An eerie silence fell over the ambience for a moment while I stood there frozen. Only the sound of my own heavy breathing reached my ears.
Then I heard footsteps approaching from the other side of the door.
Oh, no! They’re coming!
I need to hide! I wouldn’t be able to run from them. They’d catch me if I ran.
Looking around frantically, I searched for a place to hide.
Rushing to the one of the doors, I tried to open it without making a noise. But to my utter bad luck, it was locked. I tried another, but to no avail. They were locked.
No, no, no! I can’t get caught! I can’t! I need to inform Ace about his plan.
My heart pounded under my rib cage as I went to the opposite side of the hallway and pushed on a door. And this time, it opened.
Almost letting out a sob of relief, I rushed in and quickly closed the door behind me, as silently as I could. The sound of doors being slammed open and their shoes hitting the floor harshly made me flinch.
They didn’t utter a word, but I could tell they were surveying the area.
Then I heard a voice, a cold thick Russian accent. “Search around.”
I gulped. Sweat rolled down my spine. With trembling knees and hands, I stood against the door with my back pressed against it.
Once several footsteps split up, the sound of doorknobs being jiggled, the doors being opened and closed reached my ears. Stopping myself from freaking out, I tried Ace’s phone again. But it was still unreachable!
Damn it! Why isn’t he switching on his phone?
“There’s no one on this side.” I heard one of them saying.
They must be the guards. Because neither Arthur nor Ivanov’s voice could be heard.
“Try this side. He or she must be still lurking around. They couldn’t have escaped in just a matter of seconds,” the cold voice stated. “Search every room. If the door is locked from inside, break it.”
My heart dropped.
My knees wobbled as I heard them opening and closing the doors. The ones are locked from outside, maybe they were left alone. Because I didn’t hear them breaking down any.
But they will soon.
With shaky hands, I typed a message to Ace, even though he wouldn’t see it anytime soon.
Ace, don’t leave the hotel! Please, I beg you! Your life is in danger. It’s Arthur. Please check my voice messages! And I’m here, in Diamond Valley. I need your help! Please call me as soon as you switch on your phone!
With tears rolling down my eyes, my throat clogging up, I tried my best not to let out a sob out of fear and anxiety.
I slapped my hand over my mouth to stop myself from screaming as I heard footsteps outside my door.
“Did you check this one?” the same cold voice asked.
“No. These three rooms are left,” answered another voice.
Then there was nothing. The other men continued to search around. No one tried to open my door, but I knew he was there.
My heart pounded in my chest so hard that I feared they would hear it. His footsteps came closer, right outside the door.
My eyes closed, letting the tears roll down my cheeks. Biting on my hand, I covered my cries. Praying continuously to God in my mind not to let them find me, I hugged my body, falling on the floor, curling into a ball.
I needed to go out. I needed to go to my Ace. I needed to save him.
More tears fell as helplessness filled my chest.
I didn’t know if I’d be alive to be able to tell him anything.
The doorknob jiggled, making me jolt.
With eyes wide in fear, tears blurring my vision, I watched the door in horror.
No, no, no! God, please!
Then came another.
Just as I closed my eyes, shrinking away from the door, Arthur’s voice cut in.
“Easy there, boys. There’s no one. Don’t worry, maybe some curious cat passed by.” His voice was nonchalant. “Let’s go now. We’re getting late. You guys need to reach the spot before Achilles does. Come on!”
With that, two pairs of footsteps walked away, followed by the others. And after a moment, I heard that man also moving away from the door and then leaving.
Slumping against the door, I let out a relieved sigh. Thank God!
Then I jumped to my feet and rushed out of the door.
I need to stop Ace before he leaves. I have to hurry up!
I waited for five minutes with all my inner strength. I knew I had to run to Ace, but I had to wait for Arthur and his people to leave this floor.
In the meantime, I tried to call Carter again, but to no avail.
Where the hell is he?
I didn’t have Ace’s guard’s phone numbers. There was no one I could call right now who could help me stop Ace.
