Chapter 52

Ava.

The rest of the day, I couldn't sleep. I was nervous and scared of meeting Karina. I remembered the first time we had met and the embarrassment she had caused me. I didn't want that to happen again.

I sighed, turning on the bed as I looked out the window. The sun was shining through the window blinds. I had just an hour left before I had to go to the event center. It was an evening event, and I was supposed to be there before it started to get dressed and find my position.

I groaned, standing up from the bed and going to wash my face in the bathroom before grabbing my things and heading out of Jayden's apartment. It was best I started my journey now in case something happened again. I found Jayden in the living room; he was deeply engrossed in his laptop. As soon as I walked into the room, he shut it closed.

"Hey," I greeted, raising my brow at him. He smiled, dropping the laptop beside him and grabbing the cup of coffee in front of him.

"Hey," he answered before checking his watch, his blonde hair falling across his face. "It's not five yet, where are you going?" he asked, and I sighed, flopping into a chair.

"I'm being punished by Aiden. I arrived late last night, and I'm supposed to join the other waitresses he has at an event today," I answered, rubbing my eyes tiredly as I hadn't gotten enough sleep.

"Oh, want me to drop you off?" Jayden asked, and I nodded gratefully.

"I'll be back," he said before heading for his room.

I glanced at the laptop he had left behind, and in the hallway, I shifted closer to it when Jayden stepped back into the living room.

"Forgot this," he smiled, grabbing his laptop and heading back to his room.

I frowned, staring at the hallway that led to his room before shaking my head and lying back. I yawned tiredly, and soon Jayden came back with a black jacket and a pair of black leather pants.

"Come on," he said, and I groaned tiredly before following him out. We had gotten downstairs before I remembered Jayden hadn't added my fingerprints to the home lock. I said nothing as he led me to his car, and we drove off to the event center.

"So, how's work going? Hope no one is disturbing you," Jayden asked, and I chuckled.

"There is one special person who does. But he's really powerful. I don't think there's anything you can do about it," I said, resting my head against the door as the AC calmed my excited nerves.

"Who is it?" Jayden asked, and I shook my head, closing my eyes tiredly.

There was no use telling Jayden about Adrik. It wasn't like he could do anything about it. Adrik was the Russian Mafia. He was powerful and he got away with whatever he wanted. He could kill me, or worse, Jayden.

I jolted when I felt a hand on my thigh, and I snapped my eyes open, turning to see Jayden grabbing onto my left thigh with his right hand, his left hand on the steering wheel, driving carefully. His eyes were fixed on the road, but I knew they were angry even without glancing at me. The aura shifted, and I tried to pull my leg away from Jayden's grip.

"Who is it, Ava?" Jayden asked again, this time his voice low and dangerous. I felt all the hairs at the back of my head stand as I glanced nervously at Jayden.

"It's Adrik. He's always trying to embarrass me. The last time he told me to stand at his table and dance for him. Mikhail had to come save me that time, and the last time I met him, he said something about being in the Lions d-"

"Mikhail?" Jayden asked, and my stomach dropped to my feet, and I slapped my hand over my lips.

I hadn't meant to utter Mikhail's name to Jayden, but I was so nervous that Jayden was angry. I had already seen him get angry before, and I didn't like it, nor did I ever want it to repeat itself.

"Uhm, he's just a customer who hangs out at the club often," I said nervously, and I felt Jayden's grip grow tight around my thigh, and I hissed in pain. I started to speak again when Jayden swerved to the left so quickly I almost had whiplash as he pulled the car to a stop.

"Jayden!" I yelled as I pushed my hair away from my face and turned to him angrily.

"And you refer to him by his first name? Are you guys close?" Jayden asked, not minding that I was angry at his rough driving. His eyes stared intently at me.

"Jesus Christ! What's gotten into you?!" I yelled, grabbing my purse from the back seat when Jayden pushed me back to my seat.

"Who's Mikhail?" He asked again, and I scoffed.

"This is unbelievable! And I can't deal with your jealousy right now. Mikhail isn't the problem, Adrik is. If he would stop troubling me, Mikhail wouldn't have to come to my rescue every time!" I yelled back.

I was so frustrated and angry about the fact that I was going to meet Karina today. I was nervous and scared, and my mind had thought of a thousand possible embarrassing moments I would face when she saw me.

I didn't have the time to deal with Jayden's jealousy right now. It was so obvious he didn't like Mikhail, and I didn't think he would even if I told him who Mikhail truly was.

