“Obviously. Or do you see anyone else?” the man asked sarcastically, pointing out that they were the only ones washing their hands at that moment.“Who are you, and what do you want?” the boy asked, frowning.“Who I am isn’t important, but let’s say I’ve been looking for you to talk about something very important.”“And how can you tell me something important when you’re a stranger?”“Wow, for a kid, you sure use your brain.”“And you, for being a competitor of my family’s company, are kind of dumb.”“What...” Gabriel was now surprised, looking at the boy, who smiled arrogantly.“Well, now you’re not a stranger, but you still are to me.”“Wait a minute. How do you know who I am?”“Oh, please...” James said in a bored tone, letting out an audible sigh. “Remember, the internet exists, and these days nothing is a secret.”“Tch... whatever.”“Bye bye then. I’m not supposed to talk to strangers.”“But you’re already talking to me, so now you need to listen to me,” the older man
Extra 18: Roger and James Part 1After the incident at the restaurant, Elliot decided to take the kids to his house so they could rest a bit since he wanted to talk to James about what had just happened.When they got to the house, Erika tried to distract Elizabeth so they could talk in private before Deborah and Jayden arrived. They had already been informed about what had happened.George and Elliot took James to the study because they wanted to question him.“James, come here for a moment,” George called, gesturing for him to sit in one of the chairs in the room.“You too, Max, come over,” Elliot said in a serious tone.“Wow… the way you said that made me feel like a little kid about to be scolded by his dad,” Max joked.“Well, maybe we will have to scold you and your sister,” George replied playfully.“Ugh...” Max said, sitting down next to James.“Why are you going to scold him, Grandpa?”“Before I answer that...” George began, getting comfortable in his seat. “James… te
“That’s my fault,” Max admitted. “When James asked me, I asked for time and started looking into where Roger lived and worked. After spying on him for a week, I knew his entire routine and waited for the perfect moment to have them meet casually.”“What… spying?” Elliot asked, shocked.“That’s actually one of the many skills I hired him for to be Deborah’s bodyguard,” Jayden explained.“Hehe, sounds like you’re some kind of hitman,” George joked.“Um...” Max just averted his gaze, making the others a bit nervous. “Well, I haven’t had to do that in this job yet.”“Ahem... let’s get back to the main topic, please,” Elliot requested. “So, you found the right time and place to see him, and then…?”James and Max exchanged a look before the younger one started explaining what he had done.-Flashback-After discovering the whole truth online, James didn’t know how to feel. It turned out his family wasn’t his real family… well, halfway. But now his head was a mess, and he didn’t know w
Extra 18: Roger and James, Part 2After a week passed, Max took James out with the excuse of buying some school project supplies.“So, repeat the rules to me,” Max said while driving.“Don’t leave your side, and listen to everything you tell me.”“Yes… despite everything, we don’t know how he’ll react.”“Yes, Max, I’ll be a good boy and obey you.”Max let out a sigh and smiled as he parked the car.With that, they got out and started looking for Roger since they knew he would be at the park around this time, playing with his stepdaughter.After walking a little, they found them in the play area.“Hehe, take it easy, Cassie,” Roger said cheerfully, pushing her on the swing.“Higher, Dad! Haha!” she said with a big smile.Max couldn’t help but roll his eyes at that hypocrisy. He was taking care of a girl who wasn’t even his own flesh and blood while rejecting his real son.“If you want, you don’t have to talk to him,” he said when he saw the grimace on the boy’s face.“No...
