"Ms. Mason? Ms. Mason?"
Johanna looks up at the man speaking. Johanna is brought to his office every single day at the exact same time. The clock is indication enough. But his hunched shoulders, wrinkled clothes, and tired eyes indicate that his day is long and stressful. Granted he is in charge of the Capital Prison and with President Snow breathing down his neck, it's not a surprise his appearance is the way it is.
"Yes, Mr. Galloway?" Johanna responds and Caldwell Galloway smiles at how well trained she has become. Though her stubborn attitude is still strong and she rarely, if ever, speaks during his sessions, it is still an improvement. Besides, she has come to him for a favor, a fact he intends on exploiting. He attempts to straighten out the wrinkles in his white dress shirt and he loosens his tie. His subtle attire is in great contrast to the rest of Panam and mimics President Snow's attire in conservatism. His mood changes rival a pregnant woman's and he is easily angered. His punishments are, while severe, never in excess because he, after all, has a job to do.
"I understand you have a request to make?" He asks and Johanna nods.
"I don't understand how I can make a request of you every single day and you refuse to say a word. But now you think you can make a request of me?" Johanna says nothing and he takes a deep breath before retuning to his notes.
"You wish to speak with Annie Cresta." He states and Johanna nods again.
"Yes, sir. I saw her brought in."
"You did, did you?"
"Yes, sir."
Johanna says and it takes every ounce of strength to say it. The smugness of his face and the twinkle in his eyes show how whipped he has Johanna. Unfortunately for her, that term is quite literal.
"Ms. Mason, are you aware of your position here?" Johanna looks at him as to how she could even forget. She is reminded every single day that she is a prisoner, locked in here and tortured on a daily basis. Johanna struggles to hold her tongue and keep the profanity from spewing out.
"Yes, sir, I am aware. I just thought-"
"Thought what, Ms. Mason?" He says coldly.
"I just thought I could protect my friend." She says it quietly.
"You wish to protect her?" Johanna says nothing, not giving him the satisfaction.
Ms. Mason, I'll tell you what. She can be spared the rod if you tell us something. Anything."
"My name is Johanna Mason of District 7. I was the victor of the 71st annual-" she is cut off with a slap across the face.
"You know very well that's not what I meant."
"Then perhaps you should have been more specific," Johanna says with a bite and immediately regrets it. Johanna never had any regrets in her life expect one. The decision that got her family murdered in front of her. Since then she tried her hardest to make sure she never had one and this is her first since. The way his jaw tightened and his knuckles turned white, indicated to Johanna that she was in for a rough night. He doesn't say anything and just nods to the peacekeeper to take her away. Johanna resists.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. Please." Johanna doesn't beg and she wouldn't count this as begging but pleading.
"You're sorry?" He raises his hand to stop her retreat. The peacekeeper lets her go and she stands straight, looking him in the eye.
"Yes, sir." She says softly and he knows it is taking every bit of her to say this.
"Then prove. Beg for your forgiveness," he says and she looks at him with disgust. She cannot get on the ground like a dog. She will not beg for if she does, he takes the last thing she still has. She just stands there and he waits.
"I do not have all day," he says impatiently but Caldwell Galloway loves exuding power over people and he is raking in all he can get from Johanna.
"I can't." She says through her teeth and he raises his eyebrows.
"Oh? Then I guess Ms. Cresta will be in for rough evening."
"You can't," she says rushing forward but the peacekeepers halt her advance. Their arms grip her and she struggles against them.
"She hasn't done anything, you can't!"
"You certainly have by disrespecting me. Now I see there truly is only one way to control you. Beg for my forgiveness and Ms. Cresta will be spared." Johanna grits her teeth and tears well in her eyes.
"One…two..."
"Okay!" Johanna shouts. He looks at her like the conqueror of Rome.
"Okay," she says softly. The peacekeepers release their grip on her and she can see the red on her arms. She takes a deep breath before slowly walking towards him. Her movements are slow and deliberate. She gets within arms reach of her before she gets down on one knee. Her body aches at this movement but she continues one until she is down on both knees in front of him. A hint of smile is on his lips and he raises an eyebrow at her for her to begin.
"I am sorry, sir, for my behavior. I disrespected you and I know what I did was wrong and I beg your forgiveness." She emphasizes, "beg" to enforce her point. He looks at her for a while and she just stares at him. He walks behind her and before she knows it, her left sole quickly followed by her right errupt with pain. She lets out a slight scream and falls forward, only barely catching herself. She tries to raise herself up but that'd only bring her back to her knees.
"Get her out of my site," He says and she looks at him in horror.
"You said I could see Annie if I apologized!" She yells at him and he only smirks at her.
"Actually, Ms. Mason, I said that I would spare her tonight if you degraded yourself and you did it splendidly. But you're still to be punished for your behavior and perhaps maybe you'll learn to hold you tongue." Johanna glares at him with all the hate she could muster. The peacekeepers are dragging her out and before she is completely out of the room he says one final tortuous thing.
"You know Ms. Mason, I do see the family resemblance. Your father couldn't hold his tongue either. Guess that's why he lost his." She screams profanities at him until she is dragged away, and thrown into her cell. There she her hands are bound together and a rope drags her up until she is standing. The soles of her feet are screaming in pain but she stays silent this time. The peacekeeper comes up behind her and strikes her five times on her back. He lash is slow an deliberate to cause the greatest amount of pain. Each time she grunts and now her back screams with pain. She falls forward slightly revealing the soles of her feet again. A whip quickly comes down on the exposed flesh and a peacekeeper forces her back into a standing position. The peacekeepers leave and after a couple of minutes she falls forward again, unable to keep herself up and a peacekeeper comes in again and whips her back again followed by her feet and moves her into a standing position once more. She understands now. She is able to remain standing for 20 min before she completely passes out from the pain. Peacekeepers come in and lower her to the ground, allowing her to be in a kneeling position.
When she wakes up her neck is stiff and she cracks it. Her arms are numb and her feet have welts. She breathes slowly, trying to calm the rising hysteria.