The door of Room 40 swung open, and a young man clad in a crisp black suit walked in. His jet-black hair was styled in a quiff, and round glasses framed his face. He entered the room and nodded at the three men who were there waiting for him.“Anatoly welcome” Stefan greeted the man.“Thank you, Stefan,” the man replied with a thick Russian accent.“Who is the one to take charge of the company?” Anatoly asked. He snapped towards the bottle of scotch, and Andrew and Kent exchanged a look at each other before Andrew passed him the bottle and a glass.“I am,” Kent answered proudly.“So then you’re going to be our puppet," Anatoly smirked, then took a sip from his glass.Kent frowned, displeased by being referred to as a puppet, but he didn’t voice out his displeasure.“Lighten up, it’s just a joke.” Anatoly burst into laughter when he saw the look on Kent’s face. “We’re partners,” he said, then walked up to Kent and patted him on the back aggressively.Kent let out a chuckle, then shifte
“Jason, Marcus most likely isn’t Andrew’s son,” Renee admitted. “And I’m sure he’s Bruno's.”Jason finally understood why Renee had been that way. Cheating on your partner was one thing, but having another family with the person you were cheating on them with was a completely different kind of pain.It was a pain that Jason knew well.It felt like the lunch with Renee was bringing back feelings that he had tried so hard to bury and sink back up to the surface.Everything he felt when he saw Lana, Diana, and Christopher for the first time seemed to come back. Jason didn’t want to feel hatred for Diana; he wanted to be indifferent towards her and not feel anything at all. But every time the image popped into his head, he couldn’t help the rage that built up inside of him.Then there was Christopher. Even though he was obviously making an effort to mend his and Jason’s relationship, or at the very least get Jason’s forgiveness, Jason couldn’t fully let go of all that happened between th
The weekend ended, and it was now Monday. Jason was getting ready for work, adjusting the tie around his neck, when he heard a knock on the door. His forehead furrowed in confusion, as he wasn't expecting anyone, especially not so early in the morning. He walked up to the front door and asked, “Who is it?”“The most handsome and charming guy that you know,” Reuben said from the other side of the door.As he usually did anytime Reuben made his jokes, Jason rolled his eyes. He pulled open the door, and Reuben walked in with an envelope in his hands.“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Jason asked as Reuben walked in."Well, unfortunately for you, I'm not here to chat. I found the name and some other information on the blonde woman who roofied you,” Reuben said as he stretched out his hand, handing the envelope to Jason.Jaaon’s fingers trembled slightly as he took the envelope in his hands. His stomach churned with a mix of dread and anticipation as he opened the envelope and pulled out t
After a while, Jason was done getting ready. He was staring at the paper that had Patricia’s information on it when his cell phone vibrated. He checked out what it was. It was a text from Connor saying that he had arrived and was waiting downstairs.“He’s here,” Jason said to Reuben as he stood up from his seated position.Reuben stood up as well. "Alright, let’s go; we don’t want to be late for the bus!” Reuben said with a playful smile as he hurried out of the apartment.Jason sighed and shook his head at Reuben’s unseriousness, then walked out of the apartment and locked the door.The two men went downstairs and saw Connor standing right outside the lobby of the apartment complex. He looked neat, clad in a formal dark suit, a white shirt, a conservative tie, and polished black shoes.“Good morning, Boss,” Connor blurted out as soon as his gaze landed on Jason. Immediately, his eyes widened slightly, and his expression became awkward and apologetic. “I’m sorry, I forgot that you did
“So what’s it like to work for one of those big fancy corporations?” Connor asked Jason as he drove him to the Elysian Syndicate.Jason let out a soft chuckle. "Honestly, in some ways, it’s a lot like working at the construction site.”Connor’s eyebrows shot up, and he let out a short, disbelieving scoff. “You’re kidding, right?”“No, I'm serious. I mean, obviously, they have differences, and the conditions are much better at the Elysian Syndicate than at the construction site, but just like Danny at the site, there are many corrupt people at the Elysian Syndicate, ambitious and greedy people who would do anything to get what they want,” Jason explained, his tone turning more earnest as he drew the comparison.Connor stayed quiet for a few seconds, then replied, “I understand now. You’re right, they are alike in that way. Not that I’d know; I’ve never worked at a company like that.”“Would you like to?” Jason asked.“Oh no, don’t tell me you want to give me another job. Your heart's t
After overheating Franklin and Jason’s conversation, Roland headed straight to Kent’s office.“We have a problem with those Imbeciles Jason and Franklin,” Roland announced as he barged into the office. Roland’s face almost went pale when he looked up and saw that Lauren, Kent’s secretary, was in the room with him, showing Kent some documents.“Lauren, please excuse us,” Kent said with an icy glare fixed on Roland.“Excuse me,” Lauren said in a hushed tone as she walked out of the office and shut the door behind her. She was slightly upset, as she was intrigued by what Roland had said and how he barged into the office with such urgency, but she knew that staying back to listen wasn’t even a possibility. “Maybe Jason and Franklin aren’t the only imbeciles around here,” Kent hissed as he glared at Roland.“How was I supposed to know that she’d be in here?” Roland retorted.“How were you supposed to know that my secretary could be in my office?” Kent replied incredulously, raising an ey
“Good morning, Young.” Timothy started, but once he saw the look on Jason’s face, which warned him not to call him by the honorific. “Good morning, Jason,” Timothy said, correcting himself. Calling Jason by his first name made Timothy slightly uncomfortable, and even if Jason was never a big fan of being called Young Master, it felt strange to hear Timothy call him Jason.The air between Jason and Timothy was thick with unresolved tension from the last time that they spoke on the phone. “Good morning, Timothy,” Jason said in a flat tone, which amplified the awkwardness in the room.Franklin's eyes darted between Jason and Timothy. Noticing the tension between the unease that Jason felt, he decided to excuse himself so that the two men could discuss it in private.“If you both will excuse me, I have some documents to sign in my office. Jaso, we’ll discuss later,” Franklin said. He greeted Timothy, then walked out of the office.For a few seconds, both men stood in silence, which Jason
Connor crouched down and groaned in pain as the hot liquid burned his exposed skin.Immediately, Jason rushed to his side, while Timothy stood from his seated position, but he didn’t move. He just stood, staring at Connor.“Connor, are you okay? What happened?” Jason asked. “Nothing,” he hissed in pain. “My grip faltered, I guess. I’m so sorry for messing up your floor." As Connor spoke, he made sure that his gaze was fixed on the ground. “I’ll get someone to clean this up,” he said, standing and starting to walk to the door immediately after he said it."No, that’s okay, I’ll handle it,” Jason said as he followed after him.“No, I've got it,” Connor insisted. Without looking back, he left the office.Jason stood there in the middle of his office, left both worried and confused by what had just happened.“Who’s that man?” Timothy finally spoke, which made Jason turn to face him.“That’s Connor, my chauffeur,” Jason answered.Timothy’s forehead furrowed. “Your chauffeur?”“Yes. He’s