Extra 19: New PlanBack at home, Deborah focused on comforting her son to make sure he was alright, but she noticed he seemed calm and collected as he chatted with his sister, telling her about what they did at the company.In fact, James was excitedly telling them that his grandfather had said he would support his decision to become an architect.“See, I told you, honey,” she said.“Hm… Grandpa said he taught me about jewelry because he just wanted to share his knowledge.”“And James is good at it,” Elizabeth added.“Oh? Why’s that?” Jayden asked while rocking the twins, who were still awake.“Because he quickly figured out that his auntie’s gift was cosmetic jewelry and not a real gem.”“What? Is it really not real?” Samantha asked, looking at the little girl’s necklace.“It’s what’s called luxury jewelry,” James explained, blushing when he saw everyone looking at him in amazement. “Uh… Uncle Elliot taught me about this. It’s a special process used to polish plastic so that
“Oh, don’t worry, Dad. I think I know what I can offer him in exchange for the job instead of money,” Jayden said, smiling slyly, already having a pending visit in mind.With that in mind, they continued talking a bit more before heading to bed for the night.On the other hand, Gabriel was furious. He had just gotten out of prison because he’d only now managed to get released since his idiot assistant took forever to post bail and get him out of there.“Tch… I never thought I’d set foot in such a disgusting place,” he said once they were out on the street.“Hopefully, this time you’ll learn your lesson, Boss. And honestly, this was your fault.”“My fault?”“Harassing a minor is a serious offense.”“I wasn’t harassing him. I just wanted to talk to him.”“And that looks suspicious because you’re nothing to that boy.”“Tch… whatever.”“So, and...?” the assistant asked, worried.“And… what?” Gabriel asked, frowning.“Did… did you tell him?”“Oh, that… yeah, I told him, but it
Extra 20: Request“Hey babe, guess what,” Brandon said, reading the message he’d just received from Jayden.“What is it?” she asked as she turned off the stove flame since she was cooking at that moment.“Your special arrangement is a done deal,” he said, showing her his phone.“Aw… my man always delivers,” she said playfully, giving him a kiss on the lips. “What do you think he needs? This would be the second time he’s asked you for something as Vox.”“I think it’s probably something related to his company, considering Deborah also asked us to investigate it.”“That’s true. In that case, I’ll get a head start and do a little digging on Gates Construction,” she said, taking off her apron. “Alright, put your phone away. Lunch is ready.”“Haha, I’m on it,” he said as he walked over to the sink to wash his hands. “And you know, it’s most likely to be about that. Even in my wildest dreams, I can’t picture Jayden asking me to kill someone.”“That guy deserves it, though. I heard he
He was scared, yet excited at the same time. This showed that this guy wouldn’t let him down and would fulfill his request.“Sorry for the wait,” Gabriel looked up and saw a blond man with some red streaks in his hair enter the room, hiding part of his identity behind a black mask adorned with gemstones and a few feathers. “I wasn’t expecting a visit from the millionaire who suddenly showed up and monopolized the city’s construction industry. Quite an impressive feat… something even Eric Cooper himself couldn’t pull off.”“Wow, it seems like information is your thing.”“It’s not the only thing I handle,” he said, smiling slightly, his eyes turning serious and scaring Gabriel for a moment. “And as you can imagine, I’m a bit curious. How did you find the Great Shadow of Light?” he asked, sitting down to face Gabriel.“Why do you need to know my source?”“Curiosity, and also to send a gift to that informant,” he said, reaching for one of the apples in the fruit bowl on the table and
Extra 40: A Happy and Perfect Life Part 2That promise came to an end for one of them three years later, as Nicholas was the first to go due to his heart, which began to fail until it simply stopped beating one cold December morning.Despite the immense pain she felt, Deborah fulfilled her father’s last wish… so they buried him with the diamond pendant that had belonged to her mother and grandfather.It was a very sad time, and everyone came together to keep Deborah from falling apart, as she now felt alone, as though she had lost her family again.But her children reminded her that she wasn’t alone, and because of this, they tried to distract her by having her organize the Christmas party.The days continued to pass, and just when they were preparing for James’ wedding, Eric and Samantha Cooper passed away due to old age.That was news that covered all the media outlets, with the headline telling a beautiful love story, as they had gone to sleep together and passed away to the n
Extra 40: A Happy and Perfect Life Part 1Time began to pass quickly, bringing good, bad, and sad moments that gradually changed the family.One good thing that happened was that after much reflection, Roger managed to make peace with his father, asking for forgiveness for all the stupid things he had done when he was younger. He also apologized to his little brother for being such a jerk.Even though he didn’t want to, Elliot reluctantly accepted the apologies because his wife convinced him that holding onto grudges wasn’t healthy.Unfortunately, the Peterson family only got to celebrate being united for a short period of time because two weeks after that reconciliation… George passed away of natural causes.That was a tragic moment for everyone, one that shook his friends, reminding them of how precious and short life is. Those who suffered the most from the loss of their Grandpa George were Howard and Fiona. But their parents, uncles, and maternal grandparents showered them wit
