Came for the Low- Revised

Untitled Part 11

DAY 15

    From the last few stairs in the hall she could hear the goings on in the holding room and the distinct sound of a fist meeting flesh that greeted her. He was on the receiving end of the smasher's full attention today.

    Taking a deep breath, Christine walked up and glanced at the old grandfather clock in the hall. It didn't tell the correct time anymore but the relic kept ticking, a reminder that the world continued to move on and she must be ready to keep up no matter what happened, or how she felt about the things beyond her control.

    Stepping into the room, Christine found a small group gathered around the Baron who'd been tied to a chair again. Lately they'd afforded him the luxury of an ancient sofa with springs that poked and a strange smell, but at least he could lie down—well—when he wasn't being asked the same questions so violently that it seemed more like punishment for destroying the serum.

    "Time is almost up Zemo. You've had your chances and we've been fair. Soon, the real work begins." A familiar voice said.

    Hiro and three other men with him stepped aside when they saw Christine standing there, revealing Karli. But it was not her leader she looked for.

    Zemo's head hung low, Christine could see him breathing hard. She gripped his tray a little tighter.

    Karli glanced back and saw Christine waiting, both women nodding a hello to one another. "Lucky for you," She said looking back to Zemo. "We've got business elsewhere today. Shift change!" She called and Zemo raised his head.

    Christine hid her anxiousness. She'd been waiting for him to look at her, not just to find out how badly they'd worked him over, but to see him again, and to be seen. After their last conversation over the use of violence as a means to an end, she could not seem to shake his voice from her mind and honestly, she knew her words were reaching him too. The anticipation to be looked at like that again— like he truly saw her when she spoke, was unexpected and ran deep.

    When he looked at her now, she did not look away. Not even when he smiled.

    "Leave him there for a while. Let him think about it." Karli said walking up to Christine. She hadn't noticed their exchange.

    "Got it" She answered confidently, the touch of Karli's hand on her shoulder like being blessed. "Are you leaving? I've heard talk of a shipment." She asked.

    Karli motioned for the others to follow her before looking back to the new recruit. "Not for long. This batch could really be enough to see us set for a few months."

    "With the numbers coming in, it's definitely needed" Hiro added and winked at Christine as he walked up.

    She smiled and gave him a friendly shoulder check. "Hey, did you drink my juice?" She whispered to him and Hiro grinned. "From the little fridge in the back of the kitchen?"

    "No! Never!" He tried and she knew instantly that he had and that her causal banter with him would mask her racing heart and worry for Zemo.

    "You dick! I was saving that!" She said through clenched teeth.

    Karli shook her head, laughing before they all looked back at their ever watchful prisoner. "Chris? Keep your distance, maybe don't listen to anything he says" She advised.

    Christine nodded a little too quickly, her eyes darting from one face to the other.

    "You sure you're still up for this? Two weeks with him seems like the real torture" The other man with them asked. Christine didn't know him yet, but she shot him a cold look not caring who he was.