Persecution: God's Other Children. Book 2

by Rob Mclean

  Today, the American girl was on kitchen duty and was preparing vegetables. There, she saw it; they passed a carrot to her instead of her reaching for it herself. They did now treat her differently, she was right. The Captain slapped the railing, proud of her observation. The guards nearby pretended to ignore her, but she knew they must think this behaviour unusual.

  “She is young,” the Captain’s special companion, Ling, whispered in her ear. Ling was as feminine as one could be in a re-education centre. She was the sensual Ying to the Captain’s plain and masculine Yang.

  Her Hong Kong English was flawless and kept their conversation private from the ears of the guards, but the thinly veiled jealousy could be heard in any language.

  Although still a prisoner, Ling’s quality of life had improved considerably since becoming the Captain’s consort. She wore the same orange jumpsuit as the rest of the prisoners, it would not do to advertise that they had a special relationship, but her clothes were clean, ironed and fitted her body, which unlike the other inmates, the Captain ensured was healthy and well fed. She knew, from the ways Ling abased herself in deference, that she did not want to go back to being an anonymous, regular prisoner and guarded her position diligently.

  “She is the American banana girl,” the Captain waved dismissively, but she knew that her envy would not be so easily placated. She understood Ling’s concern, but what she couldn’t know was that she wasn’t about to replace her with this defiant pinyin. She had spent a lot of time educating this consort as to her particular requirements and the idea of retraining a new partner didn’t hold the same appeal that it once had.

  “The one that was in isolation?” A shade of reverence was in her voice. “She has quite a reputation.”

  The Captain spun to face her. “What have you heard?”

  A thin smile crept across Ling’s face. “You have taken a special interest in her, haven’t you? I can see it. It won’t be long before everyone else does.” She didn’t wait for the answer. “Have you had her tested?”

  “She’s had the regular screening blood tests when she first came here…”

  “And?”

  “She’s clean.” The Captain didn’t tell her that she had authorised swabs to be taken while the girl was in isolation. She had been sedated first and was in such a weakened and delirious state that she wouldn’t have known of the intrusion. She had been surprised but gladdened that those had turned out negative as well.

  “But she’s a filthy American whore.” Ling spat out the words.

  “You don’t believe all the propaganda do you?” The Captain allowed herself a small grin. “She is a Christian, so it’s not all surprising that she has kept herself…” she ran her eyes over Ling’s body, “…pure.” She saw Ling flinch at the word, knowing how their long association had made her the very opposite.

  Ling’s painted nails dug into her own arms as she hugged herself. “And what do you have planned for her? Is she to share our bed?” Her voice quavered with indignation and anger and she held herself tightly.

  Captain Lau smiled broadly. Surely she must know that she had no choice in the matter. If that was what she desired, then that would be what happened.

  Ling’s eyes widened in horror and brimmed with tears as she took the Captain’s smile to be the answer she didn’t want to hear. Her misunderstanding caused the smile to widen even more.

  Ling lurched as she stifled her moan. She leant heavily on the railings and sunk to her knees. A hot tear fell on the back of her hand clutching the railings as she sobbed.

  The Captain glanced about to see who was watching. The guards had discreetly turned and had their backs to the conversation. The Captain shook her head and lifted Ling to her feet with one arm.

  “No,” she leaned in close and put her mouth to her ear. “No-one can replace you.” Her other arm pulled her close. “We have a special relationship.”

  “You bitch,” Ling hissed quietly in the Captain’s ear. “How can you shame me like this?”

  The Captain gave her consort a wicked grin. This was the least of the shames this woman had suffered in her sordid life. And she would suffer many more before her tenure as favourite consort was over.

  “No shame was intended,” she said in English, before changing to Mandarin, with a louder, formal voice, signalling to all within hearing that their private conversation was over. “You simply misunderstood.”

  The guards took their cue and resumed their normal vigilant positions. Ling wiped her eyes dry and tried to regain her composure.

  “What is it you want with her then?” Ling tried to put some semblance of dignity into her voice.

  “She is a curiosity,” The Captain said, pushing her stubby fingers together and cracking her knuckles.

  “Oh?” Ling lifted her chin.

  “From a philosophical point of view,” she added lest Ling burst into a teary tirade again. It was at times like this that the thought of replacing her became more attractive. She sighed, she didn’t feel inclined to explain her actions to her consort, but she needed to clarify the reasoning in her own mind and Ling had always been an attentive listener.

  “The way she and all her kind,” the Captain spread her gaze across the crowds of prisoners, “tenaciously cling to their blind faith is illogical and to maintain such delusion in the face of considerable pain has always intrigued me.”

  “It would be hard for a non-believer to understand,” Ling stated with a surety, the Captain knew, that came from the woman’s own lapsed faith.

  “You renounced your own God very quickly once you decided that your prospects were better with me.” The Captain gave her a conceited smirk as she recalled how they had come to their current arrangement.

  “Not every prisoner is as fortunate as I was to get such an enviable offer.”

  “Yes, it is not a bargain I can accept from everyone,” she said, subtly reminding Ling that she had pleaded to be her concubine. No doubt she had a different recollection of the exchange, but rather than argue the point with her now, in front of the guards, Ling had the good sense to quietly and respectfully lower her gaze.

