15. Alexei
Fyodor’s Rules #13 - Torture is useful, but pain is a tricky thing to master.
Getting the woman into my trunk had been easy. Sure, she was going to be unconscious for the entire trip, so I could have put her on the backseat, but I wasn’t feeling that kind. Not after what she had tried to pull on Pasha. People targeted him a lot, and he usually held his own, he knew how to watch for people trying to manipulate him. This woman had been subtle, though. She’s used enough power in her words for it to sink in, but not quite enough to draw his attention. She had clearly been doing this for a while.
I shuddered to think what could have happened if I hadn’t been there.
Despite his usual aversion to my methods, Pasha had even helped me get her down to the basement and into a chair, so I knew he must be pissed. She was now tied securely, straddling the base, her chest pressed to the back of the chair, and her chin propped on the backrest. I had bound her tightly, not wanting her to squirm around too much, and I had put a gag in for now. Sure, I wanted to get answers from her, but I needed to make sure she knew what would happen if she tried to use her persuasive powers again.
I wasn’t sure exactly what she was yet. She could have been a Siren, sent to mess with us, given our history. It would be certain to throw us off balance. Pasha was already agitated, he rarely came down here to watch me work. My guess is that he was feeling bad about almost getting caught in her web, but that anger could be useful. Pasha didn’t like to involve himself in the messy side of our business, but a little blood would be good for him. Plus, he could go visit Nikolai later, splattered with blood, and make sure he fed. Having to cajole a sulky vampire into feeding was really quite bothersome.
I took a moment to gather my tools, and then another to think about our predicament. It wasn’t the first time I’d had to interrogate someone whose voice was a weapon. About a year back, there had been a banshee who had nearly boiled my brain in my skull with her screams. There were a few options I had available. I could make her write her answers down, but that meant leaving her hands alone, and they were always a good point to inflict pain. People were so attached to their fingers. Alternatively, I could run the conversation through wireless earbuds, as most auditory powers didn’t work through recordings. It would put whatever she said on a slight delay, but I had nothing planned which would require I reacted within a second or two or risk a lethal amount of damage occurring. If anything, it would encourage me to take my time with her, and that was always better.
Of course, I could just leave the gag in, and spend some time making her regret trying to use her powers on my brother before I asked her anything. Let her scream herself hoarse. It would be interesting to see if her power was as effective if she was only able to whisper. But that also came with a risk.
Wanting to keep both Pasha and me unharmed, I opted for the earbuds; it was the safest way. She would have to be crazily powerful for her abilities to work through a recording, and if she was, well, then it really didn’t matter that much what precautions we took.
I rigged the microphone above her head so it would pick up all the noise in the room. And the benefit of recording our conversation was that I could listen to it later. I pulled out two sets of noise canceling earbuds that were hooked up to the recording system. Pasha looked at me a little confused, but he shouldn’t be, he was the one who had gotten these for me as he handled all our tech stuff. He had more of a mind for it than I did; I was happy with knives.
“Most powers like hers don’t work through a recording. There will be a two second delay, but we will hear everything she says through these. She can’t whammy us, but we can still get the answers we want.” I was glad when he didn’t argue, just took the earbuds and put them in.
I’d have to do something nice for him later. Maybe I’d fuck him against her chair when she finally gave up all her information. He’d like that.
I ran through some checks to make sure we could both hear the sounds coming from the earbuds. Then I sorted my tools, sticking to my knives mostly. With women, I found cutting them was usually a pretty excellent motivator; they didn’t like the thought of scars. Applying sharp pain rather than dull. Women could stand a surprising amount of blunt force. They had a higher threshold for pain overall, but especially against things like hammers, broken bones just didn’t faze them as much as men.
All the observations like that which I’d made over the years made me better at my job. It was only an idiot who used the same tools, the same techniques, on everyone. I liked to personalize my torture. Not just because it kept things fresh and interesting for me, but because it made it more effective. It made them realize I knew them, that I had worked out what made them tick. They couldn’t bluff, they couldn’t lie to me. They were seen, and they would not escape from me unscathed. Very few of them escaped me at all, I didn’t see the point in second chances. I didn’t believe in letting people go to carry a grudge. It was just asking for trouble.
Once Pasha and I were both ready, I took out her gag. With a nod to Pasha, I picked up the hose that rested against the wall, turning it on and pointed it at her. It only took a few seconds for her to regain consciousness; coughing and spluttering from the torrent of water. Really, I could have just released the magic I was using to keep her asleep, but I wanted her off kilter. I didn’t want her to know what I was capable of. First, I needed to find out how much she knew about us, without giving away anything else.
