She sat in the corner of her cell, eyes shut. The reek of disease and urine penetrated her thoughts and made it hard to think. Her ankle ached where she had landed on it; it might be twisted, she wasn't sure. It was painful to walk on, but not impossible, and that's all that mattered. Her hair hang lank and dark around her like a tattered mantle, covering her otherwise bare breasts. They'd thought to give her a loincloth, but it was pretty much useless.

She wished there was a window. Any break to the outside. She figured it was twilight, but she wasn't really sure. It had been a while since she'd seen anything remotely similar to sunlight.

The door opposite her dank cell rattled with the motion of someone shoving a key in the lock. A soft click sounded as the tumblers fell into place, and the door was nudged open, swinging easily on oiled hinges.

"It's been a while, Lee," the sillouette muttered audibly, hand still on the open door. The rest of the cells in this block were empty; Lee couldn't figure out why he was whispering.

Lee grunted animal-fashion, cramming herself into the corner, bare shoulders scraping across the bare stone. The figure drifted across the wooden floor, soft leather shoes barely making a whisper. Torchlight flickered across his face, but Lee couldn't get a good look at him.

But she knew him. She knew she knew him. It was just one of those things.

One hand slid around the bars of her cell, thick fingers on thick metal.

"I'm here to break you, Lee," he murmured softly, absurdly like a lover about to profess his affection.

"Since they haven't yet, I'm here to finish you off."

Lee dug her long nails into her palms and said nothing, eyes squinting against the backlit figure.

"They should have done it long ago."

Before&After