Caesar stood in front of his office window, hand squeezing the phone receiver with such intensity that the plastic casing cracked under the strain of it. One of his pit bosses, Johnny, had made off with 50k of the casino's money just minutes before. Johnny had been a trusted, highly ranked employee, and Caesar was infuriated not by the loss of the money, but the sheer nerve of the act. As he stared into the Vegas lights below, he gave orders to the man on the other end of the line. 

"Find him, and bring him to me immediately. Keep any of the cash you recoup, but don't rough him up too much. I want him alive long enough to make him pray that he was wasn't."

As the receiver is slammed forcefully down, Caesar continues gazing out into the night.

He was out there, the traitorous, thieving fuck.

While he stands there, several minutes go by. Eventually, a quiet knock sounds at the exterior door. He glances at his watch; it was late, he had no appointments and the staff had been let go hours earlier. That meant that security had gotten something right tonight. He'd left word that should Fate ever arrive, day or night, that she be allowed access to the top floor without hesitation. Walking to the door, he opened it.

Fate stood there, wrapped snuggly in a black trench coat and heels. She smiled at him and closed the space between them and offered a quiet greeting. "Hello, Lover," she murmured before placing a kiss on his lips. It takes several moments for his brain to switch gears, but his lips finally respond. Perhaps a bit late, though, as she can tell that something is amiss. Leaning back from his face, she studies him closely, and then gazes around the office. Had she interrupted something? A meeting, or, shit, a rendezvous with another woman? She hadn't prepared herself for that eventuality, which was ignorant on her part. One night together did not a monagamous relationship make. She flounders lamely for something to say. 

"I should have called first. My plane just landed and I thought, maybe, we..."

Caesar cut off Fate in mid-sentence. "No, you aren't interrupting anything at all. I'm happy you dropped by. I have nothing much to do right now aside from sit here and await developments, so I could use the company." he says while grabbing some whisky and pouring it into two glasses. "My apologies. I realise this is not your usual choice of poison, but it's all I got at hand now."

Sitting back down, he turns to talk to Fate once more. "So, what brings you to Vegas?"

Fate watches him carefully. Something was definately up, but despite their singular (and spectacularly memorable) encounter two weeks prior, she didn't know him well enough to pry. If he wanted to share, that was entirely up to him. 

"Well, I'm moving here," she says, taking a sip from her drink. "Assuming I get partnership in the Arizona, it's simply more practical. I've also got a couple other things I'm looking into investing in..." she adds, wondering if she should admit this early on that he's one of them. Before she can get a read on his reaction to her words, there's a knock at the door.

Throwing his suit jacket back on, and sticking his magnum into the pocket, he opened the door to find his butler in the hallway. "We have found him sir. They caught up with him at the McCarran International Airport. He is currently under guard in the vault." Caesar checks his pocket watch. "Took you long enough. It's been nearly an hour Sarge!". "Yes sir, forgive us sir. We will do better the next time." Sarge replied. 

Nodding in satisfaction, he dismisses the butler. 

He then turns back to Fate. "You'd better come too. It is only fair you know about the skeletons in my closet, given recent circumstances."

Her curiosity piqued, they leave the suite and she follows him to the elevator, where they ride to a sub-basement far below the casino. 

When the door opens, a blast of frigid, desert-defying air greets her and she pulls the coat tighter. Caesar leads her to an enormous, bank-grade steel vault, where several men await, seemingly unperturbed by her presence.

As they step forth into the Casino's cash vault, the door behind them is closed by the security guards. The entire wealth of the Sodom and Gamorrah Casino, accumulated from various unfortunate clients who went bust is stashed in this steel and titanium chamber. At the centre of the room, was placed a solitary chair. A man with bruises all over his body was tied to the chair, with a black hood draped over his head.

The muffled noises coming from within the hood indicated that whoever was in there, was gagged. Upon their entry, the butler steps forth, with a black bag, which had presumably belonged to the prisoner, and opens it before Caesar. A pile of bank notes was visible in the bag. "This is all that was with him when we caught up with this fucker. Ten thousand dollars. We have been trying to get him to spill the beans on where the rest of it is, but we haven't hurt him......much." the butler says, gesturing to the prisoner.

