As he listened to the tortured woman beg for mercy, her soft, rapid words barely coherent, he envied the sociopaths in the room who felt nothing, shar...d none of her pain.?Nine. Last stroke,? Jeff announced.?Please,? Catherine whimpered in a tear-soaked voice.A miracle.Marcie flicked the lash casually against Catherine’s back in a dismissive gesture that barely brushed the tails against her skin. ?There’s your mercy,? she said. ?That’s more mercy than you showed any of us.? She dropped the. It hit me like being kicked in the stomach. A gut clenching contraction in the pit of my gut. As I approached she saw me and it was like breaking a spell, her legs clamped quickly closed and she grabbed her drink and started chatting to Weston. I walked of to them both and asked if she wanted to come and join me at a table further down the garden where I had been sitting. I didn't want to create a scene. "It's ok, I'm fine here catching up with Weston" she said. I looked at Weston and he just. Once every man had been identified, nine Chinese and fourteen Sudanese, the camera moved to a detailed examination of the missile-launch vehicles: all markings, numbers, control panels, compartment interiors, and the truck interiors. It was obvious that everything was labeled in Chinese and Sudanese.In a final view, the camera lifted high above the scene and panned around in a location shot to show the surrounding territory. Distant ridges and landmarks indicated the type of terrain and gave. He was very much a gentleman, polite and easygoing, and fifteen minutes after they met he invited her to have a drink with him in a nearby cocktail lounge.Brenda, of course, agreed. Having a drink with him was her plan all along. She wondered why the hell the principal of the high school wasn't back in his office doing whatever principals do, but as long as he was here she had an idea she might be able to help Ken.Inside the cocktail lounge they sat beside each other in a dark booth. They had.