Part 20

The thoughts in his mind were spinning out of control. Tom tried in vain to latch on to a single thread and focus his attention there. The pounding in his head had increased in intensity. His rapid breathing was sending shards of pain, all but unnoticed, into his shoulder and upper back. He wasn't even aware of the fact that he was struggling against the bonds that held him to the cot.

Reality returned to find the doctor sitting beside him, caressing the side of Tom's face. "It's all right Tommy, don't fight this. I promise that I'll be as gentle as I know how. I know this is going to hurt your shoulder, but I'll try to make it as painless as possible. We have got to knock that infection out of there before it gets too bad. It will all be over before you know it. " A basin of water sat on the chair, which had been pulled up next to the doctor. A white cloth was draped over the side and dangled into the water. A bottle of liquid soap sat next to the basin.

Dr. Leonard picked up the cloth and carefully nudged Tom to roll onto his side to allow him to clean the shoulder wound. True to his word, the doctor tried to be gentle, but Tom still cried out in pain. He continued to moan as the shoulder was cleaned and the antibiotic cream was applied. Tom silently pleaded and prayed for the bath to stop with the shoulder, but the doctor had other ideas. "That should take care of the infection. We'll have to keep a close eye on it, though. Now, let's get the rest of this grime washed off. You'll feel a lot better when we're done."

Tom flinched as the cloth made contact with his face. Again, the doctor tried to be gentle, carefully wiping the swollen and bruised jaw. After finishing his face and neck, Tom's chest area was the next to receive attention. Nausea nearly caused him to spill the contents of his stomach when the repulsive hands abandoned the cloth to roam over Tom's wet skin. "God, you are so very special, Tommy. I can't believe how lucky I am to get to care for you. Do you have any idea how special you are?" Tom ignored the question, as well as the apparent awe in the man's voice when he spoke.

His breathing quickened and he tried to rise to a sitting position. He pulled frantically at his bonds when the doctor reached for the waistband of his shorts. Tom couldn't help pleading with the man. "Please, don't! Not this, please, not this. Oh God, not again."

The doctor let go of the shorts and pushed him back down. His face within inches of Tom's, he spoke in a low and menacing voice. "Do I have to hurt you again, Tommy? Do you want to make me hurt you again?" When Tom turned away and didn't reply, Dr. Leonard again spoke, this time with the familiar whimper. "I have to give you your bath, Tommy. Please, just be still for a little while longer so I don't have to hurt you. Please, Tommy, don't make me hurt you." Tom swallowed hard, but remained silent. Satisfied that his threats and pleas had succeeded, the perverted healer again turned his attention to the shorts. Ignoring Tom's silent attempts to pull away and escape the unwanted situation, the doctor lowered the shorts and turned his attention to the captive's private parts.

Tom was able to remain silent as the soapy cloth invaded his most personal areas. Tears formed and slowly trailed down as the soap was wiped away. 'Oh God, I feel so damn dirty. How the hell can I make him stop?' His heart pounded in his chest as he tried to will the bath to cease. Nausea again threatened to overwhelm him when hands replaced the cloth that roamed over his wet thighs and genitals. Anger took over and fueled his weak muscles as he intensified the battle with his restraints. His rage continued to grow, but he was unable to summon the strength to do more than scream, "Stop, you sick bastard! Stop it!"

Dr. Leonard abruptly stopped his exploration of his patient. He growled as he reached for the cloth that had been tossed over the edge of the basin. Shaking it menacingly in front of Tom's face, he threatened, "I'm going to finish your bath. I told you that if you fight me, I WILL have to hurt you. You know I will do it, if you make me." After pausing a moment, the doctor turned his attention back to caressing the captive's most private area. "You are so totally magnificent. I am so thrilled to be the one to care for you. You will start to like me taking care of you very soon. I promise you will. You'll see."

Upon hearing the doctor's words, Tom's muscles suddenly found strength and he bolted upright, screaming, "No, stop it, damn you! Get the hell away from me!" He tried to use his elbow to force the doctor away, but the restraints made it impossible for success. Dr. Leonard was momentarily surprised, but quickly recovered.

