Broken Mirrors, Part 1 - Aftermath

Location: Paris, France: 3am

The wet asphalt made racing through the fairly deserted streets
hazardous. That’s why Carmen loved it. The French police were
chasing her in their sleek cars but she had the advantage being on her
modified motorbike. Her red coat flaring behind her as she took sharp
turns that nearly defined the impossible. The deafening screech of
breaks echoed as the cops tried to mimic her deadly maneuvers.

Well, she had enough fun for tonight. Leading the French police on a
merry chase was enjoying but she had other capers to pull off. Up
ahead was an alley that was a dead end. She turned into it and sped
towards the slanting pipes that leaned against the wall. A perfect place
to launch her bike. She heard the police cars blockade the opening of
the alley. Fools! Fools to think she was trapped. Her bike accelerated
up the convenient ramp and off it. It seemed to hang there for an
instant. Suddenly, wings sprouted on the sides of the bike and the
turbo engine activated. Laughing, Carmen glided for a short distance.
Deactivating the wings, she landed and sped away from her pursuers.
The day was just beginning.

 

                    ******************************

Player: Is the thrill of the chase all that you seek for in life, Carmen?

Carmen: The questions in which you don’t know the answers to are
always worth seeking, Player.

Player: What answers are you looking for, Carmen?

Carmen: I’ll know when I find them, Player.

 

The Player clicks the Acme Detective Headquarters icon.

                  *********************************

The disembodied head of the Chief managed to give off waves of
anger and censure at the two detectives standing before him. Zack and
Ivy was the object of his anger. Zack managed to keep cool under the
Chief’s scrutiny except for the occasional tug of his jacket. Ivy was
meeting him glare for glare, arms folded. 

"I don’t see how you two could have blown that clue so far off!" the
Chief exploded finally. Zack jumped and then tried to make it look like
he didn’t.

Ivy sighed and spread her arms pleadingly, "Chief, anyone would have
mistook that clue for something else. It had a double meaning."

Zack nodded his agreement. His exchanged a guarded look with Ivy.
Ivy rolled her eyes in exasperation. Then, she shook her head before
continuing.

"Okay, so we made a mistake. We thought Carmen meant
Philadelphia when she said ‘Love a city not for its sights but what it is
known for.’ After all, Philadelphia is known as the ‘city of brotherly
love.’" 

"Yeah, well Paris is known as the ‘city of love’," the Chief snapped
irritability. "Your mistake has Carmen laughing at us. Imagine staking
out Philadelphia with every available Acme agent called in and she’s
off joyriding in Paris."

Zack raised his hands defensively and pointed out softly, "But she
didn’t steal anything. Also, there was no major case, which anyone was
working on. No harm was done."

There was a moment of silence as the Chief considered any possible
replies. Finding none, he quietly apologized. A tension seemed to
drain out of him. Zack and Ivy exchanged a worried glance but decided
to wait for him to speak.

"I’m just so worried about her. She’s always had spirit that got her in
trouble but lately her capers seemed to just be well-" the Chief
announced wearily.

"Just for the thrill of the chase?" suggested Ivy.

The Chief’s dismal looks tugged at Zack, bringing his usual chirpy self
down. He decided to assuage the Chief’s worries.

"Well, Chief. Carmen is going through a difficult time right now. After
all, it’s only been a few weeks since Avalon’s accident. Not knowing
must really get to Carmen."

Ivy smiled and raised a fist in a gesture of encouragement. She added,
"Carmen’s like a cat. She has nine lives and she always lands on her
feet."

The Chief brightened visibly and thanked them. They expressed relief
at his return to normal self and left for the night.

                   *******************************

It was not a good night to be alone. Tomorrow night will be the night of
the full moon; a time where they say a beast in a person would
reawaken. For Carmen that beast has been awake for the last few
weeks. Growing, fueling her restlessness and sorrow. She strode the
length of her bedroom and back, the nightgown she had on, rustling
softly with every step she took. She had not been able to sleep, did not
dare to sleep. Dreams would come when she slept, dreams mingled
with unpleasant memories and emotions.

Forward and back, she paced. Finally, she stopped and glanced at
broken mirror on her dressing table. The henchmen moving it in had
accidentally dropped it and the mirror cracked. Her shattered reflection
stared back at her in anguish. Sighing, she continued to pace. The
stately thread lulled her body to cry for rest. She ignored the plea
ruthlessly, squashing it down to a minute ache. Questions and wishes
broiled in her mind. 

Don’t I deserve a bit of happiness once in my life? She mentally asked
no one bitterly. 

A voice inside her answered: When were you ever truly happy?

I was happy at Acme, once.

But you didn’t find what you were looking for in Acme, did you?

What was I looking for? Carmen inwardly cried desperately. 

          The voice was silent for a moment. Its reply echoed
          Carmen’s sense of loss: You tell me.

           

Carmen stopped her pacing and walked out onto the balcony. The
moon was nearly full yet a black crescent cut deeply into its shape.
Carmen gazed at the moon a long time before going to bed. Like the
moon, something inside her was missing and she intended to find it.
And to be at her peak, she had to face her fears.

The man was middle-aged, well built. He covered his fear well
enough yet allowed some frightening anger to show through. In his
hand, he clutched a gold locket in which he had opened and
recognized the portrait inside. 

