2024-09-10 08:22:31Those words sent shockwaves through everyone who had heard them. They couldn’t believe it, but the person who was most in disbelief was the first saleswoman. She snatched the phone from her colleague and dialed the number.
“Are you sure it was $500,000 received?” she yelled, her voice sharp with frustration.
Her tone was so rude that the person on the other end snapped back. “Why are you asking me an obvious question?!” he demanded. “$500,000 has been received! Is there some hotshot there or something?”
The saleswoman's words stuck in her throat as the confirmation hit her. The others who had belittled Tedmond earlier now remained silent, lips tightly sealed.
“Did you do something?” the voice on the phone asked, but the saleswoman quickly hung up, lowering her head.
She turned to Tedmond, bowing slightly. “I am extremely sorry for doubting you,” she stammered. “Can I get you a cup of tea as an apology while your things are packed?”
Tedmond glared down at her in silence. As she raised her head to meet his eyes, she flinched under his cold gaze.
“We made a deal, didn’t we?” Tedmond said calmly. “You were supposed to apologize while crawling around the store.”
Her eyes widened in disbelief. She hadn’t actually expected to do it. “But... but…”
His eyebrows arched. “What are you waiting for? Did you forget what I asked you to do?”
Trembling slightly, she shook her head. “I never intended to do that. Couldn’t we just—”
“Your job or the deal?” Tedmond asked casually, cutting her off.
Without hesitation, she hurried away from the front desk and fell to her knees, shivering with embarrassment. She was about to start crawling when he stopped her with his foot.
“You seem to be forgetting something,” he said darkly. “I told you to apologize to your co-worker.”
She turned her head toward the salesman and yelled, “I’m sorry!”
The salesman was taken aback, awkwardly averting his gaze.
“Now, continue crawling,” Tedmond ordered.
The woman resumed, her face flushed with humiliation, while the other customers who had supported her earlier began recording the scene on their phones.
Tedmond glanced at the other saleswomen, and they all avoided his gaze in fear. “The one crawling could’ve been any of you,” he warned, and the women flinched.
“I’ll get your things ready,” the salesman said quickly, as though trying to rescue the situation. “Thank you for your help.”
“Don’t flatter yourself,” Tedmond replied. “I was only doing it for myself.”
Despite that, the salesman thanked him again and hurriedly packed Tedmond's purchases. Soon, Tedmond walked out of the store, and with the help of the staff, all of his items were loaded into the car.
“Should I drive you home, young master?” the driver asked, glancing back at Tedmond as he settled into the car.
Tedmond thought about it for a moment. He had left the house with only a few bags from his vacation, but he still had his things at the Griffin home.
“Drive me to Rolling Street,” he replied. “I have something to do there. Don’t wait for me—just drop me off.”
“Yes, young master.”
A few minutes later, Tedmond got out of the car far from his father's home to avoid drawing unnecessary attention. He waited for the driver to leave before walking toward the building.
The atmosphere was still cold, though not as biting as it had been earlier. After a short walk, he entered the Griffin compound. He wondered if his father had returned yet. Then, with a bitter thought, he corrected himself.
‘Ex-father.’
The man was no longer his father.
He pushed open the door and stepped inside, expecting to see his former family in the living room, but no one was there. He made his way toward the kitchen, glancing up the stairs as he walked.
His room wasn’t upstairs like the others'. Instead, it was in a small basement. The memory of the cramped space resurfaced as he approached.
“Didn’t you say he was in his room?!” a loud voice demanded, making Tedmond frown. It was Harold Griffin, his father—or rather, ex-father. “Where the hell is that brat?”
“He was here hours ago,” his stepmother, Evelyn, said, trying to calm him down.
“That brat!” Harold yelled.
Tedmond peeked through the open door. They were all in his room, no wonder the house had been quiet. Harold’s face was twisted in anger, the lines on his forehead prominent as he raged.
“Why are you looking for him?” Max, Tedmond's half-brother, asked. “We kicked him out of the family, like you said. He’s 19 now, and we no longer have to take care of him.”
Harold turned to glare at Max. “You should’ve done it while I was here!” he bellowed. “He has something important!”
Of course, Tedmond sighed. His father had no use for him unless it involved something valuable. Tedmond had considered giving them what they wanted and cutting all ties, but the next words made him pause.
“That stupid necklace his mother left him is valuable!” Harold claimed. “I just figured out its name and its worth!”
Tedmond’s hand instinctively reached for the necklace around his neck. It was the only thing his mother had left him, and for years, they had mocked it as something worthless. If they had known its value earlier, they would have sold it long ago.
His jaw clenched. Now, they wanted to find him only because they wanted something.
“I can get him back,” a voice said. It was Lisa, Tedmond’s ex-girlfriend, her face determined.
“And who the hell are you?” Harold demanded.
Apparently, he hadn’t attended the wedding.
“She’s my wife,” Max replied, and their sister Maxine nodded in agreement. “She’s Tedmond’s ex, and he’s still in love with her. She can trick him into giving us the necklace.”
Hearing that, Harold finally relaxed. “That’s settled then. We don’t need to bring him back here. That useless brat has caused enough trouble already. Get his stuff out of his room and toss it in the trash.”
“His room will become a storage space from now on,” Evelyn said, with a note of satisfaction. “I’ve wanted to get rid of him ever since he was brought here as a baby.”
