A/N: Sorry this took a bit longer than I intended. I had both some computer problems and some RL issues that have gotten in the way of the invisible schedule I've been trying to keep to with all my stories. I am very interested to hear what everyone thinks about this chapter. This story is very much heating up and getting to the crux of the drama now. Having said that there is still a long road ahead for this one. Nowhere close to done yet. I am somewhat nervous to hear what people think about this chapter, I spent a great deal of time on it. I wanted to get it just right. Only time will tell how I did I guess…please do let me know what you think. Encouraging feedback will definitely help me moving forward, this one is a heavy and complex one to write, but if people stay with me I think it will be very much worth it in the end. :-)
Chapter Warning: Non-graphic discussion of violence and sexual assault.
LSLSLSLS
It was Rachel who eventually broke the heated union of their gazes. She averted her eyes all of sudden, looking…anywhere and everywhere…except at him.
"I suppose I should start at the beginning." She spoke hesitantly, still not re-meeting his eyes.
Still reeling from the mental intimacy they had stumbled into…and then he had been yanked out of, Tom took a moment before he responded.
"Seems like a good place." He finally agreed.
"You already know everything that happened up until we were separated…"
"And I left you alone and completely unprotected to go off on a personal mission, yes, I remember." He interrupted in self-derision.
"Captain…Tom…you need to let that go. I have told you before that you did nothing wrong and that you getting your children and father back was the best outcome that was possible at the time…nothing I am going to say, hard as it may be to hear, is going to change that fact." She implored. He nodded shortly, his gaze on the bulkhead on the far side of the room. Obviously, her was far from convinced, but apparently, he was letting it go for now.
"We have also already explained how we, Alisha and I, came to learn the truth about Olympia and the part her Mother played in it all… Everything we have already reported about those events was the complete and unabridged truth. But…" She paused then.
"But…?" He prompted after a full second of silence.
"But… It was what came later that night. That was what we, very deliberately, didn't report to you, or anyone else."
"What happened, Rachel? He implored her softly.
Rachel took a deep breath, before raising her gaze to continue on. However, she only met Tom's eyes briefly before a deep sense of shame traitorously overcame her and she knew she could not tell him and look at him at the same time. She cast her eyes downwards at her hands...and spoke softly.
"After we discovered what was really happening…well…we resisted a little, both physically and verbally. We were restrained, rather strongly…Alisha too, Granderson, at no point, seemed the least bit inclined to leniency towards her daughter…it was unbelievable… Anyway, we were restrained, disarmed, vastly outnumbered…we could do little to help any of those things...and they did not paint a rosy picture of our prospects. Especially in light of Granderson's apparent complete lack of emotional connection to her own flesh and blood…it clearly spoke of how far gone the woman really was. "
Another pause. Rachel felt that this was even more difficult than she had imagined it could be…and she had barely scratched the surface in her rendition of events. She glanced up at him briefly. He was waiting patiently for her to continue…at the moment. It wouldn't last. They had already used up a great deal of his patience and goodwill in the weeks since that nightmare…there was little left to uselessly waste now… So before he had to prompt her to continue yet again, Rachel prompted herself.
"Obviously, I unwaveringly refused to do any work for them. The very thought of helping them in such a cause was utterly abhorrent. I was disgusted to think that I already had, however unwittingly. I think they were left in little doubt of the fruitlessness of changing my mind on that score, at least any time soon. And of course they never would have been able to… But don't think they had any plans to give up trying any time soon...not before I was dead at least. But I think it was other things we said and how we said them, that, in hindsight, really sealed our fate on what was to come..."
Wow, this was hard. Again she did not wait for the prompt to come, after another deep fortifying breath, she continued on her own.
"We were both guilty of denouncing Granderson, her beliefs and her reprehensible policies, in every way...strongly and very harshly…and in front of her people too. She did not like that. Alisha was obviously horrified at her Mother's actions. Though I admit, I was the one quite a bit more vocal and quite a lot harsher on the subject. In hindsight, silence may have been the wiser course of action, but carefully considered personal interactions…especially when I am supremely pissed off…are not exactly my forte."
