Ace looked around his safe house in contentment. He could not devote much of his time to it because he kept attending different meetings and negotiations which he believed his father deliberately sent him to do so as to keep him busy.His father had told him that since he was the leader of the Black Scorpions, it was important for him to deal with their business partners personally. He was only able to come to his safe house after the meetings and he always sent his underlings back home each time because he could not afford for anyone of them to find out about this place.He just needed to stock the place with a few more necessary supplies and it would be all set. He had one more meeting tomorrow and then he was going to take a break. He decided that after stocking the place tomorrow, he would move Ava at night. That will give him the opportunity to spend more time with her. And, it would also keep her safe from whatever Gina or his father may be planning.He didn't know if Ava did
Morning came quicker than Ava had hoped. When she woke up from sleep, she realized that Ace was still lying beside her. She turned her body and stared at him. Why did she have to wake up to him by her side on a day that she really needed him gone?She wished she could say goodbye to him but that wasn't going to be possible as she would only end up giving herself away. Ace woke up and realized that Ava was already awake. He told her about his plans for the day and asked that they shower together.After bathing, Ace ate breakfast with Ava and kissed her goodbye. When he had left, Ava waited to hear from Gina. She wanted to know when precisely her plan of escaping would begin but she didn't know how to reach her since she didn't give her number to her. Gina had said she was going to call her when the time was right but Ava wished that she could speak to her at that moment to understand how everything would work out. She thought of going out to ask Ace's dad who hated her but was apparen
Ava sat on the bed waiting for Gina's next call. She had said she would call her in about an hour and it was almost time. She wondered why Gina hadn't called yet and became even more afraid when she thought of the possibility of their plans not succeeding. Of all the attempts she had made to escape from Ace, this was the one that seemed very much possible, not only because she had a phone and everything was carefully planned out but, because there were powerful people on the inside who were supporting her. She knew they had their own motives but it didn't matter. What was more important was getting her freedom from Ace and his life of crime.She picked up her phone which was lying just beside her on the bed to check if it no longer had a signal but just at that moment, Gina's call came in. Ava quickly picked up the call while Gina said, "the coast is clear, Ava. You can leave now. The black Toyota is parked just outside the house and the keys are on top of it. Take the keys and driv
Ace checked the brakes and realized that they were indeed faulty. He noticed that Ava wasn't putting on her seat belt and told her to do so immediately. Ava was already panicking. She stared at Ace with a guilty expression and said, "there's no seatbelt, Ace."Ace stared at where the seatbelt was meant to be and instantly knew that Ava had been plotted against, and the enemy's plan was most certainly to send her to her death. He recalled how Gina had once visited her in his room and knew that this was either her plan or his fathers' since none of his underlings had the liver to openly go against him in such a way. He also thought of the possibility of Gina and his father working together to get rid of Ava and sighed sadly.Ava did not trust Gina from the start. She had only thought that Gina was trying to send her away from Ace for her own selfish motives but she had no idea that Gina could go this far. When she had already agreed to everything Gina wanted, why did she see the need
Ace's eyes shot open when Gina accidentally shot at the roof of the church. His vision wasn't very clear but he knew that they were in danger. He looked behind him and noticed that a part of the car had already caught fire.He quickly picked up his gun which had fallen beside his leg and said to Ava, "quick, open the door and get out. We don't know who is shooting at us but it's not safe to remain in the car. Move on your knees and quickly get into the church. Crawl as fast as possible."Ava was full of fear at this point but she knew better than to argue with Ace at a time like this. She had already taken off her seat belt after the crash and opened the door. So, she quickly came down and began crawling to the back door of the church which was coincidentally left unlocked.Ace quickly followed behind her and they opened the door and crawled into the church, however, Ava's phone fell off just before she entered the church and neither of them noticed before Ace closed the door.Ace saw
When Richard went into the church, he saw the priest standing at the altar and speaking on the phone. He seemed really upset and Richard wondered if it was because Ace and Ava had passed through the church.He took out his badge and showed it to the priest, causing the latter to sigh in relief. He realized that the gun in his hand may have made the priest uncomfortable and hid it in his jacket as he asked, "did you see an injured guy and girl pass through here?"The priest said, "yes, they went out through that door." He pointed at the door Ava and Ace had used.Richard thanked the priest and quickly hurried out of the church. When he came out, there was no sign of either of them but he did see an unconscious man on the ground and knew that Ace must have put him in that condition.He went to the man and just at that moment, the man opened his eyes. Richard heaved a sigh of relief and took out his badge while the man got up and began screaming for his car.Richard showed the man his ba
