SEVEN

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Depressed? No. More like adjusted to accompany the pain.

They say time heals agony, I wonder if that will be the case for me. I'm sat at the back seat of my limo, heading to my hotel.

It's been eight months since my father's passing. I've succeeded in avoiding every being in my life while pausing my own life with pubs and clubs on a daily. It was high time I did something about it. That's why I started my own business.

Managing several hotels along with my father's businesses is no easy task, that I've come to know. At least tonight, I'll have my father's lawyer read his will and then I'd know which shares are mine and manage my time properly.

As funny as it sounds, father loved us all and left his will for all of us. If only he showed us how much he did during his time alive...

My fist clenches. If he did, maybe I would've done something to keep him alive. And if I couldn't, the pain would hit harder but maybe I wouldn't have the guilt of hating him the entire time. Although he deserved it.

I sigh.

Having ten siblings is still something I'm in awe of, I have nothing to say regarding that aside from what intriguing personalities await us. Hopefully, they're not all insanely psychotic. I sigh and look out the window. Following father's wishes, I'll organise a meeting for all of us. In a less tense environment.

"How far off are we, Richard?" I ask the man driving this car. Richard is my butler. He's under no obligation to drive me or leave my home but accepts being my chauffeur as well. I pay him double for each work he does, it only makes sense that I do. Plus, in this line of work, I need someone competent by my side.

You can consider him my all time personal assistant. Although he doesn't know me in and out and despite having a background check on him, I don't entirely trust him.

"Not so far. Two minutes tops." Richard's grumpy tone slid in my ears. "Interviewers will be present at the front, should we maneuver them and come in from the back?" He asks.

I let the thought linger in my head for a bit. Reporters are like weeds. You want them gone but need them for exposure. Everyone wants to interview a young, successful CEO. Everyone wants to be one.

"No. I'll face them. The exposure might be good. Just ensure I have guards waiting for me." I don't want to ruin my suit.

"Done." Richard says. A smile cripples on my face. Now this is one of the reasons I chose him. He's competent. Although, when someone turns a new leaf, it's hard to let old upbringing die so yes, I'm still ever so cautious.

My finger taps the window seal and I stare out, enjoying the fast view of the city from the moving car. These parts are crowded and beautiful, especially at night. A very good location for building my hotel. I must thank the marketing team and advisers I had when I started this project. They did me good.

"We've arrived." Richard's voice rings in my ears. I look ahead. A smile forms on my face. Despite the familiarity of certain business flats around here, one can't cross these parts and not notice the change in the scene from a distance.

From the start of my hotel and beyond, everywhere is grand and screams extravagance. The difference is clear between these parts. "Park in front. I'll make my entrance from the front. Once I'm out, park appropriately." I say to Richard. A sea of reporters are in front of the hotel. It's almost like someone tipped them off of my arrival because it's not always this crowded.

On a normal day, I would frown on this, but today will be different. I need the exposure. Richard stops the limo in front of my hotel. A sea of reporters run my way, flashing cameras and microphones forward. I wait for my bodyguards to make their way in front of my car before I come out.

I wind down.

"Are you ready to come out, sir?" One of the men in suit bends down to ask me. He's one of my men. They're all standing in front of my car, waiting to protect me. I am perfectly capable on my own, but the change is necessary. Especially after months of being useless.

I nod and wind back up. My door comes open and I step out. The man who opened the door, closes it and my limo zooms off. Six men escort me through the uproar, blocking people from coming close to me.

I can hear their questions. Their voices desperate for answers. They're desperate to be heard.

It's the same old questions every young, successful person is asked;

'How did you acquire such wealth and patrons in a short period of time?' Isn't that obvious? Good marketing strategy.

'How did a young person blossom in such a short while? Tell us your story.' My story will leave the media shaken, I'm doing you a favour by being quiet.

'Can you tell us about your endeavours?' No.

'Aside from being a multimillionaire business man, what else do you do with your free time? If you have free time.' Nothing you should concern yourselves with.

'What advice can you give the media?' Back off.

'Say a few words for us.' I'd rather not.

'Please let us interview you.' As always, my answer is no.

'When will you make a public appearance?' Not anytime soon.

'Rumour has it your fortune came from blood money, how true is this?' None of you would rather know the truth.

'Was your success solely on you or you got help from wealthy family members or inheritance?' That depends on the viewer's point of view.

All these questions cloud my ears amidst the many and I answer them in my head while keeping my face straight as I wade through the crowd.

During my old line of work, I wasn't allowed to make my presence known to the public so of course everyone thinks I'm a new money who started a business that blew up in the span of a few months.

