Lion's Den

"He who fights with monsters should be careful lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you."

-Friedrich Nietzsche

Sloane Kingston

"Welcome to the lion's den, Emeric Castillo"

Silence.

Tsk, this is why I hate weak pussy people who tend to intimidate others. Just a little blood loss and they fall unconscious. Such a disappointment.

I prepared such a grand welcome for this bastard and he is in his own La-La world.

A feral grin crawls up my face when a fantastic idea pops into my mind. A bucket of ice water will be more appropriate to welcome our guest, after all.

Sloane being Sloane, I am always prepared for everything. Though the ice stored was for my whiskey, that I was going to enjoy while plucking every single nail out of his fingers. I don't mine using a few, to wake him up. I was never that stingy, I can be generous sometimes, especially when it will give me more entertainment.

But first thing first, celebration without music is always bland and tasteless. I walked towards the table at which Turntable DJ was placed. Soon the instrumental of 'London bridge is falling down' started to echo in the whole room.

Much better.

Word generous reminded me of Mr. Generous. I wish I was there to see his reaction but he would have not accepted my little present of goodbye for him if I had been there. Not that it is any problem when I can always ask Noah for the CCTV footage. Having a Tech Nerd by your side has its own perks. However lets focus on our guest of the day now.

I poured down the ice water from his head to toe while singing - 

London bridge is falling down, falling down,

London bridge is falling down, falling down,

Wake up my dear Emeric.

Not even half of the bucket was empty when he woke up jerking. Might have scared him a little. 

For total five seconds, he didn't move or say anything else. It was as if he was processing his surroundings. I could easily see the flash of emotions passing through his eyes- confusion, shock , disbelief, anger & lastly fear. The inevitable fear of death that was seeping through his pores. The fear which I am going to savor every drop till his last breath.

It was amusing to see him wishing that it was just a nightmare & will vanish in a blink of his eyes but life doesn't always offers us what we want, does it? He was forgetting that monsters always belonged to hell and it was the hell that he created and I am retuning it back to him hundred folds.

The nightmare that he and his friends started, I am going to end it and this time it will not be me who will be trapped but him and his dear monster friends.

"Now, now, isn't it rude to ignore the host of the house, Mr. Castillo? I did so much preparations for your welcome but here you are, oblivious to my existence." hearing me he came out of his stupor. His eyes snapped to mine and narrowed on me.

"Who are you? Why did you bring me here? What do you want?" His voice was a little rough due to parched throat but he was still trying to intimidate me. Hanging in chains in my liar and he was trying to dominate me. What a joke. It's good that I didn't offer him a single drop of water since he arrived.

"Tsk, Tsk. Don't you remember me, Castillo? Now this is a little disappointing for me." I said shaking my head. "How about I slice your flesh and peel your skin while reminding you who I am?"

There was only fear and confusion in his eyes. Not that I expected him to remember me. He expects that I am dead just like the rest of my family so there is no way he will recognize me.

I already have pulled off my mask but there was no flicker of recognition. Plastic surgery changes a lot of things. These bastards didn't leave anything to recognize except broken bones , scars, tears of flesh and damaged body. Only my eyes and voice belongs to me.

Years have passed and very few can recognize a person with the voice alone. And there is no chance when voice is one of those who are supposed to be dead.

"Don't worry, I have prepared many types of weapon toys for you, except this time it will not be used on me but you" I waved towards the direction of knives, pliers, cutters etc. on display table. Every single tool is brand new, silver shining under the light and resting on the bright red velvet cloth.

Soon his legs started to shake and I scoffed in my mind 'so much for trying to intimidate me'.

"W-what do you want? Money? I have enough, my father is the mayor of the city, I can give you anything you want. J-Just let me go." he begged in a shaky pleading voice. 

"I also asked you to let me Castillo but do you remember what you said? " My tone turning ice cold, if my eyes could burn him he would be incinerated at the spot into ashes.

He frantically shook his head while saying "I am sure you got the wrong person. I don't even know you."

"Let you go sweetheart?" I began, repeating his own words that plague my nights "Not a chance. First I am going to fuck your filthy c*nt, then your untouched arse while bathing in your blood that my knife will draw out from your body." I continued, picking out the sharpest knife, slicing his shirt in half and dragging the tip of his knife from his sternum to abdomen.

"Remember me, Castillo?" A cold smile on my lips.

"Y-you. H-how?" Horror flashed in his eyes at the recognition.

"What? Shocked that I am alive after everything, Castillo?"