The crowd went silent when they heard Tedmond’s words. Who would have thought the arrogant Kyle would lose to the so-called loser of college and have to become his slave?
“We made a deal,” Tedmond muttered. “You can’t go back on it. From now on, you’ll listen to me and do whatever I want.”
Kyle’s teeth gritted. He had never been this humiliated in his entire life.
“Do it!” the crowd yelled.
"A deal’s a deal—it must be upheld!"
"Don’t back out now!"
Kyle’s eyes darted to Max, who shook his head, before turning back to Tedmond.
“Master,” Kyle said, forcing the words out in a barely audible whisper.
“I can’t hear you,” Tedmond taunted.
“Master!” Kyle yelled, his body trembling slightly as embarrassment overwhelmed him.
Tedmond’s lips curled into a satisfied smile. “Now that you’ve called me master and have become my slave, go get me a milkshake,” he ordered.
Kyle’s teammates looked on in surprise, but Kyle turned to one of them.
“Go get the milkshake like he asked,” he ordered.The teammate hesitated, and Kyle glared at him.
“I meant you,” Tedmond said, poking Kyle in the chest. “Do it yourself.”
Kyle glared back, his anger rising. “Don’t—” he started but stopped, his fists clenched.
Tedmond arched his brow. “What?”
“No need. I’ll get the milkshake,” Kyle muttered, spinning around and storming off.
“Think he’ll do it?” Liam asked.
“Yes,” Tedmond replied.
In less than five minutes, Kyle returned with a milkshake and handed it to Tedmond.
“Good job,” Tedmond muttered. “I’ll see you later, Kyle.” He turned and walked off with his team, sipping the milkshake.
“How do you know it’s not poisoned?” Oliver asked, glancing at Tedmond.
“It’s not,” Tedmond reassured them. “Poisoning me would be too easy.”
“Still,” Liam began, “I couldn’t drink something he touched.”
Tedmond smiled. He hadn’t expected to gain friends so quickly, but now, he had four—the same people who once wanted nothing to do with him.
“Want to join us for dinner later?” James invited. “It’s at a restaurant that’s trending at school right now.”
“What time?” Tedmond asked, remembering his promise to Bianca to be home by seven.
“Nine,” James replied. “It’s kind of late, but since you’re not at home anymore, are you thinking about moving to the dorms?”
“We have space for one more roommate,” Noah added. “You could apply to join us.”
Tedmond shook his head. Even if he had nowhere else to go, he couldn’t afford a dorm on just $1—at least not without the inheritance.
“No, I have a place to stay,” he said. “But I’ll join you for dinner at nine.”
Night fell quickly, and soon it was time for Tedmond to leave for dinner. After putting Bianca to bed, he headed out, only to be startled by the butler standing outside his room.
“You scared me,” Tedmond said.
“My apologies, young master,” Thomas replied. “I just wanted to inform you that your card has been created. You seem to be going out, so I thought you might need it.”
Tedmond took the card with a curious look, noting his initials: T.J.W.
“I’ve also contacted your school,” Thomas added. “Griffin has been removed from your name, and you’re now officially listed as Julius Washington. I hope you’re okay with that?”
“I am,” Tedmond said. “Thanks for your help, Thomas.”
“I’m just doing my job.”
Tedmond smiled at the butler before walking past him and leaving the mansion.
A little later, Tedmond arrived at the restaurant, easily spotting his friends waving at him. He walked over and took the empty seat they’d saved.
“Hello,” he greeted, and they all replied in kind.
“We thought you weren’t coming,” Liam said.
“So did I,” Oliver added.
As they chatted, Tedmond looked around the restaurant, noting how grand it was. He could tell the meals were expensive, and he would never have dared enter such a place in the past.
Then someone sat down at a nearby table, and the relaxed expression on Tedmond’s face vanished. The people seated next to them were none other than his siblings and Lisa.
‘Why do I keep bumping into them?’ he thought, rolling his eyes and looking away.
Just as he turned, Maxine noticed him and whispered to her brother.
“He’s here,” Maxine said. “Is that why we couldn’t find him in the streets?”
“Maybe he’s staying with those four,” Max replied.