So, I let the water continue to batter her until she was soaked. It was cold down here in my basement; I wanted her uncomfortable, and restrained as she was, she wouldn’t be able to do anything to warm herself up. After making sure she aspirated some water, I turned the hose off, and let her cough and try to hack it up. It kept her distracted while I moved in closer and pulled her head back by her hair, placing a strain on her neck.
“Thank you for joining us. I am sure this isn’t where you planned on waking up, but I don’t take kindly to people trying to use my brother.” I twisted her head, so she now looked at Pasha. “And as you can see, he isn’t pleased about it either.” Pasha looked downright murderous, an expression I really didn’t enjoy seeing on his face. “Your powers won’t work on us now, but I’m sure you won’t believe me.”
“Let me go!”
She spat the words out between clenched teeth, and I knew she had put power behind them, even though I was only hearing a recorded version. Thankfully, the earbuds did their job, and so I ignored her and shook her head back and forth, like she was saying no. I wanted to show her she was no longer in control, and for that feeling to really sink in. Her new reality to become starkly apparent to her.
“But we haven’t had fun yet, kukolka. And I want to have lots of fun with you. Now you’re going to tell me what you were doing at the ball, who invited you, and with who you made deals. Then you’re going to tell me what you’re doing in our city. I want to know why you thought you could single out Pasha. You’re going to tell me everything you know about us. Now, I hope you heard by my tone of voice that I wasn’t asking you. You are going to tell me. And the longer you take, the more it’s going to hurt. So, if you want to cry or scream, you can get that over with now, or you can do it later. I don’t mind.”
I made sure I looked straight into her eyes as I laid out what her future was going to be. She needed to know I was serious, it would save us both some time, and probably save her some digits. Until I had everything I wanted from her, and then I was going to take those, too.
She looked like she tasted delicious.
French curses sounded so sweet, even when they spilled from poisonous lips. She struggled against her bonds, but that just showed her the futility of such an action. All she was doing was tiring herself out and giving herself bruises. They were going to look so pretty on her skin when they bloomed.
I kept hold of her hair, ignoring her struggles as I looked over at Pasha. “Where do you think I should start? Normally, the hands are a good place, but I think her back might make a better canvas.”
That perked up his attention. Interrogation really was an art of mine, and knives were my brushes. It wasn’t often that I let my brothers see my art before I destroyed it. Usually, it was just for me, but I wanted to include Pasha in this one. He deserved to see her suffer, for it to help soothe the part of him that was hurting. He nodded at my suggestion, and I let go of her hair, and moved to the tools I had laid out.
A pair of scissors was the first thing I picked up. Sure, I could have used a knife for this part, but there was just something about cutting through clothing with scissors, it gave a crisp finality to the cloth fluttering to the ground. I also could have ripped her dress, but it looked well made. I only let her glimpse the metal before I was behind her, cutting her dress at the side seams, just behind her arms. It only took a few seconds for the back to fall around her waist. I knew she didn’t have any tattoos on her back, they would have been visible with the dress she had worn to the Masquerade. Even so, seeing the pale, blemish-free expanse of skin again caused me to grin. She was going to be an excellent canvas.
“What do you think, Pasha, should I let that dress of hers inspire me? Or do you think we should go with something else?” Looking over at my brother, I found he was standing still against the wall, watching her, a thoughtful look upon his face. I wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but it was like he was searching her face for something; like she held the answer to some significant question that was bothering him.
Finally, he shook his head, and his eyes flicked to me, then back to her. “It’s too simple. Something bigger.”
Having her infiltrate his mind must have bothered him more than I thought. He was going to need to talk to someone about it—Nikolai, maybe—but that could wait.
Now that my canvas was ready, I wheeled my tray closer, the various blades laid out particularly. I liked knowing automatically where each tool was when I reached for what I wanted, picking it up without having to looking. It made everything easier, and it meant I could focus on what I was doing. It was tricky, using sharp edges in torture. Most people would tell you it didn’t matter if you cut too deep; that the person was going to die, anyway. But I was a meticulous person. I planned things out, and I didn’t like it when those plans were cut short. It was like cooking a wonderful meal, only to burn dessert. It ruined everything.
I didn’t bother to ask her a question as I picked up a scalpel and didn’t tell her what I was doing. She knew what I wanted from her, and I had told her that in the end she was going to tell me. Asking her any further questions was just going to be a waste of breath.
