2023-01-19 01:59:53As the rain patted softly on the window pane, Declan watched the city from his small apartment. The landscape of the city in the early hours of the morning always hit him with a whiff of nostalgia.
His mind wandered like it always did these past few days. He was coming to a full realization that he was suddenly turning into a full-grown man with nothing to show for it.
Life had done him a lot. Growing up was not very easy for him. He had not learned to speak properly as a child, and thus, he was not considered fit to be at the forefront of the family business.
Daniel, his younger brother, was the trophy child that everyone applauded, thus Lord Rowland, his grandfather, thought him fit to handle the family's business despite being the younger one.
Things took a drastic turn after his parents passed in a ghastly accident. The coldness that came with their death seemed to dry up every ounce of love that he could ever receive.
Lord Rowland no longer regarded him as a vital part of the family, and Daniel was appointed CEO of the family business. That was his right there given to his younger brother, but he couldn't complain.
He had never complained about anything that was handed to him, he could not protest, could never speak up or defend himself, could never disagree and make his own solid decisions.
He was the definition of what Daniel and Lord Rowland would regard as a weakling.
He barely had a great education like his brother and it forced him to seek a source of survival. His job at the roadside coffee shop had been his means of survival for about two years after he gave up his job as a waiter.
The ping from his phone shook him into reality, and as he stood up to get it, he almost wobbled. He had grown so lean over the past few months.
He was sick, he knew this. He has requested help from his brother on many occasions, but it wasn't forthcoming. He knew he should see a doctor.
As he picked up the phone expecting to see a message from his co-worker at the coffee shop, he was surprised to see that it was from his brother. Daniel seldom talked to him.
"Call me", the text said abruptly, but he couldn't care less. He needed all the help he could use at the moment. For a split second, he wanted to hesitate but now was not the time.
Daniel answered on the first dial.
"You said to call you?" He stuttered. He could hear Daniel scoff at the other side of the phone, but he couldn't care less. He was getting accustomed to being treated like that by his brother.
"Grandpa requested a meeting by 1 pm today, and he wants you to be there", Daniel said hurriedly.
Part of Declan wanted to believe that that was just a pathetic show-off, a kind of mockery to his stuttering self. The message was odd by the way. He could count the number of times he was ever requested for in the office.
"Do you have any idea why?" He asked.
"I don't", Daniel replied, already sounding irritated by him. "But at least have a good long bath, wear a suit and try to stutter as little as possible in there", he stated, ending the call abruptly leaving Declan no chance to speak at all.
When the clock struck 12:10 pm, Declan was already fully dressed and standing in front of the mirror. He was strikingly handsome and the fact that he didn't have a girlfriend or wife was of many wonders.
Daniel had a different girl on his arm every weekend, the wealth and recognition that came with being the face of the prestigious family business added to that effect.
The air was still wet when he took the bus. In no time, he was in the company building. A lot had not changed since the last time he was here.
He glanced at his wristwatch again. It was 1 pm already. Lord Rowland hated tardiness and he didn't want to be in his bad books today.
"Good of you to be here on time, and nice suit by the way, even if it's the only one you own", Daniel said with a smirk as he entered the conference room. Why did his brother hate him so much, he wondered.
"Good evening grandpa", he said, ignoring his brother and stepping into the office. Lord Rowland nodded in reply with a grunt.
Declan noticed two other people in the room. A middle-aged man and a young girl in her early twenties. She was pretty, that was all there was to her, aside from the fact that she was tapping furiously on her phone.
When they were all seated, Lord Rowland cleared his throat and leaned forward with his arms before him on the mahogany desk. "Let's get straight to the point", he began, the authority in his voice was unmatched. He was a powerful man. "
As we all are aware by now, the business is in a huge debt and the banks are already calling in" He stopped and his eyes rummaged.
"As a kind of redemption, I spoke to my very good friend here Paul", he continued, turning to the man that he didn't bother to introduce earlier.
"He's an ardent businessman like myself, and we have agreed on a merger, instead of selling, with full protection of our company shares and staff".
He seemed pleased by his idea of salvaging the company.
"This will keep this business solvent and for us to seal this agreement, we've decided on a more intentional approach, '' he paused and looked at Declan. "Marriage", he announced finally. Daniel nodded but Declan was motionless.
