FROM ASHES TO BILLIONS.

Chapter 8: Unexpected News.

Layla squeezed the glass in her hands so hard that it cracked under the pressure. Her brows quirked, and she inhaled the cigarette in her left hand before hissing out a puff of smoke.

“What the fuck did you say Adrian did to you?”

“How many times do I need to say it? You're beginning to annoy me,” Ryan said, his jaws clenched.

Layla poured more brandy into the cup and gulped it down. The alcohol produced a tingling sensation in her throat causing her to bite down on her lower lips. “That son of a bitch,”

“President Milan ordered his bail. They are connected somehow,” Ryan said, tapping his knuckles. He looked up with a scared look in his eyes. “We're doomed,”

“If anyone is doomed, it's Adrian,” Layla replied, trying to shake off the odd feeling that enveloped her.

Ryan chuckled bitterly. “His cooperation with my company has been cut off. The other partners are also threatening to withdraw if I don't restore my image within a week,”

A dry scoff escaped his lips. “Now, Adrian has a copy of my assault clip. He wants me to turn myself in to the police and officially brand myself a criminal. If I do that, my life would be completely ruined!”

“That bastard…” Layla whispered in irritation. For the first time in her life, she didn't know what to do. Her hands felt tied, like some invisible chain was keeping her bound.

Ryan stood up and began pacing around the room. The tip of his fingers found his mouth and he began biting.

“What are you doing?” Layla asked.

“What does it look like I'm doing? I'm thinking of course!”

Layla scoffed. “As if that can solve anything. I wonder why you gave that bastard leverage over you. Gosh, you're so weak!”

Ryan looked so drained as he turned around to face his wife. “You should start thinking about yourself. Adrian is now so powerful that it'd be difficult to defeat him with just drinking like an idiot,”

“Fuck you!” Layla retorted, pouring herself another glass of brandy. She was about to gulp down the alcohol when Ryan snatched it from her. “I didn't know you were this pathetic when I married you. Come to your senses at once! Do you think Adrian is going to let you be after what you did? He's coming for you!”

“Do I care?” Layla slurred. “I'll be the one to ruin him. Just you wait,”

“What's your plan?”

Layla shrugged. “I don't have a plan, but I'll think of one,”

“Oh, you're so pathetic!” Ryan scoffed, threw her a glare before walking out of the room. He needed to concentrate, but he couldn't do so with Layla drinking like a maniac and distracting the hell out of him.

As he walked into his private study, his heart kept pounding against his chest so hard that he couldn't think straight. Adrian was a time bomb that could explode anytime.

He had to stop it before it was too late.

An idea popped up in his brain and he smiled cheekily before grabbing his phone. The line connected on the third ring and he ordered. “Find me a good lawyer for a quick job immediately,”

*****

Adrian dropped the last file on his desk and proceeded to straighten his back. A tired sigh escaped his lips and he adjusted his tie aggressively.

He was still not used to dressing up in a suit and an almost choking tie.

Everything was so strange that it left him breathless at the end of each day. From the employees who bowed ceaselessly anytime he walked past, to his private guards who escorted him around like trained robots, Adrian felt so overwhelmed.

His life had been transformed in the twinkle of an eye but it still felt…surreal.

“You got this, man!” He whispered to himself, clasping his hands tight.

The sound of his door opened roughly pulled him out of his reverie and he sat up straight. Felix rushed into the office, panicked and struggling to catch his breath.

“Young master…I've been calling you repeatedly, but you wouldn't pick up,”

Adrian picked up his phone to see 12 missed calls from Felix. He laid it aside with an apologetic look. “I'm sorry, I was working. What's up?”

“President Milan is…is…” Felix could not continue.

Adrian sprang to his feet with widened eyes as he almost imagined what Felix's next words would be. “What happened to grandfather?”

“He collapsed and has been rushed to the hospital. You need to come immediately. I'm afraid he doesn't have much time,”

Adrian swallowed painfully. “But…he was fine this morning when I left him,”

“Come on, young master. A car is waiting,” Felix urged and as Adrian hurried out of the room, he closed the door and followed suit.

It didn't take long before the car stopped at the hospital, and once it did, Adrian stepped down quickly and hurried inside the building.

His heart thumped painfully within his chest. What if something serious happened? He couldn't bear losing his grandfather. Not now when they were just beginning to bond.

Felix stopped in front of a white door which was being opened by bodyguards in black suits. Barely responding to their greetings, Adrian walked into the room, his mouth dry.

Once he was inside, he saw his grandfather lying on the bed with tubes connected to his hand. He looked so fragile, so small, different from the powerful man Adrian knew a few years back.

The image broke his heart and he took a painful step forward. “Grandfather…”

Felix bowed as Milan opened his eyes in acknowledgement. “I'll excuse myself, young master,”

“Yes please, excuse us,” Adrian choked back a sob moving closer to sit beside his grandfather's bed. “Pa, what happened?”

Milan coughed and gently sat up with the help of Adrian. “I don't know. I was in my study one minute and the next minute I am in the hospital,”

Adrian's brows lowered. “Could it be your sickness acting up? That's weird because the mansion nurses said you were fine,”

“I don't really know, son,” Milan said shakily, then reached out to take Adrian's hand in his. “I feel like my time is near, son and I'm really sorry for what you went through in the past,”

He paused, as if breathing was difficult for him. “You have a younger sister that was kidnapped on the day your parents died. It was such a long time ago but my men are still looking for her and will report to you once she's found. I just…just hope for your sake that she isn't…dead,”