Ace

Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

The driver Brett had sent showed up after fifteen minutes. Ace would have tipped the man for his speediness if he could have focused on anything other than the sleeping girl on his lap. Evangeline had slept through the trip back to his house and was beginning to stir as they pulled into the driveway. Ace shushed her as they came up to the house. Brooke was outside waiting.

"What's so important?" She asked as soon as they were stopped. Ace didn't look up. She followed his eyes to the sleeping girl next to him. Evangeline.

She moved back for the driver to open the door and watched as Ace carefully picked the sleeping girl up and stepped out of the car with her. She followed Ace up to his bedroom and waited while he carried her into his closet. Ace came out with a shirt, presumably for Evangeline, and looked at Brooke.

"She's exhausted and needs a bath. I can't do it." 

Brooke nodded. She respected Ace, not just because he would be her leader, but for times like this. He wouldn't see Evangeline, the girl he had loved and lusted after for years, naked until she wanted it. As a woman, she appreciated that. 

Brooke walked into the bathroom and started the bath. Ace brought Evangeline in and put her in the tub, then turned around and left. Brooke took the clothes off of the thin girl and gasped. Evangeline was covered in scars and bruises. Many were new and unhealed.

There was a knock at the door. Ace must have heard her. "Brooke, is everything ok in there?" He sounded worried, but Brooke couldn't answer. She was sure her voice would be too uneven and Ace would come in. "I'm coming in. Ok?" She nodded even though he couldn't see her. 

Ace slowly opened the door to see Brooke sitting on the floor with a damp shirt in her hands, in her own world, and Evangeline in the bath. He looked her over and immediately saw what had Brooke so upset. Every inch below her neck was covered in pain. Ace took a deep breath to compose himself.

"She can't stay in there for too long. She will catch a cold."  

This snapped Brooke out of her reverie and she began cleaning Evangeline's body again.
Ace stepped out of the room. He went to his office and called up Alfred, the family doctor, and demanded he come up to the house. He also called Rob, the head of Evangeline's security, he told him to look into why no one knew about the pain Evangeline had been going through. He didn't care that it was one o'clock in the morning. He needed answers. He told Rob to get back to him in the morning ready with some answers or with his life and hung up. 

When the doctor came up, Ace took Doctor Alfred up the stairs. He knocked and Brooke answered the door. "She's still in shock." she whispered to him. Ace and Alfred walked in to Evangeline's frozen form sitting up in the bed. His bed. With his shirt on. Ace would have smiled under different circumstances. 

She looked toward the door and her eyes widened upon seeing Ace. She started fidgeting in the bed. It was clear he made her nervous. This made him frown. He didn't like making her nervous. He knew he was intimidating, but she was the only one who didn't have to be afraid of him. This made him angry. Someone had made her afraid of him.

Ace tried to force his anger down. She needed him and he couldn't let his anger cloud his judgement. He walked over to the bed and tried not to notice the very visible flinch from her as he neared. He came and stood by the head of the bed and turned to the doctor. "Check her over. No unnecessary touches. Just make sure she's ok." 

Evangeline tensed and Brooke stepped forward, "Maybe right now isn't the time for this." Evangeline made a timid shot at a smile at Brooke, but Ace shook his head.

"Everybody out." he said using his Don voice. Brooke and Alfred turned and headed out the door. Ace looked down to Evangeline shaking. He yearned to reach his hands out to calm her down, but he knew he couldn't do that. "Are you ok?" he asked quietly. She nodded. "Open your eyes." She opened them quickly. He could tell she was forced into obedience and he didn't like it. She probably thought she would be punished for not obeying. This made his anger flare up. She tensed and it died down. "I want to make you feel better. You have to let the doctor look you over." Evangeline looked down and nodded. "Look at me" She looked up and he saw the tears. "He won't hurt you. I'll kill him and anyone else that even thinks about hurting you." She was still crying and shaking when she nodded.

He went to let the doctor back in. "Hurt her, I kill you." Ace said in his Don voice. The doctor nodded and looked afraid. Good, Ace thought, he should be.

Ace sat with Evangeline for the whole check up. She cried softly the entire time and he wanted nothing more than to rub her back. But he knew couldn't. Brooke was also in the room for the check up. She cried with Evangeline. After the checkup, Alfred asked to speak with Ace in the hallway.

"She's been abused." he said. Ace's fists clenched. "It seems to have been going on for several years. There is severe trauma. You will have to be careful."

Ace nodded. Alfred prescribed some pain medication and went back in to pack up his things.

As Ace walked him out, a question came to mind. "Did you see evidence of drug abuse?" Ace asked. Alfred shook his head. This relieved Ace. The last thing she needed on top of everything else was the stress of getting off of a drug. He shook Alfred's hand and thanked him for his time. 

When he left, Ace ran upstairs to see Evangeline asleep and Brooke sitting in the chair he had moved earlier. Brooke stood up abruptly and walked towards him. He gave her a hug. To him, she was a little sister and seeing how much pain she had relived tonight had hurt him. "Please sleep in the room next door. She might need you when she wakes up." She nodded and left the room.

With that, Ace sat down next to the bed and grabbed Evangeline's hand and reflected on the past six hours. He was happy the love of his life was there, but he was sad about the circumstances of getting her there. He still wanted to know about the drugs and the late hour she was out. But most importantly he wanted to know who had done this to her and how he would make them suffer. With those things on his mind, he drifted into sleep.

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OK! Chapter 4! Thanks guys!

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Word Count:1196

Gabi