Finding Ace (Book 3)

Chapter 8. Hacking

"Who's coming?" I asked. Abel and Austin agreed to go to town with me. We climbed into the van and headed into town. The house had no food. I hadn't planned on staying here anytime soon. Benny needed some clothes, and the boys knew his size. Since our things were still at the hotel, we decided to take our chances and go there as well.

We went to a market first and grabbed whatever we could for food. We went down the street to a clothing store to get Benny some clothes. The clothes were a bit odd since they were foreign, but they were better than what he had.

"We need to be careful," Austin said.

I nodded in agreement.

Austin, Abel, and I walked into the hotel from the back. We quickly jumped into the elevator.

We came out of the elevator, and a man stood near our hotel door. He drew a gun. "Fuck!" Austin shouted.

The man pointed the gun and fired a shot at me. Abel grabbed me around the waist to pull me away from the shooter. The gun fired again, and Abel groaned in pain. Abel staggered.

"Go!" Austin shouted.

The three of us took off down the hall. When I looked back, Abel fell to the floor. The man came around the corner, and he saw Abel and raised his gun.

"No!" I screamed. I grabbed a knife from my pocket. My heart pounded against my chest. I had never thrown a knife at this far of a distance, and I didn't think it would make it to him. However, that wouldn't stop me from trying. I whipped the knife in the direction of the man. The blade flew through the air.

The blade hit him, but not where I had aimed. It entered his abdomen.

"Fuck," I hissed. I raced up the hallway to grab Abel off the floor.

"Just go, Aria!" Abel shouted.

Austin came up behind me. We both grabbed Abel and dashed around the corner.

Austin pulled a gun out. "Stay," Austin said. He moved out from behind the wall and fired shots. I moved closer to get a better look. Austin had managed to drop the guy.

"We should get our things while we have the chance," I hissed.

"Are you kidding, Aria? We'll never get out of here alive if we don't get out of here now. We should have brought Miguel and Diego too," Austin said.

"Okay, you're right. Let's just go," I said.

"Are you okay, Abel? Should we take you to the hospital?" Austin asked.

"No, man. I'm good, I think," Abel said breathlessly.

We got back out to the van. I helped Abel into the back. As I slid the van door shut, an engine revved, and tires squealed — a black car with tinted windows sped toward me. I gasped in shock. I grunted as I jumped out of the path of the vehicle.

"Get in!" Austin shouted.

I jumped into the van, and Austin peeled out. I watched my side mirror.

"He's on your ass! You can't head back to the house. You have to be sure you lose him first," I hissed.

"What the fuck do you think I'm driving, a Lamborghini?" Austin asked sarcastically. Austin swerved in and out of traffic.

Austin managed to lose the car that had been after us.

I smirked at Austin. "You may not be driving a Lamborghini, but he can't drive that Bugatti worth a shit."

Austin chuckled. "I thought that is what that was. I've always wanted one."

"For your mad driving skills, I'm going to buy you one," I promised.

Some things we knew for sure was that Ace wasn't in the same building that Benny had been in. Maybe they had him somewhere else. Perhaps they didn't want Ace and Benny in the same building.

We pulled up to the house and helped Abel inside first.

"Dad, we need help," I said.

Dad took in Abel's condition, and he rushed to Abel's side to help him.

Benny walked into the living room with a robe on. His skin was wet from the shower he took. "What is going on?" Benny asked. Benny had no beard and a buzz cut. He looked much more like himself.

"Abel got shot," I said.

Dad removed the bullet from Abel and stitched him up. Abel went into another room to lay down.

Benny went back to sit behind the computer. Instead of feeling useless, I decided to make supper.

As I dished the food out, Benny came into the kitchen. Benny stopped beside me.

"Some of those texts were coming from Los Angeles. So, they must have sent someone out there after you. I've got nothing on Ace. Aria, I think we should grab Bohai Chen and take him back to Los Angeles to torture him until he talks. That is probably our best bet," Benny said.

"Come on, Benny. He's the fucking president of the Long Zi Group. That man is not going to sing no matter how much he is tortured. We need to pick a weak link or something that would chirp like a bird," I said and chuckled.

Benny laughed, rolled his eyes, and nodded in agreement.

"How about that new guy, oh what's his name?" Joey asked.

"Feng Zhao," Benny said.

"That's it," Joey said.

"He might know something. However, since he is new, I doubt it," Luis said.

"Well, he's been there a few months. He is their new assassin. He probably knows something. Maybe he is the one that has been after you. From what I understand, he has been gone a lot. The mother fucker is smart," Benny said and sighed. "Seriously, though. Kidnapping an assassin is a big job."

"Like an Ace job," I said and arched a brow. The boys all stared at me with a sad expression, but they didn't speak. "I'll do it," I said.

"No, Aria. It's dangerous. Maybe we should—" Dad started, but I cut him off.

"Ace trained me, or did you forget? I'm not an idiot. I know what I'm doing," I snapped.

"The Chinese are strong fighters, Aria. That is what makes them so strong. You need to think this over," Luis argued.

"This is not a debate!" I spat. "Have you all forgotten who is in charge? I will deal with it!"

The room grew so silent you could have heard a pin drop. I stormed out of the kitchen to the back porch. After a long silence, I heard the door open. It was Benny.

"I can keep you off the cameras, Aria," Benny said. "Look, I get why you want this done so bad. I'm hoping you have enough sense to keep yourself safe, though. I know you miss Ace. Everyone misses him, but don't get killed over finding him. Ace wouldn't want anything to happen to you. Don't make it a suicide mission."

"Benny, come on. Don't you have faith in me?"

"Of course, I do. I've seen what you can do, we all have, but I also saw what they could do. This is a big job, and you know it. Just be safe," he said softly.

"I'm not afraid to die, but I'm not trying to die. I'm just trying to do my job," I said. "Ace isn't just my husband. We need him back just as bad as we needed you. Ace is one of the best assassins that the Latin Kings had seen in generations. He never trained anyone but me. I know what I'm doing. If everyone believes Ace stood a chance against this guy, they should believe that I do too," I sneered.

Benny nodded slowly as he processed what I said. "You're right. You got this," he said with a confident smile. He opened his arms for me.

A smile spread across my face, and I stepped into his arms.

We embraced for a long time. "I'm so glad we found you, Benny."

"Me too, their food sucks. I can't wait to get home and eat something that isn't Chinese food. I'm never eating that shit again," he said and chuckled.