Chapter 51 Traitor In Disguise
Nathan’s POVThis content is © NôvelDrama.Org.
Travis knows I’m back in town, and that is how I want it to be. I don’t want it to seem like took him unawares, I want it to be known by everyone that I made my presence known when I got into town. The news of my return was all over the television, I made it my mission to take interviews and attend public functions to give the reporters something to write about. I was waiting for the deal day, the day he wants to sell the company. The date is fixed and the bidders are all ready to drop their bids and purchase our family’s company, my company. I’m waiting for that day, I want to give him a taste of his own medicine, I have a special package waiting for him.
A few days after I finished dealing with Ariel, I had a long talk with my mom and Caitlyn my kid sister, I had to make it clear to them that we can no longer ignore the fact that dad has another family. I made it quite clear to dad that he needs to keep his other wife far away from my mom because I don’t want any situation that would aggravate the situation between him and my mom. They have already pushed her to the wall already, they have made her attempt to commit a felony, I won’t let them go anywhere near her. At the same time, I still want my sister and I to create a bond with dad’s other kids, I want to get to meet them, and I want them to know that I have their back, no matter what. My mom and my sister refused to heed to my words, you know, women would always be women. They can hold a grudge for a very long time, but that did not deter me, I still went to pay them a visit anyway. It’s a good thing that I did, I finally got all the pieces of the puzzle and now I’m beginning to feel the same amount of anger that my mom felt, the same anger that pushed her into committing such a heinous crime.
I finally got to know that my father is an enemy in disguise. You see, I’ve always thought that my father is just ignorant of all the things happening around him, I thought he had no fucking idea that he had known about it all along, but he had purposely decided to stand back and watch from a distance. He had been the head of the family for a very long time, he ran the company for years do I’m pretty sure that he knows his way around this business, he knows all about our families secrets and he knows how to get all the information he needs, he couldn’t have said that he knew nothing at all, everyone with a connection to the underground knew what was going on, just that they didn’t have all the details. My father could have had it investigated if he wanted to. He would have done his one personal investigation, I mean, he did investigate the incident that happened in his other wife’s house, right? He could have uncovered the whole truth and he could have saved me from that island a lot faster, but he didn’t. He folded his hands and watched like a fucking idiot and that has always bothered me. I would have brushed it off and focused on my mission, I mean, he is my father and I would never have imagined that he would want to hurt me, but all that changed when I went to their house. At first, his wife tried to make me go away,
“I don’t want my kids anywhere near you, your snobbish sister, and your murderous mother. We were doing okay before you came along with your orders and threats. I did everything you asked me to, I fucking cleared your mother’s name. The least you can do now is to let us live our lives in peace, please.” She yelled and hung up on me when I made my intentions known to her. But I refused to back down, I had to make it clear to them that I am now the head of the family so my orders must be obeyed. I fixed the date and I invited them over to the mansion for a dinner, but she wouldn’t let them come to our house, so I made an exception this time. We agreed to go over to their house and I am so glad that I had made that decision.
On our way into the building, I saw someone walking out of the house. Our car was just driving through the gate, but I recognized him anyway. He is a professor and he runs an organization that educates and trains rich kids in the way of life of the noble. It is one thing for you to come from a rich home and it is another thing for you to behave like an aristocrat. Dad had invited this same guy to register my sister and I in this fancy school for rich kids and he had visited our home a couple of times so it shouldn’t be weird that I still remember him. It has always been dads dream to train us to be aristocrats, he always said that the future of the Trents lies in that school. He has always wanted the Trents to be seen as Nobles, but my sister and I had stubbornly refused to be turned into a bunch of dweeds, we refused to be trained by his fancy teachers in his fancy school, and we chose to live a normal life instead and I am so glad that we had rejected that stupid idea. My father’s other kids are clear evidence that we had made the right decision.
My God, They were acting so weird, so fucking weird. They could be mistaken for the kids in that musical movie “Sound of music.” It was just so weird, but I have nothing to say about it, I mean, this is like a dream come true for my father and I can see the pride and joy in his eyes. But all this wasn’t bothering me, I mean, he can train his kids to act like robots for all I care. What bothered me is his son, his first child with the other woman. He should be in his late teens but he looks and acts so mature, that you would think that he is in his late twenties. He is all my father has always wanted me to be, I could see my father’s dreams and aspirations in him. Dad had always tried to get me to be a perfect son, forcing me to choose the things he would like, trying to make every decision for me to suit his preferences, training me to be perfect, just perfect. But at some point, he just stopped, it was so liberating when he stopped breathing down my throat, and I thought that he was finally understanding me, I thought that he had finally realized that I can never be the perfect son he wants, I thought he has finally decided to accept me the way I am.
But that was never the case… No.
He found what he has been looking for elsewhere, he found it on this kid right here. And all these years that I thought that my father and I have come to an understanding, all these years that I thought that he has finally accepted me the way I am, it had all been a lie. He had been training someone else to be the perfect son he desires, he has been grooming his perfect Noble successor. All through that dinner, I was getting some weird vibes from the kid and he was throwing some shades at me, giving me a weird look that seems so off. It was at that moment that I felt for the first time that my father is an enemy in disguise so I beckoned on Raymond right there in the dining and I told him to look into my father’s affairs for the past ten years. I want to know what he has been doing and who he has been meeting. I want to know everything that he has been planning, I have to know what he has been up to.
