Chapter 90Henry and Charles traced their way back into the busy hall. They kept looking around the entire hall for Greg but didn’t see him.Most of the people inside the hall were seated and only a few others with the waitresses and bartenders roamed around.The host made his way to the stage and grabbed a microphone.“Ladies and gentlemen!”The audience was compelled to focus on the stage.“The Alcantaras are here!”Murmurs broke out among the crowd while tension spread among the Alcantara rivals.Mr. Tyson clenched his jaw. “And so what? They should get in like anybody else. There was no need for an announcement.” He mumbled.Avery’s dad, Jacob Lacoste who was sitting opposite the Tysons leaned toward Mr.Tyson.“The Alcantaras are no ordinary people Fred. They earned their glory so they deserve all the accolades.”Mr. Tyson tightened his fists and turned away.Kelvin was irritated when he noticed the way most people kept standing up to catch a glimpse at the Alcantaras. Others even
Chapter 91At the mention of the commencement of the nomination exercise, everyone’s attention was tilted to the stage.Dr. Lance continued. “There will be nominations and for that, we will only take the top five. So we will begin the nomination process and the top five will be those who had secured the highest votes.”Waitresses holding trays containing tiny pieces of paper were moving from one table to the other. The waitresses were guided by the committee members and were only handling the blank papers to people who were eligible to nominate. The nomination exercise was not meant for everyone.“Write down the name of the candidate you are nominating and hand it back to the waitresses immediately.” Dr. Lance instructed from the stage.After about ten minutes, the nomination exercise was completed and the waitresses had collected the list of nominees.Two of the committee members under the authority of Dr. Lance were handed over the papers for sorting. While the papers were been sort
Chapter 92Nathan traced his way outside the hall to the spot where Charles and Henry had been waiting for him. Immediately after they saw him stepping out, they hurried toward him. “What happened? Did you say Charlotte was taken?”Charles was tempted to compliment Nathan’s suit but that wasn’t the bone of contention. “So Henry and I came out seeking Charlotte and we saw Greg struggling at a corner. He was in a bad state and he told us that Charlotte was taken.”“Damn it!” Nathan replied and slapped his thighs.“The thing is.” Charles continued. “I’m suspecting she’s being kept in a van down there at the parking lot.”“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go.” Nathan said. Charles took the lead while Nathan and Henry followed. Nathan was about to take another step but was alarmed by a tap on his left shoulder. “Where are you going boss?” Jackson asked. Nathan sighed. “We suspect that some bad guys are keeping our friend in a van at the parking lot so we want to go and help save he
Chapter 93Nathan helped Charlotte get up on her feet and immediately after her legs hit the ground, she immersed him in a hug. Her eyes were still marred by tears. “Thank you!”He smiled and patted her back tenderly. “Don’t worry about a thing. You are safe now.”She exhaled slowly and pulled away from the hug. Nathan turned to Don. “She needs to get away from here.”Don gave an approving nod. “I’ll take her to one of the cars where Joe will ensure she’s taken care of.”“Good!”Nathan then turned to Charlotte and looked her straight in the face. “Go with Don. You’ll be safe with him.”After giving repeated nods, Charlotte began raking steps toward Don. Her messy hair was soiled with dust and the hem of her dress was torn. Nathan went to his friends who were standing beside the van. While Charles was running his hands through his hair, Henry was dusting off his suit with his hands. Nathan pulled up his nose mask. “I need to get dressed then we can head back into the hall.” He t
Chapter 94“These are the instructions.” Mr. Wells continued. “All nominees can raise the bid once it is declared open.”The nominees were paying keen attention. Silence had ensured as the stage was now the center of attraction. “Once you guys make a pronouncement, know that there is no going back. The amount you bid is irreversible so you must bid with caution.”Kelvin cleared his throat loudly. “Keep those dumb instructions to yourself. Let’s get on with the bidding already,” he mumbled but Nathan heard him. “After the bidding reaches its peak and there are no more additions, the winner must pay instantly right here. Do you guys understand?” Mr. Wells stressed. “Yes sir!” some of the nominees chorused. Nathan nodded and adjusted his mask. As far as Kelvin was concerned, nothing was stopping him from winning the bid. He felt the card in his breast pocket with a smile. Mr. Tyson concluded that the highest amount the Alcantara heir could bid was 500 million because the highest t
Chapter 95Mrs. Smith smiled and raised her glass to her face in honor of Nathan. She then turned to her husband. “I raised no weakling.”He commended with a nod. “Yes, dear.”“700 million dollars!” Stanley announced and raised his bell in his bid to start counting. Mrs. Smith leaned toward her husband and began to whisper into his left ear. “Our son is not a coward. He has the family spirit.”Kelvin was stunned. He wasn’t expecting less from the Alcantaras but his expectations were just violated. He clenched his jaw and turned away.Nathan chuckled. It was evident that he was giving the nominees a run from their money, especially Kelvin. For the three other competitors, it was already game over. Kelvin slipped into a deep thought. Should he increase the bid? Would his father be pleased if he goes out of budget? As far as he was concerned, it was not just about winning the bid. His reputation was also on the line. Mike traced his way to the stage and moved closer to Jackson. Fro
