Dami and her family remain in a cage, except this time, they have been kept locked away in an underground cell — a prison much more eerie. The place is dim; just a single sconce on the cinder block wall next to the cell. And their feet have been kept binded, as the cell wasn't already enough. 

It's been thirty-two hours since the death of Dami's father. It's been thirty-two hours since Dami shut down. Her eyes are open to the scenery around her, but nothing seems to register. She keeps herself idle, face blank, and only blinks a couple times. Dami is there, but only in body.

"Mom, what's happening to her?" Verona asks. "She hasn't moved since forever."

But their mother has no answer. She, too, has tried snapping Dami back to reality. But each time, she failed. "If I don't make it, take care of each other–"

A pitched scream erupts from Dami. She thrashes around as the shriek grows more deafening; kicks and pushes and shoves in all directions until the tears come. Not even her mother can hold her down.

"Mom, make it stop! They're killing him! He's dying!"

Her mother manages a steady grip around her arm. "Look at me–"

"Daddy, come back! Please don't leave me!"

Dami's scream draws the attention of a few guards present, but among those guards is a very vexed Paolo. It seems he just descended into the cellar, and now he walks towards the cell with a couple of his guards behind him.

"Make that little shit stop." Paolo tells a guard who quickly moves to do his bidding.

Mrs. Rocci throws herself in front of the twins. "If you come any closer, I will kill you. I swear it upon my life."

Paolo finds it in himself to laugh. He walks past the guard and stands in front of the cell. "Would you like to volunteer?"

She doesn't answer the question. "Do not come anywhere close to my children."

"That's a yes, then?"

When she offers no answer, Paolo gestures for the guard to get her out of the cage.

Mrs. Rocci sees this and turns back to both Dami and Verona, frantic. "No matter what, do not let go of each other, okay?" She tries hugging them, but the guard grabs her arm and begins escorting her out the cell. "I love you two. I love you two so much."

Then the cell closes, and Dami witnesses from within another scene from hell.

"Where are you taking me?" Mrs. Rocci asks Paolo.

Paolo doesn't answer just yet. A couple guards arrive seconds later with a tilt table. They roll it up to Paolo's side and whisper something in his ear that makes him grin like a mad man. Paolo finally turns back to Mrs. Rocci, all smiles.

"Right here will be fine."

Instantly, Mrs. Rocci gets the sense of the situation. "Please. Let's take this somewhere else."

"Don't you want to spend your final moments with your beloved children?" Paolo fishes out a cigar and orders for one of his men to light it up, and for the other to strap Mrs. Rocci down to the tilt table.

"Anywhere but here!" She pleads. "Please, not in front of them!"

Paolo frowns. "Do not make this any more difficult than it has to be or you will be the one watching your children from the cell."

Now Verona finds the strength to speak. "Mom–"

"Close your eyes. Close them and don't open them no matter how hard I scream, okay?"

Verona says nothing.

"Verona!" Mrs. Rocci exclaims. "Please. I need you to do this for me. Cover your sister's eyes."

Verona hastily nods her head yes. Meanwhile, Dami still can't utter a word. She wants to. She needs to. But she can't offer not a single word. So she sits there helplessly, while Verona shields her eyes away from the view before them.

"They can still hear you, you know." Paolo says, sharpening what Dami thinks must be a knife.

"Just get it over with." Mrs. Rocci

More laughter. The same laughter from earlier. "Such fine eyes." Paolo starts again. "Do you mind if I take them as souvenirs? Your childrens' as well."

Mrs. Rocci doesn't say anything, and Dami starts to think she's succumbed to the fear. Then she hears a faint sound. Sort of like a splat. Or the sound of saliva hitting a surface. Mrs. Rocci must have spat on Paolo.

That's all it takes for the roller-coaster to take off. Dami doesn't know exactly what happened, but her mother begins screaming. Paolo must have inflicted some form of pain as punishment. But Dami doesn't have to guess which kind of punishment, because Paolo tells her himself.

"Did you know? Your mother's eye is prettier when it's not in its socket."

Dami can hear the chuckle that follows this statement. That's when it hits her. The type of torture Paolo has in store for her mother.

