Chapter 8 The Vengeful Billionaire

FLAVIAN DURAN

THREE DAYS AGO...

Money, power, connections, name it all. The aspects of life I've achieved through my hardwork. I can boldly say, I have it all. Yeah, that's my life.

Except, that's not all...

Hatred and resentment. A normal person would call that ill will. Yeah, a normal person. Normalcy and I don't fit in the same sentence. It's what has kept me going for the past few years. Loathing, marinated with a passion for revenge. Topped with a few strategies executed bit by bit.

Is it possible to hate someone with every part of your body, and I mean, including your liver, pancreas, and loop of Henle? That's how I feel about Unai Merino. The bloodthirsty murderer who would do anything for power, no matter the cost. Even throwing his best friend under the bus.

However, a quick death would be a luxurious journey to hell for him. This is why after a few careful strategies, I have spent the past few months playing dangerous games, annoying the hell out of him, and incurring losses on his side. Do I care about his feelings?

Hell no!

Do I sound ferocious? Well, I didn't say I was a saint.

Somewhere in the future, I would like to make his life even more miserable.

He's wealthy, powerful, and has connections with various servants in his pocket, but that only heightens my determination. What better way to beat your enemy than when they think they've won it all?

This morning, Derrick and I, with the help of my men, hijacked one of his big shipments of the week. This one is usually international. I know what it means to him. Unai is a careful man. No one can easily get to him.

We had to plan our moves so carefully, with a little help from the inside. In case you're wondering, well, here's how; To some people, loyalty has a price. A disloyal minion for Unai is a huge win for us. All we had to do was offer a huge sum, enough for the guy to start over at a very far away place after betraying his boss.

Not that money is an issue, but I don't regret a single penny. It was all worth it. His firearms deal is facing trouble now. He's going to be so furious, but with his fury comes my jubilation. He's aware of our rivalry, and there are repercussions to this, but I'll always be ready. In this game, you should never be caught off guard.

I spend the night at Derrick's place, where we ponder more strategies. The following morning, I head for the Barnes' manor. I'm meeting Nicholas Barnes. The head of the Barnes syndicate. With the kind of war that is going on, the more support I gather, the better. Good thing I have been making collaborations with him. He is a strong ally.

You know, the enemy of your enemy and all that stuff...

We are having coffee in his living room when I hand him a file.

"What's this?" He asks, stretching his hand to receive it.

"I'm not here for a girl talk over tea. That's Unai's biggest shipment. All the information, including its current location, is in there," I point out.

The man stares at me briefly before returning his attention to the file. It won't be difficult for him to understand. He is in his fifties and has been in business for longer than I have, so there isn't much to explain.

"It was in my hands, and now it's in yours," I proceed to explain.

"This is huge, Duran." He acknowledges and then frowns. "Don't you think you've unleashed a great war?"

"Haven't you folks always been at war with each other?" I throw back a question.

"Besides, his clients are going to think he double-crossed them, which is going to cause a hiccup in their partnership. That's where you chip in."

He smiles.

"You really hate him." He grins.

"Do we have a deal?" I cock a brow.

We shake hands, although we are going to need more than that as a sign of an alliance.

________________________

I'm having lunch with my mother at The Galaxy. You could be a strategist, a manipulator, or even a gangster, but Olivia Duran will always want to tame you into her adorable son. It's been three years now since she adopted the behavior.

But I get her. After everything that happened to the family, I wouldn't blame her for being paranoid and always on my neck about my well-being.

For example, this lunch wasn't on my schedule for the day, but she had to insist.

"How have you been? I haven't seen you in like forever," she begins.

"It's only been four days, mother."

"That's the same difference." She raises her brows. "Anyway, how are you?"

Nothing much. Just going after Merino. Making plans after plans and reading myself for the Third World War.

I can't tell her that, of course.

She isn't aware of my extracurricular activities. I wouldn't want to have her explode with worry. For three years now, she's been preaching about normalcy and spending more time with me. All she knows is my company and my nightclub. In her eyes, I'm just a normal businessman, and yes, I am, but some sins can't go unpunished.

"I've been busy," I smile. "I have a company to run and...do you remember my nightclub? I didn't become a billionaire by sitting back."

I try to be sarcastic, but it gets lost in the air.

"Then you should move back to the mansion so we can spend more time together," she suggests, as always.

Yeah. I got myself into that one.

"For the millionth time, mother, I'm not moving back to that place. I still love you, even if we don't live together."

That place is full of memories I don't want to resurrect.

She scoffs. I know this conversation is far from over.

"Lucian would have loved..."

"Don't use Lucian to manipulate me, otherwise this lunch will be over before it begins," I warn.

For the next few minutes, we eat in silence, but I know there's another bombshell coming.

"Let's talk about a wife, then."

And there it is. The other topic I'm usually not interested in.