Chapter 44: Goodbye Orange, Hello Black
My father was out for my blood, Aaron was running for his life, Roy had people pouncing on his ass trying to get information on me, the government had a future death warrant for me, I was locked up in a secured facility for God knows how long, and on top of that my sister, my little sister, was stripping for cowboys. Could this get any more worse. I knew the answer. It could and it would.
Two years later...
There was not a word in this universe to describe what had just happened. If I were to try, it would be too long of a description. In short terms I'd summarize it as this: Ace, Russian Roulette, Technology.
Of course, nobody innocent or normal would understand any of those three damn words, but me...me seeing those words popping up on the TV screen between short periods of static. That meant only one thing. My ex was breaking me out of Belle Rev.
It had happened so quickly and diligently that I was clearly confused by the time I ended up in his car. I was practically frozen for twenty minutes before finally realized what was going on.
"Did you just break me out of the most secure prison facility in the country?" I croaked, looking over at his profile. I couldn't exactly see him since it was around midnight, or close to it, and we were driving through a forest, by the lights of the monitors and clocks in the car gave me an outline of his figure, which I recognized and seemed to feel more comfortable around every second.
"Nobody's going to be calling Belle Rev secure anymore after your disappearance." He said nonchalantly. His eyes were glued to the road and I took a shaky breath.
"Why?" I asked quietly. "Why did you break me out? Why not Cathryn? You and her seemed to hit it off when we broke up."
"I broke it off before anything happened. She was too much of a slut. Got too physical."
"I thought you liked that kind of stuff."
"Don't get me wrong, I love it, but she had her eyes on someone else. Someone who was a little too close to me to be comfortable."
"Funny. You call my father close."
"Well he did keep in touch with me when I broke up with you."
"Why? He wanted to keep my DNA for his next night off."
"I don't know." He replied quietly. It quickly turned quiet and I shuttered thinking back to past memories.
"Are you going to tell my why you broke me out of prison?"
"Maybe."
"Maybe? Seriously?"
"I'm not really one for spilling secrets to girls in orange jumpsuits."
"It's either that or black lingerie. And, just for your information, that isn't coming off anytime soon." Ace laughed at my inquiry.
"They let you keep that? Wow, remind me to rent a cell in there the next time I might get arrested."
"Well, my few visitors didn't really like me having to wear those shitty undergarments that were passed around every morning."
"And your visitors were...?"
"People under lock and key. I mean, what's the point of a secret if I'm spilling their identities to a man I haven't seen in four years?"
"That's a good point, I'll give you that. Speaking of time, what happened during those two other years I didn't see you?"
"A lot of things. I got involved with the Justice League, if you didn't already find that out with all the digging you've done. Before that I spent time around the globe. The Russian federation, Bohemia, Bulgaria."
"Work?"
"Unfortunately."
"Then I suppose clubs haven't been part of your everyday life for a while?"
"You guessed right."
"Then get out of that jumpsuit and shimmy into that jacket in the backseat. Orange is bright in the dark and you don't want to be wearing a jumpsuit even at a motel."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"I'm saying that I need your help. And those assets you got going on there are the best way to get what I need back. We need to be at the club by two at the latest. Take a quick shower and make yourself club-worthy." I laughed.
"And you think that no one's going to notice me?"
"Not with that hair dye I put in the duffel bag." Raising my brow I turned and searched through the bag in the backseat. I pulled out a box and stared at it.
"Black?"
"I prefer you blonde, but black will do for the next year or so. Or at least until we fix your reputation."
"You can't fix my reputation. I fucked it up real bad at the trail."
"That was also two years ago. My skills have approved along with technology."
"Why are you doing this, Ace?" I asked. He hesitated before he answered me.
"The last thing you ever said to me before you disappeared and we went our separate ways was that no one would ever be able to love you. I make a living proving people wrong. So why don't we start the year off with you?"