2025-02-05 22:22:29A World Against Him
The man laughed and leaned back against the headboard, completely at ease in Ashton’s presence.
He looked as if he had already won.
"You poor, clueless fool,” he said, shaking his head with amusement. "I’m rich. And that means I can take whatever I want, including your girlfriend."
Ashton’s fists clenched, his nails digging into his palms, but the man continued to laugh.
“You kept failing every job interview, didn't you? Kept wondering why nothing was going your way?" He let out another laugh, shaking his head.
Ashton couldn't speak. He was speechless. The man seemed to know everything about him. Zoe had told him everything.
"That wasn’t just bad luck. I made sure every company you applied to turned you down. Money opens doors, but it also closes them."
Ashton’s entire body stiffened as the weight of the words sank in.
His failures, his crushed dreams, hadn’t been his fault. This man, lounging comfortably in his bed with Zoe, had orchestrated it all.
“What? You told the companies not to hire me?”
Zoe shifted in the sheets, her lips curling in amusement now that she saw his shock.
“Did you really think all those companies just didn’t want you?” She tilted her head mockingly.
Ashton felt his heart pounding. “What the hell are you saying?”
The man finally sat up, his smirk widening. “I paid them to turn you down.” He chuckled, stretching his arms. “You were never going to get a job, Ashton. Not when I had a say in it.”
Ashton’s entire body went cold.
This whole time. It wasn’t that he was unqualified. It wasn’t that he was unlucky. It was Zoe's lover. This arrogant, smirking bastard had deliberately crushed every single opportunity before he even had a chance.
“Why?” Ashton’s voice was hoarse, his throat dry.
The man shrugged. “Because I can.”
Ashton couldn't take the humiliation anymore.
He couldn't stand by and watch them tangled in each other's bodies and mocking him.
“Who are you?" The question slipped off his lips before he could stop it.
The man smirked arrogantly, “I mustn't introduce myself to a low life like you. Ok sure Zoe here knows who I am."
"You told him about all my struggles?” Ashton looked at Zoe, betrayed.
“Oh please, you're a nobody. You weren't going to achieve anything anyways."
Ashton balled his fist and turned to the man. “How dare you?! How dare you mess with my life all because of a girl!"
But Zoe's eyes widened as she realized that Ashton didn't even beg her, instead he referred to her casually.
“How dare you call me just a girl? I'm the best thing that could ever happen to your full life!"
The man sprang from the bed, “Watch your words, poor boy! I could get you beaten up for insulting Zoe."
Zoe smirked, “You don't have to do that, Clifford. He's just leaving."
Ashton watched her. Hoping for a second that he could see the love they once shared in her eyes. But it was blank. Nothing.
“I told you to leave!” she spat.
Ashton could barely process her words. “
“I won't watch you disrespect my man. Do you know who Clifford is?" she snapped. “This isn’t your house anymore, Ashton. You’re nothing.”
Nothing.
That word hit harder than anything she'd said.
Ashton took a shaky step back. His hands trembled as he stared at her, as he stared at the woman he had loved and given everything.
She had chosen Clifford.
Clifford lounged back with a satisfied smirk. “See, that’s the difference between us,” he said smoothly. “I have power. And because of that, she will always choose me.”
Zoe folded her arms. “We’re done, Ashton.”
Ashton swallowed the lump in his throat. His heart was tearing itself apart inside his chest.
Zoe’s lips curled cruelly. “You should leave before you embarrass yourself even more.”
Laughter.
Again, there was that mocking laughter as Clifford leaned back against the pillows, pulling Zoe onto his lap like she was his possession.
And maybe… maybe she had been all along.
Ashton couldn’t stand it. He turned away and walked out. Out of the room. Out of the apartment. Out of the life he had built.
Ashton was distraught. His whole life had just shattered in that room.
He had been betrayed by the woman he loved and his whole life had been manipulated by some rich bastard.
Broken, Ashton wandered aimlessly down the streets. His mind was blank, his body numb.
Ashton was still filled with rage when out of nowhere, he heard the loud roaring of engines and a screeching sound.
A fleet of luxury cars sped past him. Sleek, black, expensive. The kind of cars that he could never afford. .
People on the street turned to watch, murmuring in awe. They had never seen so many expensive vehicles moving together like this. It was like an entourage of kings.