Ava closed her eyes, "get it over with at once, Ace because I am already tired of living like this."She heard the sound of Ace's gun when he cocked it and wondered if he was really going to shoot her.After seeing him risk his life in order to save her, Ava was convinced that Ace did not want her dead but could she have been wrong?She was still lost in her thoughts when he held her hand again and dragged her forward. He knew Richard must have located the car he had driven and was most likely in the supermarket searching for him.Ava had opened her eyes at this point but could not do anything. Ace stopped and pulled open the rug in one part of the room. Ava was surprised when she saw something that looked like a locked monitor.He typed a seven digit code into it and the ground suddenly opened up to reveal a ladder below it. He asked her to get in and when she did, he followed behind her.After entering inside, Ace typed in the same code into the screen on the wall and the ground clo
Ava pulled her hand away and said, "just hold on, Ace, I will be right back."Ace tried to tell Ava that there were more than enough medical supplies in the store but he could barely form the words. He watched in frustration as she went up the ladder. Ava stopped halfway and stared at the gun, wondering if it was a good idea to carry it. She did not know if Ace's enemies were lurking outside or inside the supermarket but she also knew that she would not be able to pull the trigger.She thought about it briefly and gave up the idea of carrying the gun. It was better not to attract attention with it. She quickly typed in the code and the door opened. After that, she pushed up the rug and came out. She left it open, just in case she needed to hurry back.As she got to the door, she peeped to see if there was anyone outside but there was no one. She knew it was because the room was at the back and it was a private room. This was an added advantage for her though. She slowly and quietly o
When the quarterly gang meeting ended, Ace took hold of Ava's hand and left the venue.His father had already returned to the Black Scorpions mansion and was waiting for him. With Black Axe as their driver, Ava and Ace got into the car and went to the mansion.As they made their way into the house, all the gang members came out and bowed before Ace. He looked at them one after the other and saw those who were responsible for the fights within the gang. The expressions on their faces already showed that they were guilty as they carried nothing but fear.Ace nodded at them all and whispered a few words into the ears of Black Axe who was by his side before leading Ava into the mansion.His father was waiting for him in his private room and Ace headed right there with Ava in his hand.When he got to the door, the gang member who was guarding it bowed and said, "I'm sorry Scorpion but she's not allowed to enter.""It's fine. I'll just wait for you outside." Ava said but Ace wasn't having it
Valerie woke up in the morning and looked at the time. Today was the day she had been waiting for—the day the result of her interview would arrive. She got up and met her elder brother, Julius, who was in the living room."Good morning, Julius," she greeted him."Morning, darling," he replied.She sat on the couch sadly. "What is the problem?" he asked."Well, the result will be coming in today. I'm just so anxious and afraid," Valerie explained."Why? Come on, you graduated as one of the best in your college. Besides, you aced your interview," Julius reassured her."That's what they said," Valerie replied, "but I heard that people who get jobs in that hospital are highly connected. Although it has always been my dream to work at 'Best Diagnostics', I'm afraid it's not just about qualifications and skills."Julius comforted her, saying, "Don't worry, listen to me, my dear sister. Just do your best and everything will work out in your favor.""I hope so," Valerie replied. "It should arr
TWENTY-SEVEN YEARS LATERAndre drove over to Sky Hills with his best friend and most trusted underling. They sat in his car, waiting. After a while, he looked at his time and then his best friend, Drew, and asked, "Are you certain that Bull will be here?""Of course, I would never lie to you," Drew replied. "He has bitten off more than he can chew, and this is the best opportunity. He should know that he doesn't stand a chance against the leader of the Black Scorpions. He is nothing before you."Andre nodded. "Yeah, today is the day he gets to say goodbye to this world. But what about backup?""They were waiting at the agreed location but they will be arriving very soon."While Andre and Drew were still waiting in the car, Andre noticed other men arriving in different cars with the Black Scorpion logo on their number plates. He smiled, "Good, backup is here." The words had barely left his mouth when they all began to shoot at his car."What is going on?" he exclaimed, looking at Dre
