Entangled With The Billionaire Player

"He is begging for your mercy, Boss. He says he has got a family to feed."

"Is he still inside the building?" I checked the time and asked Michael, my trusted assistant.

He has always been there with me, helping me with the business I had to take over years ago.

In a way, he is my mentor who has taught me everything I know and has assisted me to become who I am now.

"Yes, he says he won't leave until you meet him."

I sneered, "Heh, the sheer audacity. Call security and have him escorted out."

Michael nodded and started to go out until I stopped him, "Michael."

"Yes, Boss."

"I don't want any drama."

"Noted, Ma'am."

"And for the last time, stop calling me with words like Boss and Ma'am! You are free to call me by my name."

"I can't afford this privilege, Ma'am. It will be burdening for me." Like a professional, Michael refused. As always.

Sighing, I stretched my arms, feeling a dull ache due to working constantly, "I can't argue with you. Go and settle that Murphy. We can't tolerate him any longer."

"On it." Once Michael was gone, I got up from my seat and went to the glass window which showed the clear sky. No clouds, no birds, it was simply empty and it looked so serene.

However, the serenity was only for some minutes as loud noises started to come from outside.

What has happened now?

When the noise still did not stop, I moved toward the door only to stop in the mid when a figure barged into the spacious room.

"Get away from me. Let me go in!"

He was a bald man with a bulging belly and his forehead was covered with sweat.

Maybe this was the first time he had run this much coming upon the 18th floor.

"It's amazing, Mr Murphy, how you still came here asking to meet me after what you have done," I smirked, "I am truly impressed."

Robert Murphy seemed ready to pass out any minute.

Seeing me laugh, he kneeled, trying to touch my feet. As if on cue, I swiftly backed away. He had nothing but dust to touch.

"Miss Ford!"

"Ah?" I arched a brow. Did he just call me Miss Ford when all the employees here call me Boss?

Oh, wait. He is not an employee anymore.

"B-Boss..." He stuttered.

"Please have mercy on me. You can't simply just dismiss me!"

"Why can't I, Mr Murphy? I make the calls here." Grinning, I inched closer to him, towering over him.

"I have been working here for years..."

"And what did you do after working here for years?"

"I... I.." Robert Murphy glanced everywhere but at me. I could tell he was guilty. Well, he should be.

"I apologise, Boss. He suddenly ran away. I didn't know he was here." Michael arrived at my office, taking deep breaths.

Is my office that high and impossible to reach? It seems fine to me, though.

"I'm... I have always been loyal to this company..." Weakly, Mr Murphy tried to say.

"Michael, display Mr Murphy's loyalty." I smiled. I wonder what his reaction will be.

Hearing my command, Michael brought a light-coloured file in front of me.

Taking it from him, I threw it at the nervous man, my amusement completely gone, and got replaced with a scowl.

Mr Murphy appeared startled as he started skimming through several documents and pages, his eyes popping out and his face started to get paler and paler, if possible.

This very file contained all the records related to Robert Murphy's so-called loyalty to the company.

The people he conned all these years under the name of Empire Group of Industries, selling the company shares to others secretly, the missing money from the company's account.

It is difficult to name every fraud since the list is too long.

"Do you want to say something, Mr Murphy?"

Silent, he did not look at me again.

"I'm already showing too much mercy by not giving you out to the police." I paced towards my desk, throwing one last glance at Robert Murphy.

"Michael."

"Throw him out and make sure he never gets to scam anyone again." Or get a job in the same country as long as I live there.

I did not need to say this much since Michael was capable and understood my ways.

"Yes, Boss." A minute later, three bulky bodyguards appeared and took Robert Murphy with them to escort him out. Cordially, I hoped so. Not.

It was again calm in the room yet the vibes here were not the same.

Damn it. That d*mn Murphy ruined the environment.

Just as I was about to give a call to the staff for my favourite dark coffee, my phone rang.

It showed the name, Kristina.

As soon as I picked it up, I was greeted by a boisterous voice, making my ears hurt.

"There's a family dinner this evening at 7. You must come."

"Fine." My voice came out neutral and the call was dropped.

I still had a couple of hours left, so I started reading the emails I received this morning.

