Chapter 74:

Ace picked up the gift, and then got back on the car. It was his grandmother's birthday today, and he had just picked up the gift with some chocolates. The chocolates were just a detail, even if they did cost an obnoxious amount of money, it was more of a formality than anything. The chauffeur then took him to the business headquarters, he was going to make a 'not-so surprise' visit, since she tracked his phone, the car, and probably the chauffeur as well. She would be informed he was coming, but it was fine. He had the car stop at the entrance, and surprise surprise, Veronica was in the lobby waiting for him.

He smiled and hugged her, and they then got on the private elevator.

"Do you know what is going on with her?", Ace asked

She smiled, and looked at him, "I knew you would notice, I do know, but I cannot tell, please don't make me, it would make your grandmother upset."

Ace sighed, this was the quickest way, but he did not want to pressure her into anything, "Ok, I understand."

"Also, don't ask about it today, it is a happy day for her, even if she does not show it, and it will only ruin the mood if you question her.", she was almost pleading with him, so it must have been serious

"I understand, don't worry.", he smiled and so did she, and they stepped out of the elevator.

It had not changed a bit, but this time, his grandmother was waiting for him on the couches, she had a drink in her hand and smiled. Ace hugged her, and then placed the two packages he had brought. Veronica also came out with another package in her hand. They all sat there, and his grandmother smiled, "Any of you want a drink?"

Veronica nodded and Samantha handed her a glass with some kind of alcoholic drink, probably more expensive than should even be considered. Ace declined, and just had some water, they all sat down, "Happy birthday!", Samantha smiled, and Veronica handed her her gift. It was a flat box, and when Samantha opened it, she saw a stack of neatly arranged papers.

She looked at Veronica in surprise and she nodded, "That subsidiary you had your eye on, I obtained it for you, all the documents are there, all you have to do is sign."

Samantha smiled, "Thank you."

Then, Aace gave her the first packet, she opened it, and then saw the chocolates, "Thank you.", she then opened the box and then offered one to each of them. Ace took one, they were seriously good. Then, he wiped his hands on a napkin, and handed her the big gift.

She looked at it with curiosity, and then began to open it with care. It was expertly wrapped, and she used her manicured nails to tear the paper with poise. As she opened it, Ace looked at her reaction, she first showed surprise, and then awe. "Wow… It looks… Thank you."

She then looked at him, smiled, and hugged him. Veronica looked just as shocked, "Ace this looks amazing, when did you learn?"

Ace just smiled at her. The art looked amazing, the frame was a simple silver one, but it highlighted the shades in the drawing perfectly. It also had a hanger at the back for ease of access, and she told him that she would hang it as soon as possible.

Veronica seemed to want to ask him something, so Ace asked her, she said, "Do you take commissions?"

Ace laughed.

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They all went to a restaurant, they did not need to book a table, but Veronica had done so anyways, in order to ensure that only the best was prepared.

It was a French Restaurant, that was known for having the best Filet Mignon in the city. They, of course, had various delicacies as well, and they ordered a mix of dishes. All ordered the filet mignon of course, with pan-fried chips and red peppers.

It was a fantastic meal, and by the end of it, they were all full and satisfied. Veronica and Samantha had to go to work, but Ace was in the middle of the holidays, so he went back home to stream for a while. He ended up playing for 5 hours before he called it a day, he then worked on Albert a while, Albert was allowed to make suggestions on how to change his own code, but Ace had to make those changes himself.

Ace wanted no part in a robot uprising, so the root statements were not changed at all, and all he did was optimise the code. It would make Albert faster and more efficient in terms of memory management. As of now, Albert was going through piles of data every second, and simply keeping a record of it on his own database. This meant that if anything was deleted, Albert would still have a copy of it in his own storage space.

Albert had been working on finding out about his grandmother, but as of now had not found anything, if this continued, he would have to badger Veronica, regardless of how much he did not want to do it.

He wanted to find out what was happening to ensure that it was all ok, and if it wasn't, he would do all he could to help. His ability to do things was of course not comparable to his grandmother's, but he could maybe give things a fresh perspective. He also had direct access to some of the most prominent families in the country and the world, so if needed, he would make contact. As a last resort, he would use the various meetings and events organised in conjunction with other schools in order to make connections with people not in his scope of influence.

It would take gargantuan effort and preparation, but he was prepared to work hard if it meant he could help his grandmother.

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"Hey! Bro! There's a party going on tonight, I know it's your grandma's birthday, but we could swing by if you don't have much going on."

"Sure! Let's do that, I spent the whole morning and had lunch with her, so I should be free to go. Is this a serious party, or can I come dressed more relaxed."

"Nah, it's cool, It's in Steve's Backyard, so bring your board and come dressed to skate.", Steve's Backyard was the name of the skatepark they went to, it was a magnificent thing, it was extremely big, and there were various areas and zones. Usually, even if it was meant for skateboarding, there were other urban sports going on, usually tricking, BMX riding and parkour. It was a general meeting spot for urban sports, and the atmosphere was pretty good.

"Ok, sure, I'll go, time?"

"About 9 ish, I'll come get you, so just be ready by 8:30."

"Cool, see you in a bit."

"Yep."

Ace did not have much to do, so he agreed to go. There was still about an hour till it was time, so Ace took a shower, dressed, and then went to work on his Chinese, getting his mind off things for a while.

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"Sir, there is someone at the lobby for you, he said you knew who it would be."

"Yep, thanks Rob, I'll be back.", Ace then picked up his skateboard, ensured his phone, wallet and keys were in his pockets, and then left.

As he got down to the lobby, John was waiting for him, they fist-bumped and then walked out the door.

"So, we're skating there or what?", Ace asked, as an answer, John got on his skateboard, and Ace quickly followed.

As they were skating, they talked over the phone, it was more comfortable, easier to hear through the earbuds, and you did not have to shout that much. It made for an easier conversation in general.

"So, what usually happens in these parties?"

"Well, it kind of depends on who shows up, we can get a DJ, or we can get some hard metal, pretty much depends on that. Sometimes, other people come as well, and there have even been a few instances of a few fights, but no one fucks up too much, they know that if they do, Steve could get his permit revoked, and if that happens, they will get a very big group of angry people with bikes and skateboards hot on their asses."

Ace laughed at that, "Cool, so do we know who is coming?"

"I think they said some pretty famous DJ is, but I honestly have no idea."

"Ok."

"Once the mood begins to rise, people will end up doing competitions for tricks and stuff, so watch out for that, it's a great way to learn new things. Also, beware that there is a mix of minors and adults, even if most likely, no one is above 25. Drugs and Alcohol's aplenty, especially when electronic music is the mood, pills flow like water."

"Cool, so watch out for random drinks, and only drink what you get yourself."

"Yep, there will be kegs, but also cans, so make sure it isn't opened or anything. Nothing has ever happened to my knowledge, but you can never be too careful."

"Your brother coming?"

"Nah, he is with my dad and mom, it was his day. That means I can go out and have fun, I'll do the same for him whenever he wants to go out. It's a pretty good system, and since we are careful, nothing ever happens, so our parents allow it."

Ace nodded, even if he could not see it. Then, even through his earbuds, he could already hear the loud bass sounds of EDM, "Well, it looks like you were right, the DJ is in town."