Rule #1: Never Date An A.C.E. [COMPLETED]

Chapter 31: Rule #7: Ace Agents Never Back Down From A Fight

Vortex.

"It suits you, love," Dylan came to stand next to me, taking my hand in his own. I smiled up at him, squeezing his hand.

"I like it," I answered, turning back to my friends. "So, Levi, what's the plan?"

Levi adjusted his glasses, typing on his tablet, "The Three Princes, and whoever the hell else they are choosing to bring with them, are twenty minutes out." He glances up to us, "That gives us enough time to funnel them through one entrance."

"What would we want that?" Alex piped up, fingering her bow. Boone nodded his head in agreement.

Vanessa stepped in, "It's probably because there are quite a few ways to get into Ace." She paused, looking toward Levi for confirmation. When he nods for her to continue, she does, "We can't cover all the entrances and there are plenty of places to hide. If we get them to enter one, it'll be easier to attack."

"How are we going to divert all the entrances?" I quirked an eyebrow, curious. "It doesn't sound like we have enough time to do so."

Levi smirked, "We do if we put Ace on lockdown." With one swipe of his finger, alarms began to wail. Within a few seconds, the sound had quieted and all the Ace agents had gathered around us.

Dylan turned to the agents around us, "Ace. The Three Princes are coming. Get prepared." And with that, the agents began filing in the same direction. We get swept up with the group, and I asked Vanessa, who ended up beside me, where we were going.

"The Armory," she grinned with a glint in her eye. "You can finally stock up on some weapons." I pat the whip against my chest but agree some extra weapons would be handy. Similar to the Closet, the Armory is a massive warehouse with weapons galore. Various knives, guns, ammunition, and bows and arrows lined the walls. I spotted Alex near the bows, refilling her quiver, as well as strapping two handguns at her hips. Vanessa and Levi were choosing knives, while Boone was shouldering a massive gun to his back, as well as holding another in his arms. I chose two knives, attaching them to sleeves on my thighs. I also chose a handgun, placing it in a holster, adjusting the whip to all for easier movement.

"You've never looked sexier," Dylan's rough voice sounded from behind me. I turned, slowly, meeting his smoldering eyes.

I took a step forward, placing a hand on his chest and whispering, "I'll look sexier when it all comes off." I felt him shutter underneath my fingers, and I remove my hand, smirking. The agents finished up, and quickly the room fell silent. The eyes of Ace were watching my friends and me.

It looked as though we were the leaders of an army.

I decided to speak, stepping in front of my friends to address the intense audience. "The Three Princes know Ace," I started, making eye contact with as many agents as possible. "They know the exits, they know the rules, and they probably know how we think," I paused, allowing the information to sink in. "Despite everything I just said, we will fight them, and we will win."

"Rule number seven," Dylan stepped forward to stand beside me.

I looked at him in confusion before the audience yelled in unison, "Ace agents never back down from a fight!" With that, Boone led the fired-up agents from the room and to wherever the only entrance was to Ace. We followed along behind, their energy increasing our own.

"Do you think we're actually going to win?" I said quietly to Dylan, my fears ebbing to the surface. He stopped me and pulled me close for a passionate kiss before staring into my eyes.

"I hope so, because I would love to taste those lips again before I die," he smiled and I rolled my eyes. We ran to catch up to the ground, who had gathered outside the training room.

"The tunnel," I mumbled to myself, remembered how the Three Princes had kidnapped me. Ace had been in lockdown then too. As the final minutes ticked down, we waited in terse silence.

"They're here," Levi said loudly, shoving his tablet behind a training mat, before assuming a threatening stance as well. We stared at the spot on the floor so intensely that I thought we might bore holes through the concrete.

Abruptly, an explosion sounded off, and we tore our eyes from the ground. Dust filled the air, and I had slightly ringing in my ears.

We just lost the upper hand.

The Princes lackies swarmed the hallway behind us, furiously shooting through the first wave of Ace agents. It only took a second for us to react, but within that second, a quarter of the agents had been killed. We sprang into action. I unwound my whip, brandishing it at anyone who dared to come near me. I had it wrapped around an unknown woman's neck when my hair was pulled, ripping me off her. I glared at the person through the still-settling dust, when his eyes came into view.

"Aiden," I hissed, standing. He held no weapons, so I pulled my gun out and pointed it at him.

He wrinkled his nose, "You'd shoot an unarmed man?"

"You hurt a defenseless woman," I bit back and Aiden shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm not the one with the moral high ground." He walked towards me but stopped a foot away. The fight continued around us as I glared at one of the men that used to be my best friend.

"You don't have to do this," I said slowly. "You can just call off your men and give up. I don't want to kill you."

"See, that's where you and I differ," Aiden cocked his head sideways. "I do want to kill you. But, currently, that is not my call to make."

"When did Luca become the head of everything you're doing?" I spat and Aiden raised his eyebrows.

"You really haven't figured it out yet, have you?"

"What do you mean?" My brows furrowed in confusion. "It's always been you, Luca, and Dean."

"And you, Princess," Aiden called me by the name from the game, and I took a step backward. "Don't you remember who played the King and Queen in our little game?"

"There's no way," I whispered, staring at Aiden with fear. Aiden sided-stepped, revealing the people behind him. I dropped my gun my hands began shaking so hard.

"Mom? Dad?"