Adrian’s jaw clenched the moment Anita said the name, Lilian Holt. That woman was proving to be a thorn in his flesh. He recalled the vague words that she had said to him at Alpha group—about leaving Anita a little reminder of what she planned to do. “So, she was referring to these nail marks?” He thought as his jaw clenched even tighter. At that moment, he concluded that Lilian was a threat to Anita’s safety and resolved to get her bodyguards that would protect her, albeit discreetly, because he didn’t want her asking questions or getting suspicious. While he was still deep in thought, Regina’s high pitched voice resounded through the living room. "That wench! Who does she think she is?" Regina ranted, her hand gesturing wildly. “If I ever see her, I’ll give her a slap she’ll never forget in her lifetime!” “And you—” Regina suddenly shifted her aggression to Adrian, her eyes narrowing into slits. “If you weren’t such a poor and useless husband, Anita wouldn’t have been in thi
Adrian turned toward the source of the commotion, his gaze narrowing as he recognized the woman who had raised her voice. It was Serena, his former neighbor from when he lived with his mother. His mind raced back to those days when he worked multiple jobs after he had dropped out of school, trying to scrape together enough to cover his mother’s medical bills. Serena, kind-hearted as she was, offered to keep his mother company and help out with household chores while he was away. Then, one day, without a word, her family packed up and left the apartment complex. He hadn't seen her since—until now, and judging by her outfit, it seemed she was a waitress at the bar. His attention fixated on her as he tried to understand what had happened. His curiosity was quelled when a young man dressed in designer clothing shot up from his seat and grabbed her by the hair. "You filthy wench!" the man spat, yanking Serena’s head back further. “You dare slap me?” Serena’s eyes watered, but she d
Tyler’s sneer deepened as he stared at Adrian’s calm demeanor, which ticked him off to the core. He had expected him to tremble, heck even show a hint of fear at the mention of Owen Stark’s name. But clearly, the loser was hell-bent on putting on a brave front. “You think you’re so tough, huh?” he scowled, pulling out his phone and quickly scrolling through his contacts. “Let’s see if you maintain this act when Owen gets here.” Once he found Owen’s contact information, he swiftly clicked on it and made the call, staring at Adrian with a triumphant grin as if he had already won. As soon as Owen picked up, Tyler put the phone on speaker, his tone switching to one of feigned distress. “U-Uncle Owen, I’ve got a problem at the bar located in Bourdillon street. Someone laid his filthy hands on me and beat my bodyguards unconscious . I’m in pain as we speak. Please come over and teach him a lesson!” Owen’s voice was dark and threatening as it echoed through the speakerphone. “No one l
Tears streamed down Tyler’s face as his lips quivered. “I-I’m sorry for assaulting and t-threatening you,” he sputtered, his words jumbled as blood dripped from his lips. “I’m so sorry…” Serena shifted uncomfortably on her feet, unsure of how to react. It was only a few minutes ago that Tyler had her in the same position he was now in. Now, he was groveling at her feet and looking weak, pitiful even. She couldn’t bring herself to reply to his apologies and instead averted her gaze from him. Adrian, who wasn’t yet done with punishing Tyler, spoke up again. “Now onto the second punishment,” he moved his gaze from Tyler to Owen, who readied himself to comply with Adrian’s next order. “Make him eat all of that broken glass over there,” he pointed to the pieces of broken glass lying on the floor behind Tyler. Tyler’s eyes widened in horror. “No… no, please… I—” He didn’t finish his sentence as Owen yanked him up to his feet and dragged him towards the broken glass, then he signaled
Everyone listened attentively as they waited for Grandpa Lloyd to dwell more on what he had just said, and he continued as if he could read their minds. “As you may all know, Alpha Group recently announced its multimillion-dollar construction contract bids. These contracts are a very big deal and securing one of them could mark a tremendous milestone in the company and will also take this family’s status in the society to a higher level. We would become one of the leading families of Wibston.” This bout of information sent a thrill down the spines of all the grandchildren seated before Grandpa Lloyd. Everyone knew the gravity of the situation—securing a contract with one of the biggest companies in the world was going to be a major feat that would propel their family towards immense power. And who didn’t like power? Grandpa Lloyd paused, watching the hunger in their eyes with satisfaction. Then he leaned forward, his gaze turning sharp and serious. “Whoever among you manages to s
When Adrian heard Serena refer to Mr. Ben as her father, his brows furrowed as he recalled the time when Serena was his neighbor. She had lived with a couple who were definitely not Mr. Ben and his wife, Hannah. “Serena, is Mr. Ben your father?” He asked, his gaze flickering between Serena and Mr. Ben as his curiosity got the better of him. Serena turned around and nodded, wiping her tears with the back of her hand. “The couple I was living with while we were neighbors were my uncle and aunt. They raised me like their own until they passed. That’s why I moved out so suddenly—I had to come back to my real family.” She explained, as if she could tell Adrian's reason for asking. Adrian nodded slowly, his confusion replaced by a look of understanding. Hannah, whose eyes had been tightly shut as she fought back tears, looked up at the sound of Adrian’s voice. “Adrian, you’re here?” she asked, her teary eyes swirling with confusion. “Yes, Mrs. Hannah. I was actually with Serena at the
Adrian’s brows were set in a deep V as he overheard the thug leader mention Alpha Group on the phone. His company was behind the eviction of these innocent people? His mind immediately went to the massive construction project they were about to embark on. But Rhea had assured him that funds had already been allocated for compensation. If these thugs were indeed working for the Alpha group then why hadn’t they compensated the tenants before evicting them. Were they bluffing? Something wasn’t adding up. Needing to get answers, he pulled out his phone and dialed Rhea, his jaw tightening as he did so. “Rhea,” he began as soon as she picked up, “what is going on? I’m at the Wibston tenement on the west side, and the residents here are being thrown out of their houses without notice or compensation.” “What?” Rhea echoed from the other end, surprise evident in her voice. “No, that’s not supposed to happen. We put everything in place for them to be fairly compensated, just like I showe
Meanwhile, Anita had just finished the meeting at Grandpa Lloyd’s mansion and was driving home when her car cranked to a stop. She frowned in confusion as she glanced at the dashboard to see that the gas tank was empty. Her frown deepened even more. It didn’t make sense—She had filled it just that morning. “You’ve got to be kidding me…” she rubbed her temples as she pulled the car over to the side of the road. It was late, and the streets were nearly deserted, with only a few cars passing. She sighed as she got out of her car, deciding to leave it parked and hail a taxi. She’d come back for it in the morning. As she stood by the roadside, trying to flag down a cab, a car pulled up beside her, and the passenger window rolled down to reveal Lilian Holt, with a soft smile on her face. “Anita, what a coincidence seeing you here. It seems your car broke down.” Anita grew tense. After their confrontation the day before, she hadn’t expected to see Lilian…anytime soon at least. “Yeah…”