Despite the first lights shining into his room windows, Charles was still exhausted from the previous night and wanted to sleep in. Not a chance. More morning sun rays continued to shine in through to his window. Eventually, Charles decided to wake up.
As Charles slowly opened his eyes, he felt a weight on his right arm. Turning to his right, he noticed it was Esther, his newly announced girlfriend, still fast asleep, holding on to him as she continued to snuggle to him.
'I'm really a lucky man.' Charles thought to himself as he leaned over to kiss Esther on her forehead. This caused Esther to stir and eventually she woke up, her eyes puffy and she looked up to Charles.
"Good morning, sugar puff. When did you come into my room? Oh, why are your eyes so puffed up?" Charles asked Esther.
"I'm sorry, honey. I had a nightmare last night. I dreamt that you were captured by Elliot and there was nothing I could not do anything about i
The Townsville Carnival was an annual, week long family style event that the Quinton Consortium started ever since Derek Quinton fully took over the reins from his father. Although it was like any family style carnival with food stands, carnival games, rollercoaster rides, the atmosphere was always a lively one as such carnivals have never been felt in Townsville until Derek Quinton opened the carnival. This was Charles and Esther's first trip to the carnival. Like all other customers, they had to line up for admission; but they were more than willing to do so. They thought blending into the crowd was a better way to not get spotted by anyone they know. "Wow, I've heard of how crowded this carnival can get. I had no idea it would be this crowded." Esther exclaimed as she and Charles entered the carnival after paying for admission. "Yeah, me neither. This is quite a spectacle. There's a ferris wheel, a couple of high intensity r
'CHARLES?' Madison's eyes popped wide open upon hearing Esther saying Charles's name. Now she was certain... the male voice she heard was her cousin Charles's voice.'How is that possible? I thought he's still in prison serving time?' Madison was shocked. She looked up immediately and turned to look around; but by the time she did that, Charles and Esther have left the food truck section, on their way out of the carnival. Just then, Nick walked towards Madison and sat beside her with their identical orders of surf and turf sandwiches. "Hey Maddy. I got surf and turf for bo... are you ok? You look flustered." Nick noticed Madison's expression on her face and was concerned. "Nick, you are not going to believe this... I think Charles is here in the carnival." said Madison."Charles? Isn't he still serving prison time? How could he be here?" Nick replied, surprised. "I thought the same thing; but I heard h
"Esther, while we are having this auction, get in contact with Yvonne. Let her know about our friend here." Charles whispered to Esther before turning his attention to the older man. "By the way, I didn't get your name.""I'm Roland Russo. This woman beside me is Elaine. I heard your name earlier as I walked in. Mr. Charlie, was it not?" Roland replied."That is correct, Mr. Russo. Janna you may begin our little auction." said Charles."Very well, then. Gentlemen, the starting bid for this superyacht starts at three million dollars. Increment amounts are at your discretion. Do I hear three million?" Janna began, feeling very much like an auctioneer instead of a receptionist.“Mr. Russo, allow me to kick things off. $3 million." said Charles."Interesting start, Mr. Charlie. I'll play along. $3.2 million." Roland replied. “Hah… what a waste of time. You two can’t outbid me. $4 million.” the third man placed his bid. “Let’s just end this here
*Trigger warning: This chapter contains mature scenes and themes. Read at your own discretion.*Because the superyachts were located on opposite ends of the jetty, Charles and Esther had a caddy drive them to their superyacht, where the captain assigned to them was waiting with his crew. "Welcome, Mr. Charlie and Ms. Esther. I'm Captain Mario. Please, join me in the living room and meet your crew." Captain Mario greeted them as they stepped out of the caddy. "Hi, Captain Mario. Thank you for welcoming us. We can't wait to meet your crew." Charles greeted the captain back. Charles and Esther then walked up the passenger bridge and followed Captain Mario to the living room, where a line of crew members were there to greet them. "Allow me to introduce you to my team." Captain Mario began. "Roger and Laura are my 1st and 2nd officers respectively. Quincy is the officer on watch." "Imelda is my bosun. Sh
Hi readers! I hope you are enjoying the sequel so far. I must say, creating a storyline around one main character was something I never thought I could do when I first started this series with the first book, 'Who's the Loser Now?' Now to create a storyline around the main character for the sequel, including the characters from the first book, managing and organising them is indeed a tall task. That being said, it is thanks to you readers, that I have the willingness to take up that task and overcome it. I am truly grateful to all of you and I hope you continue to support the book. I believe by now, after reading the first 50 chapters, you may have guessed that the sequel is more intruging than the first book. So, stay tuned for more twists and turns... and a few surprises along the way. Love,JDHWS