The site we wanted to establish a project on was being auctioned next week.

I frowned.

Was this not already decided that we were going to buy this land? The deal was to be signed two days later this week, I recall.

How come it was going to enter an auction?

Gazing at the pictures on the site, I was determined to purchase it.

The land was an excellent place to start our Million dollar mall project. The land came across as barren and rough at first, but it was estimated by the experts that the commercial value of the land would be doubled and thriving in the next following years.

I was keeping an eye on this for a year and a half and was certain that I was going to be the buyer of it in the end.

The land's value was not known to many people, so I was pleased to have less competition around.

Though the reason was unknown why no businessman ever tried to buy it.

"Check who was managing this." I typed.

Minutes later I got a reply which said, "It was Mr Robert Murphy, Boss."

My eyes twitched.

Robert Murphy again.

It seems I was truly merciful.

"Help me reserve a seat in that auction. I will go there myself." I told Michael on the earpiece and started the engine.

I wanted to meet the owner who backed away from his words and have a friendly talk with him.

The work hours ended. Thus just like everyone, I too left the office.

At this moment, I wished I had more work and more reports to check and go through.

Going back to that place was the most dreadful thing I evaded at any cost, at any chance I could get.

Yet here I am, going to that place again.

"I'm here," I informed and the entrance door opened instantly. Taking slow steps I was met with an old woman who was there waiting for me in the hallway.

She looked down when I bravely locked eyes with her as if wanting to hide away from me.

But did she hide and run away? Nope.

She stood shamelessly without flinching when she saw me again. She even smiled like she was glad to see me.

"Victoria..." She came forward but I created a distance between us, stepping back.

"It's Miss Ford. I haven't allowed you, a servant, to call me by my first name."

She appeared a little hurt by my actions and after a while, she smiled, recovering.

"Mr and Mrs Ford are waiting eagerly for you."

"Here you are!" This time, it was my father who welcomed me.

Taking huge strides, he extended his arms, expecting me to leap in his arms which I used to do when I was a little girl in the past.

I nodded my head, my manners polite, "I was invited, so of course, I had to come. Refusing would have been rude of me."

Stefan Ford's hands came down awkwardly as he beckoned me to follow him to the dining hall.

Amidst walking, he tried to make a conversation between us, "Why would you need an invitation, my daughter? You are a part of this family. It's your home."

I did not reply and instead gazed at the room. Pretty much everything was the same except for the photo frames above the fireplace.

The photo frames only had three people. My father, Kristina, and my half-sister, Lydia who is the same age as me– Just 2-3 months younger. From the early years to this day.

Maybe I was standing there for a long time, staring at them that Kristina had to stand in front of me, blocking me from seeing them any longer.

With a pretentious smile, she said, "After the house was renovated, we didn't have your pictures, so.."

"That's fine." I was not affected. "I don't live here anyway."

Wanting to ease the awkwardness, Stefan Ford took me to the table. "Why are you all standing? Take your seats."

A huge table having a variety of mouthwatering appetisers was set.

A delicious aroma was coming from the main dishes brought by the old woman I met earlier and some people behind her. Each had a separate dish in their hands.

It felt like a Michelin Star restaurant's quality food.

"I was told that you and Kristina wanted to talk to me about something." I did not need to beat around the bush. I saw Kristina's face changing, making me nearly smirk, but I controlled myself and kept a neutral face.

She loved to be called Mrs Ford and I could never call her that.

No matter what she did, she could never be the true Mrs Ford.

Everybody knew that. Though, no one dared to tell her.

Every minute I was spending here was enough to make me suffocate.

"What's the rush, Victoria? We can talk about that after dinner." My father laughed and said, "You have come here after a long time."

Kristina sided with her husband, "I ordered the cooks to make the best type of dishes for tonight's dinner. Hope they are of liking to you."

I watched as Stefan Ford smiled fondly at his wife, silently praising her for doing good. How would have mom reacted if she were to be here?

"Hey, you two. I'm back." A female's happy voice sounded in the room.

I looked up to see Lydia who had come from some party.

She seemed changed. Donning a costly golden shimmering dress with her delicate facial features more enhanced.