Chapter 96Flashback!Don traced his way inside the hall and walked straight to Mike’s table. Together, they moved to the bar stand by the entrance. “Did you guys notice anything?” Mike demanded. Don confirmed with a nod. “A fight broke out at the parking lot. It turns out some men were keeping a certain girl whom Young master identified as Charlotte in a van.”“What?” Mike almost yelled. “Young master was at the fight scene?” And speaking of Charlotte, Mike knows her as Dr. Lance’s daughter. “No one got hurt and we were able to rescue the kidnapped girl. She’s safe with Joe and the rest.” Don reported. “I knew something was up,” Mike said. “And the men that abducted her. Any news?”Don shook his head. “One of them had a gun to the girl’s head so I took him down. The rest fled.”Mike looked at the table where Dr. Lance was seated. His wife was speaking to him but the man looked lost. “You can leave Don. Stay sharp!”Don left. Mike began taking steps toward Dr. Lance. He had no
Chapter 97Nathan couldn’t contain his excitement from the moment he was declared President of the millionaires club by Mr.Wells. The depth of his euphoria went deeper when he saw his parents making their way to the stage. The keen Nathan went toward them with a victorious smile. “We did it, Dad!”His father gave him a soft pat on the back while his mother squeezed his left hand tightly. She took him in a warm embrace. “You are your father’s son!” Mrs. Smith remarked with a grin. Soon, other renowned dignitaries began tracing their way up the stage to congratulate Alex Alcantara on his latest achievement. Mr. Smith took his time to introduce to Nathan each guest that went to congratulate him. Back at their table, Henry and Charles were beaming with excitement. If Nathan wasn’t keeping his identity a secret, they would have run toward him or possibly knocked him down with a group hug. Their moment came when other young men and women began leaving their tables to meet Nathan on
Steve pulled the car to a halt in front of the airport building. Nathan turned to Avery with a smile. “You still want to do this?” He asked with his hand stretched out toward her. She took his hand into hers. “More than anything in the world. I’ve been running around for years and I never told you this but the main reason why I came back to Rockville was to make peace with your soul and then build my brand from scratch now that you’re here, I just want to spend as much time with you as possible, away from the whole chaos and drama. Just the two of us.” Nathan planted a kiss on her forehead. “Thank you so much, Avery.”She smiled. “I’m excited. It’s going to be my first time in Russia and I just can’t wait to explore the city with the love of my life.”Steve cleared his throat loudly. “Looks like I also need to find the love of my life and take her to Russia.”They laughed.Suddenly, Nathan’s phone began to ring. He heaved a deep sigh and turned to Avery. “It’s Charles.”“It’s over.”
Morgan turned to his bodyguards who had been inside the lounge with him all this while. “Call for reinforcements. We’ve been tricked.”Derrick darted Morgan’s attention toward the chip on the table. “It’s a camouflage. It’s all programming shit.” He said and began to take off his jacket. Morgan was already sweating profusely. “I must find the real Alex. I need to kill that bastard today.”“Are you even serious?” Derrick cried out. “We are in a mess. That chip proved that this whole session was recorded.” He took his head into his hands. “I should have listened to Kelvin. This was a bad idea and now, we’re doomed. I’m not even sure if we’re the only ones in this building right now.”“I reserved the whole damn building and apart from the staff, there’s no damn customer here.” Morgan retorted and threw his gun on the floor. “My backup team will be here any moment from now and we’ll get the hell out of here. As for that recording chip, I don’t care about what’s in it or who had access t
“Now that your girlfriend is safe and out of the picture, let’s talk business,” Morgan said to Nathan’s camouflage who was sitting before him and Derrick. Both men had no idea that the man sitting in front of them was a product of science programmed to function like Alexander Alcantara with a chip buried in his head. The camouflage was programmed to follow Cole’s instructions and ever since he walked into the longue, his words and actions were being directed by Coke from outside. “Why did you kill my parents?” The camouflage asked Morgan. Morgan broke into a laugh. “Seriously? Do you think I have time for this? Do you want me to respond to your stupid questions? You’re doing this to buy time right?”“Isn’t it obvious that you have me under your mercy? If you are going to take me out then at least I deserve the chance to know why you killed everyone in my family.” Nathan replied. “For my brother’s sake.” Morgan quickly replied. “You killed Corrigan, the only person in the world wh
