«I still don't understand why we're loosing our time with this high school teacher...»
Scarab's goons had returned about an hour earlier, for once having succeeded in the task their boss had given them. It had taken them all day to come back, but at least they hadn't come back empty handed.
« Of course, you don't understand. You never listen when I speak! » As usual, Scarab sounded more annoyed than actually angry at his men.
« I told you already. The Bennett family took Jane in when she was young, and they must have kept in touch. And finding Jane is the last step to realizing my goal of immortality with my new invention.»
He approached the table on which a young man laid unconscious. It was almost impossible that he didn't know where Jane was. He seemed to be about the same age she was, but then again, all those Bennett brats were. Scarab never understood his brother for hanging around these people, but then again, he never did understand his brother at all. The fact that the other way around could also be said never crossed his mind, though, in his conviction that HE was right, and his brother was wrong.
His attention was drawn back to the still sleeping man before him. It would not be long until he woke up, and he wanted everything settled before that.
« Madame O, if you please... I'm sure you will be thrilled to prepare him for my little interrogatory...
- With pleasure, darling.
- Mechanic, is the system ready? »
The big man scratched his head a couple of times before remembering what his boss had asked him to do.
« Oh, yeah, boss! I put the current thingies over there.
- Wonderful! With that, he'll be talking in no time! And Glove, when Madame O is finished preparing him, don't forget to weld his restraints on the table. I wouldn't want him to run away in the middle of it. »
Scarab went over to the control panel to test out the two paddles that Mechanic had put together earlier on. As he pressed a switch on the board, an ark of sparks sprung from one paddle to the other.
«Perfect! And now, it's a little too hot in here. Let's lower the temperature to about... let's say 5 degrees Celsius. »
He pushed another button, and stared for a while at the wall paneling until the indicator for the ambient temperature started to diminish. Meanwhile, Madame O had stripped down the prisoner, taking more time to do so than Glove would have liked her to. He pushed her aside, and rapidly welded two pieces of steel on the table to secure the man's wrists, and two others for the ankles. With a snort of exasperation over Madame-O's slow work and contemplation, he hastily pulled a rag over the young man's body.
« Everything is ready, Dr Scarab.
- Perfect. Now let's wait until he wakes up. »
Overly pleased and confident, Scarab left the room, laughing with his henchmen.
Bunji Bennett woke up feeling dizzy and disoriented. For a minute, he couldn't remember what had happened, and had absolutely no idea where he was. The room was dark and freezing, and smelled of humidity and dirt. Then the memory of the last minutes before he lost consciousness came back. He was talking with Penny Galloway, the English teacher, when suddenly he felt something sting him on the shoulder. After that... he couldn't remember.
He then realized the situation in which he was now. His wrists and ankles were tied to some sort of cold metal table on which he was freezing his butt off. A dirty rag was thrown over him, and someone had taken his clothes. No sound could be heard.
Suddenly, a door opened with a metallic sound, and a fat man in a white suit came in, followed by a dumb-looking huge man, and another one, tall and bearing a sour look on his face.
«Scarab! » Bunji uttered under his breath.
The fat man smiled at him.
«I see my reputation precedes me. Welcome, Mr. Bennett, to my laboratory.
- I can't say I think much of your welcome. »
He moved a bit to try out the restrains, but they stayed firmly in place.
«Don't bother trying, you cannot escape.
- What do you want from me?
- What I need is information. And you, my dear, will give it to me. »
Scarab moved closer to him, holding something in his hands. He placed two cold paddles on him, one on each side of his torso, while Madame O positioned herself on the other side of the table, watching everything, her expression as usual well hidden behind her facial mask, but her eyes sparkling with delight.
«What's that for? Bunji asked.
- You will know soon enough. But first, maybe you will answer my question without all this being necessary. It's quite simple, actually. I'm looking for my niece. And I know that you know where she is. »
Jane! He was looking for Jane! Bunji tried not to let his expression betray him, and simply stared back at him, as expressionless as he could. But his heart was starting to pound at the thought of whatever Scarab wanted to find Jane for.
« Am I supposed to know your niece? the young man asked, an innocent look on his face.
- Of course you know her! She stayed at your house for almost a year when she was fifteen! Jane Sharp! Don't try to pretend you don't know her, because I won't believe you!
- Well, that was twelve years ago, I don't know where she is now. »
He tried to sound convincing, but knew Scarab didn't buy in his bluff. The fat man smiled.
«Well, maybe this will help you recover your memory. Glove, hit the juice! »
The tall sour-looking man moved over to a panel, and hit a switch on it. Instantly, Bunji could feel his body tense as electricity passed through it. It lasted for what seemed like an eternity, then stopped as suddenly as it had started, leaving him breathless and exhausted. Scarab peered over him.
«That was just a small demonstration of the capabilities of my machine. Now, do you want to change your answer, Mr. Bennett? »
Meeting his gaze, Bunji couldn't help the hatred he felt for this man filter through his voice.
«Go to hell!
- Very well. Have it your way. »
He motioned for Glove to hit the switch again. Pain spread throughout the young man's body as he felt the current rip across his chest, cutting off his breathing and contracting muscles he didn't even know he had. Just when he thought he couldn't bare any more of this, the pain stopped, leaving him once again trying to catch his breath, his ribcage throbbing with a dull pain.
Again, Scarab peered over him, looking quite pleased that his contraption actually worked.
« So, for now, I will let you think about changing your answer. »
Still trying to catch his breath, Bunji couldn't help but shiver. The room was getting colder by the minute. Scarab must have noticed his quivering, because he smiled once again in a freaking kind of way.
« I apologize for the temperature of the room. Perhaps it will help you change your mind more rapidly about giving me the information I need. »
Madame O approached and lifted the rag covering the young Bionic's body. After an appreciative look, she turned to Scarab.
« He doesn't seem to be very cold, if you ask me. Perhaps you could lower the temperature a bit more, darling.
- But nobody's asking you, Madame O. »
Scarab took the rag from the woman's hands and replaced it over the young man's body, whose cheeks had turned red despite the ambient temperature. Then, with a last angry look at Bunji, he left the room, followed by his men.