“Forbes has released a new list of the wealthiest men in the world and you’re on it,” said Gregory, Jake’s PA.
“I see. Which position did they put me in?”
“Number 5. You’re the fifth wealthiest man in the world. I’m surprised you’re not number 1 already because you’re practically a trillionaire.”
“Wipe your lips, Greg,” said Vincent, Margot’s son.
Gregory scrubbed his lips with the back of his hand and then checked it. “There’s nothing there.”
“Oh, really? I could have sworn I saw a track of poop on your lips from all that ass-kissing you were doing just now.”
Gregory frowned. Jake didn’t find that comment funny either.
“I was simply informing the boss about the accolades he’s receiving for his hard work,” said Gregory.
“Well, thanks for the info. You can leave now,” said Vi
“Your bad temper will be your undoing, Jake. There are better ways to handle such situations.”“I simply did what needed to be done. I was protecting my child from your paedophile son!”“That’s what you say but it’s your word against his since he’s in no position to even speak and defend himself right now.”“There were witnesses, Margot. He even knocked out the nanny and forced his way into my daughter’s room. You should be grateful that I’m not pressing charges against him. Trust me, you don’t have enough strings to pull to get him out of jail if I report this.”“There’ll be no need for that,” Margot said calmly. “I only wish you could have reached out to me first before bashing my son brutally the way you did. He’s barely alive.”“Oh, well…”“I promise you, he’ll be on his best behaviour whe
Louisa quit her job that afternoon after her lunch with Jake. He had her driven to her hostel where she went to pack all of her things and went to stay with him at the hotel.They spent two days together before they flew to Jersey in his private jet. Louisa literally cried during the ride because it was the most iconic moment of her life.Once they arrived in the city, he rented a 3-bedroom house for her and furnished it to her taste. It became his second home because he didn’t want Louisa to live with him in his villa. He wasn’t ready to introduce her to Victoria just yet.He enrolled her in the best culinary school in the city and she thanked him all night after her first day in school. Jake felt fulfilled and he glowed with health.Athena’s case went to trial and he clinked champagne glasses with Louisa as he watched her sentencing on the news. All of her powerful friends had deserted her and she was looking like a shadow of herself a
Once Margot informed Jake of Vincent’s funeral date, he scheduled an overseas business trip for that day and sent her a bouquet with an apology note for his absence.Things pretty much went back to normal after that. He never heard from Louisa again and after her lease expired, she moved back to Minnesota having completed her culinary training.Jake gave up on getting into another romantic relationship, so instead, he dated more frequently with no strings attached.“Japan is calling again,” Gregory informed him one afternoon.“That merger is giving me ulcers,” Jake complained. “What more do they want?”“Haiko Motors reps claim that there’s a clause in the contract that gives Turner Group full control of the dealership after the third year. I’ve sent this to our legal team and they said it’s merely for the sake of a contingency. The Japanese aren’t buying it.”&ldqu
“You were wrong, boss. It wasn’t the Mendicis, it’s someone else,” Rex said smugly as he strolled into Jake’s office two weeks after the ship incident.He’d been running a covert investigation into the situation with the help of his Serbian crew.“Really? Then who was it then?”“Patrick Sawyer.”“Never heard of him.”“He was a member of The Association.”“Are you serious? How come the name doesn’t ring a bell?”“He wasn’t a top-tier member.”“I see. What’s his deal?”“He owns a chain of perfume stores across the country. He once dabbled into the shipping business back in the day but it didn’t work out for him.”“What has that got to do with me and mine? I don’t even know the guy. Why would he attack me?”“My sources say he h
“Sir, there’s someone here to see you,” said Nancy from the front desk.“Does he have an appointment?” Jake asked.“No, sir but I have already informed him that he can’t see you without an appointment.”“And?”“He has refused to leave.”“What’s his name and what does he want?”“He said his name is Orlando and he knows from the…” her voice faded away as she seemed to be speaking to someone else off the phone.“Nancy?”“Yes, sir. He said he knows from the slammer. He said you’d understand.”“Orlando from the slammer…?”“Yes, sir. That’s what he said.”“Describe him.”“He is caucasian, probably mid-thirties, tall, muscular, bald, with a pencil-thin beard and lots of tattoos on his neck and arms.”&ld
