Acknowledgements, Disclaimers, and Warnings please see chapter 1.
Camet smiled when she walked into his quarters. He knew she'd been asleep when Daveek fetched her from the cell, but she still held her head high and regarded him with an almost regal bearing. If he didn't know better, he'd never guess she'd been enduring any hardship. He was surprised to find that he liked that about her. He gestured to an oblong table that filled most of the room. There were two high backed chairs directly across from each other with a plate of food in front of each. "Have a seat. I thought you might like something to eat."
Janeway glanced around the room taking in the desk near the far wall and a bunk at the opposite end. She regarded the two plates of food on the table that actually looked palatable. "What about my officer?"
"Daveek, take that tray back to the half breed," Camet instructed, indicating a similar tray of food near the door. Daveek simply nodded, picked the tray up, and left.
She took the offered seat as the door closed behind Daveek. "You know, she really doesn't like it when you call her that."
Camet grinned and seated himself across the table. "There is nothing easier to do than to goad a Klingon."
"As evidenced by young Turk's actions today," Janeway quipped. Camet was eating and she regarded the food in front of her not entirely sure if she should or not.
"Yes, well, that was inexcusable and now he's dead." He reached over and speared a piece of meat from her plate. He popped it into his mouth and chewed. "Eat, Admiral. When I want to kill you it won't be by poisoning your dinner."
They ate in silence for a few minutes both regarding each other warily. Camet set his napkin on the table and poured wine for both of them. "I've always wondered Admiral, have you thought about me over the years?"
Janeway tasted the wine and then leaned back in her chair. "I'd be lying if I said I hadn't."
"Really? And what kind of thoughts did you have?" He sipped at his wine. "Did you wonder about my well-being?"
"In a way," she admitted. "When I heard about the destruction on Cardassia Prime, I'd hoped you had been there."
Camet let out a short bark like laugh. "Well, that is certainly where we differ, Admiral. When I heard about the loss of Voyager and its captain seven years ago, I grieved."
"I find that hard to believe."
"No, you see," he crossed to her side and leaned against the table looking down at her. "I thought that I had been robbed of killing you myself."
Janeway began to rise, but one of his hands clamped down on her swollen wrist pinning it to the arm of the chair. She stifled a cry of pain and remained seated. He leaned down close to her face. "And there was so much left that I wanted to do to you."
He released his grip on the wrist watching her tremble slightly. He crossed behind her to his desk letting his hand trail across the back of her chair. "Twenty years ago, I was truly looking forward to getting to know you better. After that initial examination while you were still unconscious, I admit I found myself intrigued with more than just your mind."
Janeway's head snapped up when he mentioned examining her. He grinned at her reaction. She didn't say anything, but he could hear how her breathing had quickened. He returned to the table and took her injured wrist in his hand. "You mean you didn't know? I supervised the extraction of you and the old admiral from your shuttle. We gave you a thorough examination before you were ever put into your cage."
Her skin crawled having him touch her and having never known about any inspection of her body while she was unconscious. But her resolve stiffened. "As you say, Camet, it was twenty years ago. It hardly matters now does it?"
He began running an instrument over her swollen wrist and continued speaking as though she had remained quiet. "You had very good muscle tone. I remember we documented it very carefully. We were interested in the rate of decline of female muscle tissue compared to the male while in captivity. And you were as perfect a specimen as we could hope to have. Ah, good as new."
Janeway jerked her hand out of his, but remained quiet. Her anger was roiling inside her even worse now that he had healed her wrist. It felt like such an intrusion. He crossed behind her again brushing his hand across her shoulders this time. "I also remember how firm and nubile your breasts were. So different from those of a Cardassian female. One easily fit in the palm of my hand."
She'd had enough. She started to push herself to her feet only to feel his vice like grip slamming her back into the chair. Sharp, cold metal pressed against her neck as Camet skimmed a razor sharp blade across the skin. His right arm encircled her around the shoulders and pressed the tip of the knife into the hollow spot near her jugular.
His breath was hot and moist across her face as his mouth hovered close to her ear. He spoke as though nothing had just happened. "With your escape, my access to your body was obviously denied. I wasn't able to answer all those searing questions I had about your anatomy."
Camet's left arm snaked around her chest and she stiffened as his hand groped and fondled her chest. "For instance, I can already tell you feel different to me now. While I'm pleased that you fill my hand now, you aren't as firm as you once were."
He withdrew his hand only long enough to find the lower edge of her jacket. Janeway balled her fists not daring to move as his hand now covered her bare breast. Camet smiled as he pinched and pulled at her nipple feeling her body shudder against his mistreatment.
"I'd also guess," he slid his hand away from her breast moving it steadily downward. "The coarse material of this jacket against these most sensitive areas must really be chafing."