Tom could not prevent, despite the circumstances, the small single chuckle that rose from him. The action clearly disclosed both his amusement and his agreement of her self-diagnosis.
"I know, not exactly a revelation, that one. I think Alicia slipped into, at least a mind state, of shock at some point in the proceedings. It was understandable. There was very much a significant extra layer of trauma to what she was going through, because of her personal connection to the person doing it."
It was still heartbreaking to remember the look on the younger woman's face. She had spared numerous worried glances at her as the truth of the situation had become clearer and clearer…and worse and worse. Each one had made her even more worried about her. The much desired evidence that it was all just a big a misunderstanding, that it was all somehow explainable. The exonerating proof that any daughter, obviously wishing to believe the best in her mother, would frantically look for, had never come…
All that had come was the older woman's proud admittance of absolute guilt in absolute atrocities. And as the realization had been made, Rachel had watched it cause the light in Alicia's eyes, to die little by little, until it was extinguished altogether… As yet, she had not seen it reignite, even this many weeks later.
It fact they were probably even farther from the task then they had been back in that room, learning those terrible things. Because things had very much gotten worse from there…and they had yet to get much better. Obviously, they had gotten out…The Captain had gotten them out…but much damage had unfortunately already been done by that point. They were only now realizing how much…
Rachel deliberately withdrew from her unhappy musings to resolutely continue in her set task.
"In any event, Mrs. Granderson objected to our resistance. To what she firmly believed was her absolute rule...and her absolute right to rule. Truth is, she got very offended in our personal judgments of her…very offended. The woman just didn't have a strong grasp on morality, or reality either, for that matter. I'm sure that what happened later than night, at least in part, was her way of putting us in our places, by imposing her personal agenda on us…in a very personal way…"
Ok, this was the first of many really hard parts to talk about…to admit to…but she had to do it.
"I have to tell you now, that I'm sure a certain amount of what happened was my fault, for all the reasons I just told you. I did not act intelligently. I did not act with the caution the situation dictated. My actions were reckless…all the more so because I was not alone. Alisha was there and very much at risk of also suffering the punishment my words would bring, and I still foolishly spoke out. Obviously, I did not expect what actually ended up happening… But some sort of reprisal from pissing off the bad guys was pretty foreseeable…it just didn't stop me…"
She trailed off and Tom chose the moment to interrupt before she could continue further down her egregious thought path. He may know little about the events of their captivity as of yet. But her absolute innocence of being in any way the cause of whatever it was that occurred, was something he was absolutely sure of.
"Rachel, while I still don't know what went on to happen… I can assure you that it was not your fault...in any way. I know you too well to believe that for a second, and I think we all came to understand Granderson uncomfortably well too. She proved quite clearly that she was very willing to execute heinous acts with absolutely no provocation at all…quite simply she was probably always going to do whatever she wanted with both of you…which is why I can't believe I left you there alone…"
Rachel lifted her gaze to spare the man before her look of gentle consideration...even a small slightly sad smile. His kind sentiments as to her actions and character were as a balm to her wounded soul…even if she couldn't quite bring herself to believe them. But what she very much wanted to get him to believe…especially moving forward…was that none of what happened was in any way his fault.
"I can easily believe it, Tom, for the quite simple reason of You. Did. Not. Know. If you had had any inkling, I know you never would have left. It's as simple as that! You did nothing wrong! And like I said before, if you hadn't have left, and left right then, you never would have been in time to save Jed and the children…"
He interjected on her well-meant defense of his actions then, because far from reducing his guilt, he words now were the very source of his guilt and shame.
"But that's exactly it! If I hadn't have been distracted with looking for my family, hadn't have so desperately wanted to believe those people were my chance at getting them back, I likely would have been in a better mindset to see the obvious that was right in front of my face!"
