Love In Crimson

Chapter Nine- Trouble

Ace sat down on his chair in the office while resting both legs over each on the table. He tilted his head backwards and closed his eyes in a resting posture. He has been exhausted all day from meetings and seminars.

Knock,knock,knock

“Come in”, Ace said, he knew it will be no person other than Scott.

Scott came in with the usual corporate look of seriousness and stood few steps away from the table. The head of legal operations also came along with him.

“The next court hearing regarding our petition against the S&L pharmaceuticals is next week sir. I'm already gathering the evidences we have against them. I've sent them out to our legal team for preparation already but the photo you took home the last time for investigating the area is still with you sir. We also need that as well” , the head of legal operations said to Ace.

Ace plopped himself up from his resting position. He sat down and said “alright,no problem, I'll bring it along tomorrow. Besides, the information about that area will be sent to you through Scott”

The petition against S&L pharmaceuticals came from Ace. As part of his pledge to some orphanages in the local areas in the city, Ace checks on orphans and loads them with gifts. But during a particular visit, he found most of them on the verge of death. Infact, some kids had died.

Even some locals in the area also suffered. Ace feared it might be a pandemic and started his investigations with a private top notch medical team. On the long run, all mortality and sickness cases pointed to the drugs that were supplied by the S&L pharmaceuticals.

Ace had vowed to make them pay for their heinous crimes. Turns out they dump expired and failed testing drugs to these areas for cheap prices.

Ace checked his wristwatch and decided that he was done with his activities for the day. He organized the files on his table and stood up.

Ace started walking out of his office towards the VIP elevator, with Scott following behind him.

Back in the mansion, Natalia managed to do some of her jobs for the day. She made sure she covered the noticeable areas so that at least if the dragon prince comes back, he won't have much to say. She promised herself to continue her chores early tomorrow morning.

Natalia carried the trash bag out and wanted to give it to the gate man but she didn't find him at his quarters.

He probably went out to get something. She placed it in the bin just outside the gate for the waste services to pick them up.

It had been one week's waste piled up. She made sure to veil herself before going out because she knew Ace would be furious if he ever thought of the possibility that someone might have seen her in the estate.

Feeling somewhat accomplished, Natalia made her way to her room to freshen up before she starts preparing dinner for herself.

Humming one of her favourite songs, Natalia went to the kitchen and started preparing pasta and fruit juice. If there was one thing that she's grateful for, it's for the fact that Ace was rarely home, it's either he's on days long trips or he goes out in the morning and comes back at night.

Later in the night, Ace's black SUV rolled to a stop before the mansion gates.

Hooonk… Hooonk…

The gateman, who alreycame back from where he went to get toiletries rushed to open the gates for Ace to drive into the compound. Ace pulled to a stop at the garage and made his way into the mansion.

Immediately he entered the living room, Ace could perceive the aroma from the kitchen. Despite eating on his way home, the aroma made his stomach churn.

Ignoring the aroma that filled his senses, Ace started walking upstairs to his room. Natalia met him half way and greeted him. She had just finished tidying herself up to head to the kitchen.

With a short , somewhat irritated glance from Ace to Natalia, he continued to walk towards his room. Natalia ignored his actions and walked to the kitchen. After all, he has been that way since the first day of them being pronounced husband and wife.

The next day, early in the morning, Natalia continued her chores from where she stopped just like she promised herself. Ace was already up by that time as well, taking his morning dose of coffee in his study .

Ace was planning his activities for the day and suddenly remembered the photo he needs to give the legal operations team. He checked one of the nearby racks and couldn't find it there.

Getting irritated, he checked others racks and couldn't find it. Suddenly, he remembered that the last time he took out the photo,he left it by the wooden mahogany cabinet in the private living room.

The private living room was also upstairs, he remembered having two of the private medical investigators at the living room while discussing the areas where the S&L pharmaceuticals focused their shady activities on.

With a sigh of relief, Ace went to the private living room to get the photo. Ace went straight towards the cabinet and surprisingly, he didn't find the photo there.