It was New Year’s Eve and Jake was in the mood for a fresh start. He didn’t want to go into another year with the emotional baggage he’d been dragging around for a few weeks now.He decided to host a small dinner at his villa with Margot as his special guest. He’d thought she would turn down his invitation but was pleasantly surprised when she agreed to show up.When she did, his butler brought her to the dining room where he was waiting for her. She was dressed in a cyan silk dress and a fur stole was draped across her shoulders.She was covered in dazzling jewellery and looked like a character from the Great Gatsby movie. He could see the suspicion in her eyes as they greeted each other but he forced himself to act cheerful and oblivious.“Thank you for accepting my invitation,” he said warmly.“Why not? I’ve been locked up in my house like a prisoner since Vincent’s death. I’m not going
A few days after Victoria’s 6th birthday, Jake received a package in the mail from an unknown sender. Orlando intercepted it out of suspicion that it might be from Jake’s enemies but he was wrong.“It’s a photo and a note from someone you might know,” said Orlando when he handed the package to Jake.“Thanks. I’ll have a look at it later.”After several hours of sitting through virtual business meetings in his study, he finally got around to checking out the delivery. It was a photo of a little boy standing in front of a birthday cake while a woman crouched beside him, smiling at the camera.“Stephanie,” he whispered when he recognized the woman in the photo.She’d dyed her hair brown and was dressed in a pastel shirt and black yoga pants. She was a far cry from the Stephanie he used to know. She looked like a regular mom.The little boy was a miniature version of Ma
When it was finally time for Megumi to return to Japan, neither she nor Jake was ready to part ways with each other.He knew he’s promised himself never to get emotionally attached to another woman again, but somehow, this one had managed to slip through the cracks and now he didn’t want her to leave.“Why don’t you just stay here instead?” He asked her. “I’ll get you a great job in one of my establishments and pay you ten times whatever you were earning in Japan.”“That sounds very enticing but I can’t just leave my family in Japan and live here.”“Then we’ll bring them here to live with you.”She snorted. “You have a better chance of moving a mountain than achieving that. They’ll never leave their home. My father owns a thriving poultry farm that is his main source of income and my mother works in a government-owned school. Then there’s my younge
“In a shocking plot twist, all speculations about Jake Turner, also known as the Underdog Billionaire possibly faking his own death have finally been laid to rest following a confession from his former PA, Gregory Lowe, who has admitted in a social media post to being the brain behind the leaked emails. “According to Lowe, he conceived the idea after months of battling with emotional instability due to a terrible break-up that he never recovered from. He created deep fake emails and posted them to gain attention and create excitement in what he has described as a boring life.“The story is still developing and we have with us in the studio a behavioural analyst who will break down this topic and – “Pierce flipped a button on the remote control and the TV went dead instantly. He swung his swivel chair around to face Jake on the desktop computer screen where he’d been watching the news report f
As Pierce already predicted, the hacker sent Jake another email two days after the viral leak, threatening to reveal Jake’s location. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, he had doubled his fee and was now demanding 200 million dollars.“This is ridiculous,” Jake laughed after reading the email. He showed it to Shadow a.k.a Fransisco, and he too laughed.“What an idiot.”“I hope Pierce is wrong about his suspicion though. It would break my heart if he’s right.”“At this point in your life, nothing should surprise you anymore. I could even be your enemy.”“Please, don’t be. Let me have at least one human being that I can trust.”Shadow smiled. “I’m just kidding. I value loyalty and integrity above everything else in life.”“That’s refreshing to know.”“I better go out and catch us some fish for dinner. We do
On the seventh day after Jake received that dreadful email from the anonymous hacker, a troll account on IG released several pages of what was purported to be emails sent from Jake Turner’s email account since his death.Several media outlets and online bloggers were tagged in the post and within minutes, the news was everywhere. The Underdog Billionaire might still be alive after all.Pierce was hounded by press people who stormed his villa and camped outside the Turner Group office building, demanding answers to this explosive revelation. Even the CIA wanted in on the details.“Is it true that your boss is still alive?” Tessa Sanders asked him over the phone.“I am just as surprised as everyone else,” he lied.“But you’ve been communicating with him. Everyone has read the leaked emails and I’m made to believe that they are authentic.”“Is that so? Then it means someone is imperson
