We all know that one moment, when the villain gives up; that moment he realizes there’s no point in fighting and just accepts defeat. This was it for Maverick Jr. The moment when everything lost all meaning.He knew for a fact that he wouldn’t become anything more than he was already- just another player on Big Dot’s pitch.Maverick Jr reconsidered his offer for the umpteenth time. The mission was simple, too simple for Big Dot to have offered to cancel his debts. He owed him too much money for him to just let go and work out his release, for a few days…Maverick knew in his bones that he wouldn’t make it back alive. The fight against Archer would take his life whether he was loyal to Big Dot or not. Maverick counted his betrayal a silent plea for leniency in facing the consequences of his sins. That he was giving Archer the one information that would save his life while he lost his, he counted it as his best.As he sat in that car, ready to give up, his body trembling slightly a
The night of the Poseidon, another invention the Founding Fathers never knew would turn into yet another bloodlust. The mornings usually began like every other Christmas, the daylights were low and the humidity high. High anticipation and excitement usually filled the day, ushering in the night with good spirits and tidings as the Brothers prepared to meet.It was especially Maverick Sr’s idea to have a night where the members of Seven Divine Citadels met and discussed their difficulties and shared insights into the Medical World. Master Brown Woods observed that the night of the Poseidon was fast becoming a networking system than the traditional meet-and-greet Maverick Sr had wanted.Every Poseidon night witnessed the presence of every regal and powerful man in Utah. It was like the gathering of the White House, just with more wealthy Lords and Dukes. Most of which had no business being present at the ball night.There, then, that was when it all fell apart. The disagreement betwe
Mr Mathew sat at the living room, glancing repeatedly at the doorway, his eyes betraying his unspoken anxiousness, and even though Tangie understood his concern for her, she just couldn’t sit by idly. As Tangie revisited her heroic efforts for Utah’s Culinary Institute, she realized she could do so much more than just playing the role of his pregnant wife. She wanted to do more- to take action.“How long are we going to keep staring at the door?” She blurted out, her voice sharp with resolve.“What else do you suggest we do?” Mr Mathew replied, furrowing his brows with concern. Tangie suddenly rose to her feet, her face still with determination.“Dad, I’m going to work. I am now the President of Sullivan’s Distribution Company. It is my first day of work...” before she completed her statement, she was already on the way out, trudging through the stairs with resolve.“Tangie!” Mr Mathew called after her, “Tangie!!” A door slammed shut in the distance, and the weight of her determin
Tangie Williams moved faster than the news about the ownership of Sullivan’s Distribution Company had shifted from the Sullivans Family to President Williams of Sterling Group. The announcement had come at midnight as Archer speculated but there wasn’t any official confirmation.Lord Sullivan, a strict traditional man bent on saving his face, kept his loss of shares and authority a secret from his family and employees.Meanwhile, Beatrice and Uncle Bernard resumed their usual duties, proudly displaying their titles by parading the hallway of the company to show off the tag on their suit.As Tangie and Mr Mathew stepped foot in the Company’s reception hall, Beatrice greeted them with a scornful tone. “Tut, tut, tut… I would save myself the embarrassment if I were you.” She chimed, her face beaming with pride as she subtly touched the ‘Chief Auditor’ tag on her shirt.“Get away, Beatrice. I am not here for you…” Tangie replied firmly, catching Beatrice off guard.Beatrice shifted unco
“But… how are you going to do that?” Celestine asked, his voice a blend of apprehension and despair. “We don’t even know the venue for the night, let alone have the right connections to make it a mask party.”Archer sighed softly, the plate of food in front of him gradually lessening as he dug in bit by bit. “Why are you worried about the venue? We will just ask Lebanon.” He replied.“I don’t want to deal with snakes anymore,” Celestine objected, “How can you still want to work with him?”Archer turned to him, his eyes glinted with mischief. “You cannot run away from everything that threatens you, Celestine.” Master Woods had not prepared him enough for the mission he gave him, but he was quick to learn how it really worked outside here. “That kind of behavior is called cowardice.”Celestine furrowed his brows in confusion, his eyes carried freckles of his concern.“It is not cowardice to stop trusting and being good to people who...”“Celestine, what are you ranting about? Your eyes
Tangie strode purposefully towards the conference room, her heels echoing against the marble as if determined to halt the world around her.Uncle Bernard stood by the doorway, his tall frame leaning against the glass door. As the clinking sound of Tangie’s heels neared, her feminine yet possessive scent of jasmine and sandalwood filled the air, preceding her entrance like an enchanting aura.Uncle Bernard’s gaze softened as he watched her approach, a mixture of admiration and hope clouded his eyes.Finally, Tangie and Mr Mathew stopped before him, their gazes met in a brief moment of understanding.“Do you want to talk about that dream of yours, Uncle Bernard?” Tangie asked, a small smile graced on her lips. Tangie always had great admiration for her Uncle Bernard, he was the first person in the Sullivan’s family to ever stand up to Lord Sullivan. Well, not for long, because sooner than expected, he was crippled by his father’s vices and dragged back on his knees.“Oh, I’m too old fo
