2024-12-01 23:24:34A shot of applause went up as it did for each family that arrived as Elina and her parents arrived at the entrance of the Hazel’s mansion. They smiled and made their way to their seats, Nicholas in tow with them.
“You know, I’m still finding it hard to believe that the heir himself, had sent his limousine over to bring us down here. It feels like a dream come true!” Patricia chipped in as they settled down.
“Well, we all Nicholas all of these. It was his influence that got us a spot in the Hazel’s Forbes Initiative,” Jacob grinned and raised a glass in salute.
~~~~~~
A knock sounded on the door as Jonathan stood before the mirror getting ready for the grand unveiling, and the shock he was about to subject the Jacksons to.
“Come in.”
It was Via.
“Hey. I'm ready. And I just got word that most of the guests have arrived. I believe it's time for you to make your appearance.”
“And the Jac–” Jonathan began asking as he turned around to face her but his breath caught in his throat.
Via was dressed so beautifully in a sexy low-cut blue-green gown with a thigh-high slit that he couldn't help staring. Her hair was down for the first time and it blew Jonathan’s mind away. It was a good thing she was his date.
She smiled, “Yes the Jacksons just arrived. You seem to have such an love for the family?”
Jonathan cleared his throat, regaining his composure.
“Yes. I do.”
~~~~~~
“And now for the moment, you've all been waiting for!” The master of ceremonies boomed, dazzling everyone with his smile, “Permit me to make welcome, the most wanted man in the world!”
Everyone laughed out loud at that,
“Well, it's true!” The man joked. “With a standing ovation, let's welcome –”
Elina and her family were one of the first people to rise to their feet and begin clapping.
“– the richest bachelor in the world, Jonathan Hazel!”
All of the lights focused on Jonathan as he came up on the stage with Via. His smile took everyone's breath away.
Patricia particularly because she collapsed onto her chair.
A look of horror had graced Elina’s face as she stood frozen, looking at Jonathan and refusing to believe her eyes.
“It can't be…” Nicholas breathed.
Jacob was white as a sheet and could only place a hand on his wife's shoulder as she trembled, looking like she'd just seen a ghost.
“Thank you. Thank you very much, Steve.” Jonathan clapped the announcer's back jovially.
“And thank you Venice City for this wonderful opportunity to meet you all in a relaxed environment. I must commend your brains and efforts in putting this together.”
There were murmurs of assent from the crowd and another round of applause.
“Well I'm glad to meet you all and I'm sure you're all elated to have been the first to see the new heir of the Hazel Empire.”
Everyone laughed.
Jonathan wasted no time as he went straight to announcing the three family businesses that were finally picked to be beneficiaries of the Hazel’s Forbes Initiative with the Jackson’s family not included.
“Well enjoy your evening and I'll be around, mingling and answering any non-business questions you might have.” Jonathan remarked, as he took Via’s hand, looking directly into her eyes and smiling as he did.
Another round of laughter filled the hall, as they looked at the two of them, believing that they were already a couple in the making.
“Yes please, this is the only night I'll get away from business in a while so please,” Jonatahn said in a mock-serious tone.
Everyone laughed and applauded as he and Ivy exited the stage, waving at them.
“Now isn't it a peach that our new boss has a great sense of humor?” Steve demanded jovially. “Enjoy your evening everyone!”
“Now Mr. Duke, what did I say about business earlier?” Jonathan joked to a middle-aged man.
“Oh well –”
“E – excuse me Jonathan?” a voice interrupted from behind Jonathan and his companion.
Jonathan turned around and it was the faces he'd been waiting to see all evening.
He smirked.
“J– Jonathan please can we –”
“I'm sorry but if you'll excuse me I've got better things to do.” Jonathan quipped and moved away.
Elina ran after him and grabbed his arm.
“Jonathan, please let's –”
“Excuse me!” Jonathan snatched his arm from her grip. “That's harassment, miss!”
“Jonathan, why are you doing this?”
But Jonathan was already off.
Elina ran after him once more. The whole debacle had caught the attention of nearly half the hall at that point.
One of Jonathan’s guards stopped Elina before she could grab him again.
“Jonathan, you don't have to embarrass us like this,” Nicholas spoke up shakily from behind Elina.
Jonathan stopped in his tracks immediately. He turned around slowly.
“You're right. I don't have to embarrass you like this. I can do it another way.”
He walked up to Nicholas and when their faces were mere inches apart he raised his voice for the silent room to hear,
“Nicholas Ray, aren’t you the one who submitted a business proposal to have over a billion dollars invested in your new startup?”
Nicholas, quickly realizing his mistake started trembling, as he could already tell where Jonathan was steering the conversation towards.
“S- sir. Yes, sir. Yes, sir, I am.” He stammered, hoping it would appease Jonathan and prevent him from carrying on with whatsoever plan that was already cooking up in his mind regarding the investment proposal.
Jonathan looked at him in a very disgusted way,
“Well then, I’m not investing! You are free to take your proposal somewhere else,”
Nicholas’ eyes widened,
“Y– you can't do that!”
Jonathan smiled devilishly,
“Oh, but I can, and I just did,” Jonathan turned to leave and signaled for his guards.
“J – Jonathan, p– please don't do this –” Elina begged, still running after him.
“Don't go down that lane honey. You know what I can do.” Jonathan snickered, not even bothering to look her way.
Elina and her family stood there hopelessly for a moment, then they turned around and saw the entire hall staring at them. They'd been publicly humiliated in front of the entire city.
Their faces were infused with red as they stuttered trying to explain themselves.
The hall erupted in frantic muttering as everyone whispered amongst themselves about what the Jacksons could possibly have done.
Everyone moved away from them as they walked back to their seats.
“W– we don't have to take this, let's go home,” Jacob muttered.
