Meanwhile, Elijah was still brushing when his phone began to ring. He rinsed his mouth, wiped his face, and walked back into the bedroom, picking up the phone from the bed.Unknown number.He answered calmly. “Hello.”A male voice responded, “Hello, Elijah.”Elijah paused. The tone felt vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t place it. “Who is this?”There was a light laugh. “You can’t remember me?”“No,” Elijah said plainly. “Who is this?”“It’s me. Adrian Cross. Your classmate from high school.”Elijah straightened slightly. The name triggered something.“Adrian?” he said in surprise. “Wow. How are you doing? And how did you even get my number?”Adrian laughed again. “That part doesn’t matter. It’s been years, man. We’ve all been reconnecting recently. Everyone’s been catching up… except you.”Elijah leaned against the wardrobe, half amused. “I didn’t even know you guys were still in contact.”“We are,” Adrian replied. “And actually, this Christmas we decided to host a get-together dinner

Felix looked at the setup and smiled. “This actually looks serious, we might have outdone ourselves.”She handed him his plate. “Don’t flatter yourself too much, you only sliced peppers.”He laughed quietly. “Excuse me, that was precision slicing.”They began eating, the rice still warm, steam rising lightly from the plates. Between bites, they reached for their drinks, washing the food down comfortably. It felt simple, natural, almost like something they had done many times before.After a few minutes, Betty picked up the remote. “Alright, what are we watching?”Felix leaned forward slightly. “Let’s see what Netflix is offering tonight.”She scrolled through the options slowly. Action movies passed, then romance, then comedy. He pointed at a thriller. “How about this one?”She squinted at the screen. “That looks too stressful. I don’t want to be jumping every five minutes.”He nodded. “Fair point.”She scrolled again and paused at The Equalizer 3.Felix raised an eyebrow. “That one i

The next morning came slowly. Betty’s eyes fluttered open as faint daylight filtered through the curtains. For a moment, she didn’t move. She just lay there, trying to register where she was. The room was quiet, still wrapped in that early-morning calm. Then she became aware of the warmth beside her. She turned her head slightly and saw Felix asleep next to her, his breathing steady, his face relaxed in a way she had never seen before. The duvet was pulled up over them, covering their bodies completely. Underneath it, she realized, they were both bare. Her heart skipped softly. The memories from the night before came rushing back in flashes, the laughter during the movie, the way one kiss turned into another, the way they had moved from the couch to the bedroom without fully planning it. The way his hands had held her carefully at first, then more confidently when she didn’t pull away. The way she had responded, not out of impulse, but because she wanted to. Her cheeks warmed a

“Alright, Master. As discussed, we are moving forward with the outreach arrangement. The objective is to identify and approach the local youth groups involved in the recent disturbances and gang confrontations. You mentioned allocating funds toward community stabilization, conflict prevention, and rehabilitation initiatives, especially in the districts where tensions have been rising. My men are already gathering names of coordinators and community heads so we can organize a controlled meeting. From there, we will propose financial support in exchange for ceasefire commitments and structured oversight.”Damn!”Elijah’s expression changed slightly. He kept his face steady, but inside, he froze for a fraction of a second.That was not what he had said earlier.Not even close.Phantom continued smoothly, “We will also draft a public-facing narrative about promoting peace and reducing street violence, so it aligns with your broader interest in social impact. Once the first phase is comple

That same day, after the tension of the morning had settled and the conversation about Sierra’s business had been paused for later, Elijah dressed quietly.A few minutes later, he stepped out of the house and into the compound. The air outside felt cooler, steadier. He unlocked his car, slid into the driver’s seat, and shut the door firmly. For a brief moment, he sat there with both hands resting on the steering wheel before he drove out of the estate.Soon Elijah arrived at the construction site of his mall project, and the place was already alive with activity. Heavy machines stood at different corners, some digging deep into the ground, others lifting materials from one point to another. Trucks were parked nearby with sand and gravel being poured steadily, workers guiding the flow while others focused on reinforcing the foundation.The sound of metal against metal, engines running, and instructions being shouted filled the air, but everything was organized. The foundation lines wer