CHAPTER 21 — RELEVANCEThe argument had been going on for over an hour.Tara stood in the middle of the living room with her arms crossed, her patience thinning with every word that came out of her brothers’ mouths. Max paced from one end of the room to the other, running his hands through his hair like the problem would dissolve if he moved fast enough. Robert sat on the arm of a chair, leaning forward, he was yelling at Tara, they had been arguing about the Blackwood party invitation .“You have to attend the Blackwood party,” Max snapped. “Whether you like it or not.”“I said no,” Tara replied. “And I mean it.”Robert scoffed. “You don’t get to decide that alone anymore, Tara. This isn’t about you.”“Oh, really?” she shot back. “Then who is it about? You?”Their mother, seated on the couch with her hands clasped tightly in her lap and sighed deeply. “Enough,” she said, though her voice was lacking strength. “Can we at least be sensible?”Max stopped pacing and turned to her. “Mum

CHAPTER 23 — BINGO The moment Tara said the name, It caught Noah’s attention that was exactly what he needed to hear. He straightened in his seat, his back no longer relaxed against the chair. His fingers, which had been lazily resting on the table, curled slowly. “Tommy?” he repeated, careful to sound confused. “Who is Tommy? “ Tara hesitated and sipped from her wine “ Just some guy we know “ . Noah tilted his head slightly, playing the part well. “Is he a relative? A lawyer? I don’t think I’ve heard that name before.” She looked around instinctively, her eyes scanning the restaurant as if someone might be listening. Noah noticed the fear in that small action. “Relax,” he said quietly. “It’s just us. I booked the entire place, You don’t have to talk about it , I’m just worried about your father and I know it bothers you that he is in jail “ That seemed to calm her, at least a little. She exhaled and leaned back into her chair. “It does , I’m only telling you this becaus

CHAPTER 25 — THE WRONG HOPETara didn’t even knock.She pushed the gate open and rushed inside the compound , she was in such a hurry to tell her mother everything that had happened . Her heels hit the pavement so loudly because of the pressure she was running with , her heart was racing with excitement that had nothing to do with the heaviness already waiting for her.She barely noticed it at first but when she moves closer,Her mother was seated in the front yard, wrapped in a light shawl even though the evening wasn’t cold. Her eyes were red, swollen from crying. Max sat on one side of her, Robert on the other, both of them trying poorly to lift her mood. Max was talking, saying something about how things would turn around soon, how their father would be home before they knew it. Robert stayed quiet, his jaw tight, his phone resting face-down in his hand.“ If nobody wants to tell me what’s going on , I will tell you why I was rushing down here “ Tara didn’t read the room.She bur

Chapter 27 _Who is the Ash Broker“So,” Rio said, clapping his hands once, “meet the Ash Broker, we will outline everything you need to know, All you have to do is listen .”Noah nodded and fixed his eyes on the name written boldly across the whiteboard, Alexa was drawing several arrows to connect back to the name . .Alexa leaned against the desk, arms folded. “You’re not a struggling nobody anymore, Noah. You’re a mystery people want access to and this mystery is something that needs decoding ”Noah exhaled slowly. “Okay. Start from the beginning before my head explodes.”Rio picked up a marker and turned to the board. “ Let’s start from who you are ? The Ash broker is a self-made billionaire . No old money. No family name. You built everything yourself from the scratch .”“Built what exactly? I know this identity is big but aside the name , What did we build from scratch ?” Noah asked.“Are you seriously asking the obvious?” Rio scoffed and Noah shrugged . Rio replied easily. “In

Chapter 29 _ The Guests By noon, the Blackwood estate was already booming with activities, the final preparations of the event was being finalized . . Staff moved swiftly across the lawn, carrying folded table cards, floral arrangements, and sealed envelopes filled with guest names. Inside the main hall, long tables were being aligned according to the family, each mega 7 family was had a table in any of their parties . Nothing about the Blackwood auction party was supposed to be ordinary. . Ivy Blackwood stood near the center of the hall with a clipboard pressed to her chest. “No,” she yelled“That family goes two tables down, not here! Change the names ! Now !” A staff member nodded and hurried away. “ Do it fast ! Stop being so sluggish “ “ I’m sorry ma’am “ “ Don’t be sorry …do the right thing “ Her mother, Margaret Blackwood, approached from behind, she rushed over to where Ivy was . “ Hi Mom …” . “Your father wants the Ash Broker seated here,” Margaret said, point