His hand reached the waistband of her pants, and he could easily feel the increase in her pulse and the tightening of her muscles. Slipping his hand under the waistband, he splayed his fingers across the material of her underwear. "This at least feels softer."
Camet curled two of his fingers under the edge of her panties insinuating them ever closer to her core. He chuckled at her reaction to his probing. "Kathryn, do you really think that keeping your thighs clenched together will deny me?"
Janeway spoke through gritted teeth mindful of the knife still pressed against her neck. "I'll deny you all the way to hell. You bastard."
Camet slowly withdrew his hand from underneath her clothes. He brought his fingers close to his face smelling her scent. He smiled as her nostrils flared and he could see the muscles of her jaw clench. He leaned back until he was standing behind her chair once again withdrawing the knife blade away from her neck. As soon as his hand left her shoulder, she shot up out of the chair whirling to face him.
He was enjoying her fury and the way she deftly tried to pull her clothes back into place without making it obvious that's what she was doing. He poured himself another glass of wine. "Tell me, Kathryn, what are your thoughts on rape?"
"What?" She snarled the question, taking another step away from him.
"Come now, Admiral. You are a female serving in a military organization. Surely, you've considered the possibility of being raped." He sipped his drink, watching her.
"Is that what all this is about, Camet? Sex?" She spat the word out.
"Of course not. Rape has very little to do with sex." He tapped the knife against his pants leg as he spoke. "Rape is about power. Control. Domination. Who has it? How much can you take from someone? What will break them?"
He stood away from the wall. She moved to keep the table between them. If that was really what he had in mind, she probably wouldn't be able to stop him, but it didn't mean she wasn't going to try.
"Over the years, I've found it to be one of the most fundamentally abhorrent behaviors in almost all cultures." He walked slowly and deliberately towards her. "Of course, some cultures don't view everything that we may think of as rape as such, but the act of forcing someone's body to participate in an act against their will can be found as a crime at least to some degree in almost all civilizations."
"It's amazing really, the horror you can inflict on someone for years to come from one simple act." He continued to stalk her around the table. The door had not opened when she neared it, and their progress had brought them almost full circle around the room. "There's the brutal pain that comes with the unwilling invasion. And for some, that's enough. The physical pain of the victim and their succumbing to the greater physical strength of their tormentor."
"But I find that isn't enough for me. As much as I will enjoy your pain, I enjoy the domination aspect more. The complete subjugation of your will to mine." He stopped pursuing her when he reached the door. "It's a heady experience holding someone captive. Controlling their thoughts and actions. Rape is simply the next step in the progression."
"I may be your captive, Camet, but you do not control my thoughts."
"Really? The only thoughts you've had since all this started was how to escape. How to survive. How to protect your officer. All of your actions have been direct consequences of those thoughts." He spread his arms wide. "Even here. I've controlled your thoughts and your actions. Even now, your mind is focused solely on getting out of this room without what you fear to be the inevitable. The rape of your body and soul."
Janeway regarded him, distinctly uncomfortable with how accurate he was. "You missed one thing, Camet. I've also been thinking a hell of a lot about how best to kill you."
"Of course, of course," he waved her off. "But being a captain, you've been in my position. You've thrown people in your brig before, withheld their freedom from them, denied them their desires, and I know that you felt pride in doing so. You enjoyed the power you held over them."
"I never considered raping anyone I ever threw in the brig."
"And yet you don't deny enjoying the power you held over them. Maybe the only reason you didn't consider sexual feelings for any of your prisoners is that you just didn't come across the right one."
"I thought you said rape wasn't about sex."
"Rape is rarely about sex, but that's not to say it doesn't at least stem from the repression of sexual impulses. For instance, my sources tell me that you are having a relationship with your former first officer." Camet smiled when her eyes narrowed. "The Maquis you were sent to arrest. Interesting. What if things had gone differently, and you had actually caught him all those years ago? Can you honestly tell me that standing across that force field from him, knowing that you had complete control over him that you wouldn't have felt the slightest flutter? That little hint of sexual arousal. I think you would have."
"Even if I did, Camet that's what makes you a monster," she said, straightening up. "It would never have crossed my mind to act on such an impulse."
"You may not have acted on it my dear, but it would have crossed your mind." He cut off her protest by continuing. "This discussion is all academic anyway."
Now she was at a loss. "What do you mean?"
"I'm an old man, Admiral. Rape is a young man's game. Your timely return to this quadrant came a bit late for me I'm afraid." He pressed a button triggering the door to open, revealing Toreth and Partek. "But I do believe you are familiar with my associates?"
Janeway's mouth went dry as the door closed sealing her in the room with the three men.
B'Elanna couldn't believe it. She hurt too much to pace and yet she couldn't sit still. The result was a slow painful limp of only a few steps in each direction. She had woken up, shivering on the floor. Her whereabouts hadn't changed, but as she uncurled herself from her semi-fetal position she knew she was alone.
