Alternate Infatuation
Sequel to Alternate Existence. We all know that certain people are simply destined to be together. When Syd finally gets out of the life of espionage she was drawn into at sixteen, how will she find her own destiny?
Chapter 9: Forms of Exotic Torture
Disclaimer: Author does not own most of these characters. Said author does not wish to be sued. However, Jeffrey is all mine! This is also my original plot, and if anything resembling it ever shows up on Alias, I'm suing!
The sound of ragged panting filled his ears in the silence. He could taste the coppery feel of his own blood filling his mouth, and one of his molars was currently laying on the floor, leaving his cheek and mouth throbbing.
He was alone for the moment, but they'd be back, just like they'd been back every other time one of his torturers had left. They just came back meaner and hit harder.
Jeffery wasn't sure of the exact limits of the human body, but he knew he was nearing his limit. In a distant sort of way, he'd accepted that he wouldn't last much longer once the man called Sloane returned with another goon trained in another form of exotic torture.
A low moan reached his ears, and it took him several moments to recognize it as his own. He realized with no small amount of remorse that he wasn't strong or brave; he'd realized after an hour that he simply didn't know the kind of intimate details his captor wanted. He knew Sydney, but he knew very little about her life, or he might well have cracked. The knowledge that he couldn't tell them what they wanted anyway enticed him not to speak a word. The least he could do was not tell them about her years as an agent.
Even through the thick veil of pain, it was somehow appealing to make the bad guys do all this work for nothing. A loose smile formed on Jeffrey's bruised and bloody lips as Sloane strolled back in.
This was crazy. This place was swarming with guards. They'd never get in, and if they did they'd never get out.
Vaughn stealthily dodged ahead, trying to foresee any possible trouble before Sydney walked right into it, but to his chagrin Sydney stayed right with him, and Jack stayed right behind her. By some miracle, they made it up the corridor without being caught.
"In here," Jack said finally, calling them back through a door they'd already passed.
They ducked into a small uniform room, and Jack pulled appropriate sized off of hangers and tossed them to Sydney and Vaughn.
"We'll go after Jeffrey," Sydney said as she buttoned up the camo top over the snug black long sleeved tee she wore. "But we'll need a distraction." She looked to her father.
"The security system in this building is centralized in the basement. I can hack into the system and set off every alarm in the system, and they'll be running wild," Jack said.
"How long?" Sydney asked, completely and intentionally cutting off and excluding Vaughn.
"Give me three minutes. If their techs are any good, you'll have about five minutes to get Jeffrey out after the alarm sounds."
Sydney nodded and turned to Vaughn.
"We stay together," she said, a chiding note lacing her tone.
This chick definitely knew what she was doing, Vaughn realized as they emerged into the hall side by side, both adopting the stiff posture of a self-righteous guard.
"Hey, after this--you know, assuming we get out alive," Vaughn began in a low voice. "May be we can talk. You know, get a chance to explain ourselves."
"Not now," she said tersely as they turned a corner onto the hall of the room they saved for prisoners.
An instant later, the alarms went crazy. A fire alarm buzzed, another rang loudly, and yet another squawked. A door opened to their left and a burly man with a gun drawn jogged into the hallway, followed closely by a smaller, older man. Sydney caught the door with the heel of her boot and slipped quickly inside, drawing her gun in case there were more men inside.
"Syd!"
Jeffrey sported an assortment of evident injuries, featuring visibly a badly split lip, two black eyes, and a huge welt on one temple. His shirt was torn or slashed, and at the very least he probably had some broken ribs.
A gasp escaped Sydney's throat before she could stifle it, but even as shock radiated through her she was moving, kneeling, pulling out a knife, slicing ropes.
"Come on, Jeff," she finally managed as Vaughn moved to one side and she to the other and pulled Jeffrey's arms across their shoulders. "We have to move. We have to get you out of here."
Jeffrey grunted and winced, but gained his feet and allowed himself to be mostly drug out.
"God, Syd," he rasped as they paused to shove the door open. "You're still right in the middle of this damned mess!"
Yay, Jeffy's rescued and Syd showed Vaughn she's not a helpless techie! I had considered killing Jeffrey off at one point, but first of all, I couldn't bring myself to kill Syd's other best friend, and second, I've become quite attached to him; I just can't kill him!