I chuckled a little as I took a sip from my drink and watched Gabriel get his ass kicked over and over.
"Done making a fool of yourself in front of my mate?" I asked.
"It is only the sixth game," he said.
"And how many have you won?" I asked.
"Zero," Ace answered for him because we both knew Gabriel would make some long excuse about why he was not winning and that Ace was cheating, and we both just wanted to be saved from the long speech.
"I am warming up," Gabriel said.
"Or you just really don't want to admit defeat," Lara mumbled.
"They have a bet going on," I told her.
"A bet?"
She looked up at me, now looking a little more intrigued.
"Gabriel bet Ace that if he wins one game against him of any sort, Ace will have to show him his back."
"His back?!" she asked.
"There are a lot of rumors about Ace. One of them is he suffered a special kind of torture, they did back in the day, forcing people to become monsters and join a certain kind of ... organization. Gabriel wants to know if it is true."
"And his back should show him that?" she asked.
"He would be carrying a special mark there," I told her.
"What kind of mark?"
I just smiled a bit secretively, but I was not about to go into details. I knew what kind of torture it was Ace had been through, or ... maybe had been through. He never actually answered the question, and I was not about to explain it to Lara. She would just feel sick from hearing it.
"Maybe if Gabriel wins one day, you will know."
"I will probably be dead before that happens."
"I heard that!" Gabriel said.
We both laughed a little, and I could only say I had never before heard a more wonderful sound. I had to make sure Lara found her place here, so I could hear her laughter every day.
"And as long as Gabriel doesn't win, Ace doesn't have to show him anything?" she asked.
I nodded.
"Seems a bit unfair this bet."
"Ace won't lose," I said. "That is why he isn't afraid."
"Really?"
I nodded before I reached out and pushed some of her loose hair behind her ear.
"Tired?" I asked her.
I wanted to let it be up to her if she wanted to go back to bed or not.
"I ... We can stay a little longer," she said and focused on the two others again.