Waiting long enough for them to leave this floor, I rushed down the hallway, remembering my way back to the staircase. The corridors were so long it took almost a lifetime to pass one.
Without stopping my legs, I called Tobias. Maybe he could help me in any way.
After some rings, just as he received the call, my phone was snatched from my hand.
Halting abruptly, I looked over my shoulder.
My breath caught in my throat, and a gasp slipped from my lips.
Standing before me were two of the guards who were with Arthur and Ivanov.
“Going somewhere, Ms. Hutton? You seemed to be in a rush,” the man with the same cold voice from earlier said. With an ugly scar running down from his left brow to his cheek, he towered over me with his huge body. Dark eyes stared at me without any emotion.
Breathing heavily, I took a step back and turned around to run. But another two were already standing there, blocking my way.
My eyes widened as my hands curled into fists.
No, no, no! This isn’t happening!
When I tried to walk past them, they pushed me back.
“Let me go!” I hissed. They knew I was here. They were waiting for me to come out. They set a trap for me, and I got stuck in it.
One of the guards before me smirked. “We will, but to heaven, not anywhere else.”
A chill ran down my spine. With my throat parched, I gulped.
“L-listen to me. I have nothing to do with you. So let me go,” I stuttered out.
“Right, we have nothing to do with you,” the man with the scar said, making me turn to him. “But our boss does. If you were so eager to leave, you shouldn’t have come here in the first place. There’s a saying, ‘Curiosity killed the cat.’ It became true for you.”
Maybe a curious cat passed by.
I remembered his words.
Fear rushed through me.
He knew. He knew I was here. But then why didn’t he do anything about it?
I let out a shaky breath. “P-please let me go. You won’t gain anything by killing me. My Ace will kill you. Y-you don’t know him.” I licked my lips. “But if you let me go, I’ll give you more money than Arthur offered you. Please.”
As if my words didn’t even reach his ears, he got out his phone from his pocket. “Before you die, the boss wants to give you his greetings.”
I stared at the phone in his hand.
Gulping again, I shook my head, turned around, and pushed the guards away. But as soon as I started to run, I was pulled back harshly by my hair.
I whimpered at the pain that shot through my scalp.
“Fucking suka! Don’t test my patience! Don’t make me make your death painful. So just do as I say!” Shoving the phone to my ear, he hissed, “Talk!”
Tears streamed down my face, my hands trembled as I held the phone against my ear. “H-hello.”
“Ah, Emerald, my dear.” His mocking voice came through the phone. Even hearing his voice, rage and hatred boiled through my veins. “Didn’t I tell you to stay out of my way? You clearly didn’t take my warning to your head. Now see what you’ve done. You followed me and got trapped. I thought I would get rid of you slowly after I was done with your boyfriend, but see, I had to change my plans again for your stubbornness. Now I have to kill you first.”
“You knew I was following you,” I stated, hatred laced my tone.
A malicious chuckle. “Of course, I knew. You think I didn’t notice you? My vision hasn’t gotten get that old yet. I saw you behind me, but I still let you come and listen to our conversation.”
“Then why didn’t you catch me earlier?” I spit out. The grip on my hair tightened, making me gasp in pain.
“To make you suffer. I wanted you to feel the fear of me and suffer a little before you died, Emerald dear,” he replied. “And I thought to do you a favor and let you know everything before you leave all of us forever. At least I could do that for my beloved nephew’s Rosebud. I knew you couldn’t escape because I already told my men to wait for you at the exit of that floor. You did notice me doing something on my phone, didn’t you?”
I remembered. He was messaging someone while talking to Ivanov. So he was giving instructions to his men?
“You’re not getting anything out of it, Arthur! You won’t be able to harm Ace. I won’t let you touch a single strand of his hair!” I screamed through the phone, trying to fight off that man.
“Goodbye, Emerald. Don’t worry, I’m sending your Ace to you to heaven soon. You can live there together forever because, unfortunately, you won’t be able to do that in this world.”
“You bastard! I will kill you!” I thrashed in that man’s hold, and in return, he smacked me across my face, sending me to the ground.
A cry left my lips as the world spun around me, blood rushing to my head.
