One Hundred and seventy nine

CHAPTER 179

The sound of a creaking door alerted Ace. He had just entered Amanda's house, a house that had been abandoned for more than five years. The events that happened to Amanda had been happening for several years, precisely when she was still in high school. The incident where she finally found Alicia, her adopted sister who had disappeared for a long time.

Amanda doesn't know whether she should call Alicia missing or leave her. But when a fire hits her family, leaving both parents burned to the ground without a trace, Alicia is adopted by Amanda's parent's partner. But why Alicia? Why did everyone leave Amanda alone, in this harsh world?

Amanda is angry, she holds a grudge and will seek revenge one day. And that's when karma brings her together with Alicia. She had an opening. There is a chance to get back at Alicia from their unfinished past story. But when Amanda manages to end it, she will still return to that house. The old house was left behind by her other parents. Amanda is being raised by her mother's distant relative, who is probably more like a stranger than a relative since they never met before.

She was a good woman. Too bad she died while Amanda was in prison for her bad attitude. She was ill, and left her large, empty house to Amanda, as the only heir she had. But Amanda had already made up her mind, she built her own castle. She created her own kingdom and now...

Amanda left the old house to Ace for one million dollars.

Ace's brown eyes wandered around, he felt quite satisfied after seeing how empty and deserted the house was. Ace looked at the ornaments available there one by one, and Ace felt that they would be of great help to him.

The location of the house was indeed near the main road, but he had no neighbors. From the back, the house would directly lead to a path into the forest. A place that Alicia and Nicholas had previously explored.

"It's a nice place, but I won't be fooled," Ace muttered when he realized something.

The American man scanned the corners of the room, there were several CCTV cameras there. But Amanda had made the cameras look damaged, with some lines and thick dust deliberately placed near them.

"I know your game, Amanda," sighed Ace, then went to the room at the back of the house.

Ace found one CCTV camera in the room, but pretended to ignore it. He lay on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. Ace had just escaped from prison, he had successfully fought Angela's men, and he had even talked to Wilson who was in a coma. What else would he do to survive in this world without Alicia?

His goal is to take Alicia away with him, save her from the woman he calls "Mom" and keep her safe.

But when Ace closed his eyes, he was struck by Alicia's expression. Alicia was now afraid of him. The girl looked at him differently, it was like sadness, disappointment and fear.

"Is Alicia afraid of me now?"

Ace got up from the bed, and then opened the nightstand beside his bed. And his assumption was correct, he found the gun that Amanda had prepared. A short-barreled pistol that he could keep under his belt.

After making sure he had everything he needed, Ace quickly got into the car and headed to a clothing store in a corner of New York City. There was a young woman there, wearing a white T-shirt and a short green skirt.

"Welcome, I-"

The girl's words didn't finish when her eyes met Ace's.

Ace waved a hand, then grinned slyly. "How are you, Selena?"

The bell rang as Ace walked in, and Selena, the young woman at the counter, looked up with a friendly smile that froze as her eyes met Ace's. The air thickened with tension, and Ace's eyes fell. The air thickened with tension, and Ace couldn't help but enjoy the uneasiness it caused.

"How are you, Selena?" Ace greeted, his voice carrying a sinister tone.

The young woman stammered, her eyes looking up nervously. "I-I'm fine. Can I help you?"

Ace chuckled, enjoying the discomfort it brought. "I need something special. Something that screams 'I'm not here to play games'."

Hearing that it was a sarcastic sentence, Selena panicked. She turned around, about to run from Ace who apparently knew Selena's movements. Ace chased after Selena and stood in the girl's way with a devious grin on his gray lips.

"You're going to go get me some new clothes, aren't you?" It was clearly a sarcastic question from Ace.

Selena gulped down saliva with difficulty, and the shirt she was holding fell to the floor. She was really agitated. But finally, Selena dared to open her mouth. "What-what do you want, Ace? I've told you everything."

Ace looked around. There was no one there but Ace and Selena. The clothing store run by Selena was not doing well. The stocks of clothes hanging up still looked the same as the last time Ace visited in secret. Selena must have had financial problems, so she couldn't expand her business.

"I want new clothes. I'm going to meet someone, ask her out, eat caramel ice, and make love," Ace whispered in Selena's right ear. That scared Selena even more, as she knew Ace was a convicted felon on the run now. "But I can't find the best clothes in my closet. So, can you help me with that?"

When Ace lowered her face and looked Selena intensely in the eyes, that's when Selena seemed to melt. She was drugged by Ace's good looks, while at the same time entangled in the fear she had created inside her head.

"You're... willing to help me, aren't you?"

And Selena could only swallow without being able to say anything more to the person in front of her. Selena looked around and she know she can’t do anything.