2024-09-10 08:20:13Shock rippled through the room as they heard the voice. A guest of the Washington family? Eyes turned to Tedmond, widening in disbelief.
To be a guest of the Washington family meant that Tedmond was a big shot or potentially related to them. Even some of the Washingtons' relatives had tried to get in but were always denied entrance.
How could someone like Tedmond be allowed?
“Are you sure it’s the right person?” Gregory questioned. Despite shivering, he couldn’t help but ask.
“How dare you ask me that?” the person on the other end bellowed. “If I lose my job, you're going to regret it! You’d better let that fellow into the ward, or else!”
Gregory was taken aback by the mention of his boss losing his job. As the call ended, he hurriedly bowed to Tedmond, terrified that he might lose the position he had worked so hard for.
“I’m sorry for not recognizing you, sir,” he apologized. “I’ll walk you to the room,” he added, raising his head to look at Tedmond. “Let’s get—”
“No need,” Tedmond cut him off, disgusted by how quickly Gregory had changed his attitude once he realized Tedmond was a guest. “I can find it myself, just like I intended to do before.”
The phone call had confirmed that everything was real, but Tedmond still needed an explanation for all this.
“Sir!” Gregory called out, but Tedmond ignored him and walked off to find the ward.
The women were equally stunned, unable to speak. They just watched Tedmond leave, clinging to the thin hope that they wouldn’t get fired.
Minutes later, Tedmond’s eyes lingered on the sign above the ward that read Room 509. The door was slightly open, and he could see the window but not the hospital bed. He hesitated, wondering if it was right to enter without knocking.
“You’re here,” a familiar voice said.
Tedmond’s head snapped down to see the little girl he had saved earlier peering up at him. She had changed into different clothes and was holding a teddy bear in her hand.
“My grandpa wants to see you before he…” she trailed off softly. “You have to come in quickly.”
Tedmond nodded and followed her into the ward. The first thing that greeted him was the stare of a middle-aged man in glasses and a frail old man lying on the hospital bed.
“Hello,” Tedmond said, swallowing hard. He had no idea what else to say. “I got a call from you and noticed my account had been credited, and you mentioned I’m the heir of the Washington family. What’s going on?”
The man in glasses bowed slightly. “I’m Thomas, the Washington family’s butler. You’ll get your answers soon.” Gesturing to the old man on the bed, he sighed. “This is Mr. Jeffrey Washington, the head of the family.”
Tedmond stepped closer until he could see the old man clearly, the little girl clutching her grandfather’s hand.
“Hello, Mr. Washington,” Tedmond said politely, controlling his curiosity.
Jeffrey didn’t look well, as if he was about to take his final breath, just as his granddaughter had hinted earlier. Tedmond realized the girl was indeed the Washington family’s granddaughter.
Jeffrey managed a smile. “Ted…” he called weakly. “I’ve finally found my heir. Welcome back, grandson.”
“What’s going on?” Tedmond asked, shooting Thomas a questioning look. “Why is he calling me his grandson?”
His question went unanswered as the life support machine began beeping, and the room filled with tension. The beeping quickened, and Tedmond froze. Thomas immediately sprang into action, pressing a button by the bedside.
“We need a doctor! Now!” Thomas shouted, his voice steady but urgent.
A nurse rushed in moments later, her expression shifting to concern as she assessed the situation. “His condition’s worsening,” she muttered, checking the machines. “We need to stabilize him.”
“Where’s the doctor?” Tedmond asked, glancing between Thomas and the nurse. He felt the weight of the situation crashing down on him—he had no idea what was happening, but it seemed he was now part of something much larger than he had ever expected.
“Dr. Howard is on his way,” the nurse replied quickly, turning back to the patient and adjusting the machines.
Jeffrey’s breathing grew more labored, and the little girl clutched her teddy bear tighter, standing silently by her grandfather's side, her eyes filled with worry.
Moments later, a tall man in a white coat stormed into the room. “Step aside!” he ordered, moving swiftly to the bedside. His hands flew over the equipment, exchanging rapid words with the nurse.
Tedmond stood helpless, watching as the doctor and nurse worked to stabilize Jeffrey. Every second felt like an eternity, and the feeling building in his chest intensified.
Jeffrey’s breathing became increasingly shallow, and the beeping from the machine slowed. Dr. Howard glanced at the nurse, and they exchanged a look that told Tedmond all he needed to know.
Despite their best efforts, it was too late.
The doctor shook his head, his face grim as he checked the old man’s pulse one last time. The room fell silent, except for the soft whimpering of the little girl clutching her grandfather’s hand.
“I’m sorry,” Dr. Howard finally said, his voice low. “He’s gone.”
Tedmond stood there, disbelief washing over him. The man who had just called him his grandson—who had somehow linked him to this mysterious fortune—was now dead.
The little girl let out a soft sob, and Thomas closed his eyes, his expression unreadable as he whispered, “Rest in peace, Mr. Washington.”
Tedmond, unsure of what to feel, watched as the nurse gently covered the old man’s body with a sheet. It was surreal—a few minutes ago, Jeffrey Washington had been calling him “grandson,” and now he was gone. The answers Tedmond had hoped for had died with him.
“What now?” Tedmond whispered, his voice barely audible.
Thomas, though visibly shaken, straightened and turned toward Tedmond. “Mr. Washington made his decision before he passed. You are now the heir to the Washington family’s legacy, Tedmond. It’s up to you to carry it forward.”
Tedmond stared at him in shock, the weight of those words crashing down on him. How could this be happening? Just hours ago, he had nothing—and now he was the heir to a family he didn’t even know.