Rachel had to stop him then. It was clear they were both suffering guilt over what happened. But as far as she was concerned, his was completely groundless.
"Tom…I think you're exaggerating the so called obvious. Unless you really think all of us, all of your people, me included, were so damn stupid as to not see it straight away either…"
"No of course not! But I should have seen it…"
"Why? Why are you so much smarter than everyone else?" Rachel deadpanned the question and then stared at him in silence.
He started back at her…unsure.
Eventually, she let the corner of her mouth lift upward in a small smirk, and he understood that she was teasing him. Making a joke to ease the tension and his own self-derision. He admired her for the effort, given the circumstances. Especially considering the act had been an attempt to help him…when really, this was far more about her.
"Touché, Rachel, touché." He spared her a small smile…which she returned kindly.
They shared a moment then. And for that moment it was like they were not in the middle of an angst filled conversation in her lab… But maybe back in his office, when she had given him that amazing cure, that they had all worked so tirelessly to create.
Or even back on the bridge deck that time, when she had brought him celebratory tea, which he had absolutely hated, but drunk for her sake. Both times had been filled with so much hope, the former time had been imbued with something else too, a feeling she was afraid to give voice to, even in her mind, even now…especially now actually.
She was not the same woman she had been then…unfortunately. Back then it had been his, assumed to be still living, wife that had been the obvious reason for her to absolutely stamp down on the slightest feeling or notion contrary to their professional relationship…and maybe friendship. Now it was her. It wasn't like she thought he had believed her to be some giant catch before…but now she was even less of one. A lot less…
Tom could see she had become lost in less pleasant internal musings at a certain point in the moment they had been sharing. At first she had seemed gently satisfied with their current place…then suddenly quite morosely dissatisfied, caused no doubt by whatever negative thought or memory had chosen that moment to invade her conscious mind.
He would have been content to let their more pleasant moment continue indefinitely, despite his strong desire for answers, but these more troubling thoughts he needed to call a halt to, now.
"Rachel." He spoke softly…at the same time enfolding her hand within his own on the table between them. Whether it was his voice or his touch, or both, she came out of herself with a start and looked at him with wide blinking eyes.
"Tom." She answered. Though whether she was speaking to him, or assuring herself, he couldn't be sure.
"You ok?" He wanted them to continue. He didn't want this to drag on any further. He really wanted them to get to the healing portion of this. The part that he really hoped he could help with. He was really hating this feeling of helplessness. He knew they couldn't get there until the full disclosure part was completed. But even though the need was dire…he still was quite desperate that his pushing her right now, did not cause her any further harm.
"I'm ok, I promise." She gave him another small shy smile. He melted his heart. He hated to take that smile off her face but…
"Do you think you're ok to continue?" He was right, that removed the smile from her face pretty quickly. He hated himself more than a little right now.
Rachel pulled herself together visibly. "Yes, yes I'm fine, I can go on."
He studied her for a moment and then nodded, indicating for her to do just that.
"Umm…where was I?"
"You've mentioned that night a few times, unless anything momentous happened before then, that I don't already know about, I think we should finally get to that night."
"Yeah… yes, that makes sense, I can do that." Her tone however, seemed to indicate she was actually in doubt of if she really could or not.
Tom waited patiently, studying her. He decided he could give her some time to psych herself up to this. Clearly she needed it. He tried to ignore his own increasing anxiety of what he was going to hear, and focus on doing everything he could to calm hers. For the moment that was simply time and patience…but unfortunately he could no longer allow her too much more time…and his patience was in short supply too. It's overly liberal use in this matter, was the reason they were still in this mess, all this time later.
Thankfully he did not need to push further, she eventually did continue her tale unprompted…
"Well actually, with the benefit of hindsight of course, I know Granderson's plan for us started the moment we were taken to the secure room where we were being held. Almost immediately after being thrown in there, our guards came back in…along with some medical technicians. The guards immediately restrained us both and the technicians injected us with something. Then, as quick as they entered, they were gone again. They completely ignored us and our questions about what it was that was in the syringes."