Now his mind began to race. That photo was a crucial part of evidences and information. Ace stood with arms akimbo for a minute trying to recollect if this was really the last place he used the photo.

An invisible light bulb appeared over his head and he had one thought, Natalia.

“Nataliaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa” he yelled. Ace tried to not overthink it. Maybe the nosy girl had rearranged his things again.

Natalia heard Ace calling her and went to meet him . “I'm here sir”, she said, while wondering what she might have not done right again.

“I kept a photo here. Did you by any chance see it, and where is it”?, Ace asked her.

“What photo sir”

Ace raked his hands into his hair. She obviously likes making him talk. “ A photo of like..erm..sick people.. yeah, sick, local people” he said.

“Oh , that, I threw it away while cleaning yesterday sir”

“What” Ace exclaimed. He thought he didn't hear her right. “ What did you say you did to the photo”, he asked again.

Natalia was now wondering what the fuss is over a photo. Hope she's not in hot soup again. Natalia was now visibly tensed. Whatever photo it was that she threw away, it definitely had a valuable importance to Ace.

“I said what did you do to the photo” Ace yelled, this time, much more louder.

“Erm…I…I..I already disposed it in..th..the..b.b..bin sir” Natalia said , now being conscious of her somewhat stupid action and the seriousness of the situation.

“I'm…I'm…so sorry sir, I didn't know it was a useful photo. I thought….I thought”

“SHUT THE f**k UP WOMAN” Ace yelled.

His face went red and tight. His fists were clenched so hard that his knuckles turned white. Ace breathed fast through his nose, like he was trying not to shout.

“Where is the thrash nylon” he asked, while trying to control his outburst. Finding the photo was of utmost importance right now.

It finally dawned on Natalia that she's in trouble, big, mega trouble. Didn't she throw it in the trash bin outside yesterday?

Ace's temper increased, getting more irritated that she wasn't even talking. His eyes were hard and angry, not blinking.

“I said where did you place the trash nylon” Ace barked.

“Erm…erm..its'.....in..th..the…tr…trash..bb..bin outside sir” Natalia said with all her nervous system on high.

She stood very still when he started taking in sharp ,angry breaths. . Her eyes looked down at the floor. She did not want to look at him.

Her hands shook. She kept rubbing them together like she was cold, but she was not cold. Her heart beat fast. She could not breathe right.

“Who disposed it there, you or the gateman”?

“I did sir, the gateman wasn't around yesterday evening” Natalia answered trembly. Her voice was now shaky and shallow.

“Move to the trash bin , now”!!! Ace ordered.

With disorganized gaits, Natalia started walking out of the house to the compound. Her mind was already running through a thousand and one worst case scenarios, what if the waste disposal services came yesterday. But they can't work in the night, right?

Natalia was consoling herself and thinking about wrong scenarios at the same time.

Ace was trailing behind her like an angry assassin. He was angry. Who just discards a photo like that,huh.

Ace thought of the possibility that she'll have been seen in the estate but didn't give much thought to it. He'll come back to it later. Right now, if he needs to dig through the trash to find that photo, he will.

On getting to the gate, they didn't find the gateman. He drinks a lot so they already presumed where he would be. He usually times himself to come back on time before Ace's usual time of heading to work.

Ace and Natalia got outside to where the thrash can was.

Natalia's heart was beating hardly against her chest. Did the grim reaper choose to come this way for her??

Ace stood very still, but his whole body shook a little, like he was holding back. Every muscle in him was tense. He didn’t say a word, but Natalia could feel the anger coming off him in waves. One wrong move and he would explode like a nuclear bomb.

Ace looked at her like he should strangle her. “Thank your stars my mother trained me not to beat women, still doesn't mean I can't make your already miserable life more hell for you”, Ace said fuming with a lot of emotions. Anger,fear,the court case…..

Natalia felt scared of him. But she was also angry at herself. She knew it was her fault. She wished she could take it back, but she could not. How dumb she has proven to be countless times.

The trash bin has been emptied!!!!