Chapter 26: Chapter 26

Chapter 26 Anger

Ace's POV:

Has something ever so small ruined your life all together?

Has your life ever changed in the blink of an eye?

Mine has, many times in my life.

Want to know what is was this time that destroyed my life once more?

A simple message.

A simple text message.

All it took was one text message, and once more, the life that I thought I had in control was proving me wrong.

I shouldn't be surprised.

I shouldn't be shocked.

You would think someone like me would grow used to these kind of surprises and hardship.

Because my entire life has been full of painful twists and turns. Because my entire life has been spent on nothing but heartache and greed. I've always felt literally empty inside. No amount of money could satisfy that feeling. No amount of women and their so called love could satisfy that feeling.

No fame could satisfy that feeling.

No razor against my wrists could satisfy that feeling.

For the longest time, I thought that maybe a razor would help my pain. Maybe if I could feel something, I could consider myself normal, maybe I could consider myself human.

But with each drawback of the blade, I felt nothing.

The only thing I felt was the warmth of my own blood running down my wrists and guilt upon my heart.

And yet that empty feeling remained.

My name is Ace, leader of the Revelation Gang, and I am miserable.

Yes, I have fame.

I have money. Lots of it.

I can buy anything my heart desires.

And yet, all my life I've been miserable. Internally miserable.

I desperately try to fill the hole in my heart with the riches of this world, but what am I gaining?

I'm gaining nothing.

For all these riches will perish one day, and I will perish along with it.

So, what's the point?

What's the point of gathering all these thing when I am still miserable? What's the point when all of these things will just pass away? These thing are only temporary, they don't matter to me!

But that all suddenly changed, when someone by the name of Dakota showed up in the form of an abused woman.

Funny, really. The night I found her I was only looking for more riches, more jewels to add to my collection, bank, and bragging rights.

But that night, I did find a jewel alright.

In fact, I found something worth much more than a jewel, or anything money has to offer.

I found a woman.

I found a woman in the form of a precious jewel; priceless, who was destined to finally rise up from the ashes of her abusive lifestyle and become a strong, powerful woman.

Or so I thought.

Because now, as I stare at my phone screen in shock, once again, I can't help but wonder:

Is my life worth living? Was my life all for nothing? Because if everything and everyone is against me, what's the point?

But those feelings soon vanish, anger taking its place.

Murder always seems to satisfy my angered heart.

Traitor! She will surely meet death!

I throw my phone, screen shattering upon impact with the expensive marble floors that failed to fill the hole in my chest, the emptiness inside of me.

I tear apart the room.

I scream my heart out.

And then I order up my men.

"Jordan, I need you to find Dakota. Bring her to me alive, but not before having the specialized executioner show her what happens when someone dares to double cross me."

And so, all my best men, Jordan, Drew, Jeremy, Krazy, and Joel meet me in my office, all confused.

So I explain everything.

From how Dakota played me and double-crossed me by switching sides and identifying with the Dutch Mafia.

And they are shocked.

Angered.

In disbelief and disgust.

Drew is crying.

Jordan raises his eyebrows in suspicion.

Krazy pulls a twisted, jagged dagger out of his waistband.

"I think....you need to look into this more." Says Jordan, folding his large dark arms over his chest.

"Silence, Jordan. Don't push me right now. One of the code's of the gang is that if anyone dares t betray me, they die." I say sternly while glaring at him.

Jordan nods slightly, and I go back to discussing plans of capture.

All my men look tense.

Good.

They should be.

They should be tense when they are about to go on a large scale manhunt for the woman who betrayed, humiliated, and broke me all through one little text.

All traitors meet their death. That's a rule in gang life.

I am the judge and the executioner.

* * *

Dakota's POV:

I pull out my hair and slam my fists into the solid, hard walls of my cell until the skin splits open and bleeds. I gnash my teeth at the pain, but I don't care.

I feel the bones of my knuckles crunch against the wall, and it hurts.

But I don't care.

I did something horrible, and now my conscience is torturing me for it.

The chambers echo with my screams and wails. I fall flat on my face, sobbing my eyes out. Ace will never trust me now. Ace will never save me now. If I ever do cross paths with Ace again, I will surely meet my death.

A death that I rightfully deserve.

I should have let them torture me to death.

Maybe being dead would be better than continuously being mentally tortured by my own mind and heart, for even they have turned their backs on me.

The early sun rises from its misty blanket of fog, and it is then does my body give out from exhaustion.

And so I sleep.

I sleep in the fine layer of dust that coats the ground.

I sleep with the eternal guilt and shame because of the choices I have made and the actions I have performed.

The day passes away.

Slowly, but surely, night approaches.

And I don't even move from my spot when once again, fragile footsteps find their way to my cell.

"Dakota?" A gentle voice belonging to my mother calls out.

I don't stir from my spot, not daring to look at her as my back is faced towards her.

"Dakota....please." She says softly.

I grunt in response.

