C5 •Torture•

Quinn:

After she left, I retreated to the far end of the cell. There was nothing more to do so, I decided to continue with the book I'd been reading. I picked up the book from where I'd dropped it but a piece of a white object caught my attention.

It was the woman's phone. She'd left it behind after folding the cloth. Led by curiosity, I moved towards it and took it before retreating to the end of the cell. I stared at the iPhone for a while, wondering what I'd find if I should switch it on. Snooping around people's properties didn't interest me but the woman herself was interesting. And I was convinced I might find a thing or two about her relationship with my captor.

With that conviction in mind, I switched it on. Luckily for me, it wasn't locked with a password. The first thing I saw was the google page with multiple pictures of Gonzalez. At the sight of mere pictures of the man, I snorted in resentment. Going back to the homepage, I clicked on her call list, scrolling through the names. Her call list contained only a few contacts that were females and each of the names had the endearment, *Sister*, attached to it.

Closing her call list, I moved on to check her text messages. The folder was empty. From there, I moved on to her photos. The only pictures on the phone were mostly screenshots of the scriptures till I came across a picture of two women. They looked the same as the owner of the phone except for their hair. The woman I'd come to know, I hadn't seen her hair as a result of the headgear that was part of her nun uniform. But the younger woman in the picture had wavy blonde hair. The other who was older had the same wavy hair but it was dirty blonde.

The younger one must be the nun. I concluded.

In the photo, she looked nothing like a nun. The woman was the true definition of beauty with shiny wavy hair that cascaded over her shoulders. She was cladded in a tank top with a low neck, hinting at her cleavage. Her smile was bright, sampling her dimples.

I was so carried away by her beauty that I didn't notice the loud thudding of footsteps heading my way till they got so close. In a rush of not wanting to be seen with a gadget, I quickly shoved the phone down the pocket of my slacks.

Just then, the owner of the footsteps emerged from the other corner of the basement that must lead to the second entrance. It was the priest, father Elliott, as he'd introduced himself the first time I encountered him in the cell.

He was standing before me, dressed in his black cassock as always, with the tiny frames that rested atop the ridge of his nose. He had a sheepish smile plastered on his face but his eyes said a different thing. His dark pupils were glinting with what I'd come to know as deviousness.

To everyone that saw him outside this basement, he was a Saint, having been ordained a priest of the creator. But I was the only one aware of his deceitful acts.

The slow torturous death Gonzalez had promised me came in the form of father Elliott. I was yet to die but I was getting weak by the day and I was also losing my grace. If he continued his torture for much longer, Gonzalez would achieve his aim. The more reason I needed an escape plan as fast as possible.

"You're here for your little ritual". I spoke, staring him in the eyes.

His smile broadened.

"It's always a pleasure to see you powerless. And it gets better when I feel more powerful". He chuckled darkly.

"It's just a matter of time Elliot. Just a matter of time". I enunciated the words, making sure he could hear my resentment.

This only made him laugh louder.

"Your bravery is commendable. Even the devil was defeated when God chased him from heaven".

"And he came down to earth in forms of people like you who thrive on deceit". I completed it.

"Well, I can always be forgiven. The Lord knows there is no human above sin but you…". He shook his head in pity. "You have no place in the heavens nor earth. You are an abomination. Your kind was meant to be destroyed for the greater good of the earth".

The man was a human demon. All that was missing was to be possessed by an actual demon. He thrived on sin and glorified it as The Greater Good. If I had my way, I'd wipe him from the surface of the earth.

Truly, I was an abomination but he was a greater abomination than me.

"As much as I enjoy chatting with you, I have other important businesses to deal with. But we can always continue our conversation next time". With that, he moved closer to the bars separating us and shot me in the chest with the gun he'd been holding all along.

The bullet that had been dipped in Holy water pierced my skin, penetrating my chest. Immediately, my body went limp as a result of the paralysis of the holy water. I lost total control, the familiar numbness descending upon me. Father Elliot cackled loudly at his success like he always does.

Thereafter, he unlocked the cell gate and walked towards me. Crouching to the ground, he pulled out an empty blood bag connected to a needle from his pants pocket. Tying my arm with a rope he also pulled from his pocket, he inserted the needle into one of my veins and watched with satisfaction as the blood drained from my body into the blood bag.

He stood above me, watching in silence while the blood drained from my body into the bag. At that point, I was barely conscious. I struggled to hold on to the little strength in me but the holy water was spreading through my body rapidly. Losing the ability to stay conscious, I fell into consciousness, darkness descending upon me.