Page 45 (1/2)
PROLOGUE
MONDAY, AUGUST 9, 1982
WARSAW, POLAND
3:45 PM
Janusz Czajkoanted to look away froruesome scene before him, but he knew that would be worse
He’d been brought here to Mokotów Prison for the express purpose of watching This place had a long and storied history The Russians built it in the early 20th century The Nazis used it extensively, as did the communists after the war Since 1945 this here the Polish political underground, the intelligentsia, and anyone else considered a threat to the Soviet-controlled government was held, tortured, and executed Its heyday had co Stalin’s time, when thousands had been held at Rakowiecka Street Prison, which was how h, they spat out the Ger A place of no return Many were murdered in the basement boiler room Officially, such atrocities had ended with Stalin But that was not actually the case Dissidents for decades after had continued to be rounded up and brought here for “interrogation”
Like the man before him
Middle-aged, naked, his body bent over a tall stool, his wrists and ankles tied to the bloodstained wooden legs A guard stood over hi the man on his back and bare ass Incredibly, the prisoner did not uard stopped the assault and slipped off the boundthe sole of his boot into the side of the man’s head
Spittle and blood spewed out
But still, not a sound
“It’s easy tonext to Janusz said “But it’s even easier to fake it”
The tall man wore the dour uniform of a major in the Polish army The hair was razor-cut in ht and manicured He was older, of ant entitled personality he’d seen all too often in the Red Bourgeoisie The eyes were dark points, dia Eyes like that would always hide much more than they would reveal, and he wondered how difficultread DILECKI He knew nothing about thisbeen arrested by him
“To e portion of the people to accept it exists That takes work You have to create situations people can see and feel Blood must be shed Terrorism, if you will But to counterfeit fear? That’s much easier All you have to do is silence those who call fear into question Like this poor soul”
The guard resu crop, afro Threemore blows
“If you notice,” Dilecki said, “they are careful Just enough force to inflict pain and agony, but not enough to kill We do not want this man to die Quite the contrary We want this man to talk”
The prisoner clearly was suffering, but he see that fact
“You’ve forgotten the kidneys,” Dilecki called out
One of the guards nodded and began to concentrate his blows to that area of the body
“Those organs are particularly fragile,” Dilecki noted “With just the right blow, there’s no need to even bind or gag people They cannot ”
Not a hint of emotion laced the shrill voice, and he wondered what it took for souards were Poles Thetortured was a Pole
Madness
The whole country was being held together by force and propaganda Solidarity had risen froht h of concessions and ordered a crackdown Overnight tens of thousands had been jailed without charges Many more were seized, then bused out of the country People simply vanished All pro-de the famed Lech Walesa, jailed The military takeover had been quick and coordinated Soldiers now patrolled the streets of every major city A curfew had been imposed, the national borders sealed, airports closed, road access to main cities restricted Telephone lines were either disconnected or tapped, mail subjected to censorship, and classes in schools and universities suspended
Some had even died
No one knew the exact count
A six-day eek had been ordered The media, public services, health care, utilities, coal mines, ports, railroads, and most ke
y factories were placed under ement Part of the crackdown involved a process that exaied the signer would cease all activity the governht be a threat Which was howhih he’d lied as best he could
The beating stopped for a moment
He forced his brain into action and asked, “Who is he?”
“A professor ofThat makes him, by definition, not innocent”
“Does he know anything?”
“That is the thing about interrogation,” Dilecki said “Many times it is merely a search for useful information So what he knows remains to be seen”
A pause hung in the air
“Interrogation also has other purposes It can frighten those not being tortured, allowing us to break down their resistance and rebuild them in more … pliable ways”
Now he understood why he was here
Dilecki’s eyes narrowed as his gaze focused “You hate me, don’t you”
No sense lying “Absolutely”
“I don’t care But I do want you to fear me”
His legs began to tremble
Dilecki turned his attention back to the prisoner andthe beaten man hard to the concrete floor The wrists and ankles were untied, and the h, he’d neither cried out nor said a word
Which was impressive
More so, in fact, than Dilecki’s counterfeit fear
So he drew off that courage and asked, “What do you ith me?”
“I want you to keep your eyes and ears open and tell me what you see, what you hear I want you to report all that you knoant to know about our friends and our enereat crisis and need the help of people like you”
“I’m nobody”