Chapter 3

Charles looked at Jim's security team and motioned them over.

"Could you guys do Mr. Quinton a favour? Take this fat useless trash and throw him out of the building." Charles requested.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

Peter Quinton stood up from his chair and walked towards Charles, patting Charles's shoulder.

"That's who I'm looking for to be my successor. I can safely assume... you've made your decision, yes?" Peter asked Charles.

Charles took a breath to calm his nerves. Then he turned his attention to Peter.

"Mr. Quinton, I have made my decision. I accept your offer to be your successor. To be the Don of Townsville." declared Charles. Derek and Charles then embraced tightly. Derek could not be happier to hear Charles's decision to be the new Don of Townsville.

"Good. I'm glad to hear it. I can understand if it's a lot for you to take in one day. So you'll start tomorrow. By the way, how did you feel as you were whooping that fat b*****d's ass?"

"To be honest, he was already getting on my nerves with his f****** arrogant attitude. The fact that he's the same a****** who fired brother Derek just made me more p****d off."

"So to take out all my anger on the right person for once... yeah, it felt good." replied Charles.

Derek chimed in, "There are perks of being in the mafia. You'll find out soon enough. For now, you need a place to rest for the night. Dad, do you mind if I bring Charles to his new house?"

"Not at all, son; but before you go, Charles, I'll set one rule for you right off the bat. As the new Don of Townsville, you will answer to my son and to me. If you wish to undertake any tasks of your own, run them by us and we will help you anyway we can. Is that clear?" Peter instructed Charles.

"Crystal clear, Mr. Quinton. I am more than grateful for this second chance." Charles replied humbly and bowed to Peter.

Charles, Derek and Hector said their goodbyes to Peter and exited the casino into the Rolls Royce. About thirty minutes later, headed to what looked like a secluded place of residence, deep within a forest in Townsville.

From the outside when Derek, Hector and Charles stepped out of the Rolls Royce, it looked like a vacation cabin for one, at most two people. The cabin was situated at the top of a small hill, with a pathway heading downwards to the main road.

"Wow. A cabin in the woods. That's a fitting place for me to lay low, even if I am a Don." said Charles.

"Bro, looks can be deceiving." replied Derek. "Here, take this key. Press the blue button."

Charles took the key and pressed the blue button as instructed. In the next instant, a side of the hill opened up to reveal a state-of-the-art garage, a smaller version of the garage in the Quinton Mansion.

"After you, Charles." Derek ushered.

"Yes, boss." replied Charles cheekily as he walked into the garage. Hector joined them and the garage door soon closed.

"Wow, this is not a garage. This is more like a battledome." Charles was amazed by the facilities.

"Allow me to show you around, Mr. Smith." said Hector.

"Please, Hector. Call me Charles. I'm not worthy to be called even remotely the same as your young master." replied Charles.

"If you insist, Charles. Have a look at this garage. To your right, you can see we have two cars for you to drive. One is a black Ferrari F8 Tributo. The other is a blue electric Porsche Taycan with a charging port. You can use these two cars for your transport."

"After walking past the cars, we have a training area. Due to the design of the house, we could install a full size gym and a martial arts dojo in here." said Hector.

"To be the Don, not only do you have to be in top physical shape, you need to be able to defend yourself. Learning a few forms of martial arts won't hurt." said Peter.

"After what Desmond did to me that night, I'm gonna need to learn something." Charles replied embarrassingly.

"Press the green button below the blue one." said Hector.

Beep!

Another door opened upwards from the side of the gym. All three men walked through to see the living room.

"So, as you can see, Charles, as Young Master Quinton said, looks can be deceiving. This interior follows a sleek modern theme. Marble floors, high-end furniture, a state of the art kitchen in the back, an 80 inch flat screen TV; and even an electric fireplace at the corner." said Hector.

"I see a staircase that leads to the second floor. I suppose that's where my room is." said Charles.

"Yes, indeed. That was what you saw when we were outside the cabin." replied Hector. "We have some clothes in the closet for you. Of course, if you want to purchase any more items, you're going to need this."

Hector then passed Charles a black credit card. Charles looked at the card and was surprised.

"Don't be mistaken, Charles. The credit limit in this card is nowhere near my credit limit. Still, I think a twenty million transfer to your bank account and fifty million credit limit in this card would be enough to get you started." said Derek.

Fifty million credit? And twenty million cash in the bank?

Charles almost dropped the card in utter shock.

"Seventy million in total? I wasn't expecting a dime, let alone seventy million." said Charles.

"Here's the best part. This cabin is fifty miles from the Quinton Mansion. So if you need some advice from my dad, all you have to do is drop by." said Derek.

"Aren't you staying in there too?" asked Charles.

"Not anymore. Amanda and I moved to a billion dollar mansion that is near the Quinton Tower; but we do visit them over the weekends." replied Peter.

"Well, now I know when not to go over." said Charles.

"Why do you say that? Young Master no longer holds a grudge against you." asked Hector.

"Think about it, Hector. Mr. Quinton has been living a double life without Mrs. Quinton or anyone else knowing about it... except me, you, brother Derek and maybe Mr. Owen Beck."

"In fact, you heard brother Derek earlier said he too was sworn to secrecy. All this underground mafia thing is new to him too. Even brother Derek's wife does not know about Mr. Quinton's other life. How would she react if she knew?"

"Not to mention, I'm supposed to still be in prison. How would our friends and family react if they see me on the open public?"

"There's more at stake than just my ascension to the underground throne. Mr. Quinton's reputation, his family, my family.....I can't reveal my identity. Not yet anyway."

"I know it's only a matter of time before the inevitable happens; but until then, I need as much time as possible to certify my position as the Don. Only then can I reveal myself to everyone else." concluded Charles.

"Speaking of which... brother Derek, while I was away, has any of Mr. Quinton's enemies from the past tried to target you?" Charles asked Derek.

"Well, so far, I have yet to encounter any of them; but that doesn't mean we let our guard down. I am concerned with my father managing the underground mafia because he is catching up with age." Derek replied.

"I understand. I'm honoured that I have been given this opportunity to take up the mantle of the Don of Townsville. I promise to do you and your father proud." Charles declared.

"I'm sure you will. Because I'm running the Consortium, you'll see more of my dad than you will of me. He will get you settled in. For now, have a good rest. He'll see you tomorrow morning in the casino." said Derek.

"Thank you. Goodnight, brother Derek. Goodnight, Hector." replied Charles.

Derek and Hector exited the cabin through the living room door, down the pathway, into the Rolls Royce and drove back to the Quinton Mansion.

Charles walked up to his room and took a shower in the built in ensuite bathroom. After a quick shower, he walked to the window, where he had a clear, forested view of the business district of Townsville.

'A new day is about to dawn. So will a new Charles Smith. The team under my watch will protect everyone related to the Quinton Consortium. Anyone who dares to challenge us will fall in anguishing defeat. The whole of Townsville will tremble in fear at the mere mention of the name 'Don of Townsville'. '

That was Charles final thought as he took a final deep breath and headed straight for bed.