Kathryn was no where in sight.
She had gotten to her feet with difficulty and checked all around the chamber where they were being held. But she was gone. B'Elanna was just starting to really work herself up when the lock cycled and Daveek entered with a tray of food and his usual phaser pointed in her direction. She'd demanded to know where the Admiral was, but Daveek had just scoffed at her placing the tray on the floor and departing as quickly as he'd entered.
That had been several hours ago. B'Elanna wasn't able to track the time accurately, but as long as she was awake she could estimate. And she wasn't going to sleep until her captain had been returned despite her body's protests. The beating she had taken had really done a number on her system. Despite Janeway's ministrations to her skin and bones, she'd absorbed a large amount of energy from the painstik that still had her synapses misfiring. Her muscles trembled, and she had to concentrate when she wanted to flex specific muscles. Picking up the tray of food and maintaining her grasp on it had been a task. It had almost slipped from her hand before she was able to purposefully set it down.
She considered they might be trying to poison her, but ate about half the food leaving the rest for Janeway. So far, she hadn't felt any ill effects from it. The trembling had lessened since she'd been awake, and for that she was thankful. She was pretty sure given enough time her body would recover on its own from the painstik. The factor of time was the part she was unsure about.
She was near the far wall when she heard the lock cycling open and turned to see the Romulan herd Janeway back into the room.
"Admiral!" She began to limp back towards the center of the room. The relief she felt at seeing Janeway walk towards her far outweighed any concern she felt when she noticed the Admiral's stiff gait.
Janeway raised her hand but quickly dropped it back to her side. "I'm okay, B'Elanna."
Warning bells went off in B'Elanna's mind. Janeway had tried to hide it, but her hand had been shaking. Not to mention her voice sounded hoarse as though she'd been screaming. "Captain, are you all right?"
"I'm fine," she repeated. But her actions undermined her words as she reached a hand out to the metal chair to steady herself. She slowly lowered herself into the chair and clenched her eyes shut as a grimace of pain crossed her features. "I just…need a moment."
B'Elanna grabbed the small flask of water and brought it over to her. Kathryn's eyes flickered open as she accepted the water, and B'Elanna could see the pain reflected in her blue gaze. Standing close to her now, B'Elanna could also see the beginning of bruising forming on her captain's neck that appeared to be in the shape of fingers.
"Kathryn, what happened?" B'Elanna asked, laying her hand on Janeway's shoulder. The older woman jumped at the touch spilling some of the water. She immediately brought her hand to her face covering her mouth. The trembling had gotten worse.
"Please, B'Elanna. Just…don't."
It was more of a plea than anything else and B'Elanna nodded, accepting the flask back into her hand. "Okay. Okay."
She limped back towards the box wanting to give Kathryn a moment to herself as much as possible in this room. She looked around for something anything to say. Her eyes lit on the tray of half eaten food. B'Elanna picked up the tray, heartened at the ease with which she did so, and turned to offer it to Janeway.
"Well Admiral, it's not gourmet, but it's better than leola root."
"Oh, God." The slight smell wafting off the meat hit Janeway's senses like a sledgehammer, and she clapped a hand over her mouth against the rising bile in her throat. She made it to a corner of the room before she began retching uncontrollably.
B'Elanna immediately set the tray down and picked the flask of water back up. She swallowed tightly as her own gut wrenched at the sound of Janeway's gagging. Tearing a section off of her turtleneck, she soaked it in water and then moved to her captain's side.
Janeway had fallen to her knees and had been reduced to dry heaving as her stomach had very little in it. Her entire body was shuddering, and B'Elanna spoke quietly this time before touching her friend.
"It's just me, Kathryn. Get it all out," she said and used the wet rag against the back of Janeway's neck. She continued to shudder, but B'Elanna knew it was no longer from being sick. She drew the rag under the collar of Janeway's jacket and could easily discern an obvious bite mark near her collarbone. Not knowing what to say, she lied. "Shhh, it's going to be all right."
B'Elanna wet the rag again and placed it in Janeway's hand while continuing to rub her back in what she hoped were smoothing circles. "Just breathe, Captain. Long deep breaths."
After several moments of quiet but shaky breaths, B'Elanna pulled back on Janeway's shoulders. "Come on, let's get up from here."
She let B'Elanna lead her away from the corner and get her settled against the far wall. The cool air that had earlier been causing B'Elanna to shiver now felt like a welcome caress. Grimacing slightly herself, she slid down the wall until she was seated on the floor with her arm touching Janeway's. She had no idea what to say.
Even during her time in the Maquis, B'Elanna had never known what to say to the women they'd rescued from Cardassian prison camps. They'd always looked so broken and empty. She'd always wondered if they'd been like that since the beginning or if the breaking process had been that horrific. She glanced at Janeway sitting silently beside her staring blankly out into the room. B'Elanna was pretty sure she had her answer.
