The Billionaires Desires novel Chapter 82

Raymond POV

It has been three years and six months since the plane crash. At first, I thought we were never going to make it out of that island alive because Nathan was such a lazy foul that just wouldn’t follow my instructions. He tried getting away from me and he almost got us killed, more than once. Damn, it was so difficult to work with him and I nearly considered the idea of leaving him to fend for himself while I get myself off that fucking island, but I banished those ideas as quickly as they came, I couldn’t fail in this task because my families good name was at stake, our honor needs to be restored and Nathan was our best bet at recovering everything we lost when the elderly Nathan kicked us out of the family. I’m glad I did not abandon this mission, I’m glad I did not disappoint my family and my brother, Miguel. It gives me great joy to look at the man that Nathan Trent has become and I must admit that I am super proud of him. Not only does he know how to defend himself, but he now understands how the world works and now he knows better than to ignore his responsibilities. He now thinks carefully before he acts and he makes his decision without sentiments or bias. He has all the gangs and cartels under his belt, all except for the Schwartz brothers, and they too would come around because if they don’t, the other gangs would turn against them and it wouldn’t be nice at all. 

That is the only reason why Nathan has not declared them rogue, he still believes that they may still come around and accept them, he doesn’t want to make a proclamation that would cause war on the streets because many innocent lives would be lost if that happens. He is just playing smart, giving Robert Schwartz enough time to think carefully and come back to his senses. Nathan is about to finish his training with the elders of the Trent household, but I’ve not been able to get a quiet time with the old man, he has been avoiding Nathan since he got disgraced and exposed. He just keeps to himself and goes about his business, acting like we don’t exist. Nathan is cool with his attitude, as long as it doesn’t affect the handover ritual and his training, then he is cool with it. I would have been cool with it as well but I don’t trust the old Trent, I never have and I never will. I followed Nathan's instructions and I let him be and I kept my nose out of his business, but he did not extend the same hand of courtesy, he didn’t stay out of our business. I caught the old man one day making a secret call with a burner phone that he always keeps hidden away below the floorboards of his office. He thought he was alone and so he spoke freely, speaking to his other grandson, Travis Trent. I squatted by the blinds and I listened to his conversation with Travis and it got me so fucking pissed as I realized that the old man was still trying to help Travis, he was giving him tips on how to defeat Nathan. He advised Travis to make Nathan’s death an open contract so any thug or hoodlum on the street would be interested in the job. So apart from the Schwartz brothers, Nathan would still have a bunch of thugs on his tail and it’s all thanks to his grandfather.

I couldn’t let that fly, I couldn’t let him succeed. I have no idea why he decided to against the family rules this time, but I can’t let him go, I just can’t. I wonder why he did not let them arrest the tricky old man, he would have done this family a huge favor by getting rid of the old man, that way I’ll sleep better because I know that we have one less enemy to worry about. He has been getting away with all his evil acts, but not this time because I’m ready to tell him the bitter truth that everyone has been so scared to tell him. First I went to Nathan and I told him that the old man is the one passing information to the Schwartz brothers, I told him about the call the old man was just making a few minutes ago, but he didn’t react in any way, he didn’t even flinch. It was then that I realized that Nathan had known about his grandfather’s stupid mistakes, but he didn’t want to do anything about it. Who would blame the guy, the old man is his grandfather and up until he got threatened by Travis, he was always in support of Nathan. I believe that he would still be in support of Nathan if not for Travis, but that doesn’t mean he is a saint, it simply means that he is just stupid or plain ass dumb and if Nathan would let his sentiment to undermine his thinking, well, I won’t. I found my way into his office, ignoring his outburst and complaints about me intruding into his private affairs. I walked up to his table and placed my fist on his table, leaning towards him so I was now face to face with him.

“Stop contacting Travis, Mr. Trent. You should be glad that your grandson Nathan is trying to correct all your earlier mistakes, you should be glad that he is letting you have your freedom, despite all your attempts on his life. Nathan may be holding back because you are his grandfather, but trust me, I won’t hold back because I have no sentiments toward you, I hate you Mr. Trent and I’m itching to get you locked up for a very long time. I dare you to make one more call to Travis, Mr. Trent. I dare you to go against Nathan one more time. All it would take is just a subtle leak from my side, I would hand over every piece of evidence that the cops need to put you away for a very long time, by the time I’m done with you, you’ll be begging for mercy from the same Nathan who you betrayed. Don’t forget, it was I who saved him on that island, he trusts me and he would believe me if I tell him that I don’t know how the evidence gets into the hands of the cops, he would never doubt my words and you wouldn’t be here to make him doubt me because you would have been given a perfect room in prison and I’m going to make sure that you get a perfect roommate as well. That would teach you how to treat people right, that would teach you not to turn your friends into enemies.” I told him fiercely, watching as the color got drained from his face completely.

“You look vaguely familiar, young man. Who are you and why do you have so much vendetta against me?” He asks me calmly, keeping his eyes fixed on me.

“Does the name Hartford means anything to you?” I asked him sternly, then I smirked in satisfaction when his eyes went as wide as saucers. It’s a good thing that he still remembers our family, I do admire his diligence in keeping tabs on his enemies, although I hope he has learned his lessons already because I would really hate to hurt him. Nathan would never forgive me if I hurt his grandfather and my grandfather would go crazy if he finds out that I did anything to hurt his best friend. But I’ll still keep up with my threats and just pray that he doesn’t call my bluff.

“I am a Hartford and I am here to restore our family's honor. Stay out of our way old man, I am not as weak and stupid as my grandfather, I won’t let you ruin everything we have worked so hard to achieve. The secret calls end right now, trust me, you don’t want to know what I’m capable of, don’t test me old man or you’ll be sorry.” I warned him fiercely before heading out of his office without so much as a second glance. Deep within me, I know I had reached his heart. I can imagine how all this guilt would be eating him up from within, it must be so damn hard to carry all this burden all on your own. If I were him, I would think deeply about it all and I would throw myself at Nathan’s feet and thank him for trying to atone for my errors and saving me from shame and disgrace. I think I got through to him because I never saw him snitching on Nathan anymore and attacks subsided a little and Nathan was free to carry out his training in peace. Although we did find out that Travis was making another play in this matter, he was no longer fighting dirty, rather, he was trying to sell off everything and run away. But I wasn’t bothered by this information because I know that the old man wasn’t responsible for it this time, it was a bunch of silly elders that simply can’t get their priorities right. But I am very confident that Nathan would find a way to sort it out pretty soon, he is learning so fast from me and mostly from the elders and I am quite confident in his ability to make good decisions at any time, I trust in him completely.