***
Alyx wasn't sure how long she slept, but she woke when the Captain came back into the room. While she felt somewhat better, she knew she was actually no better off. She could feel by the roll of the ship that the seas were much heavier. If this idiot knew what he was doing he was trying to hit the northern edge of the storm and hopefully make it around. Of course, he should have simply stayed in port and waited it out there, but he obviously had been unable or unwilling to do that.
As she watched, he stripped off his shirt and tossed it in a basket across the room. He had an impressive physique, covered with a striking array of scars. She wondered how many of those were from the fingernails of young girls he had broken.
"Weathah gettin' a bit rough?" Alyx asked him, her throat a bit sore.
"Brave little thing aren't you?" he commented as he got something out of a trunk.
"Take off this collah and you'll get to see exactly what Ah'm capable of." She shifted sitting up. She only had about eight inches of chain between the desk and her ankle.
"I'll just bet. You can drop the accent and the innocent teen routine. I've made a some inquiries about you, and it seems there are a few," He paused to choose the just the right word, "agencies that would love to see exactly what you're capable of." He turned around and she saw that he held a set of hand shackles on a long chain. He casually tossed them over a hook hanging from the ceiling. "The bidding for you is going fast and furious, and doubles if I deliver you complacent and willing to cooperate." He held up the collar control so she could see it. "I'm going to enjoy breaking you."
"I think you'll find I don't break easy," Alyx stated, getting to her feet.
"Easily enough." He moved to within a couple of feet of her and turned on the collar.
Alyx managed not to go to her knees, but only by leaning on the desk. "And?" she hissed through clenched teeth.
He simply turned up the power slowly until she was on the floor, moaning in pain. He kept the power setting where it was and, after tossing the control on the bed, went over to Alyx and picked her up. With little effort he carried her over to the shackles and swiftly locked her wrists in them. A few adjustments to the length left her hanging with her toes barely touching on the floor. Sitting on the bed, he turned off the collar and she collapsed in relief.
"Find that amusing, huh?" Alyx growled at him when she finally caught her breath. She wished she could see him, but he sat somewhere behind her and, no matter what she might say, she currently didn't have the strength to even turn around. She hung in the shackles overhead, her shoulders aching with strain. She could feel the cuffs cutting into her wrists. Not drawing blood yet, but she knew they soon would.
"Rule number one: No talking." He turned the collar back on and counted to 20 slowly. When he shut it off, she sagged in the cuffs for a moment, then got her feet under her.
"I don't do rules," Alyx voiced.
He turned the collar on again.
It took a half an hour of this - him turning on the collar, and her challenging him - before she even allowed herself to realize she was going to lose this fight. She was covered in sweat, panting for air, and fighting muscle spasms, but this time she didn't speak, didn't even allow herself to whimper in pain. She knew it was no longer sweat running down her arms, it was blood. She had managed to rub her wrists raw along the way. When she hadn't moved for several minutes she heard him get up off the bed and circle around in front of her.
"You are very stubborn, girl." He grabbed a handful of hair and lifted her head up so that she could see his face. "It's time for your next lesson." Releasing her head, which she let fall forward, not yet having the strength to hold it up, he unzipped the jumpsuit she wore and spent a few moments admiring the flesh revealed beneath. When he touched her the first time she reacted with a shudder of disgust. He didn't seem to even notice. Either that, or he expected it.
Alyx had had enough. She lashed out with a kick that just missed hitting him in the groin and caught him in the upper thigh as he shifted away from her. He reacted by punching her in the side of the head and cursing at her. He then turned the collar back on and smiled when she arched back in pain. He left it on to respond the knock on the door of his cabin. Briggs entered.
"Sir, we may have a problem," Briggs said.
"What is it? I'm busy here."
Briggs looked from the Captain to Alyx and back. "Yes, sir, but we have a Coast Guard cutter ordering our return to port because of the storm," he answered. "They refuse to speak to anyone but you."
"Odd." The Captain thought for a moment then dug a clean shirt out and put it on. "Watch her. I'll be back shortly."
As soon as he was sure the Captain was gone, Briggs turned off the collar and went to her. He zipped the jumpsuit up and lifted her enough to release the pressure on her arms.
"Thank you," she whispered to him. "Unlock me, please."
"Yeah, can you stand?" He lowered her to her feet.
She nodded. Reaching up, he unlocked the cuffs and she lowered her arms to her sides. She stood looking at him, swaying slightly. "What's happening?"
"One of the high speed cutters is after us. Ordering us to turn back to port." He helped her to sit on the edge of the bed. "You going to make it?"
"If the cutter doesn't stop this boat, please kill me. I won't go through this again." Alyx leaned back on the bed, trying to relax for a moment.
"Don't say that," Briggs argued very quietly to her. "Why did they send someone so young anyway?"
"I'm older than I look," Alyx replied as clearly as she could. The more she relaxed, the more everything began to twitch and spasm.
