THE BILLIONIARE'S RISE TO STARDOM

CHAPTER SIX: MEETING WITH FAMILY.

"Father?" Lucian mouthed, not knowing what else to say.

The man crossed the distance between them and wrapped a stiff Lucian in an embrace. There was a sniff, then a gentle sigh as the two remained in the position. No one said a word.

"Master Manchester, I'll excuse myself." Marcus said politely.

"Yes, please leave, all of you." Manchester said, disengaging from the embrace.

The guards bowed deeply and filed out of the room in one single movement. As Lucian studied his father, he noted the resemblance, the blue eyes, the dimples, the slightly brown hair…

"Welcome home, son, and thank you for being alive,"

"Al…ive?" Lucian stammered in shock. Was he dead before?

"What do you mean? How come I don't remember a thing about having a family? Did you abandon me and now you want me back? You are swimming in wealth, yet I suffered to survive, I and my sister, why?"

Lucian couldn't help but ask the questions that had plagued his mind for years.

"No, son, I didn't for one minute think of abandoning you. I lost you two when you were only ten years old." He sighed. "Did your sister's surgery go well?"

"Yes, Rose is fine, thanks for your timely intervention, but what do you mean by you lost me?"

Manchester frowned. "Your mother had insisted on picking you guys up from school that fateful day after being out of the country for months. However, as she was returning, a group of thugs attacked the car, took you both captive and brutally murdered your mother."

"What?" Lucian felt his blood freeze all at once as he gasped in shock. The words hit him like a bomb. All these calamities had happened to his family? Who had done such a wicked thing?

"I thought they had harmed you too because I searched all over for you, but I never stopped hoping that you might be alive. You don't know how happy I felt when my men found you."

Lucian paused to process the information. As he did so, a shrill sound like the ring of an alarm clock sounded in his right ear and he winced, almost stumbling to the floor. In that brief moment, he saw a blurred picture of a shadow, a flicker of light, then darkness.

"Are you alright, son?" Manchester asked in concern.

Lucian nodded, tapping his ears gently. "It gets like that sometimes when I try hard to remember something,"

"Don't force it, it's your memories trying to come back. Something must have happened during the kidnap that triggered the loss of memory."

"I found myself and my sister in an orphanage when I woke up. I had no idea how I ended up there and why."

Manchester nodded but did not say a word. It was evident from the way he gritted his teeth and curled his fist that he was so angry about the news.

"Did you catch the culprit?"

"Unfortunately, no, he buried every trace."

Lucian frowned, his father's anger made him furious. He would make sure to find the bastard, whoever it was, and make him pay for his crimes.

"Well, that's in the past now, let's focus on the present. As my only son, you'll be in charge of my wealth and all of Howard's collections."

Lucian gulped. As much as he wanted a life of luxury, the words of his father surpassed his expectations. Howards was like the biggest and largest group of companies in the city, a model for upcoming businesses. He owned all of it now?

"Don't be too taken in by the news, all of this belongs to you. I'll be returning to England after meeting with Rose…"

"But how?" Lucian trembled. "How could I possibly manage the company? I don't know a thing about business."

In response, Manchester made a brief call and within seconds, a young man who was dressed smartly appeared at their side.

"This is Mr Anthony, my manager, he'll assist you with all you need to know about the company."

He turned to Anthony. "This is Lucian, my son."

The two shook hands while Anthon bowed with respect.

"Master Lucian, I'm sorry it's coming on such short notice, but as the new president of Howards, your presence is highly sought after by different companies and firms. You can make a choice judging from the list or choose to ignore all the invitations." Anthony said and handed him an iPad.

Lucian collected the iPad with a heated breath and looked into the screen. There were articles about the announcement of the new president of Howards and who the mysterious man could be.

Celebrities swamped the comment section, each searching for an opportunity to contact the president and implore him to assist their businesses.

As he slid through the comments, almost losing interest, his eyes caught a name that caused him to expel air slowly through his mouth.

It was Betty's company also pleading for a chance to meet with him. He chuckled softly, allowing his thoughts to travel to how Betty would react if she knew who the new president of Howards was.

He handed the phone to Anthony. "Please, accept the invitation of the All Gold company. I'd like to meet with them tomorrow."

Anthony nodded. "Yes sir."

At that moment, a beep sounded in his phone. He looked at the screen, it was a message from Betty that read.

"Hey, I'll be needing cleaning services in my company tomorrow. Make sure to drag your filthy legs here and do your job."

Lucian smiled a wry smile, hissed, and deleted the message. No doubt, the news of the invitation had reached her, hence the need for cleaning services. Gosh, he would enjoy teaching her a lesson or two.

He turned to his side. "Mr Anthony, I'd also love a tour of the company."

Anthony smiled. "it'd be a pleasure, Master."

"I'm glad you're already taking interest in the company, son." Manchester smiled.

Lucian nodded, and released a gentle blink, the game had just begun.