From Betrayal to Billions

CHAPTER 20

The luxury mall was a sanctuary of noise and chaos. Jace felt anonymous, in his simple outfit, like a ghost observing the world that had once rejected him. But the peace he felt was interrupted by a familiar, high pitched scream.

“DADDY!”

A small force of energy slammed into Jace’s legs and wrapped his tiny arms around him. Jace looked down in shock and saw the smiling face of Liam, the little boy he had loved as his own for six years.

Before he could organize his emotions, Stella suddenly appeared beside him, with an expression of revulsion etched on her face and dragged Liam away from him forcefully.

“Liam! Don’t you ever touch that!” She snarled, and shoved the little boy behind her. Liam scrunched his face in pain, with tears welling up in his eyes.

Jace looked at her calmly and said, “He was just saying hello, Stella. No harm done.”

“Hello?” She spat at him furiously, which drew the attention of nearby shoppers. “He has nothing to say to a man who sleeps in gutters. Look at you. In the slums because you can’t even afford the air in a real store? Did you finally get a job? Let me guess…stocking shelves? Or maybe you are the one mopping the floors here?”

Jace smiled, to her annoyance. “The air seems fine from here. How is Ethan, by the way? I heard his company is under fire. Nasty Buisness. You have to give it to the honorable Mr Parkinson, though. He is doing a beautiful job.”

Stella laughed shrilly as she tried to humiliate him. “Mr Parkinson? Do not speak about men you can not even comprehend, Jace. You will never breathe the same air as him. You are a failed husband, a failed stepfather, and a failure at life. Men like him build empires. Men like you….you get thrown out of them and end up begging for scraps in shopping malls.”

“Funny,” Jace smiled and tucked his hands casually in his pockets. “I heard he was offering you a way out. With a rather generous dollar, I believe.”

“You know nothing about—”

“Stella? Is everything alright?”

Mila’s voice was heard at the mall entrance. She approached them with a shopping bag in her hand, and her eyes widening in genuine surprise at the scene before her. She gazed at Jace for a split second and a silent question passed between them before she focused her attention entirely on Stella.

Stella eyes lit up maliciously as the pieces connected in her mind….Mila, the CEO’s shadow, and Jace, the pathetic ex-husband. It was too perfect.

“Mila! Perfect timing,” Stella called out sweetly. “I was just keeping this…situation…away from my son. It seems the mall’s new cleaning staff is being overly familiar.”

She turned her full attention to Mila, and lowered her voice in a staged whisper, but ensuring Jace could hear every word.

“You can run back to your mysterious CEO and deliver a message for me. Tell him his little plan has failed. His one dollar ultimatum?” She leaned in with triumph in her eyes. “He can take it and go to hell.”

Mila stared at her blankly and shook her head. “I am sure I do not know what you are talking about, Stella. I am just running errands.”

“Of course you are,” Stella sneered and spared a dismissive glance towards Jace’s direction. “And I am sure he is too. Odd jobs suit him, don’t you think? Far more than playing a house husband.”

She then turned to look at Mila, with confidence in her gaze. “Tell your boss that Ethan is stronger than he knows. We are not afraid of him. His reign of terror is about to end.”

Liam, who was frightened and confused, tugged on Stella’s coat. “Mommy, I want to go….”

Stella ignored him, and glared at both of them. “Stay away from my family, Jace. You are a ghost. Remember that.”

She finally turned away, dragging a crying Liam behind her, leaving Jace and Mila staring at her retreating back.

The moment she was out of hearing, Mila let out a slow breath and whispered, “Sir, I am sorry. I did not know she would be here…”

Jace smiled coldly as he continue to stare at the spot where Stella had disappeared. “Do not be. That was more information than expected.”

He finally looked at Mila, as the CEO, not the man.

“She is not afraid. She is planning a counter attack. Something she thinks will make her invincible.” He turned and began to walk out of the hall, with Mila falling into step beside him. “Find out what it is. I want to know what makes a drowning woman that confident.”

He had given them the rope, but they were starting to create their own chain. The war was far from over.