2026-04-18 20:47:05Damien was wearing a suit and a pair of leather shoes with the Audi car key hanging on his waist. He looked so handsome at this moment.
Seeing this a lot of people tried sucking up to him and began directing crude remarks at Manuel.
“I’m sure his whole outfit doesn’t amount up to 6 dollars”
“Heard that he’s now out on the streets. Apparently, he was a living with the Sullivans as a matrilocal husband.”
“He’s that feeble?”
Shirley had had enough of the criticizing and spoke up, “You all don’t have a say as to how he lives his life.”
Manuel just tapped Shirley’s arm to reassure him that he was fine but that didn’t stop the others.
“Aye! Although I can’t make any money, I won’t be a live-in son-in-law. Even if you hit me to death, I won’t do it!”
“Poverty stifles a man’s ambition, I never thought you’re such a short-sighted person!”
Shirley slightly sighed at this moment. It was really bad to see Manuel in this situation.
Damien still had not had enough. Trying to show off more, he looked around realizing that the wine he requested for hadn’t been brought yet.
He pressed the service bell repeatedly with pressure.
When another waiter came, he raised his voice and said, “What sort of service is this? Why are you lot so slow? Where is my wine?!”
The waiter was quiet, stunned for a moment.
Even the classmates stopped in their verbal assault on Manuel and watched Damien with interest.
Damien was getting really pissed resisting the urge to slap him at the waiter’s hesitance.
“If you delay me any further, I’ll make sure to get you fired. Unfortunately for you lots, your boss and I are long time buddies.”
This waiter’s eye widened and he rushed to attend to him.
Everyone was shocked.
Having an acquaintance with the Eastbay Diner’s owner was no easy feat.
No ordinary person could achieve that.
This made everyone present gawk at him in awe.
Damien could see the admiration on their faces as they whispered highly of him, everyone trying to suck up to him but he glanced away, pretended to be indifferent.
Soon, the waiter brought the bottle of wine.
Damien laughed and waved nonchalantly.
He picked up his wine glass and looked at Manuel who had already started to entertain himself with the food.
“Look at you having no shame. You’ve already started stuffing yourself with food and is almost done with what you were served.”
“Even if you have no dinner to look forward to, you should at least maintain a little bit of what’s left of your reputation.”
Manuel opened his mouth to say something but quickly closed it back after a brief glance and returned his attention to his food.
People like Damien were not worth his attention.
Noticing his nonchalance, people trying to suck up to Damien resumed criticizing Manuel harshly.
“We are ashamed to have such a classmate like you.”
“Damien is just trying to advice you and you’re displaying nonchalance like you can even afford a normal meal here.” Manuel had taken enough insults to last him a week.He initially came out to ease his boredom.
Even though the insults directed at him meant nothing, at least Damien was right on one thing, he still had to maintain his dignity.
Manuel stood up and said to Shirley, “Mind if we go for a stroll?”
Damien sneered, “The party hasn’t even ended and you already want to leave?”
“This reunion was for classmates that are doing well. I suppose Shirley is meant to be here, you don’t have to take him outside to privately beg him to let you hitch a ride with him.”
“If you want, I can call you a private taxi to drop you home.”
“No thanks, I’m fine. Afterall, I came with my ride,” Manuel replied checking his phone for the time.
Someone scoffed, “Heh! You call that rickety motorbike a ride? You might as well call a bicycle a ride too.”
At this, everyone laughed.
Another person chimed in, “You could just ask Damien for a ride as he’s being so benevolent today. You don’t necessarily have to blow your chance all in the name of saving face.”
Damien was the main character tonight.
At this moment they were all insulting Manuel wantonly, even Shirley couldn’t intervene as their voices drowned his.
Meanwhile Damien was not still satisfied and still wanted to show off some more.
He pressed the service bell and a waiter came right up.
He took out a platinum bank card and slammed it on the table.
“Waiter, bill. Let me show someone that he shouldn’t be scared to go home on my expenses as I can very well afford it,” he sneered, his eyes meeting Manuel’s.
Many people gasped after witnessing Damien’s actions.
They marveled at the accomplishments Damien had achieved even at a young age.
On the other hand, Manuel was just a poor loser and was far inferior to Damien.
How could the gap between two people be so big?
He stared at Manuel wanting to embarrass him further, “Hold waiter, I’ve changed my mind. Split the bill into two. One for his share and the rest on me?”
Would it not have been better if he left just now?
The meal for tonight was estimated to contain a lot of zeroes, and the average consumption per person would definitely be more than a thousand.
Shirley closed his eyes at the sight of what Manuel was going through and made to slip his bank card to him.
Manuel expression softened at that but politely refused him.
This was the only person to ever stand up for him in school and even now.
At this moment, the waiter who was holding the card went out and came back in with a man who seemed to be the manager walking briskly behind him.
“Sir, payment isn’t going through due to insufficient balance,” the waiter said with an apologetic look.
Damien was stunned for a moment but then became furious, “What do you mean by insufficient balance?! I still have millions in my account and you’re coming to me with such nonsense information?!”
“Yes sir, I’m sorry. The meal tonight plus the booking of the private suite cost 2.7 million dollars. You still have to pay 2.6 million dollars after deducting this gentleman’s share…”
“And what exactly is that supposed to mean?!” Damien retorted.
