A Crown Of Blades(ARTK, Book 3)

Chapter 98-99

Juhna 6th,3330 A.G

 
  If he made it out of this, Drogo would never again complain about any sort of pain. Never take the simple ability to breathe, to go a hundred full moments without screaming, to have all of his fingernails- he would never take any of that fore-granted again. He'd cried more times than he cared to admit over the last day or so, having his sleep replaced with water boarding and skinning small areas of his body.

Yet he did not break.

He'd told them nothing, speaking only once to comment on how Wymac Otes's face became almost completely red when he were angry.

"Fascinating." He'd commented. "If I didn't know any better I'd say that were a sunburn."

That one had earned him half an hour of water boarding for the simple disrespect of it, but he hardly noticed. Over the last day, he'd come to learn that there were worse forms of torture- that the human body could truly grow used to anything if it happened enough.

When Jana slapped him again, he smiled and simply rose an eyebrow as if to say "That's it? With everything you did in the night, I was expecting something a little more creative."

The look alone were enough to set her off, to motivate her to slap and slap and slap- but all that did were make his cheek slightly burn and tingle. He could easily handle that; it were nothing compared to the actual burns. Eventually she did stop, leaned against the wall furthest from him- and appeared to be thinking of new methods.

"You have a very strong mind." She commented. "That is admirable. You are also very loyal to... whoever it is you serve. My bet is on Nara Ashhand, but Wymac here thinks it may be Helywyse Hilith or Robyn Melcher who sends you."

Let them think whatever they want. They will learn absolutely nothing-

"In a different life, I may have asked you to serve me instead. That I would like to have someone with your loyalty to report the secrets of Nara Ashhand and every other lord and lady in the world- but in this world I will give you a different proposal: If you do not answer the simple question we have been asking you for hours now, I will walk upstairs and out to the square- grab the first little girl I see, and bring her down here to have her feel at least half of what you have been through in the last day."

"You wouldn't." Drogo nearly laughed. "You are a mother. You might take another lady or lord's child as a hostage if the war eventually calls for it, but you would not snatch a commoner's babe. They love you, and you will do anything to preserve that image. Anything to keep their love, I should say- so that when there is a coup against the Otes family, they are more likely to help you escape."

She were across the room in half a moment.

He hardly felt the slap that came next, his face seemingly immune to that small pain.

"Very well." She stood up as straight as her short stature would allow, lifted her chin and then his. "When you have to listen to the screams of a babe, I hope you are okay to live with the knowledge that it would not be screaming if you'd simply given us a name-"

Drogo's heart skipped a beat when the door opened and Myles Otes walked in. He hadn't been involved in the torture, but he'd been in a few times to check on their progress..... and he looked absolutely horrified now.

"What in the god's names have you done to him?" Harman Otes's heir asked. "My father- your uncle would be absolutely-"

"Proud that someone in this family is willing to do whatever it takes?"Jana interrupted. "Elated, even- that I have taken the initiative while most of you sit on your asses? Do you know how many more torture methods we could open a door to if there were three people or more to help carry them out-"