Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Preacher’s Daughter: Stolen By The Enemy: Kabanata 21 - Kabanata 30

{Faith}“Oops!” Kourtney covers her mouth. “Sorry…”The mocking smile on her face says otherwise.I bite my tongue, holding my scream. I shake my feet one after the other. The scald stings.Kourtney almost blinds me with her hair as she flips it back. “Listen here, Florence.”“Faith.”“What!” Ignoring her scowl, I repeat firmly, “My name is Faith. Not Florence.”“Same thing, bitch.” She snaps her fingers sassily. “I don't know what the arrangement is between you and my man, but you need to get lost.”I put the cup of the floor. God knows if I give in to the thoughts swirling in my head right now, things are gonna get really ugly.After taking a deep breath, I say, “If you have a problem with me being here, you should pick that up with Ace. I am not allowed to leave.”She scoffs. “I see you are one of the stubborn ones.”“Listen…” Her shadow on the wall towers over mine as she steps forward. I roll my shoulders back, sticking up my chest as much as I can.“He is mine!”“I heard you g

{Ace}It happens so fast. The shiny blade slashes into her thin wrist cleanly. Blood seeps out the next second.“Kourt!”She raises the knife again. “Leave me alone! I want to die!”Snatching her right wrist, the knife falls to the floor, missing my foot by a bit. I slap several pieces of paper towels on the cut on her other wrist.“Let me die,” she mumbles, collapsing onto my chest.Without thinking twice, I lift her in my arms.“Get the nurse!”I yell at Jerry once I spot him in the living room. He swings into action without a word.“How is she?” I ask the nurse, standing away from Kourtney’s bed an hour later.The nurse shoves her tools into her bag. “She didn't lose a lot of blood. Thankfully, the cut missed an artery. She’s going to be fine.”I glance at Kourtney who’s fast asleep with a gauze wrapped around her left wrist. Her face is pale and dark bags sit under her eyes.Kourtney is a strong-willed woman. Messy breakup or not, the last thing I expected her to do was try taking

{Faith}My breath catches. I stare at the door. What could be lying behind it? Some sort of hideout? A room filled with guns? Illegal stash of... Drugs!I let go of the doorknob. “Oh…I just remembered that I have something to do.”“Not so fast.” Ace catches my arm as I try to walk past him.I feel his gaze burn on my forehead as I try to avoid his eyes. “What? Do you have something to say?”“Eavesdropping will do you no good, Princess.”“Who says I was?” I finally look at him, putting on the most deadpan expression I can muster.“How much did you hear?”“I didn't hear a thing.”“Well then. You should know that Kourtney wants you to stay.”“No, she doesn't! I heard when she asked you to throw me out!”Ace cocks his head, raising a brow.Shit!I bite my tongue. I just told on myself!His expression darkens. “What did I tell you about lying to me?”“I…I…” Ace lets go of my arm. “Go to your room. I do not want to be disturbed.” He undoes the top button of his shirt and walks back to Ko

{Faith}I press my lips together. “Was it Kourtney? Is that why you fought her?”“I didn't fight with her! She fought with me. Get that right.”Ace stares at me. I stammer. “I–I didn't mean…to yell.”“Are you jealous?”My laugh sounds very weird. “Do you want me to be?”He finally blinks. “For the record, I didn't have sex with Kourtney.”Oh, please! You spent the night in her bedroom. How am I supposed to believe that nothing happened between a hot-blooded man and a woman who’s ready to give up the cookie?“You don't believe me?”Seeing his raised brow, I raise mine too. “Why should I? Besides, why do you care? You never gave a damn what anyone thinks before? So why explain yourself now?”“I am not explaining myself, Princess.” He reaches out and strokes my hair. “Just setting the records straight.”He glances at my suitcase. “And you are not leaving. No one leaves me.”I roll my eyes. “Kourtney left.”“She left Jonathan. Not Ace.”A shiver runs down my spine. It’s the way he says

{Faith}“What is this place?”Ace opens his arms, “Welcome to my world, Princess.”“Your world?”He nods.I look around one more time. “I thought you wanted me to become a member of your gang.”“With sexy lingerie on?” He chuckles. “I have many things to do with you, but it doesn’t include turning you into a gangster.”He touches my lips. I feel the heat burning underneath his thumb.“What do you wanna do to me?”He licks his lips. “Bad things. Really bad things.”My heart does yet another backflip. I recoil, realizing what I just walked into.“Nah-uh!” He chokes me. “There’s no going back now, Princess.”Ace pulls me to the chair. Sinking into it, he commands, “Kneel!”I stiffen.“Kneel before your master!”My legs give way under me. With a dull thud, my knees hit the floor. Ace picks up a black suede box from the small table next to him. “I have a present for you.”He opens the box and turns it to me. The interior is lined with a red velvety fabric. In the middle isn’t a piece of s