"They injected you with something? Do you know what it was?" He was really not liking where this was going. Did that bitch use them for medical experiments? Even her own daughter?!
"No, we didn't have a clue then. We didn't learn later, either. It is only very recently that the pieces have started to come together, as to what the purpose of the contents of those syringes, might well have been. It was what Alisha and I were… discussing, when you came in…but I'm getting ahead of myself…" She needed to stay on track and focus. Drawing on dwindling reserves, Rachel took a deep fortifying breath in, and after exhaling slowly, she continued.
"When we were first injected, after the men had just left, we waited for the substance to have some sort of an immediate effect…sedation…pain…but there was nothing. They left us there alone for hours and neither of us felt any different…that we recognized at the time." Yeah, there had actually been signs, they made a hell of a lot of sense now…but the truth had been the last possibility on either of their minds back then. Even her, as a doctor, hadn't considered this possibility back then…
"Truth is there probably were some small signs, in hindsight, but we put them down to the stress of the situation and recent discoveries. Fact is, we all but forgot about the injections after awhile. Well, at least we didn't focus on them. We couldn't. It didn't appear like they was going to be immediately problematic, and we most definitely had more immediate problems to ruminate on."
"Like?" He was still pretty concerned about whatever this mystery substance was, that his women had been given without their consent, but he would let her tell this her way.
"Like how to get the hell out of there! Like how to get a message to you and the ship! To let you all know that Granderson and her people were actually the enemy!" She took a second to draw breath then, after her heated outburst. She continued on a little more calmly.
"You have to remember that from the point where we left the ship, and even more so after you left, we were cut off from any information that Granderson didn't feed us herself. And all of that proved to be highly suspect." That was an understatement if ever there was one.
"We had no idea what was going on outside the compound…or even outside of our cell for that matter. We couldn't even decide which prospect was worse... That you, and Mike back at the ship, were still in the dark and thus helping those monsters, or if you had found out like we had and…things had gone badly." She didn't need to directly say out loud that she had been worried that they had been killed, when they had discovered with whom they had really allied themselves.
"At that point I wasn't surprised that they were keeping us alive. Alisha was Granseron's flesh and blood, for whatever little that was worth to the woman. And they still wanted to convince me to help them with the vaccine…useless endeavor that it was. But for everyone else…we were very worried that Granderson and her regime would term you all highly dispensable… just as they were disposing of the rest of the population for that reason!" She made a face as she finished the sentence, as if the idea caused a bad taste in her mouth, which he supposed it did…to him too.
"I was concerned about your family too. At first we were worried that it had not been real, just a trap to draw you away… But then I remembered that you said that you had spoken to your father…and you would obviously easily recognize if it were not actually him…so that prospect seemed unlikely. At that point we just hoped that Granderson's true nefarious intentions would not derail you from getting to them in time to and save them."
"It was close." He reflected. And it had been. Truly. Mere moments of indecision could have provided a very different and dire outcome. One much closer to what was already so many people's reality.
"Yes. It was." There was no need to say more. What could one say? She knew where he had found them. She knew what had been happening at that place. She knew exactly what would have happened if he had not gotten there just when he did. And so did he. Painfully aware, she was sure.
And that was ignoring the fact that the virus itself would have proved still fatal if allowed to attack their already fragile bodies much further before being eradicated with the cure. Tom didn't need to know how close she really felt his family had been to that invisible line between live and death, when he had injected them. It had indeed beenclose. Very close.
They were both silent for several moment, gazes downcast. Considering the same thing, she imagined, if he had been too late… She already loved his children…and his father. Not that she thought she had the right too, but already the thought of their loss, made her heartsick. And it was such a strange thought, that she could have lost all these wonderful people, having never even met them to start with.