My lips form a line. Maybe I'll bless them with a few words.

I stop at the start of the small, step stairs leading to the grand entrance of my hotel. These tiles scream luxury.

"When people travel, they want to be in a place that will give them the best experience. In HuLi's hotel we pride ourselves with delivering that service while striving to surpass our competitors. We are thankful for the exposure this has caused and will continue to give our customers the best experience. Thank you." I bow my head down slowly. The five star ratings already explain enough but it's important to put on an impression. I can't answer every question sent my way.

I walk into my hotel. "Ensure the media are gone in no more than thirty minutes. We can't disturb our guests." I say to one of the men by my side.

"Yes sir." He says and leaves. Someone approaches me. It's my father's lawyer.

Great. The sooner this is over with, the faster I can get over my day.

"Cameron." He greets, standing in front of me.

"Lawyer." I return his greeting. "Let's head this way, away from prying eyes." I gesture my hand to the left. I have a suite lodged for me. The only one in the hotel designated for just me at the last floor.

"Agreed." The man said and I walk forward, leading the way. He's trailing behind me. This will better favour me.

*

I tap my pen on my desk, listening to him speak. The last hour has been a throughput of father's last wishes as well as his will. The names of his children as well as full information, down to addresses and contacts.

He really was bent on making each of us reunite. Why separate us from birth when in his death, he wanted us closer? I'm starting to want to dwell more on this and dive into knowing my father more but another part of me wants to stop. I barely managed to leave that dark side of me. I don't want to go back.

Especially if I discover he was forced to act as he did, leaving him no choice. My jaw hardens. That will change everything. I'll hate myself for hating him.

"Here are the information regarding Su Li's offsprings." The lawyer said, handing a long, thick, brown envelope to me.

I'm sat on my chair behind my desk in my office in my personal suite in my hotel. I stare at the envelope carefully, deep in thought.

"Every one of your siblings will get one. Although you spent most your years with him, so you have the most say in everything."

I'd rather my information not be passed to them. "Am I the first born?"

"No. You're the fifth." He responds in a calm tone.

That's interesting. I take the file from him. "Your share is ten percent." He says.

My body halts for a second.

"Everyone else got nine percent, Cameron. You have some of his estates and his whole mafia empire.

Hm? That empire was burned to the ground. "All that's left of it is ash." I say to father's lawyer. I wonder how wealthy father was if ten percent is this much. How much of him did he hide from us? I inherited money as well. A whole load of it.

The Lawyer raise his chin up, keeping a half grin on his face. "You didn't think your father didn't have much up his sleeve than he let people know, did you?"

I raise a brow. Knowing father, he sure did. I breath a sigh. "Thank you. We'll be in touch." I say to his lawyer.

"Definitely." He said and walks to the door. "Cameron, I wasn't going to alert you about this before, but there's something funny about your father's will."

That caught my attention. "Go on."

"Su Li has more than eleven children. Your blood siblings are included in your will. But minus them and you, ten are left." I listen to him carefully, maintaining eye contact. "However, out of the ten whom benefit from the will, one person's information is missing."

My brows furrow. "Missing? What do you mean by missing?"

"Gone. Almost like it didn't exist." This is very alarming. How can information about someone my father researched all his life be gone into thin air? Something definitely is wrong.

"Surprisingly, 9% of the shares have been claimed as well. That child's part."

This just got entertaining. "Do you know the person's gender?" I ask cautiously.

The lawyer shakes his head. That made me offended. He's not inclined to know but he was the closest to my father so I assumed he will. If he doesn't know the child's gender, then he sure as heck don't know what he or she looks like.

"I will look into this. Thank you for passing this on." I say to him and drop the file on my desk.

The Lawyer nods. I don't know his name. He went by the title 'The Lawyer' ever since I knew him while he served by my father's side.

"I was a good acquaintance of your father. One may have called us good friends." He says. "I take you as a son, Cameron. If I see you go down the wrong path, further than you did for the past eight months, I won't hesitate to intervene." This brings a smile to my face. The ones who can are concerned about me. It's nourishing. "Don't hesitate to meet me whenever you need aid. I'm here."

"Thank you." I murmur. He flashes me a grin then leaves.

I sigh the moment my door closes. Just when I thought I'd be rid of my father's ways, something like this bites me in the neck.

I groan. At least this long evening has come to an end. I have awareness that there will be a mini event held today. One I promised to make my presence in. I sigh.

My eyes move to the watch on my wrists. The event starts in ten minutes. Perfect, I have time to relax before it begins.