The fury in his face was unmistakable as he again forced Tom back onto the cot. The doctor's forearm pressed down on his prisoner's bruised windpipe. " I told you what would happen. I asked you nicely not to make me hurt you. You should have listened to me. Now I have no choice. You are going to have to learn to listen to me." The cloth was retrieved and roughly forced into Tom's mouth to keep him silent. Dr. Leonard turned his attention back to finishing the 'bath.'

The hands resumed caressing and massaging Tom's most sensitive areas. Darkness clouded his vision when his injured jaw was forced open again, but Tom remained conscious throughout the ordeal. The tears that had slowly trailed down his face now flowed in a steady stream of shame and revulsion as his body responded to the unwanted attention. He screamed through the gag while pulling at his restraints, but his strength was gone and the struggling ineffective. 'God just let me die now. Just let me die so it will stop. Please, just make it all go away.'

Tom's weak, muffled screams subsided when Dr. Leonard finally replaced the shorts. After carefully removing the cloth from his victim's mouth, he reached out to stroke Tom's hair. As he pleaded for understanding, it was the doctor who was now nearly in tears. "Oh Tommy, my sweet Tommy. Why couldn't you just stay quiet? I'm trying to take things slow for you. I know that you need time to get used to the idea of us being together. If only you would learn to stay quiet. You do understand why I had to hurt you, don't you? Please tell me you understand. I can't bear it when you're mad at me. You're not really mad, Tommy, are you? Please say you aren't mad. Please, Tommy! Please say you aren't mad."

Tom ignored the words as well as the hand running through his hair. He lay with his face to the wall, completely still. His eyes were closed as if to shut out all that had happened. He could only process one thought, one feeling. 'Why the hell can't you just let me die? Why?'

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Walking through the squad room after refilling his coffee cup for what seemed like the fiftieth time that day, Harry paused at Cassy's desk. She diverted her attention from the phone call she was taking long enough to catch Harry's gesture indicating she should join him in his office when she finished. After nodding her understanding, Cassy returned to the call and Harry returned to his office.

Ten minutes later, Cassy finally entered the captain's office. "What have we got on the three possible accomplices?" Harry demanded.

"We've narrowed it down to one. David Willis' body was identified yesterday in Atlantic City. Jason Carter was picked up in Los Angeles earlier this week. That leaves the mysterious Dr. Leonard." Cassy reached across the desk to hand Harry the folder containing the prison records of Gordon Leonard. "His mother admitted she wasn't sure he said Palm Springs, that it could have been Palm Beach. She says she doesn't know the friend's name he's staying with or have a phone number where he can be reached, either. Mrs. Leonard did finally admit that her son calls her every Sunday evening without fail. She also said he told her last Sunday that he would be moving again very soon. I'm working on getting her phone records now. This has to be our guy."

"Okay, I wanna know the minute those phone records come in. Let's get a tap on her phone and see if we can't catch him on Sunday if nothing breaks by then. Why don't you get out of here for awhile? Go have dinner or something." Harry returned his attention to the backlog of paperwork on his desk. Cassy remained seated, not acknowledging the silent dismissal. "Is there something else?" he inquired.

"I was just wondering if you got anything off the tape. I know there weren't any envelopes last night, but I thought maybe..."

Harry took a good long look at his officer. She had dark circles under her eyes and a weight-of-the-world weariness to her posture. "Why don't we talk about this over a meal? We could both use a break." Cassy agreed and went to her desk for her purse. Grabbing his jacket, Harry followed and together they headed to the car.

The janitor in the hallway gave every appearance of diligently attending to his mopping. When the pair exited the building, a satisfied smirk came to his face. 'Stupid and sloppy, Lipschitz. Some things never change.'

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The deafening silence pulled Tom back to his senses. He became thankfully aware that he was alone in the room. He tried to avoid thinking about the morning's events, but the memories refused to be pushed to the back of his mind. Tremors shook his entire body as the memory of hands running across his chest and invading his most personal areas ran continuously through his mind. Tom reluctantly concluded the only way to stop them was to concentrate on his physical condition. His headache had not subsided in the least bit. The fire in his shoulder was increasing by the minute. His chest ached with every intake of breath, every bruise making its presence felt. He became aware for the first time of the raw condition of the skin around his restraints. Slowly, he lifted his head to inspect the extent of the damage. He wasn't surprised to find his wrists were bleeding. He wasn't able to see his ankles, but suspected they were in much the same condition.