Tangie stepped into the conference hall, about to take a seat she never thought she’d sit on. As she took smart resolute steps towards the Head of the mahogany table, she unconsciously glanced at the Auditor seat she used to occupy and it seemed so far from the Head she just sat in. The room went hushed with silence, anticipation filled the air as she settled in, and of course, she could vividly feel her father holding his breath, nervous about his twenty-four year old daughter taking heading over fifty employees, including him.But he was wrong, Tangie was a changed person now. Something in her had shifted. Perhaps, she was too slow to accept the fact that she wasn’t married to an ordinary man.Now, she realized being brave and courageous was the only way to be his wife and carry his child.Tangie released a soft sigh, her gaze flicking around the room, reading the expressions on each their faces.“From my previous seat at that side of the table, I could barely see anyone’s face. B
Strategy, a reason people could be good to you. Archer J. Williams smiled softly, his eyes sparkling with something Mr Adejobi could not quite understand.Across from him sat Mr Adejobi, a mam whose presence exuded knowledge and serenity. As they played GO, the ancient board game of strategy, each person waiting for the other to make a first move, President Williams sighed softly, the board before him leading to dead ends only."Will you give up?" Mr Adejobi asked, his face filled with sincere concern that Archer didn't know if he was asking about the game or about the night tomorrow.One thing he did know was, it didn’t matter which one, his answer would be the same."No, I must not." He replied, his eyes flashed with resolve as he made an unbelievable counter move on the board.Mr Adejobi shifted in his chair, surprised that he found a way out"Youre a remarkable player," Mr Adejobi chimed, his face beaming with pride, even though he lost."I used to play with your father, he'd le
Despite the turbulent three months that drove Archer to the brink of insanity, he was grateful for the life he had. A new life where he wasn't looked down on. His wife believed in him and loved him for him, not the money or the status.He had someone he could call a friend, a best friend, and he could take care of the people his Master left behind. At thirty two, he was the City's most wealthy CEO, and he was still as humble as ever.His asthma cure was a hit in the medical industry, recognized world wide, but the billions of dollars he made from the sales was not compared to the relief that his wife was no longer an asthma patient. She was in fact, just a healthy eight weeks pregnant woman."I'm going to be a father soon," was Archer's new mantra. For every decision he made, he considered his new status- Father.Every morning he woke up, he kissed Tangie on the forehead and then progressed to the stomach and spoke to his baby until Mariah announced breakfast was ready.This morni
The ride back home was quiet, unsettlingly quiet for Celestine. Archer had not said a single word since they left the court. He simply clutched on the document and kept his face turned to the window.Every passing moment had him wondering what was going through his mind. Did he feel sorry for Master Woods? Was it guilt?Celestine shook his head, snapping off the thought quickly. Master Woods had what was coming, he was only lucky to have faked his entire existence and go unnoticed for ten years.The car rounded into the large mansion, the sun had began to dip in the horizon, casting a golden afterglow on the contours amd corners of the house.Tangie hurried out of the house at the sound of the car zooming into the compound. She had been eagerly awaiting his arrival, desperate to wrap her arms around him and reassure him that his new family would always be with him.But she instantly went blank as Archer approached her. He looked so devastated that she couldn't bring herself to say any
"The President of Sterling Groups," the court officer announced immediately Archer stepped in.Celestine cast a disapproving glance at the announcer as they settled into their seat.Master Woods was guided onto the dock in hand cuffs. He couldn't save himself from the Supreme Federal Court.While bribing the authorities of the city, he had forgotten about the higher authority- The authority of the federal."He looks worse than the last time we saw him," Celestine whispered, almost excitedly. Archer remained quiet, unmoving in fact. Despite the nice and relieving feeling that a criminal and terrorist of both him and the city had finally been caught, Archer couldn't deny the fact that the man in questiom was his father, at least to an extent.Even as he confessed to his crimes, Archer wished it were not true. He silently wished everything could go back to how it was, before it all went bad.However, it was impossible. He was now awaiting the Jury's verdict and Archer was certain, it wou
