Countdown (Eve Duncan Book 6) by Johansen Iris

Author:Johansen, Iris [Johansen, Iris]
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2005-05-09T16:00:00+00:00

W ere you followed?” Reilly asked Chad Norton when he delivered the package to him.

“No. I was careful, but there wasn’t anyone following and I checked the box out for tracking devices. It’s safe.” Norton was looking at him hopefully, waiting for praise.

Should he give it to him? Praise or condemnation. It was always a delicate balance with the subjects he kept close to him for daily labor. You would have thought it would be easier, but propinquity had a habit of dulling the command effect. Perhaps a mix in this case. “You took too long. You kept me waiting.”

Norton stiffened and Reilly could see the panic begin. “I tried to be quick. I was afraid to speed. You told me to be sure and not attract attention.”

“I didn’t tell you to take half the day.” It was enough, the sting of the whip; now rub in a soothing unguent. He smiled at Norton. “But I’m sure you were only being careful because you wanted to keep me secure. On the whole you did well.”

He could see the relief in Norton’s expression. “I tried. I always try.” He paused. “Better than Gavin?”

Reilly’s brows lifted. “Kim’s been talking.”

Norton shook his head. “She only said that I’d never be as good as— She said Jock Gavin was special to you.”

“Indeed he was. But you’re special also. So I’ll let you pick up the mail next week.” Reilly waved his hand to dismiss Norton as he turned to the box. “And tell Kim I said to increase your ration tonight.”

“Thank you.”

Reilly smiled at the eagerness in the young man’s voice as he heard the door close behind Norton. The extra cocaine ration always brought the pleasure and excitement intended, and he’d never found a suitable substitute. He’d tried several times to use posthypnotic suggestion in combination with various forms of deprivation to make the subjects believe they were being given hard drugs. In some cases the ploy had worked, but the effects were too short-lived to be satisfactory. Pity. It would have been the ultimate power trip to be able to give intense pleasure as well as pain. Like being God.

But he mustn’t be too disappointed. It was an exhilarating experience to control other human beings as if they were slaves and he the master. It was clear Grozak had no concept of the complicated and difficult methods he used to bring about the desired results. He thought the subjects were weak of mind and will, and in the beginning Reilly had experimented with just that type of personality. But he’d grown bored and exasperated very soon and moved on to test himself with more difficult subjects. That was the reason he’d taken Norton when Jock Gavin had slipped away from him. He’d wanted to prove that he could overcome all resistance, even if Gavin had been a failure.

Not really a failure, he reminded himself. The boy might have broken down, but his basic conditioning had stayed in place. If it hadn’t, he’d have had Homeland Security and CIA crawling all over Montana and Idaho looking for him.

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