The Chasing Game.

Maria Rodriguez, the detective, was fatigued. Despite working on the case for weeks, she had made no progress in finding the missing woman since she had first begun. She had spoken with a large number of witnesses, gone through hours of surveillance tape, and even scoured the nearby forests. However, nothing had surfaced.

Her phone rang while she was seated at her desk and focused on the massive amount of paperwork in front of her. Her captain was there.

He said, "Rodriguez, I need you to come down to the station immediately. "We believe we have located the missing woman."

Maria's heart almost burst through her throat. She said, "What kind of lead?"

"We got a tip that she was being held hostage in an abandoned warehouse outside the city. I need you to put a crew together and get over there right now."

As soon as possible, Maria organised her squad of armed police officers and investigators. With their hearts racing from the exhilaration, they hurried to the warehouse.

They could hear distorted cries coming from within the structure as they got closer. Blood froze in Maria's body.

She drew her revolver and said, "Okay, everyone. "Let's go inside."

With their weapons at the ready, they pounded on the door and barged inside. They could make out a person huddling in the room's corner in the weak light. The missing woman was there.

Maria hastened to her side to look for any wounds. It's alright, she assured him. We're here to save you, we say.

However, as they made their way outside, they heard a voice coming from the darkness.

An individual stepped up and remarked, "Not so fast." "You're not leaving," I said.

As soon as Maria recognised the man, her heart sunk. He was the person they had been searching for for several months; he was the brains behind numerous kidnappings and homicides.

He greeted the detective, "I've been waiting for you, Detective," with a crooked grin. I foresaw your arrival.

While holding her rifle up, Maria trembled. "Let her go," she commanded. It has ended.

The guy chuckled. Oh, it's not over yet, he said. "Detective, you've been after me for months, as you can see. But I've also been after you. I was keeping an eye on you. being aware of your shortcomings. I'm going to complete what I started right now.

Maria could hear the thumping of her heart in her chest. She had never in her life felt so terrified. But she was aware that she had to persist. She had to struggle.

She aimed her rifle towards the man's head as she lifted it. "I'm not afraid of you," she declared.

The man chuckled once again. You ought to be, he said. "Because you and I are alike. a murderer."

Maria experienced a spike in rage. I am not a murderer, she declared.

"Oh, but you are," the man said. Despite the fact that you haven't yet, you will kill someone. Detective, you have it in you. Your eyes show it to me.

On her forehead, Maria saw a cool perspiration starting to form. Was he accurate? Had she the capacity to murder someone?

But then she recalled why she had initially chosen to become a detective. It wasn't to apprehend murderers. To save lives, that is.

She emphasised, "I am not a killer," once again. I work as a detective. My responsibility is to defend the defenceless.

She then released the trigger. The man died when he hit the ground.

Maria inhaled deeply as she felt a flood of relief sweep over her. She'd completed it. She had found the murderer and saved the missing woman.

She heard a voice behind her as she left the warehouse.

"well done".