The Trap Of Ace By Eva Zahan
Chapter 58

Chapter 58

"Came to meet my best friend. Why? I'm not allowed in Achilles Valencian's cave?"

I rolled my eyes. I knew inviting him in could cause a catastrophe if Ace comes and sees him here, but I couldn't just send him away. "It's not like that. Come in!"

He strolled inside as I opened the door wide for him.

"Coffee?" I asked while he looked around the penthouse, his hands stuffed into his pockets.

"Thanks!"

Nodding my head, I padded into the kitchen and he followed behind.

"So, what brought you here all of a sudden? You didn't tell me you were going to drop by."

"After last night, I thought to talk to you personally. I wanted to see if you're okay,” he replied. "I'm fine, Warner. Don't worry!" I put water on the stove.

"Did you ask him yet?" He watched me carefully.

A sigh left me as I shook my head. "I didn't get the chance. He isn't home since last night." One of his brows raised. "Home, huh?"

I ignored his bitter tone.

"I mean, his home." Though it's just been two days I was staying here, this penthouse just started to feel like home to me. Well, he was my home. So wherever he stays, my home resides there.

Once I made him a cup of coffee, we settled in the hall.

I just hope Ace doesn't show up at this moment.

"So, you got any more information on Arthur?"

Then something clicked in my head. How could I be so irresponsible? I forgot to tell him that Arthur knew about him and his detective cousin. "Unfortunately, no. We tried our best but..."

"You've to tell your cousin to stop investigating right now!" I cut him off, causing a crease to settle between his brows. "Arthur knows everything. And he even threatened me to stay out of his path."

His eyes widened. "What? S**t! That's what I was fearing about!" Shaking his head, his eyes landed back on me. "And what threat? Did he do anything to you? Are you okay?"

I nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. He just warned me to stay away otherwise... uh, you know what he can do."

I didn't want to involve him more into this by telling him what Arthur threatened me about. He already suspected Ace, I didn't want him to go after Ace's past any more. If Ace hid something from the world, there must be a reason behind it. Making everything worse wouldn't be a good idea.

"I'm really sorry, Warner. I shouldn't have involved you guys in this. Now you and your cousin also came into his eyes," I apologized. "Please stop whatever investigation your cousin is running. Thank you so much for your help, but I'll handle everything myself from now on."

Shaking his head, he took my hand in his. "It's not your fault, Em. It's me who offered help. And don't need to thank me, it's what friends do, right?" He smiled. "And there is no way you're also doing this anymore. It's risky, Em. Don't instigate him further. He already warned you once."

"I'm not scared of him. Nor am I gonna back out. He'll rot behind the bars. And I'll make sure of that!" Determination etched through me.

It was just a matter of time.

He let out a defeated sigh. "Why aren't you telling Achilles then? Arthur threatened you by showing his real face. Isn't that enough for Achilles to believe you? Or you also think that he's involved with his uncle's sins?"

I snatched my hand from his, giving him a pointed look. "We're not doing this again, Warner. I told you not to assume anything before you've solid proof against him."

"Solid proof? Didn't you hear what I told you last night?" His voice rose, jaw tightened. "He destroyed every proof that could prove his father's m****r before the world. He's saving a criminal. A heinous criminal to say. And you're saying not to assume anything? I can't believe you, Em!"

"You don't know the whole story. Whatever happened years ago, we don't know anything about it. Even the man you talked to. There must be a reason why Ace did it, or there's also a possibility that he didn't even do anything! That man could be talking about someone else." I tried my best to keep my tone calm. "So, please. Until I know the whole truth, I don't want to hear any more about this topic. It's my and Ace's personal matter, Warner. I'd like you to stay away." A dry chuckle left him, sadness flashing across his eyes. "I almost forgot that you're not my Em anymore."

I averted my gaze. I should've felt guilty right now, but I didn't. He was crossing his limits now. I had to stop him.

"I'm still your Em, your best friend, Warner. It's just that, things are different right now. I really appreciate your concern for me, but trust me, Ace isn't what you think he is. Even if I believe your words that he's lying to me, there must be a reason for that. Because I know, he wouldn't do anything to hurt me intentionally. He loves me, Warner," I said, softly.

His brown orbs met mine. "Even I'd loved you, Em. But that didn't make you stick with me that much you're doing it for him."

"Warner..."

He rubbed his face. "I'm sorry! I again crossed my limits, didn't I? I just... can't accept the thing that you're with someone else now."

I sighed. "It's for the better, Warner. No matter how much I loved you as a friend, I never loved you as a lover. My heart was always for someone else, and you knew that. We weren't meant to be together. Even if Ace hadn't come into the picture and somehow we were still together, trust me, Warner, any of us couldn't stay happy. I could never make you happy. So it was necessary to end it before we made it worse."

"Well, that's just your opinion. Because I was very happy with you in our relationship."

But I wasn't. I wanted to add, but decided against.

"There's someone out there who's worthy of your love, Warner. Someone who can give you equal love in return of your affection. And I'm sure, you'll replace her soon," I whispered. "Anyways, let's not talk about it anymore. How's everything going in your life? You're probably going back soon to Seattle, right? I'm quite impressed that your boss let you take leave for that long. I thought he was a snob?" Taking a sip on his coffee, he shrugged. "I quit my job."

"What?" I gaped. "But why? I thought working in such a massive company was your dream? Everything was going smooth, then what happened all of a sudden?" His gaze locked with mine. "Achilles Valencian happened."

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

He let out a sigh. "As you already know that my boss was an a*s. I didn't know why, but he had an allergy with me taking any leave. So even when I wanted some days of leave for Tess's wedding, he denied. Of course, my main purpose was to meet you. But I couldn't stay there in Seattle without sorting things out with you. Yes, I was mad with you, but there was still some hope that I could win you back." Casting me a glance, he cleared his throat. "Anyways, so I didn't wait for his approval and left. I just told him that I was sick and can't be present for some days."

