"You answer," Russian Babe Ruth says, and tips his head toward the bald thug next to him, "he stops hitting you."
"I told you," Claire croaks, eyes widening as he hefts the bat, "I don't know who he is — "
Her screech shreds what's left of her vocal cords as the taxi window explodes just behind her ear. She ducks, flinching, showered with shards of glass.
"Tell me his name."
Her shoulders shake with silent sobs.
"I don't know," she mouths, lips numb and nerveless.
("The less you know about me, the better.")
Babe Ruth moves closer.
She swallows thickly, tries again.
"He never told me his name!"
The bat crashes onto the hood of the taxi, and Claire jerks, nearly falling from her chair.
Baldy intervenes, putting a hand on her interrogator's shoulder.
"Sergei — "
The Russian consonants and vowels speed past Claire's buzzing ears in an unfamiliar slipstream, but she catches a name: Vladimir.
Sergei pulls away, zeroing in on Claire with eyes like blades of black ice.
Her mind melts to blank terror. Now would be the time to pray, but she can't dredge up a single line from all those long-ago Sunday school lessons.
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branchandroot
(no subject)
Date: 2017-06-03 11:22 pm (UTC)"I told you," Claire croaks, eyes widening as he hefts the bat, "I don't know who he is — "
Her screech shreds what's left of her vocal cords as the taxi window explodes just behind her ear. She ducks, flinching, showered with shards of glass.
"Tell me his name."
Her shoulders shake with silent sobs.
"I don't know," she mouths, lips numb and nerveless.
("The less you know about me, the better.")
Babe Ruth moves closer.
She swallows thickly, tries again.
"He never told me his name!"
The bat crashes onto the hood of the taxi, and Claire jerks, nearly falling from her chair.
Baldy intervenes, putting a hand on her interrogator's shoulder.
"Sergei — "
The Russian consonants and vowels speed past Claire's buzzing ears in an unfamiliar slipstream, but she catches a name: Vladimir.
Sergei pulls away, zeroing in on Claire with eyes like blades of black ice.
Her mind melts to blank terror. Now would be the time to pray, but she can't dredge up a single line from all those long-ago Sunday school lessons.