"I'll take the bus," I said, ignoring the look Jayden gave me as I snatched my purse and opened the car, slamming it shut behind me.

"Ava!" Jayden called out, and I didn't turn, but I could hear the remorse in his voice. I boarded a taxi, not wanting to stand there and have him come to me.

I shut the door as I gave the driver directions to the event center. Sighing deeply, I looked down at my lap. I was wearing a short African dress I had gotten a few years ago, with a pair of black boots.

Above my knee was a red mark from where Jayden had grabbed me. It was a bit bruised, but I knew it would heal quickly.

I opened my bag and pulled out my brown powder before dabbing the bruise with it, blending it with my skin.

I sighed as I admired my work. It didn't even appear like it was bruised a few minutes ago. It stung a bit when I moved my leg, but nothing serious.

A huge building came into view, and I placed my powder in my bag, feeling my phone vibrate but ignoring it as I stared at the building in awe.

It was the Stars Center, and it was freaking huge with bright lights. The walls were made of glass, reflecting back the sun and making it appear like a magical castle.

I quickly paid the driver as I stepped out of the car and headed for the entrance.

The security stopped me immediately, and I quickly reached for the pass Aiden had given me earlier. I showed it to them, and they pointed to the left.

"Workers use the back door," one of them said, and I nodded before heading to the other entrance, frowning deeply.

I found some other girls heading there too, and a few of them giggled at me. I said nothing as I followed them through the door and into a hallway. I followed the girls into a room, looking around the place.

We came into a very large room, our footsteps echoing loudly as we walked in. My eyes widened when I saw a circle gathered at the center of the room. Everyone was in a white shirt and black skirts or trousers. There were about thirty of them standing and looking up to an older woman who was addressing them.

I shut the door behind me as I was the last person to walk in. Everywhere went silent as all eyes turned to me. I gasped in shock as I slowly turned around fully.

I noticed that the other girls I had walked in with had hurried to join the others, leaving me at the entrance.

The sound of heels clacking had me raising my head high as I realized the older woman had stepped down from the table she stood on. They parted a path for her as she fixed her eyes on me and walked towards me.

Every anger I had felt earlier melted away, filling my veins with fear and nervousness. I said nothing as my heart thumped loudly in my chest at the attention I was getting.

The woman was definitely the one in charge. She had black short hair, and she wore a black shirt and baggy pants with black sneakers.

"Ava?" she spoke, her voice full of authority and power. I nodded quickly, and she stepped closer to me and picked my face.

I jolted as she examined my face, her hand cold against my jaw. She leaned closer, and I looked up as she was very tall and towered over me easily.

"You're pretty, you'll join my girls to attend to the VIPs," she said before turning away back to her position.

I sighed as I hurried after her and joined the other waiters and waitresses. I stood beside a boy who looked a bit younger than I was.

"You're lucky Madame Han likes you. I've worked with her for three years, and she hates my guts. I've never met anyone she likes," the guy said, and I turned to him.

He was cute, with curly brown hair falling over his round face. He had pretty eyes, and there was something feminine about him, but I said nothing about it.

"How do you know she likes me?" I asked, as I felt a few people glance at me.

"Watch," he said, facing forward once more. I frowned as I saw Madame Han head towards the girl who had come in with me.

She pulled a whip from the side of her waist and slapped it against their legs. I jumped in fright at the sound of the whip against their skin.

The girls didn't scream, though, but I could see their faces squeeze in pain and their eyes watered. After two more slashes, Madame Han turned away from them and went to stand on the table once more.

"The event is about to start. Let's practice once more," she announced, and I turned to the guy, grabbing his wrist desperately.

"What practice?" I asked, confused, my voice shaking as I looked around as everyone started to take up positions in the room.

"Don't you know a thing about being a waitress?" the guy asked, as I followed him to the left side of the room, picking up a tray like everyone else.

"I do. I work at a club," I answered proudly, and he chuckled and turned to me disbelievingly.

"Club? You definitely don't know shit," he said before marching forward, leaving me standing at the center of the room like a fool.

My heart thumped loudly in my chest as I held my tray tighter to my chest as I looked around.

The girls had lined up on one side of the room while the guys lined up on the opposite side. I turned sharply when I heard the sound of Madame Han's whip.

"Ava?" she said, and I quickly ran towards the girls' side, taking up the last position.

"Good. Now let's begin!"

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