“You must be very stupid!” Xaden was appalled by the woman’s instant refusal. It was his first time witnessing such open hostility. “How do you expect us to just open our home to a stranger just because our father and your grandfather were old friends?” It was the woman’s brother,Trevor, that spoke this time with a frown on his face. “I don’t even understand why father would make friends with a man like that. Look at you, you’re just as wretched as your old man. Poor and stinking. Your shoes look worn out and you have dirt all over you. You also stink! While my father worked to gain all his wealth, your grandfather ran away like a coward to live in the country and remained poor.” Bianca sneered with obvious disgust and held her nose to emphasise her point. Xaden’s grandfather, John Dyre had been a good man and he was close friends with their father, Adam Miller. Though John had retired to the suburbs to live a quiet life, Adam had gone into business and become a millionaire. They b
The house was far more beautiful than Xaden expected. He was used to living in a modest country home, not a house like this.There was a Japanese painting hung on one side of the room. Xaden recognized the painting. He had seen one back at home though he wasn't allowed to touch or go near grandfather's stuff. He came across the painting when he was trying to clean up the store room one time. He didn't realize that his eyes were still fixated on the painting until Trevor tapped him on his shoulder and asked if he was okay.“I'm fine, I'm fine. I just got lost in the painting. My Grandfather has one exactly like it."Trevor smiled. "That was my father's favorite painting. Come along, let me show you where you'll be staying for the meantime."Xaden followed suit. He was tempted to ask where Bianca was but he stopped himself before he even muttered a word. He understood why she was mean to him earlier. Suddenly a stranger appears on your doorstep claiming to be your father's friend's grand
Bianca chuckled. "I'm just messing around. Of course, we're not going to kill him. But maybe someone else can so we don’t stain our hands."Ashley went for the door. "Mom, I think you had too much wine today, just go to bed and I'll go talk to Xaden and accept his proposal, okay? Nobody's killing anybody and besides, Uncle Trevor seems to fancy him alot."Bianca rolled her eyes. Your Uncle hates him as much as I do. He’s just pretending so Xaden will trust him.”Ashley suddenly came up with a brilliant idea. "Instead of killing him, we'll look for a way to kick him out of our lives by divorce. We can accuse him of something and then kick him out."“That’s a great idea. Now go talk to him and tell him you’ve agreed to it.”Minutes later, Ashley returned and asked to speak to Xaden privately. He was shocked that she made that request when she had made it clear that she despised his presence.He took her to his room so they could talk and as she entered the room, he subtly inspected his r
A loud sound resonated through the house and Xaden held his face as Bianca gave him a hot slap. "You wretched man! You did it again. You messed up the whole place. Now you'd have to clean it up again. How many times do I have to remind you that my marble floors are worth more than your miserable existence?” Bianca said as she walked past Xaden who was holding his cheek. Bianca just slapped him for messing up the house with his mud filled shoes for the second time today. Xaden wiped his hands on his shirt, took his shoes and went down the hallway. He had just come from the garden and had forgotten to take off his work boots. It has been two years since he and Ashley got married and things never got better like he had expected. They were all treating him badly. Sending him on unnecessary errands, punishing him if he wasn't back on time, making him prepare dinner for the family, doing chores for even the servants of the household, the list could go on and on. Bianca was the one in cha
How could she be pregnant? But there was no other explanation for her weight gain and swollen belly. He just sat there staring at Ashley's swollen belly. As far as he could remember, he has never touched her, not even held her hands once since they got married or kissed her. The first and the last time he tried doing that was during the wedding and he paid dearly for that when she embarrassed him by walking away. Suddenly she goes on a so-called business trip and returns with pregnancy? There was no other explanation, she cheated on him, and got pregnant by another man. Her pregnancy was already showing so she was at least five months pregnant now. He stood. His body was moving but it was like he was in a trance, watching everything happening instead of actually living in the moment. Bianca was saying something to him but he couldn't hear what she was saying. He walked slowly towards Ashley until he was a few inches away from her face."How could you do this to me? Y.you cheated on m
PRESIDENTIAL VILLAAdrian closed his eyes and sighed heavily. He knew that his death was close by. He opened them slowly and stared hard at the Japanese painting on his wall. It was one of the most beautiful and famous paintings in the world and was very rare. There were only four paintings like it in the world but only three had ever been found. No one knew what happened to the fourth one. The three paintings were shared between him, and his two old friends, John and Adam. It had been years since he really spoke to any of them. They separated in order to protect the next heir of the Knight Consortium and had only communicated once in a while to exchange important information.The next heir was supposed to be John’s grandson. He remembered the promise he made back then to his two close friends back at high school. They all took one of the paintings as a symbol of their friendship and loyalty to one another. High school was one dreadful experience. He didn't really want to remember i
"Grandfather, why are you giving me the ring? You're not dying anytime soon, you have to stay with me." Grandfather smiled sadly and patted his head. "Though I'll be gone physically, but I'll always be with you, in here, in your heart." Xaden's face was filled with tears. He wiped them with his hands. "Don't go, grandfather. Don't leave me alone." Grandfather stood up and began to walk into the darkness, leaving Xaden in tears. Xaden tried to follow but he seemed to be stuck though he could see no chains. "When you truly need me, I will come to you. It’s your time now, Xaden. Destiny has found you, make sure you win. Trust no one." His voice echoed in the darkness. Xaden woke up immediately. He was covered with sweat, blood and bandages. What kind of dream was that? It started out as a memory he had with his Grandfather when his Grandfather gave him the ring before dying, then ended with his Grandfather giving him advice and a warning. "Where am I?" he muttered. He turned to
What is this? He rubbed his eyes and looked again. It was still there. Was he going nuts? Maybe he hit his head too hard yesterday and now he was hallucinating.More words appeared.“The president is sick and can only be cured by you, keep him alive or you won’t be able to get your inheritance. Curing the President=20 xp. Earning your inheritance=50 xp. You have three days to find all the ingredients and make a potion. Each ingredient found before the time expires=5 xp. Read closely and pay attention to each name, they can only be found if you pay attention to your surroundings. Flexir, Elixir, Talpin, Ronine and lastly, the Walxir. Each ingredient is very different and serves different purposes. Take note." With that, the screen disappeared.Find ingredients? For the president? His inheritance? He was getting more confused. Grandfather never mentioned that the ring he gave to him was special or anything. He heard footsteps approaching, and someone was about to enter the room. Xaden