"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked, feeling the anger and pressure building in her own chest. She'd tried to keep her voice even and calm, but she'd heard the growl in her voice. Ironically, it was the low snarl that seemed to break Janeway's silent scrutiny of the room.
The older woman blinked and turned her head to the side to look into B'Elanna's eyes. Her voice was a whisper. "No."
B'Elanna nodded, grinding her teeth against the overwhelming urge to strike something. She couldn't help it; she got to her feet and began her limped pacing again. Her fists were clenching and unclenching at her sides. She stopped and saw Janeway watching her. She growled the name in question. "Camet?"
A brief expression crossed the Admiral's face that B'Elanna couldn't discern, but she just shook her head. "No."
That answer dissipated some of B'Elanna's anger as it made her unsure. Janeway tucked her head down and clarified her answer so quietly B'Elanna almost didn't hear her.
"He just helped."
The whispered disclosure made a shiver run down B'Elanna's back at the implication of that simple statement. Did that mean… She knelt down in front of her captain and lifted her chin so she could look in Kathryn's eyes. The absolute pain she saw reflected in her expression shook B'Elanna to the core. She felt like she could barely breathe. "Captain?"
Fear replaced the pain as Janeway's face trembled and she shook free of B'Elanna's light grasp. She stared at the floor. "I can't….not here."
"Okay," B'Elanna said, resuming her place on the floor next to her wounded friend.
The last thing she wanted to do was cause Kathryn anymore pain, and she knew the control Janeway was trying to maintain was tenuous at best. B'Elanna leaned her head against the cool stone of the wall and concentrated on her breathing. It wouldn't help anything for her to lose her temper. She rubbed her hands down her pants legs and held them flat against the material in an effort to stop clenching her fists.
B'Elanna didn't open her eyes when she felt Kathryn take her hand and hold onto it. She squeezed gently offering the only assurance and comfort she could.
Camet hadn't stopped smiling. It was the one reason he had left the two women alone for as long as he had. He supposed it really shouldn't matter if they saw him happy, but he preferred to maintain emotional control in front of Janeway. It would burn her even more to know that she had broken while he still maintained his control.
It had been glorious. Brief but glorious.
Toreth had been particularly brutal with her, and he was quickly spent. The pain of his invasion had given her something to focus on, and she'd been able to detach despite her suffering. But his protégé had done very well. Partek had taken his time. Being a Cardassian, he did not want the sloppy seconds of a Romulan. He'd healed Janeway's serious injuries and cleaned her up, before he began his assault.
It had been a true thing of beauty for Camet to watch. He'd been so enthralled watching his protégé that he could've sworn he'd felt a stirring in his own flaccid member. Partek had asked for help only in restraining her, and Camet had been only to happy to help. He'd kept Janeway's wrists pinned above her head the same as he had done for Toreth, giving himself the perfect vantage point to watch her face. Her expressions. Her anguish. Her struggles to free herself. When he'd felt her shoulder give, he'd actually laughed.
He'd known the exact moment she'd broken. Her eyes had snapped open in realization and Camet's own face filled her field of vision. He was tempted to let her live just so she'd see his face in her nightmares for the rest of her life, but that was one risk he wasn't willing to take. Leaving Janeway alive was tantamount to asking to wake up with a blade in his throat.
His eyes drifted to the four vials sitting on his desk. The raping of Kathryn Janeway, as exquisite as it was, had only been one step in her destruction. Once Partek had finally finished, he'd adjusted her shoulder and let her dress herself. Camet had watched as she'd replaced her façade as quickly as she could, but she couldn't hide her trembling hands. Her attempt at normalcy had been evident in the way she'd carried herself as she left the room. He couldn't have been more proud of her if she'd been one of his own trainees. Most of his trainees hadn't recovered even that well until months later. But once the wall of a fortress has been breached it doesn't matter how much reinforcement you give it, there will always be a weak spot.
Given time she could recover from it. People did all the time, but he had no plans to give her that time. Before her last breaths in this world, he would exploit those weak spots in her defenses that he had so judiciously carved out. The first sound of pain she had let escape as the whip bit into her flesh had given him her physical weak spot. During the interrogation, she had lashed out at him and that had been a small release of her mental control. Lastly that moment of complete emotional disintegration, however brief had put another dent into her formidable defenses. He had it all mapped out now. She would break and he would watch as all of the vaunted walls of Kathryn Janeway crumbled before him.
Camet allowed himself one last smile as he stood and straightened his tunic. He pocketed the vials from the desktop and headed for the door. He composed his features before the door slipped open. Twenty years of planning was about to reach its culmination and he couldn't be more satisfied with how things were turning out.
