A Warm Hart Has A Cold Revival (sequel to A Cold God Found His Warm Hart)

Chapter 16: Ace's past

It's been two days since I admitted my darkest horrors to my comrades, and since then we've made considerable progress. Austin says we're less then a couple of hours away from the border that connects us to the ocean. The closer we get the more anxious I am to get this adventure over with and be back with my beautiful queen Aceleve.
"Roy" I called. I felt the icy glare on my face as I continued to stare down at my boots to keep from falling on the green terrain. Even though time and words have passed since his declaration of death upon me, I know Roy fully remembers our conversation.
"It's time I asked what you remember of your parents" I told him. I watched his tone back grow stiff at my question.
"I don't remember anything. When I try to think of my mothers face all I can think of is Aceleve's. The only childhood memories I have are at the orphanage with Ace taking care of me. I was too young to remember anything of my parents or when I first arrived at the orphanage. That's why what Damian said continues to circle my brain" he told me, never turning around to face me.
"What about discovering your water powers?" I asked again.
"I discovered them only a few years ago, when I was sixteen. It happened after a football game. I had injured my shoulder really bad and they sent me to the locker room to take an ice bath and instantly I felt better. I was able to get into the game again the next quarter. It was crazy. And after that the powers became more powerful and prominent. I found that without training I was able to move the water and command it to whatever I wanted. Then with practice I've found that I can move bodies by taking command of the water inside them. It's not something I'm proud of." He admitted.
"Why?" I asked, curious.
"I've had to use it to kill someone" he admitted again. Surprise was apparent on my chiseled face at his words, I didn't think Roy was capable of murder.
"What happened?"
"One of the kids at the orphanage was touching Ace inappropriately, in front of everyone. He was removing her shirt and shorts until she was just in her underclothes. He was trying to get into her panties, and that's when I stopped him. I stopped his movements and flooded his lungs with water. Nobody was able to say for sure what happened, but nobody bothered Ace again" he finished. My heart wrenched as I thought about what that kid did to my Aceleve.
"That's not true Roy, Ace was bothered again. But I bet she never told you" I told him. Roy stopped in his tracks at my words. 
"What do you mean?" He asked, his voice deadly low. The rest of the team stopped as well, all listening to every word that I uttered.
"She told me a long time ago, remember when a family adopted Aceleve and left you at the orphanage" I began
"Yes"
"Well, she told me that she was treated horribly. The mother treated her like a slave and the father was no better. He tied her up against her will and used her as a sex toy, he shared her with his friends and they all took turns inside her. They burned her with cigarette tips and thought it was fun to shove their dicks in her mouth, along with every other opening of her. They made her sleep in the basement and live like an animal. It was inhuman" I finished. I watched as Roy's jaw clench shut and his hands turn to fists; Austin and Jackson were both silent, staring at their shoes, unable to make eye contact with the queens brother. Roy's eyes squeezed shut and with his other hand he covered his face to hid the tears. It all makes sense, why Ace was so reluctant to make love to me, she has never experienced sexual intimacy, only forced entry.
"That's why, that's why she was never the same after coming back from that family. And I had no idea" Roy chocked out.
"It's not your fault mate" I offered while putting a hand on his shoulder. The two brothers stepped forward as well and put their hands on his shoulder. We stood like that for several minutes, offering our support to the struggling warrior.
"Come, we're not far from the border" Austin said, breaking the silence. We all nodded in agreement and Roy took a deep breath to settle his emotions.
"Thank you for telling me" he whispered to me. I gave a silent 'you're welcome' and continued to walk
"I thought it was time you knew"
The words that hung over everyone's head made our walk unsettling and ominous.
"What else can you tell me about Aceleve's past? Can you remember anything else that was weird in her diary?"
"No. After that one night I found it I never saw it again" he told me. I nodded and pulled a tired hand over my face
"Aceleve, why am I still discovering secretes about your past, after all these years?"
As we walked I continued to think of the timeline that these events occurred. I remember Aceleve telling me that when she left and went to the new family she was about fourteen, she was old enough to have her mind powers. But from what Roy said about her exposure in the orphanage she would have had to been well into her teenage years, so why did she not defend herself? Why did she allow that evil boy to humiliate her like that? I have too many questions and not enough answers. Eventually, after we get this coma behind us and we're well into family life I will ask Aceleve about her past. I must know if what Roy says lines up with Ace's body language. I can not let Damian's words cloud my judgement of Aceleve. I believe her, and I trust her with every fiber of my being but for some reason I cannot get this doubt out of my head.
Suddenly, the wind shifted just slightly and the strong scent of salt water filled my nose, we're close to the waters edge, thank the gods.
"Do you all smell that?" I asked the group. Everyone paused and stuck their noses in the air and smiles appeared all around after another breeze stirred the leaves. We followed the wind and pushed aside the branches until we finally saw it, a coast line. I smiled with relief and stared out at the muddy bank.
"Alright, now that we're here I suggest we wait until nightfall to continue moving. We all need our rest and the cover of the night will help with stealth" Roy suggested, he's turning into a real leader. We all nodded at his words and retreated back into the cover of the trees and sat down on the earthy ground, awaiting the relief of darkness.