Flat against the wall, Ryan hissed for their attention and held up two fingers, then pointed around the corner. J.B. and Doc moved out of the way and let the others bunch together. Ryan directed Krysty and Jak to go left, Mildred and Dean to the right. They nodded agreemeiit. Taking a breath and holding it, Ryan held up one finger, then two, then three. In unison, they stepped around the corner.
The two sec men, lounging in front of a door, turned at the sudden movement and a knife handle sprouted from the forehead of one, while the other staggered about, his chest full of quarrels. The companions converged upon the guards and disposed of them quietly.
Going to the door, J.B. listened, heard voices and went to the another. Unlocking the door showed it was a utility closet full of mops and buckets. The bodies were dragged inside and he locked the door to hinder their discovery.
“Double time,” Ryan whispered, taking the point position.
Mildred stopped him. “Somebody is getting tortured in there,” she said, tilling her head, “and I recognize the voice.
Ryan scowled. “Eugene?”
“Sounds like Shard.”
Another agonized moan wafted to them from inside, then there was the cracking sound of a whip.
“I’LL NEVER TELL where Ryan is,” Shard gasped, choking for air between each word. The chains clamped about his wrists pressed deep into the flesh, cutting off circulation. His hands had gone numb hours earlier. They were the only part of him that didn’t hurt. He tried again to rest his feet on the ground and failed. A nearby brazier glowed with heat, iron rods thrust deep into the pile of red coals, and the slave wondered how much longer his captor would wait before using them.
“For the hundredth time, I don’t care about him!” Anders stormed. “How do you turn on the great machine? You must know! Tell me!”
“Only…Ryan…”
The whip laid fire-across his bare back, and Shard bit back a cry. “That the best you got?” he mumbled weakly. “My sister…hits harder….”
The lieutenant tossed aside the whip and grabbed an iron rod. The end glowed white-hot and sizzled against bare flesh. The pain was beyond words, engulfing Shard’s whole body. He screamed.
“You’re a fool!” Anders growled. putting the iron back into the coals.
“Tell me and you live! I don’t work for the heirs, I want this yule for myself! But I need the tank to kill them.”
Then his tone softened, and he raised a cup of wine to Shard’s cracked lips. “Show me how to operate the great machine, and you can be my mechanic.” He smiled. “You’ll have women, food, anything you want!”
Shard spit into the cup. “Anything except freedom.”
Throwing the cup aside, Anders grabbed the whip. “I want to know where they got the tank,” he demanded, walking around the chained man, striking him repeatedly. “And are there more of them? How do you operate the device that tells of the approach of other machines? And what other booby traps Does the vehicle have aside from the bomb on the belly hatch?” Anders dropped the whip. “My patience grows short, as does the time.
Tell me or die.”
“Do it,” Shard whispered, having trouble keeping his head erect. His strength was fading, and soon the pain would claim him. “Kill me. I’ll never betray a friend.”
“Friend?” Anders sneered, slapping him. “Nonsense. You never met him before the tower room.”
“They treated me like a man,” Shard whispered, blood dribbling from a broken nose, “not a slave. That is worth more than anything you offer.”
“Oh, you’ll soon beg to talk.” The sec man pulled a medical instrument into view. The blade gleamed in the light of the brazier. “This is one of Eugene’s favorites. I’ve seen him use it on many subjects. Now it’s my turn.”
“I escaped once,” Shard said out of the blue, playing his last card. Raw desperation flooded his body with the strength to speak clearly.
Lowering the instrument, Anders stared.
“Got out. Over the wall. Made it to the forest and got captured by the scavengers. They tortured me, too. Had to bed a female mutie, a stickle, or else they would have roasted me for their dinner.” Shard squinted as if ttying to focus his blurred vision.