The chapel was better lit than it had been on the night of her Initiation. The altar was surrounded by candles, creating a warm glow at the chapel's heart.

Approaching the altar, she saw that there were some modifications - heavy chains had been fixed at its corners - chains whose purpose was clear. Her mouth went dry as she imagined herself in those chains, her naked body stretched across the altar.

More equipment had been laid out on a table. Jenny's heart skipped a beat as she recognized the collar and leash she had been made to wear, along with other items, like the riding crop Brother Francis had taken such delight in applying to her pale skin.

Brother Francis interrupted her study of his tools.

"Welcome, slut. I wasn't sure you would come."

Jenny kept her eyes modestly downcast.

"I would never disobey the Order, Brother Francis."

"I've been looking forward to tonight for some time, Jenny - or, should I say, Sister Meretrix?"

"Whichever it pleases you to call me, Sir."

He seemed to approve of her respectful tone.

"Jenny it is, then," he continued. "Your Initiation was everything I had hoped it would be, and more. But, as I'm sure you are aware by now, my tastes are a little more...particular than those of my fellows. So I've been looking forward to the two of us spending some quality time together."

"Yes, Sir."

Brother Francis, dark eyes were intense. Along with the sharp, angular beak of his nose, they gave him the appearance of a bird of prey. His stare was definitely predatory, making Jenny feel like some small, furry creature, fragile and vulnerable.

"You said, at the time, that you shared some of those same tastes, Jenny. Did you mean that?"

There was a long pause while Jenny tried to sort through the welter of conflicting emotions that were roiling inside her.

"Honestly Sir, I don't know. At the time, yes, I meant it. But now...now I truly don't know. I'm sorry if that is not the answer you wanted, Sir."

"Don't be sorry, my dear."

Jenny caught her breath in surprise, both at the endearment and at the kindness in his tone. Brother Francis had never been anything other than coldly dismissive of her until now. For him to speak to her with such warmth was completely unexpected. She glanced up, briefly meeting his eyes before dropping her gaze back to the floor as he continued.

"Truth between us, Jenny. Always. Simply promise me that, and there will never be a need for sorry."

"Yes, Sir."

"I am a sadist, Jenny. It gives me sexual pleasure to inflict certain kinds of pain and degradation on a woman. But I am not a torturer. If the experience is not mutually satisfying - pleasurable for her as well, in its own way - then I am not interested. The careful use of pain can bring the right person to heights of pleasure beyond imagining. But it has to be the right person."

Jenny listened, fascinated, as he continued, going into more detail about his...proclivities. This was by far the longest speech she had ever heard from Brother Francis. He was both eloquent and passionate about his subject.

A lot of what he said made sense, helping her to understand herself and how she had acted during her Initiation. She listened carefully, considering his words during the long pause that stretched out after he had finished.

Taking her silence for fear or reluctance, Brother Francis dismissed her, his voice sad but kind.

"Go back to bed, Jenny. Tonight will not reflect badly upon you. You have my word."

Jenny considered this for some time. Brother Francis, the cruel and frightening man she had been avoiding for more than two years, was speaking to her with kindness, patience and passion - explaining things about herself that she had only just started to discover, and was a long way from understanding.

She remembered the pain he had delighted in inflicting on her that night. But she also remembered the pleasure - the joy, even - that she had experienced. Jenny had immersed herself in oceans of pleasure that night. At the time, she had embraced the pain as well. Was it possible that, for her, the one was dependent on the other?

She studied the altar, and the tools Brother Francis had laid out ready to use on her.

The idea of being bound and helpless with him was frightening, but alluring as well. When she searched within herself, Jenny was surprised to find that she trusted this man.

"Sir, Brother Francis, I'd like to stay...if you want me to."

"I do."

He exhaled in a long sigh, his shoulders shifting as if a burden had been lifted from him.

"Tell me, Jenny, did Mother Superior explain to you the concept of a safe word?"

"Yes, Sir. If I want something to stop, I say the word and you have to stop."

"Exactly. Do you have a preferred word? Something you will remember easily, no matter how...worked up you might be at the time?"

Jenny thought for a moment. "How about 'Initiation'? That's definitely something I'll never forget."

Brother Francis smiled, "No, I don't suppose you will. Was the color system explained to you, as well?"

"Yes, Sir. If you ask me for a color, I should respond with red, yellow or green. Red means stop now, yellow means slow down - I can't take much more. Green means I like something, and I want more."

"Very good, Jenny," Brother Francis replied, favoring her with a smile that spread warmth down to her toes.

His voice became hard and commanding once more. The tone sent a thrill of fear through Jenny as the warm and strangely kind man who had revealed himself to her was once more hidden behind the familiar harsh mask. Or, was it the other way around? Was the warmth and kindness the mask, and had she just willingly offered herself to a man of coldness and cruelty?