"So who do you work for that they sent you for me?" Briggs asked out of curiosity, hoping to distract her from her discomfort.
She opened her eyes and looked at him. "They thought you were dead. I came in expecting no help."
"But you used the code phrase: Hope." Briggs checked her wrists and decided that they could use bandaging.
"Dumb luck. Thought up the name on the fly," Alyx answered him. The movement of the ship changed, becoming more violent, and the engine sound became deeper as if it were working harder. Briggs quickly cleaned the scrapes on her wrists and wrapped them in clean bandages. During the few minutes it took the ship began move with a violent up and down rocking motion.
"The idiot has turned into the storm instead of going around," Briggs observed, standing. "I have to lock you back up, for now. I'll try to get back to you later."
Alyx got to her feet and with his help walked over to the desk where he reattached the shackle to her ankle. "Go." She waved at him. "I'll be fine."
He hesitated for one moment more and then, with a nod to her, left for parts unknown.
Alyx got herself into a lotus position and did what she should have done in the first place, had she been thinking, that is. Putting herself in a nice, comfortable trance state, she set about convincing her body it was not nearly as abused as it believed it was. Once she was calm and centered, she began methodically testing how little she could do without setting off the damn collar. Inside herself, anything she wanted she could do. Outside, however, anything beyond a few inches from her skin set off the collar. Anything done directly to the collar, activated the collar. Okay, that established, she went to option two: override the pain with a little mental pain block. Oh, it would still hurt like hell, but she'd be able to ignore it and maybe accomplish a few things when the time was right.
She only hoped the time would be right soon.
***
"They found them," Hobbes crowed, his relief evident. "Farrell thinks we're nuts, but he has the ship going after them at top speed."
"How long?" Darien questioned, looking out the window at the quickly darkening sky.
"Couple of hours, give or take. Hope you have a strong stomach. The weather is going to get really bad from here on out," Bobby said as lightning flashed across the sky. "Going to be dark soon as well."
"Bobby, stop trying to cheer me up," Darien muttered.
"How about this: Morris has been thrown in the brig pending an investigation." He seemed very pleased with the outcome.
"Can we make him walk the plank?" Darien asked with an evil smile.
"Now why didn't I think of that?" Hobbes wondered, echoing his partners grin. "He may wish we had by the time the Official is done with him."
It was a long, uncomfortable two hours. Darien couldn't help but be impressed by the storm. California rarely saw anything like this. Hundred mile per hour winds, pouring rain, nearly constant lightning, and waves even the craziest surfer wouldn't dare go near. The boat was racing up and down hills, mountains, of water as they fought their way closer to the slaver's ship. A good portion of the crew were looking a little green, and several were out of it completely. Everyone was stuffed into life jackets and rain slickers.
"Sir, we have them on radar," one of the petty officers on the bridge said.
"Radio contact?" the Captain asked.
"Yes sir, but they are refusing to turn about."
"Pull alongside and let's see if we can't encourage them to cooperate," the Captain ordered.
"Yes, sir."
"Is this good or bad, Hobbes?" Darien queried his partner, not knowing much about how things were done on the seven seas.
"Depends on how hard they try to run," Bobby answered.
They found out the answer to that within minutes.
"Sir, they are sending a mayday. Their engines have failed and they are floundering," announced the communications officer.
"Pull in closer. Let's see if we can help." The Captain turned to Darien and Bobby. "Looks like the two of you are in luck."
***
Alyx opened her eyes when the engines started sounding wrong. The boat, instead of forcing its way reasonably smoothly through the rough waves, now floundered, no longer hitting the waves nose first. The boat had developed a bit of a side-to-side roll, which was not a good thing. While the engines continued to rattle on, they weren't apparently doing much in the way of controlling the ship. When the door opened and Briggs rushed in, she had good idea what had happened to the engines.
"Kid, the Coast Guard is on the way." He came over and knelt down beside her, pulling out a set of keys from his pocket. Thumbing through them, he tried a couple with no luck. "Shit, the Cap must have the only key to this one."
"Go help the other girls, make sure they get off the ship." She gave him a shove, having a bad feeling that the Captain would leave them behind to save his own skin. "Go. I'll be fine."
"You're sure?" he asked looking concerned.
"Yes, go. Make sure those girls get home," Alyx ordered, shooing him away.
Once he was gone she tried to break the lock of the shackle with her mind, only to succumb to the pain fairly quickly. She then tried a quick burst of energy to shatter the chain. A few minutes later she found herself waking up on the floor, having caused herself to pass out from the resulting strong, sudden shock. With a curse, she sat up and pulled at the desk to no avail. The feet were set in frames that were part of the deck to keep it from moving. Lifting the desk wouldn't help; the ring the shackle was attached to was part of the desk's structure.
She could hear the engine of the Coast Guard ship as it drew alongside the slaver ship. Within minutes, the sounds of gunshots and yells could be heard. She could only hope Briggs would get a chance to come back for her.
