know is, can you tell us anything else that seems odd?"
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"Erm…" Sonic frowned in thought. At this point he wasn't so sure of how helpful this would be. The fact that Amy left was weird in the first place. Nearly everything about the situation was weird. What was he supposed to say? He tried to recall the past few weeks, flicking through the pages of his memory as if it was a picture book. Several events seemed to pop up, capturing his attention. "Well," he said, "one night, about two weeks ago, I heard something from inside Amy's house."
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Vector leaned further forward, clearly interested. "Go on," he said.
"It was a crashing noise, like stuff was falling down, and I thought it was a burglar. So I broke in to stop him, but he must have escaped because I searched the house and I couldn't find anybody." Sonic felt himself tense slightly at the memory. If he ever found the little so-and-so who did that...
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"What happened after that?" Vector asked.
"Nothing, really," said Sonic. "I ran outside to try and catch him but no one was there. And then I saw Andy, and that's about it."
"Andy was there?" Vector was really interested now.
"Yeah, but he was just going that way to get home."
"Apparently," Vector added, narrowing his eyes.
"What do you mean by that?" Sonic asked.
"You'll see," was the ominous reply. "What else has been unusual?"
Sonic raised an eyebrow, but continued to recall the past few weeks.
.***.
Rouge studied herself in the mirror, smirking in satisfaction. She winked at her reflection. This girl was more than ready to knock the socks off of any guy who so much as breathed the same air as her, but her mind was set on one man only. She put a hand on her hip, swivelling her body from side to side as she checked out her outfit. She looked good and she knew it. "Purple really is my colour," she purred, eyeing the dress that clung to her figure. It wasn't too showy; it was just a short, simple dress. Simplicity wasn't exactly her thing but, as Amy had pointed out, it focused the attention on her rather than her clothes, and she would admit that she did like the single-strap style.
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"You look great, Rouge," Amy said, smiling.
"Thanks, pinky."
"So, are you excited for your date?" Amy was beaming. She crossed her legs as she perched on Rouge's bed, as if to compress her own enthusiasm.
Rouge controlled her smile, holding it from stretching into a grin. "Right now, sugar, you seem more excited than I am," she said, eyeing the hedgehog, who was practically bouncing.
"Because this your third date together! You guys are basically a couple now!"
Rouge raised an eyebrow at her friend, though her smile betrayed her.
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"I knew he liked you! And thanks to my matchmaking skills, this relationship will flourish, like a rose!" Amy cried, clasping her hands together. "Has Knuckles planned this one?"
"Mm-hm," Rouge managed, holding a hair pin between her teeth while she fixed her hair. Then she placed into her fur, saying, "I brought him to a club last time and made him dance for the entire night. He nearly passed out." She smirked. "But that echidna sure can move," she said, picturing the way Knuckles had gained a sudden spark of life as he finally let her drag him onto the dance floor.
Amy laughed. "How did you do that?"
Rouge finally tore her eyes off the mirror and spun to face the hedgehog. She tapped her nose slyly. "That would be telling," she said, winking.
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Amy rolled her eyes, but she was still grinning. "So what's he planned?" she asked.
Rouge remained quiet for a moment, and averted her gaze. "Nothing really," she said.
Amy's grin widened and she jumped off the bed, leaping in front of the bat. "Yeah, right," she giggled. "What is it? Tell me!"
Rouge tilted her head up, feigning disinterest. "Oh, just hanging around Angel Island. And then later on he said something about stars. He knows all of the constellations or something like that, I don't know."
"Oh my gosh, he's taking you stargazing?" Amy squealed. "No way! I had no idea that Knuckles was so romantic!"
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Rouge pursed her lips, somewhat flustered. "It's no big deal. He probably just wants to show off his knowledge on ancient Mobius."
"Oh, please! It's romantic and you know it! Oh, Rouge, you're so lucky!"
The bat raised an eyebrow, stepping back from the hedgehog that was now forgetting the laws of personal space. While Amy's enthusiasm was rather refreshing, it sometimes grated Rouge's nerves. She decided to change the subject. "Anyway, that's not until later. Aren't you supposed to be with Sonic today?" she asked.
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Amy's smile faded, as her eyes filled with worry. "I was," she said, "but when I went to the workshop this morning Tails told me that he was at the Chaotix Agency. Apparently Vector needed to tell him something important, privately. You don't think they've figured it out, do you?"
Rouge furrowed her brow. "With Vector's IQ? I doubt it," she assured her friend.
"But, remember what I told you? He looked at me as if he knew who I was! And if it wasn't about me, why would it need to be private?"
"Hmm... That's true," Rouge said thoughtfully. "But try not to worry about it. You can't exactly barge in there and deny everything, can you? And if it comes down to it, you might just have to end your little charade."
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Amy bit her lip. "I guess so," she murmured. She imagined Sonic's face, glaring at her accusingly, and a wave of butterflies moved through her stomach. He'd be so angry.
"Why don't you hang out with Tails or something? Anyway, I'm off now, pinky. Gotta fly." Rouge went over to the door and the hedgehog stared after her, still chewing her lip with unease. "Try to cool it," Rouge advised her. "And don't do anything stupid," she added, leaving the apartment.
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As she closed the door, she heard Amy growl, "Thanks for the advice," and she laughed.
