Wild Side [h.s au]

Chapter 32

She leans closer to me. "In the midst of all this, I forgot about your condition," she whispers. "Are you alright?"

I glance at the soldiers in the front seats, knowing they're most probably listening in to our conversation. "The prince is fine," I reply, hoping she'll get the code. I almost laugh because I actually came up with this idea.

Elena stares at me for a few moments, eyes narrowed as she tries to figure out my words. Then the moment of enlightenment hits her, a grin spreading over her lips as she shakes her head. "Good. Maybe the prince should let the- uh, the tiger to speak- I mean roar when they reach the. . . castle?"

I pull my lips inside my mouth, barely stopping myself from laughing. "The prince agrees, as long as the tiger behaves."

"Are they high..?" One of the soldiers whispers.

Elena and I burst into laughter at that, high-fiving each other.

. . . .

"Great, this bitch again," one of the girl soldiers comments when we arrive at the base, crossing her arms as she glares at Elena.

I give her a once over, frowning. "Takes one to know one, bitch."

The girl steps forward in a threatening manner and I roll my eyes, pretending to yawn in boredom, only pissing her off further. I internally flip her off.

"Yeah, it's this bitch again so hi," Elena says, getting her attention. "And again, she needs to see Ace."

The girl glares at me then at Elena, muttering something before signalling to a few soldiers to approach and circle us. She begins leading the way as the main gates open and we follow, surrounded by the soldiers. They're all walking in sync and have the matching constipated expressions, it's actually creepy. I know they're soldiers, but we at least blink at Hazard. . . or breathe.

I'm curiously glancing at the hallways we're passing through, seeing the base is not that different from Hazard, it's only a bit smaller in size. It isn't long until we reach what I assume is Ace's office, coming to a stop until the girl enters and probably announces our arrival. A few seconds later, the door opens and we're pushed inside, coming face to face with Ace.

"I see you haven't changed," is the first thing I say. "You've only got a few more wrinkles and liver problems, I assume." I glance at the glass in his hand.

"If you're here to ask me for a favour, let me tell you that's a shitty start mate," he tells me in his American accent, setting the glass onto the table and removing his feet from it to sit up properly.

Elena smiles nervously. "He's just joking." She waves her hand carelessly. "We came here to give you a proposition, not to ask for a favour."

"Oh? Do tell." He leans back in his seat and I feel like the only thing missing to complete the smug villain thing he's trying to pull off is a cat resting on his lap.

Elena takes a deep breath and slowly starts explaining him our plan, not going into too much detail but giving enough information to get the original idea. I find it really attractive, the way she so confidently explains him the strategy we've planned, using hand gestures and even dares to walk closer to him, pointing something at the map on his desk. I notice how Ace seems to be interested in the idea, listening to her carefully, as if he's weighing his options.

"You two make a nice couple," Ace says out of nowhere. He chuckles when he notices our confused expressions. "A very few things pass by me."

Elena and I roll our eyes at the same time before she says, "can you just tell us if you're willing to accept-"