Kaname stood motionless as Leonard's words echoed repeatedly through her mind. Leonard just sat there watching as all the color drained from her face and felt a sense of self-pride wash over himself. If he couldn't convince her that Sousuke was just as brutal as him, then he would have to prove how cruel he could be.
"You didn't actually believe you two had a chance, did you?" His words sounded so smug and her eyes snapped to his piercing like sharp daggers.
He stood up and crossed the distance to where she stood his face just inches from hers. "Survival of the fittest, my dear Kaname," he whispered. "In the end, there will only be one side left …us."
"I'll never be on your side," she hissed backing away.
"Oh?" he replied reaching out to take a strand of her soft hair between his fingers rubbing lightly. He leaned down close to her ear and whispered, "Kaname."
Her eyes flew open in shock as she heard that familiar whisper now just inches from her ear. It was the same voice she had heard on Melida Island in her head, the one that had sent her into a spasm of an attack, the one that had sent Sousuke into a panic. Then suddenly her eyes shot to his a realization passing over them. "It was you…you set this all up," she whispered stepping back a little more. "You sent us running, you preyed on his paranoia to protect me…you knew he'd flee leaving us out in the open away from Mithril's protection."
Leonard chuckled lightly and smiled down at her. "A genius plan, wouldn’t you say? Though there was a few snags that had to be compensated for but all turned out well enough. And that other operative observing was definitely a thorn in my side."
Then it hit her. "All those people in Las Vegas…you killed all those people," she said covering her mouth with one of her hands.
"Casualties of war, I'm afraid," he replied nonchalantly. "How else was I going to convince my dear sister to send out a reconnaissance for Serena."
Her hands began balling into fists at her sides as tears welled in her eyes. "You bastard," she hoarsely whispered. "How could you just do that to your own sister?"
"She was merely another pawn in this little game we've been playing," he said with a demonic smile. "And I'm afraid this game has come to an end."
"They won’t let you off this submarine alive, you traitor!"
He chuckled again, this time turning away opening his phone once again. "You won’t tell or your boyfriend will just have to die sooner than planned." His threat was constituted by a sharp glance back at her. It meant Sousuke was still alive and he would remain that way until Leonard was safely off the submarine. Leverage.
"Sousuke would want me to stop you," she said angrily against her better judgment.
"But you won’t," he replied dialing his phone. "Yes, I'll be topside in an hour," he said into the phone then clapped it shut.
Turning back to her his expression suddenly became more severe than she had ever seen in him before. "Can't you see? I couldn’t let him win; he is just a soldier, a nobody. You belong to me, my dear. You have always been mine since the day you were born. So, when my employer expressed his desire to eliminate Sagara I naturally stepped up to offer my help."
Cold chills swept up her spine as his icy words bore into her like a thousand knives. Not only had he meant for all of this to happen, he believed that they were predestined to be together in some sick twisted relationship. It was enough to make her stomach churn with bile. "You soulless bastard," she managed to whisper before fleeing quickly out of the door.
Right now was not the time for them though, he thought as he prepared to leave. Their time would come eventually. Right now he needed to make sure that Sousuke was permanently removed from the picture and it would mean witnessing the deed himself. It would be the sweetest moment in his life, he thought as he walked down the corridor a slight smile on his wicked lips.
That meddlesome Sagara would finally be out of the picture.
.o.o.o.o.
Sousuke kept his eyes closed trying to fight the wrenching pain tearing at his body. Blood dripped down the table to the floor and he swore he could hear every drop before it even hit the cold steel. The inflictions were minor so far but enough to cause him severe pain. His torturer was very skilled at his trade. This was only the beginning of the end of his life, he thought as he struggled to control his emotions.
"This can all end, Mr. Sagara, if you'll just tell us what we want to know," the man in the white coat said his voice cold and hard. "You are proving nothing by staying silent except that you have a death-wish."
Sousuke opened his eyes only to stare dead into the man's eyes, hatred the only emotion reflecting in them. He would never speak and they were going to have to do a lot more to him if they planned on draining him of his strength. The IV bag containing antibiotics beside him dripped once again and he looked right past it as the man continued to pace before him.
When Sousuke said nothing the man nodded toward his young female assistant and she handed him another knife, this time much larger with a serrated edge. The man waved it front of him and Sousuke never flinched, his contemptuous gaze steady. And even as the blade dug deep under the upper skin of his ribcage tearing horizontally across his flesh his brain screamed for him to cry out, but he kept his eyes fixed on his torturer.
