The Son-in-Law Who Spent His Way to the Throne!

Chapter 6

While Stella was saying goodbye to the old staff at the orphanage, Carson stepped outside and sat on the steps. He closed his eyes and opened the system store in his mind.

A long list of items floated in front of him. There were healing pills, protection talismans, strange tools and rare books. Every item had a price in SP points, and most of them were far out of his reach.

Then one name stopped him. King Presence. It would raise his aura to a terrifying level and make weaker people tremble just by standing near him. The price was fifty SP.

Carson checked his balance. Thirty points. He needed twenty more, which meant at least two more tasks. He smiled and closed the store.

"Two more tasks," he said under his breath. "Fine. Bring them on."

His phone buzzed. It was a message from the manager of Zentech. The list was ready. Carson opened it and read through the costs for the building repairs, the workers' salaries, the new equipment and the maintenance. At the bottom was the total.

Eighty million dollars.

He did not even blink. He called the manager right away. "I saw the list. Start work immediately. Do not wait for anything."

"Yes, sir! We will begin today!"

Carson hung up and called Stella. She came out waving goodbye to everyone, and they got into the Ferrari together.

About twenty minutes after they drove off, three black cars pulled up at the gate of the orphanage. Men in dark suits climbed out. They did not knock or ask permission. They walked right in like they owned the place.

"We are here for the older girls," the leading man said to the matron. "The Parker family has sent us. Line them up."

The matron's face turned white. "Please, not again. We gave you enough last month. These are children!"

"Line them up," he said again, and two of his men pushed past her.

Some of the staff stood in the hall, shaking. One young teacher whispered, "Should we call Carson? He just gave us four million. Maybe he can help."

"No," the matron said in a broken voice. "The Parker family is too strong. If he gets involved, they will destroy him. We cannot ask him for that."

So nobody called. The men took the girls out one by one while the little ones cried at the windows. The cars drove away, and the orphanage went quiet again.

Carson knew nothing about it. He was driving through the city with Stella beside him, heading for Pearl Pavilion.

The estate office stood at the foot of a green hill, with a tall gate and a row of neat white buildings. Carson parked the Ferrari at the front and walked in with his sister. A young receptionist at the desk looked at them and wrinkled her nose.

"Can I help you?" she said, not even trying to hide how she felt.

"I am here for the keys to Pearl Pavilion," Carson said.

She laughed out loud. "Pearl Pavilion? That is a fifty-million-dollar estate. Sir, I think you are in the wrong place. The public park is across the road."

"Please call your manager."

"The manager is busy. He does not meet people who look like..." She waved her hand up and down at him. "Like you."

Stella stepped forward with her arms crossed. "Excuse me, but my brother is the owner."

"Sure he is, little girl." The receptionist rolled her eyes. "And I am the queen."

Carson stayed calm. He took out his phone and showed her the ownership screen that the system had sent him. She read it, and the smile fell off her face. Her eyes went wide, and she scrambled for the phone on her desk.

The manager came running out of a back room in less than a minute. He was a short, round man in a gray suit, and he was out of breath. He looked at Carson, then at the screen, and bowed very low.

"Mr. Roman! Welcome, welcome! Please forgive my staff, she is new and does not know what she is doing."

"It is fine," Carson said. "I only need the keys."

"Of course, sir, of course!" The manager grabbed a velvet box and gave it to him with both hands. "Everything is ready. I will have someone drive you up."

"No need. I can find it."

They left the manager bowing and the receptionist frozen in her chair. Stella leaned toward Carson and whispered, "Did you see her face?"

"I did."

"That was so good. Do it again!"

Carson laughed and started the car.

Pearl Pavilion sat at the top of the hill, a giant white mansion with tall pillars, a fountain in front and a garden that went on and on. A long road led up to the doors, lined with trees on both sides. When the Ferrari stopped, Stella got out and just stood there with her mouth open.

"Brother, this is a palace."

"It is ours," Carson said.

They walked through every room together. There was a living room as big as the whole old house, a kitchen with shiny gold handles, a library with books to the ceiling and a bedroom for Stella with a balcony that looked over the city.

They ended up on the roof, sitting side by side with their feet over the edge. The sun was setting, and the whole sky was orange and pink. For a while, neither of them said anything.

"Do you remember the night we left the orphanage?" Stella asked softly. "We only had one bag between us."

"I remember. You were scared."

"I was not scared," she said, bumping his shoulder. "I was brave."

"You were so brave that you hid behind me the whole time."

They both laughed. Then Stella grew quiet. "Brother, I was in a coma for a long time. What happened while I was asleep? Did you ever have a girlfriend?"

Carson looked at her. He could have said no and moved on. But he had never lied to his sister, and he did not want to start now. So he told her everything, about the marriage, the empty promises, the bullets and the system. It took almost an hour, and she listened without saying a word.

When he finished, her eyes were red. "They did that to you? And you still came to see me every day?"

"Of course I did."

She leaned her head on his shoulder. "Those people are going to pay, right?"

"They will," he said.

She sat up after a minute and smiled slyly. "Okay, enough sad talk. Tell me about this girl. The singer."

"Hazel?"

"Yes, Hazel! You said her name three times when you were telling the story. Show me a picture."

Carson shook his head, but he pulled up a photo of her from the internet. Stella took the phone, looked at it and gasped.

"Brother. She is so beautiful! Are you sure she is real?"

"She is real."

