Roman gazed out the glass wall in his office as he stared down at the busy streets of New York. The morning sun in all its glory bathed his office making Roman look like a god made of gold. Everything was going according to plan. Troyes Inc. was going to go down soon, and he would watch it burn to the ground. It was a brilliant idea to sell his shares to random investors. He knew that if the supply became greater than the demand, the company’s stocks would drop drastically. He had been banking on it, and it had worked impeccably. Now all he had to do was wait for Lincoln to come begging. But it didn't seem likely. Roman knew Lincoln was a stubborn man with pride and he would find another way to try and revive his company. But that didn’t seem likely. The one solution that Lincoln currently would be to bring more investors, and that would even make his stocks depreciate. The true only solution was to buy back the stocks from all the investors, and Roman knew there was only one person
Eric Hilton stepped out of the black sedan and wore his black jacket. He had red hair which lit up his pale skin and his brown eyes. His mustache which was curvy all together gave him a funny look. He was dressed in a white shirt with a black leather jacket over it. At his hip was a holster with a loaded gun and a police badge on the other side. Eric had a stern look on his face, and together with his funny-looking ginger mustache, he looked menacing. Before him was a crime scene which was decorated with an ambulance and several police cars. Eric walked towards the yellow tape that surrounded the house which seemed to be the crime. There was a policeman guarding the yellow tape, blocking off the crowd of civilians from approaching the scene of the crime. Eric arrived at the yellow tape and the police officer flashed him a smile. “Detective Hilton. Welcome,” the policeman announced. Eric Hilton nodded in response. “Thank you, Brady.”“My pleasure.”Brady lifted the yellow tape enab
“Welcome home, Roman,” Ben greeted as Roman stroked out of his black Corvette. He left it on the driveway and went to meet Ben who was standing on the porch. Roman was exhausted. Today was a crazy day at the office. David Troyes had come in to threaten him. That seemed very absurd. “I hope you enjoyed your day at the office?” He asked as they walked into the house. Roman didn’t respond. Ben noticed that he looked exhausted. He wasn’t used to this kind of work. He had been away from town for seven years. The only thing he was used to was combat training and learning. Though he had been working under a company while he was still living with The Troyes, that was a very long time ago. “The strangest thing happened today, Ben,” Roman said, taking off his suit jacket. Ben walked towards Roman who dropped the suit jacket on the couch. “What is it? Rylan?” He asked. “Lilian's new husband came into my office this morning to threaten me.”Ben chuckled softly. That was amusing. Roman roll
A black motorcycle drove into Roman’s estate and parked in the driveway just in front of the porch. The figure in the motorcycle who was dressed in a blank leather jacket and a pair of black jeans and had a black tinted helmet with designs of motorcycle tires on fire killed the engine and leaned off the dashboard. The figure lifted off the helmet, revealing its face. It was a woman. She had short black spiky hair, narrow green eyes, and high cheekbones which gave her a menacing look. Her olive skin made her glow which made her look like a model. She held the helmet under her arm and gazed at the mansion before her. The doors swung open suddenly and Ben stepped out of it, rushing down the porch stairs. When the woman recognized him, she flashed a smile. “Lydia!” Ben called. The woman stepped off the motorcycle and placed the helmet on it as she headed to greet Ben. “Uncle Ben,” she responded. Ben pulled her into a warm hug. Lydia sighed as she hugged her uncle. When she received
“Anything?” Adam asked. Eric was seated across from him on the opposite desk and shook his head in response. His head was buried in the file before him. “You?” He lifted his head to ask. “Same here,” Adam confessed. Edict sighed and leaned off the desk, slumping back against his chair. He was exhausted already. They had been going at this all day and they still hadn’t found anything. Eric didn’t like it when all work always ended up being futile. They were looking for clues on the murder of the victim, James Bilford but couldn’t find anything. “I think I’ve found something,” Adam said. That made Eric spring from his chair. He headed towards Adam’s desk and stood beside him. “What did you find?” He asked. “It says here that James had a family in New York. They live right here.”“You think what I’m thinking?” Eric asked. Adam closed the file and looked up at him. He knew exactly what Eric was thinking. “I think it’s time we pay the Bilfords a visit.”***Eric and Adam stepped
Lydia approached Roman who was seated by the swimming pool. He was basking in the morning sun with a pair of shades covering his eyes. His torso was naked revealing his rock-hard abs which were so attractive. As Lydia watched him from inside the house, wild thoughts swarmed her mind. She wanted Roman so badly, but Roman didn’t seem interested in her. All her life, Lydia had always thought herself to be irresistible. That was until she met Roman Lacroix. She was meaning to talk to him about their conversation earlier. Roman hadn’t been clear enough in his words, and Ben didn’t help either. She was pondering on what to do, but she had no clue. It was left for her to make Roman shade more light on it. But she doubted he would talk to her. “Are you going to stand there all day?” Roman asked. Lydia’s heart skipped a beat as she heard that. Roman had found out that she was standing there, but he hadn’t even looked back once. That was impressive. Lydia gulped hard. She felt guilty for havi
