Chapter 5

Saturday, April 19th, 1986

Hill Valley

4:40 A. M.

Jack smiled cruelly at his young captive, currently hanging from the ceiling suspended by his wrists, surrounded by a simple wooden cage. Well, Jack, you have finally outdone yourself, he thought, watching as Marty tried desperately to free himself. Of course, all his efforts simply caused him more pain, as Jack had not only burred the insides of his shackles, but spiked the walls of the cage. Every time Marty moved, he got spiked. The scientist (yes, he had a doctorate) gave a shudder of delight as he saw the teen torn to pieces, and was very upset when he gave up and just hung there. "What do you think you're doing?" he hissed, advancing.

Marty looked up at him. Tears were running freely down the kid's face, he was pleased to see. It had taken a while to get the teen to cry in front of him, but it had been worth it. "Please, Dr. Brown," he begged, all his dignity gone. "Leave me alone. Just for ten minutes. Leave me alone. Or just kill me already and be done with it."

Jack gave him that evil smile. "Martin, as long as you live under my roof, you--"

"You call this living? Please, I'll do anything. . . ."

"Call Emmett a--" Jack paused to find just the right phrase. Finding an especially dirty one, he whispered it into Marty's ear.

The kid glared at him. "Never. You fing piece of shit."

Jack slapped him hard, sending him swinging into the spikes. He chuckled as Marty screamed. "Well, my dear Martin?"

Marty looked at him. Jack raised his hand for another hit. Marty cringed but took the blow. "Go ahead, hit me again. I won't say it."

Jack gladly did so, ripping Marty's back and sides up. Finally Marty whimpered out the phrase, sobbing violently. Jack stopped hitting him, a little disappointed. He had hoped Marty would hold out longer. Well, he could always punish him later with a new device. "Two minutes, but I had better see you squirming a little."

Marty nodded and obediently started scraping his wrists. Jack stepped back and watched the broken teen. "Why are you like this?" he whispered, tears still streaming from his eyes.

Jack overheard his question. "Why? Do you really want to know, little Martin?" Marty jerked with surprise, but nodded. "It's simple. I was born this way." He smirked. "Literally. One of my mother's favorite stories about my birth was how, at just two days old, I yanked on her hair and burst out laughing as she yelled." He laughed, making Marty shiver. "Oh, if only I could remember that. My first taste of pleasure."

Marty remained silent, but Jack could see in his eyes he thought Jack was insane. "You don't understand, do you. No one does. That's because none of you are as evolved as I am. Compared to me, you're all insects. Just simple little entities for me designed for my entertainment." He slapped Marty's face, just for the hell of it. "Things I can play with for a little while, then squash. I'm sure you've never cared about a bug's feelings. So why should I care about yours?"

Marty moaned. "Jesus. How did I ever mistake you for Doc?"

"Well, besides the obvious fact you're a complete idiot, I have my acting talents. I can be charming, even--" he grimaced and spat out the word "-- loveable, if I need to. Everyone loved me when I was a child. Mother and Father doted on me endlessly. I had dozens of friends, all willing to take my abuse and come back for more." He smiled. "All the better to torture Emmett." He leaned close to Marty. "I hate that fucking piece of shit. I hate him. He doesn't deserve anything. Friends, family -- nothing. People like you, you're just to keep me happy. To allow me to have my pleasure. But him -- God, I'd keep him screaming for the rest of his miserable life if I could."

"Why?" Despite himself, Marty looked interested in what Jack had to say.

"Because he dared to be better than I was!" Jack roared, slamming Marty back into the spikes. "NO ONE can be better than me! No one IS better than me! I am perfect! I am the pinnacle of humanity! Yet he dared to surpass my talents!" He turned and stalked away, seething with rage. "At home, all was well. He knew his place there. I was the loved one, the smiling twin. He was the weird kid who sat in the garage and read all day. Everyone could remind him he was inferior. Especially me, when we were alone." A pleasant shiver went up his spine as he recalled the afternoons they had spent together. "I'll give Emmett credit for one thing. He was a superb screamer. That's my favorite part of the process, you know. The screaming. It's the best drug in existence. And no one was better than him at it." He turned back and winked at Marty. "Although you come damn close, Martin. You should be proud of that." Marty just shuddered. Jack's body tensed with rage again. "But, at school. . . . How dare he be smarter than me. How dare he." He smashed a bottle of cleaner against the floor. "Advanced four grades!" He slammed the door into the room. "Received every academic award possible!" He kicked Marty's cage. "Earned himself national attention for his genius!" He stopped the cage, grabbed Marty, and pulled him close. "Do you know what his I.Q. is? Over 200. He has no right being that smart. Absolutely no right. Iam the perfect one. Me. He's the freak. The weirdo. I should have gotten that attention. I should have gotten those awards. I should have been the smart one." A truly sick smile twisted his lips. "But I made him pay. Did I ever make him pay. Whenever we were alone, he never stopped screaming."

He released Marty and walked away again, almost casually. "I thought the lesson had sunk in by the time I moved out. I thought he had understood what a useless piece of shit he was. But then, years later -- I see this." He pulled a newspaper clipping out of his pocket. It was yellowed and faded, but Marty could see that it was from an article about Doc winning his NSF award, and showed a picture of him and Doc together. "Not only is he winning more awards, he has you. A friend. He doesn't deserve friends, he knows that. Yet, for some reason, he thought it was okay to have you." He snorted. "You think someone as smart as him would know the consequences of befriending someone, after I punished him so severely." His smile came back. "Oh well. At least I get to have the pleasure of torturing you for my revenge."

"You'll never be as good as Doc," Marty hissed. "Never."

Jack punched him. "Why would I want to be as good as him? He's a bug, just like you. Just like the six people I killed in San Francisco, and like the six I killed in Los Angeles. All pathetic little bugs, who deserved what they got." He closed his eyes, remembering the screams, the blood, the squirming. . . . Oh yes, yes,he thought giddily. Even if they were mere bugs, they could provide him with some quite wonderful forms of satisfaction. He wondered if he needed a moment alone to cool himself off.

No. He could always pleasure himself later. Right now, his revenge on Emmett was the important thing. Besides, Martin's dedication to Emmett was providing some excellent entertainment. It was a pity he would have to kill him in a few days. He could think of some wonderful tortures that wouldn't make the cut. Maybe I should substitute the iron maiden for one, I so wanted to do that one. . . .

He returned to reality as he realized Marty was just hanging there. "What the hell is wrong with you?" He unhooked the chains, watching Marty slump to the ground. "Get up. I think we need a few minutes on the rack. Or maybe in the iron maiden?"

Marty looked up, confused. "What's an iron maiden?" he whispered.

"You'll find out." Eagerly, Jack forced Marty over to the spiked "coffin." Yes, life didn't get much better than this.