Chapter 209 - Rescue (6): The Message

"Eli?" 

He peered at her from a distance. What was she doing there? 

Eli walked up to the entrance with the search warrant in hand. The guard uo front stopped her. 

"You don't have permission to go in," he said in a menacing tone but Eli held up her badge. 

"I have a search warrant," she replied, shoving it on his face. "I have reason to believe that someone we are looking for is in this building." 

The guard frowned and studied the paper. He grudgingly stepped aside and let her in. Eli entered the building. Upon entering, she was made to go through various body scanners. 

"No guns," one guard said. Eli handed her gun over to him and walked on. 

Even though it was daytime, the building was still very dark inside. It used to be a mental care facility before. Patients used to be locked up in cell-like rooms. Even though the cells were empty, Eli felt uncomfortable. How many countless people were tortured in those rooms? 

The building itself was depressing. The stone walls only increased the sense of claustrophobia. Eli felt her breath constrict with every step. She found it difficult to inhale any air as she became more aware of her surroundings. This place would make anyone go mad, she thought. 

Swallowing down her fear, she marched on, searching every room. There were guards at every corner who were staring at her like hawks. 

"Is there a doctor's chamber here?" she asked one of them. 

"Upstairs," he said. Eli climbed the stone staircase. There were more cells on the upper floor. She looked into every one of them, memorizing the floorplan. 

But the cells there were also empty. Where was Goo Soo Bin? 

She entered the doctor's office. An elderly doctor in his seventies sat behind a desk. From his name tag, she read his name: Kim Dojoon. 

"How may I help you, Detective?" he asked. His hawk like eyes scrutinised her.

"I'm looking for a patient here," she said. "Goo Soo Bin." 

"I'm afraid you've come to the wrong place" Dojoon replied. "We don't have any patients here."

"Yet, this place is secured by armed guards?" Eli questioned. 

"We do get some patients here at times but they hardly stay long," Dojoon said. 

"What happens to them?" Eli asked. 

"They either heal or die," Dojoon stated calmly. 

"Goo Soo Bin was last seen here before he went missing three years ago," she said. 

"Was he seen entering this building?" 

"No, but he was in this area. I tried to look for him in here but that time I wasn't allowed to enter. Now I have a search warrant." 

"And did you find him?" 

Eli pursed her lips. "No," she replied. 

"Then you should leave, detective," he said. "This is a private property. If you didn't find the person you're looking for then you shouldn't prolong your stay." 

There was something wrong. She could feel it. Her gut instincts were screaming at her that there was something more to the building and Goo Soo Bin was kept hidden here. But where? 

"If you're done, then I'll have to ask you to leave," he said. Eli had to think fast. 

"Now that I'm here, doctor," she said quickly. "Can you examine my head? I get regular migraines followed by bouts of depression. If you could just check it…" 

"I am a psychiatrist not a brain specialist." 

"But my depression is getting worse," Eli insisted. "I've even tried to kill myself quite a few times."

She put on a pleading face. The doctor sighed. 

"I'll bring my stethoscope from the back room," he said. "Please wait." 

She waited until he was out of sight. She quickly strode over to the medicine cabinet. There were only a handful of medicines so she took one sample from each and stuffed them in a pouch she kept hidden around her waist before going back to her seat. 

The doctor came back with his stethoscope. 

"Look at the torch," he ordered as he lit a torch on her eyes. 

After giving her the basic treatment, he prescribed some medicines to her. Eli thanked him and exited the room. She looked inside more cells but all of them were empty. Was he really not there? 

Eli was about to leave when her phone rang up. It was Dasom. 

"What is it?" she asked irritably. 

"Where are you?" he asked. 

"I'm working." 

"Don't lie!" he said. "I saw you entering a creepy building." 

"I don't have time to deal with you-" 

She suddenly heard faint scratching noises. 

"Hello?" Dasom's voice came from the other end but she ignored him and followed the sound. It was coming from behind a bookshelf. 

Eli was conflicted. She was instructed not to act but she had to know if Goo Soo Bin was really there. They would not get a chance like this again. But there was a chance that if she checked the bookshelf, she will not be able to leave the place alive. 

She stared at her phone. Calling anyone from Abyss will be disastrous in case if she was caught. If her involvement with them was discovered, she would not be able to work as freely as she was able to now. And calling them will give their identities away. She made a quick decision. 

Dasom was still on the phone. 

"Hello?" he kept on saying. 

"Listen to me carefully," she whispered, looking out for guards. "If I don't call you back within half an hour, then please pass a message to KJ. Tell him 30 guards, 1 doctor and look for a bookshelf. And the meds are Xanax, Valium, Restoril and Lorazepam. Got it?" 

"What?" 

"Please just pass it on to him," she pleaded. "It's really important! 30 guards, 1 doctor and look for a bookshelf. Meds are Xanax, Valium, Restoril and Lorazepam." 

Dasom frowned in confusion. Why was she giving him cryptic messages? Before he could ask any further, she hung up. He looked at the building before him. Fifteen minutes… 

Eli pushed the bookshelf. It slid open. Behind it was a small room. And inside it was. 

"Goo Soo Bin…" Eli whispered. 

"You shouldn't have done that." 

She spun around to see the doctor standing there. Before she could react, he hit her on the head, rendering her unconscious. 

…. 

Dasom was worried. Eli's message had rattled him. 

Was she on a mission from KJ? He wondered. 

He checked his watch. Fifteen minutes had passed and there was no sign of Eli. 

Worried for her, he dialed KJ's number. 

"Hey Dasom," KJ greeted. "What-" 

"KJ, I have a message for you," he said quickly. "It's from Eli."