He had no idea that the company was in debt or needed saving. He was beginning to question his place in the family business.
"Declan would be getting married to Patricia here, Paul's daughter", he finally dropped the bombshell. Declan's eyes widened. "What?" he stuttered in inquiry.
Daniel's eyes grew dark. He knew that Declan getting married to Patricia meant him assuming a more active role in the company, if not the chairman. Patricia on the other hand seemed unbothered. She was still tapping away on her phone. She was spoiled.
Declan was lost in a world of his thoughts.
He was never regarded or considered fit to head the family business, not fit to go to a good school like his brother, not fit to live in a nice apartment like his brother, or have a nice job.
And all of a sudden, they wanted him to get married to sustain the business he has never considered a part of.
He could only think of himself as a sacrificial lamb at the moment. But Daniel was not having it.
"It can't happen grandpa", Daniel stated, rising on his feet, like he could not be heard in his seat.
"I've labored for this company for years, I've given it my all and sacrificed a lot, and here you are entrusting the seal of this merger to a man that can barely make a complete sentence without stuttering?"
"I'm not having it grandpa", he said, turning away. Paul sat quietly, taking in all the drama unfolding before him.
"Daniel", Lord Rowland began, "you have to consider the fact that your brother is the eldest son of this family and is the rightful heir to the family business", he stated, quite calmly.
"It doesn't matter", Daniel replied quickly.
Declan was still in shock at the news. At what point does one tell him that this was a joke? Would anyone even ask him if this is what he wanted? Yet, he could not protest, could not complain. He just sat there.
"We've already concluded on this", Lord Rowland said with a note of finality.
"I'm not having this grandpa. I'm not", Daniel said angrily and stomped out of the office, the door slamming hard after him.
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Chapter 241
It had been over two months since the doctor told them that their babies had high chances of survival as they showed massive improvements with their treatment. Samantha had stopped going to the office totally, and Declan had requested that an office space to be set up in the executive ward for him. Lucy was getting so much better and she was able to breastfeed the children as Samantha had required of her. It was as though they were living in the hospital with their children. Declan's heart swelled with joy with every inch that was added to their height, and every iota of flesh they put on. He would spend most of his time looking down on his boys, wondering if it was the same way his father looked at him and Daniel when they were babies. As he thought about Daniel, the events of the court's final verdict the previous week all came rushing back to him. He had always dreamed of the day Daniel would be sentenced to prison, and he would rejoice and rub it in his face. But on
Chapter 240
Samantha was the first to notice his dazed expression once he was done with the phone call. He entered the private chamber of his office and stayed there.When she saw that he was not going to come out anytime soon, she went in there to search for him. "A celebrant can't leave his party, you know," she began in an attempt to lighten up his sour mood. He looked up at her and would not say a word. "What is going on?" She finally asked him. He dreaded saying anything to her. The news that he had just heard was capable of breaking her, and he did not want that for her. "You don't need to worry about it. I will fix it," he replied. "I did not ask you if you could fix it," she said. "I asked what was the matter," she was insistent. "Abigail just called me and she informed me that Lucy was rushed to the hospital," he finally spilled. "What are you talking about?" She asked, very bewildered. "Lucy was rushed to the hospital," he repeated. "And what are you doing about it?" She asked
Chapter 239
The news about the court case had spread like wildfire, but Declan was not disturbed because he was on top of the case, gaining some level of victory over Daniel. The best part of it all was that he now had the judge on his side without having to try so much. It was in the course of these coincidences that he learned of the good legacy that his father had left behind because of his good deed. The judge had told him how he knew his father. When he kicked off his career as a barrister, he encountered different types of attacks from his rivals on the court. It was very unsafe for him and he was always running. One particular night, some armed men attacked him and beat him up so much that one could hardly recognize him except if they looked closely. He went about, knocking on doors and asking people for help, but no one would attend to him, especially because it was very late at night. They thought he was a thief or killer in disguise.Ferdinand was the only one who opened up to him.