When the blade touched the skin of her back, she didn’t flinch. Interesting, you could tell a lot about a person from the way they reacted when the pain started. She just let her head fall forward and steadied her breathing, her composure made me curious if this was her first time being tortured. She didn’t have any visible scars, but with the attention of a good Spring Court healer, there didn’t have to be any. It’s why we had so few between us. Or maybe she could regenerate. Now, that would definitely make this more difficult, or more fun, depending on how you looked at it. If she could heal herself, then I could just keep doing this indefinitely.
Ignoring the questions floating around in my mind, I got to work. Just long, shallow lines to start with. My hand was steady, the lines I drew straight, I mean some were curved, but only because I wanted them to be. I was sure to her they felt random, but they weren’t. A basic outline was the way every great piece of art started. I had drawn this piece on paper so many times that there was no need to sketch it out first; I had markers in a drawer if I needed them, though.
And throughout it, she didn’t make a sound.
Her silence wasn’t a challenge to me. If I wanted her to scream, I would make her. Letting her bait me, rush me into action, would just lead to a mistake. So instead, I decided to really take my time. Pasha brought over a different chair, so I wasn’t hunched so far over her back, and I nodded my appreciation. It was the sort of thing that he would notice, but I didn’t pay attention to my comfort, not when I was working. Though, I would have regretted it tomorrow when I was stooped like an old man.
Sitting down, I set down my scalpel, and gave her back a quick wipe. Blood dripped in places but was not flowing too heavily yet. Not enough to worry about, and nothing like it was about to be. Reaching past my knives to a roll of leatherworking tools, I picked up a small gouge. I wanted to widen some lines, and this was the best way to do so. I had many tools on my table, but I had found leatherworking tools were often the best fit for this type of work.
As the first strip of her skin peeled away, I finally got a reaction out of her. A small, pained whimper, and her breath hissing out between clenched teeth. I still didn’t ask her questions, just picked up the sliver of skin from the gouge and slipped it into my mouth as I moved the gouge to the next mark. There was a slightly tangy taste to her skin, salty, like she had just been swimming in the ocean, or maybe slick with sweat. It wouldn’t be surprising, fear had that effect on the body.
Pieces fell more quickly after the first one, and I had to wipe her blood away more often. That pained little whimper had turned into resigned sobbing somewhere along the line. Pasha was looking uncomfortable, but he hadn’t left. I was glad he hadn’t given up. Setting down the gouge, next I picked up a small, curved knife. It was good for peeling away large sections of skin.
“Anytime you want to talk, we can take a break. The pain will not stop, but it doesn’t have to keep getting worse.” I would not lie to her and would not make promises I had no intention of keeping. Why would I when she was doing so well? She was bleeding beautifully, and the image on her back was really taking shape.
She said nothing, taking quick shallow breaths, like she was trying to keep herself calm. I was glad she wasn’t speaking. Shrugging a shoulder, I peeled away a section of her skin about two inches square. Her entire body was rigid now, hands clenched and toes curled. She didn’t scream, but I could hear the muted sound of pain in her throat.
That piece went into a bowl for later. I wanted to experiment with the way she tasted. See which vegetables and spices accompanied her best. As I sliced at the second piece, an odd sound came from her throat, and her body went limp. Honestly, I was surprised it had taken her this long to pass out; she had lost quite a bit of blood.
“Ah, kukolka, we’re not resting yet.” There were several ways I could wake her up, but I knew what I wanted to do. I sliced through the straps of her bra, pulling the pieces out from under the front of her dress. I took her necklace off next, then her earrings.
“She has an arm cuff.” Pasha had clearly noticed what I was doing. I motioned for him to remove it, letting him crouch down in front of her to do so. Once all the visible metal was gone, I grabbed the car battery. “Shouldn’t you check her for piercings?” I raised an eyebrow at Pasha’s question. She didn’t seem the type to have body piercings, and I had no interest in fondling her.
“If she does, it will just be a new type of pain for her.” I shrugged my shoulder, fixing the leads in place, one against her rib cage, the other against her back, before I pressed them to the battery. I wasn’t trying to start her heart, just shock her awake. Her body went rigid again, tremors running through the muscles, and her eyes snapped open.
“There you—” I didn’t have time to finish my statement before the door slammed open. Lukas stood there, and both hounds snarled at his feet.
“Step the fuck away from her. Now.” He breathed in heavily, eyes golden and glowing. Lifting my hands and turning off the current, I did what he ordered. It was only going to buy her a few minutes’ reprieve, or so I thought.
Suddenly she was struggling again, and Lukas was at her side, snapping her bonds before they both disappeared.
“Fuck! I hate when he does that!” My eyes did a quick scan of the room, as though they were hidden in here somewhere. Pasha was just wide eyed.
“What the fuck just happened?”
I wondered too, but only Lukas had the answers.