The City in Pieces

Chapter Four: Real Pain

Chance's pain never went away unless she fell into a hard sleep, a concept she learned in two days. She sat in her cell, for the doors was wood and the peep window were bars. A simple movement made her bite her lip in pain, but nothing hurt worse than her mental capability to think that Bane was only toiling with her. Frustrated that she was being ruled over and soon to be trained by the very man, or perhaps a beast, that broke her legs, Chance was rolling in aggravation and self-humiliation. Merely stuck on a mattress that was slowly becoming her blood bed, Chance felt her stomach roll with anger. She sat against the wall, still half-naked. She wrapped her blanket arouund her chest, holding it as tightly as she could against her chest to hide from prying eyes.

Chance glared at the door for hours, waiting for someone to come inside to take advantage of her situation. Perhaps it was about a day or two that she was aching for food that made her want to see someone enter. But she didn't cry out for nourishment. She half-hoped to starve. However, that hope vanished when the door clicked, and it was pushed open; it wasn't Bane. It was a man who looked like he hadn't seen daylight for many months. His face was pale. And he looked a bit ragged.

"Who are you?" Chance demanded at once when his face was visible.

He merely gazed at her.

"Speak." Chance snapped at him.

His eyes looked at her, then dropped to her body. Chance narrowed her eyes at him.

"I told you to speak." Chance repeated slowly.

The man entered. His hands became visible; in them, he held a bag.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" said Chance dangerously, holding the blanket tighter in her hands.

"Food. For you. From Bane," the man finally answered, though his eyes continued to stare at her body.

"Out." Chance hissed quietly.

"Oh, no. I was told to give you this directly."

"Put it down, and I'll get it myself." Chance said cautiously.

"No, I was told to hand it to you," said the man, slightly persistent. He took two steps toward her.

"Then do what I'm tell you to do." Chance warned. "Put it down, and I'll get it. Myself."

"He'll know if I didn't hand it to you."

"He'll know if you did..."

"He's quite menacing, isn't he? He killed all my friends because they tried to protect me. But you exploded his lair, and he spares you," the man said in a shaking voice. He was at the foot of her bed.

"I can't fathom why he wants me alive. I'll end up like your friends anyway." Chance said quietly. "Put the bag on my bed and walk out the door."

"You're afraid of him because he broke your legs. We all heard, we all know. But I'm not afraid of you."

The man pulled an apple out of the bag with a dirty hand. He set the bag on the mattress. To Chance's dismay, he started to crawl on the bed. One knee. Then the other. He held the apple as he crawled toward her. Chance frowned and gritted her teeth behind her pursed lips. The man was at her feet.

"Here's your food," said the man.

"Get out." Chance whispered.

He side-stepped her legs to sit right beside her. His eyes fell from hers to fall on her lips, then to her tightly concealed chest.

"Here."

The man held the apple in front of Chance's lips.

"Eat."

"Get away...from me..." Chance said coldly, though her voice shook with anger and fear.

The man's eyes were green. He was so close to her. His other hand reached to her chin.

"Just eat the apple."

She jerked her bruised chin from his weak fingers and said angrily,

"I said get away from me, you dirty man!"

With a bruised arm, Chance raised her hand and hit him in the cheek. The man fell back against the wall and his head hit it hard. He recovered from her punch and glowered at her. He took the apple and retook her chin in his filthy fingers. Chance raised her hands to pry him away, and her blanket fell to her waist, exposing her pretty chest under a black bra.

The man withdrew his hands from her chin to take her waist.

"OFF ME!" Chance roared furiously.

"I'll have you first before Bane does!" said the man into her ears.

Chance elbowed him in the face.

"I'd much prefer him than to you!" she said angrily.

The man held his broken nose. He yelled out in frustration, then took his fist and jammed it hard into Chance's broken legs. Chance opened her mouth and screamed out in searing pain. The man covered her mouth with his and kissed her forcibly.

Then suddenly he was lifted up into air, legs and all, and Bane stood at the foot of her bed, holding the man up to his masked face. Bane merely looked at the man and the attempted rapist turned to a quivering mess before him.

"I told you to give her the bag," said Bane in his daunting, deep voice, "and leave."

"Sh-Sh-She led me on...S-S-S-Sir...I...I..."

Bane's empty hand took the back of his head and turned the man's eyes to Chance.

"Does she look like she wanted anything from you?" said Bane dangerously.

"No...No..."

"Don't you think a criminal mind like that would want someone who could at least match her in appearance as well as brain?" Bane said. To the man's silence, Bane said in annoyed tone, "If you don't answer me, I'll squish your face."

"She would...She would..." the man started to cry.

"Good." Bane muttered. "Now apologize."

"I...I..."

"Now, or I'll break you in two."

"I'm sorry!" the man cried out in a blubber.

Chance's eyes were wide as she watched the scene in front of her.

"Again, I don't think that was loud enough. Do it, or I'll smash your face into the wall."

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY!"

Chance stared at the man, whose eyes were wide with worry and fear. He kicked in Bane's vice grip. Bane took the man by his throat and tossed him out of the room. His screams echoed as he fell through the hole in the ground. His landing was clear as daylight when his shrieks suddenly stopped. Chance stared at Bane who turned to her.

"Now." He cracked his knuckles. "As for your insolence."

"Insolence?" said Chance in an accidental squeaky voice. She took the blanket up again to tighten her fingers around the cloth in anticipation. "I didn't do anything..."

"Really?" said Bane. "You didn't take the bag." He took up the knapsack and held it up for her to see. Chance bit her lips.

"He frightened me." Chance admitted out of the aching suspense.

Bane nodded.

"Fear is just an illusion." Bane said, tossing the bag beside Chance's legs. "Now, pain. Pain is real."

Bane stepped toward her; Chance backed up into the wall behind her.

"I know what pain is, you don't have to show me. I saw it. I felt it." Chance said quickly.

"For three days. But not inconsistently. Like me."

"Don't pick the sympathy vote with me," said Chance. "You can't possibly think I'd have that after what you've done to me."

Bane chuckled.

"I don't sympathy, it's nothing more than words. Honestly, nobody cared who I was until I put on the mask. Like you."

A unseen smile met his eyes. Chance stared at him.

"Then you know that I don't trust too easily.

"You have no choice to put your trust in anybody else except the person who stopped an attempted rape."

Chance bit her lip.

"In future events, you might want to scream before anyone actually touches you."

He set a hand on her leg lightly. Chance closed her eyes to anticipate another thomping, expecting him to hit her again. Instead, she felt an injection needle pierce her skin. It hurt like eveything else, except after what seemed like five minutes, a cold sensation went through her body, and nothing hurt. She opened her eyes to glance at Bane, who held up the used needle; inside the tube was her blood.

"You're learning to fear me. When we start training, I will be your test."