Upon a gesture from Caesar, the black hood and the gag were removed from the man's face. The man's was attractive enough, sandy blonde hair, with periwinkle blue eyes. His handsome features however, were distorted by a bloody lip and a black eye. So much for not hurting him much. 

Caesar walked over to a table in the vault and opened the drawer, taking out a tray, bearing a set of brass knuckles, a bowie knife, and an automatic pistol, complete with an experimental silencer. He picked up the brass knuckles and put them on, and walked back lazily to the prisoner, who eyed him apprehensively.

With a sound that carried across the hollow chamber, he struck the man square in the jaw, leaving a deep cut and knocking out a few of his teeth. Panting with suppressed fury, Caesar turned back to Fate.

"Miss Presor, allow me to introduce you to Private Johnathan Ricci, one of the men who used to serve under my command in my platoon when I used to be a First Lieutenant." 

He smiled darkly at the look on Fate's face, and then gestured towards his butler. "I believe you have already encountered my senior non-commissioned officer, Sergeant Barone." The butler gave her a formal salute as he was announced. "

The three of us are all that remains of a certain Italian platoon composed of ex-convicts, that went rogue in Abyssinia, conducted unsanctioned raids on Abyssinian settlements and plundered them off all their valuables, and that also murdered their CO when he discovered the truth, shortly before fleeing across the Mediterranean with their ill-gotten gains." he tells her with a twisted smile. 

"Naturally, it is not widely known that the officer in command of that platoon, his sergeant and this little shit are still alive and kicking in America."

As the Private's teeth fly out of his mouth, courtesy of the brass knuckles, a fine spray of blood arcs outward, a generous portion of which lands on Fate's bare calves. While the blow was shocking, it wasn't the violence of the act that jarred her. She'd seen, and done, much worse. It was Caesar's complete change in personality. Just minutes before, they'd been sharing cocktails in his suite. Now, he stood here grinning like a feral animal, the skin of his knuckles scraped down to the bone from the brass.

Putting two and two together, she now understands what had been in his head when she'd arrived that night.

"What has this man done, exactly?" she asks.

It was the butler who replied. "Stolen money from the vaults and fled with it, while releasing records of this casino's earnings to the Internal Revenue Service. They will be on our ass soon enough with queries as to how we are making so much of money and why we haven't been paying taxes for it." He cast Private Johnny a dark look . "A fine way to repay us after how we hauled his sorry ass across the Mediterranean, and refused to abandon him despite facing starvation. Most the the boys starved on the way, except the me, him, and Lieutenant Mor-.......Caesar."

He had come very close to revealing Caesar's true name, but stopped, just in time at a look from his commander. Caesar walked back to Johnny and lifted his chin up by the hair to look into his battered face. "I gave you a fair cut of the loot. I employed you when you blew it all on gambling. Do you remember when you were shot in the back by the guards while we were fleeing from camp? Right after we took care of the old Colonel and decided to desert? I regret carrying you with us that day, you slimy traitor!"

The last words ended in a roar of fury as he landed another vicious jab, into the mans stomach this time and fractured a few of his ribs.

Fate thought she knew enough about Caesar to paint a general picture. As it turned out, she knew nothing at all about this man. The events that had shaped him were on display here before her, but this was only scratching the surface.

She didn't even know his fucking name.

Taking a small step back, she had a pretty good idea of where this would go. But rather than run screaming into the night, she continues to watch, fascinated, as the scene plays out before her.

He stepped back panting and looked down upon the wounded man. "So." he gasped, out of breath. "Tell me. Why did you do it?" There was a pregnant silence, which was eventually broken by Johnny. He coughs out the blood from his mouth, and looks up at his former commander, with his eyes full of pure hate. "Because you are a murderer. We slaughtered civilians, and took away all their valuables on your orders. You even ordered us to kill an officer who was loyal to King and Country." Johnny spat at Caesar.

