Warning: This is a rougher chapter than previous, with some violence, infliction of pain, an instance of minor coarse name-calling (a word acceptable for a lot of regular tv these days though), and an increasingly sick, twisted, evil mind of the villain. It's still within the boundaries of what is appropriate for the T rating, I think, but enough to justify this warning.

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Trinkets - Part 9

After Harm had finished off the bottle, Clinton took it away from him and asked, "You know what I want from you now, don't you?"

In a manner that sounded more casual than he felt, Harm said, "You want me to tell you everything I know."

"Something like that, yes. So, let's get to business. Did … my acquaintance, Mr. Munkowitz, talk to you about the device?"

Harm provided no answer.

"Never mind, I know Munch did; so, let's just skip to you telling me what he said."

Closing his eyes, Harm tried to block out Clinton's request.

The interrogator was not to be deterred. He switched gears slightly. "Do you know why I had her kiss you like that?"

Harm opened his eyes and then shook his head.

"How about you, Sarah? Do you know why I wanted him to have such a moment of pleasure?"

She paused for a moment, and then ventured, "Your version of 'good cop, bad cop?' Only you have to take turns to play both roles … and, of course, you're no cop."

"True, I'm no cop. And I was originally planning on having Jake to work with, so I'm having to improvise here."

He turned back to Harm. "I never really figured that being nice to you would make you talk, so that's not the reason, but I figure it would be rather rude of me to go straight into more painful things without at least giving you a chance to answer just now."

A chill ran through Mac when Clinton mentioned 'painful things.' It did not really matter if the torture was to be aimed at her or at Harm, because she would suffer either way.

"No," Clinton went on to explain, "I had her kiss you, because I want you to think of her, the woman that you have such … an affinity for. I want you to remember the feel of her against you and that connection that you just shared. And I want you to know the potential of what you could have had from her, … so that when she is no longer capable of being with you, … all that you missed out on will be burned onto every one of your senses."

Harm's jaw clenched. He didn't like the sound of where this was going at all.

The tormentor continued, "There's something else I want you to keep in mind while I am … directing my attention to Sarah." Without any other warning, Clinton picked up the nearby chair by its back and swung the base of it with might at Harm's head, hitting him squarely on his shoulder and the side of his face.

Mac gasped with horror as at least one leg of the chair broke in two on impact. She could only imagine the damage done to Harm!

After tossing the now ruined seat back to the floor behind him, Clinton stepped close to Harm and leaned over his prisoner's freshly bleeding face. "Just wanted to remind you of the pain and injury that I'm capable of inflicting."

He stood up straight, and, with an eerie calmness, as if no violence had just occurred, he politely demanded, "Now, one more time … Please tell me what Munch told you. Hmm? What did he say about the device? … Answer me, or I move on to Sarah."

"Don't worry about me, Harm," Mac spoke up. With a significant look at her partner, she told him, "You know what you have to do."

Clinton noticed, and did not appreciate, the nonverbal communication that had just passed between these two 'friends.' Even with the new swelling developing to the side of Harm's left eye, there was no denying the light of understanding that reflected in his blue orbs, signaling that the 'message had been received.'

"What does he have to do?" Clinton inquired of Mac.

"Keep his mouth shut … for the time being," she answered.

"Well, in that case, I guess it's time I dealt with you," Clinton told her. He briefly turned back to Harm, stating, "She's lucky, in a way, that I'm clever enough to realize that she can take care of something for me. That delays any physical torture, … although I imagine that if she manages to live beyond today, what I'm about to have her do will scar her emotionally and haunt her every day and night for the rest of her life."

Again, Mac was momentarily overcome by fear, as her mind could not even fathom what evil this mad man had planned. But the marine in her overrode that feeling of fright and focused on the facts of the situation.

Clinton meandered over to his bag in the corner, and, as he rustled inside of it for something, he told Mac, "See, there's a man downstairs …" He pointed to the monitors, indicating the prone form on the floor below them. "… who needs some attention."

He pulled out some sort of small electrical device with straps, and continued, "It's only appropriate that you tend to him."

Walking back to Mac, he stated, "After all, … Jake loved you, and you rejected him. He died trying to protect you. When he realized, with your not-so-subtle help, that my intention was to use you to get under Harm's skin, … Jake just wouldn't have any of it. He didn't want you to be hurt or to have anything forced on you."

After a theatrical sigh, Clinton added, "It's really a pity that he couldn't see the bigger picture, because there are things that could have been done to break the Commander, … that Jake could have really enjoyed. For instance, …" he said, looking over to Harm, "… I might have started things off by having Sarah kiss Jake like I had her kiss you just now. … The difference with kissing him, of course, would have been that Jake would have been in better condition to have his free hands roam … all over her."

"She wouldn't have kissed him like that," Harm objected without really thinking.

"Oh, she would have with proper motivation. Yes, it's really a shame that Jake was not willing to play along, because, if he did, he could've at least gotten one smokin' hot kiss from the woman he loved … instead of dying to protect her."