But Rachel knew, that even if the worst had happened, she would still have mourned them, for Tom's sake…just as she mourned Tom's wife, for his sake.
While obviously being distracted by her and Alisha's own dire experiences of Baltimore, she had not been quite so selfish as to ignore Tom's own loss…especially as she was partially responsible. If she had just developed that damn vaccine faster…
Of course, to herself, she could admit to a level of mixed feelings…given her non-platonic feelings for the man before her. But they were irrelevant, then, and even more so now. So, she could honesty admit that she did wish Tom's wife had lived. Because then Tom wouldn't have been hurt. He would have been happy. And when you are truly in love with someone, their happiness is all that matters… even if they are not happy with you.
Which of course was something that was never going to happen anyway… Wait, did she in love? Crap. Well, ruminating on that too much was not going to help this conversation go any smoother. Better to quash that notion as deeply as humanly possible. Not deny it, there was no denying it…at least not to herself. But it definitely required quashing.
Otherwise, she risked getting distracted by daydreams that could never come to pass.
They had both consciously taken a moment to contemplate what they had lost…and what they had only just managed to hold on to. But now she knew she needed to continue.
Otherwise she risked ruminations on losses and near losses, becoming a stall tactic, and that was not worthy of them or her.
"As I said, hours passed and nothing. No one came, we didn't think we felt any noticeable effect from the substance they had injected…and we came up with absolutely no ideas as to how to get out of there, or get word to you…" She still hated the utter feeling of helplessness, which remembering that time, brought back in full force.
"It must have been very late by the next time anyone came…I don't know exactly how long. We had no time keeping device…they had taken our watches…and every other personal item. Our room had no windows...impossible to say for certain if it was even day or night…but I thought maybe still night…early hours of the morning probably..." Now she was stalling, it didn't matter what the damn time was. She continued in a rush.
"Anyway, the same guards that had brought us in, and the same med tech's that had injected us, they came back. Again, they were very purposeful in their actions… and again they completely ignored our questioning…seemed to completely ignore we were people, actually..." She spoke the last bit on an angry whisper.
Tom suspected, from her words and her reaction to them, that they were now getting to the crux of the matter. He needed to keep her calm…even as his temper was simply boiling beneath the surface. These people…and he used the word loosely…whatever they had done, they had treated his people…these two beautiful smart and vibrant women, like animals to be experimented on!
Granderson and her people were the true animals…no wait, that wasn't right either…he actually liked animals. Monsters. That was what they were, the monstrosities of evil legend, their very nature despicable in every way.
Tom was barely containing his ferocity internally, as the revelations flowed. As he tried hard to keep her from actually hearing the sound of his teeth grinding in anger, he wondered how likely it was that he was actually going to be able to keep a lid on his anger moving forward. Using all of his mental might, he willed every outwardly directed bodily signal to calm…especially his voice.
"Rachel, you can tell me anything, anything at all. There will never be any judgment's made on you or Alisha, not matter what you say. None at all."
He had actually been quite successful. When he spoke, it was a gentle whisper, and he followed the caress of his words with a caress of his hand. He gently and carefully ran it down her arm in what he hoped was a soothing and comforting manner. Belatedly, he worried if maybe physical contact was not the way to go when she was so raw from retelling her ordeal. But she seemed ok with it. She didn't start at the contact, as he would have expected she would have had, if it really had been alarming and unwelcome to her.
Rachel took great pains to not let it be shown how wonderful she found his touch. She relished it and wished for more of it, but it was completely inappropriate to in any way ask for it. So instead, she simply enjoyed and drew much needed comfort from what was freely being given to her now. She sent him a gentle but sad smile when he drew his hand away, it was more than generous of him to have let his hand linger for several slow trips rubbing up and down her arm in comfort, she could ask no more. Afterwards she drew a much-needed breath to re-gather her wits before continuing down her set rocky path.