His stomach churned and he again prayed for the escape of death at the sound of the door opening. The doctor's cheery voice greeted him. "Let's take care of those wrists and ankles. We don't want anymore infections taking hold." The revolting hands reached for one of the captive's wrists and undid the lock. Unable to stand the touch of the perverted healer, Tom tried to pull away. The doctor's grip became vise-like. "Don't fight me, Tommy. You are going to have to learn not to fight." The menacing tone had returned to his voice. Tom stayed facing the wall, not speaking. His heart was racing and his stomach was in knots. He'd never felt so helpless and vulnerable.

After cleaning and bandaging the injured wrist, Dr. Leonard pulled the arm up to cuff it to the corner of the cot. Tom had no choice except to turn partially toward the doctor, but he refused to utter a sound, not even allowing the groan to escape at the pain of the action. "Now the other one," the doctor demanded. Tom made no move to comply. The hand again stroked the side of Tom's face. "Please, Tommy, don't be like this. Let me help you. You know I only want to help you. You are the special one." The plea was as nauseating to Tom as the feeling of the fingers on his face. He turned his face further to the wall, trying to escape the touch and the sound of the offensive voice. The fingers abruptly pulled away from Tom's face.

Tom flinched at the voice as it hissed in his ear and his respiration increased. "I told you not to be like this. Do you want me to hurt you again? Do you really want to force me to behave like Georgie?" Allowing Tom only a moment for the words to sink in, he continued. "I said, now the other one. Are you going to cooperate, or do I have to show you that I mean business? Look at me when I am speaking to you!"

When he still didn't comply, Dr. Leonard roughly grabbed the untended arm and pulled it toward him. Tom wasn't able to suppress the cry of pain that accompanied the deed. The doctor ignored the reaction and set about cleaning and bandaging the wrist. Tom kept his face turned to the wall and tried his best to ignore the man. The newly bandaged wrist was cuffed to the opposite corner of the cot, leaving Tom helplessly spread-eagle.

The doctor turned his attention to the raw and bleeding ankles. When the first restraint was unfastened, Tom made a weak attempt to kick at his tormentor. Dr. Leonard ignored the attempt and soon the first ankle was cleaned, bandaged, and restrained once more. Tom's strength was depleted and he made no effort to resist when the second restraint fell away. He lay still and silent, trying to ignore the man as much as possible.

After he fastened the last handcuff around the newly bandaged ankle, the doctor sat next to the patient once more. The pleading began anew. "Please, Tommy, look at me. I'll answer more questions for you. Anything you want. Please, Tommy, please don't be this way!"

Tom's heart had not slowed during the whole procedure. He kept his eyes firmly closed and tried to will the revolting healer to leave again. He again screamed in pain when the doctor forced Tom to face him by taking hold of the injured jaw. Tom still refused to open his eyes.

"I told you to look at me, Tommy. Now open your eyes." The menacing chill was back in the man's tone. When Tom refused to comply, he squeezed the jaw harder. Tom cried out again, and finally opened his eyes to find the hated face inches from his own. "You and I are going to spend the rest of our lives together, Tommy, and I intend for them to be very long lives. It would be well for you to learn to do as I say. I really don't enjoy hurting you like this, but you must learn. Do you understand?" The question was punctuated with another squeeze of the jaw. Tom nodded, but remained silent. "I said, talk to me! Do you understand?"

Tom managed to choke out a weak "yes." The pressure on his jaw was relaxed, but the hand remained.

"That's much better, Tommy. I'm so sorry I have to keep hurting you. You have to stop making me hurt you. I promise you'll like me taking care of you. I'm so lucky to take care of you. Now don't make me hurt you any more, okay?" Tom shuddered and the bile rose in his throat when the doctor reached up and kissed Tom's forehead. "I'm so glad we're better now, Tommy."

Tom's terror soared to new heights when he heard the doorknob turn. George was back.

End Part 20

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