The Trap Of Ace By Eva Zahan

Chapter 54

My eyes squinted against the bright light as soon as the room lit up. And then I found the person who dragged me in this room. Dark orbs watched me silently.

My fists clenched. "What the h**I is this, Arthur?"

His head cocked to the side. "You don't even know what h**I is. Trust me, I haven't done anything yet to compare it with h**l."

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

A muscle of his jaw ticked, his aged left eye twitched. "I'll just say five words, Emerald." Disgust dripped from his voice as he took my name. "Stay out of my path." My forehead creased more in confusion. What was he talking about?

And then realization hit me. A shiver ran down my spine at the malice that his dark soulless eyes held.

"What are you trying to say, Arthur?" I kept my voice as strong as I could.

He found out. He found out of my quest. But I didn't know how much he knew.

He let out a humourless chuckle. "You exactly know what I'm talking about. You really thought that you'd try to dig out my past and my secrets, and I wouldn't find out?" When I didn't say anything, his lips curled into a sneer.

"Surprised that how did I know?" he mocked. "Well, from the day you saw me with Sierra at that hotel, I knew you wouldn't keep quiet. You'd go after her asking about me. And you did, just as I assumed! And then I found out that the worthless ex-boyfriend of yours had his cousin after me. Do you think I'm that unaware and foolish?"

I took a step back as he took a threatening step towards me. With my eyes wide, my heart pounded down my heart. Not because I was scared of him, but because he now knew about Warner and his cousin's involvement with this matter. S**t! I didn't plan this! I didn't want him to hurt them in any way because of me.

Be strong, Em! Don't show him your weakness. Don't let him threaten you just like he did to Liza and Sierra.

Holding my chin high, I held his gaze. "I don't need to think you're a fool. You are a fool."

His nostrils flared at my comment.

"Anyone who would dare to go against Ace will be considered as a fool. Do you really think you can go and backstab him on his back and he would just let you leave like that? Just because you're his uncle?" I snorted. "It's just some matter of time until I tell him what you do under your respected businessman facade and he'll throw you out of this company like a fly from the milk."

A smirk tugged on his lips. "You think you'll tell him and he'll believe you? What proof do you have against me?"

Nothing. That's why I was stalling time to reveal your betraying a*s before him.

I kept a straight face. "Do you think he'll need any proof when his Rosebud will say something to him?"

His smirk slipped from his face. Even I knew Ace wouldn't just wave my words off, but I just wanted to have some solid proof. And now that he was standing here before me warning me off, I didn't need any other proof.

"I can't believe your guts, Arthur. You run illegal businesses across the UK, you used to run brothels over there, you were threatening Sierra for some reason, and here you're warning me that I should stay away from your path?" I raised my brow. "If I were you, I'd be running away with my tail between my legs if my dark secrets would get exposed before someone. Because the time isn't far away when you'll be behind the bars," I hissed.

I wanted to confront him about Liza and working with Antonio. But I held myself back. That could bring Liza and her family into more risk.

With his fists clenched, eyes flashing, he took another step forward. But this time I held my ground.

"You want to go and tell everything about me?" he cocked his head. "Then go ahead."

I frowned.

"Go ahead and tell him. What's the most he can do, send me to the p****n?" He let out a laugh, before an ominous look claimed over his face. "But know one thing before you do anything, Emerald. I don't play my cards without keeping an Ace in my hands."

"What do you mean?"

A smirk tugged at the side of his lips. "You tell him, and I'll destroy him. Now Achilles's Rosebud won't do anything to break him to pieces, will she?"

A shiver ran down my spine. Destroy him?

"You can't. You don't have that power. Ace isn't an ordinary man you can just..."

"Do you really think I'll go, do these things without having anything against him in my hands?" He raised a brow. "I'm warning you for the last time, Emerald. We don't have any personal issues, so I'd suggest you to stay away. Otherwise, your dear Ace will have to bear the consequences. Because the secret I've of your boyfriend, can destroy him to the ashes. Remember that."

I shook my head. "You're lying. You're just trying to threaten me to make me back off. You have nothing against him. He doesn't do any illegal businesses like you!"

Shoving his hands into his pockets, his features turned void of any emotions. "How much do you know about his past? How much did he tell you?"

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. Other than his d**g addiction and his father's s*****e, I knew nothing. But could his being a d**g addict in his childhood be strong enough to destroy him? No.

He shook his head. "You know nothing! Go and ask him. Then you might know what I'm talking about. What's the secret that can ruin Achilles Valencian."

With that, he fixed his collar and walked out of the room, leaving me standing there, immobile.

His words rang across my head like warning bells.

The secret that can ruin him to pieces? What secret he was talking about? What more did Ace hide from me?

With my hands turned cold and trembling, my heart racing, I slowly trudged out of the door and walked away.

