The Hope Island Chronicles Boxed Set
Page 80
The Chief Petty Officer, with the nametag Anders, stared at him, a curious expression forming. “That’s not what your nametag says.”
Nathan snorted. “The fuck heads on the Cormorant lost my bags. I’ve been getting by on whatever I can scrounge until she turns up tomorrow.”
Nathan knew that he had only lasted this long because the possibility of someone strolling into the base from the outside, must, in everyone’s minds be so absurd a notion as to stagger fair reason. Still, his luck couldn’t hold out much longer. He prepared to kill the Pruessen.
The chief snorted. “Yeah, wouldn’t be the first time.” He stepped into an office, Head of Security stenciled to hatch, and took a seat behind his desk. “Tech guys shouldn’t be in the security area. So you’d better keep clear of here in the future. All right?”
“Sure thing chief.” He paused for a moment then plunged ahead. “So, scuttlebutt says we’re holding southern prisoners here. That right?”
The chief’s eyes narrowed.
“Hey, just curious you know?” Nathan continued to smile and took another step closer to the Pruessen.
“So, is Andy still giving you techs a hard time?’
Nathan’s back flared. He’s onto me. He prepared to leap at the non-com. Danger. Nathan charged at the seated Pruessen. A pulsar pistol came to hand. Too late, he realized his mistake.
The blast hit him in the chest throwing him back onto the deck. Darkness took him.
CHAPTER 16
Date: 24th July, 326 ASC
Position: Saint Joan, Pruessen Imperial Space.
Status: High alert.
“Where the blazes did he come from?” Commander Schmidt demanded.
“We’re still checking, sir,” CPO Anders said.
“Checking? He didn’t just wander in from outside did he? Could he have stowed away on the Cormorant?”
“That’s one of many possibilities we’re checking out. Sir,” Anders said. “If we were on a naval base instead of a research facility we’d have the means to –”
“Oh no, Anders, not again. I’ve told you that this whole operation was slapped together at the last minute. When Cormorant arrives she’ll be bringing all we need to make this place secure. Until then we’ll just have to make do.”
“We’ve been making do for six weeks. Cormorant was supposed to resupply us with security upgrades last month.”
“We are getting off subject,” Schmidt said. “I want to know who our prisoner is and how he got onto this base.”
“He’s not saying.”
“Did he have anything on him that might help with an identification.”
Stifling a sigh, Anders took the items from a drawer and laid them on the desk.
Schmidt picked up the monocular and then the knife, and finally the timepiece, pretended to examine them, then returned them to the desk.
“Anything?”
“Nope. The monocular could come from anywhere. No manufacture’s markings. Same with the knife and the watch.”
“Do you have anything to go on?”
“Only our guest and he’s not in a talkative mood,” Anders said.
“Then, chief petty officer, you will need to convince him to talk. For all we know he’s a saboteur.”
“Anything’s possible.” Anders paused before shifting into an area he knew the commander wouldn’t like. “Perhaps we should inform the Captain.”
“Captain Reinhard is not the commanding officer of this base, I am. I’ll inform him when I’ve got something more tangible to report other than we’re checking.”
Although Anders felt nothing remotely akin to respect for this idiot, he knew better than to challenge existing military dogma. “Respectfully, Commander, he is the ranking officer on this base. And, sir, as sector intell chief he will want to be informed of any new developments. This qualifies, don’t you think?”
Schmidt’s face began to darken. The hatch opened and Doctor Jahn interrupted what would have undoubtedly been an agitated response.
“I’ve checked him out and he’s perfectly healthy,” the doctor said. “Apart from the beating your thugs gave him.”
“I don’t need to explain my methods to you, doctor,” Schmidt said. “What about the plague?”
Anders saw fear in his eyes and for a change couldn’t fault him.
“What about it?” the doctor said, with a blandness that almost made Anders laugh. He loved the way the doctor needled Schmidt.
