2025-08-01 23:51:04Suddenly, Tyler stood, his clouded expression clearing.
He smiled politely at Lincoln.
“I should head out. Need to get a few last things,” he commented brightly. “As for those,” he continued, nodding at the file in Lincoln’s hand, “I need your best men on standby. For all of them.”
“But let’s have the information first. Have three of your guys ready for me. Ages thirty to thirty-five. Nothing lower, can go slightly higher, but they need to look young enough to pass comfortably,” Tyler rolled off, all business, his hazel eyes steady on Lincoln’s green ones.
“So…not Harry here?” Lincoln droned sarcastically.
Tyler glanced at Harrison, taking in the tall, boy-next-door type, well-built man who could not be thirty years old yet, then back to Lincoln.
He eyed Lincoln, who was thirty-something, ripped, fair-skinned, more than a little handsome gangster, slowly, up and down.
Amika shifted in his seat.
Harrison burst out laughing.
Lincoln’s eyes narrowed.
Tyler grinned.
“No, Sir,” Tyler replied playfully.
Lincoln placed large fists on his desk as he leaned forward toward Tyler, the muscles in his arms and shoulders bulging under his long-sleeved formal shirt.
“You –” Lincoln shot back at Tyler.
“Tomorrow, Boss Brazer,” Tyler cut in breezily. “His birthday is next week, I don’t want an incomplete gift for the Lord.”
Lincoln straightened, his brow cleared.
He nodded once.
Tyler nodded in return.
He bowed to Amika, spun around, and tapped Harry on the shoulder as he sauntered out.
“That kid…he’s dangerous,” Amika droned.
“No shit!” Lincoln commented quietly as he opened the file.
Of the twenty-three profiles his people had gathered on Edward Kramer’s mistresses, only five remained. He stared at the women’s faces.
Every single one was a beauty in her own right.
His eyes rested on the one with the fullest lips. Not surgically enhanced.
Then he moved to the others.
He handed the file to Amika.
The mage glanced through and nodded.
“Yes. This boy is powerful. And he doesn’t even know it,” the mage murmured.
Lincoln stared at his number two.
Amika glanced up. He raised his chin.
“Continue helping him. He is a better bet than the Kramers,” he commented mysteriously.
Lincoln nodded. He turned to his freshly returned other second in command as he sat on top of his desk.
Palming the folder, he ordered his man.
“We need three of our escorts. Not the popular ones. The more reserved ones. The age range specified,” he droned.
“Sure thing,” Harrison replied heartily.
==========
Tyler headed straight to his home, taking back streets and winding routes.
It was not that he didn’t trust Lincoln, a man who had been supporting him for years. It was simply that he didn’t trust anyone.
He touched the locket he had worn all his life lightly, as he sped through the darkness.
As always, it was hidden under his shirt.
He had two homes. One in the city, one outside.
He was heading outside now.
He drove up the dirt road leading to his cottage.
A very private space on a good-sized land, tucked away at the back of a servant’s estate.
A retirement community for former house carers of nobility – the highest of the lowest class in the nation of Ashrone, those who lived under ‘servitude.’
He found the irony extremely funny.
He had purchased land right beside the very type of place he had sworn, all his life, that he would never dwell.
And, he mused as he parked his car and walked up to the door, which was opened by an elderly man dressed neatly in a light blue dress shirt and dark brown pants.
I have a fucking butler!
“Jeeves…,” Tyler droned.
“How terribly droll, Master Esteil,” the old, retired butler retorted dryly.
Tyler grinned at the old man.
“How’s tricks?” Tyler continued pleasantly.
“Absolutely banging, Sir,” the man replied flatly.
Tyler laughed.
“Your dinner awaits, Sir. Please have some. Then, you may proceed to your workshop,” the old man called after the young one.
“Yes, Dad!” Tyler called lightly to the old man.
The old man, Tyler’s butler, gazed patiently after the young man, a small smile on his wrinkled face.
After his meal, as directed, Tyler worked till dawn.
The Master of the Miran Auction house was about to go on an extended leave – again – and he needed to have his loyal customers remain loyal.
==========
Back upstairs in his bedroom, Tyler stared at his reflection in the bathroom as water dripped off his face, and the soft rays of the sun kissed the sky.
His eyes went to his necklace.
An old, tired-looking pendant with a dull, copper-looking neck chain.
He smiled lightly.
“Mother,” he whispered.
“For you. For me. I will make them pay,” he said softly as he saw his mother’s gentle face.
He sniffed, wiping his nose forcefully.
He saw Lord Edward Kramer’s face and his mind moved to the past.
“Please, Sir, the hospital won’t operate without the deposit. Just the deposit, Sir, I beg of you. I’ll find the rest!” the young, twenty-year-old Tyler Esteil pleaded with his family’s employer of fourteen years.
“And how will you find it? Hmm? Will you steal from me or sell my family’s information?” the Lord of the world, Edward Kramer replied cooly as his three assistants looked on, smirking and snickering on the side.
“My Lord!” Tyler called out despondently, his face paling as the impossible thought of betraying his employer turned his stomach.
“Since you’re so smart, pay the deposit yourself or let your mother die. Get out of my office!” Lord Kramer bellowed, throwing a large book at Tyler’s feet.
The scene replayed clearly in Tyler’s mind.
His heart pounded against his chest, and his ears began to ring, even now, seven years later.
His face in the mirror reddened.
The next scene played.
“Please, Vincent, help me. Please. Just this once! Only the deposit! I’ll work for the money. Please! I’ll pay you back!” the young Tyler cried to his former ward.
“Mud-face,” the twenty-year-old Vincent Kramer droned caustically, “take your treasures from the mines and sell them! Sell yourself if you like! You’d do for more than a few commoners!” he retorted, laughing.