***
Darien and Hobbes waited impatiently for the cutter to pull alongside the slaver ship. Even though someone on the ship had called for help, they didn't expect the crew to submit to being rescued quietly, especially with kidnapped children on board. In fact, there was some concern that the slavers would try and kill the girls before they could be rescued. Although it wasn't commonly done - most problems at sea rarely involved gunfire - the Captain ordered that all those going on board the slaver ship go armed. Good thing too, because as soon as they tried to tie up to the other ship, the slaver crew opened fire.
Bobby Hobbes led the boarding party, clearing the way to get his partner on board and below deck. They ran into some resistance on the way down, which they handled. Further in, they ended up stuck, facing a group of about five slavers who had created a blockade and were firing from behind it.
Hobbes turned to his partner, "Think you can break this stalemate before both ships sink?"
Before Darien got a chance to answer, shots and shouts - female shouts - resounded from the far side of the barricade. Sticking their heads around the corner, the agents saw one man leading a group of a dozen girls in a furious attack on the slavers from the rear. Bobby and his group waded in to help, and within minutes the slavers were dealt with one way or another. No one was pulling their punches with these guys, including Darien. When the Coast Guard crew began stripping off their lifejackets for the girls, Bobby and Darien followed suit.
Bobby grabbed one of the girls, a blonde who had been especially vicious to one of the slavers during the fight. "Have you seen a red-head with silver eyes?"
It was the guy who had been with them that answered. "She's chained in the Captain's cabin."
"Where?" Darien barked.
Briggs pointed. "That way, down one level. Be careful, the Captain is still loose."
"Bobby?" Darien looked to his partner.
"Go. Find her," Bobby insisted.
Darien ran down the hallway and down the next flight of steps. When he got to the bottom, he heard voices and Quicksilvered. He rarely carried a weapon. It seemed they still didn't trust someone who went off his rocker on occasion. He ran into two men who were arguing. One limped on a heavily taped knee.
"Leave her. She's worth nothing now," the injured one said.
"No. She's worth our freedom." The second poked the injured one in the chest. "A bargaining piece."
"Captain, she's too dangerous." The first turned away, limping towards where Darien stood.
Darien had the bad feeling that they were talking about Alyx. He slipped past the injured man and went after the Captain. When he stopped outside a particular door and opened it, Darien grabbed him, spun him about and punched him in the face. The guy didn't go down, but looked around bewildered for a moment. Through what had to have been luck the guy swung and connected with Darien's shoulder shoving him into the wall.
The guy pulled out a knife - a rather large, very sharp knife - and started swinging it at where he thought Darien to be. Darien dodged and ducked, but yelped when the knife sliced through his pants leaving a thin trail of blood.
"Show yourself," the Captain growled.
With a little effort, Darien managed to work his way behind him and then spoke. "I don't think so." He got one arm around the Captains neck and used the other to fight off the hand with the knife when it came back at him. They struggled for several minutes, and it ended only when the entire boat shifted unexpectedly and threw the two of them on the floor. Darien ended up on the bottom, but the knife ended up in the Captain's chest, who, thankfully, died almost instantly
Darien rolled the body off of himself, trying unsuccessfully not to be squeamish about the blood all over him. Dropping the Quicksilver, he hurried to the door the Captain had been opening and went in.
***
Alyx tried again and again to free herself, with little success. She didn't want to make herself black out again, not when she might still be rescued, and she needed to save the pain block for the last possible moment. She even pulled everything she could reach off the desk and tried to pick the damn lock the traditional way, but with no luck.
She heard the Captain and the first mate arguing over her in the hallway. She should have known the Captain would not abandon her when he could still get something out of her. The first mate's voice disappeared; for a moment she wondered if the Captain had killed him, but doubted it. The sounds of a fight surprised her, and it seemed forever before it ended. The ship was shifting dangerously now; no one was steering any longer from the feel of it. The rumble of the cutter's engine was fading fast. She debated hiding, when the door to the room opened.
***
"You can't, they're still on board!" Hobbes screamed at the Captain of the Coast Guard cutter as he watched the crew cut the ropes tying them to the slaver ship.
"I have no choice. We're near the eye wall. If I don't cut that ship loose, it will drag us down with it when it goes." The Captain's tone softened. "Look, we have 10 prisoners, 12 girls, a missing agent, all of my crew. Do you really want me to risk staying for two people even you claim can take care of themselves?"
"No," Hobbes admitted reluctantly. Sometimes, even though he didn't want to, he was forced to let his partners fight their own battles.
"Look, we're going to head for the eye to make sure we're in one piece. We can wait there for a time. Maybe they'll make it." The Captain set a hand on the smaller man's shoulder.
"Oh, they'll make it or I'll kill them both," Bobby declared.
As he watched, the cutter pulled away from the slaver ship. Just in time, too; the next wave that came along hit the slaver ship broadside and, as they all watched in horror, capsized the ship.
"Ah, crap," Bobby muttered.