“We have less than 15 people here. How could we almost spend about 3 million dollars? I want to speak with your manager. I want to see just how shameless the prestigious Eastbay Diner is!”
The waiter sighed and stepped backwards revealing their manager.
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Chapter 62
The elevator doors slid open onto the executive floor, Manuel stepped out without slowing. Gavin matched his pace, a brown file tucked beneath his arm, neither of them spoke.The corridor was quieter than usual. Most of the senior executives were either in meetings or had already left for lunch. The only sound came from the faint tapping of computer keys somewhere beyond the reception area.A polished brass nameplate caught Gavin's eye, ‘Chairman's Office,’ and beside it sat another, ‘Helen Lawson- Executive Assistant to the Chairman’. The office door stood half open, Helen looked up from her desk the moment their footsteps reached her. Her face immediately brightened, “Mr. Rodriguez,” she rose immediately. “It's good to see you.” Manuel simply offered a polite nod, “Good afternoon, Helen.” Her attention shifted to Gavin, “And Mr. Shaw.” A warm smile spread across her face, “I was beginning to think you'd forgotten where this office was.”Gavin chuckled, “I've been keeping busy.”“So
Chapter 61
The boardroom doors stood open and Manuel slowed his pace as he approached. Inside, only one chair was occupied. Chairman Theodore Blackwood sat near the window, a porcelain teacup resting on its saucer. Afternoon light settled over his silver hair, softening the deep lines around his eyes. He looked less like the chairman of a multibillion-naira corporation and more like someone's grandfather enjoying a quiet afternoon.He looked up as Manuel entered, “There you are.” His voice carried the same warmth it always had. “I was beginning to think you'd forgotten an old man.” Manuel managed a faint smile, “I've been occupied.”“So I've heard,” Theodore gestured to the chair opposite him. “Sit.” Manuel sat down and neither of them spoke immediately, Theodore poured another cup of tea and slid it across the polished table, “You look like you haven't been sleeping properly.” Manuel wrapped a hand around the warm cup, “I've had a few things on my mind especially concerning the company.”The ch
Chapter 60
The archive room which smelled of old paper, dust drifted through narrow beams of afternoon light that slipped between the blinds. Metal shelves stretched from one end of the room to the other, each lined with neatly labeled storage boxes that had not been touched in years. Gavin ran a finger along one of the labels before pulling the box free, ‘Board Meetings... Four Years Ago.’ He carried it to the long table in the center of the room and lifted the lid.There were folders, minutes, attendance sheets and voting records. Everything had been preserved with almost obsessive care. He slipped on a pair of cotton gloves before opening the first folder. On opening it, there was nothing, the second, still nothing. A quiet sigh escaped Gavin because he knew hours of work awaited him.---Upstairs, Manuel sat motionless, the recording remained paused. Alistair stood frozen beside the projector, the corner of a single sheet peeking from the blue proposal folder. Manuel zoomed in again, but sti
Chapter 59
The office had emptied by the time Manuel reopened the laptop. The steady hum of the air conditioner was the only sound in the room. Outside, evening painted long shadows across the courtyard. Most employees had gone home hours ago. A few lights still burned on the lower floors, but the executive wing had fallen silent. Gavin was at his desk arranging Manuel’s schedule for the next day as Manuel had quite a number of meetings the following day.Manuel rested his hand on the mouse, the archived recording waited on the screen, ‘Board Meeting – Project 608’ and he clicked on it. The loading circle spun once before dissolving into the familiar boardroom, the video was dated four years earlier. The camera overlooked the entire conference room from one corner of the ceiling and the younger version of himself sat at the head of the table. His suit was darker, his expression harder.Around him, the board members settled into their seats, exchanging quiet greetings before folders began opening
Chapter 58
Brandon walked into Manuel’s office just after Alistair left. The photograph Alistair had left behind still lay beside the folder, Manuel picked it up for a moment before sliding it back into the folder and then he looked at Brandon, “Was just about to call you.”“Does the program still work because it has been dormant for a while?” A small smile tugged at Brandon’s lips, “Trust me.” He pulled the laptop closer and the screen lit with a pale blue glow. A password and then another, then a black window replaced the desktop and lines of text appeared one after the other. Gavin walked around the desk, “I’ve never understood any of this.”“You don’t have to,” Brandon replied as his fingers moved quickly across the keyboard. The cursor blinked, he inputted another command, followed by one more command and then, the screen refreshed. Rows of timestamps filled the monitor as Manuel folded his arms across his chest, “When was the last attempt?”Brandon didn’t answer immediately, his eyes move
Chapter 57
“No worries sir, I’d just send for him.” Gavin said and went out, returning a few minutes later.The knock came exactly five minutes later and the door opened with Alistair stepping inside. He stopped when he saw the office, Manuel sitting behind his desk and Gavin by the window. When he was sent for, he had spent a lot of time masking his emotions properly before coming to face Manuel even though he had no idea why he was being sent for. His eyes swept over them once before returning to Manuel. “You wanted to see me.”“Sit,” Manuel said.Alistair remained standing for a second, then he pulled out the chair and sat. The office fell quiet and Manuel just slid a photograph across the desk. Alistair’s hand froze, not for long but just a second and then he looked up, “Where did you get that?”“My question first. Who’s she to you?” Manuel asked calmly.Silence filled the office as the photograph remained between them. A woman smiled up at the ceiling, one hand hooked through Alistair’s arm
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