Ashton looked in fascination and then suddenly, one car screeched to a stop tight in front of him.
It was so close that Ashton had to jump out of the way, missing the car by an inch.
Ashton froze as the door opened, and a man stepped out. An old graying man.
As
hton’s eyes widened as he gasped in recognition at once because had seen his face before.
He knew the old man.
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The Rise of Ashton Chapter Six
Rags to Riches Ashton decided to head to the graduation party. He wasn't so excited about it before. But now, everything has changed. “I'm sure you're going to have fun, son,” Ashton's father had said as he handed him the card. Fun. That was a foreign concept to him. Ashton had been working all his life after college to get a job. Fun wasn't exactly on his list. "I guess I have what it takes to show up now,” Ashton murmured as he finally texted Liam that he was going to be at the party for sure. The gold card felt heavy in his pocket. He didn't have any limits. In fact, it felt like he'd been given a task. How could he spend so much money in one night?! He got dressed in an old suit, it wasn't anything expensive or grand but it was neat. “Where to?" The driver asked as the car rolled to a stop. “The biggest club in the city. We're having a party," he replied and the driver looked at him oddly through the rearview mirror.Clearly, Ashton didn't look like where he was going. The
The Rise of Ashton Chapter Seven
Rich or Not?Bella was shocked and Ashton didn't bother to tell her what he wanted the third time. Clearly, she's heard him, she was just surprised. “I…I haven't ever heard someone order so much drink at once,” she stuttered, avoiding his gaze. Ashton smirked, this was odd. But of course he had the money to pay and he would buy it. After all, he had a task to spend so much money. On hearing the drink that Ashton had ordered and how many bottles he needed, he suddenly hurried back to the counter. “Bella," he said with a frown, “don't you have something else to do inside? Something meant for low staff?" Bella blinked, a little lost and tried to explain what Ashton wanted. "Oh, don't worry, I'll attend to the gentleman, you shouldn't be serving important clients like him,” he said enthusiastically and nudged her aside. Bella stumbled a little, clutching her tray tightly as she glanced nervously between him and Ashton. “Hurry along," the bartender insisted and she nodded as she
The Rise of Ashton Chapter Eight
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The Rise of Ashton Chapter Nine
Quest Storm“Huh?" Liam asked, wide eyed.Liam was his only friend but even he knew that Ashton wasn't worth such an amount of money. Ashton merely smiled and stared back at him quietly. “What are you playing at? We all know the most expensive drink isn't meant for the likes of you," Zoe snickered. The room went quiet for a short while and everyone turned to Ashton looking at him oddly. “He's just bragging!" One of the girls snapped. “Did you hear that?” one of his classmates jeered, nearly doubling over humorously. “A loser like him wants to buy the most expensive drink here? What’s next? I'm sure he’ll tell us he’s buying the whole building?” “Or that he's going to get us all a bunch of new cars!" Another voice interrupted. “He certainly can’t even afford a loaf of bread in such a posh party, let alone a hundred bottles of anything!” The mockery got even worse as it spread across the party and before long, everyone was laughing and taunting Ashton. Ashton didn't respond.