Lisa shook her head. “I asked around at school today. He’s not staying in the dorms with them. What are we going to do? We need the necklace.”
At the mention of the necklace, Max stood up. “I’ll handle it.”
Without hesitation, Max approached Tedmond’s table and leaned close to his ear. “Come with me—we need to talk.”
Tedmond looked up, glaring. “What do you want? Say whatever you have to say here.”
Max’s face twisted with anger. “This is a family matter. I’m not discussing it in front of a bunch of strangers.”
Tedmond glanced at his friends, who were all glaring at Max. As expected, they were on his side.
“They’re my friends,” Tedmond responded. “You’re the outsider here. Why would I care about anything that concerns your family?”
Max’s blood boiled. “Is this how you speak to your elder brother?” he spat. “I only came to help. You’re being taken advantage of. They’re just leeching off you, pretending to be your friends so you’ll pay for dinner.”
He sneered, his voice rising. “I’m sure they have no idea you’re just the child of a maid, with no money to your name.” His tone was taunting and loud enough to attract attention.
Tedmond felt like he’d been punched in the gut, his anger surging. How dare Max insult his mother?
“Your mother was so poor she gave birth to you in the streets after being kicked out of the family. You belong there, on the streets—where you came from,” Max continued, leaning closer, trying to intimidate him. “If only she hadn’t birthed a bastard like—”
Before Max could finish, Tedmond grabbed his head and slammed it against the table. It happened so fast, that no one saw it coming.
With his eyes dark and his hair tousled from the swift movement, Tedmond hissed, “Don’t you dare talk about my mother like that.”
“How dare you talk about my mother like that?” Tedmond demanded, pinning Max against the table.No matter how much they had talked about him, he hadn’t retaliated, but today they had gone too far. No one could talk about his mother now. That might have been possible in the past, but not anymore.“What are you doing?” Maxine questioned. “How dare you hit your elder brother?”Glaring back at her, Tedmond snarled, “You think of him as my elder brother now, don’t you? Why didn’t you say something when I was being insulted?” He released Max and stepped closer to Maxine.Maxine trembled but stood her ground. ‘How can that bastard get so strong in just a day?’ she wondered. However, she quickly regained her composure.“Why are you doing this to him when he just asked if you could afford to eat at the restaurant?!” Maxine yelled, switching the topic as fast as she could to make herself look less bad. “We all know you’ve been kicked out of the family without a penny! How can you afford to eat
As soon as Tedmond finished counting, the others hadn't had time to react when the door of the restaurant swung open. A man in a tailored creamy suit hurried in, followed by three others, with sweat dripping down his forehead.Everyone’s gaze turned to the man who had just walked in, and the security guards froze in their tracks.“What is going on?” Max demanded, glaring at the manager. “Throw him out!”Blood drained from the manager’s face as he stared at the man. “He really came!” he yelled. “The owner of the restaurant is really here! How is that possible? I messed up!”Max and Maxine’s eyes widened in disbelief. Even when their father had tried to speak to the owner of the restaurant, he was told to book an appointment. Yet Tedmond had managed to call him with a single phone call.Lisa glanced at Tedmond and noticed the smile on his lips.“He really came?” murmurs began to spread.“The owner arrived in ten minutes, just like he said.”“Who the hell is that guy?”“How can he call t
Dinner ended faster than they had anticipated. Tedmond walked down the street with his four friends; they hadn’t asked him anything after his last statement.They quickly switched the discussion and spoke about school instead, avoiding anything related to him. Tedmond glanced at his wristwatch; it was almost 10:30 p.m., and he wasn't home yet.He wasn’t one to go home early since he would usually take on more jobs at night. A smile crossed his face; he was glad he wouldn’t have to do that kind of work anymore and would finally be able to sleep properly.Picking up his necklace, he glanced at it. If only his mother were there to see him find her family, it would have made up for the terrible things the Griffins had done to her.A frown crossed his face; he wasn't going to let go of the Griffins for what they had done to both his mother and himself. He needed to work on his revenge plan.“Are you alright?” Noah’s voice brought him back to reality. “You were zoning out on us.”Tedmond gl
