So Long

Chapter 9: That Part Of You That's Trying To Resist

A single tear slid down Skye's cheek as she finished telling Jack everything she knew about her team mates. From their specialisations and abilities to their personalities and the relationships that had formed between them. She hated herself for doing this, was appalled at how easily the words came from her mouth that betrayed the people who had become like family to her during these past months of working with them.

Jack was leaning against the wall next to the exit almost casually while the door still remained open, taunting Skye with its fake promise of freedom. He had been asking her countless questions about her team for the last hour, but the more time had passed, the more the whole exchange had shifted from an interrogation to a conversation as Skye's resistance had crumbled.

She was going to tell him anyway, to avoid further torture, so what was the point of prolonging the inevitable? And, as she kept telling herself, this was hardly the most sensitive information, anyway. Many people had been in contact with her team so far and knew their names and skills and only a few of those had had any form of high level clearance. For the moment Skye remained confident in her belief that even this detailed information on her friends in their enemies' hands wasn't putting them in any more danger than they could handle.

A few moments after Skye had fallen silent, Jack pushed himself off the wall and approached her slowly, looking down at the bound young woman with approval. She avoided his gaze by keeping her eyes locked on the ground, but his voice told Skye immediately how much he was satisfied by her obedient behaviour. The thought alone made her feel sick again.

"Now that wasn't so hard, was it? As I told you from the beginning, as long as you cooperate, there's no reason for me to mistreat you or resort to more drastic measures." He crouched down in front of Skye, so they were at eye level, although she still wouldn't look at him.

"Just keep answering my questions truthfully and I won't have to hurt you again. Though I'll admit, some of those lies you came up with were at least entertaining," he pointed out with a crooked grin.

In that moment Skye's gaze abruptly shot up, Jack's words echoing in her mind as a realisation suddenly hit her. Something that should have been obvious to her for a long time, but it was as if the pain from the torture and her desperation over her situation had been too much for her to think straight and make the connection. Now, however, it had finally clicked and her entire struggle to defy Jack and withstand the torture suddenly seemed laughable and pointless to her.

"You knew, didn't you?" Her kidnapper's expression remained unreadable, so Skye continued, even though she was sure he had understood her perfectly.

"You knew about my team, who's on it, their specialisations, everything. That's how you could always tell when I was lying. Because you already had all the information anyway."

Jack had stood up again by now and was facing Skye with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He looked down at her, an air of amusement surrounding him.

"You played me," the young woman all but shouted, feeling mocked by the expression on her kidnapper's face. "You tortured me for hours, and for what? For something you already knew? What would you do that for?"

"I told you those were the easy questions, didn't I? You and I, we first had to build a relationship where I could trust that you're telling me the truth. You really think I would start with questions I didn't already have the answers to?"

ack's reply was so matter-of-factly that Skye felt even more stupid that it had taken her this long to figure out the purpose of his questions. But, as she quickly realised, this development let to another issue.