The Rise of Ashton Chapter Ten
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The Rise of Ashton Chapter Eleven
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Chapter Hundred Two
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Chapter Ninety Nine
Blood of my Blood Ashton didn't have to wait for a reply before he ended the call and slipped through the iron gates of the Green estate and headed straight to the garden. Augustine was waiting there for him no doubt. He found his car parked behind a row of flowers, the engine still warm. Sliding into the driver’s seat, he saw Augustine with a black hoodie sitting in the confines of the car. Augustine pulled back the hoodie and spun around, the corners of his mouth lifting in a rare grin. “You made it,” he said. “I half-expected Marcel to intercept you.” Well, he wasn't lying. “Nearly got held up, thank goodness the driver stopped being so nosey.,” Ashton replied, allowing himself a laugh. “Yeap, I noticed when I first arrived that Marcel wanted to have me under lock and key. I had to break off in order to keep working at Titanium." Ashton nodded. Now it made sense why Augustine had decided to pretend to be a wayward boy just to get what he wanted. Being in the Green Mansion
Chapter Ninety Eight
A Ghost in the MirrorAshton sat there, stunned, staring at the name on the file. Lily Forrest.She was regarded as a ghost in the tabloid news. A missing heiress. A tragedy that had befallen a once great family. "How sure are you about this?" Ashton asked, still bewildered. Lancaster leaned back and sipped his coffee slowly. "One hundred percent. She was declared missing and then after spending a lot of money to find her, her family finally gave up and she's never been found." “She's the one then, if she's missing and her name is Lily then she could be the one. But how does this relate to Marcel? There could be a million missing Lily's in this city.” "Well, she's linked to Marcel somehow. The Forrest family knew the Green family for so long. So…there's a link somehow.” Ashton dragged a hand through his hair. trying his best to fit the pieces together. Marcel had been hiding a girl in his basement for how long? "If she's supposed to be dead," Ashton said slowly, "then how the
Chapter Ninety Seven
A Missing Forest In just a few minutes, Ashton arrived at Swam Limited. It was magnificent, the sheer beauty of it still stunned him. But he knew this was all seeds of wickedness. “Goodness! No wonder they're friends," he hissed. Peter, the driver, looked at him through the rearview mirror and asked, “who are friends?" Ashton replied, "nothing.” Shortly they rolled into the parking lot and Ashton got out of the vehicle closing the door softly behind him. Ashton stepped into the elevator and adjusted the cuffs of his designer suit, preparing himself for yet another tiring day in this establishment. He had become a worker for both Frederick and Marcel, helping them build their empires even when he knew that they did not care about him. But it was all going to be to his advantage and one way or the other he would make them pay, both of them. As soon as he got inside his secretary, Amanda ran to his side, “Thank goodness you arrived on time, the meeting is set to start, sir." A
Chapter Ninety Six
His New Mission It was a new day. The morning sun poured through the tall windows of the Green family mansion. Ashton had barely slept the previous night. Nightmares of Marcel and the nas girl plagued him even as he had breakfast. He sat alone, dressed in a simple grey shirt with the sleeves rolled up, sipping a warm cup of coffee. His eyes were distant as he stared at the meal but couldn't seem to erase the thoughts of the previous night. The revelations about Marcel left a bitter taste in Ashton’s mouth. This man was up to something. He was no knight in shining armor. He was a monster.While he was still picking on his toaster, bacon, omelette and coffee, footsteps echoed down the staircase, softly. Ashton looked up and saw Veronica appear at the edge of the room, wrapped in a navy-blue bathrobe. She looked like she'd just showered and her dark hair was still damp from the shower. Her anger was quite obvious and even before she spoke, he could hear the irritation in her foot
Chapter Ninety Five
The Green Monster Ashton felt bad for her. What could she have possibly done that would justify such harsh treatment? He reached out to hold her hands but she jerked away violently. "I don’t like to be touched," she said suddenly. "Don’t come any closer.."Ashton froze. "I wasn’t going to." He lied. "I trusted someone once. A girl. She said she was my friend and I believed her, but she was a spy. Marcel sent her to watch me and see if I was healing. And when I told her that I was, she reported it. And then they brought the doctors."Her voice cracked and she was now trembling at the memories. "They made it worse. So much worse."Ashton’s stomach turned. Marcel had mentioned doctors occasionally visiting Lily for her condition. He’d said he paid the best of doctors and nurses to attend to her. Now he wasn’t so sure if it was to hurt her or cure her. He looked into her eyes again. There was so much pain there, buried beneath layers of anger and bitterness. How long had she been h
Chapter Ninety Four
Finding Insanity 2 The Green Mansion was quiet at midnight and Ashton knew this was the right time to move around. No one would see him. He was under the cover of darkness. Slowly, he rose from the dinner table and the maid moved close to him. "Would you like anything like dessert before bed?” She asked. The idea of a sweet and sugary treat sounded fun but he had other things to attend to. "No, I'll just get in bed. I'm exhausted,” he said, placing his hands on his forehead dramatically. She nodded, apologized and went off. As soon as he returned to his room, he locked the door, and shed the clean shirt and slacks Marcel had gifted him. In their place, he pulled on a black long-sleeved hoodie, jeans, and soft boots. He strapped a flashlight to his belt, then pulled up the hood. There was no one around as he stepped into the hallway, but he moved quietly anyway, sticking to the parts of the mansion he knew no one strolled. The left wing of the mansion was kind of forbidden.
