Bond thrashed against the rope, struggling to wrench himself free. But it was no use. He would not save them with brute force. Smart thinking was the only way to stay alive. As this conclusion settled in his mind, Madeleine continued to wail.

Dr. Payne took notice of Bond's anger and how he had been straining against the rope. Although he had stopped thrashing, at least for now. This prompted her to stop the electrical pulses coursing through Madeleine's brain, giving the woman a chance to catch her breath.

Again, Bond twisted to look behind him to see her. To his dismay, Madeleine was leaning forward, slumped over, only the rope holding her up.

He turned his attention to Dr. Payne and noticed how she was staring at him as if she hated him.

She pressed the keyboard again, and his brain erupted with electrifying spasms. As his body roiled along with his mind, he heard no cries from Madeleine as she could only moan and groan from the terror inflicted on her by the doctor.

As his body quaked, Bond glimpsed Hinx as he fell back into a lawn chair and observed them with a wicked smile on his face.

Finally, the lightning bolts in his head ceased, his muscles collapsing in distress now that the electrical current wasn't surging through his system. He leaned forward, sagging against the rope, his mind numb, on the verge of blacking out, his focus on every breath, each of them vital to remaining conscious.

An immeasurable amount of time passed as he regained some semblance of his former self. Even though it felt like hours, he figured only seconds had ticked by, at most minutes.

Dr. Payne rose to her feet, set her laptop down, and sauntered over to him. "I suppose you wonder why I enjoy watching you suffer."

Bond looked at her through burning, glassy eyes. "I figured it was for sport."

"No, you bloody fool! It's because you killed my father. Lyutsifer Safin."

An incredulous laugh burst from so deep within his gut, his body jerked. "Guilty as charged! The madman wanted to eliminate ninety percent of the Earth's population. I shot him and he fell into his own pool of nano poison. One I narrowly missed falling into myself."

"The pool couldn't have killed him because he designed it to kill her." Dr. Payne pointed at Madeleine.

"I knew the water wouldn't kill him. That's why I put two more bullets in him."

Dr. Payne started toward him, raised a hand to strike him, but stopped. She must have realized he was goading her, trying to provoke her.

"But you must forgive me." Sarcasm dripped from Bond's words. "I didn't realize he was your father. Didn't recognize the connection."

"We don't share the same last name, you fool."

More sarcasm. "Left your mother, did he? He wasn't the type to settle down?"

Dr. Payne snarled and paced back to pick up her laptop. "We'll see if the mother of your dear daughter has any last words."

"No! Leave her out of this. Take it out on me."

"James," Madeleine said, finally able to speak. "They have Mathilde."

He should have suspected this. He should have known they would take his daughter to use her as leverage if he got out of line. As bad as it hurt, it did not shock him, it only made him more determined. There was something about life and death situations that hardened his resolve, even made him act out of pure instinct. Survival was second nature to Bond. He didn't break down under pressure. He thrived on it.

Just as Dr. Payne was about to hit the torture button on the keyboard, he remembered a special gadget Q had given him.

A diamond ring.

"Madeleine, remember how time flew when I handed you my watch back at Blofeld's compound?" She had tossed the watch at the madman, and it had exploded, allowing her and Bond to escape, to live to see another day.

"Yes," she replied, her voice but a whisper.

"I'm afraid there's a plot twist to our happy ever after." He paused, waiting for the idea to sink in. "Diamonds aren't forever."

"What?"

Behind his back, he gripped her hand. "Your finger. Twist the diamond. Now."