“Does he have it?” Schmidt’s voice rose far too high, which pleased Anders greatly.
“Yes, he’s infected with the Derwent Plague and we’re all going to die.” The doctor humphed. “So I thought I would make it the last thing I reported.”
“Your sense of humor is not appreciated, doctor.”
It is by everyone else, you quarter wit.
“Fuck you, Schmidt. I’ve got better things to do than stand here stating the bloody obvious.” Without another word, or a backward glance, he left.
Anders fought to contain a smile.
“So, our guest doesn’t want to talk, eh?” Schmidt said. Anders knew what was coming and grimaced. “Get Sergeant Jaeger to have a word with him.” For the first time since hearing the news, the prick smiled.
CHAPTER 17
Nathan’s head snapped back under the force of the blow, then slumped forward. His head swam, his vision fogging over. Secured tightly to the interrogation chair he was helpless to resist the battering. His body felt little more than one great aching lump of misery.
“Who are you?” his torturer shouted. The same question, over and over. Another sound beating when he remained silent. Nathan knew he would have the last laugh when the nuke turned this base into a glass-covered hole in the ground. How long?
“Who,” a hit to the stomach, “are,” another to his already broken nose, “you,” and one more to his left eye that had already swollen shut.
Through his one good eye Nathan saw his torturer wiping sweat from his lip, his breathing ragged. With torn and bloody lips Nathan smiled.
“Oh, this is funny to you, is it? Okay funny guy.” He pulled a knife from his belt and held its shiny blade before him. “Hmm, good knife this. Sharp.”
He ran the blade across Nathan’s bare chest, deep enough to draw blood. Nathan gritted his teeth as the blade tore through his flesh. The torturer repeated the torture over and over again. At no time did he ask a question.
“My orders say I can’t kill you,” the blade cut again, “but it doesn’t mean I can’t hurt you. You’ve got two eyes, but really, you only need one don’t you?” The prick grinned.
Gripping Nathan’s hair he pulled his head back, a thumb and forefinger forcing his right eyelid open.
“You know, I don’t care if you talk or not. I’m just having too much fun.”
The blade moved slowly, coming closer and closer to his exposed eye. Nathan steeled himself. Don’t give the prick the satisfaction of a scream. Take the pain, take the pain.
The blade finally rested upon his eyelid. His torturer’s foul smile sparked something in Nathan.
“You’ll die badly,” Nathan said.
The torturer chuckled then turned as the hatch snapped open.
An officer stepped inside, tall, brutal features, no nonsense. Nathan’s vision blurred. The newcomer glanced at Nathan before setting a stern glare onto the torturer.
“Having fun, Jaeger?”
“SOP for enemies of the empire.”
The officer’s glare intensified.
Jaeger snapped to attention. “Sir.”
The officer ran his eyes over Nathan’s brutalized body. No pity or remorse, only a cold evaluation.
“Don’t you worry, Captain,” Jaeger said. “He’ll break. They all do eventually.”
“Did you see him when he was brought into this room?”
“I’ve seen plenty. They all struggle and some of them whimper.”
“He’s a tough nut, Captain, but I’ll break him.”
“You’re a stupid oaf, Jaeger. And like a stupid oaf you don’t realize that torture becomes ineffective after a while.”
He turned back to Nathan. “I will have your secrets.” It wasn’t the words so much as the irrefutable tone that chilled Nathan’s blood.
“Throw him in with the other prisoners,” Reinhardt said. “Let his pain work on him. I will conduct the next interrogation.”
“Ah, sir, Commander Schmidt gave me orders to –”
“Are you so stupid that you don’t know when to shut up?”
“Aye-aye, Captain.”
***
The hatch to the cell opened and a body dropped onto the deck. The Athenian prisoners had all had a taste of Pruessen hospitality, but this latest arrival looked to have been trampled on by a herd of enraged buffalos.
