The Unstoppable Rylan Daystar

CHAPTER 4

“What changed your mind, Rylan?” Arlene Daystar asked.

They were seated in the back of a tinted Cadillac as they drove back home. Rylan had arrived back in New York a few minutes ago, and already had a convoy waiting for him. Trust Arlene to overdo it. He felt like the prodigal son when he hugged his mother. This was the life he had left behind to be with Eve. This was the truth he couldn’t bring himself to tell her. This wasn’t the life that Rylan wanted. He had tried his best to run away from it. But here he was back at where it all began.

“A lot,” Rylan said.

Arlene sighed as she heard him. Rylan was different now. She had known something was up when he phoned her. She hadn’t heard from Rylan in two years. When Williams, their butler had told her it was Rylan, she had scrambled to her feet to get the phone from him. Hearing his voice again was satisfying. She was happy that he had changed his mind.

As their mansion came into view, Rylan clenched his jaws. He didn’t fancy any of these. This wasn’t what he wanted. All he had wished for was a simple life with Eve. That was why he had left everything behind. He felt she was worth it. He was greatly mistaken. This was his life now, and he was going to have to deal with it.

The gates opened and they drove into the big estate that was decorated with flowers. There was a fountain in the middle of the estate which was a sculpture of Cupid with a bow and arrow and with water flowing out of his mouth. Rylan gazed at the massive house before him. The cars came to a halt and Rylan stepped out of it. The big doors of the mansion opened and a man in a black suit with white gloves walked out. He had short blonde hair and glassy blue eyes. He looked like he was in his early fifties. Rylan smiled as he approached him.

“Williams,” he called.

“Master Rylan,” Williams greeted with a British accent. “So good to finally have you back.”

Rylan placed his hands in his pockets and nodded weakly. He had a blue T-shirt on with a pair of black pants. The men who stepped out of the other SUVs rushed towards the Cadillac. One of the men opened the door of Arlene while the other opened the trunk.

“I trust this time, you’re staying?” Williams asked with his hands behind him.

The doors of the mansion opened and maids dressed in black short dresses walked down the stairs as they headed to the trunk of the Cadillac where Rylan’s luggage was retrieved. Rylan clenched his jaws and thought about Williams’ words. Coming back home hadn’t been part of his plans, but he had to. There was a lot to do. Williams turned to face Rylan who seemed to be lost in his thoughts.

“Yes,” Rylan finally replied, as he watched Arlene make her way towards them.

“And this time, it’s for real.”

***

“Just sign here, and here,” The man in the black suit said pointing at the dotted lines on the foot of the documents.

Rylan was sitting at the large dining table as Arlene’s lawyer stood beside him. Arlene sat on the other end of the table with Williams sitting beside her. They watched the lawyer tentatively as he panned out instructions to Rylan. So many questions were running through Arlene’s mind as she watched Rylan place the pen on the document. These documents were the same reasons he had run away. Why was he willing to sign them now? She knew her son perfectly. He wouldn’t do anything random without a reason. He was smart, which meant he was seeking something. She wasn’t sure what it was that troubled her greatly.

Rylan read the wording on the paper again. He clenched his jaws as he held the pen. After he signed this, there was no going back. Signing this meant that all the properties that belonged to Arlene and his grandfather would be his. This was his inheritance; an inheritance he had run away from. An inheritance he had shunned just so he could be with Eve. Before his grandfather died, he had told him about hanging everything over to him. He had claimed that it was a decision he and his mother, Arlene had made. Rylan had run away because he felt he wasn’t ready. Not anymore. He had learned two things from The McCullough—love was a sign of weakness, and money brought power and influence.

Needing no further assistance, he jotted his signature on the documents and closed the file when he was done. The lawyer stretched out his hand for a shake. Rylan shook it firmly.

“Congratulations, Mr. Daystar,” the lawyer said. “You are now a billionaire.”

Arlene waited till the lawyer left the room before walking up to Rylan. He seemed to be lost in his thoughts as she made her way to him. Rylan gazed at his mother as she stood before him now.

“So what now?” Arlene asked.

A mischievous smile spread across Rylan’s lips as he stared at his mother.

“Revenge.”