Chapter 22: Water

Grace could only shake her head mutely. How was she supposed to know where she was? Somewhere in Cuba, for some reason.

“You’re in Penny Lane,” sneered Boris. He didn’t seem to mind losing his sleep.

Grace stared at the box. She had no idea where Penny Lane was, though obviously this wasn’t a lane.

“First of all there was Strawberry Fields,” he smirked, “because it was Forever. Forever as in: you never leave. Now there’s Penny Lane, which is kinda down a lane, and luxury believe me, by comparison. We used to turn the assholes here, to work for us. But you’re never going to leave either.”

Grace had no idea what he was talking about. But she had a bad feeling about him enjoying himself.

“Boris...” Xenia shut him up. It sounded as though she didn’t like him either. And he didn’t like Xenia. Neither of them expected to be liked. “We’re in a military facility,” she told Grace, “and we have some questions to ask you, and now we know you don’t necessarily tell the truth.”

Xenia looked at the two soldiers. “Dismissed,” she said tersely, and they turned and left. Grace’s world went black as someone had put a bag over her head from behind! Boris! She froze in terror. He pulled a cord to tighten the bottom of the bag round her neck. She reached up to tug at it but it was tied under her chin. It was completely black, she couldn’t see a thing.

Boris pushed her so she had to step forwards. He gripped her shoulders and manoeuvred her until she felt plastic under her feet and then the hard metal bench table thing on her ribs.

“Get up on it,” Xenia came behind her, displacing Boris. It was too high to get up onto easily and she didn’t want to split her legs to get one knee up, in case the gown opened. Xenia’s big hands gripped her under the arms and lifted her up. Grace flailed around, blind, trying to find the edges with her hands and lie down on her front. She understood Boris had been hoping to be the one to manhandle her.

“On your back,” commanded Xenia, “we have to search you and waste time making sure you tell us the truth now.” Xenia’s big, strong hands pushed Grace into the required position, with her arms at her side. She felt a strap go over her arms and chest, then it went tight, with a ratcheting noise. Really tight. She could hardly breathe.

“Breathe with your diaphragm,” said Xenia unsympathetically.

While Grace was trying to do that and not panic, another strap was laid over her forehead and tightened. She was the most helpless she could possibly be.

Hands gripped her ankles. Xenia’s big hands. “The doctor is going to do a cavity search,” said Xenia.

“In ... in front of Boris?” gasped Grace.

“It’s your own fault,” said Xenia unsympathetically. “He’s qualified on prisoner handling. Only the doctor is going to touch you.”

There was the sound of plastic gloves, then the fat woman was next to her and Xenia pulled her legs open. Grace tried not to think about Boris, looking at her bush and bits, and even inside a little...

“Hmmm,” the doctor said as her cool fingers probed Grace’s most private place right in front of a man. “Ah, here we are.”

Grace felt the condom-clad tracker being pulled out. Xenia closed her legs and lowered them. She might have sighed with relief, but she didn’t have enough breath she was strapped so tight. Somebody pulled her robe closed.

“You stupid girl,” said Xenia, “how did you think we weren’t going to find it? We’ve got it anyway and now we have to interrogate you. Boris, give the scanner to the grunts and have them scan the cottage, just in case.”

Grace heard Boris walk out. She could hardly believe her plan was working, though she had a bad feeling about what was about to happen, especially when the table tipped! Suddenly her head was lower than her feet.

There was the sound of water running, from the sink that was in the other corner at the back.

“We’re going to teach you to tell us the truth,” said Xenia, “by giving you a taste of what’ll happen if you lie to us again or don’t answer fully.”

“I won’t lie again,” pleaded Grace as she felt her ankles and thighs being strapped too, “I promise. I’m sorry.”

“Of course you’re sorry, NOW,” snapped Xenia. She was right next to Grace. “We’re going to make sure you stay sorry and don’t do it again.”

Something landed on Grace’s face. All over. Soft, but quite heavy. Cold, through the black bag. Her next shallow breath was harder to draw. A cold sensation dribbled down her neck - water! There was a splashing noise and a cold weight spread over her face again.

Grace gasped, and then was spluttering desperately because she’d sucked in water! She couldn’t breathe! She had to puff out the water but then the next breath was full of water too! She struggled frantically, in a panic, trying to turn her head but the strap was too tight. Her throat was full of water and she couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t breath with her chest, had no air left, and when she breathed in she was breathing in water and she was drowning.

She panicked, unable to move at all just drowning helplessly.

She got a breath that wasn’t all water. She tried to separate the water in her mouth and swallow it, and managed to do that, a little. It didn’t help that she was partly upside-down. Though the heavy water would stay in her throat if she breathed slowly, wouldn’t it? She made herself take a slower breath and it was better, though she was still terrified.

“You get that every time we’re not sure you’re telling the whole truth, but for longer,” Xenia told her. “We know most of it already so don’t chance it.”

“Alright,” gasped Grace. She worked out there was a cloth on her face and Xenia had poured water over it.

“What’s your full name?” asked Xenia.

“Grace Helen Kirkpatrick.”

“How old are you?”

“Fifteen.” Grace stopped herself saying Xenia knew that already.

“What is your weight?”

“Thirty-nine kilos.”

“How did you get the ziptie off?”

“With a fork.” She wished she’d put it back on, loosely.