The Discarded Heir's Billionaire Vengeance

Chapter 6

Two days passed.

The talk about the black card did not die. It only changed shape. Some students still believed Daniel. More of them started listening to Liam’s side. Liam’s friends repeated the same line everywhere: “The card might be real, but that doesn’t mean the broke kid owns it.”

Daniel felt the shift in the way people looked at him. The stares were colder now. A few classmates who used to nod at him in the hallway stopped doing it.

On Thursday afternoon Daniel stayed late in the library to finish an assignment. The place was almost empty. He sat at a corner table with his books open when footsteps stopped beside him.

Liam stood there with two friends. Maya was not with them this time.

“Still studying like a normal student?” Liam said. His voice was quiet but sharp. “Funny. Most people with a real Reid card wouldn’t need to sit in a public library.”

Daniel looked up. “What do you want?”

Liam pulled out a chair and sat down without asking. His friends stayed standing.

“I want answers that actually make sense,” Liam said. “Four people have looked at that card and said it’s real. Fine. I accept the card is real. What I don’t accept is that it belongs to you.”

He leaned forward.

“My father checked with people who handle high-level accounts. There’s no open record of a Daniel Reed connected to the Reid Consortium. Nothing. So either the card is stolen, or someone is letting you hold it for a while, or this is a much bigger game than you’re telling.”

Daniel closed his notebook slowly. “You done?”

“Not even close.” Liam’s eyes stayed locked on him. “I’ve been patient. I’ve let you walk around campus with that card. But patience has limits. Either you explain how a guy who used to wash dishes owns something like that, or I keep digging until the truth comes out in a way you won’t like.”

The library was quiet. A few students at far tables looked over.

Daniel reached into his jacket and pulled the black card out again. He placed it on the table between them.

“You’ve seen it. Other people have seen it. What else do you want?”

Liam stared at the card. His jaw was tight. Pride and frustration mixed on his face.

“I want the story behind it. Not the plastic.”

Before Daniel could answer, a man in a gray suit walked into the library section. He was middle-aged and carried a leather briefcase. Several students sat up straighter when they recognized him.

It was Mr. David Chen. He was a guest lecturer that week and also a senior partner at one of the city’s largest law firms. He handled contracts for several big companies, including some that worked with the Reid family.

Mr. Chen noticed the tense group at the corner table. He walked over slowly.

“Is everything all right here?” he asked.

Liam stood up quickly and put on a polite face. “Just a discussion between classmates, sir.”

Mr. Chen’s eyes landed on the black card lying on the table. He picked it up without asking, turned it once under the library lights, and examined the crest.

His expression changed.

He looked at Daniel carefully, then spoke in a clear voice.

“This is a genuine Reid Consortium executive card. The highest level. I’ve only handled two of these in my career. The material and crest are correct.”

He handed the card back to Daniel and gave a short nod.

“I don’t know the full background, but the card itself is not a fake.”

Then he walked away toward the front desk.

The few students who had been watching started whispering at once.

Liam’s face had gone stiff. Another confirmation. The fifth one. Every time it happened, it became harder to laugh the card off. But his pride would not let him stop.

He looked at Daniel with cold eyes.

“Five people now. Still doesn’t explain how you got it. I’m not walking away just because another man in a suit says the plastic is real.”

He stood up and spoke a little louder so the nearby students could hear.

“Keep holding that card. Keep letting important people look at it. Sooner or later the real story will come out. And when it does, I’ll be the one who finds it.”

He turned and walked out with his friends. Their footsteps echoed in the quiet library.

Daniel sat still for a moment. He put the card away and stared at his open books. The words on the page did not make sense right now.

His black phone buzzed under the table. A short message from Alexander:

Young Master. Liam Baxter’s father has reached two former banking officers who once worked with Reid subsidiaries. He is offering money for information. Shall we close those doors?

Daniel typed back slowly.

No. Let him spend the money. Let him think he is getting closer.

He locked the phone and packed his books.

Outside the library the sky was already turning dark. Daniel walked toward the dorms with his hands in his pockets. The cold air helped clear his head a little.

Across campus, Liam sat in his car again. He was on the phone with his father. His voice was low and tight with frustration.

“Another one just confirmed it. A lawyer this time. I don’t care. Keep pushing. Someone out there knows the truth about this Daniel Reed. Find that person.”

He hung up and stared out the windshield. His pride hurt more than he wanted to admit. Every public confirmation made him look less sure of himself. Fear of losing face pushed him harder than anger ever could.

He opened a new message to a private contact and began typing a longer request.

The fifth confirmation had not ended the fight.

It had only made Liam more determined — and more dangerous.

Daniel still chose not to strike first.

But the pressure on both sides was growing.