Amy closed her fists, her nails biting into her palm. Now what was she supposed to do? Sit around and worry? That would be useless. And, besides, Rouge had a point: for a detective, Vector wasn't the brightest bulb in the box. And if she could fool nearly every single one of her friends, then it was silly to think that she couldn't fool him. It was just the way he'd looked at her, with so much suspicion in his gaze, that bothered her. But perhaps that was just a guy thing? Maybe he was just sizing her up? She sighed. There wasn't much that she could do now other than wait and see what Sonic would say tomorrow. She just prayed that, by the end of this, she'd still have a relationship with him.
.***.
"Well, all of this evidence backs up my theory," Vector said confidently. "I'm completely, 100 percent sure of it now."
"Just hang on a minute, Vector," said Espio. "I think that you might have misinterpreted-"
"It all points to one solution, Espio," Vector insisted, interrupting the chameleon. "There's no way that I've got this wrong."
"Got what wrong?" Sonic asked. "What's the theory?"
Vector looked at him carefully, and a hint of concern intruded his eyes. "You might want to prepare yourself for this one, Sonic. You're not going to like it."
Sonic held his gaze, his mouth forming a straight line. He braced himself for whatever Vector had to say, though his mind was desperately trying to figure out what could be so bad.
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"Andy's not who you think he is," Vector stated.
There was a brief silence.
"What do you mean?"
"Sorry, Sonic, but he's been taking ya for a ride. He's known where Amy is the whole time."
"What?"
"And he's been keeping it a secret from ya, because he wants her all to himself."
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Sonic stared at him disbelievingly, and Vector let out a rough sigh, offended.
"The proof is all there, Sonic!" the crocodile insisted. "His and Amy's friendship was kept a secret until now, and the moment she's gone, he appears. And he claims not to know anything! That doesn't add up! And why do you think he had her purse? If she'd really run away, she would have taken it with her. But instead, Andy had it."
"Now just hold on a second," Sonic protested, but Vector continued.
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"And then there was the night you saw him outside Amy's house. That can't be a coincidence! He was the only person around! It was him who was inside her house that night! And the reason that you can't find her is because he's hiding her away somewhere!" Vector locked his hands together on the desk. "I hate to tell ya this Sonic, but it's pretty clear to me that Andy's in some kind of relationship with Amy," he said solemnly. "He probably convinced her to leave that note so that they could be together, in secret."
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Sonic stared at him. What on earth was Vector saying? "Vector… I really don't think-"
"You can't deny the facts, Sonic," Vector said adamantly. "You're just blinded by his act, but if ya think about it, it all fits! He was using ya so he could be a better fighter, but he's not keeping his side of the deal! That's why he kept asking ya what you thought about it, and trying to make you open up to him! To make sure you were buying it!"
Sonic frowned. "Vector," he said firmly. "That's crazy. You can't make assumptions like that. You've only heard half of what's been going on. Andy's not like that, and I know that for a fact."
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Vector banged his fists on the desk, making Charmy jump. "That's just what he wants you to think! He's foolin' ya!" he cried, his voice booming.
Sonic shook his head. He was beginning to feel irritated. "Look, Vector. Thanks for trying to help but you've really got the wrong end of the stick here," he said. "Andy's a friend, a good friend, and I trust him. He's been trying to help me find Amy, not hide her. He wouldn't do that. So thanks, but I think I can take it from here." He stood up, but Vector stayed in his seat, watching Sonic the whole time.
"Fine by me," Vector growled. "But you'll soon see that I'm right! Just watch out for the signs!"
Sonic did his best to ignore the crocodile's comments as he reached the door, feeling his frustration teeter over the borderline of anger.
"Try talking to him about Amy! I bet he'll be real edgy!" Vector called as Sonic left the office. "And I bet he's protective over her, too!"
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Sonic resisted the urge to slam the door of the building, and burst into a run the second he was outside. He needed to burn off all this energy. He powered his legs until wind was tearing through his quills, and he could hear the familiar rhythm of his feet pounding the earth below him. Vector had bothered him. Really bothered him. He'd been hoping for answers and all he got was crazy accusations against the person who was really helping him in all of this. He didn't understand how Vector had come up with it; it didn't make sense.
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Andy… keeping Amy from everyone else? No, that was ridiculous. Andy had become Sonic's most trusted friend, after Tails, and Sonic just couldn't fathom the idea of him betraying them all. And Amy wouldn't agree to that! As if she'd let some guy hide her away from the world! The very thought of it was crazy, and the fact that Vector accused Andy of such things angered Sonic. But what bothered him most of all, was that a small, niggling part of him couldn't help but think… that it did make sense. It was a tiny inkling, but he was annoyed at himself for even having it.
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He knew that what Vector said was a load of rubbish, but… it was weird that Andy had Amy's purse. Nobody would leave something like that behind if they were going away for a while. And he was already beginning to wonder why they hadn't found her yet. And his thoughts kept drifting to the night where he'd heard someone inside Amy's house. Was it really a coincidence that he saw Andy there? Sonic gritted his teeth, mentally scolding himself. Of course it was. Andy just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
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Guilt seeped into Sonic's mind, and he cursed that tiny part of him that doubted Andy. He decided, right then and there, that he was going to ignore it. He would not let Vector's irrational thinking get to him. Any doubt was forced off his mind, like a slate wiped clean, and finally his usual smile reclaimed its place on his lips.
So, it looks like Vector might not be such a great detective after all :P
I'm anxious to hear what you think about that little twist, because a lot of you said that he'd figured out the truth...
It just gets more complicated doesn't it? ^^"
Anyway, I hope you all liked it. I really appreciate all your feedback :')