Extra 39: Deborah and JamesAfter lunch, and taking advantage of when his father taking his little siblings to their extracurricular activities, James sought out his mom to talk with her.“Mom,” he called out when he saw her in her study, reading some papers.“Hey, come in,” she said, looking up and setting aside the documents for a moment.“More work?”“Not exactly. These are the reports of the current buildings for sale in the city.”“Huh… are you already looking into that?”“Well, son, your sister graduates next year, and a year is not a lot of time to start a company from scratch.”“Will it already be furnished for her?” he asked, taking the documents to read them.“Yes, that’s why I want to buy a warehouse to remodel or a vacant lot so you and your dad can work your magic to build it and make it just like Elizabeth wants.”“It’s a project I can’t wait to start,” James said excitedly.“Your little siblings are also helping me, looking into sewing stores to buy industrial
Extra 38: A Father’s FearsHonestly, it was a strange conversation for James, one he never thought he’d have… in fact, not even in his wildest dreams did he imagine having this kind of interaction with the man who was supposedly his biological father.After telling him a bit about his school life, James paid the bill and said goodbye to Roger, as he had to get back to the office; he didn’t want to be away from work for too long.When he entered the conference room, he saw his father talking to some other architects.“Great, we’re all set then,” Jayden said, dismissing them. “Son, how did it go?” he asked as James approached him.“Fine, but it was weird.”“So... has he started to feel his age?”“I think so,” James replied, making a face.“And what did he want?”“Well, he just started talking to me, apologizing for being absent, and now he wants us to meet up to talk because he wants to get to know me,” James said, scratching his head. “I don’t know… it seemed odd that he wants
Extra 37: A Late Talk Part 2“Wow, sorry for the confusion.”“Don’t worry about it. My family supported me, and thanks to learning the truth, I understood why we had three grandfathers.”“I imagine you became an architect because of Jayden.”“That’s right. My motivation was seeing how his drawings came to life… it excited me to the point where I wanted to do the same, and as the days went by, that desire grew stronger, so I decided to make it a reality,” he said, his excitement evident in his words. “Though I also saw that Uncle did something similar by turning his sketches into beautiful jewelry, but that didn’t impress me as much.”“I see, but didn’t my dad teach you the basics of the company?”“Yes, Grandpa showed me the trade,” James said with a smile. “In fact, I’m a good appraiser, and I know how to make jewelry because Uncle also taught me the basics of jewelry design and creation. But I see that as a hobby because the only jewelry I’ve made has been for my mom, my sisters
Extra 37: A Late Talk Part 1“I’ll ask you again. What are you doing here?” James questioned, frowning slightly.“James… I…” Roger stammered nervously, his words catching in his throat and refusing to come out.“Are you here to apologize on behalf of your daughter?”“Something like that,” he said, finally managing to speak, though he made a face. “Would you let me talk to you?”“To me?” James asked, confused, pointing to himself. “About what?”“Can I invite you for a drink so we can talk?”“What do you want with my son?” At that moment, Roger saw his longtime rival approaching and standing next to the young man.“Jayden, please let me talk to James,” Roger pleaded.The now platinum-blonde looked confused at his rival. It was the first time Roger had called him by his name, and he could see that Roger seemed genuinely sorry and defeated. Jayden let out a sigh. “James, go with him.”“What?” James looked at him, surprised and confused.“Are you serious?” Roger said, a note of h
Extra 36: Late Regrets Part 2The next morning, during breakfast, Roger was focused on his phone, determined to reach out to James and be the one to make the first contact.“Hey, Dad,” Cassandra called out, trying to get his attention, noticing he was more focused on his phone than his breakfast.“What is it?” Roger asked, looking up.“Well... hey, what are we going to do about last night?”“What?” he said with a frown.“Come on, Dad, aren’t you going to do something about Grandpa and—”“Casandra, enough... I think whatever happened last night should have made the situation clear.”“But…”“They no longer see me as family, and they never recognized you as such, so just forget about it because it’s only the three of us, no one else.”“No…”“Cassandra, enough,” her mother scolded. “I told you yesterday not to go, and all you did was humiliate yourselves in public,” she said, looking her daughter in the eyes. “Grow up already. You lost that boy because you chased something that
Extra 36: Late Regrets Part 1Roger didn’t return home for the rest of the night. He ignored the cries of his ‘daughter’ as he headed to the nearest bar to have a drink and try to clear his mind.Seeing his father defeated and exhausted had made him stop and think.While sipping his third beer, he raised his gaze and saw his reflection in the mirror behind the bar, realizing that an old man was staring back at him... which scared him. He now looked at his hands, which had more wrinkles than he remembered. When had he changed so much?His once beautiful hair was now streaked with gray, his face showed his age, and he had dark circles under his dull eyes.When had he gotten so old?And why did he look like this?He was supposed to age gracefully, but that wasn’t the case... because what he saw in that mirror was a shell of the successful man he once was.He thought back to James. That boy had surpassed him in height; he was the version of himself Roger had always wanted to be: ta
Extra 35: Total BreakElliot was furious to see Roger and his daughter at the party.“Why did you hurt my daughter?” Roger hadn’t recognized James and just wanted to help his princess. “Who do you think you are…?” Then he saw James and, how could he not recognize him? He was Roger’s spitting image, giving the latter the same hateful look Roger himself wore.“I should ask you the same thing, sir. Who do you think you are, crashing a private event?” James asked.Roger was about to respond, but…“What’s the meaning of this?” George asked, approaching them.“Grandpa, they attacked me, and…” Cassandra started to say.“Miss, don’t call my grandpa ‘Grandpa,’” declared Howard.“Tom, call security,” Eric ordered. “Get these two out of the party.”Among the guests, a blond young man recognized Cassandra but didn’t go to help her because his parents didn’t allow it. They didn’t want to end up caught in the middle of the problem and become collateral damage, nor did they want to fall out