A heavy silence hung in the car, and I couldn't help but notice Aaron's eyes darting to the rearview mirror, a flicker of concern in their depths. I tugged at the neck of my black polo; it felt like it was strangling me, the car shrinking around me. It was clear I was seething. He stared at me for a moment before switching on the air conditioner.
"Boss Drake wants to speak to you," he said, his voice low. "He says it's urgent. Should we comply with his request?"
I scoffed, raking a hand through my hair. "Drake? Aren't you supposed to call me Jake if you're going to address him as Drake?" My voice was laced with nonchalance and sarcasm. "After all, this is all just a charade, so don't make me look like a bad guy for borrowing his identity."
Aaron nodded, tilting his head sharply and clicking his tongue. "I didn't realize how much my statement hurt you. I'm sorry for the inconvenience." He apologized. "We ought to be very careful about his hideout, because it's only the two of us who know he is alive and kicking."
"Then we'll continue to hide this secret until the Ivanovich are brought to justice, and then I will settle old scores with Nicolas Lancaster," I declared, and Aaron continued to nod. "The Lancasters will attend the Royale Family auction in Madrid next week. Make sure they don't secure anything except the Eternal Gliss."
Aaron's brow furrowed with curiosity. "Boss, why do you say so? Do you intend on buying the worthless and useful items too?" I smiled, knowing full well my plan.
"The Lancaster family are going broke now, and that is exactly why he wants me to tie the knot with the Moore heiress for him," I explained, flipping my fold knife open. "The items to be auctioned off by the Royale Family are all worth billions, and nothing less than that. But the Eternal Gliss is nothing but a fraud, because it is an heirloom not to be sold, and not everyone knows this."
"How can the Royale Family sell fake products? Aren't they pure royalty to know that?" Aaron asked, his anger evident. "Master, do you suggest we expose the fraud, or do you want the Lancasters to spend billions buying it?"
I clicked my tongue in agreement. "Exactly! Let them waste billions buying it because they don't know that. Now, when I buy all the antiques, imagine how many rich men will rally to buy the item, no matter the price I say." I remarked, still flipping the knife. "Then, the Lancasters, knowing their Gliss is fake later on, will be left with no choice but to buy a suitable antique to sell to secure their shares. And then, bingo, we sell it to them to buy more shares."
"And the Lancasters would do anything for money," Aaron replied, his voice chilling.
I nodded in agreement, my eyes flashing with mischief. "Yes, they will, and the look on their faces would be priceless!" I chuckled, handing a white, plain paper to Aaron. "Prepare an account with this information and don't relent in covering our tracks. The Royale are deceptive and wise, so we need extra accounts to be able to buy all the antiques without anyone knowing it was all our doing."
Aaron accepted the note, staring at it. I knew that he understood that the note contained information he couldn't decipher easily. "I'll ensure that your commands are dealt with meticulously. Also, I'll hire actors to pretend to be businessmen so the shares can be bought with no one suspecting it."
"There's no need," I told him, our eyes locking in the rear-view mirror. "Oscar's and Juan's family leaders will suffice. Their clean records speak for themselves."
A quick nod confirmed his agreement. "Yess Boss consider it done."
I looked out the window, the scenery winding by. I never thought I was going to be undercover, nor was my identity going to be stolen, and the master executioner was my father, Nicolas Lancaster. He was the reason I was in this unresolved feud between him and his brother, but one thing was for sure: I wasn't going to let him get away with what he did to me and other innocent lives.
TWO YEARS AGO
The wailing sound of machines hung thick in the air; the sterile scent of disinfectant filled the hospital walls. My mind couldn't comprehend why I wasn't waking up despite how hard I forced myself to, and then I felt a slight sting on my skin, and the pain kept getting worse and worse until I stood up, gasping for air.
The unfamiliar, what seemed to be a hospital, blurred in my vision, slowly returning to its original and visible image. I was dressed in a hospital gown, drips connected to my arms, and machines whirred, the sound filling the air. The last thing I remembered was being in an accident, and then I was in a hospital, not understanding any single thing about what was going on around me.
I removed the oxygen mask from my face; the sound alerted a nurse who rushed inside the room with a notepad in her hand. "What are you doing, Mr. Xavier?! Lie back down while I go inform the doctor of your recovery," she said before rushing outside the ward, leaving me confused.
I stared at my hands, ensuring I wasn't in another galaxy or in the afterlife. "Is she crazy?!" I asked, my voice venomous and irritation evident. "My last name is Lancaster, not Xavier," I corrected, but the nurse was long gone.