  “I am always trying to find better, quicker, more efficient ways to encourage our comrades to reject their superstitious ways,” the Captain continued. “I could have kept her in isolation,” she nodded towards the American girl, “but it would have killed her.”

  Ling nodded in agreement. “And you would have learned nothing.”

  “For some of the prisoners, the death of an inmate can be an encouragement for them to renounce their faith, but for the majority, it is ultimately counter-productive.”

  “A noble martyr’s death only serves to reinforce one’s faith.” Ling concurred, staring at the American girl.

  “Their deaths are always regrettable, but it is often that the coercion needed to overcome their stubborn beliefs is more than their bodies can endure.”

  “You could always feed them more.” Ling shot the Captain a quick glance to see if she took offence at her impudent suggestion before lowering her eyes again.

  “A cruel jest,” the Captain smiled. “That would only prolong their stubborn righteous suffering. No, the key is to replace the misplaced devotion to their Gods with a more rewarding love of their country.”

  “A task made even more difficult when the subject is not a Chinese citizen, but an American banana girl.” The Captain could tell Ling was relishing this problem. “Even if you do manage to banish her faith without breaking her scrawny body, you leave her with nothing. With nothing to live for, she too may take her own life.”

  Suicide amongst the prisoners was rarely spoken about, but it was almost as common as death from torture. They knew that it was only because it was seen as a cowardly way out and frowned upon in all religions that it was not more common. It was indelicate of Ling to have mentioned it.

  “Not a problem I would have thought that would trouble you,” the Captain said although it sounded peevish.

  �
�But I have you,” Ling said with a forced smile and steely eyes.

  “A comfort that the American girl doesn’t have.” The Captain silently added ‘yet’

  “So how do you plan to redeem her?”

  “I have a plan and I need to gain her trust, but first I need to know more about her.”

  “You have her files. What more could you need?” her eyes narrowed with well founded suspicion. “What do you want from me?”

  “Such cynicism is unbecoming and does nothing to improve your standing. However, I do feel that you are better placed to learn about her.” Captain Lau nodded in the direction of the American girl, “I want you to become her new best friend.”

  Chapter 10

  As soon as they all strapped into John’s car and the wheels were crunching over the grit of the car-park, Angela spun around from the front seat to confront her mother.

  “What was all that about back there?” she demanded, nodding vigorously towards the church. “Did you know that was going happen?”

  “Whatever do you mean?” Clarice’s shocked indignation would have sounded genuine to anyone who didn’t know her as well as Angela did. “You don’t think I had anything to do with that little performance, do you?”

  “That’s exactly what I’m asking.” Angela glared at her mother from the front seat. Her anger didn’t let her stare waver.

  “Now young lady,” her father cautioned.

  “Dad, you were there. You saw her,” Angela flung her arm towards the church. “You saw how horrible she was.”

  “We can talk about this later dear,’ her mother said. Her voice was gentle, but the warning in her tone was unmistakable.

  “But…”

  “Later.’ Her mother frowned in John’s direction. He was busy pulling out into traffic, but Angela doubted he was missing anything. With a huff, she turned to the front and crossed her arms.

  Soon after they were on the road, John’s hand slid across the seat. He patted her reassuringly on her leg. She smiled at him, but he didn’t take his eyes off the road. With his sunglasses on and keeping his focus straight ahead, she couldn’t read him, couldn’t tell what he though of Carolyn’s nastiness.

  Angela squeezed his hand and held it between both of hers, but still got no response from him. At the next left turn, he withdrew his hand, needing it to turn the wheel and didn’t return it after.

  “You don’t think they’re serious about going to court do you?” Clarice asked.

  John took his eyes off the road to look back at her in his mirror. There had been something said about lawyers and a court case, so now there was that as well. Angela hoped John wasn’t going to get into trouble for looking after her that night. That wouldn’t be right. She was sure that the whole thing would be forgotten if she was to let Zeke back into her life, but that wasn’t ever going to happen. Not after today.

  “No,” Geoff said. “It would only ever be his word against ours. Besides, he was trespassing in our house.”

  John’s eyes went back to the road when he realised they weren’t talking about him.

  “You sure, dear?”

  “Bah, I wouldn’t worry about it.” Geoffrey waved away her question.

  “You should know, dear.” Clarice gave him a light pat on his knee.

  Nothing more was said after that and Angela was left to her own thoughts. She pushed the image of Zeke and his parents out of her mind and tried to think about nicer things, but problems kept looming up to confront her. Working with Zeke’s sister Chelsea on Monday was chief amongst them, but also what Pastor Greg and everyone at her Church now thought about her. Zeke and his parents were probably still there telling everyone those lies.

  Except they weren’t exactly lies, and maybe that was why it hurt her so much now. It was true that she had been turning up at Zeke’s house every weekend ever since she got her driver’s licence and she had to admit to herself that it was also true that she did used to look forward to it. Her pulse quickened now just thinking about the past she and Zeke had shared. It had become a highlight of her week. Not just the sex part; that had been awkward at first, but had developed into a routine, a habit, a special form of greeting between her and Zeke. It wasn’t long after that she caught herself replaying their encounters in her mind during the week. Soon she found herself craving his intimacy and so it wasn’t hard to see how his parents would have seen her arriving on their doorstep with all the bright energy and animal enthusiasm of a stray cat on heat.

