POWER UNDISPUTED

Chapter 6

He took off the necklace and handed it back to Damien. "Yes. Unfortunately, this is only a temporary fix as my ailment is too far gone. I would need nothing short of a miracle to be completely whole."

The whole night had been nothing short of a miracle for Damien. From losing everything to becoming the CEO of one of the biggest consortiums in the world. He definitely became a believer.

"What kind of a miracle."

The old man was taken aback. "A miracle of epic proportions. What I need is a special and extremely rare root called the Ayurbouros root. I have spent most of my years trying to find it to no avail."

"How do I find it?"

The old man was even more shocked. Such a determined young man. He would define4be a good fit for the CEO position. "It is impossible, boy. I appreciate your enthusiasm but if I couldn’t find it, then it can't be found."

Damien couldn't accept that. He'd only just found his last surviving family member and he would be damned if he let anything happen to him.

"If you really have given up then there's no harm in my giving it a shot. Worst case scenario is that I don't find it."

The old man chuckled. "I guess you are right. I am part of a secret society that specialises in building complete men. I have learnt and mastered various martial arts, mystic arts and medical practices. I have access to secrets the average person cannot fathom. If you insist on going down this path, I will put in a request for you to join. But make no mistake, this will be a gruelling, difficult journey."

Damien pondered on this. As much as he hated to admit it, he was hurt over Courtney's Betrayal. He had loved her since he met her and he would need to undertake a herculean task to get over the persistent ache in his heart.

"I will do it," he said, making up his mind. It wasn't a hard decision to make. Not only would he be helping his grandfather, he would also be gaining invaluable knowledge kept secret from the world.

Joy filled the old man's chest. His own son had rejected this path and left home but to have his grandson continue his legacy was a dream come true. "You really are my grandson. Angela, bring it."

Angela walked over and handed Damien a black card. "This is an exclusive card with unlimited funds. You can buy whatever you want and need forever without it running out. Use it for your daily spending before you start getting paid as CEO."

Renee who had been silently stewing in the corner was finally ready to explode. "Hey, why does he deserve that? What has this vagabond ever done that you reward him like this while we fight for scraps?" She levelled a withering glare at Damien. He was so unfazed, he found it amusing.

Angela was pissed off that her sister would talk so recklessly. No matter what, you don't bite the hands that feed you. The old man was done with her nonsense.

"Scraps?" He asked. "You drive a Porsche and live in a penthouse apartment. Do you know how much those cost? No, because I pay for it, you ungrateful brat."

"Calm down, sir," Damien said. "No need to get all riled up. But I have a question, now that I'm CEO, does that mean I'll take over all your expenses?"

A grin spread across the old man's face once he realised what Damien was doing. He had only just met him but he felt so proud already. "Yes, grandson. Every single one."

Damien nodded his head and a deep frown appeared on his face. "So that means I'm responsible for paying her rent and allowance?" He asked, pointing as Renee.

"Don't point your filthy fingers at me," Renee shrieked.

"Yes, you will be," the old man replied. "You have full control over all funds and how they are distributed."

Damien nodded thoughtfully. "I think from now on, people only get paid for the work they do. Don't you think that's fair sir? It would at least prevent anyone from feeling entitled, right?"

Renee watched the whole scene from the corner of the room, silently stewing as soon as she realised the implication of what they were saying. This bastard just walked in and wanted to steal her lifestyle. How did they even know he was the old man's blood? For all they knew, his mother could have been a cheating whore. She hated him so much. She vowed to make the bastard pay.

"Entirely fair and yes it will. I knew you would be a good fit as CEO. Now go and make me proud."

With a big smile on his face, he turned to leave the room but Angela placed a hand on his chest, stopping him abruptly. Damien was still in the dark and she couldn't let that happen. She'd made the old man promise to tell him everything and she would make sure he did.

"You need to tell him now. Putting it off will only make things harder," she said to the old man.

The old man sighed. "I haven't been entirely truthful with you. You might want to take a seat for this one."

What news could possibly shake him enough to need a seat? "I'll be fine."

The old man had been dreading this talk. Not only did it make him look even worse as a father and grandfather but he knew it would be devastating to Damien.

"Remember when I said I feared Saul would take drastic measures against you?"

Damien remembered it and was going to ask but so much was happening all at once and he forgot. "Yes, I do. But I don't think he would have done anything. He's a piece of crap but he's harmless."

"Oh dear boy. He's not harmless at all. He has ties to the city's dark underbelly. He's in cahoots with several crime corporations and uses them to do his dirty work. He… he was responsible for the death of your parents."

Damiens world shattered in an instant. Saul had killed his parents. That wasn't possible. "No, that's not possible. They died in a helicopter crash."

"Yes. On a vacation organised and paid for by Saul."

Indeed, his parents had gotten the tickets from Saul as a late honeymoon gift. Saul never hid the fact that he hated his wife for leaving him for Damien's father. He would constantly cause trouble and when he gave them the gift, they thought he had finally come around. But did he hate them enough to kill them?

"But he wouldn't do that. He hated my parents but he still loved my mom. He wouldn't do that." Damien couldn't accept that the mom who had basically raised him was responsible for his parents death. That would mean Saul also killed his son's mother but he loved Andy too much to do that.

The old man expected that Damien wouldn't believe him which is exactly why he let him grow up with Saul. One lie from Saul would have been all it took to alienate their grandfather-grandson relationship forever.

"He did love her, I'll admit. But he couldn't have her. He decided if he couldn't have her, no one could."

It made perfect sense but it was too much. Why would Saul go that far? Anger surged in Damien's veins. He wanted his hands around Saul's throat. That bastard not only stole his wife but also killed his parents.

"Why didn't you do anything? You're the richest man in the whole continent. Why did you let him go without consequence?" Damien growled at the old man who was unfazed.

"I understand your frustration. I too wanted nothing more than to strangle him and watch the life leave his eyes. But I had lost my son a long time before he died, Saul only brought finality to that. I didn't have as much right to revenge as you who had lost both your parents." He walked up to Damien and grabbed his shoulders. "I want you to decide his fate. I want you to be the one to avenge your parents, to make him pay."

Even in his blinding rage, Damien understood perfectly. The old man had done him a favour. Now he had even more reason to hate Saul and make him pay for the life of hardship he put Damien through.

He nodded and left the room.

"Follow him. Make sure he's okay and doesn't do anything drastic," the old man said to Angela who took off after Damien.

Somehow, Damien had made it out of the mansion and she had to hurry down the stairs, almost tripping as she went.

She finally caught up to him right outside. "Hey, where are you going?"

But Damien refused to answer. How could he? He had murder on his mind and a target on Saul's back.

Angela rushed to his front and put her hands against his chest. "I know you're angry and I know you want revenge, but what exactly are you planning to do right now?"

He didn't have an answer. "I'm going to kill him."