“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 here?”
A smirk crossed her face as she spoke. “Isn’t that right? He was just offering to lend you some money so you could afford to eat here, and you insulted him!”
Tedmond paused, his glare unwavering. He wasn’t surprised she would say that. If the four boys couldn’t afford the restaurant, they wouldn’t have invited him.
‘So he can’t pay for the food here?’ someone from the crowd murmured. ‘I just heard him say his mother was a maid in their house.’
‘He’s not even grateful that they cared about him, even though he’s just the son of a maid who served them.’
Max rose to his feet, rubbing his face, which had been injured from being slammed against the table. Blood dripped from his face, staining his white shirt. Lisa hurriedly brushed past Tedmond and held Max.
“Are you alright?” Lisa asked Max before turning to glare at Tedmond. “How dare you hit Max? Who do you think you are? Are you jealous that I chose him instead of you? So jealous that you followed us here! You must’ve known he’d ask if you could afford to eat here!”
The murmurs filled the place.
‘That’s two people who have said the same thing. Why is he here if he can’t pay?’
‘We should kick him out.’
‘Where’s the security?’
Maxine grinned widely as she stepped closer to Tedmond. “You’ll be thrown out of this place like the trash you are.”
“Where’s the owner? I’d like to meet him!” Tedmond yelled.
Max, Maxine, and Lisa stared at him, eyes wide in shock and disbelief. But the moment of surprise was short-lived as laughter erupted around them. All three burst into laughter.
“You?!” Maxine mocked. “How can you ask to meet the owner of this restaurant?”
“Is that a joke or something?” Lisa asked. “You and I both know you couldn’t afford to buy me a meal here, even after saving up for three months. Who are you trying to fool?”
“Do you think doing this makes you look cool?” Max questioned, stepping closer to Tedmond. “Why would the owner of the restaurant come here in person?”
“You must be daydreaming.”
“What do you want to meet the owner for?” Maxine demanded, her lips curling in a mocking smile.
Tedmond returned her grin. “What else would I want to meet him for, except to ban the Griffin family from this restaurant?”
Hearing his words, Maxine’s grin widened. “Ban us from the restaurant?” She laughed. “How can someone like you convince the CEO to do that? Who do you think you are?”
Lisa was amused by his audacity to tell such a lie. Max, on the other hand, grinned from ear to ear.
“I’ll wait to see if the owner shows up for you!” he yelled. “You’re delusional! Has kicking you out of the house affected your mental health? Doesn’t living on the streets do that?”
Tedmond shook his head before pulling out his phone. He dialed the housekeeper’s number. Curious eyes lingered on him as he spoke.
“Tell the owner of Hans Restaurant to meet me here,” Tedmond ordered. “Give him ten minutes, or he won’t want to know what happens.”
“Okay,” Thomas replied.
The murmurs around the place increased as Tedmond ended the call.
“Did you just make a fake call?” Maxine taunted. “I didn’t know you’d stoop so low to get our attention.”
Just then, the manager hurried into the restaurant, his gaze trailing from Tedmond to Max.
“What’s happening here?” the manager questioned. “I was informed by an employee that someone here wants to meet the owner. If we’ve done anything to offend you, I’ll offer compensation.”
Max gritted his teeth. “Don’t you recognize me?” he growled at the manager.
Hearing Max’s voice, the manager was stunned. “Ah, Mr. Griffin! What happened to your face? Who did this to you?”
Max smiled, pointing his finger at Tedmond. “He did it. He punched me when I tried to pay for his meal. He can’t afford to eat here but tries to act all boastful.”
The manager’s head snapped in Tedmond’s direction. “Who are you? How dare you hit Mr. Griffin, and why are you here if you can’t afford to pay for our food?!”
Tedmond frowned. “Hey! Do you want to lose your job?” he threatened. “Why don’t you find out what happened before you judge?”
The manager flinched under Tedmond’s gaze and scanned him from head to toe. Seeing that Tedmond had no luxury on him, he concluded Tedmond was a nobody compared to Max.
“How dare you? I don’t need to know what transpired between you two! You’re a lowlife; you’re probably at fault!” the manager yelled. “Are you threatening me? Do you know who Mr. Griffin is?!”
Tedmond shrugged. “He’s just my former half-brother. Now, I don’t have someone as stupid as him as my brother.”
“Half-brother?” The manager paused, his eyes darting between Tedmond and Max. ‘They don’t look alike.’
Max glared at the manager. “Are you not doing your job? That boy is only a bastard! Kick him out, or you’ll be fired!”
The manager didn’t hesitate to call security, and when they arrived, he ordered, “Throw him out of the restaurant, and he is hereby banned!”
The security headed for Tedmond, but he began counting. “I told the owner of this restaurant to arrive in ten minutes.” He glanced at his wristwatch. “He’ll be here in three, two, one…"
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!”