A quick washup later, after their first sexual encounter, Charles and Esther dressed up and sat on the long sofa lounge, enjoying their champagne. At that time, the sun started to set and Charles and Esther soaked in the orange and yellow hue the horizon offered. Not wanting to waste the opportunity, Esther took her phone out of her bag and took a few selfies with Charles. "These photos look good, honey. We should hang out more often like this." said Esther. "Yeah, they do. Hey, send one of those pictures to the team. Let them know we are enjoying ourselves." said Charles. "Oh, great idea." Esther replied and she sent the best photo of the lot to the Phoenix Mafia. "It's getting late. We have to get our own dinner since Chef Armando is not feeling well." Just then, Captain Mario knocked on the lounge door and stepped out to greet the couple. "Mr. Charlie, we have a special reservation for you and Ms. Esther at the
Bowen took a look around in the pit he was in with his men. He realised that the cement poured on them had filled the pit up to their ankles. He knew Charles and the Phoenix Mafia was not to be messed with. Still, he was willing to take his chances, if indeed the chance arises. For now, he had to play along. "Fine. I'm willing to talk to you....and you alone." replied Bowen. "Good. That should be the way, Bowen. Let's start with last night. What were you or your man doing outside the Townsville casino spying on my team?" Charles asked. "Err....excuse me; but what exactly are you talking about? I didn't send anyone to Townsville casino. I don't even know where that is." Bowen replied, acting surprised at Charles's question. "Sigh....and here I was thinking we could have a casual chat." said Charles. "Fly me up. Guys, this pit needs more filling up." Ivy then flew the drone out of the pit and the cement truck engines started roaring again. Secon
“Let’s recap things here. There’s quite a list we have to ascertain and discuss.” said Charles through the drone screen.“So, what should we do with Bowen and his gang?” asked Keith. “Can we really believe his words?”Most of the Phoenix Mafia were quite concerned over the legitimacy of Bowen’s words and intentions; but the Hill twins, Henry and Holly were calm and undisturbed.“Henry, Holly, you guys seem too calm. What’s on your mind?” Jim asked the twins.“We don’t need to worry about Bowen and his gang. He’s being truthful?” said Holly.“How do you know that?” asked Nathan.Henry explained, “Holly and I have been observing Bowen’s body language all this while. Part of our training back in our fighting days include being somewhat of a mentalist.”“In other word
Hi Readers, After nearly a year, Who's the Loser Now is finally complete. I hope you enjoyed reading the original and the sequel as much as I have creating the storylines. Man, this was a long journey. There were so many ways to close this series; but I didn't want to get distracted. So, I decided to end it the series in this manner. I will be taking a short break to celebrate the new year. After which, I will start work on a new novel. So, until then, thank you all so much for your support on Who's the Loser Now. Keep the likes, comments and ratings coming to help promote this novel. Your feedback, as always, is much appreciated. It has been a wonderful journey and this one ends here. Stay tuned for the next journey. Altogether, everyone! (With the characters in the background) Happy New Year!! Love, JDHWS
The cameras were flashing as journalists and reporters gathered at the eagerly anticipated launch of the new mall in Townsville, specifically located near the Townsville Hillside Condo. Standing in front of the main entrance, Desmond and Jocelyn faced the crowd. Desmond then took the mic to address the crowd, "After months of construction, through reported ups and downs, we are happy to announce, on behalf of the Quinton Consortium, the officially opening of Townsville Hillside Mall." said Desmond. He then took his side next to Jocelyn and proceeded to perform the cutting of the ribbon, signalling that the Townsville Hillside Mall was officially opened. Applause rang all around the front as Desmond and Jocelyn opened the front entrance doors, welcoming the crowd into the mall. In another corner of Townsville, Wayne and Kimberly were also dressed sharply; but for a different reason. Joining them were Roland and Elaine Russo, as all four of them stood in front of the main entrance t
"Brother Derek, are you sure about this?" asked Charles as he looked at himself in the mirror. He was wearing a tuxedo; but not any ordinary tuxedo. Derek had Charles wear his diamond encrusted tuxedo, the most expensive tuxedo he bought from Nick Lopez when he first found out he was a Quinton. "I'm sure about it, Charles. I know I bought it for me initially; but in all honesty, you wearing this tux means so much more." Derek reassured Charles. "Man, I'm nervous. Brother, how did you even go through your wedding with Ms. Amanda?" asked Charles exasperately. "Desmond told me to take a deep breath to calm my nerves. It could work for you, too." replied Derek. Charles decided to take Derek's advice and took two deep breaths. Surprisingly, he felt much calmer. Then he and Derek heard a knock on the door. In walked Mason, "Brother, are you ready?" asked Mason. "As ready as I'll ever be." replied Charles. All three of them then walked upstairs... to the top deck of Charles's superyach
