Trash to Throne

Chapter 5 – The First Move

The rain hadn’t stopped. It drummed against the car roof as Adrian stared at the phone’s text message.

Bring $10 million in cash.

Ten million. It was an impossible number in his old life but now, it was pocket change. Still, the amount wasn’t the point. The demand was.

"This isn’t about money," Adrian said quietly.

Grayson’s eyes flicked toward him. "Correct. It’s about control. They’re setting the stage to see how you react under pressure."

"Then we give them exactly what they want?"

Grayson shook his head. "No. We give them what we want, wrapped in what they think they want."  Twenty five minutes later, they were in the private vault of Orion Bank’s headquarters. The room was a cathedral of steel and shadows, the air conditioned chill biting through Adrian’s jacket.

Adrian’s chest went cold. "David’s sister," he breathed. "Emily." Grayson’s nod was almost imperceptible. "They know who matters to you."

"How?!" "They were watching you before you even knew the inheritance existed."

On the video, the masked figure stepped forward and held something up to the camera, a playing card.

The Ace of Spades.Then a voice, distorted and mechanical, filled the car: "Welcome, Mr. Cole. You’ve been invited to the table.

The rules are simple, you win, she lives. You lose, she disappears forever. First challenge begins at midnight. Instructions will follow."

The screen went black. Adrian slammed a fist against the dash. "We’re going after her now. "Grayson’s tone was sharp. "No. You charge in blind, she dies before you get through the door. This is a controlled game. They set the terms for now."

"Why me?" Adrian asked, voice shaking with fury.

Grayson turned in his seat, his eyes hard. "Because, Mr. Cole, the people in this game don’t just want your fortune. They want to break you. To prove that no matter how high you rise, you’ll always be the boy with nothing."

Adrian felt the old humiliation flare, Bella’s laughter, Briggs’ coins, the cold smirk of strangers who thought he’d never matter. Not again. He looked out at the rain slick streets. "Then we play. And we win." Grayson studied him for a moment, then gave a slow nod. "Then the first thing you’ll need is leverage."

Grayson reached into the glove box and pulled out a thick black folder. Inside were photographs, men in expensive suits, women draped in diamonds, faces smiling for cameras but hiding secrets in their eyes.

"These are the other players," he said. "Some of them will try to recruit you. Others will try to destroy you before the game ends. And one of them… will kill without hesitation."

Adrian flipped through the photos until he froze. There, in crystal clarity, was Bella Frost. Smiling. Holding a champagne flute. Standing beside the masked figure from the video. The rain outside seemed to grow louder, harder.

"She’s in the Game," Adrian whispered.

And then the phone buzzed again, a single text: Challenge One begins in 3 hours. Bring $10 million in cash.

Two armed guards flanked the door as a vault manager, pale and sweating under Grayson’s gaze, brought out black duffel bags filled with neatly stacked bricks of cash. Adrian reached down, running his fingers over the crisp bills. "Feels unreal."

Grayson’s voice was flat. "That’s because it isn’t money to them it’s bait."

As they loaded the bags into the Aston, Adrian caught his own reflection in the polished black paint. Same face. Same eyes. But something in the way he stood shoulders back, jaw set felt different.

He wasn’t showing up to be mocked anymore. He was showing up to play.