“What… what does that even mean?” Tedmond stammered, the enormity of the situation closing in on him.
“It means,” Thomas replied solemnly, “that everything Mr. Washington owned now belongs to you. The fortune, the businesses, the responsibilities—it’s all yours.”
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CHAPTER 769
"Oh, look at you!" Perseia giggled, wiping a mock tear before straightening her posture. "Relax, Persis. You look like a cat guarding a bowl of cream. I’m joking! I have no intention of stealing your Tedmond." She waved a hand dismissively, the diamonds on her fingers splintering the morning light. "He’s far too brooding for my taste; I prefer men who aren’t constantly calculating the trajectory of every person in the room."Perseia’s gaze sharpened. "Besides, I have my own targets. I just wanted to see if you still had a spine under all that legal jargon. It seems the boy, excuse me, the man, has been a good influence."Tedmond didn't relax. His eyes remained fixed on Perseia, his jaw set like stone. "If the comedy special is over, we have an appointment to keep.""Not without Persis, you don't," Perseia countered, her humor evaporating into a stubborn pout. "I didn't drive like a maniac just to talk to the wallpaper. Persis, get your bag. We’re leaving.""I am not going, Perseia
CHAPTER 768
The morning sun spilled across the duvet as Persis lay propped against a mountain of pillows, a heavy, leather-bound thriller resting in her lap. She traced the printed lines with a restless finger, her mind drifting from the plot to the unnatural quiet of the house.The silence was a luxury she wasn't used to, yet every creak of the floorboards made her pulse hitch. She couldn’t help but wonder if the shadows were already closer than they realized.The vibration of her phone on the nightstand shattered the stillness. She glanced at the screen: Perseia.With a weary sigh, Persis slid the green icon across. "If you're calling to ask if I’ve survived the week, the answer is—""The answer is that you’re a terrible sister!" Perseia’s voice crackled through the speaker, sharp and buzzing with high energy. "I’ve been waiting by my phone for several days. 730 days! And not so much as a text. Is that how we’re playing it now? You get a man, and suddenly your own blood becomes a ghost?"Per
CHAPTER 767
His gaze shifted to a cluster of mutilated photos. They were images of Millicent and Marek in their younger days, sharing a milkshake on a park bench, fingers entwined. In everyone, Marek’s face had been aggressively scarred away. The paper was shredded where his features should have been, gouged by a knife or a fingernail until only a jagged hole remained.The man reached out, his finger tracing the void where Marek’s smile used to be. "You were just a footnote, Marek. A distraction. A fly buzzing around a masterpiece."The display continued, growing increasingly invasive, less a record of a woman and more the lair of a predator. There were shots of her swimming in a lake, captured from the shadows of the treeline; photos of her sleeping in her childhood bedroom before the highway incident; even the most mundane fragments of a life: grocery shopping, reading on a bus after refusing the car the butler had sent, tying her laces.Every move she had ever made had been documented, ca
CHAPTER 766
Moving toward the wall, he approached an intricate spread of hand-drawn maps and genealogical trees, his bloody palm dragging a jagged smear across names that dated back a century."Do you know what happens to a masterpiece when a child scrawls over it in crayon?" he whispered, his voice hitching with an unhinged tremor. He turned back, a terrifying, crooked grin splitting his face. “Tedmond... little, brave Tedmond. He thinks he’s a savior. He thinks he’s found her. He hasn't found a mother; he’s found a ticking clock, and he’s just accelerated the countdown!"He grabbed a heavy bronze letter opener and began stabbing it into the desk, over and over, the wood splintering with every strike."Several years!" he shrieked, the calm shattering instantly. "For several years, I let Harold play house! I let that pathetic Griffin worm keep her in the dark because the darkness preserves the essence! I liked how she was sold off… panic ruins the flavor!”“It curdles the markers! And now? Her
CHAPTER 765
The air in the high-ceilinged penthouse was thick with the copper tang of fresh blood and the heavy, expensive scent of Cuban tobacco, a suffocating cocktail that made the lungs ache.In the center of the wreckage sat a man who looked less like a human and more like a mountain carved from scarred granite. Stripped to his waist, his massive, corded muscles gleamed with sweat and dark spatters. He didn't just sit in the velvet armchair; he dominated it, his presence sucking the oxygen from the room. A black silk mask lay discarded on a side table, but his face currently wore a mask of far more terrifying proportions: pure, unadulterated rage.At his feet, the floor was no longer visible. A dozen men, all seasoned fighters, were piled like discarded lumber. Some were groaning, their limbs bent at angles that defied nature; others were hauntingly silent.The man reached for a crystal tumbler of amber liquid, his hand so large the glass looked like a toy.He didn't drink. He simply st
CHAPTER 764
The dialogue remained light for hours, drifting from Thomas’s failed attempts at gardening to Marek’s stories of the city’s changing skyline. The horrors of the basement and the Crossroad Men were kept at bay, locked away by the sheer force of their collective happiness.Eventually, the table fell into a comfortable lull. Millicent set her fork down and leaned back, watching the young couple at the other end. She watched the way Persis tilted her head to laugh at a whisper, and the way Tedmond looked at her, not with the predatory hunger of his father, but with a protective, profound adoration."You two," Millicent said softly, her voice cutting through the chatter with gentle authority.Tedmond and Persis both looked up, caught in the light of their own world. "Yes, Mother?" Tedmond asked.Millicent’s eyes sparkled with a hint of the girl she had been before the highway. "I’ve spent a lifetime waiting for things to be right. I’ve watched the moon through cellar bars and prayed fo
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