“Yes, boss,” he said, pressing the phone to his ear. Nodding, he glanced down at me with cold, merciless eyes. “Don’t worry, we won’t leave any evidence behind.”
With wide eyes, I stared at him in shock. Panic rattled inside me as he cut the phone call and got a gun out of his back pocket, holding it directly at me.
“No,” I whispered, backing away from the gun. My stomach churned as I glanced at the cold, deadly nozzle. My heart pounded in my chest.
“Goodbye, Ms. Hutton. See you in the hell.” He curled his finger around the trigger. A deafening sound boomed across the hallway.
Letting out a scream, I fell to the ground with my arms before my face.
A pain shot through my back, the spinning in my head only increased. But it wasn’t as severe as I thought a bullet’s hit would be.
I didn’t feel any piercing pain in any parts of my body.
A thump before me made me open my eyes.
The man with the scar was lying on his chest on the floor, right before my feet, in the pool of his own blood.
Before I could understand anything, gun fires started across the hallway. Chaos rose around as the other guards kept firing at the direction my back faced while trying to save themselves from the incoming bullets.
I screamed at the ear-piercing sounds, covering my ears with my hands. Tears rushed down my face, heart thumped in my chest. I shook as I curled into a ball on the floor, trying to stay away from the bullets.
The air filled with smoke and the smell of gunpowder, making me cough.
The floor vibrated under me as body after body dropped. After some hisses and yells, cries of agony, the firing finally stopped.
Lifting my head, I surveyed the area. Three of the guards were dead. Red blood soaked the carpet, turning it into crimson.
I watched the sight before me in horror. I couldn’t move. For a moment, I couldn’t even hear anything. Though I could feel the fast racing of my heartbeat.
Then footsteps reached me. A pair of polished shoes came into my vision.
“Jesus, Emerald! Are you all right?” A familiar deep voice, laced with an Italian accent, made me look up.
Duncan De Sylvano.
His alert, icy blue eyes watched me in concern.
“Emerald? You okay there? Are you hurt?” he asked. “Don’t worry, we’ve got you. You’re safe now.”
When I didn’t say anything, he shook my shoulder.
“Emerald? You hear me? You all right?”
My eyes snapped up to him, finally realizing my surroundings. Five men stood behind him. They saved me…
Ace?
Panic washed over me as I remembered what Arthur’s plan was.
With my breath caught in my throat, I grabbed my phone and jumped to my feet, swaying a little afterward. Duncan tried to hold me, but I was in too much rush to wait.
The only thing ran through my mind was reaching Ace.
Tears blurred my vision as I ran.
“Emerald, wait! Where are you going?”
Ignoring him, I rushed to the floor the conference room was on. The guards weren’t there anymore. Even the lights were off.
I shook my head. No, God, please. Please don’t let him leave yet.
Getting in the elevator, I hurried down to the ground floor. People threw glances at my disarranged state. But I didn’t care. I needed to find him. My Ace.
Scanning the lobby, I didn’t find him anywhere. I wiped my cheeks and dialed his number again. But again, it went directly to the voicemail.
Damn it!
I pulled at my hair, not knowing what to do. My knees were still wobbly, and my heart still raced from almost facing death.
“Ms. Hutton?”
I turned around. Carter rushed towards me, limping, with an equally disheveled state as me.
“Carter! Where the hell were you? I called you so many times! Where is your phone?” I snapped, walking closer to him. “I told you to stop Ace. Why the hell didn’t you tell him anything? He fucking signed the contract!”
I didn’t know what I was saying. I only felt desperation and fear. The only thing on my mind was keeping him safe.
“Ms. Hutton, I’m sorry. I don’t know why, but after you left, those guards grabbed me, took my phone and locked me in a room,” he said, eyes wide in shock. “I tried to fight them, but they were too strong. By the time a hotel staff heard me and let me out, I was too late. The meeting was already over, and everyone left.”
Nothing he said reached me, as all I could hear were the last two words he said.
My stomach dropped. Blood drained from my face.
Everyone left?
