Caught

4.

I was sitting opposite a short, middle-aged man with an almost bald head, wearing a cheap grey suit. I was sure this was the same man who had worked in the prison during the Imperial era. I couldn't understand how the Council could have left him in that position.

On the other hand, a lot of people here in Kashima just changed their coats when the Emperor was overthrown and a Republic was declared.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea," the director countered cautiously.

I expected him to be more upset when he found out what I had done. But apparently he was aware of his uncertain position and didn't want to oppose a hero of the Resistance.

"I have to gain his trust," I explained. "And he promised not to try anything."

The look the man gave me made it clear what he was thinking. The idea that Shira would keep his word seemed absurd to him. In his eyes I was just a naive fool who had fallen for the prisoner's trick.

"Do you really think you'll get any information out of him?"

"My predecessor showed that torture is useless. That's why I have to try a different approach."

"Don't let that approach kill you, Commander."

His small grey eyes studied me with displeasure. Still, I was confident he would agree.

"So far, I'm the only one Shira has been willing to talk to," I said, pointing out that, unlike me, the Marakin hadn't been able to get more than three words out of the prisoner. "I feel like I'm getting somewhere."

"Kay thought he was getting somewhere, too, before that bastard stabbed him in the neck," the man sneered hatefully.

The director and Kay Marakin were friends. It was understandable that he held a grudge against Shira. Surely he was convinced that someone like him deserved no consideration.

Perhaps he was right.

The fact that the prisoner was willing to talk to me meant nothing until I could get him to cooperate and give us information. And I knew how difficult that would be.

I studied prisoner's file and still knew next to nothing about him. Where he came from, who his parents were, even Shira's real name. The Resistance couldn't find out any of that. There was no mention of him in the central database. If there had ever been any information, it had long since been erased. And I had nothing to go on.

I had no idea how to deal with him, what would work on him. All I knew was that torture and threats had gotten Marakin nowhere.

As I suspected, the director of the prison approved all my decisions regarding the prisoner. He didn't like it, but he agreed. We also decided that my men would take over the prisoner's supervision.

The fact that he and his guards would no longer have to get close to the black-haired assassin was the only thing he seemed to like about our conversation.

~~~

I met Maya in the corridor. She was a young, pretty woman with short black hair and a stern expression that softened into a smile when she spotted me. She had a small, petite figure and a somewhat fragile appearance, but I would advise anyone not to underestimate her.

Maya had been trained in combat, and as well as treating injuries, she could inflict them. We met at the beginning of the war and she saved my life several times.

"What are you doing here?" I smiled at her.

"I brought you the report," she waved the documents in a large envelope in front of me.

"You could have sent it. Or are you running errands now, too?"

Maya had served in my unit, but now, at the end of the war, she spent most of her time in hospital. I had always found her very capable, and I was a little sorry that the Resistance didn't appreciate her contributions enough.

"I also came here for the prisoner," she admitted a little reluctantly, adding quickly. "I wanted to bandage his wounds and check on him."

"Why do you care about him?" I teased her. "Did he charm you so much?

Maya grinned and waved the papers in her hand as if she was going to hit me with them, but she didn't say anything. It was clear that I wasn't too far off.

"Maybe you should look at the head guard instead," I suggested, remembering the man with the bloody face who had been carried out of Shira's cell.

"What about him?"

"Shira broke his nose today."

Maya looked at me in surprise, but then smiled. "So you had his handcuffs taken off as a reward?"

"I see news travels fast around here."

"I overheard several guards talking about it. They say Shira is a crazy psycho and you're even crazier if you trust him."

I was expecting something like this. My decision must have caused an uproar.

"You did the right thing," she patted me on the shoulder, encouraging me. "Just don't trust him so much."

"I'm not the naive fool everyone here takes me for," I protested.

Yes, I'm trying to get along with the prisoner. But that doesn't mean I'm not suspicious of him and trust his every word.

"Be careful," Maya continued in a more serious voice. "Killing isn't the only thing he's good at. He's smart, he'll try to manipulate you."

"How did you figure that out?" I wondered at her knowledge of Shira's character.

"I spent almost an hour with him yesterday," she said, as if that explained something.

"Did he talk to you?"

"He talked, flirted, seduced..." Maya replied, laughing when she saw my surprised expression.

"Are you serious?"

I hadn't expected this.

Then again, I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that he was flirting with Maya, since she was the first woman he'd seen after two months in prison.

Maya wasn't a high-class beauty like Ashra, but she certainly had her charms. Or so I'd always thought.

"I'm not a naive fifteen-year-old to be fooled by his sweet talk. But he's really cute and he can get into your head," said the woman I'd seen amputating the leg of one of our soldiers on the battlefield under full fire.

"He may charm you with his looks, but I'm sure he won't try to seduce me," I said and then remembering his little peck on the cheek this morning.

The thought of all the things Shira could be up to made me really nervous.