Avalon glared around his study, searching for her-the intruder who had
suddenly dropped the locket on his desk when he was working. She
remained hidden in the corridor leading to the room.

"What kind of sick joke is this?"

"That’s a picture of your wife, isn’t it Mr. Avalon?" 

Avalon turned to the direction where her voice seemed to be coming
from. 

"Who’s there? Show yourself."

She shifted her position so that her shadow was cast on the wall
behind him. From the corner of his eye, Avalon saw it.

"Carmen Sandiego!"

Carmen felt slightly frightened as she saw Avalon running towards his
desk for the alarm button. She did not come all this way just to be
chased off by the security guards. She wanted answers and she
wanted them tonight. She convinced him to stop and was a bit hurt by
his accusation that she stolen the gold locket. Her voice was very cool
when she told him to take a seat. She proceeded to tell him of her
research into the deaths of his wife and daughter. A note of
compassion entered her voice when she saw the pain in his face. As
she hoped he told her of the fire that took his wife and young daughter
of two. When he finished, he demanded that she tell him how she got
the locket.

Carmen appeared in the doorway to his left. She was amazed to see
Avalon’s cold, angry gaze. She felt calm; after all, he had to her father.
All the puzzle pieces fitted perfectly together. She told him of her
amnesia concerning her parents’ identities or characters. She told him
that she had always had the locket and that she was found wandering
the streets of San Francisco at the age of two. Avalon seemed
shocked by her tale. Then, with a slight incredulous that she couldn’t
shake from her voice, she proposed the chance that she was his
daughter. Somehow this proposal did not suit Avalon and his features
hardened into anger and disdain. He returned to his desk and pressed
the alarm. When he turned back to her, his anger had metamorphosed
into a cold avalanche. He stabbed a finger at her.

"If my daughter had lived, she would have grown up smart and brave.
Never a thief and coward!" his voice so sure, his anger so great.
Carmen took a slow step back, raising her hands to ward off his words,
his wrath. Surprise seemed to have infused her entire being. She
wanted to turn and run but Avalon’s stare was compelling. He
continued with contempt for her, this thief who wanted to be his angel
child. "Who runs from the law like you! I don’t know where you got
this but you never got this from me."

His words were like poison and she backed away to let the shadows
engulf her fleeing form. They repeated themselves over and over.
Carmen ran into the night. She was the Night.

 If...if... If my daughter had lived! She would have grown up smart and
   brave!Never! Never- A thief,coward- Never...like you!.
                     Never!.My daughter...

                   *******************************

Zack and Ivy were playing a game of where they had to guess where
famous landmarks resided in. So far, Zack was winning. The Chief was
keeping score and tried not to be amused at Ivy’s frustration that she
was always one step behind Zack. It had been a pleasant day and last
night’s worries were forgotten. He wondered idly if Zack and Ivy should
get a vacation. After all, they had worked so hard this year. Putting
away criminals like the turncoat Lee Jordan and Maelstrom. Foiling
Carmen’s crimes again and again. Catching her more times than any
detective in Acme- the Chief let the fantasy of Carmen jailed take him
away from the game.

A beep signaling incoming email broke his reverie. "Listen up,
gumshoes. Carmen has just sent you a clue."

Ivy glanced at the game score and readily hoped the game could be
restarted. It wasn’t that she hated losing to her little bro. She hated
losing in general. "What’s the clue, Chief?"

Zack smiled in amusement as his sister completely involved herself in
this new case. She wasn’t a poor loser. Yet she hated to lose. 

"The clue is: It isn’t the size of the player that matters in the game of
soccer. Victory is a short step away from defeat, if you play solo. Being
egoistic is a large fertile plain for isolation."

Zack looked puzzled as Ivy ordered the Player to do an infoscan on
soccer. The Chief gave them a brief history on soccer and that was
also known as football. 

"This gets us nowhere," Ivy fumed.

Zack frowned. What could Carmen mean? A sudden burst of
inspiration dawned on him. 

"Ivy remember that small soccer player who was big in the 80’s but got
involved in drug use and hasn’t made a decent comeback yet? He was
the best attacker for that team and would mostly go solo."

Ivy glanced at Zack. What was he getting at? Slowly it dawned on her.

"Maradona! Zack you’re a genius. Player, C-5 us to Buenos Aires,
Argentina."

The Chief stopped them. "What makes you think she means
Maradona, Zack and Ivy? There’s a lot of superstars who are short."

Ivy smiled and replied before jumping into the C5, "It’s a hunch, Chief.
Trust us. Besides a large plain or surface in the Quechua language is
called Pampas. Argentina’s important farmland is called the Pampas." 

                    ****************************

Carmen enjoyed the warm weather of the Argentina; it suited the
feeling that was inside her. She glanced at the sky; the sun would soon
set. Patiently, she waited for the detectives to show up. Soon, very
soon. She had already placed the clue so that they’ll find it after she
flees. Carmen felt a lot closer to serenity for the first time in these past
few weeks. 

Ah, here they were. The bluish halo of the C5 deposited Ivy and Zack
some distance down the rocky beach. They spotted her. Zack started
forward but Ivy quickly outdistanced him. Carmen started running to
where she had hidden her submersible.

"Carmen! Stay right there!"

"Hurry up, Zack. She’s getting away."

Carmen smiled. This should be fun.

 

To be continued...