Page 34 of Mysterious Teacher : Arrival
He let out a blood-curdling scream. The pain was like nothing he could have imagined, all consuming.
“Here,” Sonya said with a chuckle as she grabbed the hand by the middle finger and tossed it onto his chest. “Let me give you a hand.”
He fought the urge to cry. Tears stung his eyes, and he just wanted to get out of there and go home.
Sonya pulled the gas mask up and leaned closer to him, bringing the saw close to his face.
“No! No!” Igor pleaded. “Please. Tell me what you want. Anything. Anything at all.”
“You are a pathetic excuse of a man,” Sonya spat. “All strong and brave when it comes to destroying innocent lives, but a whimpering fool when faced with true danger. Tell me, how many did you kill? How many did you gas?”
“It wasn’t me. I swear. Look at me. I’m barely a man. I’m only twenty-five years old. I’m innocent myself. I’m not a higher up. I’m not in charge. I was never in charge. All I did was follow orders.”
“That’s not quite what you were saying earlier, is it?You said everyone is an equal, no hierarchy, no leaders, no kings.Yet here you are, merely following orders.From whom?”
He frowned, not following her logic.
She leaned closer. “Is your leader as equal as you?You pretend to be German, a Nazi, which I despise, if you truly had anything to do with the horror of Nazi Germany during World War 2.Did you?”
Igor shook his head.“I’m not a Nazi.I may have pretended to be one.You’re the Nazi!Not I!You who does not think like me.”
Sonya shook her head.“Calling me a Nazi now just because I don’t think the same way as you, just because I am different than you?You know you’re lying, don’t you?What are you?If you tell me, I’ll let you know what I really am.”
Igor had to know who or what he was dealing with, or what.He was losing energy fast so maybe he can negotiate something before he lost all consciousness.“I wasn’t even old enough to be in the war.I am from the CoIntern Communist movement, Russia.”
“The ones who influenced my country China and changed it into the communist state that it is today.”Sonya said.“Your movement destroyed the country.Millions died.The intellectuals were purged.Anyone who have any independent thought, who expressed any free will and free thinking was killed or ‘re-educated’.”
“How do you know of this?”Igor asked.“Were you there?”
“I was imprisoned,” Sonya said.“So much for everyone being the same.Only those who believe the same as your Supreme leader were let to live.”
“Our Supreme leader is beyond reproach.He must rule with an iron fist.”
“I suppose the gold, which the Nazis hid and was going to use to rebuild their party in Germany, bringing about a new, stronger regime would be used for your movement.You may not be a Nazi, but you are also not something I want in America or the world, as well.”
“Our movement is better.It is better for everyone.Everyone is the same, same food, same clothing, same housing, same everything.”
“Same?Hypocrite! You might not have been giving the orders, but you’re certainly eager to give out orders now, aren’t you? Telling Boris what to do and not do. That’s not equal.There’s no getting out of this. Your movement killed my country.Your movement, your communist guerillas in China, killed me.This is what you deserve.”
“Killed you?What are you?”Igor asked.“If you’re dead...”
She spat in his face and brought the saw closer.
“Wait,” he said, eager to do anything to get himself out of the dreaded predicament.
She smiled. “Come to think of it,” she said, her eyes narrowed in thought. “How much gold did you say you have?”
He shrugged.
“Come on,” she pressed. “You can tell me.”
“A few gold bars...a bag or two of gold coins...some jewelry.”
“Interesting. And where exactly did you bury this golden treasure?”
Pressing his lips tightly together to keep mum, he looked up at her.
“Really?”she said with a comical tilt of her head. “You don’t want to tell me?”