I lowered my legs to the tiled floor, trying to stand on my feet, but I fell knee-first to the ground. The feeling of pain washed over me, and I could only grab the hospital bedstand before two doctors rushed in, helping me sit up on the bed. The first doctor held a small penlight to my eyes, checking it before using a stethoscope.
He finally nodded, pulling away, using his eyes to signal the second doctor. I knew they were not just ordinary doctors, or they were probably quacks who were pretending to be doctors. I was about to ask them when my father and stepmother came in; also, behind them followed Aaron, the most trusted bodyguard of Drake Xavier, my arch-nemesis and also my cousin.
"What are they doing here?!" I muttered to myself, meeting my father's pretentious smile. "What are you doing here, Nicolas?"
He looked at me menacingly before patting Estella's palm as she looked scared by my tone of voice. "You're lucky you survived the accident, and here you are raising your voice at us, you ungrateful brat!" he scolded, but I rolled my eyes before throwing the tray at him. "You have the caliber to throw things at me?"
I saw red, my fists clenched to my side; a storm was already brewing inside of me. I looked up at him, my gaze sharper than a two-edged sword. "Wouldn't you be happy if I died, so why aren't you two celebrating, or you aren't happy I'm still breathing?" Nicolas frowned, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Now get out of my room and take this quack you hired with you, or else I'll call the security!"
Nicolas laughed, and so did Estella. "Looks like you're still making threats! You're already dead to the world, Jake. I didn't want to tell you this, but it looks like you were asking for a reality check." Estella retorted but shrank behind her husband as my eyes narrowed down on her.
"Don't try to get me annoyed! I said get the hell out of this ward before I call the security," I threatened, but my father and everyone else remained standing. "Security! Security! Get in here at once and drag these old hags out!"
No one came in, and my father walked up to me, pointing at my face. "You maniac, if you had listened to me and went for psychiatric treatment while you still had the chance, maybe your psychosis wouldn't have followed you into this life." He mocked, his voice filled with disdain, and I slapped his hand away. "You still act high and mighty, but I'm not here for you. Instead, Aaron wants to have a brief meeting with you."
I growled, my instincts feral as Aaron walked over. "I'll have nothing to do with you or him!" I frowned, my fingers beating on my laps, and I tried to prevent my feelings from overriding me. Aaron walked towards me, his footsteps deliberately slow as he threw a file onto my laps. "What the hell is this, and why are you handing them over to me?" I asked, but he didn't reply; instead, he gestured to the brown envelope.
My eyes widened as I opened it, seeing the bold imprints on the white, deadly piece of paper, the heavy reality dawning on me of Heather's demise and a warrant to arrest me as the prime suspect. "This cannot be real!" I screamed, flinging the papers across the room. My breathing hitched, my heart banging against my rib cage in a staccato beat. My vision became blurry. "Heather's not dead! You're all trying to play with my mind because you think you've got the power to do so."
Aaron, despite his imposing tall stature and muscular build, lowered himself to my eye view, his hand on my shoulder as the doctor administered an injection.
"Breathe in and out, okay. Just follow the flow of my breathing," he instructed, breathing in and out, and I involuntarily found myself doing the same. I had forgotten how to properly breathe, but he was helping me get through it. "It's okay, Jake. I've got you," he assured, and I nodded obediently.
"Heather fell to her demise on the day of prom, and the police have a warrant to arrest you because she was always by your side at all times," he explained, still trying to calm my breathing. "The penalty for murder and bullying is both nine years at most, but I don't believe you'd want to serve your jail term, so help me and do exactly as I tell you."
I gulped down my saliva, rubbing my hand over my tear-streaked face. Fear enveloped my entire being. "I didn't kill her! I'd never do such a thing to someone I love, Aaron! I wasn't even at the prom venue because I had a heavy migraine that night."
He looked at me, nodding in agreement. "I'd believe you if I tried, but the government won't believe you even if you swore on the thing you hold dearest because testimonies have already been given against you." I stared at him, shocked, before looking away. "Some of them said you threatened to kill her if she didn't comply to your wish, and these people are your comrades, Michael Jenkins and Evans. Her parents are already pressing charges against you, but thankfully they've been subdued."
"What do you want from me, because I don't think you're telling me these for free, are you?" I asked, and his lips widened, displaying his white set of teeth.
He stood up, handing me a booklet which had the word CONTRACT on it. "You're a smart kid, Jake," he complimented, and I scowled at his hypocritical words. "Look, the duties are all simple. You claim to be Drake and lead the Xavier enterprise while Drake's parents wake up, hopefully. I want you to lead them on until they're strong enough to know their beloved son is no more."
I shoved the contract aside defiantly. "I won't help you deceive anyone; instead, I'd rather rot in jail," I said, but Nicolas and Estella...