Tedmond’s eyes darkened. He turned and left before they could notice him. Now he knew why they were looking for him, and he couldn’t wait for them to try. When they did, he would be ready with a nice surprise.
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CHAPTER 806
The silence following Tedmond’s accusation was heavy, like the ionized air before a lightning strike.Lorenzo, Vincenzo, and Pietro didn't immediately protest. Instead, their faces shifted, the masks of nostalgic warmth crumbling to reveal the cold, calculating stone beneath. Lorenzo’s brow furrowed into a jagged line as he cast a sharp, sideways glance at Pietro. The look was brief: a flicker of recognition that they weren't dealing with an impulsive heir, but a tactician who had come armed with receipts. A grim, silent understanding passed between them: this one was going to be difficult.Tedmond watched them with predatory stillness. He caught the minute tilt of Lorenzo’s head and the twitch of Vincenzo’s hand over his knee, clear signals in the silent language of the Old Blood families. He didn't need to know the specific cipher to recognize the intent. They were shifting formation, closing ranks against a threat they could no longer patronize."Our apologies, Mr. Washington
CHAPTER 805
The smiles faltered. A heavy, awkward hesitation settled over the table. Cordelia glanced at Juliette, her fork stilled against the china."This is a private family caucus, Persis," Juliette said, her tone tightening as she reached for a justification. "The other families are... in the main hall. We felt that given your history, a more intimate setting with women of your own rank would be less overwhelming.""My rank?" Persis tilted her head, her gold earrings catching the light. "I am a Washington. My rank is the head of the table. So I ask again… why am I the only guest here? Are the other families not invited to your private talks, or are they simply afraid to be in a room where everyone shares the same blood and the same secrets?"She looked at them, her silence demanding an answer they weren't prepared to give."We... we felt it was safer this way," Cordelia stammered, her copper braids shifting as she leaned forward. "With the Architect still at large and the Washingtons acti
CHAPTER 804
"Now," Persis continued, her lips tilting into a sharp, clinical smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Since my husband and I have spent the last fifteen years concerned with matters of actual consequence, I find I haven't had the time to memorize the roster of every adjacent branch on the map.”“To be perfectly blunt: I don’t care about your family history, and I have absolutely no idea what any of your names are."A collective intake of breath hissed through the room. Cordelia’s grip on the door handle tightened, her copper hair practically vibrating with indignation. Juliette froze, her cigarette holder halfway to her lips, her burgundy eyes narrowing.Persis gestured vaguely toward the circle of women with a gold-cuffed hand. "So, if we are to have this discussion you seem so eager for, it would be beneficial for you to introduce yourselves.”“One by one, please. I’d hate to mislabel a file later when we’re deciding which parts of the Moretti infrastructure are still worth keeping.
CHAPTER 803
She signaled to a younger woman with copper hair braided with gold wire. "Cordelia, escort the lady to the Rose Gallery. The others are waiting."As Persis walked away, her gold dress trailing like a flame, Tedmond stood in the center of the room, alone amidst his enemies. He watched her disappear behind the silk curtains before turning his gaze back to Beatrix."The Library, then," Tedmond said, his voice a low rasp. "Let's see what the men of this house have to say for themselves before I stop listening entirely."Tedmond followed the silent beckoning of the Moretti elders toward the Library, a room that smelled of old leather, expensive tobacco, and the stagnant rot of ancient secrets.The double doors closed behind him with a heavy, final thud, cutting off the glittering light of the ballroom."Mr. Washington. Please," a man with silvering red hair and a face like a hawk gestured toward a heavy velvet armchair at the center of the semi-circle. "Take a seat. We have much to discus
CHAPTER 802
"Perhaps he’s finally realized he can't fight the council alone," one guest suggested, though his voice lacked conviction."Tedmond Washington doesn't realize he needs help; he realizes he needs targets," a younger heir countered, eyes fixed on the entrance. "Think about the timing. He’s been purging the secondary branches for days.”“If he shows up here, in the heart of the Moretti estate, he’s either surrendering, or he’s bringing the fire to the front door. And Tedmond doesn't know how to surrender."The murmurs grew in volume, a low, tectonic vibration that filled the crystalline space. In the rigid hierarchy of the city, the Washingtons were the sun: distant, burning, and singular. They didn't orbit other families; they didn't attend parties; they merely allowed them to happen. The fact that the black-suited Washington was breaking his years-long social exile for the family that had facilitated his mother’s kidnapping made the champagne taste like vinegar to those who understo
CHAPTER 801
She grabbed his face, forcing him to meet her stare. "Because if the Glass Pavilion ends with you still looking at them and me still hiding in a hoodie, I might just break the glass myself."The Architect reached up, his large hands covering hers and pinning them to his cheeks. He looked amused, a man watching a beautiful, dangerous storm."Millicent is a debt, Daphne. Persis is a variable," he whispered, his voice smooth and hypnotic. "But you... you are the prize. The Washingtons and the Morettis are fighting over the past. We are the only ones looking at the future."He pulled her closer until their foreheads rested together."Tomorrow night, the hiding ends. When the pavilion falls, we won't be in the wreckage. We’ll be the only ones left standing on the shore. Is that enough, or do I need to prove it again?"Searching his face, Daphne felt the jealousy remain like a bitter coal in her chest, but the promise in his eyes was a drug she couldn't refuse."Prove it," she challenged,
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