“I’ve got some not-so-good news for you,” Pierce said gravely.“What is it?” Jake asked eagerly.“Your wife is selling the Hawaii mansion and relocating to Japan with James.”“What? Why? Is she broke already?”“I don’t think so. I guess after that tragic incident that happened at her party last month and the ensuing negative media coverage, she has decided that it’s time for a change of scene.”“That’s a rather drastic move.”“I agree. Victoria is pretty upset about this. She doesn’t want her brother to be taken away from her but there’s nothing any of us can do to stop it.”“Damn… even if something happens to Meg, her family will step in and take care of James. The only way we can get him back is to prove beyond reasonable doubt that her family is unfit to care for him.”“That’s
Megumi’s case against Pierce was thrown out of court because the law supports the provisions made in Jake’s will regarding how the Turner estate is to be divided and who can be Victoria’s legal guardian.The same thing happened with Jude Weiss and members of The Association who had crawled out of their holes to try to rock the Turner Group boat with hopes that something would come out.It had been six months since the fatal explosion that supposedly took Jake Turner’s life and the world was starting to move on quickly. The CIA finally beams their searchlight on Irina, tasking her to produce her boss in exchange for a commuted sentence.The offer was way too juicy for her to pass up, so she agreed. Unfortunately, she never lived to deliver her end of the deal.She was shot in the head by a long-range sniper at the airport as she was being escorted onto the flight that would take her to Finland. She died instantly and her killer was
“That’s incredible!” Victoria gasped after Jake had finished speaking. “So, it’s really you. You’re alive.”“Yes, Vicky. I’m alive,” Jake replied with an apologetic smile.Victoria’s eyes misted and she reached forward to embrace her father. He wrapped her in his arms and let her weep on his chest.Even he was overcome with emotion. It felt good to be reunited with his daughter.“I am so sorry for deceiving you like that,” he said softly as she continued to cry. “It was the only way to make sure that I could escape from Hawaii without being discovered.”She broke the embrace and nodded slowly. “I understand. You did what you had to do to protect yourself.”“You’re wiser than your age.”“You’re braver than you look.”“What about Megumi? Are you going to tell her the truth?”
San Fransisco, three months ago…“What you’re asking me to do is not impossible, but the time frame for its execution makes it seem… undoable.”“I’ll quadruple your fee if you can get it done in 24 hours.”The Ferret’s eyes widened slightly. His services didn’t come cheap, so earning four times that amount on a single job was too juicy to pass up.“If I may ask, why the urgency?”Jake shrugged. “Many people want me dead anyway, so I might as well beat them to it.”“You have an army of bodyguards to protect you. So why did you choose this drastic option instead?”“Do you want the job or not?”“I’m just curious.”“Don’t be. Pierce told me you’re very discreet. I hope that’s true.”The Ferret looked insulted. “Of course, I am discreet. I just like
Victoria was silent throughout the boat ride. She was thankful for the noisy boat engine that made normal conversation impossible.The boat rider sat in front of them and looked straight ahead. Victoria wondered if the elderly man spoke English.Would he help her if she told him now that her father’s PA was kidnapping her and taking her to an unknown destination? Or was the man in on the plot?The ride took over an hour and by the time they reached their first stop, the sky was dark. They stopped on an island that was anything but secret.The place was alive with tourists and locals dancing to music, eating, drinking and laughing loudly. Gregory led her past the noise to a beach on the other end of the small island.They got into another boat and began another silent ride across the ocean. At this point, Victoria lost all hopes of ever getting found.Not even the FBI can track her to this remote destination. She should’ve probabl
“So… where are we going?”“Indonesia.”“For real? I’ve never been there before!” Victoria said excitedly.“Me too but I’m looking forward to exploring the place,” Gregory replied with equal enthusiasm.For the first time since her father died, Victoria did not feel that heavy weight of grief that constantly clouded her thoughts. For once, she felt eager and excited to see what the rest of the day would bring.The only thing she found odd about this trip was that Uncle Pierce had insisted that they travel without any of the bodyguards. She never went anywhere without them since her kidnapping, and she felt a bit nervous about not having them around this time.It didn’t matter that they were flying in one of her dad’s private jets. Not having an armed guard nearby just in case something unexpected happened, didn’t quite sit well with her.She could only