128 (Operation Armageddon: Book 1)

Chapter Twelve: The Pretrial Detainee | Part 2

Matthew and Daniel arrived at the detention facility where Emma had been and would be kept until the day of her court trial.

They stepped into the building, which smelled rather new. He could feel the atmosphere filled with the strong scent of freshly coated paint, which reminded him of Jake's museum. He shook his head, turning his mind away from the memories he wished to forget.

As they walked further into the facility, Matthew noticed the cells where the inmates were kept temporarily. The metal bars and brick walls made it seem exactly like a regular state prison, although it wasn't. The ceiling lights that were suspended above the two of them shone brightly to the point that it felt like a hospital for a moment.

"Sirs, please state the rationale of your visit," a worker at the facility requested as soon as the two approached the registration counter.

"We're here to visit our former colleague, Emily Anne Watson. She worked at the NYPD with us before she was arrested," Matthew answered promptly.

"Could you show me some form of identification while I search through the facility records for your requested inmate?" the worker added.

"Sure," Matthew replied. He glanced at Daniel briefly, ensuring he was doing the same. "Here are our NYPD ID cards," he said, placing his and Daniel's cards on the table.

"Thank you," the worker nodded as she looked away from the computer and checked through the detectives' cards. "All right, you've been approved for visitation. Also, I have found your requested inmate. Emily Anne Watson, inmate 5152," she announced. "Follow me to the visiting room."

As such, the two walked with the worker towards the visiting room. They sat down on the rusty metal stools, which felt much older than the rest of the prison.

"Apologies for the uncomfortable seating. These were transferred over from another prison as we didn't have enough in our budget to acquire new chairs," the worker added as soon as she noticed the detectives' frustration.

Meanwhile, an exhausted Emma, dressed in a numbered grey shirt and a matching pair of pants, walked out from the cell block into the visiting room.

"Why did you want to see me?" she slurred wearily. Dark patches surrounded her eyes, and her heavy eyelids were about to fall. Her eyeballs were worryingly red, and her cheeks seemed rugged.

"Emma! I'm glad I finally got to see you!" Daniel said as he stared at Emma, his gaze never moving away from her tired face. "How have you been?" he cheered.

"Seriously. What do you want?" Emma replied rudely, which was an unexpected response to Daniel.

"W-what do you mean? We're just happy to see you," Daniel answered, puzzled.

"And what? Is coming to visit me going to change anything?" Emma questioned suddenly.

Matthew raised an eyebrow. He was bewildered by Emma's behaviour. Besides being exhausted, Emma seemed somewhat irritable all of a sudden. To Matthew, she felt completely different, as if the cheery atmosphere that used to surround her constantly had been diminished or, in fact, completely destroyed.

Daniel shook his head rapidly. "I didn't mean that. Let's not talk about Yael just for now. Please, let's just have a proper conversation—"

"I don't want to have a proper conversation!" Emma screamed, infuriated. She breathed heavily despite only having yelled a short sentence at them. She instantly took out all her built-up rage on the two detectives, the anger she had kept in her heart for a month.

"You think wasting time coming to visit me will be any help? How about Megan? Have you found her? It's been over a month, and if you haven't, she's probably dead!" Emma continued to flare.