"I...I know what they did to you." She says, her voice shaky. "I-I tried to stop them b-but....they released an attack dog on my when I started to pick the lock of the room that they were hurting you in."

I don't answer.

I simply don't know what to say.

"I...I came down here to tell you that I can't take this anymore. I can't stand by and watch as they hurt you. You're my daughter, Dakota. I....I just can't do this anymore."

I sit up, still not facing her.

"So I've decided that....I'm going to get you out of here."

I turn around, my interest piqued.

"Y-you would do that for me?" I whisper, not wanting her to hear how broken my voice sounds.

She nods. "Yes, it's the least I could do. If letting my daughter go free at a chance for living a better life, then that's what I must do. I...despite what you might believe, I do love you."

I walk over to the bars, and reach out, taking her warm, extremely soft hand in mine. Her extremely soft skin is a reminder of her luxurious life spent on expensive lotions and moisturizers.

Gazing into her eyes that mirror mine, I ask, "But...won't you be harmed too? What if you get hurt because of my escape?"

"Then so be it. I need to do what's best for my daughter, and if that means letting her go free, then I will happily die for you to live. You deserve it." She tells me.

"Thank you...."

"I love you." She whispers to me.

And so, it was those three words that gave me the courage to keep fighting.

It was those three words that helped me stand on weary feet, and keep going.

My future looks bleak, yes.

But I have yet another chance at life, and I might as well take it.

* * *

Apparently, according to my mom, a secret tunnel runs through the prison that only the guards know about and use. It serves as an evacuation tunnel, just in case Lars has to escape authority.

The tunnel is guarded every hour, except tomorrow, which is Friday.

At 7:00, all the guards go out for a drink to celebrate another week of successful work. They aren't gone for very long, so I have about a half hour to make my escape. The tunnel is about a thirty minute walk, and so it is important that I must make my escape quick.

And so that night I try to get as much sleep as I can to gather all the strength I can muster for my escape.

Of course, it's not exactly easy by any means to get a good sleep on a cold, solid floor, that seems as if no matter how long you lay on it for, will never get warm.

But when day breaks, I feel rested and anxious.

Things could go horribly wrong today, and would result in severe punishment. I know they wouldn't kill me, as they need my alive to be married off. But ta severe punishment....I don't know if I could handle another one of those.

So, when the time comes to make my escape, my mom makes sure to leave the cell unlocked for me, before clambering out of the prison in a hurry.

Not long after, I hear the guards bellowing laughter that resonates through the prison.

I hear their bellowing voices as they retreat to celebrations and foolish activities.

And then they are silent.

They are gone.

And my time has come.

The door of my cell loudly creaks open, the sound echos through the dim chambers. I look both ways, before letting one bare foot skim the ground outside of my cell.

My next foot follows.

The concrete is hard and cold like ice beneath my feet.

And then I run.

My adrenaline seems to make me fly through the chambers.

My bare feet slap quietly against the cold floors, and my eyes dart around, looking for the tunnel that my mom had told me about.

And then I spot them.

I spot the large, wooden double doors my mom had told me to go through to reach the tunnels.

I swing the heavy doors open, where I am met with the fork in the tunnels.

Turn right when you reach the fork in the tunnels. My mom's voice reverberates through my memory, and I waste no time in doing so.

As I run, the cold fingers of the wind tangles themselves with my hair, and it's icy fingers tickle my bare skin causing goosebumps to appear.

The tunnel is damp and full of eerie dripping sounds. I splash loudly through deep water puddles, causing a cold, watery mist to spray into my eyes and soak my clothing.

Now it feels as if a chilly blanket of ice has wrapped itself around my bones, causing me to shudder.

But I don't stop.

I can't stop.

I've already come this far, I can't loose it all.

Soon, exhaustion settles in, and my lungs burn for more air. My body seems to beg me to stop and rest for a minute and catch my breath.

And for a moment, I'm tempted.

But then a frightening sound is heard from the end of the tunnel I'm running from.

It sounds like some sort of an inhuman, loud groan.

It sounds as if the earth is settling and threatening to swallow me whole.

I don't know what that sound was exactly, and I'm not going to find out, so, I don't stop. I keep on running.

And running.

And running.

And jogging.

But my efforts are soon paid off, because soon, the tunnel begins to lighten. Light permeates the darkness, and I become hopeful.

The chilliness of the tunnel soon fades away, and I know I'm close.

I know I'm close to freedom.

And so finally, after a half hour of running, I step out of the darkness and into the light.

The short, green grass tickle my bare feet. I bask in the sun and my hair seems to be soaked in the sunlight. Its rays shine upon my face and drying the wet clothes I have on.

All around me, I'm surrounded by a small, green meadow. The wispy green grass flickers and blows as the light breeze caresses each individual blade. I see.

The outline of the city dots the distance.

And once I've caught my breath, I run.

I run towards the city.

I am free.

And maybe, just maybe, I'll be nothing more than an unknown face in a city with millions of people.