Robert McAfee; The New Student Trillionaire

CHAPTER 5

The phone rang about three times before Mr. Edward picked the call. He had been rounding off an important stakeholders meeting and wanted to take his mocha drink before hopping on his next task.

Then he checked his vibrating phone to send a do not disturb message when he saw the manager of the mall caller's ID flash through his phone. 

Surprised by the call, Mr. Edward answered the call with hopes of quickly resolving why she called but he also had a thought and hoped that it was not an emergency from Robert. 

“Hello?” came the sharp, tired voice of Mr. Edward.

“Good evening, sir,” the mall manager began, trying to keep her tone calm, “I just wanted to inform you directly before we proceed. Your black card—it’s been recovered. We found it in the possession of a young man named Robert Hyman. We are preparing to contact the police unless you have any specific instructions…”

There was a breathless silence.

Then the call ended.

Not with a word.

Just… ended.

A chill trickled down her spine.

Ten minutes later, the door to the manager’s office burst open with a bang that made everyone in the room jolt. In strode Mr. Edward, his expensive loafers quiet against the marble tiles, his expression as hard as ever.

 His breath was short, his brows creased not in fury, but in fear.

The manager jumped to her feet, her face beaming with hope. “Sir, I just called. We were about to…”

But Mr. Edward didn’t even look at her.

He saw Robert seated on a small chair in the corner—his head down, face blank, the humiliation still fresh in his bones—and then did something no one expected.

He dropped to his knees.

“Forgive me, Young Master,” Edward choked. “I…I made a terrible mistake.”

Gasps sucked the air out of the room.

The mall manager’s jaw dropped. Even the security guards looked like statues, frozen in disbelief.

“I handed you the wrong card last night,” Edward continued, his voice quivering. “Your card—your personal McAfee black card—is still in my coat pocket.

 I mistakenly gave you mine, which only has a five hundred million dollar limit. 

I hoped it wouldn’t inconvenience you. When I saw the alert and realized what happened, I rushed here.”

Robert didn’t say a word.

His silence was louder than any insult.

Mr. Edward’s face stayed close to the ground, his pride crushed beneath the weight of terror.

 “If Mr. Trump were still alive, I would be stripped and buried,” he whispered, more to himself than anyone. 

“I’ve embarrassed the name I swore to serve.”

The manager and the mall shoppers were so surprised to see Mr. Edward beg in this manner and it only made them more curious to find out who Robert was.

“Who the heck is this guy? He is making Mr Edward shiver like a baby.”The manager thought to herself as her eyes could not believe what she saw.

Mr Edward finally got up after Robert asked him to and he ordered the staff to add whatever Robert bought to his card and assured them that he would cover the bills.

Mr Edward turned to the manager and yelled “ How could you treat the Heir to the McAfee empire like a common thief, you also had the mind to call me into this mess you made, I am so disappointed at how you couldn't even call me first before you turned this into a big and messy scandal and you all are going to pay for this!” 

The manager, knowing that she was in big trouble by offending a member of the ultimate family, fell on her knees to beg Robert for forgiveness but Robert didn't utter a word, he looked for an exit then stood up, picked his watch and left the manager's office.

The manager scrambled to her feet, chasing after him, begging, stammering apologies as she trailed behind. Mr. Edward stepped ahead of them, gesturing for the guards to follow.

Clara, still unaware, popped out from her station with a triumphant little smile. 

“Ma’am, should I go ahead and call the police now? I have even updated the commander, he would be here within a second once you give the order to arrest this bastard.” she said disdainfully.

The slap that came from the manager was thunderous.

“You’re fired,” the manager spat. “And I don’t mean suspended. I mean if this mall was on fire and you had the only extinguisher, I’d still burn it down before I let you back inside. Security! Drag her out and make sure she never steps foot here again!”

Clara shrieked as the guards grabbed her, heels scraping against the tile, begging and swearing—but no one cared.

The only name on everyone’s lips was “Robert.”

Robert sat quietly in the back of the black stretch limousine as it moved through a wooded road flanked by whispering tall trees. 

The embarrassment from the mall still lingered in his chest like a lump. 

Though he’d walked out of that store a victor, something in him still felt bruised—like dignity lost could not be bought back, no matter the price.

Minutes later, the convoy turned a final corner and revealed a massive glass structure rising into the sky like a modern cathedral.