  She felt the flush in her cheeks burning. It was easy to regret all that now, but it wouldn’t change anything. Despite her silent vow to never let herself down again, she wondered that without the sex, would she have stayed with Zeke? Would he have wanted her, if she were not always giving him what he wanted? Without the sex, did she really know him? Had their whole relationship been based on just that one superficial thing? Had it gotten in the way of, or completely blocked a deeper and more meaningful bond, one that would last when the thrill and frission had faded?

  She vowed to not let that happen with John. She was so glad that they had their vow, despite how flimsy some people thought it might be. She was determined to get to know him properly before any of that sort of thing happened. She didn’t want to commit her body to anyone again, only to find later that their minds and souls were incompatible. She smiled at John, even though he was busy driving; thankful that he was prepared to wait to get to know her first and to give her the time and space to sort herself out. He was truly a blessing from God at a time like this, even if he wasn’t a Christian. Maybe her mother was right about God using people who weren’t of the faith for His purposes.

  Before she had time to think more about it, they were pulling up in front of her home. John was out of the car and around to help her father out of the car before she had her seat-belt off. Was he avoiding her? She opened her door and started to get out, but decided instead to sit and wait.

  She watched her parents and John make their way up the driveway. Her mother was the first to notice that she wasn’t there; probably wanted to ask her about their lunch plans. She turned from side to side, before turning around to find her daughter still in the car. She gave Angela a querying frown, before speaking to John. Angela gave him a little wave when he saw her still in his car. A quick grin crossed his face before he shrugged a reply to her mother.

  A little while later he came jogging back out to the car. “What’s up princess?” he asked, opening her door with exaggerated pomp. “Getting to like all this chivalry stuff?’

  She gave him a smile. It was true, she did like the way he treated her, but would it last? Would he stop being so nice if they were sharing a bed?

  The thought was pleasantly distracting, but she knew that it would never happen if they didn’t sort out a few things first. “We need to talk,” she said, suddenly worried at how the conversation might go.

  “Yes, we do.” His expression didn’t show any trace of nervousness or irritation that she had come to expect when talking like this with Zeke. Instead, he sat himself down on the lawn, one foot in the gutter, the other tucked under his knee. He made himself comfortable, sprawling backwards, resting on an elbow and started to pick at the blades of grass.

  “About today…” she began with a sigh.

  “About Zeke,” he lifted his gaze from the grass between his fingers. His eyes caught hers and demanded nothing short of the full truth. Was there jealousy simmering beneath the casual façade?

  “I’m sorry about all that happened today. I…” The words faltered in her throat. She didn’t want to have to make this choice so soon. “I hope you don’t get sued because of me.”

  “Don’t worry about it.” He tossed the blades of grass away. She couldn’t tell if he was annoyed with her for trying to change the subject or at the possibility of a court case.

  “They sounded like they meant it.”

  “Yeah, well my boss has talked to me about it.” He pressed his lips together in a tight frown.
“Believe me, she’s got it covered.”

  “Oh?” Angela could see from the way his expression clouded over that there was more to that story. She thought she’d like to follow it up later – if there was a later.

  “Yeah, but we were talking about you.” He sat up and took her hands in his, drawing her closer to meet his steely gaze. “And how you’re using me to make him jealous.”

  Angela’s eyes widened. To hear it put so bluntly made her sound so heartless, so calculating. She dropped her gaze. “No, it’s not like that.”

  “Isn’t it?” He lifted her chin to meet his eyes.

  “Well…” she winced. It was times like this that she could regret her Christian upbringing. It would be so much easier to tell a little lie, if only to spare John the hurt that now showed in his eyes.

  “It was at first.” She took a deep breath and hardened her resolve, having decided to tell the whole truth, no matter how much it hurt him or how bad it made her appear in his eyes. “I was hurt and angry at Zeke. He wouldn’t marry me and he abandoned me at a nightclub.”

  John nodded. He already knew this, but he didn’t interrupt.

  “It was mom’s idea. She thought that keeping company with you would force Zeke to realise what he might lose.”

  “And you thought so too?” He searched her eyes, but Angela could hear judgement in the way the last words were spaced.

  “No, but she’s my mom.” Angela pointed towards the house. “She’s always right.” Her arm dropped and she held out her palms, pleading her case. “What could I do?” She frowned and rubbed her forehead when she realised how pathetic she must sound to him.

  “She would think it’s a great plan. I’m sure she doesn’t care how I feel about it.”

  “She says that God uses those who are not of faith for his own purposes,” she said as apologetically as she could, but it still sounded harsh in her ears. “Sorry,” she added with a shrug and a frown.

  “Sorry?” he crossed his arms. “Is that how it is? Sorry but you’re not a Christian, so we’ll use you to get what we want.” John got to his feet and dug around in his pocket for his keys.