**DAMON CARBONE POV**

We had some time before we had to break Thorn and Gio's dumbass out of jail. I took a very cold shower, hoping to calm my frenzied body after my little exchange with the blonde beauty. She was tantalizing, and I found myself thinking of her more. It was as if I had a pull towards her, to be near her. She was like an enigma, as soon as I got close, she pulls away further than before, and I just can't help myself from falling further and further every time. 

I got dressed, and decided that I'd get some reading done from Ghost's journal. I couldn't stop thinking about what I read, and I was desperate to find out more about what she's been through. I reached in my duffle bag and pulled it out. I took my normal seat next to the balcony, and started reading the messy writing:

Day 42

We got a few roommates today: 004, 005, 006, and 007. Seems like there's a pattern with our names. The torture sessions continued, and I haven't been able to write considering my wrists were sprained. Even though the days passed, everything is still the same. We're taken out of our rooms, we get tortured for a few hours, the doctors record and write things down during the session, then I return to an empty room, and 001 comes back a few hours later. I'm hoping these roommates survive, especially 004, she's the friendliest out of the group, and I enjoy having someone to talk to. 

I found out that just like me, they had no memory of any events before waking up in a hospital bed. 

Day 54

007 died in his sleep today. 

Day 58

005 and 006 didn't survive the burning session, they died shortly after they were escorted back to our room. 

Day 62

They pulled myself, 001, and 004 out of our rooms for the sessions like usual. Except 004 never came back. Now I have no one to talk to. 

Day 237

I'm finally back in my room, 001 nowhere in sight. I never thought I'd be so happy to see these damn concrete walls again. I saw that I had 4 new roommates, but at this point, I didn't even bother learning their numbers. They locked me in a freezing basement. With no lights, no warmth, no bed, no bathroom, nothing but darkness and scraps of food every few days. I thought I went mad, completely deranged. At first I was scared, so fucking scared. I haven't had human interaction 175 days, 4200 hours, 252,000 seconds. 

I don't know what's worse: being engulfed in the darkness, or embracing it. 

I heard footsteps outside my door, and quickly hid the journal back in my duffle bag. My door swung open to reveal Angelo who had his eyebrows furrowed. 

"You good?" I called out as I stood up. 

"A little fucking nervous, but other than that I should be fine." He said as he ran a hand through his hair. 

"Wanna go for a walk to calm your nerves?" I asked as I raised an eyebrow at him. Angelo use to have anxiety attacks as a child, and we would always walk around the estate until he was calm. 

"Abso-fucking-lutely." He said quickly, making me laugh. Angelo was trained in fighting, but no where near my skillset. I was always the one who went on assassinations, sometimes Gio, so I couldn't relate the the anxiety he must be feeling right now. That feeling died years ago. 

"Alright, let's go." I said as I walked over to the door, the thoughts of what I just read swimming through my mind. 

** GHOST POV **

Plan B: Aka Save the Dumbass. 

I planned it for when Gio inevitably fucks up Plan A. The first step was to steal a guards uniform. Since I'm the stealthiest, I'll pose as a guard, after Rebel tailors the outfit to fit me of course. Fox will get me the identification needed in order to get into the facility. I'll make my rounds, locate Thorn, start a riot, and get Gio out of solitaire on the way to the other exit we will secure. Damon will be waiting in a car for us, and we will sneak out of there undetected, meet the crew at the rendezvous point where they'll have the boat ready, then deliver him to his deadly mama. 

I exhaled the smoke from my cigarette as I stood on my balcony as I waited for Rebel to finish the alterations, admiring the view of the sunset in front of me. I loved watching the blue sky ignite into hues of red and orange. Sunsets represented the transformation light turning into darkness, and the result always left me in awe of the beauty. It's as if chaos has to erupt in order to make the transition, something I could relate to. 

I heard footsteps approaching from behind me, I turned over my shoulder to see Fox leaning against the door frame with her arms crossed in front of her. 

"So you and the heir, huh?" She said as she smirked and raised an eyebrow at me. 

"I have no idea what you're talking about." I said in an emotionless tone as I turned my attention back to the sunset in front of me. 

"Are you trying to convince me or yourself?" Fox chucked from behind me. "You act different around him, in a good way too." She said playfully as she walked up next to me. She leaned forward and rested her hands on the railing in front of us.

Silence stretched between us as we watched the fire in the sky start to diminish into darkness.

"If what I think is happening, you're probably overwhelmed with what you're feeling, huh?" She said calmly as she continued to look in front of her. 

"I feel like there's something crawling in my stomach whenever I'm around him. It's nauseating." I mumbled as I took another drag of my cigarette. 

"That's called butterflies, Ghost. That's completely normal." Fox giggled as she looked over at me.

"My God." I breathed as a scowl took over my face. "People really feel like this all the time?" I said as I furrowed my eyebrows in disgust. "How do people function whenever they feel this nauseated?" I said, verbalizing my thoughts. 

"Only whenever they think or are around a person who they have a crush on... or love." Fox explained as she smiled and looked off towards the shore. 

We saw Angelo and Damon walking along the shore, their hands in their pockets as they were discussing something and laughing loudly. The smile on Fox's face lingered as she watched Angelo, while my eyes were locked on Damon. 

"I don't know how I feel about him." I whispered, the thought making me feel uneasy as I stared at Damon, who threw his head back and laughed loudly at what his friend just said. 

"Well, what do you feel?" Fox asked as she looked over at me curiously. 

"In general or around him?" I mumbled as I took another drag of my cigarette. 

"In general you probably still feel nothing, right?" She said as she tilted her head in curiosity. Fox has always been the smartest one out of all of us, her intelligence hidden behind her quiet demeanor. She's always been the easiest to talk to and has been somewhat of a therapist to me considering our pasts. 

"Yes." I confessed after a few moments. 

"And around him?" She said as she furrowed her eyebrows. Damon looked over and his gaze caught mine. He shot me a smile before he looked down at the ground, and continued walking down the beach. 

"Anxious, Nervous. Accelerated heart rate. Slightly protective, and worried for his wellbeing. Happy, a little of what I think would be feeling carefree. And these.... butterflies as you call it. These feelings last much longer than what I'm use to, almost as if they're always lingering." I said explaining everything I was feeling as my eyes stayed glued to the attractive man walking across the shore as I inhaled the smoke from my cigarette again. 

"Imagine if you saw him with another woman. How would you feel then?" She asked curiously. 

"Furious. Jealous. Murderous." I said as I scowled. 

"It's official. You have a crush on Damon." Fox said as she smiled. 

"Crush? Why does that sound so painful." I cringed as I exhaled the smoke into the air. 

"Because sometimes they are. It's a stage where you like someone, on an intimate or physical level, most of the time both, but nothing is confirmed. So you're left wondering if the other person feels the same about you. So it's a sort of a...purgatory in relationships." She said as she looked out into the now dark sky. 

"Sounds horrifying." I said nonchalantly as I inhaled smoke from my almost out cigarette. 

"Ghost, it's okay for you to feel emotions again." Fox said seriously as she looked at me. 

"That's easy for you to say, your emotions came back." I whispered as I walked over to the table and put out my cigarette and walked inside the penthouse without looking back.