SWD: Chapter 10
Several minutes passed by after the many phone calls that came in. Everyone had come out of their houses to meet up at the center parking lot, trying to assess the situation. Jennifer's mom and dad could not stop crying; their daughter was taken away from them once again. Double D and Matthew could only stand by them, with Matthew trying to console his older brother despite being equally as worried for Jennifer and his sister. Zoey and her parents were also there, and Zoey's parents were talking to Double D and Jennifer's parents. Zoey noticed that Eddy had not arrived here yet, which made her worry a lot.
Ed soon came running over to join the group, "Double D, w-what's going on?!" Ed began to ask with worry, but soon put two and two together when he noticed Jennifer and Serena were absent. Ed slowly began to panic as well before he felt Matthew grip his shoulder, "Ed! I-I know this is bad, but we gotta stay calm, okay?!"
Zoey could see Eddy's parents walking over to the group. It seemed like Eddy was not with them either, "What's going on? Did something happen?!" Daisy asked the group, "Eddy wasn't in his room when we checked on him, so we thought he was here…"
"… E-Eddy wasn't in his room?!" Zoey asked as she began to panic from where she stood, "Was he taken too?! But why would they…?!"
A few minutes passed by before the police arrived at Jennifer's house, trying to find clues about what happened. Detective Wells was also here along with Edgeworth and someone else they did not expect to see.
"Mr. Layton?!" Double D gasped in surprise as the three men approached the group, "Why are you here? I thought…"
"It's nice to see you again, Eddward, but I think we should save the greetings for another time," Layton said with a reassuring smile before looking back to the group, "It seems like Jennifer and Serena were not the only targets tonight. Camilla, Eddy, Marie, and Felix were also taken away, along with Mr. Swanson being shot by the kidnappers."
Everyone widened their eyes, "Is Robert okay?!" Wendy asked.
"Yes, he was only clipped in the shoulder. He's currently at the hospital with Lucian and Ashley," Detective Wells replied before taking a deep sigh, "Even though she was asleep, poor Ashley was shaken up when she heard her brother was taken. Her parents are rushing back there now."
Miles reached into his back pocket, "Phoenix was also taken by someone at our hotel room," he pulled out a printed picture; a screenshot that was from the security cameras of the hotel, "Detective Wells told me the man who took him is someone you all know."
Everyone looked at the photograph that Edgeworth had, showing Phoenix walking out of the building by a man they knew all too well…
Zoey grew pale in the face, backing up in fright, "I…! I-I think I'm gonna be sick!" she muttered before turning away from everyone, latching onto her mother's left arm in support, "He CAN'T be back! I-I…!"
"It's true. We just got confirmation that someone had snuck two criminals out of prison earlier this afternoon," Detective Wells explained, "One of them was the man in this photo, Evan McGee. And the other…" he pulled out a mugshot of an older teenage girl with short red hair, "Is a girl named Ellis Riviera. She usually goes by the nickname of Viper."
Double D widened his eyes in pure shock, "E-Even her…?!"
"We caught the person who helped these two criminals escape: an inside man working for the Martel Family. The Martels knew who these two were and are taking advantage of the grudges they have for you all," Mr. Wells continued to explain, "He was also the one who gave Vergil and Rita Bishop those pills of cyanide to kill themselves, disguising himself as a janitor to get close to them."
Everyone could only stand there in disbelief.
"After detaining him, we received an untraced call from Mr. Martel himself," Detective Wells continued, "He's asking us to strike a bargain with him since he's holding these people as hostages for ransom…" he looked at the group, "He wants us to bring Eddward, Matthew, and Zoey to them in exchange for the safety of the hostages that don't have powers, threatening to kill them if we don't."
The group turned their attention to Double D, Zoey, and Matthew, the three of them could feel the tense pressure of the news that was dropped on them. Zoey started to sob while Matthew looked at the ground in sadness. Double D, on the other hand…
"I think we should take them up on their offer."
Everyone turned to Double D in pure shock, "E-Eddward!" gasped Aiden, "What do you—"
"I am very much a pacifist, I never want to hurt anyone," Double D started to say, "But I also do not want anyone to get hurt, not anymore!"
Double D raised his trembling right hand, emitting a cold breeze from his palm, "Only three of us here can truly give the Martel family what they want," he then clenched his fist and closed his eyes in sadness, "So I say we should show them what they gave us! We NEED to save them!"
Everyone was silent after Double D's speech; they could tell he was scared of what was happening, but he had already made up his mind. It would be impossible to stop him if they did not take him along.
"H-He's right!" Zoey said, wiping away the tears she had in her eyes as she regained her composure, "I'm not gonna stand here anymore, knowing that my friends are in danger!"
"Same here!" Matthew nervously chimed in. He flexed his fingers a little, only to see a few embers forming before shaking his hand to swat it away, "They're the ones that funded this to happen in the first place, so now they're going to pay for messing with our lives!"
Detective Wells only made a sigh, "Eddward has a point. It would be beneficial to have the three of you go, but not to bargain with the Martel family. It'll be risky for sure, but I will make sure you three will have all the backup you need to help you."
"We understand!" Double D, Zoey, and Matthew all replied.
"We should talk to Lucian! He can help us infiltrate the area they took them to!" Double D said as he turned to his parents, "Oh. U-Umm… Can we have permission t-to do s-something this dangerous?"
Both Aiden and Wendy glanced at each other before smiling at their two sons, "As long as you three follow our orders, you can help us in this rescue. We'll permit you to join us!"
They turned to Jennifer's parents, "I'm so sorry this happened…"
"T-There's no need to apologize," Judith said before making a small smile, her lips quivering, "Please, save our daughter!"
Miles and Layton were standing close by, giving everyone else some space, "Are you not worried about Phoenix, Mr. Edgeworth?" Layton asked.
"I am, naturally," Miles replied before folding his arms a little, "But it's not a good thing to rush ahead without any solid plans," he closed his eyes, "Besides, knowing how he is; I'm sure he's doing fine. He's been in situations like this before, same as me. If anything, he can help calm everyone else that's there, so they won't do anything drastic."
"Too true," Layton said before making a chuckle.
Author's Note (January 4th, 2025): Oh wow, a SECOND chapter for the 26th anniversary of EEnE?! WOOO! Maybe I can type up another one before the day is over? I hope so!