Lieutenant Moe Okuma nudged Heng and together they pulled the limp form over to the wall. The cell’s bright lights, kept on around the clock, showed a bloody swollen face barely recognizable as human.
“He’s not one of ours,” Heng whispered. “So who the hell is he?”
“Doc, we’ve got another patient for you,” Moe said.
Doctor Bryant shuffled over and held a finger to the newcomer’s neck.
“Steady pulse, he’ll live.” He sat back and caught the full brunt of Moe’s disapproval. “What do you want me to do? I have nothing to treat him with and the square heads won’t allow me access to their infirmary.”
“Do something,” Moe pleaded.
The doctor found a cloth, not covered in blood, took some of their precious water allowance and started cleaning his wounds. With each stroke more of the face appeared. His one good eye fluttered open, blinking as if trying to focus.
He tried to speak but only a croak sounded. Moe put her ear to his torn mouth.
“You just can’t keep out of trouble, can you, Mary Anne.”
With the room being monitored, she barely resisted laughing. She whispered into his ear.
“Call me that again and I’ll kick your ass.”
“Take a number.”
This time a tiny chuckle seeped out.
He tried to sit up, wincing at the pain.
“Doc?”
After a quick, and painful examination the doctor said, “Busted ribs, lacerated chest and possible internal bruising. Could have a concussion as well. I wouldn’t try to move if I were you.”
Naturally Nathan ignored him and, with Moe’s help, slowly pushed himself to a sitting position, wincing as his back propped against the wall. He whispered to Moe. She smiled.
“He says thanks for the obvious, you fucking witch doctor.”
“Yeah, like I said, he’ll live.”
Nathan’s good eye tracked to the sensor sitting above the hatch. “Audio and visual?”
“Yep.” They continued to talk in whispers.
“What happened?” Nathan asked.
“An extension of their energy dampening technology. Plus, a Captain who thinks regs don’t apply to ass-kissing toadies.”
Nathan said nothing in reply, shifting his body with tiny, painful increments, seeking a position that would hurt less.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” Moe asked.
“I’m the rescue party.”
Again, Moe had to smother a laugh.
“What’s the time?” She could barely make out Nathan’s badly slurred words.
“No idea. Why?”
His eye stared at her for far too long. “Did you hear the pulsar shot?”
“What? Ah, yeah,” Moe said. Again the intense look, this time with the unmistakable hint of fear. “It was about an hour ago.” She lowered her voice even more. “How long?”
His eye flashed to the surveillance sensor then back to her. A short shake of the head.
Soon then. They won’t allow a monitor to be stripped of her secrets.
Moe could imagine a squadron of monitors sitting in orbit, preparing to send the research base back to the ice age.
“I guess we’d better leave soon,” she whispered.
Nathan smiled, his torn lips oozing blood. His eye fluttered then closed, his head falling against her shoulder. Alarmed, she checked his pulse, then breathed a sigh of relief.
***
Nathan awoke as rough hands grabbed him, hauling him painfully to his feet. His right eye had partially closed and he tried to force it open.
“Take it easy with him,” Moe yelled. “What are you trying to do? Kill him?”
The sound of a hard backhand and Moe landing heavily onto the deck.
Back to the interrogation room, back to the restraints, back to the pain.
He’d stopped testing the restraints. Half moon clasps held rigidly in place by locking pins. The restraints held his wrists so tightly they cut off circulation. He made another careful examination of the room. No security sensors had been installed during his absence.
Nathan readied himself for the next round of torture, with deep, deep breathing, clearing his mind, preparing for the agony to come. It’s nothing, it doesn’t matter. It’s nothing, it doesn’t matter.
The hatch opened. A new tormentor, older than the other. He carried a black leather case. Full of torture implements? Nathan bit back a shudder and braced himself.
The newcomer opened the case and rummaged around inside it. Nathan’s eye blurred obscuring what the Pruessen did next. Uncertainty - that truly scared him. It’s nothing, it doesn’t matter.