"They came into the room. They had a syringe again…but only one…I didn't understand that. But I didn't have much time to contemplate it either. Apparently the second syringe was just for me. And that one did have a noticeable effect. A strong one. I fought it. I tried to fight the guards that Alisha was struggling with. I did try to help her…to stop them…but…the truth was I was pretty useless. I was barely conscious when I watched all of them drag her out of the room. She was still fighting them, screaming at them. They relocked the door, the sounds disappeared down the hall…then I was alone again, and I lost consciousness."
Tom was really struggling to keep his anger contained now. If any of the actual objects of his rage were here, he knew the endeavor would be utterly useless. He would have beaten them to a bloody pulp before so much as considering another option.
He knew some people would not believe that. He had established himself as strong and capable leader, in many ways, through his self-restraint and ability to intellectually consider the wisest path before taking the action. An action that was always in the best interest of his people and the success of their mission.
But everyone had their limits, and he was in no doubt that they had already stepped over the line of his. He strongly suspected they were going to be way over that line, by the time Rachel finished her explanation.
There was no doubt at all…Beaten. To. A. Bloody. Pulp.
Tom forced his rage down, it was difficult at first but easier when he again reminded himself that he was not angry at Rachel, and he couldn't let her think that he was. He certainly couldn't risk scaring her with his anger again. He had to be calm…for her sake.
"What was the first thing you remember after that?"
"Waking up." She said with a small smile that spoke of some overlying humor covering significant underlying pain.
Apparently brattiness was a self defense mechanism of hers. He could handle that. Tears and silence were a lot harder to deal with then smiles and sarcasm. This way he had something to work with. He deliberately feigned a very fake annoyance when he replied, a small smile on his lips.
"After that...brat." That caused her to laugh…briefly…before she again turned serious and continued in her sad tale.
"Everything seemed the same. The same as when I had lost consciousness. I was in the same room, still alone, seemingly even in the same position I had slumped into when the sedative had first taken effect…"
"But…"
"But, something did seem off. I just couldn't put my finger on what. Not particularly surprising considering everything about the entire situation was off…to put it mildly."
"What did you do then?"
"There wasn't much I could do. I was still pretty foggy for a while after waking up. That sedative had been a damn strong one. Even when the mist did start to clear, my options did not seem numerous. Out of desperation I went through the exact same routine Alisha and I had when we had first been thrown in there. I searched the entire room for any sign of weaknesses to exploit. Unfortunately, they had chosen the makeshift cell well…no furniture to use as weapons, no vents big enough to use as exits, the only entry or exit to the room was the solid metal door we had been tossed through. Basically I wasn't going anywhere anytime soon..." She remembered the helplessness and frustration of the circumstances she had found herself in, and it still bit at her, brutally. With her history, it was impossible for such abject helplessness and vulnerability not to…
"I was so worried about Alisha by that point. After being unconscious I had even less idea of how much time had passed and how long she had actually been gone. I felt it must have been quite a while. The sedative I had been given was strong, and those aren't known for having short lasting effects. I still didn't understand why I had been sedated when she was taken. It wasn't like I pose some massive threat to them taking her...unfortunately." She would have been helpless to stop them either way. She may have been able to get a good punch in sooner without the drugs…but it wouldn't have prevented the final outcome.
"We were vastly outnumbered. Sedating me, purely for the sake of me not getting in the way when they were taking Alisha, didn't make any sense at all. But then sedating me pointlessly, and leaving me to wake up again in exactly the same place didn't either. It was confusing at the time, but just like the initial injections we had been given, it wasn't something I could allow myself to focus on in the urgent circumstances. It was just a question that didn't look like it was going to get an answer anytime soon..."
"You really don't think you were moved? Are you sure you were alone in that room the whole time?" For some reason he was very nervous about any other possibility.
"I couldn't be absolutely sure about any such thing, Tom, given that I was completely knocked out, but at the time, that was the way it seemed."
"At the time? Has that changed?"
