Ride Or Die | Book #1 ✓

Chapter 50

⚫ Aspen Seraphina Ambrosia ⚫

"Mom," I said in complete shock. My eyes widened at the sight of my mother who was supposed to be dead for five years now but was now standing on the other side of the room where I have been tortured for the past two weeks. My body went into shock and I couldn't even begin to force myself to move.

It had felt like I completely left this world and was in some other dimension. This couldn't be, it couldn't. My mom died when I was 13 after going on a motorcycle ride on her usual route...detectives said they never found the body but that she probably went overboard on the cliff and into the deep waters. It had been five years since my mother's death, she couldn't have been standing right in front of me. 

"Aspen..." Her lips parted and her eyes began to fill with sorrow. Her brown hair had fallen to her chest with its natural loose wave to it. Her blue eyes struck mine but the bags under her eyes had been prevalent. Her black jeans hugged her legs and her t-shirt hung around her torso. She looked exactly like my mind but it couldn't be her.

"Well, well, well Jezzy," Cayde spoke up, walking closer to me as his arms were crossed against his chest "And to think you thought your mom was dead all those years, all those stupid little breakdowns I had to hear about your very much alive mother."

I had no idea how to react, I have grieved my mother's death the past five years of my life and watch it destroy my family, tearing us apart once our glue was gone. Only to find out I was grieving my mother who wasn't dead, but alive and working with a gang that had wanted it out for me. 

Her eyes began to water as she looked back at me. "I'm sure you had some questions..." Atticus trailed off as he walked closer, standing in the middle of the room where my mom and I stood on opposite ends. 

"As you've already known, your mom was involved with the Crestmont gang even as a teenager before becoming their leader. Ashlynn overhear had been one of the best leaders Crestmont had ever had, let alone the best leader the gang world had seen." Atticus took a pause for a moment before looking over to me "When Ashlynn moved away to be with your dad, she left the gang to Vance Gunner."

It was true that when my mom moved to Washington with my dad she left the gang to Vance temporarily before Xander was old enough to take over. It was the reason Mr. Gunner disliked me so much, all because of the feud he had with my mom. My mother had power over him and was the one in control, which he didn't like. It was Crestmont tradition that a man of Crestmont would become leader, but that changed when my mom was a leader and stole Vance's position.

"Our gang began to sink, between RSP, races, and everything else...which we needed help. So we reached out to her mother, hoping she'd join since we were such a local gang to her since we are based in Washington." Atticus continued "But your mother refused, so we did what we needed and took her captive."

Atticus walked closer to me, every footstep inching himself closer to me before standing tall in front of me. He looked down at me, slipping his finger underneath my chin as he forced me to look up at him. My face went cold as my eyes looked up to him, not wanting to show any emotion of weakness. 

"Your mom has been here for five years now, and we need the next Ambrosia to take over where she had left off. We now have you for all the times your mother tried to escape...a plan of revenge." Atticus stared down at me but I took no time to push him off of me. I'd never join the Vipers and work with them. 

"In your dreams." I scoffed in disbelief that they'd actually think I would join them. Atticus went to grab me but I took no time but to knee him in the balls as he tried to grab a hold of my wrist. He grabbed them in pain as he stumbled back, Cole and Cayde each grabbing the sides of my arms and dragging me out of the room.