And Paolo narrates it every step of the way. When he rips her mother's nose apart, he lets her know. When he slices the ears off, he announces it out loud. When he strips Mrs. Rocci of every skin she has on her face, he reveals the details. All while Mrs. Rocci wails through the process.

Then things finally go quiet. No screams. No shrieks. That's when Dami knows. Her mother has passed away.

~《¤》~

Days pass after Mrs. Rocci's death. Dami and Verona now survive meal-to-meal, a repast that merely consists of stale bread and water. But it matters little to Dami. Because she knows her hour of death will soon be upon her.

Dami wakes from a sleep that did not come easy to her. Her own exhaustion eventually wore her out, and so she took a nap. Though she's not so sure if it was just a nap, because her body has grown heavier, and her mind is still in the midst of rebooting.

But it seems Verona never took time to rest. She's been bogged down by exhaustion, yet she sits there with her back against the wall, eyes completely zoned out. It could be because they've been locked up in a cage that Verona looks this dispirited. But there's something else in the mix. She looks far more beaten down than usual. What could have happened in the while Dami rested?

"What's wrong?" Dami asks. But Verona doesn't answer. She just sits there, arms crossed, head against the concrete wall.

Then finally, she speaks. But it's not what Dami expected. "Let's pretend to be each other."

"Why?"

"Because I think it'll be fun."

"But–"

"Just do it, okay?"

". . . okay."

"We'll pretend to be each other until I say I'm bored, okay?"

"Okay."

"Don't break character, okay?"

"Okay."

"Now, what's your name?"

Dami studies her sister a bit more, but all she can find in those mismatched eyes of hers is a solid glint of . . . nothing.

"I'm Verona Rocci."

Verona nods, satisfied. "Good."

And that's how things play out. It happens at the crack of dawn, though the time of day remains a mystery to Dami. A new guard comes to them in nothing but the same work attire suit. He looks like he would rather be anywhere else, but he's on some orders he has to follow. He steps up to the cell and rattles the iron bars.

"Which one of you is Verona Rocci?"

No answer. Until Verona nudges Dami's ribcage lightly. "M-me." Dami fesses.

The guard unlocks the cell and pulls the two out, then walks them over to where the Verdonni family are towards the cellar's entrance. There's three of them there this time.

"Which one of them is Verona?" Five asks. The guard points to Dami whose arm is still linked around Verona's, afraid to let go. She wants to end the charade and tell them who she really is, but Verona's words stop her from doing so. She will pretend to be Verona Rocci until Verona says she's bored.

"Take that one to the car then." Seven instructs, and the guard begins pulling Dami away from Verona.

"Let me go!" Dami protests, trying her best to fight back against the guard. However, Six sees this and grows impatient. He walks over to the two and gives Dami a slap so solid, it leaves her jaw stinging for minutes to come.

"Stop causing a ruckus, you little shit." He warns Dami. Then he motions for the guard to contain her once again. But a slap is nothing to someone about to lose their family. Dami will put up a fight even if it means her death. And so she begins resisting under the guard's grip once again.

Verona, with tears already falling, tries ending the struggle. "Stop! Just go!"

"Shut up! I'm not going anywhere!"

The guard, now vexed, pulls out his gun and hits the back of Dami's head with the handle. This grants him the opportunity he needs to carry out his job in peace. Dami goes limp, but not unconscious. Her vision blurs as the guard throws her over his shoulder and begins making his way towards the exit.

Dami keeps her eyes on Verona. She must have known this would happen. She knew and tried saving her. She took her place, and now she's paying for it. Still with her mind groggy, Dami can hear everything. The capos' laughs. Their taunts. Verona's cries. Dami even sees when Seven pulls out a gun. He points it at Verona and continues on with his taunts.

"I'll add her eye to my collection."

Six laughs. "You don't have one."

"It's a start." Then Seven pulls the gun's safety back, and to Dami's perpetual horror, pulls the trigger. Verona drops to the floor instantly.

Dami wants to scream. She wants to tear herself away from the guard and run over to where Verona is. But her body will not allow her. So she lays there over the guard's shoulder as he continues his climb up the stairs. He rambles on about something Dami can't quite make out, but she's still able to catch one thing.

"Can't even say you're lucky," he says. "'Cause you're going some place worse than hell, kiddo."

Dami's vision fades.

_______________________________________