Latest Chapter
CHAPTER 618
The room fell into an uneasy, shivering silence, broken only by the distant wail of a siren on the street below.Evelyn huddled in a corner, clutching a thin, scratchy motel towel around her shoulders, her eyes darting toward her mother-in-law, who meticulously smoothed out the silk gowns."We need to call her," Evelyn whispered, teeth chattering. "Maybe Tina didn’t run. Maybe she’s just hiding nearby, waiting for the dust to settle. If she has that emerald, we don’t have to sell… this." She gestured vaguely at the pile of lingerie.Vivian didn’t look up. "Try her. But don’t expect a miracle."Adeline grabbed the phone, the only one still holding a flicker of battery life. Her fingers fumbled as she dialed Tina’s private line.The three women stood in a tight, desperate circle, leaning in as the call began to ring.Ring… Ring… Ring…Inside the vibrating hull of the cargo plane, Tina’s phone buzzed in her discarded clutch.“ADELINE” flashed on the screen. Tina’s bruised fingers tigh
CHAPTER 617
Earlier that evening...While the rest of the Griffin family paraded their false confidence at the Royal Meridien, Tina had been left behind.She spent the last hour in her bedroom, fuming.Vivian had deemed her gown insufficiently regal for the gala, effectively grounding her while the others went to secure the family’s future.The massive mansion was eerily silent. Only the grandfather clock ticked in the hallway.Suddenly, a heavy thud echoed from the floor above, followed by the distinct sound of boots on hardwood heading straight toward her room.Her heart leaped. ‘One of them came for me’, she thought, a spark of hope rising. ‘Maybe she has a dress to give me.’"Adeline? Evelyn?" Tina called, pulling her robe tight as she hurried to the door. "I told you that dress wasn’t that bad! Did you change your—"She threw the door open, a smile forming… but it froze instantly.Standing in the dim hallway wasn’t Vivian or Evelyn.It was a man, towering, broad-shouldered, his thick, rubbe
CHAPTER 616
Harold had heard enough. He didn’t want to hear Tedmond’s name spoken again.After all, he still couldn’t believe he had been taken down by a child he had ignored and ruined for years.He wanted to believe Tedmond hadn’t done anything at all. He didn’t want to hear his name.“What board, Harold?” the guard interrupted, already moving away to continue his rounds. “The board of directors resigned at 1:00 a.m.”“The stock is at zero. Your ‘empire’ is a parking lot now. You should’ve stayed in your lane. Instead, you reached for the sun and turned to ash.”Harold let out a final, guttural scream of rage, shaking the bars until his hands bled.The only response was the heavy steel door at the end of the corridor slamming shut, leaving the three brothers in oppressive, silent darkness and the truth.***At the Mansion Gates,Back at the estate, the scene was no less brutal.Vivian stood at the edge of the road, her expensive silk heels sinking into damp grass.Behind her, Adeline and Evelyn
CHAPTER 615
The night was far from over.While the city’s news cycles were already churning out headlines about the Griffin Fall, the reality of that fall was only just beginning to settle into the bones of those left behind.The digital age ensured the Griffins’ humiliation wasn’t merely a local scandal; it was a global event.By the time the clock struck 2:00 a.m., the Griffin Fall was trending on every major social media platform.Every news station ran the same looping footage:Harold is being shoved into a police cruiser.Evelyn is screaming at the cameras.And the enigmatic Tedmond walking away beside a masked woman.“It’s being called the Midnight Liquidation,” a prominent news anchor announced, her face illuminated by harsh studio lights.“Sources confirm the Griffin Estate has filed for emergency Chapter 7 bankruptcy. This isn’t a restructuring, it’s a total collapse.”“Every asset, from the historic mansion to the family’s private fleet, is being seized to satisfy a debt reportedly reac
CHAPTER 614
“Tedmond! There are rumors you’re the one who alerted the Xinca Group! Are you moving to take over the family assets now that they’ve collapsed?” another reporter yelled.One reporter, a sharp-featured woman from the city’s leading financial news network, managed to block their path to the waiting black sedan.She ignored the chaos, her eyes fixed on the power radiating from the masked woman and the silent man beside her.“Mr. Griffin, one question for the public,” she pressed, her voice clear above the din. “With the Griffin Estate in total ruins and the three primary directors in custody, the city is wondering about the future.”“Is Xinca or Vander-Morgans going to pick up the pieces? Is your company going to absorb what’s left of the Griffin legacy?”Tedmond paused, his hand resting on the car door.He turned slightly, the glare of the cameras catching the sharp angle of his jaw and the cold glint in his eyes.“The Griffin legacy,” Tedmond said, his voice carrying cleanly through
CHAPTER 613
The elite of the city, once the Griffins' closest social alliesnow stood as their harshest judges.The air in the VIP lounge was thick with the scent of a fallen dynasty.“Exactly,” another investor said, tucking his checkbook back into his coat as if it were a weapon he had just narrowly avoided using.“He didn’t ask you to lie. He didn’t ask you to commit fraud in front of a hundred witnesses. He’s just standing there, bearing witness to the truth. If that’s what you call betrayal, then your family was built on a foundation of rot.”Evelyn’s face contorted, her composure shattering into a jagged mess of fury.She lunged toward Tedmond, fingers clawing at the air.“You set us up! You brought Thaddeus Locke here just to trap us! You’ve been planning this since the moment you walked in!”Tedmond didn’t flinch as a security guard held her back.“I didn’t bring him here to trap you, Evelyn,” he said, his voice a low, terrifyingly calm baritone. “I brought him here because we had business
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