“Or…wait! Shall I bring you to some of my friends?” he droned, his cold eyes dancing as he eyed Tyler.
“Vincent!” Tyler all but wailed.
“That’s MASTER Vincent to you, you waif!” Vincent shot back, his words hitting like knives.
The young Tyler fell to his knees as his head spun. He stared up at the one he had valeted for, for twelve whole years.
“Master Vincent, please,” the young man croaked.
The young heir sneered. “Come with me to the club, I’m sure you’ll get at least half of the deposit tonight.”
Tyler hung his head in the bathroom. Just as he had eight years ago.
Then, he raised it. His hazel eyes, exactly like his mother’s eyes, were ablaze.
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
Chapter 99
“What are you doing with Lord Kramer’s photo?”“Hmmm?”“What are you doing?”“Which Lord Kramer, Father?” Anton Voltera droned to his father as he sat at his computer screen, adjusting the close-up shot, high-resolution photo he had been playing with for over three hours.Maricius approached his son’s chair.He had come to his favorite child’s office at Voltera Enterprises to get an update on his visit with the Kramer servant.He had walked in, without knocking, the boy had not acknowledged him, so he had walked around his large, yet minimalistic, designed desk to see what had engrossed his son to such a degree.“Lord Henry,” the elder Voltera remarked.Anton’s head snapped up even as the boy remained seated.“It is, right?!” he exclaimed, his grey eyes bright.His son was not one for exclamations. Maricius’ eyes narrowed at the boy. He glanced back at the screen and stared at the light blue eyes, which were the o
Chapter 98
Tyler’s eyes drifted to Emily’s, and she held his gaze. A moment later, his hand dropped, and he glanced away from her, back to the city.Emily stayed where she was and shook his chair.He turned back to her, slowly, like his body was too heavy for him, like he was underwater.“What have you done?” she asked patiently, her voice calm as she repeated her initial question.“I helped Raymond.”“How?”“Magic.”“Why?”“I owe him.”“What did you give him?”“An earring, of a sort.”“I didn’t see one.”“You won’t. No one will.”“Why?”“To heal his body.”Unlike Ashley, Emily knew full well the limitations of a hospital on some matters.She held Tyler’s gaze.“Will he wake up?”“Maybe.”“Do you think he’ll wake up?”“Yes.”“Why?”“He’s a strong kid. A strong mind. A focused drive. Passionate. He loves life. Loves living. He should wake up.
Chapter 97
While Tyler was being grilled by Ashley Belarnt, Lord Henry Kramer was searching for an old servant. His people drove to one of the servants’ estates used by the nobles’ retired staff.It was rare for any former masters to visit their past servants, but as soon as Lord Kramer’s vehicle reached the property line, every living former servant of the Kramer Estate got the information.He went directly to the administration office, which was equivalent to the town hall premises, and met the curator of the property.There were sixty houses on the grounds and thirty apartment complexes. The estate, like all the others, was a community unto itself.Most of the residents were over the age of fifty, but many had relatives who stayed with them; as such, there were people of all ages and walks of life on the grounds.By the time Henry was greeted by the curator, the chief administrator of the estate, and had been seated, fifteen of the oldest Kramer servants w
Chapter 96
Tyler had woken last night, after over forty hours of sleep. He had taken a potion to help him move, despite all his wounds and pain, despite knowing what the reaction would be in the morning, and had turned down the strength of his black rock clock.Limiting its range to twenty feet and activating a cloaking spell once he got out of range.He went to Raymond’s room. A private one on the topmost floor of the hospital.Tyler’s floor was in the middle of the hospital building, ensuring that if anything happened at his location, the entire structure would suffer for it.He stared at the boy who was in a body cast and had been unconscious for over four weeks. He had gotten all the information from his men about the boy’s injuries.He had been beaten, with magic fully involved, breaking bones, damaging nerves, and rupturing organs.A weaker person, physically, would have died.Whether it was intentional or by accident that the boy was stil
Chapter 95
“How did that bastard get into my Tower?” Lord Ashton Belarnt rumbled.“I,” Raymond grunted, “I approved it,” he replied hoarsely, facing his uncle, even as he hung suspended, he held his uncle’s gaze.“How did he rise so fast through the ranks?” Lord Ashton rumbled. “He was under you, yet of all your staff, you kept him in your office. Directly. How did that happen?”“I pushed for it,” Raymond rasped, not using more words than necessary to end his torture.“How, then, in the name of every fucking sage there is, did that nobody get the free hand and access he got to our oldest contracts and locations within months of his arrival? Something reserved for the most senior officials?”“I allowed it. He was useful. I used him,” Raymond croaked, forcing his voice to come out loud and clear.No matter the question from his uncle, Raymond accepted the blame. More than once, he heard the only female of the group gasp, but she remained silent. Ashley B
Chapter 94
When Raymond woke, he was in a stone room. No windows, low ceiling, thick door. A dungeon.He almost laughed, but his face wouldn’t move. His cheekbone was broken, his jaw shattered. The pain was the only thing that let him know he wasn’t asleep or hallucinating.For two days, he was left there, alone. No food, no water, no company.In his silent prison, he kept his mind as light as he could, focusing on little things, like how the space wasn’t dark. Gems in the wall and ceiling lit up the room.He was also glad it was dry, as he knew much about the Belarnt private cells; every noble family, at least, everyone at the very top of nobility, had such things, and he knew how bad the Belarnt ones could get.The Belarnt’s, miners by trade and profession, had very special cells. Old, former mines. Places no one would ever go, or simply stumble into. Places where, if they liked, the gatekeeper could forget their prisoner and have no need to make burial arr
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