Arriving at the office, Tedmond placed Bianca on the couch next to him and handed her the tablet so she could use it while he worked.Sitting in the chair made specifically for him in his new office, he glanced at the piles of paper laid out before him. Lora stood in front of the desk, showing no sign of wanting to sit down."Have you reported everything that needs to be reported?" he asked.She nodded. "Yes."Tedmond glanced at the piles of documents again. "The company was functioning quite well with you all in charge. Just keep running it as you are now," he said. "I don’t think anything needs to be changed.""Alright, sir," she replied. "There is a meeting happening today about the Griffins. Should I acknowledge them and work with them?"A frown returned to Tedmond’s face. Since he'd lived with them, he knew nothing about the Griffin company. "What is the company all about?""They produce music for games and animations. You could say it's a voice production company. They also prov
Seated in his office, Tedmond crossed his legs and leaned back in his chair. The seat had been adjusted, making it look puffy and soft. His gaze was fixed on the tablet, but he wasn’t reading from it.He couldn’t help but wonder what expressions the Griffins must have had when they received Lora's call.They would do everything in their power to gain further recognition from him, but he had no intention of revealing his identity just yet. He pondered whether he could play with them a little, like chess pieces.Considering all the terrible things they had done to him and his mother, it was only fair that he did as he pleased with them.Just then, Lora walked into the office. “Sir, I called them as you asked, and I’ve also gotten the mask and a voice changer.”Tedmond raised his head from the tablet to look at her. “A voice changer? Is that really necessary?”“I thought you didn’t want them to recognize your face, and you might also want to disguise your voice,” she replied.Thinking ab
A glint of satisfaction crossed Tedmond’s face when he saw the look of astonishment in the eyes of the Griffins. He had intentionally called Max dumb, knowing that Max hated being called that, even though he was.Max was taken aback and hurt flashed in his eyes for a few seconds. His lips parted as he searched for words, but he couldn’t find any. After a few moments, he finally spoke up.“Why do you think I am dumb?” Max questioned hastily. “I only said what needed to be said.”Tedmond grinned. “No, you didn’t,” he replied. “Xinca doesn’t need to put others down to get ahead or stand out.”Harold didn’t like the fact that his son was being called dumb. From how things were going, he had a feeling they might lose this opportunity, so he stepped in.“I am sorry for my son’s rudeness, President,” Harold said. “He didn’t mean to offend you.”Harold gestured for Max to apologize, but before that could happen, Tedmond spoke up.“Are you sure you know what your son did?” Tedmond asked.Harol
Tedmond walked out of the company, twirling his car keys on his finger before slipping them into his pocket. He held Bianca in his arms as he headed toward the garage. Just as he took a step forward, someone brushed past him.From the person’s silhouette, Tedmond could instantly tell who it was.“Max!” Lisa’s voice reached his ears as she rushed past him to meet Max.He paused for a moment but didn’t turn around. She fell into step beside him. “What?”“Where are you going?” she asked. “We should go back together.”“No need,” he replied.Tedmond glanced at Bianca, who was already sleeping peacefully in his arms, still clutching her doll. He sighed in relief—he didn’t want her to see them.“He called me dumb, and I guess I am dumb. Why did Dad listen to him when he said I should take a business class? I’m already studying business,” Max ranted, raising his thumb to his lips and chewing his nails. “What if he uses that against me and doesn’t appoint me as the heir to the company?”Lisa s
Frowning, Tedmond stared at Lisa, whose face was red with anger. He arched his brows. Why was she finding it so hard to accept that he had a child before their relationship, and she knew nothing about it?“What are you talking about?” Tedmond asked Lisa. “I already have a kid, and asking me questions is a waste of time. I. Am. Leaving.”Maxine’s eyes scanned the child from head to toe, her eye for luxury immediately identifying the expensive clothing.“Who is the mother of this child?” Maxine demanded. “The kid seems to be dressed in luxurious clothes.”Hearing that, Evelyn glanced at her daughter. “Luxurious clothes?”Maxine nodded. “That dress alone is worth $20,000, the shoes are worth $5,000, and even the doll in her hand is worth at least fifty thousand!”“For the child to dress that way, she must have a rich mother! If she hadn’t been with her mother all this time, the child would have been living with us!” Maxine asserted.The Griffins pieced the words together and nodded in ag