The State of Grace

EIGHT

Xavier

Freedom.

It felt strange to be out, to not have someone watching your every move. To not be stuck in a small cell, being beaten by the officers regularly for a short time. That was until an agreement was made, it wasn't as hard as I thought to establish power over certain people.

To climb up the ranks inside and be very well respected before too long. I had my ways to get what I wanted, but of course over the past two years I was missing the one thing I craved.

Grace.

I did all I could to hate her, I wanted to hate her for ruining my entire life. Taking away my freedom, taking me away from my family. But I saw her every single time I closed my eyes.

I dreamed of her smile, of her kind laugh. I dreamed about touching her just once more. I thought about my name on her ass, how if any other man has seen it.

If anyone had, I would take their eyes out myself.

There was a moment I came close to true hatred towards her. The moment I found out my mother had gone missing, no one had seen her for two years. Pretty much the day I got locked up she vanished out of thin air. Very quickly my emotions for Grace took over and I didn't hate her once again.

My escape wasn't too hard to pull off when you know the right people. All it took was a bribe to the right man, here I stand free. The only deal I had to make was that I would leave the USA right away. I had little to no issue with that, rumour has it Grace isn't here anyways. I had my ways of finding certain things out, I knew my passport I had made for her had been used.

Diesel was kind enough to let me know that information. She left the country the last day I saw her, she ran for the hills. I wanted her to fight for me, to show up and show her love.

But she never did.

She didn't fight for me one time, she left me in that cell. She left me to rot for the rest of my life.

I stand on the back of the boat, it was sailing to my home land. Italy, I had been born there, until age 4 I was raised in a small town a few hundred miles away from Vermont. It wasn't a community I remembered too much of. I don't really remember much of my life before moving to the USA.

This town was a fresh start, once I was settled and knew I was safe I would begin looking for Grace. She was the only reason I made the escape. I had to find her, to see where she had been.

Who she had been with more importantly. If it was a man, if anyone dared touch what is mine they would pay.

"Was this all worth it?" I hear the voice of the captain. He was an old friend, a man that I had known since I was a boy, I knew I could trust him to get me into Italy. It was a long trip via boat, a good few weeks nearly a whole month.

"She's worth it all"

~~

Four week, one month.

I was finally in Italy, right away it felt like home. It was safer than the US, I didn't have to look over my shoulder every second of the day. Of course I didn't have my usual look, I had grown my hair longer.

I wasn't dressed in my usual suits, something more causal was now my look. I had to do all I could to protect my true identity. I was now Mason Holmes, it was too much of a risk to go by Dylan Bennett. The FBI were aware of this identity, but Mason.

He was a new man all together, much like I had to be now.

I walked through the old town, it was beautiful I could smell the food and wines from just walking around. It was in the air; the warmth of the Italian sun was something I could get used too.

All I needed now was my girl.

I had rented a nice apartment in the centre of town. It wasn't as big as the new york apartments but I couldn't draw too much attention to myself. Plus this place was incredibly beautiful, I didn't need 100,000 square foot apartment. I was alone in this world now, I just had her to find.

Greece was my guess. I feel like she would have started over where we meant too. She was sentimental like that, I knew she found the tickets and the deed to our new home. She used the ID I made her, so why wouldn't she use the home.

In a month or two I would make my way over to our home. In the hopes that I will find her, until that point I will sit and wait for her to come back into my life.

I would wait a lifetime for her to be back in my arms once again.