Mike ignored the manager and strode toward Nathan. “I’m very sorry Nathan. Please let them make it up to you.”Nathan smiled. “You don’t have to apologize, uncle, Mike. It’s not your fault.”Mike then turned to Charlotte. “I’m sorry that your dinner was ruined, Miss. Please, can the management make it up to you?”Charlotte agreed with a nod.“Give me a second!” Mike said and pulled the manager to a corner.The manager was still bearing an apologetic look. “Please, Mr. Mike. Allow me to make it up to them. We are sorry.”“Of course, you’ll make it up to them. You don’t have any choice after all.” Mike replied with an impish grin.The manager knew Mike had something up his sleeve but he wasn’t bothered as long as he’ll get to keep his job.“You are going to do something for me Mr. Manager and do you know what’s it?”The manager displayed a blank expression.“You’ll take Nathan and his guest to the first-class compartment and serve them yourself,” Mike told the manager.He swallowed and
Chapter 33Nathan realized that the events that occurred that evening had suddenly sparked some feelings of suspicion in Charlotte which was causing her to interrogate him. She was looking directly into his eyes, waiting for a response. Confused about what to say or do, Nathan ran his left hand through his hair and put on a fake smile. “I’m serious Nathan. Who the hell are you?” Charlotte maintained a straight face. Nathan was still putting on the fake smile. “What are you talking about Charlotte? How could you even ask me such a question? I’m Nathan Smith, the guy you’ve always known.”Charlotte arched a brow. “Really? Because I’m not sure anymore.”She roved her eyes around the first-class compartment and darted her gaze back to Nathan. “We are occupying the best table in DZA, the fanciest restaurant in Rockville city and you think that’s not worth finding out?” said Charlotte. Nathan could see the anxiety in her eyes. He wasn’t ready to tell her about his newfound identity.
Chapter 34Nathan and Charlotte grabbed the menu cards and began to go through them. Soon, orders were flying out and the manager didn’t waste any time taking it down in his journal. “Is that all?” he said after a silence ensured. Charlotte slapped her card to the table. “That will be all for me. I don’t know for Nathan.” She said. Nathan lowered the card to his chest and raised a brow. “Well, I’ll have some sweeteners after the meal. Just two pieces.”Charlotte hummed. “I think I’ll need two pieces too.”The manager scribbled the last order in his journal. “Why don’t you guys give me five minutes? Please. I promise to process your orders ASAP.” He implored. “Fine. Get on with it.” Nathan replied. Charlotte was delighted. She was finding it difficult to stabilize her gaze on a particular feature in the room and Nathan noticed it. He chuckled. Charlotte shifted her gaze from the colorful painting on the wall to the fancy bar stand. She noticed the artificial aquarium by the co
CHAPTER 35“Wow!” Charlotte exclaimed her eyes beaming with excitement. The executive assistant of the famous Alcantara empire has just given her the chance to see him whenever she wishes.Mike gave a warm smile. “So if you need me to help out with anything anytime, speak to Nathan, and boom, I’ll be there.”They broke into a laugh. “I’ll allow you two to head home now so that you can get enough rest,” Mike said and pointed to the exit with a warm smile. Nathan gave him a loving blink. “Thank you so much for everything, Uncle Mike.”“Anytime Nathan.” He replied and turned to Charlotte. “Bye Charlotte.”“Bye Mike!”Nathan escorted Charlotte out of the restaurant to the spot their vehicle was parked. It was a few minutes past 9 pm. Larry was in the driver’s seat, shoving some fries he had obtained from an eatery he had obtained downtown. He hurried his meal and pulled a napkin to wipe his oily lips. “I’m sorry for taking much of your time.” Nathan apologized to Charlotte after he ca
"Open the door!” Greg screamed and went on banging on Nathan’s door. If not for the darn vice chancellor, he wouldn’t have shown up at Nathan’s apartment. He even fought on the phone with his girlfriend that morning because of the incident and now, Nathan wouldn’t open the door. Greg was infuriated by the fact that Charlotte took Nathan’s side and had called to reprimand him that morning for placing Nathan in a bad state. They ended up yelling at each other. “Open this door!” he continued yelling, his lips curled in irritation. Greg was getting frustrated. He had been outside Nathan’s door, knocking for the past five minutes yet Nathan didn’t open the door. He concluded that if Nathan doesn’t open the door, he was going to abandon the apology quest he was forced to embark on by his father and the vic-chancellor. Back inside, Nathan continued to wonder. The way Greg was banging on his door was causing him to finalize that Greg must have found out that he had dinner with Charlo
Chapter 37“Let go of me!” Nathan snapped and yanked Greg’s hands off his collar. “Are you crazy?” Greg exploded. “You want me to stand before everyone at the court and apologize to you? Who the hell do you think you are?”Nathan sighed and strode to the table where he had stationed his phone. He grabbed the device and turned to face Greg. “I’ve already given you a piece of my mind Greg. You’ll apologize to me before everyone at the court and that’s the only way that I can take it that you are truly sorry.” He replied. Greg arched a brow. “Do you think I require your approval? Listen to me, Nathan. This is a threat. If you tell anyone that I didn’t apologize to you then…”“Then what?” Nathan fired while Greg was still speaking. Greg broke into a dry laugh. “I can see that you are flexing your nerves huh? Well, let’s wait and see.”“You can’t do anything to me Greg because I’ve got proof,” Nathan said and waved his phone. The confused Greg folded his arms across his chest. “What
Chapter 38“The Vice-Chancellor wants you in his office right now!” The class representative said and then turned around. He began walking away after delivering the message to Nathan. It was a few minutes to 9 pm and the boys had just concluded their lectures for the morning. They were about to hit the library when the class representative walked to the spot Nathan, Henry, and Charles were standing to give Nathan the message he had just received. Nathan turned to stare at Henry and Charles who were standing on his left and right. He sighed and adjusted the school bag that was hanging around his left arm. “Why would the vice chancellor summon you to his office this morning?” Henry asked. Nathan swung his head from left to right. “I have no idea and I guess the only way to find out is by going to his office right away.”“Should we come with you?” Henry asked. Nathan smiled. “You guys shouldn’t worry about a thing. I’ll be fine.” He replied. When the class captain walked up to them
Chapter 39The three friends traced their way to the famous school mall which was always an exciting place to visit and shop. The mall was stationed on campus to help students shop within the area especially those students who live in the school dormitories. Students like Greg hit the school mall whenever they wanted. There was a cafeteria inside the mall where Greg usually takes Charlotte for lunch. Students who come from low-income families avoid the mall like a plaque else they were going to squander their monthly stipend in a day.When Nathan, Charles, and Henry got to the entrance of the mall, they noticed how packed inside the mall was. They could see the crowd through the glass doors and windows. Word had gone around the school like wildfire that new items were stuffed in the mall. Most of the girls were there for the latest miniso collections while the boys wanted to check out the gadgets. Nathan and his friends walked into the mall. After they took a few steps inside, Nat
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