Nathan stretched his hand toward Avery and held her hand tightly. “You’ll be fine.” He mumbled to her lovingly. She nodded repeatedly.Derrick clenched his jaw and looked away while his bowels continued to heat up with rage. “You’re lying,” Morgan replied. “I gave you ten minutes to come here and according to my guards, you came alone so how did you get to rally troops and station them here?”Nathan chuckled. “I didn’t bring any troops from home. If you and your partner were smart enough, you’d know that this is the Grandiose Hotel and the Grandiose Hotel belongs to the Alcantaras.”Derrick and Morgan exchanged glances. “Shit!” Derrick cussed and rubbed his hair repeatedly. “It didn’t cross my mind.”Morgan frowned. “All I had to was give the manager a phone call before coming in. I told him that if four minutes pass by and Avery does not come walking through the door, he should tell the restaurant security squad to start firing.” Nathan said. Suddenly, Derrick snatched Morgan’s g
The waitresses returned carrying food trays. They graciously placed it on the table. Morgan reached for the plate of steak and began to devour it like a hungry lion. Avery kept staring at her plate of pasta and meatballs. “Are you okay?” Derrick demanded. “Yeah.” She replied and looked up. “Don’t eat that.” Nathan’s voice came through the chip. She heaved a deep sigh because that was exactly what was on her mind. What if the food was poisoned? She kept thinking. Nathan continued speaking to her. “Leave your bag there and get up. Act normal and tell them you need to use the restroom then you head out.”“I think I need to pee,” Avery announced. Morgan stopped eating and dropped his plate immediately. “But you just got here?”“Yeah.” Derrick agreed with a nod. Avery faked a smile and quickly stood up. “I think I had a lot of water earlier and now, I need to pee. I’ll be back soon.” She said. She was about to turn around when Morgan spoke. “Excuse me?” Avery turned around lookin
“You look as gorgeous as ever,” Nathan commented while Avery was tracing her way down the staircase. It was time to meet Derrick. He had already dropped the location and had called a while ago to say that he was on his way. Avery was wearing a short black floral dress with black sandals to match. Nathan had insisted that she apply makeup so that Derrick doesn’t sense her insecurity. “Are you sure about this?” Avery asked when she reached Nathan. Nathan took her face into his hands. “You’ll be fine. I promise you with my life.”She smiled. “If you say so.”“Remember, act normal and do as he says. Okay?”“Got it,” Avery replied and walked away. By the time she arrived at the restaurant, Derrick was already inside because he had texted her about three minutes ago that he had arrived. On her part, Avery had convinced him that their meeting was a secret because Nathan was not going to approve. She had taken a cab to get there. When Avery walked into the building, she was stunned by i
“Welcome, bro. What can I offer you?” Nathan demanded the moment Kelvin walked into his living room. Kelvin marched in and didn’t even look at the couch Nathan was presenting to him. “I don’t think I can sit.”“You look restless. What’s the matter?”Kelvin sighed and faced Nathan. “It’s Derrick. He had been in my place for the past three days and he’s been looking like shit.”“Did you ask you to come here and convince Avery to go back to me?” Nathan asked. He then raised an index finger. “Listen, tell Derrick that if I see him close to my woman, I’ll kill him so he should leave her alone.”“That’s not why I’m here.” Kelvin sharply replied. “Last night, he went on a rampage and drank several bottles of my wine and when I walked into him in my living room, he was half conscious and he said some things.”Nathan abruptly stood up. “What did he say?”“You and I both know that it’ll be difficult for a man like Derrick to change.” Said Kelvin. “It’s not like I’m condemning him.” He quickly
“He’s coming out shortly,” Daniel reported and sat with the rest of the team. That morning, Morgan’s allies stormed his mansion to talk about the tragic events that were unfolding. It was no news that his biggest warehouse was burnt to ashes. That evening, another one was looted and by midnight, Morgan got information that his security guards were attacked on their way back from the club and 6 perished while two were in a coma. Morgan made his way down the staircase, carrying the weight of his problems. However, he was sober and didn’t display any angry reaction. Perhaps, he was too beaten by the incidents that he had lost his will to react. His Allies looked upon him as he made his way toward them. The group consisted of his friends and partners who had helped him execute shady deals in the past. After he sat, Daniel stood up and cleared his throat loudly. “There is no denying that we all know who is behind the constant attacks. Without mincing words, I’d like to inform you all t
It was Saturday morning and during the weekends, Morgan plays tennis with Daniel, his assistant. Daniel is no fan of table tennis and barely knows how to hold the bat but every Saturday and Sunday morning, he shows up dressed in shorts with his gears just to impress Morgan. Also, Morgan knew that his assistant was bad in the sport so it gave him an edge to defeat him completely all the time. This morning, Daniel was already seated by the court in Morgan’s house and was waiting for his boss to show up. Morgan had just stepped out of his room and was on his way toward the living room before heading out to your court when his phone began to ring. He frowned and didn’t pick up the call. Even though he was a workaholic, he had made it clear to his workers that none of them would disturb him with work matters except if it was an emergency. The call persisted and the warning bells in Morgan’s head began to ring. What if this particular call was a case of emergency?The call was coming fr