A mild whirring sound. Nathan blinked his good eye open. The Pruessen held a scanner, running it over him from head to toe. He examined the readouts before returning it to his bag.
“Fucking animals,” he mumbled, then reached into his cases. “This will sting.”
As the cloth came close to his eye, Nathan turned his head, fighting the inevitable.
The Pruessen sighed. “If you don’t want to cooperate, I can get people in here to hold you still.”
Nathan sent a blistering one-eyed glare at his interrogator. There was no fighting it. He held still. May as well get it over with.
The cloth was soaked in some kind of chemical, the antiseptic scent familiar to Nathan. It stung, then the area treated felt better.
“Who are you?” Nathan asked.
“Doctor Jahn, base physician. And you?”
“Hans.” There seemed little point in holding out any longer. Soon he’d be dead. The thought annoyed him. No, damn you, there’s always a chance, always another way.
The doctor continued to treat his wounds but Nathan had no idea why. After ten minutes his left eye opened, still blurry but open. The facial swelling diminished and although his ribs still hurt they felt much better. After cleaning the knife wounds to his chest he covered the area with a soft dressing.
“How are you feeling?” Doctor Jahn asked.
“Better. Why are you treating me?”
“Because, young man, I’m a doctor not a thug. Besides, Captain Reinhard ordered it. Pity he won’t let me treat the other prisoners.”
Captain Reinhard, the officer who stopped Jaeger from taking my eye. The no nonsense Captain who’ll conduct the next interrogation.
The thought of the Captain caused Nathan’s Prep to ache. Jaeger, as the doctor pointed out, was a simple thug, albeit with sadistic tendencies. He considered the Captain to be more measured, more pragmatic, in true Pruessen style, and Nathan strongly suspected, far more dangerous.
Jahn placed a cup to his lips and Nathan drank the water as if it were his last. He giggled internally. Stop it. The doctor packed his case and prepared to leave. He stared at Nathan.
“Hans, if that’s your real name, if I were you I would answer
the Captain’s questions. If you do, with some luck, you might live a little longer.”
“Thanks for the advice, doctor. Once again, why give counsel to someone who could be an enemy of the empire?”
“I’m a doctor, you’re my patient.” He shrugged and turned to leave.
The hatch opened. Captain Reinhardt stepped inside, his blue eyes locking onto his prisoner. Nathan averted his eyes.
“How is he, doc?”
“I’ve stopped the internal hemorrhaging and patched him back together as best as I can. He needs time in the infirmary.”
“So no plague then?”
The doctor pulled a sour face. Reinhardt nodded.
“Did he say anything?”
“Nothing of consequence.”
Reinhardt eyed him menacingly for a moment then nodded curtly. The doctor left. The Captain pulled a chair over, placed it directly in front of Nathan and sat.
Nathan kept staring at the floor. From his brief glimpse of the Captain there was something about him that –
“Very well, let’s set the ground rules,” Reinhardt said. “I will ask you questions, you will answer. If I like the answer, you will live. If I don’t, you will die. Questions?”
“No third option?”
“Hmm. It’s good that you have a sense of humor. You’ll need it. Now, first question. What is your name?”
“Hans Schmidt.”
“There, that wasn’t so hard was it? Now, to save my voice just tell me your story.”
Nathan had time to concoct a story. An unlikely story, but something at least.
“I’m an independent trader. My ship hit the edge of a Hylon Rift. I managed to work around it but not before it knocked out my nav-com. I corrected my heading to where I should egress, by dead reckoning.”
“Dead reckoning?”
Nathan resisted the urge to look up. “Yeah, I’ve done it before. Anyway I egressed, expecting to find nothing but clear space, to recharge my buffers and make repairs. Instead I popped into the middle of your orbital shooting gallery. I tried to come about but it was too late. My ship got shot up so badly I had no choice but to land.”
“On a plague planet?” The Captain sounded amused, in a lethal kind of way.