They made to leave the hall but Jonathan spotted them from the gallery.
“Don't let them leave.” He muttered to his guard. “They should stay back and enjoy the waves of humiliation bathing them.”
The guards at the entrance refused to allow them passage. Jacob furiously called their own guards to get them out of there but as Jonathan saw from above that they were the same men who'd beaten him up to a pulp the night he'd been forced to sign the divorce papers, he muttered to the ears of his head of security.
“Arrest their guards.” The man instructed with his voice reverberating through the hall.
As their guards were hijacked and handcuffed while they were pushed back into the unforgiving hall, Elina’s eyes moved up in desolation and she saw Jonathan smirking down on them from above.
Tears filled her and her mother's eyes as they stood, feeling completely ostracized.
“This is only the beginning.” Jonathan muttered.
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"I have never been so humiliated in my life!" Jacob Jackson thundered as he and his family barged into the house. He threw his coat onto the floor, his face red with anger and embarrassment. The fact that they had gone to the ceremony in a beast limousine, and then had to return in a cab, had added more to the humiliation they had suffered at Jonathan’s hands."This wasn’t supposed to happen this way not after all the care we gave him, talk more of the support we showed him, your mother went to all lengths to make sure he got a job in that delivery company to show she cared, but he does this instead!" He continued his eyes red with anger and pain from the embarrassment.Elina and her mother sat quietly on the couch, Patricia embittered dried up her tears whilst shaking her head in disbelief. Elina lost in thoughts, her mind occupied as to how the Hazel’s heir turned out to be Jonathan, the man whom she had just thrown out of her house not long. She had never imagined it to be him re
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Jonathan drives to the office, his mind still preoccupied with Via's condition. Despite the doctor’s assurance that Via was eventually out of danger, Jonathan still couldn’t help but worry about her.The head injury she had sustained from the fall of the ballroom light at the restaurant was still a mystery to him. If not for the text he had received after the incident happened, he would have sued the restaurant. But then, after receiving the text, he knew it was not the fault of the restaurant’s management, and that someone had done it deliberately.As he hurried to the office, his phone rang. It was Bernard, informing him about the reporters seeking an interview regarding the recent news. Bernard had left him earlier to attend to some of the pressing matters in the office, assuring Jonathan that he would stand by him no matter what it’ll cost."I'm on my way," Jonathan replied, his tone composed but with a hint of concern.As he navigated through the busy streets, his thoughts raced.
CH. 40 (Allegations and threats)
Jonathan sat in the sterile waiting room, his leg bouncing nervously as he clutched his phone, waiting for any news about Via. He couldn’t believe that his enemies had also made Via their target, and it made him really scared. What he feared the most was already happening, and he couldn’t help but wonder who else would be their target. Stepping into the position of his grandfather’s successor, he had thought everything will go just fine, and he wouldn’t have to worry about anything anymore, but he was now realizing just how wrong was.Just when he was still in deep thoughts over everything that was happening, his phone buzzed, and it was a call from Bernard.“Jonathan, what’s this I’m hearing about Via? Who could have tried to kill her?”“I don’t know Bernard,” Jonathan admitted. “At this point, I feel like I’m losing my mind already. How’s your wife and daughter?”“They’re fine Jonathan. I already made them leave the country. They left in the first flight and called me a couple of m
CH. 39 (Have fun, Jonathan!)
Jonathan woke up the next morning feeling groggy and disoriented. His restless night had taken its toll, and the weight of his failure from the previous night still hung heavily on him. But as the morning light streamed through the blinds, he resolved not to let his disappointment defeat him. He had come too far to give up now.After a quick shower, he sat down at his desk, a steaming cup of coffee in hand, and began going through his notes. He spread out the documents he had collected so far—files from his grandfather’s vault, the cryptic papers from Mr. Koeman, and the scant information he’d been able to gather about the IAS. Everything seemed disjointed, like pieces of a puzzle that refused to fit together. But he was determined to find a pattern, a thread that would lead him to the answers he sought.As he sifted through the papers, his mind kept returning to Mr. Koeman. The more he thought about it, the more certain he became that the strange caller was indeed the man who had han
CH. 38 (The Hazel's Empire's vaults)
That same night, Jonathan decided to visit his grandfather’s secret vault within the empire. Having turned around in his bed, and unable to get any sleep, he decided to confirm for himself if what the strange caller had told him over the phone was true.The IAS was beginning to appear more than he had envisaged, and with each new revelation unfolding by the day, he decided he’d look deeper into it, and to find out for real what it had to do with the whole of the Hazel’s empire and how it was connected to the death of his father.Throwing off the blanket which he was using to cover himself, he swung his legs over the side of the bed, his feet dangling in the darkness. The weight of everything that was happening was becoming too much on him, but he knew this wasn’t the right time to quit—not until he has found all the answers to the questions that were bothering him.He dressed quickly and quietly, changing from his pajamas, his hands shaking with uncertainty. He knew he had to be caref
CH. 38 (Unravelling more secrets)
The streets outside were bustling with the usual city energy, but Jonathan couldn't help but feel a sense of vulnerability as he made his way home. Bernard’s wife had finally been discharged from the hospital, and he had given him time to be with her and their daughter Michelle.With everything that was happening, he decided to take a stroll round the city's street, as a way to clear his mind of all the things that were weighing heavily on his shoulders.It would be the first time in a long while that he'll be taking such strolls since he took over the Hazel's empire. It made him miss the good old days when he didn't have much to worry about—the days when he had nothing to protect and didn’t have to drag other people into his problems.All his life, he had thought that having money and power would make his life better, but only now had he begun to realize that he was wrong. Since he took over the Hazel’s empire, his life had really changed. He had made more enemies within the few mont