Mac could feel Clinton's eyes burning through her with the accusation that it was her fault that Jake Nichols was dead.

Suddenly inspired with an idea, Clinton told her, "… Actually, I may have you kiss him yet! After you look into his lifeless eyes, you can put your sweet, warm lips on the cold remains of his mouth. You can feel his unnaturally cool skin and his stiff muscles as the rigor sets into his every body part."

He knelt down and was so close to Mac now that she could feel his breath against her face.

"And then, you'll work on cleaning up all that blood that poured out of him. That blood that pumped through his heart, … as it beat for you. That blood that filled another part of his body whenever he thought about you … out of uniform. And believe me, he was having dreams of your naked flesh quite often."

Mac closed her eyes trying to rid herself of the complex feelings of disgust and even guilt running through her.

"Meanwhile, Commander …" Clinton, satisfied that he had affected Mac, switched his focus to Harm. "You can think about sharing what Munch told you while you watch on the monitors as Sarah cleans up and gets ready to dispose of the body." With a sneer, he added, "If you cooperate, I won't make her dispose of your body."

"Does that mean you won't kill me?" asked Harm.

"Who knows?" he answered with a shrug. "Regardless, when we come back, maybe you'll be more inclined to talk. Or else, I'll have to move on to the next round of things."

Staring at Sarah, Clinton took a contemplative deep breath, and mused, "Just need to decide if I want to go straight to some form of beating … or cutting … or if I want to get to physically know her better, while she's still in … mint condition."

"You bastard!" Harm had had enough. "You won't touch her!"

He was rewarded only with a malevolent laugh from his captor, who then added, "Fortunately for both you and her, … you do have the power to stop this … at any time. You just have to tell me what I want to know. … I'll let you contemplate that while we're downstairs."

Clinton pulled a cell phone from his pocket.

"I'm going to dial my phone number from this phone, and I'm going to leave this one on speaker with you, … so anytime you want to talk …"

Mac looked at Harm and deliberately shook her head.

Clinton noted the exchange and put the phone on the table. "But first, I want to show you this gadget, Harm." He was referring to the device with the straps that he had taken out of his bag. "It's my own design. Kind of like a taser. It shoots electricity through someone. Here, let me demonstrate."

He approached Harm, put the device to his back and sent a zap through him. Harm's body shook with the jolt. In his already severely weakened state, he certainly felt as if his body had surrendered its fight, that the convulsions coursing through him would lead to an imminent death.

"Stop it!" Mac pleaded.

"Don't worry," Clinton assured her, holding the device up to show her it was no longer pressed against Harm. "It was set on low, so he'll be fine. Besides, I have no intention of using it on him again. I'm done demonstrating."

He took a step closer to her. "See, this gadget is for you, Sarah. To make sure you behave when I uncuff you to join me downstairs. I need you to be free to tend to the mess down there, but I can't risk you trying to overpower me or trying to make a run for it. … The straps," he indicated by holding them, "allow me to attach this device to your back … where you can't easily get rid of it. I have a remote that will let me zap you if you try any heroics or don't do what I ask."

He began strapping it onto her. It was a complicated system, designed so that it could not easily be cut off or slipped out of. As he rigged it up, Clinton explained, "Now, Harm, I want you to remember that it was on low power when I zapped you just now, but I've just upped this to medium power. That, combined with the fact that Sarah is smaller than you are, means that any shock she experiences is going to be so much worse than what you just felt."

As he finished up tightening the straps on Mac, Clinton added, "And, Lieutenant Colonel, in case you decide you want to risk it, I just want you to know that if you do anything to make me zap you just once, I will change the setting on this thing to high power for any future transgressions. … Assuming you survive an initial jolt, of course." He leaned in and whispered in her ear, "I'm sure it's safer to just do what I ask."

He reached for the cell phone that he had left on the table, dialed, and placed it back down again, leaving it open and on speaker. A phone in his pocket buzzed and he answered it. "Hello …" his voice echoed through the phone on the table.

He proceeded to plug the phone he held with something, the end of which wire he ran up to his ear. He clipped the phone to his belt so that his hands were now free.

"Ain't all this technology grand?" Those words again reverbed through the other phone on speaker.

Clinton reached into a different pocket for a key and released Mac from her cuffs.

She rubbed her sore wrists and glared at the malevolent man who held the threatening remote that could cause her to be electrocuted.

"After you …" Clinton waved his hand towards the stairs. Following Mac to the staircase, he looked back over his shoulder at Harm. "Any time you want to talk …" he left the sentence hang, the meaning obvious.

When Mac and Clinton were completely out of sight, Harm uncurled two of his fingers, revealing a tiny, plastic item. The left side of his mouth, though covered with blood since being hit, curled up in a small smile. Mac was a genius!

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A/N: My apologies to Harm, for the brutal treatment, but take heart in remembering that this is only fiction. I needed to show the truly horrid nature of Clinton and what he's capable of. It's not easy creating someone so sick and vicious!