Stolen

Chapter 9

ARYA 

Ever since our moment in the HighKings lounge, Ace hasn't been talking to me much. I mean the small amounts of glances and gentle but slightly fake smiles he flashes my way bring a phantom feeling of his hand between my legs.  

Today I have planned to see my family, my cousins said that my mother was looking for me for some reason. She never cared before.

It would be easier if Ace weren't ignoring me like I had a disease. I asked him to come along with me, I told him some stupid reason I don't even remember but the truth is I don't want to face my father alone if he came. 

I walked towards the door of my room when someone opened it from the other side. Ace stood with my door nob in his hands dressed for today "Are you ready to go?" he asked looking me up and down. 

I wore leggings and a jumper "Yes, why did you dress so fancy?" I asked looking Ace up and down "Because I'm meeting your parents, I bought you I need to make a good first impression" I rolled my eyes at him. 

Ace smirked, and then I walked past him and down the stairs "We should get going if we are going to make it on time for the recommended time" Ace strolled down the stairs and towards the door. 

I told him "Ace, why are you trying to get us out of the house?" I crossed my arms looking up at him. 

Ace smiled "Get in the car," he said pushing my back out the door and pulling it closed. 

In the car Ace had Luca drive us so I sat in the back alone, playing with my hands nervous about what I was going to find when I got to this family meeting. After a long ass drives the car stopped at the house I called home for so many years it was way too small for us all to fit in. 

Ace opened the door for me "You should have dressed nicer" he said looking me up and down "I didn't need the judgemental looks from the family if I walked in there in a fancy dress with you" I pointed to him. 

We got up to the front door and Ace knocked, Luca watched from a distance. When the door opened my mother stood there looking very high and confused. 

"Who are you?" She asked holding a joint 

"It's me Arya" I sighed not noticing my reaching for Ace's hand until it wrapped around mine. 

"Nope, my Arya is in her room, has been for the last few weeks" She then slammed the door in our faces. 

I took a deep breath a tried not to cry, my mother thought I had been locked in my room for the last few months. Ace looked at the door blankly "So, I see why you didn't want to come here" He said looking down at me. 

I chuckled slightly "She wasn't always like that," We both started to walk back to the car "Before my father introduced her to the drugs she was kind and caring, she would make my lunch for school everyday and she would brush my hair at night and read me books." I sat in the backseat next to Ace who decided to join me. 

"When the drugs started to take over her, she stopped caring about me and my siblings, no more school lunches, no more school at all really she stopped paying the fees and they kicked us out, I was eight" 

Ace laid his hand on my thigh and squeezed for comfort. 

"At fifteen I got a job on a checkout at a store outside of our small town under a different name and they never asked questions, until one day my mother came in looking for her drug dealer and saw me then dragged me over my register, my manager fired me after that for false identity and my crazy ass mother"

I looked up at Ace and saw that he had a different look in his eye, one I hadn't seen before "Sorry for trauma dumping on you, you don't care I know" I wiped a tear from my cheek. 

Ace held my china nd forced me to look at him "Don't ever apologize for needing to ger things off your chest, I'm always here" Ace looked at me with almost sorrow eyes "Thank you Ace" I smiled up at him. 

As Luca turned a corner a group of people stood in the middle of the road holding guns and bats with nails sticking out of them. 

"Arya, wait here," Ace said loading his gun and following Luca out of the car. Ace held up his gun and I guess that frustrated the others and they just started shooting at us. 

I ducked behind the seat and curled up on the floor of the backseat. The sound of the gunshots hurt my ears but the sound of pain-filled screams is what scared me. But as long as the gunshots kept sounding there was still a chance that Ace was okay. 

Someone yelled, "Arya, come out rabbit!" My whole body froze and goosebumps ran up my spine. My cousin, he's the only person that ever called me rabbit so why was he shooting at me, and when did he get involved with these people?

I slowly looked up over the glovebox to see Zack holding a gun, but I first looked around to see Ace standing up which for some reason made me feel better about the situation. Ace stood still standing holding his gun pointed at Zack. 

I stayed still, I wanted to get out of the car and help but nothing would move. My head was telling me if I didn't move Ace would get shot and this still didn't get my legs to move me. 

But instead of Ace going down, I watched my cousin charge for the car, and then in one loud shot he fell to the floor with blood pouring from the middle of his forehead. 

Ace got back in the car and Luca started driving before I would get up from the floor. 

Ace had blood spilling from his arm "Oh god, are you ok?" I suddenly had the strength to move from my fetus position. 

Ace nodded "I just got grazed," He said looking up at me "I'm okay Arya, I promise" He held my hand and I felt a sense of comfort.

I had closure about my family, my mother couldn't have cared less and thought I was still in my room, My brother was nowhere to be seen, and my Cousin Zack tried to kill me. 

But I sat in the backseat with Ace I couldn't feel sorry for myself or wonder what comes next, I honestly for the first time in a long time felt safe and only worried about putting pressure on Ace's arm no matter how much he told me to sit down and don't worry.