Calypso's Mast

Chapter 20 - Sidewinder Strike

Bang! His vision lit up with lights and pain.

"Wake up, you lousy piece of work!"

Banning woke up drowning in their precious drinking water. He coughed and spluttered as the water rained down into his mouth and nose from the container held above his face. His head was pounding.

"What are you doing?" he cried as he moved his head to try and dodge the steady stream of water raining down upon him.

"Who the hell are you, you worthless scum?" Pitcher kept up the economy waterboarding.

"What's this all about?" Banning rolled over on his side and tried to get away.  She followed his movement.

"Stop it! You're wasting our water."

"Like you care," was the retort. "Start talking. Who are you?"

He reached up and knocked the can out of her hand. It clattered in the corner of the bunker and spilled the remaining water. Then he sat up, reached up with both hands, grabbed her upper arms and forcibly sat her down in front of him.

"Sonya, what the hell is going on? What are you doing?" He shook his head to clear his eyes.

"You're a damned fake!"

"What? What do you mean I'm a fake?"

"How do you explain this?" she spat. She was really mad. She reached around and produced a phone. He recognised it immediately.

"That's my phone. What do you think you are doing going through my stuff?"

"I know it's a damned phone and it's a satellite phone," she replied, ignoring the question. "Why haven't you used it to get help?"

Banning cursed under his breath and was silent for a pregnant moment. He could smell her anger.

Finally he spoke. "Because it would have blown our cover and jeopardised the whole investigation."

"What investigation?"

"The investigation I've been engaged in. That's what! What did you do to my head?" he reached up and touched his tender scalp. His hand came away with blood on it.

"I hit you with that stick over there," she replied and pointed to a solid piece of stick she had thrown into the corner of the room, near the water container.

"Oh God," he moaned. "You've fractured my goddamn skull."

She ignored his comment and pressed the advantage. "You goddamn slime! You have not been truthful with me. How dare you put my life in danger!"

"Your life is not in danger," he snorted. "You're the only who put your life in danger. What woman in her right mind takes off into the sunset on somebody else's boat with some stupid, crazy girlfriend she's only just met and thinks it's all going to be roses? You've been safer with me than anyone. If I hadn't found you, you would be dead from exposure or injury by now, guaranteed."

"I would not! And what's more you could have called for help and got me out of here."

"Yes I could have, but that would have tipped off your nut-case friend who just so happens, Miss Hoity Toity, to be, one of the bad guys. You have great taste in friends."

"Spare me the sarcasm, Mister. Face it. You've made a monumental mistake. You should have got me out of here and you didn't and now you're busted!"

"Get a life, princess, for goodness sake. You have no idea what you have landed in."

"Try me. I think I do."