“W-where is Ace?” I asked. “He didn’t leave, did he? He—”
“He also left, Ms. Hutton. The manager told me the boss and Mr. Balakin left in his car.”
I stumbled back. My blood ran cold as I gasped.
Tears blurred my vision as I shook my head. I felt everything crashing down on me. I couldn’t breathe.
No. I couldn’t let anything happen to him. I will keep him safe. I won’t let him die.
“Ms. Hutton—”
“Give me your car keys!”
“Keys? But why—”
“I said give it to me!”
Once he hurriedly took out his keys and handed them over to me, I turned around, and rushed towards the exit.
“Ms. Hutton, wait!”
“Emerald!” I heard Duncan’s voice called out.
But I didn’t stop. I needed to go. I didn’t know what I was going to do. My mind wasn’t working. The only thing I knew was I needed to reach him.
“Send me Mr. Balakin’s number!” I yelled over my shoulder as I ran to Carter’s car. Getting in, I drove away as fast as I could.
Ace’s phone was switched off, but Mr. Balakin was with him. Hopefully he had his phone with him.
I didn’t know if Mr. Balakin was working with Arthur, too. But if he was, what was he doing with Ace in his car?
Weaving in and out of traffic, I pressed the horn when a car didn’t move out of my way. I didn’t know when Ace left the hotel. I had no freaking idea how far they’ve gone. I didn’t even know if he was going directly to our new mansion.
A frustrated sob left my mouth as I hit the steering wheel. I couldn’t prevent the signing and now I couldn’t stop him from leaving the hotel. I never felt so helpless and weak before. My heart clenched in fear. Fear of losing him.
What if Arthur succeeds in his plan? What if I really lose—
With my eyes prickling with tears, I drove as fast as possible.
I won’t let that happen.
I went down the road that led to our home.
Arthur planned to make Ace’s car meet an accident while he would be going home. And Ace did promise that he’d go home as soon as the meeting finished. And he never broke his promises.
I had a feeling he was heading this way.
My phone blared in the car. My heart skipped thinking it might be him. But then I saw an unknown number flashing over the screen.
Maybe it was Carter?
I picked it up.
“Carter? Why didn’t you send me the number yet?”
“Emerald, it’s me, Duncan. Wherever you’re going, stop. I’m coming to get you. You—”
“Where is Carter? I told him to send me Mr. Balakin’s number! I need to talk to Ace, doesn’t he understand?”
A curse left my lips as a car suddenly came into my lane. Moving the phone away from my ear, I turned right, barely avoiding a hit.
When I put the phone in my ear back, I heard him asking if I was all right through the phone.
“I’m fine. Please tell Carter to send me the number. I need to call Ace, Duncan. He’s in danger! Arthur is planning to kill him. Please help me. Give me Mr. Balakin’s phone number!”
The knot of fear and anxiety only became worse in my chest.
Where are you, Ace? Just stay safe.
“Emerald, listen to me. Stop wherever you’re going. Ace is going to be all right—”
“You don’t understand!” I snapped, frustrated. “He’s in danger—”
My phone buzzed.
Checking it, I found a message from an unknown number.
Desperately, as I opened the message, a small text awaited me.
You got lucky. But he didn’t.
I stomped on the brake. The car came to the screeching stop in the middle of the street. Something churned in my stomach. An ill feeling rose in my throat.
My mobile vibrated again. This time, a video message.
With trembling fingers, I played the video.
It was a video shot from a distance. Across the open field, a car passed through the empty street.
Ragged breath came out of me. My palms turned clammy as perspiration rolled down my forehead. My heart pounded in my chest.
I knew the car very well.
A huge truck sped through the field out of nowhere and drove directly to the black car, hitting it from the side. With the severity of the hit, the car flipped and rolled over the road, the center of it got crushed with the blow. A fire immediately set on the back. Black smoke surrounded the car.
My heart stopped. Breath caught in my throat. The mobile slipped from my hands as I went numb.
A feeling of nothingness swept over me.
My world spun, and my vision blurred while a deafening silence rang in my ears as darkness slowly consumed me.
