This is gruesome. You've been warned.

I'm even beginning to worry about me.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Bobby slipped his cell phone into a crack in the wall behind the pile of his clothes. Fumbling painfully with his left hand, he awkwardly shoved his ripped shirt in front of the crack. He managed to grab his raincoat and pull it around him as he slumped to the cold concrete floor. He shook from the cold and the pain, both of which grew as the painkillers continued to lose their grip on his body and his mind. The memory of Alex's voice gave him solace, and he fought against the desire to grab his phone to hear it again. He clung to three things—that he'd told Alex how sorry he was; that he'd told her how grateful he was to her; and that he might see her again.

"I promised," he thought. "I promised I'd try to hang on." He shook and moaned. "Alex…Please…I'm trying…But…It hurts so much…I'm loosing so much blood…I'm so weak…And if they come back before…Oh, God…Alex…Please…Hurry…"

He curled into a ball, desperately trying to get the coat around his body, and wished he'd worn his heavy overcoat the night he'd met…what should he call the beast? How many names did it have? That day seemed to belong to another world. He remembered how beautiful it was, more like early spring than late winter. He remembered seeing the first yellow splashes of daffodils. "I wonder how long it's been…I wonder if I'll ever get to see daffodils again…I wonder if I'll ever get to see Alex again…"

Cramps seized him, and he cried out in pain. His stomach rolled, and Bobby threw up a reddish liquid. "Oh, God," he though. "I'm bleeding eternally…I'm dying…And I'm leaving nothing…Nothing."

He heard a distant door slam, and voices echoed off the concrete block walls. "Oh…They're back…No…Oh…Please…Alex…Please…Come…Or let them kill me…Please…"

The door to his torture chamber slammed open.

"What the hell…" Caldwell said in surprise. He stomped over to Bobby and kicked him hard. Bobby moaned weakly; he couldn't get away. Caldwell seized Bobby's coat and yanked it from him. Bobby feebly tried to hold on to it. Part of the coat stuck to his back and ripped what little remained of his skin as Caldwell pulled it away. Bobby shook more violently with the pain and the cold air that struck his body.

"He got down…out of the cuffs?" Sebastian asked as he entered the room. "I'm impressed…Very impressed…"

"Son of a bitch!" Caldwell growled as he prepared to unleash another kick.

"Mark…Please…Calm yourself…I promised you…We can go on to the next stage…We can continue our work…And send some gifts to Detective Eames…"

Briefly appeased, Caldwell smiled. "I still think an ear or a finger…Or something more intimate, like you said…might be better."

Bobby's stomach lurched again.

"We agreed, Mark," Sebastian said amiably. "All of those are so simple. They don't really allow you to demonstrate your skills."

"Yea…I think I'll go for the spleen. It'll be wonderfully bloody. Great thing for his partner to see…"

Bobby scarcely registered that the two men were planning to carve him up like a turkey. He focused on Alex's name and what might happen to her. "No…Don't let them do anything to hurt her…No…"

"Let's get him ready," Sebastian purred.

Caldwell grabbed Bobby's right arm. Bobby struggled weakly. Sebastian moved forward and stepped on Bobby's battered left hand. Caldwell lifted Bobby's right arm, tied a rubber band around it so he could find a vein, and took a hypodermic from the table.

Sebastian chuckled. "I think he's very close to breaking, Mark…Very close."

Caldwell laughed as he jabbed the needle into Bobby's vein. The drug's warm, comforting wave began to cover the painful haze.

"Please," Bobby whispered.

"It speaks," Sebastian laughed. "And it says please…"

"I…I'll talk to you about Gage…Anything you want to know…If…" Bobby swallowed. He knew he didn't have much time before the combination of the drugs and the pain kept him from thinking clearly. "If…If whatever you take…You won't send to Detective Eames…"

Sebastian bent over and studied Bobby. "My goodness, Mark. I think the thought of troubling Detective Eames scares Bobby more than anything we've done to him or may do to him. Let's get him up on the table."

Bobby couldn't fight as the two men hoisted him up and tied him to the cold steel table. They secured him with ropes and duct tape. It took them some time to remove the cuff from his right hand, which was embedded in the skin. Bobby lost himself in thoughts of Alex.

"I told her…I told her…How grateful I am…How much…How sorry I am." He stopped trying to fight the drugs and fell into their embrace. The pain remained, but it was far away and almost seemed to belong to another person. "Alex…She's coming…I'll try to stay alive…I promised her…But I've done what I had to…I told her…"

Caldwell, an eerie smile on his face, stood over Bobby. A surgical knife gleamed in his hands. "Let's get started…"

"Wait, Mark. Just let me talk to him for a while," Sebastian said. "After all, it's one of the reasons we took him. You can…"encourage"…him if he doesn't want to talk. And then you'll get to practice your skills."

"Alex," Bobby thought. "Please…"

END CHAPTER ELEVEN