Confirm

Liam found it inconvenient to accompany the man because he could only travel greater distances in the wheelchair and considered refusing to accompany the man, but the prospect of seeing where he was imprisoned in case he needed to escape someday kept him pushing forward.

The man guides him down a hallway and stops before a door, which he pushes open and assists Liam in pushing his wheelchair inside. "This will be your study," said the man.

The study was larger than his hostel room, which he shared with another person. A large work desk and chair were placed behind a bay window, and books filled all the shelves.

"I'll show you around the gym. Your physical therapist will start working there with you tomorrow," the man said as he led Liam out of the room. "You are my boss's son, and he wants you to be his heir, which is why I said your growth and progress will determine when you can leave."

That sounded too wonderful to be true to Liam, and he refused to trust what the stranger stated. For all he knew, it could have been a hidden camera show or the man was plain insane.

There was no portion of his mind that even somewhat believed the man's words.

He, on the other hand, found himself doing all the man asked of him. He looked forward to seeing his physical therapist every day, and he could plainly see the progress he was making.

In barely a week, he was able to move around without the wheelchair, and when he was finished with physical therapy, he requested Sam to provide him proof that his mother and Aurora were safe.

It was up to him to decide if his goals should be vengeance or protection. Sam accepted, and then he got to meet the man who claimed to be his father again.

When he stepped in, the man was eating his lunch, and Liam was served as soon as he seated, and they began eating in quiet, with the guards silently watching from their positions.

When the table was cleared, Liam observed the man, who leaned back calmly and grinned when his gaze met Liam's. "You look a lot different from the last time we met, I am impressed with what Sam did, I am confident now that I can leave you in his care completely," Joseph Rowling said, happy.

"I just wanted to confirm that my mother and Aurora are safe," Liam said. He felt unconcerned about what the man thought.

"Your mother is safe; she was concerned about you, but I met with her and informed her that you were with me. She disagreed until I assured her it was fine because I had no heir and my wife was late." Joseph Rowling appeared to have sufficient patience because he spent his time explaining it to Liam.

"I need proof," Liam stated emphatically. The man's story sounded convincing, but he opted to dismiss it without seeing it for himself.

"How about a video call to her?" the man said, his smile so warm that Liam found himself establishing the man as the father he never had.

"I will like that," he said coldly, demonstrating to the man that he was not taken in by his act of affection. "But what about Aurora?"

"She's with her family, and there's nothing we can do," the man responded.

If the wealthiest guy in the country couldn't help him save Aurora from her family and Carlos, no one could. When Liam realized he was believing the man's statements and believed the man was the richest, he put the thoughts to rest.

"Then you are not as rich as you claim," Liam said flatly.

"I will not interfere with her love life in the same way you did."

Liam felt a wave of rage wash over him, and he gripped his fist so firmly that he was just seconds away from punching the man.

"I know you want to say you did not interfere," the man's words halted Liam before he assault him. "But you did it, and unless you are powerful and have something to offer, her family will never allow you to be close to her.

"I don't mind having her as a daughter-in-law; after all, being associated with the royal family will be a pleasure, but that is something you must do. I'll buy you some time until you're ready to win her and her family over."

"I don't need to win her over," Liam pointed out. It was obvious to him that she loved him and had done so for a long time.

"Then I will give you the authority you need to be the son I want you to be," Joseph promised. "And I could get a gift of a royal daughter-in-law with that."

"I am not a commodity, do not speak of me in that way," Liam couldn't help but feel compelled to caution the man.

"This is what I admire about you. Even now, you are the son I want you to be."

"You are fearless, determined, and intelligent; imagine what will happen if I add rich and powerful to that; even the royal family will be begging you to marry their daughter," Joseph predicted. Liam's father couldn't help but smile, his lips arched at the words he murmured.

That sounded appealing, but Liam knew better than anyone that there was nothing like a free dinner. Even the college scholarship he received was contingent on him returning to teach at the college. He took them regardless, determined that when he was powerful enough, he would pay them and move on with his life.

"What exactly do you want in return?" Liam inquired.

"I see that you've finally decided to believe me," the man observed.

With the man's observation, Liam became aware of this, and he looked away from the man's gaze. He'd subconsciously come to believe the man was his father, and that he was the man behind Cain Rowling, whom everyone thought was the richest man in the country.