Chapter 238
Declan's eyes did not leave Georgina as she walked up to the witness box. He wondered what it was that she wanted to be a witness to. He saw the way she quivered as she stood there and he suspected that she had been coerced into doing what she did. He listened closely to her as she spoke, saying her vow on the holy book, even though everything that would come out of her mouth was all going to be lies. She did what he least expected. She said to the hearing of everyone in the court that she was raped by Declan the first time she came to be a surrogate for them.Declan was too stunned to say a word at all and just kept his eyes on her. She was crying bitterly. Looking intently at her, he was forced to wonder if these were just fake tears to back up her lie, or if it was a sign that she regretted betraying him. Daniel could have been the one coercing her to do this, but he did not say anything. His eyes still followed her as she walked down the witness box. She glanced at where Dan
Chapter 237
If Declan could have collected all the pieces of evidence and witnesses he wanted in just a week or a month, it would not have been sufficient. But it took him three months, with Samantha solidly behind him. Micheal was not left out of the entire planning process for Daniel's court case. All they wanted to do was get him out of the way as soon as possible. To take down someone like Daniel, who hardly left any stone unturned or left loose ends, they needed to be well prepared, and Declan insisted that they were going to prepare well. The surrogacy plan kicked off in the second month. Lucy was giving off so many dangerous side effects at first that they kept wondering if her body could hold a child. She knew what she had gone through to produce a child that her body did not agree to. The one time that she thought she was close, was when the incident with Daniel happened. But Lucy's body adjusted afterward to the treatment. She began to respond positively and soon, she fell pregna
Chapter 236
Declan paced about in the bedroom endlessly and Samantha was beginning to get dizzy from following him with her eyes. "You are going to bore holes in this floor if you don't stop pacing so much," she said to him. "That boy is making me go crazy," Declan said as he rubbed his forehead in exhaustion. Samantha wondered if it was Daniel he was calling a boy, but she resolved that there was no better way to refer to someone so petty than a boy. "What did he do this time?" She asked him gently, not wanting to piss him off further."He fired the entire members of the accounting department before I could come to the office," Declan complained. Samantha was left to wonder if Daniel was going insane or not. She had never seen someone that acted so much on impulse in an instant. He was so quick to act that one would think that he was not thinking at all. "I thought he was no longer CEO.""I nullified what he did immediately after I got the notice.""Then what are you worried about?""Don't
Chapter 235
Samantha had never been pleased to hear the news before. Declan's agreement to still go ahead with having a child despite the Georgina drama was like music to her ears. She had not bothered to pester him about it anymore, as she did not want him to say he was right after all about Georgina. Instead, she had been more intentional about living her best life. She thought of the children back at the country home. They were enough to suffice for what she could not have. "Do you want to do an adoption or should we still search for a surrogate?" She asked him, deciding to lay all the cards on the table so they could deliberate together. She was not going to be selfish this time. Having a child was going to be a big step for them. It was not the financial aspect that bothered them. Declan's companies and businesses were worth an amount that could feed an entire city comfortably."We are both hoping to carry our child in our hands someday, so I guess surrogacy would not be a bad idea," he
Chapter 234
"I will have to leave very early today," Micheal informed Declan ahead of time. He did not want to be faced with the challenge of having so much work that he could barely manage any spare time. "You have a date with your girlfriend, I guess," Declan said as he looked up at Micheal."Let's not say it's a date," Micheal began, blushing lightly. "It's just a little thing that I do with her every month," he explained. "What is that?" Declan asked, not feeling bad about prying. It was the same thing Micheal did as well. He could swear that Michael knew so many things about him that Samantha had yet to find out. He was very observant and he loved that about her. "We go to the prison for a visit before we head to the orphanage," Micheal said. "Shonda said she wants to own an NGO in Africa in the future, so this is a good start for us."Declan was highly impressed by this agenda. His father ran several orphanages and charitable homes before he died. It was conferred on him in the will. He
Chapter 233
Daniel had been very cranky the entire week. First, all the money that he stole from the company's account had magically returned to it, and it still surprised him that they found out about the offshore account. He also received news that Declan hosted a birthday party over the weekend. He had not been invited nor did he have any knowledge about it. He knew what he could do with the knowledge of such a gathering. He was angry because, after months of being CEO, he had still not successfully convinced the board why he should take over the house. The will stated that it was primarily Declan's inheritance, and there was nothing that he could do about it. Declan, on the other hand, had suddenly banned him from entering the house. The security around it was toughened up so that no matter how much he tried to meander his way in, he would not succeed. This morning, Declan called for a board meeting that he said was going to be used to pass some information. He wished he could stop De
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