Cage (5) - Click

The dead silence had been interrupted only by the occasional held breath of the whole audience at the same time, or the random people deciding they'd seen enough and leaving. Broken also by her screams, that every few minutes pierced the silence, tearing it to shreds -- a reflection of her soul, of mine too.

She was in quite bad shape. Nothing that actually required a stay at the hospital --no broken bones, no real blood loss--, but a visit wouldn't have been a bad idea. But her mind --the sharp mind of a fighter, used to deal with adrenaline and pain--, her mind was shattered to pieces. She'd had the strength of never asking me to stop, but I knew well that the only reason for it was she knew well I wouldn't -- I couldn't.

My earpiece beeped yet again. "Finish it, Sandy."

I got her down -- back on her feet. I had no clue on how to remove fishing hooks without causing major damage, so I let them there, dangling from her skin. She was obviously pale and lightheaded, so I made her sit on the floor. I wasn't going to risk her fainting and pulling from the hooks -- or falling on top of them.

"Okay, time to end this." I pulled out the revolver.

"Oh, god, no, please..."

"Say, do you believe in fate? Should I leave it all to chance?" I spun the cylinder carelessly. I knew I could trust Andrei on this. "This is your only way out. So, say, wanna play Russian roulette?"

She froze, tears lazily trailing down her cheeks in complete silence. Her eyes begging for a chance.

I smiled at her. "Okay, I'll go first." Without a second thought, I placed the barrel against my temple, took a deep breath, and pulled the trigger.

Click.

"See? Not that hard, is it?" I handed her the revolver. "Now it's your turn."

She grabbed onto it for her dear life and pointed it at me, her hands shaking badly. "You've made a mistake."

"One in five. Give it a try. Chances are it's not there, anyway. And then I get two shots at you. So, go ahead."

She froze, her eyes staring but not really seeing. Realizing cheating wasn't such a good idea. She dragged her hand --the revolver-- to her temple, and again stared at me, pleading for a chance.

I smiled at her. "This is your best chance to get out, my dear."

Click.

She lowered the gun with a sigh of relief. Poor thing.

I grabbed it again without hesitation. "Well, one in four... let's hope for the best, huh?"

Click.

I handed it to her yet again. She didn't reach for it as angrily. She just took it carelessly, and again pointed it at me. Her eyes full of determination this time. Poor fool.

I smiled at her again. "I won't stop you, but then the last two are for you, so you better pray it's there."

She seemed to realize something. "You know where it is."

"Do I?" I couldn't hide a smirk.

She stared at me, thinking. Chances. Did I know what I was doing? Had I planned this? I saw her eyes squint a split second before she pulled the trigger.

Click.

I sighed in relief too. Even when you know your chances... there's always the chance of something going wrong, isn't it?

I grabbed it before she could try again, kneeling just before her. "Sorry, gal. I told you."

She started sobbing unintelligibly as I placed the barrel against her temple. "Oh, god, please..."

Click.

I grabbed her chin and made her look into my eyes. I couldn't help smiling. "See you in hell."

...

Click.

She looked at me in pure confusion, her eyes a window to her soul. Wasn't she supposed to be dead? ... Was she dead somehow? "...What..."

I grinned at her. "You don't get to die and forget what you've just gone through -- no, you'll have to live with it." I got up and called the guys to open the cage.