The prison gate key entered the lock. With a click, the warden opened the cell gate, with mixed emotions. "Madam Louise... it's time." In her cell, Madam Louise looked around the jail cell she had been living in, serving her time for her past wrongs. She thought about the time she spent in the cell, forming a close friendship with the warden, being released early to help Team Quinton and the Phoenix Mafia, eventually being a key player in the fight against Pamela. It was a sad day to leave her family after the fight ended; but heading back to prison was necessary. Thanks to Lea Quinton, however, she did not have to stay in prison any longer. She received a pardon from the Mayor of Townsville; and now, she can leave the Townsville prison freely. She slowly stood up and walked towards the cell door, where she noticed her warden friend had a tear in his eye. Smiling slightly, she wiped the tear away from his eye. "No need to weep for me, young man. We will meet again, outside of t
With the mask worn on his face; and the briefcase full of cash repacked into a duffel bag found in the control room, Charles slung the bag over his shoulder, ready to move out of Pamela's HQ. Before heading out, Charles made sure to surround himself in a nanoshield sphere to avoid any sudden sneak attacks. After which, Charles used his upgraded suit to do a thorough scan, looking to devise an alternate way out of Pamela's HQ. 'Hmmm... it looks like I'm going to have to blast my way out of here. Time to check out what weapons are at my disposal.' Charles thought to himself. Scanning the system in his suit through his mask, Charles was surprised to find various forms of weaponry to pave his way out. "Well then, let's get started." Charles said to himself. However, as we was about to step out of Pamela's control room, an alarm sounded inside of the control room. Red emergency lights were flickering in the control room. Charles turned his direction to one of the screens in the control
"Gerard! Andrea! You certainly have some guts showing your faces here after you betrayed me!" Pamela sneered at the couple. "Lady Boss... wait! We did not betray you." Gerard defended himself. "That's right, Lady Boss! The hostages... they escaped!!" shouted Andrea. "WHAT?!?!?" Pamela shouted angrily. She then turned her attention to Charles, who was standing there, perplexed. "Charles!! You were at the dungeon earlier. You said you saw your team in their cells. Is that true?!?" Pamela asked authoritatively. "Absolutely, Lady Boss. I personally locked up the dungeon after making sure that loser Derek was in his cell." replied Charles. "He's lying, Lady Boss. Charles must still be working with his friends. Somehow, they managed to get their suits from the lab and escape from this place." Gerard said accusingly, pointing at Charles at the same time. "Hold on there, Gerard. Up until just now, when Lady Boss showed me her lab, I did not even know that existed." Charles defended hims
"You tell me, Charles. How did you and that loser escape in the first place?" Pamela asked suspiciously. Charles was calm in his answer, "Well, I found a couple of metal pins in my cell and I used it to pick my cell lock." Charles began. "Once I got free, that's where I hatched my plan. I picked the lock of Derek's cell. I had to convince him that he and I were on the same team in taking you out. So, while the rest were in their cells, which, by the way, they still are, Derek and I made our way out of the dungeon." explained Charles. "Well, you certainly have some talent, unlike that loser. Still, Gerard and Andrea not reporting back is concerning for me." replied Pamela. As she looked at the monitors of the control room, she noticed something peculiar, then she started frowning. "What's wrong, Lady Boss?" asked Charles. "Take a look at that." said Pamela, pointing Charles's attention to one of the monitors surveying the lab. "What about it, Lady Boss?" asked Charles curiously. "C
Before Charles could answer, they heard footsteps approaching the dungeon. Derek passed Gerard's dungeon keys to Charles before he cloaked himself again. In order to play along with Pamela's ploy, Charles quickly opened the dungeon door, placed Victoria gently inside before locking the door again. The footsteps grew audibly closer towards the dungeon door. Charles turned his attention towards the sound of those footsteps and walked in that direction, taking caution to who he might run into. As he turned around the corner, he found out who those footsteps belong to. "Oh my gosh, Esther. What are you doing here?" Charles exclaimed softly as he embraced his girlfriend. "Wait, you shouldn't be here. Didn't Mr. Quinton give you and the rest the order to head to the safehouse?" asked Charles. "I had to come here. I was not going to let that b***h Pamela take you." replied Esther emotionally. Just then, Derek decloaked himself and met up with Charles and Esther. "Esther, so it was you. G
"Ok, Charles, the feed is on." said Pamela. "Take your position, on Derek's right side." "Understood, Lady Boss." replied Charles. Seconds later, everyone, including the people in the Phoenix Bunker, the safehouse and the combined invasion and rescue team saw the live feed on their screens. "Your eyes do not deceive you, Peter. Charles has betrayed you. He has decided to join a real mafia and I will nurture him properly, so he can be a real Don." began Pamela. "As you can see, I have your son as hostage. If you ever want to see Derek again, in one piece and alive, firstly, call off your attack dogs. Secondly, you will, and I mean WILL, surrender your precious Quinton Consortium to me. Oh, before I forget, that includes your so-called Phoenix Mafia as well." "And just in case you think I'm not being serious... " Pamela then did something no one expected. She pressed a button on her control panel; and in the next moment, Ivy's suit emerged from a corner of her control room. 'What th