re: INITIATIVE [Detective Fiction]

[#15] The River with Three Streams

THEY ALL ended up in the living room. While they all thought they were going to go to the mansion's database, Jayson was, after all, a walking database himself that might have even been potentially as knowledgeable as Edward Armstrong. It was of such elegance that they were surrounded with as Jayson directed his attention towards the group. L had gazed on the music box for a split second before looking at the housekeeping, battle-ready combat android in front of them. They were again seated on the comfortable furniture of the huge living room of the correspondingly huge mansion, except for Jayson who stood before them. There weren't any visible scratches on Jayson's attire - much to their admiration, as if nothing ever really happened. His posture was as neat as before the attack, however, it couldn't be helped that most of them tended to stare at the brand-new arm he had after knowing he lost it in the duel. Their uninterrupted gawking of fascination was also particularly because of the unexpected energy cannon it housed, along with other who-knows-what weaponry.

"Master Loraine still suffers from a traumatic nervous breakdown. I've been appointing a therapist for her to recover as part of my protocols, but she always refuses. My artificial intelligence is without sympathy, but I do still understand that her husband was, after all, murdered. The culprit still hasn't been found, still possibly roaming 'round the suburbs as we speak, and now her only daughter goes missing as well." Jayson explained, snapping them out of their trance. They all comfortably sat on the fluffy furniture of the living room, though they shouldn't get too comfortable. They could never know what was in store for them.

"I could only imagine what she's going through right now," Commented Ardee. The particular scenario was a perfect opportunity for death to knock on the door. No matter how hard they'd try to convince Jayson to open the master's bedroom without the mistress' permission, it would all be for naught anyway. It was perhaps a good thing it never came to Axel's mind, or any of the rest of them for that matter, that Loraine had already killed herself in there.

"The investigations were particularly troublesome, as master Loraine was so psychologically scarred that even the police couldn't get any information from a victim's own wife. On-going investigations about master Chelsea proved to be even worse now that master Loraine won't even open the door to the master's bedroom."

"So what about you? Have you any information at all?" Joshua thought out loud.

"Master Edward's last whereabouts," Jayson gestured to open a holographic screen in front of him. He flipped it, and pushed it towards them, all of them looming over the glowing holographic screen in front of them.

"He was last seen on the grid more than two months ago, and seemed to have been back at the office."

"Office?" Joshua repeated cluelessly.

"Yes, while the plant itself is housed within this residence, a company that's powering the entire city obviously needs an organizational heirarchy to be ran smoothly."

The high-rise building several blocks away from LeoTech that had a very conspicuous «Armstrong Light» signage must've been the office of the plant. Then again, Armstrong Light wasn't of sole proprietorship.

"Oh. I knew that." Joshua winced.

"So why didn't you take initiative on sharing this information?" Ardee questioned.

"I'm security, not detective. I was programmed only to protect the generator and the classified information master Edward was in possesion of." He explained. Perhaps he had a point. I myself always seem to forget that Sam is the first of her kind to ever have affection, even if artificial.

"So, more than two months ago, huh?" Axel thought out loud, looking at the date on the entry log.

March 25, 2050