"Then what's the problem?" I probed.

"The problem is that the owner of the company got to know about my leave and demanded my immediate presence in the office. And if I didn't do it, I'd have to lose my job." His laughter was dry. "I was surprised that why an owner of a multi billionaire company would be interested in an ordinary employee's leave? So I looked him up on G****e. And guess what? What a coincidence, my big boss and your boss turned out to be friends."

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Now my frown deepened. A warning bell rang at the back of my mind. "Friends? You mean, Ace's friend?"

He nodded. "Can you connect the dots? Now I understand why among so many candidates, some even from most prestigious colleges, they chose me. They made me shift to Seattle. Or should I say he made me. To keep me away from you." I just stared at him, flabbergasted. I didn't know what to say.

Did Ace really send Warner to Seattle to keep him away from me?

"How can you be so sure?" My tone low.

He threw me a look of disbelief. "After everything I told you, you're still trying to defend him? Isn't everything clear? He clearly told his friend to get me a job in his company so that I'd have no way but to leave you behind. So that he could have his chance with you. And he did! He took you away from me!"

His fists clenched and unclenched, eyes flashing with anger.

"That's why I didn't fall into his trap again. I quit the job even if my boss told me that if I quit the job just like that, it'd breach the contract they made me sign. And I'd be responsible for the big red mark on my career." His jaw ticked. "But I couldn't let him win this time. So I quit. And Achilles Valencian did what he said. He literally made sure I didn't get any job anywhere. First he took you away from me, and now he ruined my career."

"I can't believe this!" Putting my head into my hands, I let out a breath.

What the h**I is wrong with him? What the f**k was running into his head when he did all these things?

He couldn't just let his possessiveness ruin someone's career, for G*d's sake!

That freaking p***k!

"Now you know why I keep telling you that he's not the right person for you? You're an obsession for him, Em. He wanted to get you at any cost. And he did. But trust me, Em, obsession doesn't stay for long. Once he gets bored with you, he'll toss you around like you're nothing."

His words didn't reach my ears, because all I could think about was how to smash something into his head when he comes home back. Rage boiled into my veins like a lava. How dare he do that to Warner?

I looked up at him. "I'm so sorry, Warner. I don't know what to say... I'm extremely sorry. I'll talk to him, don't worry. Everything will be fine. You'll get back your job, I promise."

He shook his head. "So you're still not leaving him? Even after everything?"

Closing my eyes, I pinched the bridge of my nose. "I love him, Warner. I can't just leave him like that."

He stared at me for a moment and then averted his eyes. Nodding slowly, he got up. "I guess I should leave now. And you don't have to talk to him about my job. I'll do something myself. Thanks for offering help." "Warner, stop!" I stood up as he turned to leave. "Don't leave just like that. I'm extremely sorry, but..."

"It's okay, Em. You don't need to say sorry. I should've known that no matter how much I try, I can't take his place in your heart. I've to be somewhere right now. I'll see you later." And then he was out of the sight. My shoulders slumped. The broken look in his eyes made my heart ache. I didn't want to hurt him. But still, I did. And to add salt on his wounds, my freaking boyfriend just ruined his career!

He has a lot of answering to do!

But where the h**I was he?

Picking up my phone, I called him again. But it went to the voicemail again.

Letting out a curse, I threw the phone on the couch. It bounced off and dropped on the floor. It definitely had a crack on its glass.

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But I didn't care to pick it up again. To get some fresh air, I took my purse and stormed out of the penthouse.

I needed to collect some clothes back from my home. And to have a small chat about my sudden relationship with Mom and Dad of course. They had been nagging to know what was going on with me and that p***k!

And yes, as much as I was angry at him, I was going to come back. Otherwise, how'd I get to knock some sense into his thick head?

***

Parking my car before the office building, I got out with my duffle bag.

Heavy breeze blew my hair in different ways as the thunder cracked among the dark sky. The hefty clouds covered the moon completely tonight, inducing an ominous ambience around.

The sudden change of the weather in this early winter was kinda unexpected. It was a good sunny day today. But now it seemed it'd pour at any moment.

Greeting the watchman, I strolled inside and got into the VIP elevator. Due to the bad weather, most of the employees seemed to be in a hurry to leave earlier tonight.

Because of all the tension and headache he gave me, I didn't join the office today.

I didn't know if the devil was home yet or not. As I didn't take my phone with me, I didn't get any calls from Carter or anyone else, nor did I call him. I was even thinking to give him a silent treatment for leaving like that all of a sudden and doing that to Warner.

My jaw clenched at the thought of what he did. He had a lot of answering to do!

Meeting with my parents went smooth. I was grateful that they didn't ask many questions about why I didn't take him along. He was supposed to go there with me. But they were actually pleased that I decided to give Ace a chance. But I didn't think they would be happy if I had told them what their favorite Achilles Valencian did.

Shaking my head, I padded out of the elevator as the doors slid open.

The bodyguards' postures were too stiff than usual and their nods were tighter than normal.

What's with them tonight?

The sound of lightning reached my ears again as I walked into the penthouse and closed the doors behind me.

A frown was immediate to form between my brows.

The lights were off. But I left them on.

Was he home?

Shrugging off my coat, I trudged inside. Goosebumps crawled across my skin as the cool air touched my b**e arms.

The hall's lights were dimmed and the eerie silence suddenly unnerved me.

And then I saw a shadow. Sitting on the couch, its posture was slightly leaned forward with its elbows rested on its knees.

My heartbeat ran fast. "A-ace, is that you?"

And the only reply I got was silence.