The last time I saw her was when she was going through an emo phase wearing piercings covering all visible parts of her body and complete black clothing.

Without acknowledging my presence, Lydia excitedly laughed, "Seafood! I was legit missing it."

"You can have it now." Stefan Ford glanced at his daughter with his face softened. It was unbelievable, honestly.

Surely people change and improve when they finally find the right company suited for them.

I fully acknowledge it now.

Kristina glanced at me with worry, "What happened, Victoria? I see you're not eating anything. You don't like the food?"

Only then did Lydia look at me.

A mere side glance before she started eating, ignoring me.

I did not mind her one bit.

Many years had passed, I was a stranger to her and she was a stranger to me. I would have done the same if I were the Victoria from five years ago. Immature and ignorant.

So for the sake of her being my half-sister, I greeted her first. The attempt went in vain since I got no reply. She had not changed.

"Here. Try these prawns. They taste delicious." Stefan Ford pushed a plate of fresh prawns in front of me.

I gave them a weird look and placed the cutlery down on the table, watching them.

"Victoria, do you still hate me? I thought everyone have moved on." Kristina tried to reach out for my hand which I swiftly withdrew. She was doing it again.

"Kristina wants to mend our relationship! Why do you treat her so badly when all she wants is to be good to you!? You keep making things difficult for her."

I scoffed and crossed my arms; shaking my head, my eyes not showing any emotion, "You think that I'm making things difficult for her? Don't you think this is the other way around?"

"The seafood you're trying to feed me, don't you know it's poison for me?" The main dishes were all seafood. Kristina must have done this on purpose with the help of that old woman earlier to make me appear as the villain in front of everyone.

"What...?" Stefan Ford was dumbfounded. He did not expect it, did he?

"Others might not know but I thought you knew that's why I kept silent."

"We didn't know that... that you were allergic." Stefan Ford guiltily began, but I did not want to see this side of him. He never paid full attention to me when I was in this place with Mom, so how could he know of this?

"It's fine," I replied and saw the time on my phone. It was almost 8. Time to get on the topic.

"I had the appetizers taken as a meal course, so I'm full." My attention was on the pair of husband and wife.

"The appetizers were savoury just as how they looked. I wish I could say something about the main dish as well, but I'm sure they must be delicious."

Kristina's jaw clenched slightly before she tried to smile at me again, dismissing my words.

"Since the dinner is over, let's talk. I'm sure I was not called here only for a simple dinner."

I felt someone's piercing gaze on my back and saw it was Lydia, who was staring at me with hatred. I ruined her favourite seafood, didn't I?

"Yes, err... Let's go to my study." Stefan Ford was embarrassed, that I could tell. Soon my footsteps followed behind him, and memories of the past appeared in my mind.

Once we had taken seats in his study, Stefan Ford started.

"I heard you have been wanting to buy a piece of land and preparing for it for a year or two."

I raised a brow. I thought my movement was subtle. Or maybe someone was bought off by him behind my back.

"Yes, it's going to be in the auction next week."

"I can help you."

"You can?" I looked at him.

"S.A Ford Inc. is sponsoring that event this time. With my one call, the land would not be shown to others and you can keep it for yourself," Stefan Ford said.

I am confident he is not this nice.

He would never help me for nothing.

"Yes, but I have a condition that you have to fulfil first." Of course, a condition. I sneered. I did not want his help, but I wanted to see for myself how could my dear father help me.

"You have to merge S.A Ford Inc. with the Empire Group of Industries and make me have 40% authority in the company."

40%?

Stefan Ford was surely playing smart. He wanted to be merged with the company my grandfather and mother left it behind for me and was also after 40% authority in the company which meant he wanted to be the next in command after me, the CEO.

Grandfather was right.

Before his death, my maternal grandfather made a will that all his business would be taken over by his daughter and after her– his maternal granddaughter, Victoria Ford.

That day when I was given the business, he called me out on his deathbed and said, "Don't get involved with your father when you officially become the CEO. That sly fox is keeping his eyes on Empire for years and now that I will no longer be here, he will try to snatch the company from you by any means, so always be 4 steps ahead of him."

"You can rest assured, Grandpa. I will never let him have the business you have made with your blood, sweat, and tears. I will forever follow what I have been taught by you."