Caesar stood silently, and listened to his rambling nonchalantly. "You are no better than Mussolini or Hitler." Johnny continued. "I was a fool, and I followed you believing you would lead is to wealth and glory, but I have realised my mistake. Things have been different. Very different since I met her." Caesar noted that Johnny had been very taken by one of the new escorts from Arizona. He had been paying her plenty of private visits lately.

"She showed me the error of my way. She showed me the love of Jesus Christ, and I redeemed myself by destroying everything you built with your blood money. And now, I care no more of what happens to me. I am saved." he finished, looking defiantly at everyone in the room. At his words, Sergeant Barone stepped forward threateningly, but Caesar held him back.

He looked calmly back at Johnny and smiled in a manner that made Fate's flesh crawl. His current cool and deliberate manner was even more unnerving than his rage. "Thank you John, for revealing the location of the rest of the money. We will definitely pay your lover a little visit " he said quietly, much to Johnny's alarm. He stepped closer to the man. "You are right, I truly am evil. But there is a difference between me and the individuals mentioned." He was very close to him now. "I don't pretend to be the saviour of mankind. And I don't backstab those I love."

"As for toppling my business, unlike you John, I have used my share of the plunder productively, and the contacts I have established will ensure that your little stunt will not even blow out one of the neon lights outside the casino." he said, smirking in a satisfied manner. He turned away from Johnny and walked towards the rest of his men. "Regardless, I appreciate your love for Christ. Hence, I will arrange for you to be sent to him in the same manner he left this world." he said, looking at Fate instead of at Johnny.

"Sarge!" he called to his butler. "Take this bastard out to the back, and crucify him on the electric pole. I want him to pray to Christ long and hard in agony before he dies." he ordered, watching with satisfaction as his men took a terrified Johnny away.

Standing utterly still, hands deep in coat pockets, she stares back into Caesar's eyes. Several long seconds passed as she searched in them for any sign of the man she thought she knew. This wasn't her fight, she couldn't interfere, whatever her personal feelings might be on the matter. If this was some sort of test of her mettle, watching a man getting tortured to death, she would pass it with flying colors. No one here was a saint. Far from it. But one thing bothered her...the girl.

Waiting until the others had dragged the Private out back, Fate stepped close, fingers of one hand lightly grazing his hand in the hope of pulling him back to a clearer mind. 

"Julius...you can't harm the female. Axel...the contract...please," she quietly begged. "I'll get the money for you. Just don't hurt her."

Outside the casino, Sarge and the guards dragged Johnny to the electrical pole and propped him up against it.  One of the guards came forth with a bag of industrial grade nails and a mallet. Johnny looked at Sarge and started pleading with him. "Sarge! You know me Sarge! Don't do this to me! I'll send you the money! I-" He was cut short by the vicious uppercut Sarge delivered to his battered jaw.

"You fucked up real bad Private" Sarge told Johnny shaking his head. "You sold us out to the enemy, and now we will make an example of you." He turned around to address the guards with him. "Every martyr needs a crown of thorns. Since we don't have such an artifact, we will just have to carve one into this fucker's brow. Get to it!" he barked at the guards.

To Johnny's horror, one of the security guards flipped open a switchblade, drove the metal tip into his forehead, and traced a bloody crown all around his scalp. The pain was excruciating, but it was nothing compared to what was coming. The guards hoisted Johnny up onto the pole, and began to nail him down, hands first, and then legs.

Johnny's shoulders became severely dislocated with the strain of supporting his body weight, but he was unable to scream for long as a gag was swiftly stuffed into his mouth to prevent him from attracting any unwanted attention from nearby people. With the job done, Sarge stationed two security guards underneath the pole to watch over him and make sure he dies a painful death.

Admiring his handiwork, Sarge returned to the casino, leaving behind a cruel mockery to God, whose power over Earth had been broken long ago. The Devil ruled this world, and he was now taking his due from Johnny.