"And she gave you her number?" Stella's grin grew wide and wicked. "Give me the phone."

"Stella, do not..."

But it was too late. She had already dialed the number and put the call on speaker. It rang twice before someone picked up.

"Hello?" Hazel's voice was thick and shaky. It sounded like she was crying.

Stella's grin vanished. Carson grabbed the phone fast.

"Hazel? It is Carson. What is wrong?"

There was a long pause, and then a sniff. "Carson? Oh, I am sorry. I did not mean for you to hear this. It is nothing."

"It does not sound like nothing."

She let out a shaky breath. "It is my show. The venue I booked, the big one, B2 Arena. I paid for it weeks ago. And now they told me that someone else booked it for the same night. They will not explain. They will not give me my money back. I have thousands of fans who bought tickets, and I do not know what to tell them."

Carson's jaw tightened. "Send me the address."

"No, no. I do not want to bother you. You have your own things."

"Hazel," Carson said firmly. "I am a fan of yours too. If you do not perform, I will be very annoyed. Now send me the address."

She laughed a little through her tears. "Okay. Okay, I will send it."

He hung up and turned to Stella. "I have to go out. I will take you back to the old house first. We will move here tomorrow."

"I want to come with you," Stella said.

"It might be dangerous."

"It is a concert, not a war!"

"Stella." He looked at her, and she knew there was no use arguing. She huffed and crossed her arms, but she got in the car.

He dropped her at the old house, made sure the doors were locked and drove off fast. The Ferrari flew through the evening traffic, and in twenty minutes he was at B2 Arena.

The parking lot was full of people. Banners and posters hung from the walls, and a big crowd was standing outside the gate, upset and loud. Carson pushed through and found Hazel near the entrance.

She was not alone. A tall girl in a sparkly dress stood in front of her, pointing a finger at her face. Behind her were five people in matching clothes, and they were laughing.

"You thought you were so big, Hazel," the girl said. "But look at you now. You cannot even hold a stage. Maybe you should sing in the street."

"I booked this arena first," Hazel said, shaking. "You know I did."

"Prove it." The girl stepped closer. "Oh wait, you cannot."

Hazel raised her hand. For a second it looked like she would slap her. The girl smirked and lifted her chin, ready for it.

Carson caught Hazel's wrist before it fell. "Not worth it," he said.

"Carson!" Hazel turned, and her eyes were full of tears. "I am so glad you came."

The other girl looked him up and down. "Who is this? Your boyfriend? He looks like he sells socks on the street."

Carson ignored her. "Where is the manager?"

They found him in the lobby, a heavy man in a blue vest with a clipboard. Carson asked him directly. "Miss Hazel booked this arena weeks ago. Why was it given to someone else?"

The manager shrugged. "It was a mix-up."

"Then why was her money not returned? Why was she not given another date?"

"That is not my problem, sir."

Carson looked at the papers on his clipboard, and he saw the dates. Hazel's booking was there, clear and early. Another name had been written below it later, in a different pen. This was no mix-up. Someone had paid to push her out.

Hazel's phone buzzed in her hand. She looked at the screen, and her face went pale.

"Who is it?" Carson asked.

"Derrick," she whispered.

He took the phone from her and put it on speaker. Derrick's voice came out, smooth and proud. "Hazel, my dear. Did you enjoy my little surprise? Yes, it was me. I paid the manager to give the arena to someone else. I wanted to show you what I can do."

Hazel's hand covered her mouth.

"Here is the deal," Derrick went on. "If you want to perform tonight, come to my hotel. Spend the night with me. Be nice. I will fix everything. Otherwise, you can forget about your career."

Carson felt the blood rushing to his head. He spoke into the phone, and his voice was cold. "Derrick Parker. You are the lowest piece of trash I have ever heard. Stay away from her, or I will break more than your face."

There was a short silence. "You," Derrick hissed. "The leech!"

Carson hung up.

Hazel's whole body was shaking, and he put a hand on her shoulder. "Do not worry. I will fix this."

Ding!

The screen flashed in his mind. "Task Five: Purchase one random item. Ten million dollars has been placed in your account."

Carson smiled. Now that was perfect.

He took Hazel's hand. "Come with me."

The other singer had already walked up onto the stage and was giving orders to the staff, pointing and shouting. When she saw Carson and Hazel walking toward the manager's office, she laughed so loud that the whole hall heard.

"Look at them! Running to cry to the manager. How sad!"

Carson did not even turn his head.

He pushed open the door of the manager's office. The head manager, a thin man with silver hair, looked up from behind a wide desk. "Yes? Who are you?"

"I want to buy this arena," Carson said.

The man blinked and then burst into laughter. "Buy it? Young man, this place is not for sale. And even if it were, you could not afford it. The price is nine million dollars. If you want to rent it, five thousand a night. Now get out."

Carson did not argue. He took out his phone, tapped it twice and held it up.

"I just sent you ten million," he said. "Check your account. Then pack your things. You are fired."

The old man's smile froze. His hands shook as he took out his own phone and checked the balance. His face went from red to white to gray. He looked at Carson and saw nothing in his eyes but calm.

A rich scion in disguise, he thought. Only someone like that would throw money around so easily. He did not dare to say another word.

"I... I will prepare the contract right away, sir," he said, standing up with a bow.

He left the room in a hurry. Hazel stared at Carson with her mouth open, and her eyes were wide.

"Carson," she whispered. "What did you just do?"