This might be the last night he would spend on Lake Minnetonka and he wanted to enjoy it. The next hour or so would determine his fate. If all went according to plan, he could be on another boat looking over a larger body of water with a warm, salty breeze and perhaps a Cuban cigar in his hand. A boat in the summer would make the heat of the islands bearable and the winters would be like heaven. He had dreams of captaining his own boat, not one he had leased for the summer. Sailing his own boat from island to island, meeting new people, inviting women to travel with him from time to time.
The Governor looked at his watch again to check the date. Where the three should have been, the small window had a two in it. July 2nd. The team in the tunnel had been making progress and was in the position according to the timeline he had planned. Vadim had most of the information he needed to complete his part of the plan. There was one final piece of information they needed and James was the key. The Governor flicked his cigar into the night and watched the red glow tumble through the dark until it hit the water and went out with a hiss. He had business to do and it was time to get to it.
At the bottom of the stairs, the Governor leaned against the wall with a drink in his hand.
Across the cabin, James and Sandy lay on the bed; James was on top telling Sandy how great it was, how beautiful she was, how lucky he was.
Sandy rolled James onto his back and straddled him. “It’s my turn now.” Sandy bent over and kissed him on the lips. “I know what we should try,” she said. She reached over James’ shoulder and pulled up a rope with a loop on the end. She slipped the loop over his right wrist and pulled it tight. “I think you’re going to like this.”
The Governor swirled his drink and the ice cubes clanked against the sides of the glass. James looked at the Governor with a quizzical look on his face. Sandy put a finger on James’ lips. “Shh, let’s let him watch, OK?”
The Governor winked at James and held his drink up in a toast. James smiled and leaned back and rested his head on the pillow on the bed. Sandy took his left arm and tied it in place over his head. Then she moved down to the foot of his bed and repeated the process, tying each of James’ ankles to a corner of the bed. He was naked, spread-eagle on the bed now. Sandy lightly dragged a fingernail up the inside of James’ leg from his ankle to his crotch. James squirmed, his limbs pulling on the ropes, and groaned.
Sandy left the side of the bed, walked over to the Governor, and kissed him on the lips. “He’s all yours,” she said.
The Governor held his free hand against Sandy’s cheek and stared into her eyes. “Thanks, I made you a drink, your favorite.” He handed her the drink. “Why don’t you go up on deck and relax.”
Sandy took the drink, kissed him fully on the mouth, and went upstairs, closing the door behind her.
The Governor walked over to the side of the bed and pulled a knife from his pocket. He unfolded the six-inch silver blade from the handle until it snapped into place.
James pulled on his arms and kicked his legs. He was securely tied to the corners of the bed. “What are you guys doing? Teasing me? Cut me loose.”
“I don’t think so, James. The party is just beginning,” the Governor said.
“Hey, come on.” James face started to grow red as he pulled harder with his arms and then with his legs against the bonds, tightening the loops, making them dig further into his skin. “This was fun, but I’m not into guys. Cut me the fuck loose!”
The Governor calmly responded. “James, I’m going to get right to the point.” On James’ protruding, curly black hair-covered belly, the Governor stood the knife, the point of it supporting the knife about three inches above the navel while the handle rested between his fingers. The weight of the knife was enough to make a dimple in the white skin, but not enough to break it. “I don’t want to hurt you, but you have some information I need.”
James sucked in his gut and tightened his stomach muscles reflexively to avoid the pain. His eyes locked onto the knife. “What are you doing? That hurts. Quit screwing around.”
The Governor remained calm, but spoke with authority. “James, look at me.” He stared at James, waiting.
James was breathing in short breaths, afraid to take his eyes off the knife handle. He pressed his back into the bed trying to avoid the sharp point he couldn’t see, but could feel, on his stomach.
“James, look at me.”
James turned his eyes up to look at the Governor, but he didn’t turn his head.
“Relax. You’ll be OK. I just want you to know that I’m serious. That I really want you to think about what you’re going to tell me.”
“What do you want to know?” James’ eyes flicked to the knife and back to the Governor. “I didn’t do anything with her that she didn’t want. Why are you doing this?”
The Governor twisted the knife on James’ belly. “This isn’t about her. I want you to relax and think about what I am going to ask you. I want you to know that I’m serious. But, if you give the right answers, I’ll let you go. If you don’t…” the Governor slid the sharp blade against the skin, shaving a patch of skin bare, “I’ll hurt you.” The Governor lifted the knife off James’ stomach and held it in his hand where James could see it, black, curly hairs hanging from the silver blade. He waited for James’ breathing to calm down a little and watched as James’ brain sorted through the panic and the facts, knowing he would begin to figure some of it out.
The Governor planned to start simple, like a lie detector test. Let James give out information that was private, but he was willing to give up; information like his birthday, his employee ID, maybe his ATM PIN. He was going to test him, show him the process, and demonstrate how this game was going to work. After a couple of penalties for information that was too slow in coming or incorrect, James would be more likely to give up the rest.
James was weak. The Governor held a pillow over his face to smother some of this screams. He had made an initial show of strength, vowing he would never give up the information the Governor wanted, but after a couple of slight nicks and cuts on the stomach and a penetration into the shoulder joint with the blade of the knife, James was willing to tell the Governor anything he wanted to know.
The Governor listened to the recording he’d made during the interrogation to make sure he had all of the information on tape. “Did we forget any important piece of information James?” James was sucking in breaths against the pain in his shoulder. He shook his head weakly from side to side. The Governor put the backside of the blade against James’ neck. “If I find out this information does not get me what I want, you will die. Let me ask you again. Did we forget any important piece of information?”
“No,” James said quietly. “You can get what you want with that.”
“OK, I believe you.” The Governor walked across the room, opened a drawer, and took out a roll of duct tape. “I want to go up on deck, but I’m sure you understand that I need you to keep quiet. I’m going to put a strip of tape over your mouth to make sure you don’t make too much noise.” He pulled a strip from the end and let the roll dangle at the end of the strip stuck to his finger. He slashed through the tape easily with the knife and let the roll fall to the floor. The remaining twelve-inch strip of silver tape hung from his finger. The Governor put the handle of the knife in his mouth and held it between his teeth. He grabbed the free end of the tape to keep it from sticking to itself. With his right hand, he pressed the end of the tape to the counter top and pulled the strip taut with his left. The twelve-inch strip became two strips as he sliced through the tape.
The Governor walked over to the side of the bed. “Put your lips together James.” James complied and the Governor placed the strip over James lips. “Can you breathe through your nose?”