Ace smiled at Ava, "Hello, princess."She ran to the bed and hugged him as she cried."It's okay," he said. "I'm sorry, baby." Black Axe opened the door and walked in at that point. Ace looked at him with eyes that said, "I asked you not to do this, so why did you do it?" Black Axe smiled, "I'm sorry, boss. I know you wanted to protect Ava, but I had to do this for both of you. I couldn't see her being so miserable, and I also need you to get well as soon as possible. I know that having Ava here will achieve that. Please forgive me. I will take whatever punishment you give." Ace smiled. "As if.....I guess you know me better than I know myself, and you know what's best for me. Thank you, Black Axe. Thank you very much."Black Axe nodded and turned to leave, but Ava got up and said, "Hold on Black Axe. Thank you so much. I wish there was a way I can repay you for everything." "Just make Ace happy, that's all I ask." After Black Axe left, Ava went back to the bed and hugged Ace, "Oh
ONE WEEK LATER Ace opened his eyes and surveyed the room he was lying in. It was a hotel room, and he immediately recognized it as his own private hotel that was not open to the public. Only Black Axe knew about this place, so the fact that he was here meant that Black Axe had brought him here. He recollected what had transpired—he was shot but he fell into the water. Just before he lost consciousness, Black Axe pulled him out and took him away. He recalled that Gina and her men had been pursuing Ava. Ignoring his pain, he sat upright and began to sweat profusely, "Ava, what must have happened to Ava?"At that moment, Black Axe entered the room and happily said, "Boss, you have opened your eyes." "What about Ava?" Ace desperately inquired. "She survived," Black Axe replied. A sigh of relief escaped Ace's lips. "Thank you, thank you so much, Axe." He laid back on the bed and asked, "What happened? How did she survive?""Well, her police officer friend, Richard, came to her rescu
Ace led Ava into the house and they both settled in. Ava noticed that Ace had already stocked both the kitchen and refrigerator with all the necessary items. "So smart and thoughtful," she said to herself.Ace insisted on cooking for the both of them despite Ava's disapproval. She wanted to do the cooking because Ace had already done so much throughout the day but in the end, she couldn't win against him.Ace wanted to make the day amazing for her and it included making lunch for her. He had decorated one of the rooms with inscriptions on the walls because he wanted to ask Ava to marry him. He locked the door though because he did not want Ava to figure out the surprise he had for her. When he insisted on cooking alone, Ava let him have his way and went outside the house.She stood at the top and stared at the water below. It was so beautiful that she could not resist taking a few pictures with her new phone. After taking some pictures, she began to make a video. An idea suddenly oc
Ava pulled Ace's face closer and kissed him. Ace kissed her back and in no time, they were both naked, while his fingers played with the folds in between her legs. When he got a feel of her juice, he entered into her and their bodies became one as they swore their undying love for each other.Gina sat inside her bedroom thinking about her wedding to Ace which would happen in four days. At least, something good came out of her injuries.She knew for a fact that Ace would not allow the war to take place so his only choice would be to marry her. If he insisted on keeping Ava by his side after their marriage, she will turn a blind eye to it until after giving birth to a child for him.She would use the child and force Ace to give up Ava. After that, she would have her revenge, and no matter how upset he would get if he found out the truth, Ace wouldn't be able to cause any harm to the mother of his child.While Gina was still daydreaming, her father received a call from Ace's dad. He was
The next morning, both Ace and Ava left his guest house in the company of his underlings. Ace told them to go ahead of him because wanted to do something first. They parted ways and his underlings went to the Black Scorpions' Mansion but Black Axe secretly followed Ace."Why aren't we going to the Black Scorpions' mansion?" Ava asked Ace when they were alone."I need to ensure your safety first," Ace replied. "For now, I will drop you off at my safe house. I don't want your life to be unnecessarily put in danger." Ava nodded her head, "Okay, Ace."Ace parked his car by the roadside and Black Axe noticed him and Ava come out of the car and head into the supermarket. He recalled that night when they had searched for Ace around there and became convinced that Ace had a personal hideout. He decided to give him his privacy and waited for him on the other side of the road.Ace typed in the password and opened the door, after which he let Ava in. Once they were inside, he changed into a ne
After making sure that Gina had been thrown out, Ace went to Ava and lifted her off the ground.His underlings watched in silence as he took her into the house. They knew that what had just happened would bring about unfavorable consequences.The gang member who had given away Ace's location felt deep regret and worried that Ace would be very interested in knowing how Gina came to know about his whereabouts.However, how Gina came to be in his guest house was the last thing on Ace's mind. He laid Ava on the bed and placed his hand on her stomach, "Does it still hurt? Are you feeling pain in any other part of your body?"Tears fell from Ava's eyes as she replied, "I was in pain but I'm much better now and I am very worried about you. With what just happened, I fear that your life will be in danger."Ace wiped Ava's tears, "I am very sorry, princess. I've said that I would protect you but today you got hurt right in front of me. I never should have turned my back on Gina. I was struggli