"I believe you." My grandfather smiled and closed his eyes peacefully. After that day, he never woke up.

"You already have 7% stakes in Empire. Why do you want to be merged with it?"

7% was already a huge benefit to anyone who had something to do with the Empire. Even a 1% share would be traded for hundreds of millions.

"Because that way," Stefan Ford tried to find words, "the father-daughter bond between us will strengthen. Whenever you will get stuck in a deal, I will provide you assistance as I'm much more experienced in the business world."

When I did nothing, Stefan Ford took this chance to continue coaxing me with a soft tone.

"I'm afraid people won't take my words seriously, thus this 40% authority. Relying on a senior will certainly pave a way for a young one like you. My daughter, don't you agree?"

I inhaled. I would not fall for his manipulation. He never considered me his daughter and left me to die that day. If it were not for my grandfather finding me, I would have been dead.

"If your intention is purely just to strengthen our bond, why do we need to involve our businesses, Father?" My lips curled up and I smiled, though my eyes were anything but smiling. The only reason he was being kind to me was that I had Empire in my hands.

Stefan Ford was at a loss for words. That sight made me laugh and I shook my head, getting up.

"Did you assume I don't know what is happening inside your company?"

"I don't understand, Victoria..." Father tried to laugh it out to hide his nervousness, standing up too. "Whosoever has given you the news, it is all false information."

"You thought you have everything covered up, Father, but everyone in the business world knows about your company. It's just an empty shell with no investors around anymore. Anyone who will invest in S.A Ford. will face nothing but loss."

"Did you investigate me?" My father questioned furiously. "Wait..."

He became more livid when a realisation dawned on him, "You have your men placed in my company to spy on me."

"Didn't you do the same?" I crossed my arms, a mocking glint passed my eyes. "After all, we share the same blood."

"You're being too much!"

"You only wanted the name of Empire Group of Industries to attract investors this is why you approached me." I continued saying. "It wasn't difficult to guess it."

"You will regret it, Victoria. Look what happened to your Mom. She was the same as you. You will have no one to rely on or support you. You'll be alone." Father glared at me sharply, his gentle facade no more.

Sigh, I knew it. Stefan Ford could never be the true father of mine.

"Father, I stopped relying on people the moment I was forced to grow up," I smirked and picked up my phone from the table, going out of the room.

Outside the room, I saw Kristina with a scowl on her face, arms crossed. The kind, concerned face she was showing at the dinner table was not visible anymore. Truly, birds of a feather flock together.

Not wanting to spoil my mood any longer, I moved past her.

"You don't want to help your father, someone who has brought you up? If we had known you would turn out to be like this, then–"

"He brought me up?" Stopping, I tilted my face, my voice strong and sharp. "Mind you, he was too occupied with his other family to even attend one parents-teacher meeting of mine- his legitimate eldest daughter." Mom's miserable, agony-filled face appeared before my eyes and I took a sharp breath, calming myself.

She would wait for Stefan Ford to come home for days, only to be disappointed in the end. After her death, only then I got to know the reason behind his disappearance.

"How dare you!"

Kristina's nostrils flared as she raised her hand at me, intending to slap me.

As soon as she attempted, I blocked her hand and pushed her away.

She would have attacked me again if it were not for my father. It was absolutely unbelievable how this woman changed her face right on the spot.

"Stefan, I... I'm sure Victoria didn't mean it." Kristina's voice turned soft. "I am sure you must have said something to infuriate her."

"Staying out of the home has made you mannerless that you've even forgotten how to respect your elders." Father spat.

I did not look in his direction but rather focused my attention on the woman who seemed pleased when she saw Stefan Ford angry at me.

"Drop your act already. I'm not a child who will go along with it." I made sure my voice came out as blank as possible.

***

"Non-alcoholic," I instructed and did not look up.

I started tapping on my phone rapidly. Setting up planners for future events in the company.

"Ma'am, we offer only–"

This time I darted my eyes at the bartender who seemed to be around eighteen or nineteen with boyish facial features.

I have not seen him before.

Where is the previous guy who knew my preference?

"She's special, Brody." A voice came behind me.