The McAfee Estate.

Even from a distance, it radiated power. A fortress of influence. The building’s shine reflected the fading sun, its steel-and-glass frame shimmering like a throne. 

Robert looked at it not with awe, but with a strange mixture of resentment and resignation.

Inside, Mr. Edward quickly helped him change into a formal tuxedo.

“You’ll only stay for an hour,” Edward assured him, adjusting Robert’s collar. “Your grandfather had promised his support to Barry before he passed. 

He made a pledge—whatever the fundraiser raises tonight, he’d triple it. It’s an old McAfee tradition. You’re just fulfilling it.”

Robert raised an eyebrow. “Triple it?”

Edward pulled out a blank cheque and handed him a pen. “Write whatever number they announce.”

Robert stared at the empty space on the cheque, feeling the weight of an empire between his fingers.

“Also,” Edward added quietly, “they still don’t know you’re the heir. Just attend and observe. 

You don’t owe anyone anything. Not even a name.”

Robert finished getting dressed and got to the party, as his convoy drove he realised that this was an A-list fundraiser, and it was extravagant, the guests pulled in with executive rides, the ballroom echoed with laughter and sounds of glasses clinking. This was no place for a child, nor was it a place for the likes of Robert. The host, Barron Barry, had already been informed that a top representative from the McAfee family would be gracing the event. Everyone waited in anticipation to see the representative, as it was no news that the McAfee empire had only one heir, but till date, nobody had seen him.

“ I thought you said a representative was coming, Barron?” Mrs Barry asked her husband who was still looking composed while the party started.

“Relax my dear, he is a man of his word even in his death he will fulfil it, let me check over at the other entrance if the delegate is around” Mr Barron said to his wife before he moved to the other end of the hall in search of the representative from the McAfee family.

The night had started with glamour, and everyone enjoyed the evening, the soft song of cool music, soft laughter, and sounds of glass clinking filled the air. Robert stood frozen; he could now really feel what money smelt like and even taste it. 

It had been announced over the speaker that the current amount which had been accumulated so far had just surpassed the one billion dollar mark. Most of all, the Ultimate family would be sending a representative over to fulfill the late pledge of the late monarch, Trump McAfee, who promised to triple the money generated. With no doubt, Barron Barry will become the next president. The hall echoed with applause, filling the air. Furthermore, Mr. Barron now ranked 70% in the leading board, and there was no way he could lose the election now.

Madam Margaret Orlando and her husband, James Orlando, were having a good time. Margaret, in the heat of the moment, had stepped on Robert’s toe, but when he tried informing her by gently tapping her shoulder, she gave him a slap. 

She was furious and yelled “ who allowed a spoiled brat like this into an exclusive event.” 

 She informed Robert that this was no place for a child, and if he wants to find a playground, he should check the park. The hall went dead silent for a minute or two. Robert could not understand what was going on, he would have understood if this had happened in school where everyone looked at him like trash, but here, he paused.

James Orlando broke the silence and demanded to know who the parents of Robert were. Since nobody came forth, he asked Robert for his name. 

Robert exhaled softly. “My name is Robert Hyman.”

The name drew a pause.

Margaret blinked. “Hyman? That name sounds familiar…”

“I’m a student of Pinehills University,” Robert said.

“Oh, this gets better,” James chuckled, trying to hide his disgust. “Did you wander in here by mistake?”

Margaret pulled out her phone, suddenly reminded of something. Her face darkened as she read the alert: A thief caught in Mavis Mall.

She opened the post.

It was from her sons.

The video from earlier. The mall incident. Robert’s face is clear as day.

She reeled in shock.

“This… is the thief from the mall,” she gasped.

The murmurs in the hall rose like smoke.

Margaret turned to the media team. “Put this on the projector!”

Seconds later, the video was playing for all to see.

Robert, in his regular clothes, being manhandled, mocked.

The name “Robert Hyman” is trending online with the word “thief” beside it.

The laughter from hours ago now returned to fill the elegant ballroom—only this time, sharper, crueler.

Presidential candidate Barron Hyman stood up, his face flushed with fury. The room was spiraling.

This was supposed to be his night.

His coronation.

Now a scandal was being screened on the walls, and the McAfee representative—who hadn’t yet been revealed—might have walked right into it.

Robert looked at the screen, then at the guests, their judgment thick in the air.