***

After pacing around my cabin for almost half an hour thinking of Arthur's threat and waiting for Ace to finish his another meeting, I decided to call Warner again.

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But again, he didn't receive his phone. Where the h**l he was?

I needed to talk to Ace. I knew there was more to his past that I wasn't aware of. Like where was his mother or what happened to his father. But I had no idea he had some secret buried in his past that was that dangerous. Lethal enough to destroy him.

But what if Arthur was just casting arrows in the dark? Maybe he was just messing with my head? There was nothing that he could use against Ace?

But he wouldn't just throw it on my face if he really didn't know anything. He even told me to ask Ace myself.

I need to talk to him now. I need to know what happened in his past to stop Arthur.

With a determination formed inside me, I headed to his office. And thankfully he was alone in his cabin when I entered.

Standing before the floor to ceiling window, his gaze fixed into the distance. Hearing me, he turned to me.

"Rosebud?" His arms spread for me to fly in them, and I did. Without wasting a second.

Filling my lungs with his intoxicating soothing scent, I closed my eyes against his chest. A sigh left me with his arms firm around me.

My home. At that moment all the anxiousness and tiredness from all the incidents washed off from my body. I was in my Ace's arms.

Snuggling his nose into my hair, he inhaled deep. "Where were you? I was waiting for you to come here so that we can leave for home." "In my cabin. Matt told me you were busy in a meeting," I mumbled into his arms.

"That wasn't important. And even if it was important, you should've come and stayed with me. I don't like it when you're not before my eyes."

A smile touched my face. Kissing his chest, I looked up at him. "I'll keep it in mind."

"Good. Now can we go home? I want to spend some quality time with my Rosebud."

I nodded, not saying anything.

What secret he was hiding from me?

His grey eyes narrowed. "What happened, baby? Is anything bothering you?"

I gazed into his beautiful grey orbs. Those little black and golden streaks around the grey, had me breathless.

Raising my hand, I grazed his cheek. "Ace, now that we're in a relationship, I want everything to be proper. There should be no boundaries between us, no restrictions, no hesitation."

Cupping my cheeks, he brushed his lips against mine, kissing the corner of my mouth softly. "There's no boundaries between us, my rose. And if there's, I will wipe them off. Nothing can come between us, not even a single gust of air." "I want to know everything about you, Ace. Everything that I don't know."

"You know everything about me, baby. What more do you want to know?" He frowned.

I held his gaze. "Your past. Everything about your past."

He stiffened. Something flashed across his eyes.

But it was gone soon as he kissed my forehead.

"What do you want to know?"

I was surprised at the ease his stance was radiating. I'd have believed he wasn't bothered by my words if his grey eyes weren't so blank that I couldn't trace even a hint of emotions. And it unnerved me. "Where's your mom?" I asked. "After your father's d***h, she was gone from your life. Where is she, Ace?"

His face remained neutral as he said, "She's in Italy now."

"Why did she leave you and Caleb like this? You had literally no one to look after you. Didn't you try to stop her?" As far as I knew, she always adored Ace and Caleb. But I didn't understand what had gone wrong then.

His grip tightened on my hips. "As I told you before, after my father's d***h, she couldn't take it, so she left. Due to her depression and habit of consuming alcohol, she needed an escape from her life and this place. To get herself better, she left us to Arthur and left for the UK for treatment. And then she couldn't come back, it'd bring too many bad memories for her to do that."

As he spoke, I didn't find any hint of hatred towards his mother. I thought he hated her for leaving him like that. But he didn't. Instead, he was giving me justification for her.

And she went to the UK for treatment? And now she was in Italy. Didn't she even try once to meet her son?

"You're still connected to each other? I mean, I understand why she doesn't want to return, but, doesn't she wish to meet you every once in a while?"

He nodded. "I do meet her on some occasions. Especially on her birthdays. But except that, we just talk sometimes on the phone."

The edge in his voice had my heart clench. He must miss her a lot. I noticed how he didn't say she wants to meet him, instead he said he meets her every once in a while. What made her turn into like this? Didn't she miss her son? "Do you miss her?" I whispered.

A muscle of his jaw ticked. He was holding off his emotions. "Sometimes."

I rubbed his chest to provide some comfort. "Why don't you talk to her everyday?"

He averted his gaze. "Because she doesn't like that. She had got out of her depression with a lot of difficulties. And seeing me and Caleb, means her past, brings her... unwanted memories."

Seeing her own son brings unwanted memories?

"But she does try. That's why we talk sometimes," he added. He still loved her no matter how much she stayed away.

My heart tugged for him.

Nodding my head, I cleared my throat. Come on, Emerald. Ask it.

"What happened to your father?" My eyes held his stormy greys. "Why did he commit s*****e?"