She paused then. He watched her bite at her lip and direct her gaze upward and to the side, as if in deep thought. She seemed to be trying to choose her next words very carefully. Eventually, she spoke those carefully considered words, the answer to his angst-ridden question.
"That initial assessment has most definitely been called into question recently, yes."
"For what reason?" What could have changed after this much time? Had they experimented on them? Were they now sick? Is that what they had been whispering about? Is that why Alisha was so upset? So many questions still unanswered, and her explanations were only causing him to accumulate more!
"Umm…I think it's best if I continue in order of events, if I skip ahead I think it's unlikely you'll be able to fully understand the situation, and I can assure you that's not a criticism on you. Truth is, we still aren't completely clear ourselves, on what the hell happened, and especially why it did. That's something I should warn you about right now. Don't think you're going to walk out of this room with all the answers, Tom. And it's not because we are hiding them anymore. The truth is we don't know nearly as much as we would like. And we probably never will either. If you want to be fully informed, at least as much as we are…this is the way."
"I understand. Go on." He didn't actually understand, probably couldn't until everything that was actually known, was out in the open. Then he could much better consider these purportedly missing pieces. He knew he didn't like the sound of her most recent revelations at all. But right now he was powerless to do anything but sit here and listen.
Rachel knew he didn't actually understand…he couldn't. But his continuing attempt to feign real patience was a kind gesture. She knew it couldn't have been easy for him. Unlike him, she knew what was coming next in her rendition of events, and thus she steeled herself for the disastrous piece of news…the first in quite a few pieces…that she was about to have to break to him.
This was the first test. If he took this confirmation as badly as she knew he could, she didn't know how she could possibly tell him the rest… Well, his reaction would be what it would be. There was no going backwards now…for so many reasons. Right now she just needed to get his part said and over with...for all their sake's. With a resigned sign, she leaned forward, supported by her arms on the table before her, and continued her real life horror story.
"I was alone in that room for quite a while after coming back around. It was maybe an hour or two later, when I heard sounds in the hall, just before the door opened again. It was just he guards this time…no techs…they had Alisha with them. She wasn't fighting anymore. She was conscious but basically catatonic at this point. Her physical condition was…well, basically what you saw when you came for us. Most of her injuries were sustained in the time she was gone from our cell and while I was unconscious."
He listened to her speak the last words in such self-derision, that you would think it had actually been her choice to sleep through that time, instead of a condition that had been forced on her by soldiers and sedatives. But his mind drew back to what she had said before those words…about the condition his young Lieutenant had been returned to their cell in. Her physical condition and her mental one… He had to ask…
"What had they done to her?"
Rachel eyed Tom shrewdly. "Are you sure you don't already know? I'm sure you already suspect…"
"I have multiple suspicions, I hope I'm wrong on all counts…especially…" He trailed off, not wanting to even give voice to such an evil.
"Especially?" She prompted boldly.
"I think you know what I'm thinking too." He eyed her back meaningfully.
Rachel was silent a long moment, she spent it studying his face sadly, before she finally spoke quietly. "Yes, I think I do."
"So, am I wrong?" Oh, please let me be wrong…
"No, you're not." Rachel confirmed sadly.
Tom closed his eyes in regret and defeat at the confirmation of one of his worse fears. He was pretty sure they were both reading from the same terrible page, but despite not even wanting to say the word, he knew he had to know for sure.
The truth had to be fully brought into light and acknowledged if he was going to find a way to bring these two women out of the darkness they had subsisted in for the last month.
"So she was…?" He couldn't even say the word. Again he closed his eyes in regret, one hand covering them, rubbing the area just above his eyes, as if warding off a coming headache…or tears.
Rachel took pity on him. He needed the word said and the truth confirmed but he just couldn't bring himself to say it. She could. She had lived with this reality long enough to develop as much comfort as any person…as any woman…could. It wasn't much, but still…. She completed his sentence sadly…
"Raped, yes, she was."
TBC…