Lydia Rhys swung into the dark room through the window. She landed neatly on the floor making no sound. Everywhere was quiet. Lydia scanned the room and found nothing out of the ordinary. There was no movement in sight. She eased herself off the squatting position she posed in from her landing and began walking into the room. Dressed in all black, she camouflaged herself with the shadows as she made her way through the living room. It was wide but not as vast as Roman’s. She was here on a mission. A mission to gain Roman’s trust. Though he was currently a jerk to her, Lydia knew she would have to impress him if she wanted to work for him. The reason she was doing this was because she had no way else to go. Roman was her last option, and she had to make him see that she was worth it. Just being part of his family wasn’t enough. She had to show him that she could offer some use to him. That was apart from being his lawyer. Lydia walked further into the room and found a hallway by her
“I want to know about my father’s death, Ben,” Roman said as he sat on the couch. In his hand was a glass of scotch. Ben was flabbergasted by Roman’s words. He never thought that Roman would randomly ask about his father. It was something that had happened a long time ago just before Roman had been lost. Ben felt the reason Roman was curious was because he was feeling grief once more. It wasn’t easy for him to get over the death of Amiri. Having to meet your mother for the first time on her dying bed was traumatic. Ben knew this. “Why all of a sudden?” Ben asked. Roman reached for an object that was by the couch. It was a picture of Roman’s father, Lucien. In the picture were Lucien and Amiri standing together with a warm smile on their faces. Roman guessed this was just before they had him. “Because I’m curious. I want to know what he was like,” Roman replied. Ben nodded. “Very well.” “Thank you, Ben,” Roman said, placing the picture away. Ben sat on the couch opposite
(EPILOGUE)Roman stepped back into the house and he found a figure sitting on the couch waiting for him. He clenched his jaws as he walked into the room. He was eager to see who had interrupted his grieving session. He had been to let all the pain out. The guilt he felt for watching his mother die and also not being there for his parents while they were alone hit him hard. He just needed that space but he wasn’t going to get that now. As he came closer, the figure sat at the couch with a tea cup in their hand. Roman squinted his eyes as he tried to recognize who it was. The figure finally turned around and faced Roman. Roman was immediately shocked by what he saw. “Nuo?” He called in surprise. Nuo Feng, who was dressed in her customary robes, rose from the couch and smiled at him. Roman was in disbelief. The last time had seen her was when he had visited Shanghai. That was because he had been hurt badly in a confrontation with Viper Don’s men which had left him paralyzed. But
“There you go,” Ben said, handing him a bouquet. Roman gave him a weak smile and got the bouquet of yellow roses from him. “Thank you, Ben.”Ben nodded. “If you need anything. Just call me.”Roman nodded and Ben turned around leaving him. He was now alone in the graveyard of his parents all dressed in a black suit. With the bouquet in his hands, he stepped forward and stood before the headstone of both his parents. With a smile, he picked out one of the yellow roses and placed it on his mother’s grave.“Hello, mum. I’m back,” he said with a smile. He moved to the next headstone and dropped another flower on it. This was his father’s. Roman clenched his jaws as he stared at his father’s headstone. He could feel the guilt consume him as he looked at it. It was hard for him because he couldn’t remember what his father looked like, nor did he have any memory of who his father was. The only reason he remembered him was the pictures in their old house, and the video of him leaving th
Roman stretched on the bed as he woke up before opening his eyes. He looked around and realized that the morning sunlight had washed into the room, illuminating the bed on which he lay. Last night was amazing. After winning the award for the entrepreneur of the year, he had come back to the suite with Florence where they had sex. Just as she was about to climax, she said the magic words. I love you. Roman didn’t know what to say back then, but he felt he had an obligation to say what he felt about yet too. And he was going to tell her when they had breakfast. He turned to the other side of the bed to meet her only to find it empty. This startled him. He rose from the bed and looked around the room. There was no trace left of her being her last night. That was awkward for him. Roman rose from the bed stark naked and walked towards the bathroom. He opened the door and stepped into it. He found water droplets on the floor which meant that she had been here awhile ago. He reached
