In all the years I've known him, my dad has rarely ever raised his voice. It's terrifying to hear him raise it now, especially to my mother. I'm standing outside the wooden door. I decided to surprise them but I heard them arguing. 

"This is dangerous, Amanda," my father said, his voice low and urgent. "Ace isn't going to stop. He's never going to stop threatening us. We need to deal with this. Do some alternatives. We're on the verge of losing everything but I'm not going to hand Dennis over to him. That bastard killer."

"But we don't have any choice," Mom said. " We shouldn't have made a deal with him."

I heard Dad's heavy sigh.

"This is Vera's fault. the match was perfectly suitable. Ace seemed to be interested in her but he just wasn't what she wanted. And then he ran off with that damn Dan all because she was selfish and now we're left to clean the mess she made. Dennise is forced to clean up her mess."

A sudden jolt of fear pierces through me. I don't fully understand what Dad means but I heard an Ace name which made my dad sound like he feared this person. I could feel their tension in the air seeping from the room until my stomach felt like a series of cold knots.

Are they talking about Ace, Ace Andreev? There's only one person in the world who has that name and could make my dad tremble in fear.

"You are right about that," I heard my father say tiredly. " Ace wants our youngest to make up for the loss of Vera. But I'm not giving to his fucking demands. We already gave a lot to him, including making him come to this damn country and establishing his empire here. He can't have Dennise. His request is closed no matter what threat he'll send-"

"You might consider that, Gustav. Ace Andreev is a notorious Tsar. He kills whoever doesn't follow the deal. The alternative is possible work and I'm sure Dennise will understand." My mother's voice was taunt and haughty, the tone I've always heard her use when she's insisting that she be listened to. But I could hear a thread of fear in it too and I know she's scared. 

"I swear Amanda, if I learned that you helped Vera escape, you'll go to regret it," my father threatened my mom.

I knew that I was scared, we all were scared especially when I confirmed it was the same Ace we feared. If only Dad didn't interrupt me from killing the man last night, we all could have been saved, but damn.

"Gustav! How could you possibly say that?" My mom yelled at him. "I love the girls equally," Mom's voice sounded offended. 

Dad sighed again and sounded defeated.

"I'm not going to throw Dennise to the den of wolves like that," he whispered. I almost didn't hear it. "It's not going to happen. We'll find another way."

"He's going to kill us," my mother murmurs, and this time I can hear the panic clearly in her voice. "Gustav, you have to do something. Dennise will save us."

The panic flooded through me, and I clenched my fists. What choice do I have? Growing up, Vera and I were not close. Mom doted on her and neglected me while Dad did the opposite. He loved me truly which surpassed my mom's affection. If dad will suffer because of Vera's mistake, then I'm willing to accept Ace's proposal.

As I was leaning, eavesdropping inside, the door suddenly opened up and my mom was there standing, looking surprised for a brief moment and then her lips formed a thin line. 

“So, you were listening huh?” she said and my dad’s rushed footstep. 

“Dennise? When did you arrive? Why didn’t you call first?” Dad asked worriedly. 

I smiled at him innocently. 

“Well, I figured out I wanted to surprise you but it seemed like you two were busy talking about Vera and the responsibility she left behind,” I said, trying to be calm. 

My parents looked at each other. Dad looked so defeated and the cold face he had before vanished. It was replaced by fear. 

“Well, uhm why don’t we go and eat first?” He said, he gently touched my arm but I didn’t budge. 

“No dad, we need to talk about this now,” I said with a serious tone. “Since when?” I ask. 

Dad seemed to be taken aback for a bit and then he pretended that I didn’t know what was actually happening. 

“What are you talking about, darling? Come on, let's go. I know you're tired and you needed to get-”

“I’ll do it,” I said, halting him from taking another attempt to take me to the dining area.

Dad slowly turned his head towards me as if he needed to confirm what I had  said. 

“What do you mean?” He asked, nervous.

“Dad please,” I said. I wanted to break the facade he was desperately trying to do. “Tell me about this whole Vera thing and Ace,” I said. 

And then for the first time, Dad broke up, crying. He was like a child, clueless of what he needed to do. 

“Dennise, I’m sorry,” he said. “W-we didn’t meant to-”

“I’ll replace Vera,” I said. “While you look for her,” I added. “I’ll be Vera’s replacement.”

Dad wiped his tears, unsure if he’ll accept what I said or just let the family be killed by the Tsar. 

“But Den-”

“Gustav, she’s giving us more time,” mom said. 

“Yes,” I said. “If you find Vera, you must let her take my place.”

Even though dad was against the idea, he eventually accepted my offer. 

“Tell me what Ace wanted,” I said and dad had told me in detail. 

Ace wanted to meet Vera tonight. Vera was a damn happy-go-lucky woman and he speaks freely while I'm just the ‘shy’ daughter, the one who always follows rules. To save my parents, maybe I could fake more. 

“You just wait, Ace Andreev.”