He was able to make a video call to his mother, just as the man had promised. He couldn't help but sigh with relief when her face came on the screen. She was still alive, and she didn't appear to have been hit or injured by Carlos.

"Oh, thank God you're still alive and well," his mother sighed. "I was terrified when they told me you were in a coma."

"I prayed and hoped for more than five months, and I was gradually losing hope that you would return to me."

"I am okay now," he informed her with a cheerful smile. "Is he really my father?" he inquired, hoping to dispel any remaining doubts.

"Yes, I recognized him the moment he approached me at work, and when he told me he had rescued his son, I didn't need a DNA test to know he was the man I had met years before."

He was considerably more attractive back then, though he doesn't look awful now," she said, making him smile.

He had many questions for her, but he believed it was only proper to wait until the time was right because he had a damsel in distress (Aurora) to save and vengeance to exact.

He received proof from his mother that the man was his father, but this was insufficient. To confirm, he will need to see a DNA test and ensure that it was not tampered with.

"He informed me that someone wealthy and powerful tried to assassinate you. I wanted him to bring you home so I could care for you, but because he wanted you to be safe from those who sought to take your life, I opted to let him."

"You look better now," she said with a smile.

"I'm feeling better now," he confirmed. "I will stay with him and work hard; I want you to look after yourself," he promised.

"I will; you do not need to be concerned about me," she assured him. "I'm your mother; it's my responsibility to worry about you, or you'll look older than your age in no time," she corrected him.

He was no longer worried about his mother's safety. He was shown a live video of Aurora by the man. She was dressed nicely as usual, but he was the only one who noticed the melancholy in her eyes.

"Is there any way I can get her out of their hands?" he inquired of his father.

"No, not until you are a good candidate to be the king's son-in-law," his father stated emphatically.

Liam knew there was no getting out of it with what the man stated, and he had to do what the man wanted him to do to be the perfect person for Aurora. Aurora adored him, but with his current condition, there was no way he could stand by her side, let alone protect her.

Even when he tried to flee with her, he was killed, and he may not have believed in love or cared for it in the past, but Aurora made him see something he never saw in his previous relationships, and that was her love for him.

He could proudly vow to anybody that Aurora would willingly give her life to save him, which was why he was willing to go to any length to assure her safety only to meet his death in the process.

He told himself that his previous weak self had died, that he was a different person, and that he was going to take advantage of the opportunity that the universe had provided him to exact revenge on those who had wronged him.

Carlos attempted to murder him; he was certain that he was long dead to Carlos, but that was none of his business since he was determined to make the man kneel before him the next time they meet, and he will arrive with such force that they will think he was the king of hell paying a visit.

He still had reservations about trusting the man, even if his mother advised him to, so he requested to speak with him alone.

"You look like you want to say something serious, so why not?" the man remarked, smiling as if he knew what Liam was going to say.

"I'd like to know why you believe I'm the right heir," Liam began. "Your brother has a son who everyone believes will be the next heir."

"My brother is the person I present to the public, and I believe that having an heir is only natural, but I do not want his son to be the heir."

"He is nothing near the heir I want to pass my business to. He'll destroy all I've worked so hard to develop, and I won't be able to die peacefully if my firm falls into the wrong hands," said the man.

"So, are you dying?" Liam's words tumbled out before he could stop them.

Instead of responding to Liam's question, the man asked, "And what if I say I am?"

"Then I'll understand your concerns, and that will help me believe you're my father," Liam responded honestly.

"That's so cruel of you, do you want me to die when we've only met twice?" the man asked, shaking his head and grabbing for a cigar.

“. . .”

"I believe I understand why you feel that way because it gives everything meaning, right?" Joseph smiled and asked. "That is why I will tell you that this cigar, and the many others I have smoked in the past, are destroying my lungs, and while my doctor says I am not near death, I need an heir for assurance."

"And what if you never found me?"

"I've known about your existence since you were born, and I've had people keep an eye on you from afar," the man replied. "I tried to raise and educate my nephew to be my heir, but he turned out to be bad news, and I don't even dare to die at this point."

Liam couldn't tell if it was the sight of sincerity in the man's eyes or the persuasiveness of his words that made him believe the man, but he did.

"If you follow my plan, you will have a trillion-dollar company, and I will leave my company in good hands," Joseph said instead of replying to Liam's question. "We both get what we want, so there's no need for you to ask me what I'll get out of this, or for me to ask you what you'll get out of it."