Roman Lacroix opened the door of his suite and stepped inside. On the other hand was his award which he couldn’t quite wrap his head around how he had won it. He had been stunned when his name was mentioned. After making a speech, he received the award which made him feel better. That was two awards he had won now, but who was counting? He wondered if the universe was finally paying him back from all the torture he had undergone at the hands of Viper Don. But that didn’t matter much to him. If that was the case, then he would gladly accept it. The door of the suite was closed and he turned around to see Florence coming in with her purse in her hand. She still looked amazing, and he was surprised that he hadn’t noticed that until now. She was amazing in her black dress which exposed her cleavage. Roman found it hard to look away. Florence noticed Roman looking at her and she couldn’t help but smirk. They had decided to spend the night in suits and travel back to New York the
“Roman! You won’t believe this!” Ben said as he closed the door. Roman who was sitting on the couch with a glass of scotch in his hand turned to Ben who had an envelope in his hand. He wondered what he could do there. “What is it?” Roman asked. “I think it is for you,” Ben replied, handing over the envelope to him. Roman, confused, got the envelope and immediately tore the seal. He reached into the envelope and brought out a letter from it. After reading for a few moments, he was left in awe. Ben noticed the change in Roman’s facial expression which made him more curious about what could be in the letter. “What is it?” Roman read the letter one more time before turning to him. “It’s an invitation,” he said. “To where?” Ben asked. Roman turned back to the letter. “It says here, Dear Roman Lacroix, amazed by the works you have carried out in your hometown, Brooklyn. We are delighted to invite you to the prestigious annual Entrepreneur Awards night. We will b
Roman walked through the hallway of the precinct as he headed towards the other entrance. He had contemplated this for days, and he had finally come to a decision—he was going to get the key to the city. He deserved it. Oliver had made him realize this. After saving his life on multiple occasions, he realized that there were a lot of things that he had done that went unnoticed. He had been able to take three powerful men down with Viper Don being the strongest. It hadn’t been easy, but he had done it. The last mission made him feel that he could do anything if he put his mind to it. Saving Susan from the mighty drug lord, Frederic El Mataso, made him realize that there was more to his capabilities than he knew. Eric and Adam were waiting nervously just as the mayor went to the podium to give a speech. They were still inside the building waiting to be summoned. It was a big day for them, but that didn’t stop Eric from wearing his trademark black leather jacket. Adam on the other ha
Brooklyn, New York. 6:45 AM.“Well, that was fun,” Oliver said as they stepped off the jet. They were greeted by the morning’s golden light which washed upon them as they walked out of the hanger. Oliver still had the black duffel bag in his hand but it didn’t contain ammunition anymore. It was money. A whole lot of it. They had cashed out on all their artifacts last night and made their way with the excess of it. Roman was calm as he walked out of the hangar. He was dressed in a new black suit and his hair was combed neatly. He looked all refreshed. Last night was hilarious, and it was hard to believe that it had happened.They had made their way with one of the most expensive jewels ever, and all Roman did was blackmail him. They couldn’t say that Frederic El Mataso wouldn’t come after them but who cared? They had hit the jackpot again. Roman had the ring in his hand and he stared at it as he made his way towards the crew. At a distance, a black Cadillac was heading towards them
Frederic El Mataso wasn’t fazed by the sight of the guns being pointed at him. He had been through much more than that. What he was worried about was the men at the table with him who were already terrified at the sight of the men. “If you don’t want to end up like the guards there, I strongly suggest you all leave,” Roman ordered. The men looked at each other before running out of the room. The door shut behind them and they were left alone in the room with Susan and Frederic. Susan rose to her feet and went immediately to Oliver, pulling him into a hug. Roman, on the other hand, lowered his gun and walked to the poker table, sitting on the other end of it. He had one of his guns pointed at Frederic who still didn’t seem fazed by this. “I know who you are,” Frederic said. “You’re the famous Roman Lacroix.”Roman smiled at that. Sometimes, he forgot that he was known throughout the country. First, it was the Russian mafia leader, now it was El Mataso. He was making a name for him
“Bring her in here,” Frederic El Mataso ordered. The door opened and Susan was dragged into the room. Her hair was ruffled and her face was drenched in sweat. She had just spent the whole day in the basement and now she was about to be given a death sentence. The room had a poker table with men seated around it, Frederic included. Frederic El Mataso was a plump man with a weird mustache and heavy eyebrows. He was dressed in a black suit with his bloated stomach trying its best to stay in the white undershirt he wore. There was only one thing that caught Susan’s eye. It was his ring. The ring was glowing as he rubbed his chin with a grin on his face. “Bring her closer,” he ordered. The guard dragged her on the floor as he brought her to him. Susan was kneeling before Frederic now who was still rubbing his chin as he stared down at her. “You piece of shit! You think you’re going to get away with this?” She yelled. “She’s a feisty one,” he said to the men at the table who chuckle