Back inside the vault, the sound-proof interiors prevented Johnny's agonized screams from reaching Caesar and Fate. Caesar looked down at Fate, pleading with him, and his heart melted. He had fully intended to bust a cap into the delinquent whore after she came to work in the morning, but shit, the things one does for love.

"You have my word that the girl will not be harmed. However, I cannot let this slide. It is far more important to make an example of her, more important even than recovering the money. We will put the fear of death into her, but she will not be touched. I will pay the Arizona $100,000 as a compensation for any mental trauma we cause her."

He tosses the brass knuckles away, wipes his hand on a handkerchief and leads Fate out of the vault by her hand. "By the way, I brought you here, so that you know what exactly you are getting into. I am an incurable sociopath. Always have been. But I can promise you this much. Do right by me, and I'll always do right by you." he tells her solemnly. 

He looks into her eyes ones more and grins maliciously. "That is a lesson, we will have to teach Candy the hard way."

As the elevator doors close and they make the ascent, she reaches for his hand. It's the wrong one...the swollen, bloody one...so instead, she wraps her arm around his waist as his arm comes down to rest on her shoulders. She remains quiet until they're back in the penthouse suite. 

Once the door is closed behind them, she leans against it. 

"Julius," she says. "Is this what I can expect on a typical 'date night'?"

He smiles at her seductively. "I had a better ending in mind."

She returns the smile."I have to go back to New York tomorrow..."

"No. WE have to go back to New York tomorrow," he says, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

***

The next morning, Julius awakens to find a note on the pillow next to him. The paper smells like vanilla. It reads:

Julius,

Had to run some errands before our flight to New York. Your ticket will be at the counter. I'll meet you there at 6, please don't be late!

Love, 

Fate

P.S. I thought about waking you, but you looked so peaceful. I did, however, cop several feels before departing.

XOXO

Caesar reads the note with a small smile, and then puts it away. Throwing a dressing gown over his bare torso, Caesar calls for Sarge and four more guards over the house phone. Once they arrive at the penthouse, the six of them set off for Candy's room. Upon arriving, he knocks on the door, and it is answered by the nude lady herself. A client of the casino can be seen, lying on the bed, hastily trying to cover himself up. 

"My sincerest apologies for the inconvenience sir. I just need a few words with this charming young lady here. As a compensation for this rude intrusion, we will offer you two nights of complementary stay at the Sodom and Gamorrah, with food and drinks on the house, and your choice of any two women you wish to spend time with, who will also be on the house. If you will please follow this gentleman here, he will see to your needs." he says to the customer, gesturing to one of the guards.

Once the customer had left, Caesar turned back to Candy. "The money Candy, I want it." She looks back at Caesar impudently. "I'm afraid I don't know what you are talking about sir." she tells him, smirking. This impudent bitch! Resisting the urge to smack her across the jaw, Caesar nods and curtly asks her to follow him. 

They go out to the back of the casino, and stand before the electric pole. The guards that Sarge had left with Johnny had taken their duty to heart. They had stripped him nude, and the marks on his body suggested that they had whipped him with their belts. The man was still alive, but just barely so. Candy screamed, horrified at the sight, and voided her stomach's contents on the spot.

"That is the price of betrayal sugartits." Caesar told her, nonchalantly lighting a Cuban cigar and puffing on it. "I want the money on my desk by today evening. If you try to run for it, we'll know. If the money is counterfeit, we'll know. If you try to pull any shit on us or try to repeat such a stunt in the future, we'll know, and I assure you, once we are done with you, you won't be considered pretty any longer." he tells her, eyes gleaming with malice.

Candy looks back at him fearfully. "Axel-" she begins, but Caesar cuts him off. "You think Axel won't find another fuck-buddy if you go missing? Hell, I'll pay him your weight in dollar bills and he won't give a shit about what happens to you. If you think that just because he has fun with you from time to time, he cares about you, think again." he growls at the cowering woman. "The money. Today evening. Or else............."