Page 52 of Mafia King

When Grandpa comes back inside he is breathing harder, but the calm has not left him. He sets the shotgun down, looks at Theo with the one good eye, and says simply…

“Home invasion. I defended myself. The dead man on my property presented a real and credible threat. You see, sometimes there’s more than one way of doing things, sweet boy.”

Young Theo is terrified. Yet he still manages the only true thing he knows how to say.

“I love you, Grandpa.”

Theo’s grandfather takes Theo in his arms and he feels protected, cared for, and like a whole new way of looking at the world has been opened up to him.

PRESENT DAY

The motel room snaps back into place around Theo: the thin walls, the rattling air conditioner, the man who still has not moved.

Theo’s pulse is a wild drum in his ears. He knows, with the same clarity his grandfather once had, that if he waits any longer the chance will be gone.

There is a paperback on the nightstand, left by some previous guest. Theo’s hand closes around it. He throws it hard and without warning. The book strikes Nikolai high on the temple with a solid, surprising thud.

“Fuck,” Nikolai roars. “You stupid boy!”

Nikolai rocks half a step sideways, more from shock than damage, one hand rising instinctively to the point of impact.

Theo is already moving. He lunges for the door, fingers scrabbling at the deadbolt. For one wild second he believes he might make it too…

“Boy,” Nikolai growls. “No.”

Then a hard hand closes around Theo’s upper arm, spins him, and throws his body onto the bed. The mattress is soft and cheap, it gives under his weight and then holds him.

Nikolai’s shadow falls across Theo.

Theo’s lungs lock. He makes peace with whatever comes next: the bullet, the silence, the end of every complicated feeling he has never been allowed to keep.

Instead Nikolai’s voice reaches him, low and rough and almost wondering…

“Boy…” Nikolai begins. “This might be the biggest mistake of my life… but I believe what you said back in the diner. I believe that you want to be mine. I believe you are caught up in something. I believe…”

Theo’s breath catches. He stares up at Nikolai, unable to form a reply.

Nikolai continues, the same quiet finality in every word…

“But that doesn’t mean you won’t face a punishment though. Except it won’t be me delivering it…”

Theo stands with his back to Nikolai, feet slightly apart on the thin motel carpet. His jeans and briefs are gone, tossed into the corner.

The cool air of the room kisses the bare skin of Theo’s ass. He can feel Nikolai’s eyes on him—steady, assessing, waiting. The earlier terror has not vanished, but it has changed shape. It now sits beside a desperate, shaking need to prove the truth of every word he spoke at the diner.

“Show me,” Nikolai says behind him. His voice is quiet and absolute. “Spank yourself. Hard. Show me you are sorry. Show me you are devoted. Prove to me that your words were true.”

Theo lifts his right hand and brings it down across his own cheek with a sharp, stinging crack. The sound is loud in the small room. Heat blooms instantly.

Theo strikes the other side, then the first again, forcing himself to use real force. Each impact draws a small cry from his throat. Soon enough, Theo’s ass begins to color: first pink, then deeper red.

“Owwww,” Theo whimpers, undeterred as he continues to spank himself with a wild-eyed determination.

Tears already gather at the corners of his eyes, but he does not stop.

“Harder,” Nikolai tells him. “Faster. Do not hold back. Lose yourself in the punishment. Push yourself further than the pain.”

Theo obeys.