The Oreans

Chapter 30

Chapter 30
Midnight Meeting

It was a dimly lit, dingy room. Everything about it had a stench of decay: the moss-covered walls and floor, the rusty window bars—everything except the door, which was made of steel. The only person in the room knew that it was a latest renovation—added for her "benefit".

The said person was standing by the window, looking down at the sheer drop below. A strong wind, bringing a whiff of the sea, beat against her face, but she did not mind. Her once long hair would no longer be tangled behind her as her captor had shaved them off yesterday. Her thought was on her friend. She knew that he was also held captive here. She had to find a way out and save him—before it was too late.

If she could only remove the bars. Rusty as they were, they clung obstinately in place. She breathed on the fresh air and tried rattling them again. Finally, a bar slid out of the hole that held it. She wiped her forehead and was about to go after the second when she heard footsteps from the corridor. She hastily put the bar back in place and sat down, then waited.

"How obstinate can she get?" her captor's voice was saying.

"I don't know, Master," a man replied. "The girl didn't even budge yesterday, remember? When you shaved her head..."

"I expected that.... But I know that she'll give in soon. She'll tell us what we need to know. She won't be able to resist once she sees the possible consequence of her stubbornness."

The girl braced herself as the footsteps stopped outside the door.

"What do you need from me this time?" she said, trying to sound brave, as the door creaked open and five masked men entered.

"It's the same thing, my sweet," the tallest of them replied. Her captor.

"I already told you several times, I know nothing of those gems you're looking for. I don't have them, and I don't know where they're found!"

"Indeed? But our lord thinks you do."

"I'm getting tired of this conversation. Why not just kill me?"

"Don't worry. We'll come to that point, darling, but not until you give us what we want. And it will be soon, trust me." Turning to his men, he said, "Get her."

"How absurd!" the girl said with derision in her voice as two of the men hoisted her to her feet while the others pointed their sword to her. "You said you're a strong man, yet you can't face your captive alone--a single, starving girl at that!"

"Let's say that we don't underestimate you, my sweet," the man said, approaching her. He stopped before her and held her chin. "Not anymore. I saw the glint in your eyes yesterday. It's still there now. It tells me that you're not surrendering without a fight."

"How do you think can I fight you?" asked the girl, meeting the blood-shot eyes directed at her.

"Who can tell?"

The man released her face and turned to his men with a gesture. One of them drew a piece of cloth from his pocket. She let the man cover her eyes, knowing very well that to struggle now would be futile. Then, she felt herself being dragged forward. They were going to take her out of her cell again.

"What mode of torture are you planning for me now?" she asked calmly.

"Torture?" said her captor's voice. "So you know now what I'm capable of? Don't worry. You won't have your idea of torture. It will be, let's say, much worse. You just wait..."

The march seemed endless to her. They had trod on level ground for a while, and climbed up a series of staircases as if they were heading for a tower higher than where she had been detained. When they stopped, she was almost out of breath.