Pete, Tremaine, and Mason were playing mental games and quizzes with each other to kill time, keep a hold of their sanity, and to stave off boredom.
No one spoke of the simmering feeling of impending doom.
There was no word from Kate. All of them had gone through more separate sessions of interrogations, which, unknown to them, was mild, compared to what they would have received if it were not for Kate.
Tremaine did notice that when Pete returned he was quieter than normal. He had been brought back from another interrogation session that seemed to last forever but looked not too much the worse for wear. But it was the unnatural quietness. Pining for Kate, Tremaine thought. He knew he had a soft spot for Kate, and hoped he had kept it hidden from his superiors even though it was plainly obvious from his teammate’s point of view.
In fact, when Pete had been taken for questioning, he and Mason had been discussing the situation.
Mason was over any adverse effects from his concussion. He was coherent and had developed an appetite over the past couple of days.
“Pete’s been gone a long time,” Mason commented. “I hope he remembers his training.”
“He’ll be fine if he keeps a cool head.”
Both men knew Pete was a bit of an exception due to his lack of military background and experience. In fact, Pete had not even held a gun until he was talked into working for Divisions. He would complain that he was a discoverer not a destroyer. He wanted to preserve things. The question was, under torture, would he give away any Earth secrets, even inadvertently? What did the Trimadian’s want with them anyway?
“Do you think he has the hots for Kate?” Tremaine had asked.
Mason smiled broadly. “Shit yeah, ever since he first saw the girl, he’s been smitten. I think she holds a real fascination for him. They spent a lot of time in his study back on base.”
Neither man had ever been married, but both had their share of girlfriends. In fact, Mason almost married a white girl until his parents intervened. From that time on, he and his parents never quite saw eye to eye.
“Yeah, I noticed, too. Well, I hope for our sake and for Pete’s sake, Kate gets back soon.”
Mason smiled at Tremaine’s play on words. “Do you think they are going to let us go?”
Tremaine looked at his colleague and friend. “No, I think we are pretty much expendable.”
“Well, I don’t have any wish to go down easily. We better make some good use of whatever time we have left. I am going to get some exercise.” Mason lay on his back and proceeded to do some sit ups.
“Don’t overdo it in your state. You have got a pretty nasty bruise on your head.”
Mason ignored him and carried on counting.
Tremaine sat back against the wall. God, the waiting! Maybe that was the Trimadians’ secret torture! Deep down, he hoped the archaeologist was okay.