Now, here is a chapter I spent a good deal of time writing because I wanted it to be just right, maybe i got a little to into this but it was for the good of the story!

WARNING: This chapter contains a rather extensive torture scene, if you are squeamish I would recommend

you skip it. I will mark where it begins.

A nurse noticed Boone was still standing in the room and quickly ushered him out saying something to the effect of "You can't be in here." Or "The doctors need space to work." He didn't really hear her, he was to focused on Jasmine.

How could he let this happen? She was less then a hundred feet away from him and he let this happen. This was it, this was his punishment; for all the bad he had done. As if loosing his wife and child wasn't enough. But now he was going to lose her too, his last pillar that kept him tethered to humanity and gave him hope for life.

He could still hear the doctors working on her, but at that point he was certain she wasn't going to come out of this. Certain that he was never going to see her beautiful smile again or wake up to her morning kisses or run his fingers through her hair. God, he'd give anything just to go back and prevent all this from happening.

A hand was placed on his shoulder, "Boone." Veronica said softly "Cass sent someone, she can't get anything out of that guy. She wants your help."

He was so deep in thought he forgot that the fucker who caused all of this was still breathing. "I'll wait here, if anything happens I'll come running I promise." She said he started towards the gate "and Boone" he stopped walking "Don't blame yourself for this, I know your thinking you should of known or that you should of done something. But you couldn't of known." She said in an effort to comfort him. He didn't believe that, you could and should always do something but right now that was pushed to the back of his mind. He was going to get the information from that fucker, and he was going to enjoy every second of it.

He exited the elevator; Cass was leaning on the wall just outside the bathroom.

"I wasn't able to get anything out of him, he is legion I know it. We need to know how serious this is, because we could ether have the whole legion on our asses or this is just be a contracted hit. " She said he could tell she was angry, Cass and Veronica cared for Jasmine almost as much as he did. He started to walk into the bathroom, but before he could fully enter Cass grabbed his shoulder and spoke directly into his ear "You make that fucker suffer, you hear me?"

He nodded, continuing into the bathroom. He pulled away the curtain and there tied to a chair was the man who had took the woman he loved away from him. He already had a black eye and few bruises, cuts, along with the gunshot wound he had received. Cass had removed the bullet and cauterized it, wanting him to life long enough so we could get what we needed.

Boone observed the tools he had at his disposal Cass had also laid out an assortment of knifes, a blowtorch, and even a fission battery with cables. Boone narrowed his eyes, getting a hard look examining this man and he seemed to be doing the same. Then the man started to laugh, not holding back his amusement of the current situation.

"So, you are who the whore told me she was waiting for." He paused examining Boone's beret "Sending the NCR dog to do the dirty work I see." He uttered.

Boone remained unexpressive, he was trained in the art of advanced interrogation when he was in the NCR and it was a skill he fully intended to use. He walked over to the knifes, carefully choosing which one he wanted. He settled on a rusty switchblade.

"We are going to start simple, what is your name?" he said balancing on the balls of his feet in front of the bound man twiddling the blade between his fingers.

"I do believe my captor should introduce himself first." He said calmly

"I am Craig Boone, former first recon sniper for the NCR." Boone said blankly

"Vuples Inculta, proud leader of Cesar's fumitarii." He said with a smirk

"Why were you sent here?" Boone said as he stood and took a step back

"I thought I made it very clear when I poisoned the courier, profligate." He spat.

Boone expected this, resistance. In his training the first step was to always show the prisoner what you are capable of, the pain you could cause them to show who was really in control here through the use of isolated pain on one part of the body. Boone walked over to table and grabbed the blowtorch. Lighting it and running the switchblade through the blue flame waiting until the blade was red hot, "Wrong answer."

He then wedged the blade between the Vuples kneecap and femur tugging from side to side tearing at the muscle and tendon there, while the Vuples screamed his lungs out.

"Try again." Boone said leaving the blade imbedded in his knee.

"You'll have to do better than that, you NCR prick." He heaved

Boone removed the knife, and heated it again repeating his pervious action. This time cutting the tendon away completely, the knife sliced through the flesh gracefully. Boone's hand remained on the knife as he waited for Vuples screams of agony to cease, then he spoke "Try again, before I lose my patience."

"Now, I know you can do better than this." Vuples chuckled.

"Fine, have it your way."

Boone pulled the knife forward separating the kneecap from the femur completely then braking of the blade from the handle. He could hear the tearing of the muscle as if it was a piece of fabric being forcefully ripped in two. He was starting to enjoy himself, hearing the screams of pain caused the sweet feeling of retribution wash over him; he smirked.

Now, it was time for the second step; full body torture.

"One last time, why are you here?" Boone said untying one of Vuples hands and stretching his arm over a small table leaving his forearm over the opposite side of the table.

"Fuck off." He spat, he must of bit his tough because he spat blood that even further stain Boone's shirt with blood. Boone grabbed a police baton.

"I'm out of patience."

Boone brought the butt of the police baton down hard on Vuples forearm causing a compound fracture of the radius and ulna; the bone was protruding through the skin just before his elbow. Not giving Vuples even a second to recover boone rebound his hands and dragged him from the chair. Boone looped a chain over the curtain rod and hung Vuples so his feet were just above the floor; the bone still sticking out of his arm.

Boone brought his face very close to Vuples, "Enjoy this because it is only going to get worse from here."

Boone left the room, turning off the light as he shut the door.

End of Chapter 20