Alpha Kael

Ace

Ara POV

The house was quiet as I stared at Michael pacing back and forth in the living room with the phone pressed against his ear, looking extremely worried about his daughter.

When I looked over at my mother, she looked so stressed that I felt chills from how much of an actress she was, unlike me who couldn't decide if I should be scared or fake being worried for Jetta, even though I didn't care about her.

The moment Michael pulled the phone away from his ear, my mother rushed to his side and cried out, "What did Elle say? Has Jetta contacted her yet?"

There was a long pause as Michael intensely gaze at my mother, and I couldn't help fearing what that brat had told him. Since Elle and Jetta are so-called best friends, I believe that she told her about my mother asking her to escort me to the club.

But mother and I lied to Michael that we didn't know where Jetta was, and why she hasn't come back home yet.

The plan was for her to never come back home, and after leaving her with those men that my mother hired, I got into my car and came straight home.

Even though Michael tries not to show it, and he is always hard on Jetta, she holds his heart, and my mother and I are barely fighting for our spot in his wealth, which is why my mother married him in the first place.

Jet incorporate is one of the fastest-growing enterprises in the state that is among the top hundred businesses, and it's worth a couple of million.

Although my mother is a good actress at making Michael believe that she's deeply in love with him, his money is what she loves, and that's why Jetta needs to get out of the picture because with her in it, my mother and I can forget about getting his entire wealth.

"Elle and Jetta are on their way here." Michael finally said, and my heart immediately missed its rhythm, pounding so loud in my ear.

"What!" My mother uttered in a sharp tone, breaking character.

Her face looked so pale, and I knew it was time for us to panic because if Jetta comes home and tells Michael what actually happened to her last night, we are doomed.

"That's great news, honey!" My mother cried in excitement, getting back in character again. "My heart is finally at ease."

One look at her eyes and I could tell that she was dying inside because those guys didn't only lie to her that they completed the task, but they took a couple of thousand bucks from her for the job.

"Did she tell you where she had been?" My mother asked, looking so impatient as she looked at Michael.

Silent was the only thing I could give in this situation because my emotions were a mess, and I knew if I spoke, I would blow our cover.

"No. But I plan to ask her when she gets home." Michael said with a hint of anger in his tone. "Tell Rosey to prepare something for Jetta to eat when she gets here."

"Okay, honey." My mother shouted softly after him as he walked out of the living room.

When his back finally faded into the hallway, my mother looked at me, her face red and her eyes dark, looking like she wanted to murder Jetta herself.

The thing is, Michael wants to expand his companies, and Jetta is engaged to Ace whose parents have the third most successful enterprises in the country, and are also recognized Internationally.

If Jetta married Ace, my mother and I can forget the idea of owning anything in Micheal's wealth because Jetta doesn't like the notion of my mother handling any of Michael's properties since she claims it's her mother and his sweat from laboring together.

But who gives a f***k about her and what she wants! If you ask me, I think she's simply using that excuse to be selfish and keep us out of her father's will.

Within a couple of days, Ace would be returning home, and the moment he arrives, their wedding will be happening within a month, and Ace has two weeks until his graduation.

It's annoying to know this much about Jetta's life, but my mother pays people to get this information. She said it's so we can stay on top of things and not allow Jetta to take what rightfully belongs to us.

"What are we going to do?" I whispered when my mother walked up to me.

"Lie. That's what we are going to do, Ara." My mother whispered, and yet, her tone was aggressive. "No matter what, we stick to our story. If we have to cry blood, then blood we shall cry. You got it?!"

Hastily, I nodded, feeling goosebumps from the fierce look in my mother's eyes, and mumbled, "Of course."

"Good!" My mother firmly uttered.

As she walked past me, my eyes followed her out of the room before I allowed myself to breathe and relax.

But a feeling of stress kept overwhelming me as the seconds passed by, and I headed upstairs to my room, fearing every second at the thought of how Michael would react if Jetta told him that I lowered her into a trap last night.

After a couple of minutes went by, I finally relaxed and was about to fall asleep in bed when my mother rushed into my room, shutting the door.

"What?!" I mumbled, sitting up immediately.

"Jetta is here with that brat, Elle." My mother whispered in a shaky voice.

The fear that had long left me came rushing back, causing my heart to thump wildly against my ribs, and I jumped out of bed.

"We should go downstairs, and don't forget what I told you!" My mother said, reaching for the doorknob.

When she opened it and walked out, I took a moment to suppress my emotions before following her out.

The moment we got into the living room, I froze as I stared at Jetta, frustrated that she didn't die last night.

"Jet, you are home." My mother cried, rushing to her. "Your sister and I were so worried about you."

"Don't touch her!" Elle coldly let out when my mother attempted to hug her.

Swaying my gaze off Jetta, I looked at that brat, and I realized that she knew what had happened, but she didn't say anything after my mother drew back from Jetta.

"Elle, how're your parents?" Michael asked, giving her a faint smile.

Of course, he will be friendly to her even after she disrespected my mother. After all, her parents were his biggest partners and they were more affluent than he was.

"They are fine. But I'm not." Elle mumbled, throwing my mother a dirty look.

"What happened?" Michael asked, a touch of worry clouding his brown eyes.

Staring at that brat, I hold back my breath, afraid that if I breathe, she will say the wrong thing and cause more problems for my mother and me.

There was a brief pause as Elle eyed Jetta, and I could see the hesitation in her expression, and I guess Michael noticed it too because he asked, "Jetta where have you been all night. Your mother was worr…"

"She's not my mom!" Jetta cut him off in a harsh tone. "I told you to stop referring to her as such because it's damn disrespectful to my late mother!"

"Jetta!"

"Just don't, dad."

It fell silent between them, and I watched quietly, wondering if this was going to escalate like in the past.

When it comes to accepting my mother as hers, Jetta and her father have had some pretty tense arguments, and I am hoping this was going to be one of those moments so we can all forget about Jetta going missing.

"Okay, so where were you all night?!" Michael finally asked, still looking pissed at her.

The living room grew filled with silence, and I gazed over at my mother, but her eyes were centered on Jetta, and so were Elle and Michael.

"I went out to get some fresh air, and my purse got stolen by some random slug. And my phone was in it. So I had no way to get home and call. Thankfully, a kind-hearted lady gave me a lift this morning to Elle's place." Jetta said without looking away from her father.

What the f***k is going on?! Why would she lie? This didn't make any sense, and when I looked at my mother, I could tell that we were both thinking the same thing.

"You spent the night out there, in the street?!" Michael asked with stress dancing in his gaze. "Did you get hurt? Are you okay? Only your purse was stolen, right?! They didn't…"

"Dad!" Jetta called out. "I am fine. Nothing bad happened to me, thankfully, and yes, I didn't get hurt."

"Well, that's great to hear. I guess my poor heart can stop worrying now." I heard a familiar voice say, and I turned around to stare at the doorway.

"Ace!" Jetta mumbled. "What are you doing back home?"

Walking away from the doorway, Ace marched over to her, and my gaze followed him, feeling a sense of jealousy when he reached her, kissing her on the forehead before hugging her tightly.

"When your father called me and told me that you were missing, I booked the earliest flight I could get." Ace mumbled, resting his chin on her shoulder. "I am so glad that you are okay."

"Me too," Jetta whispered, wrapping her arms around his waist.