Fresh blood spilled down his stomach and soaked into the waistband of his trousers and perspiration began to break out over his brow and cheeks. Recognize your pain, suppress it, push it deep into the recesses of your mind. Harness it, understand it…it cannot control you. Closing his eyes he kept repeating this as his skin pulsed and throbbed violently with this new wound.
"One more time, Mr. Sagara," the man said crossing once again before him. "Locations, coordinates…we want to know where Mithril operates. One word and I'll stop all of this."
Sousuke opened his eyes holding the man's gaze, his own unflinching and full of hostility. His stomach churned and he swallowed the bile now rising in his throat. Pain gripping him his vision now faltered slightly under the strain and sweat dripped down his face the salty moisture stinging his eyes.
He conjured up an image of Kaname and Kyoko sitting in their classroom…safe and secure, away from the dangers of war and death. That is what he would hold onto, the one thing that was worth dying for: to know that he did his job, he kept her safe. He kept them all safe. And he would never reveal Mithril's location—as long as they were strong and active they would always keep Kaname safe.
The man waited watching as Sousuke stared back at him fighting his inner need to howl out in pain, his mind screaming inwardly in agony. "Tell us," the man repeated keeping his eyes directly on Sousuke as he once again slaked the rigged blade across Sousuke's ribcage crisscrossing over the previous gaping gash he had just inflicted.
New pain tore at him, weakening him further, shredding his flesh beneath the knife. He held in the gut-wrenching scream that threatened to escape his lips and slammed his eyes shut against the pain.
Silence.
.o.o.o.o.
Kaname flew down the corridor of the Tuatha de Danaan tears streaming down her face. She had to find Kurz and Melissa; they were the only ones she could trust right now. They were all just filing out of the briefing room when she came crashing down the hallway and halted directly in front of Kurz. "I need to talk to you in private," she whispered making sure no one had heard her.
Kurz nodded and followed, silently understanding her request for privacy. He too knew at a time like this there were only certain people you could trust, even in a room full of friends. Sousuke's life was on the line here and he wasn't about to trust the wrong people again. Once they were in a secluded spot she fought back the tears as she told him everything from the first instant Leonard had appeared on base on Melida down to Leonard's last evil words.
"That bastard," Kurz fumed. "If he gets back to Sousuke he's going to kill him. I have to follow him, maybe deter him somehow, just long enough to buy us some time."
He stood there in thought for a few minutes then patted Kaname on the shoulder. "Leave it to me," he said about to walk away but she stopped him.
"I can’t just stay aboard this ship," she pleaded.
Against his better judgment he nodded and let her follow. It was going to be tricky but he had to stop Leonard before he got back to Sousuke. Quickly briefing Mao in private she agreed to keep a low frequency communication with him as he followed Leonard then move in when it was time.
All of SRT were set to be deployed, as well as PRT land and air units. Melissa waited patiently as Kurz and Kaname snuck off after Leonard. They had to get as much information as possible before leaving for the surface with the deployment, he thought as they dashed off.
Leonard didn't even bother to say goodbye to Tessa, it wasn't worth his time. He was in a hurry to get to Sousuke who had been taken to their Landsat Island underground location a few miles off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada, which was the closest location to their present position. Buried deep beneath the miles of ice lay a secret compound housing over two-hundred Amalgam employees, just perfect for housing POWs. And that was exactly what Sousuke was to them, a prisoner of war…a war that would soon be launched against the world.
Kurz and Kaname silently watched as Leonard prepared himself for his departure, suiting himself up in Submarine Escape Immersion Equipment. Kaname turned to Kurz whispering, "How are we going to follow him? I bet that water is freezing cold."
"Yeah, but what he doesn’t know is that those suits are equipped with tracking devices in case one of our divers loses communication with the sub," Kurz informed her with a wink.
Kaname smiled brightly. "We won’t even have to leave to track him!"
"Exactly," he replied watching as Leonard climbed into the escape tube and closed the door. "Once he's out of the sub, we'll grab the receiver and monitor his location, reporting back to Mao. Once on land, we can follow him much easier."
Kaname took a deep breath and sighed. "We have to delay him somehow."
Kurz picked up his walkie-talkie. "Urzu 6 to Urzu 2, the snake is on the move. He's headed north…northwest toward John F. Kennedy International Airport. The bastard is going to fly."
"Great," Mao said annoyed as Kurz conveyed the information back to her. "Tessa needs to know this and I'm the only one who can tell her. Go on ahead without me, I'll catch up with you later—I have an idea. Urzu 2 out."
"Kurz, where is he going?" Kaname pleaded with desperation. She had to find Sousuke before they killed him.
"Don't worry, Kaname, I have a few friends I'm going to call," he said with another wink. "He's not going to get away with this."
To Be Continued...
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