Nina was stood against the wall, her folded fists still clenched when Mandras swung the door open and casually leant against the frame, looking her up and down with a grin on her face. Nina stared at him as she pushed away from the wall and took a step forward so there was only a foot between them.
"You never fail to interest me Nina, never. I thought today might be different, that you had burned out. But then I read Jack Bauers file... I have to admit, I'm intrigued, curious at the very least. Just why did you beg Kalah to bring him along, a very capable man, who has the perfect motive to kill you?"
Nina's smirk formed on her lips as she placed her hands on her hips. She wasn't going to answer him as she wasn't sure herself. The silence lingered between them before Nina finally gave him what she decided would be a suitable answer.
"Insurance."
Mandras laughed at her, she still had her wits about her, he had to give her that. Nina was angered by his laugh, she would not be mocked. She knew she was taking a risk, but it didn't matter anyway, she was in danger by simply being here alone, what was one more gamble to make?
"Not insurance from him, Mandras. Insurance from you. With him here, you can't touch me. He wants me dead, he will do anything to do the job himself. I know him Mandras, just like I know you. You don't stand a chance, you can't stop him."
Each word was spoken with a practised calmness which somehow managed to put Mandras down. He felt belittled by her words and his laughter quickly ceased, his trademark frown appeared on his face, the one that was a warning when Mandras wasn't pleased.
She half expected him to attack her, put her in her place, show her who was boss. The banter between them was a power play after all, one he allowed her to win when he slammed the door shut quickly, his face reddening with anger. Nina herd the sound of another door opening and let out a slight cackle as she realised that Mandras had been fooled by her, once again he was being manipulated by her. What he didn't understand, perhaps couldn't, was that they were both her insurance.
Mandras slammed open the door to Jack's room, his temper now boiling over. He stepped into the small dark space, noticing how his prisoner was sleeping on the floor. Cautiously, his mind warned him to be weary of a trick as he ordered the man to get up. Jack didn't blink and his breathing pattern didn't alter, he was asleep. Somehow the mans ignorance made him even angrier, if possible, he was now furious. He rushed forward and picked the man up with a fistful of his shirt and slammed him into the hard wall.
Jack was jolted awake by the impact and was clearly disorientated. Mandras held up his weight while Jack composed himself, before taking a step back and - without warning - slamming his right fist into the restrained mans jaw. Jack was knocked to the floor by the stunning blow and blackness began to filter in on his vision. As he fought it away he realised the mans size wasn't for show, he was strong and had a very powerful punch. Mandras' laughing filtered through his senses and he looked up at the man towering over him, almost standing on his own crumbled legs due to the rooms lack of space.
"Not so tough now, are you?" Mandras started mockingly, although his tone quickly changed back to the cold and deep voice he had herd used when talking with Nina. "Get up."
He took a step back giving Jack more space as he tried to find his way to his feet, struggling without the full use of his arms which were fastened together at his wrists. He was wavering on his feet unsteadily when Mandras' fist shot out again, this time another powerful blow knocked his head back against the wall with a sickening crack. Mandras held Jack up this time as he looked around, dizzy from the hit. He realised he was too weak to fight back and Mandras was too quick and strong for him to take on in his current condition. All he could hope to do was minimise the pain the man was causing.
Mandras watched with curiosity as the man before him managed to compose himself. He whipped the back of his hand across Jack face, successfully swiping his head to the side from the force of the action. Jack blinked but showed no pain, he eyes stared stonily back at his attackers, who was only just beginning to notice that Jack wasn't reacting to the beating the way he had intended him to. Slightly discouraged by this he began to mock the man to reassure himself.
"So, your too scared to fight back?"
He didn't get any response so he slammed his knee into the mans stomach and watched with a satisfied smile as Jack fell down on all fours sucking in air and letting out a slight cough as his lungs fought for air.
"When I ask you a question, you had better answer me Bauer."
Jack finally spoke, his words calm. "I see you spoke with Nina." As he spoke he moved so he was sitting up, his back against the wall and his knees drawn up to protect himself, certain Mandras would attack again.
Mandras stared threateningly at the man by his feet, the anger he had just unleashed building up again. His first instinct was to hurt the man for his comment, but then he realised what words had been spoken and the meaning behind them. Nina. She was playing him, already. Even more frustrating was the fact that he had already told himself to be on guard for her games, yet he had missed this little trick of hers. Also annoying was the fact that this man, who hadn't even herd there conversation knew what she was up to. Yes Bauer had a history with her and knew what to expect, but so did he. He had been sloppy, he thought to himself angrily.
He made sure Bauers door was securely shut before charging into Nina cell like a raging bull. She was still leaning against the wall, looking calm and relaxed. Without hesitation Mandras raised his large hand up into the air before bringing it down to slap her face, three time in all, stopping to grab her chin and force her eyes to meet his.
"Try that again, you know you will regret it," he whispered calmly - knowing the calmness would scare her more than anything - before backing away. Glancing over his shoulder before he left her, he saw the smirk had left her face, and a hint of fear flickered through her eyes. Now satisfied, he left the room and headed back to his office feeling a little more refreshed.
Thank you for the kind reviews and please keep them coming!
