Thanks for the reviews guys. I am sorry for what's going to happen...
The door opened again and Harry's arms tensed against Ruth, not wanting to let go of her. Not to those torturers. The Russian leader looked at them with a cold grin on his face.
"I know you care for this woman," he said fiercely. "I don't want to hurt her, but I will if I have to. Until you tell me what I need to know." Harry's arms around her were so tight that Ruth was starting to find it painful.
"Harry…" she said quietly.
"Shut up," he replied straight away. It happened so quickly that Harry was hardly aware of it. Ruth was dragged away from his arms by the bodyguards. He got up and tried to get to her but was rewarded with a slap around the face and a guard holding his arms back and making him look at Ruth. Who looked resigned to her fate. The fear seemed to have left her and he felt a powerful surge of love for this brave woman.
"Where is Titania?" the Russian repeated. It was already getting boring, being asked a question to which he didn't know the answer.
"I don't know," Harry said which resulted in Ruth being slapped around the face instantly. Harry winced as if he had been struck himself. "If I knew where your Russian traitor was, I would tell you. I really would." And that was true. To keep Ruth from being hurt, from being in pain he would have given away the location of anything. This was harder to watch than the Albany affair had been. Because he could actually see her agony. Could hear her heavy breathing as she tried to control her pain.
"He's telling the truth," Ruth said quietly. The Russian turned to face her for a moment.
"I don't believe you," he said in a light voice. "I'm bored and running low on time. Tell me where she is or I will break her arm." Harry struggled violently against the man holding him tightly and failed to get free. He watched Ruth pale significantly as they grabbed her arm and held it out, with a bat held ominously near her.
"Listen to me," Harry said playing for time. "It isn't that I don't want to tell you, or that I'll break with the pressure you're putting me under. Trust me, I would have told you by now. But I can't give you information that I don't know."
"Wrong answer," the Russian replied smashing the bar down on Ruth's arm. Ruth's scream went through Harry as if the pain were his own. The Russians left the cell and locked the door. Instantly Harry was at Ruth's side, where she had crumpled the second she had been let go. Her breathing was shaky and shallow and she didn't think she could move.
"Ruth," he said in a low voice, stroking her hair. She whimpered quietly with her eyes still closed. "I'm so sorry," Harry said.
"Help me… to sit up," Ruth said heavily. He did and after long moments she was leaning against the wall, Harry next to her. He took her left arm in his and studied the break in her arm. It looked painful as hell. He closed his eyes knowing what he was going to have to do.
"Ruth, I'm going to have to realign your break," he said quietly. "If I don't, it'll be much worse when we finally get out of this."
"Are we going to get out of this Harry?" Ruth asked, looking at him carefully.
"You have to believe that we will," he replied. "Beth, Dimitri and Alec will be working on it. We need to help you now." Ruth looked down at her arm and knew Harry was right. And it was going to hurt.
"Do it," she said quietly but firmly. Harry took a deep breath and held her arm gently. He knew this would be agony for both of them. When a minute passed and Harry hadn't moved Ruth took his hand with her good arm. "Just do it. Do it quickly before I can worry about the pain." She had barely finished the sentence when she felt a white hot agony go through her.
"Sh," Harry pleaded with her, stroking her face lightly. Ruth hadn't even realised she had been screaming until he said that. She tried with all her might to stop and managed it. Her face had ended up being buried in Harry's shirt which was soaking up her tears. She took several deep shaky breaths and managed to stop crying.
"I'm sorry," he said again.
"Its not your fault," Ruth said. She took deep breaths and was about to turn her head to look at Harry when she changed her mind. He was stroking her hair softly and it was the one thing that was taking her mind off of the pain. She worried that if she moved, he'd stop touching her. And she really didn't want that. She closed her eyes and gave in to his touch.
"No," Harry said calmly, his voice near her ear. "Do not fall asleep. You cannot lose consciousness."
"Why not?" she mumbled with her eyes still shut.
"Because I'm telling you to," Harry said, his voice even closer to her ear. She could feel his breath whispering against her earlobe.
"I'm in too much pain," she said lowly. Harry didn't reply but kissed her cheek. A ghost of a smile flowed onto her face.
"I can't move," Ruth said quietly. "Could you do that again?" Harry smiled and did what she asked, holding her face with such softness and tenderness it almost broke her heart. She closed her eyes and drifted away from the pain.
Things have to get worse before they get better! Hope its not too harrowing. A review would mean the world to me xxx