"A trip?" Celestine repeated, surprised that he was suggesting a trip in the heat of things. "Have you noticed the high demand we have? It is almost impossible to produce enough for one continent, save five continents and you're talking about a trip?"Archer exhaled softly, a slight frown crossed his face. "We've had a very rocky time, I thought we could all just take a nap somewhere in Vietnam or Thailand, anywhere but here...""We can't be anywhere else but here for now," Celestine scolded, "As your executive manager, I forbid it." As he spoke the last bid, a smile of pride etched on his features. "Are you that happy?" Archer asked, observing his wide smile."I'm beyond happy," Celestine replied quickly, "I'm going to work so hard, I didn't do anything to earn this position but now that I have, I must deserve it."As Archer gazed at him, a thought crossed his mind but he kept it to himself."Let's go home," he said. Celestine glanced at his wristwatch only to notice that it was
THREE WEEKS LATERFor the past three weeks, Master Woods of the Bennett Temple, foster father and mentor of Archer Williams was dragged to pieces on the internet. His double identity, his atrocities, the chaos he secretly instigated, and the people on his payroll. No one was safe. Archer made sure of it. The truth of the brutal murders of Mr. Mathew Sullivan had finally surfaced, and everyone who had once looked down on Archer was on their knees begging to be on his good side, but that was far from what Archer wanted. He wanted all of them to keep away from him. He only wanted to be with his family and friends. To be a good father to his child, a good friend to his friends, and a good mentor to the people who now looked up to him. For the first time, he craved a normal life, a life as normal as a regular man.However, that sort of life was almost impossible for him. He was, after all, the only son of his parents, and he knew his father’s belief in the supernatural was not just a me
Chapter 152Fred watched Mercy’s lips move without hearing the words come out.The unfolding revelation had him analyzing and examining his life. Just like Mr. Mathew, he had allowed Master Woods detect his life. He did everything Master Woods just to be accepted and be genuinely acknowledged, yet the harder he tried, the lesser the man thought of him.“Tangie is right,” he thought to himself, “Just being disqualified to be an Arhat is not enough after he had taken many innocent lives and buried their dreams, both the living and dead.”The whole room went silent, stopped by his soliloquy which he didn’t know had been said out loud. “What are you talking about you ingrate?!” Master Woods burst out, like someone who had had enough of the banter. “You bunch of ungrateful idiots, especially you, Archer, I picked you up from the gutter and brushed off your specks of dirt, but here you are trying to destroy what I have spent years building?”“No!” Archer objected, his voice risingwith an
Everyone's heart raced with anticipation and curiosity. Wide eyes followed him as he pranced around the room, about to say something he was less than confident about. He had seen it in a vision, more like a dream, but what if it was just his imagination? What if he was so desperate to find the connection between Mr Mathew and Master Woods that he began to imagine and invoke unbelievable thoughts?Then again, he believed in the supernatural, after all, his father was a curator of the supernatural. He was confident in the gifts that had unlocked within him, yet he found himself doubting the very essence of the dream he had."You were so confident about the Master's atrocities a minute ago, but now your tongue is tied and you can't prove it." Li sneered.Archer paused and turned to face him. "Li, what's the one thing that can keep our Master from becoming an Arhat?"Master Woods leaned forward, putting a hand on Li, "Don't answer that," he urged.Li turned to the Master with mischief
Chapter 150Archer's voice resounded with conviction and no empathy. Master Woods squinted his eyes, gazing at him pensively.The room held its breath, both Mercy and Celestine were speechless, unaware if Archer was speaking in truth or if this was his way of coercing the truth from Master Woods.Tangie rose from her seat, disturbed by the tension of the room and needing some comfort, she walked over to Mariah. "I don't feel too good about this," She whispered. "Me neither," Mariah responded, her gaze flickering from Master Woods to Archer."Could you excuse us?" Master Woods finally spoke, breaking the silence.Everyone turned, exchanging confused glances at each other. "Everyone leave!" He bellowed angrily."Everyone here is my family, Master, and they will stay. I don't think there's anything to hide." Archer interjected, his voice laced with vigor.Master Woods chuckled wryly, "Archer, son, you cannot be greater than your master." "Sir," Archer returned, "I do not aspire to be
Chapter 149As he grunted in pain, he struggled to keep himself composed. To fight his enemy with his head high, he needed to wipe his tears and stand strong. But how could he fight against the one person he had trusted? Despite the truth of his betrayal, his heart yearned for him to tell him that it was all a lie. Tired and weak, Archer strolled over to the study desk, longing for something to lay his weight on.It was barely midday, yet he could feel his body giving out. Maybe it was the lack of rest, maybe it was the heaviness in his heart, but just as he settled on that desk. He caught his eyes closing against his will, completely oblivious to the faint footfalls outside the door. Celestine had been pacing up and through the hallway, unable to go in or walk away. His heart raced with empathy, he wondered what he could do to help his friend, without any answers coming to mind. As he stood there, glancing at his wristwatch repeatedly, approaching footsteps echoed in the distance,