56. A chance at redemption...

In a dark room, forced to lay on the hard, rough grounds by the chains that held him bound, the four high walls of the room had no windows, and yet a harsh cold breeze brought a freezing chill to his bones. Like he was in a room where the air conditioning had been set too high.

His lips trembled with cold, he had no idea how he had ended up in this place. All he last remembered was getting into his car after the party was over, and then he must have fallen asleep, because when he next opened his eyes, he found himself in this place, stripped of his clothes, all that was left on him was his boxers and sucks.

He shivered with fear, wondering if his eighty-six years on earth was finally coming to an end, wondering if the boss had finally decided to do away with him.

But they just couldn't treat him like this, he wasn't just anybody that they would kidnap and strip like this, he wasn't just a man that they'd show so much disrespect like this. He'd been in the business way before that young mafia boss was born, he wasn't just anybody. I am Lorenzo DeLuca… But little did he know that his reason for being here that night was far from being the Mafia boss's order.

Just then, he heard the creaking sound of the door being opened, and for the first time in the hours he'd laid there, he saw flashes of light creeping into the dark room.

And standing at the door, he could see the dark silhouette of a man, he couldn't tell who it was as his side was dark, and only a little shimmer of light crept into the place, but he could feel the eerie aura that surrounded the man. Could feel the threatening gaze, could feel that burning glare.

"W_Who are you??" The man managed to say, and the figure of a man walked a step further into the room. Lorenzo still couldn't see his face, but he could feel that his gaze didn't shift.

Not even once.

"D_Did th_the boss send you?" he stutters, trying to draw himself back as the man strode closer and closer to him, but there was obviously no escaping from this.

"Tell the boss that I already broke off my business with Frankie Carbone. I don't have anything to do with that man again. Trust me, tell the boss I'm telling the truth, I sent back all the girls, I haven't even seen Frankie since. I don't know what he's been up to, please…"

And at that point in time, the lights in the place flicked on, blinding him at first for he had been in the darkness for too long, but then his eyes began adjusting, a certain examination process was going on inside his head as he looked around him.

From the tall walls, to the rough grounds, there was barely any space, everywhere was covered with weapons. Weapons of torture, and the man could feel his skin ripping from his back just by looking at them, his throat instantly went dry, he could feel the bone piercing pain even though he wasn't being touched yet.

And then he looked up at the man in front of him. Now he could see him , dressed in a pair of black trousers and a red and black velvet robe, apart from the Domino mask that covered half his face, he looked like he just climbed out of bed.

"Lorenzo Deluca," He called out, his voice low and sinister as he bent down in front of the man, his hands resting on his knees, a smile playing on his lips, but it was everything but friendly. "Old dear Lorenzo" He called out again, and the man sat there shivering with fear.

"I'm sorry, I promise, this time I'll really cut all ties with Frankie. I won't even go see him again. I will never contact him ever again" A deep life-draining laughter filled the air, sending another wave of shuddering cold into the body of the old man.

"I thought you said you already ended everything with him," Marco says in a mocking tone.

'I'm sorry for lying. I promise, I'll not d_do it again. Let the boss just give me another chance, just another chance… I swear, I'll not…"

"You filthy old man." Marco hissed, leaning in closer to the man, his face now devoid of anything but murderous intent. "You're not here for that. At least not yet."

"I_I'm not?" He muttered the question.

"No, Lorenzo, no you're not." He places his hand on the man's head, as if to pat his head like a child, then he yanks the man by his hair, pulling the old man closer to his face. "You're here because apparently, some nine years ago, you… you molested a sixteen years old girl," He gritted his teeth as he spoke. The grip on the man's head was so strong that Lorenzo could feel his hair being pulled out… " a girl who at that time could pass off as your great-grand daughter, a girl who was helpless and had to face this cold harsh world, only to end up being molested by you"

The mask covered half his face, but his anger could not be masked. The burning rage beneath that mask, Lorenzo could feel it heating up his entire body. "A girl who begged you, and begged you, and begged you," his voice went higher as he spoke, like the anger was burning afresh inside of him.

"she begged, but you beat her up, and beat her up, and beat her up without mercy, and you raped a sixteen year old…" He whispered, but it sounded louder that a man using a microphone, the clouds of darkness in his eyes, was breaking every form of confidence the man had left. And all he could wonder was which of the girls he had messed with was he talking about??

"Now, it turns out, that that little girl then, happens to be someone really, really dear to me now, and I've seen her suffer, night after night, trembling in her sleep, still begging the disgusting old man to let her go…"

"You have no idea what kind of trauma you put that young girl through… You have no idea the kind of hell you tossed her into. So tonight, tonight I'm going to give you a taste of hell." And with that, he rose from where the man sat, and Lorenzo's face paled instantly, as he watched him walk over to a fire brazier at one corner of the room, and lit the fire.

Just a minute ago, he was feeling cold, but not balls of sweat ran down his body and soaked his boxers as he saw the long sharp rod resting deep inside the hot coal.

"You see, I'm a very, very, very generous person, so I'm going to give you a chance of redemption while the rod heats up" he circles round the place, his hands playing on all the weapons that laid on the wall, as if he was trying to figure out which would be best.

"A chance to save yourself"