Cortin looked at her second in command. "What do you think, Mike?" "If he wants it, he's got it," Odeon replied promptly. Turning to the Sandeman, he went on. "As she says, I don't have the mental quirk that lets me like hurting people; I'd be glad to get out of the job." "It seems I do," Keith said. "At least since she wants this one to hurt, I took a great deal of pleasure in causing him as much pain as I could." "It's all yours, then," Odeon said promptly. "With my thanks, by the way--which I'll demonstrate later, if you want." "In the meantime," Cortin said, "I'm hungry. Let's go up to supper." Return to main storyline: 31. Explanation 30b. Torture (Medart's point of view) The scene through the observation room window wasn't as bad as Medart had expected. Or not as bad yet, he cautioned himself; it appeared that Cortin was still conducting her preliminary examination. What she'd called the third-stage room resembled, more than anything else Medart could think of, a twentieth-century operating room, with cabinets of supplies and equipment, monitoring machinery, even a surgical table. But operating rooms didn't have chains hanging from the ceiling, and patients weren't held spreadeagled, naked, between those and eyebolts in the floor. A couple of minutes after they entered, Odeon glanced toward the observation room, raised a hand in acknowledgement, and said something to Cortin. She turned toward them. "Colonel Bradford?" "Yes," Bradford said, "with Ranger Medart and Lt. DarElwyn." "If you'd care to, you're welcome to join me in here." "Thank you, Excellency." Bradford switched off the intercom and turned to the others, looking surprised. "That's a first; she doesn't normally allow anyone in there except Captain Odeon or other Inquisitors. The disadvantage is that you can't avoid her prisoner's screams by shutting off the intercom." "Even so," Medart said thoughtfully, "if an invitation's that rare, we ought to accept." The three entered the larger room, which smelled of antiseptic--rather to Medart's bemusement. Why should Cortin care about infection in people she was torturing to death? He kept that question to himself, though. "The interview went all right?" Cortin asked. "Quite well," Bradford replied. "I'll get the operation moving as soon as I get back to my office." "Good--thanks, both of you." Cortin turned back to her prisoner, still addressing the observers. "This one's nothing special, except in the number of his crimes and the fact that he wanted witnesses until he got to the last victim in each series. It was the rapes that were his particular thrill; the murders were enjoyable, but more of a side effect. So I'll be concentrating on the punishment for rape."