Ray got to work immediately, he went outside to make some calls and do the investigations for me while I plastered a smile on my face and had my dinner, ignoring the fact that every other person at this table doesn’t really want to be here. They were all glaring daggers at each other, even the younger ones who couldn’t even be up to ten years old. I wonder what my father and his slutty girlfriend have been teaching these kids, it felt like they were told to keep their guards up, they saw us as enemies and it is so disturbing on every level. We left immediately after dinner, nobody waited for desserts and everyone was quite relieved and excited to be done with this torturous dinner. We drove home in silence because everyone chose to keep their thoughts to themselves, but when we got into the house, mom turned to me angrily, glaring daggers at me,
“Don’t you ever try this again, Nathan. I have never been so humiliated in my whole life.” She growled out at me, turning back to head up to her room in anger.
“Way to go, bro. You deserve a medal for this.” Caitlyn added sarcastically as she also claimed up the stairs and went to her room as well. I could only shake my head in disbelief as I went up to my room, it is just unbelievable. If I didn’t know better, I would say that dad doesn’t need us in his life anymore, and does his little protégées. They look to be perfectly fine without us and I made up my mind to leave them to live their lives they please but I had to change that decision when Raymond brought back the report from the investigation I ordered him to carry out.
I dreaded the outcome of his investigation and it took me a few seconds to open the file because I don’t want to have any reason to go after my father or his aristocratic son. But as always, my fears always manifest themselves in reality, and my wishes never come true. The report is as bad as I had imagined, my father had known about my plight all along and he had ignored me on purpose because he wants his little protegee to take over and lead the family. The report doesn’t say that he plotted with my uncle and my cousin, but it clearly states that he had investigated the crashed airplane and he had found out that it was tampered with, but he did nothing about it. He also heard the reports that there is a possibility that I am alive, but he still didn’t make any move. He washed his hands off my case, letting me fend for myself.
Now, I would have concluded that he simply wants me to prove myself to the family. I would have said that he let it happen because he wants to train me to be a better leader but that would be plain bullshit. I would simply be lying to myself. The report clearly states that he had been trying to sabotage the company while Travis was chairman. He knows that Travis would never step down and he knows that the idiot could not run the company, so he made an alliance with a French guy named Lawrence Delaney. Lawrence is a billionaire and heir to his family’s fortune so no one will suspect any foul play if he buys the company, it would simply be seen as a business interest. No one will ever suspect or investigate his reasons for bidding for the company’s shares. He let Travis run the company as he pleases and when Travis started selling off the shares, he sent his friend Lawrence to be among the bidders so he can buy the shares and later transfer them into his son’s name. I guess the plan was for his son to buy back the shares and present them to the family elders, then he would be seen as a knight in shining armor and the elders would have no choice but to welcome him into the family. It’s a good thing that Costello had thrown his cap into the bidding and he succeeded in buying over eighty percent of the company shares, but he had to do it under several aliases so no one knows that he had been the one throwing so much money around. But Lawrence was able to buy three percent of the company’s shares and tomorrow, Travis is going to be selling off the remaining seventeen percent in his possession, including the company building and other properties that belong to the family. The board of directors has no say in his decisions because he has succeeded in convincing them that the company has gone bankrupt. They are more than happy to get rid of the company they have no idea that they are all being tricked by a bunch of greedy people that think they deserve better than everyone else.
Well, I think it’s high time for me to set the records straight and put everyone in their place. I waited until it is already past midnight, then I put a call across to dad, telling him that I want him to accompany me to a very important meeting by noon tomorrow and I also want him to come along with Easton. It’s been three days since we had that awful dinner that felt like torture. I never said a word to him or anyone else since I discovered his plans for our family. I never even asked him any questions about it, I simply went about my activities, putting in so much time at the club and other social events, acting as if I don’t care about the family and the company.
“I’m afraid that will not be possible son. I’m sure you noticed the tense atmosphere at dinner the other day. You can’t possibly wish to put us through such an awful meeting once more, it’s just so terrible.” He responded angrily.
“Well, that is not for you to decide dad. I think by now you should already know that this is what polygamy entails. Be ready for more awful dinners and meetings, you deserve more of it. Besides I’m not inviting the kids or your wives, it’s just Easton and I. Mind you, I’m only doing this because he is my brother and I want us to get to know each other better. We are both the seniors from each of your wives and I’m hoping that once we understand each other, the others will follow suit. It is up to Easton and I to come to terms with the fact that we are supposed to be family and not enemies. Once we find a common ground, it would be so much easier to get everyone else to follow our lead. This is not a request dad, it is an order, and I expect you and Easton to obey my orders, don’t forget our family rules and regulations. I am the new head of the family and everyone in this family must respect that unless you are trying to tell me that they are not a part of the family.” I told him firmly, putting him in a tight corner.
“Fine, well be there. But don’t forget that I am still your father.” He spat out angrily.
“Yeah, whatever dad.” I scoffed and hung up immediately before I would say something that would make him suspicious of my reasons for inviting them to this meeting. I can’t believe that he still wants me to idolize him as a good father. If only he knows what plans I have for tomorrow.