THE DEVIL'S FLOWER

At the Wilson mansion, the whole environment was decorated with all kinds of fancy lights and decorations, from the front lawn to the back patio. Twinkling lights illuminated the house and its exterior, giving it a radiant and inviting appearance.

As the night progressed, more and more luxury vehicles kept pouring in and filling the parking lot. Each guest was dressed in expensive attire, making their way towards the hall where the party was being held.

A number of boxes were being carried by their servants that were wrapped, which indicates that they were gifts for the host of the party.

Every single person attending this party were all members of the elite or upper class families in the country. But they were all here to curry favour and build connections with the Wilsons, especially George Wilson, the patriarch and current head of the Wilsons.

They understood the importance of leveraging the Wilsons' influence and power for their own benefit.

The Wilson family was one of the top three elite families in the country. It was almost impossible to determine which family was at the top, due to the fact that almost all three families are all relatively close in comparison in both power and wealth.

When the old patriarch announced he would be celebrating his 65th birthday publicly rather than the previous ones he celebrated in private which only included his family members.

Several other elite family members saw this as an opportunity to gain the favour of one of the strongest forces in the city. This caused the social economy to go into turmoil due to the struggle to get invited. It was a special event, and everyone wanted to attend.

Now that the day of the event had finally arrived, every guest brought different kinds of rare and expensive gifts. This is the only way to leave a favorable impression on the old patriarch.

Old Mr. George Wilson sat in his chair like an emperor with a bored expression on his face. Despite the courtesy and consideration shown by the guests, Old Mr. Wilson was unimpressed.

His expression of apathy proved that no amount of generosity could rouse his enthusiasm.

He only nodded his head in acknowledgement of the various gifts the guests presented him with and sometimes he wouldn't spare them a glance.

Several guests observed that the old patriarch seemed uninterested in the celebration and seemed to be in a bad mood. His lack of enthusiasm was apparent, and it seemed that nothing could lift his spirits.

"Who would dare to offend such a mighty figure especially on such a joyous occasion unless that person wanted to taste death?" This was the thought they all had in their minds.

No one, not even his own family members, would dare to challenge the Old Patriarch's authority, for fear of the consequences of such an offense.

Although it was an ideal opportunity for both family members and guests, since anyone who improved the Old patriarch's spirits instantly rose in rank of favoritism. But who would dare to make the first move?.

"Does anything seem to be the problem, Father? You look unsatisfied."

Glancing at the person who spoke which was none other than his first born son. Steve Wilson.

The Old patriarch was not surprised, after all he expected nothing less from him considering how ruthless and cunning his first born son was.

It wasn't new to him but almost all of his children and grandchildren wanted to get on his good side in hopes that they would be selected as his successor. Since, he was yet to announce an heir to the Wilson empire.

Originally, Steve was supposed to be his heir, but Old Mr. Wilson insisted that he would only select his successors based on their capabilities and achievements.

So each of the family members worked as executive managers and staff in different sectors of the Wilson empire to prove their capability. However, Steve defied all odds and proved to be the most promising among them.

Everyone had already thought of Steve as the next patriarch. But, they were unaware that the Old Patriarch had already chosen his heir, a person whose accomplishments had even surpassed Steve's.

"Yes brother, something seems to be bothering you. Please tell me what it is and I will handle it for you."

This time it was his George's younger sister, Sarah Wilson. Who was conveying a plan to make her own son be chosen by her older brother as the next heir .

"Uncle please tell me I will handle it immediately." Another family member spoke.

"There's no need for my uncle and aunt to bother you, grandfather. I will deal with it for you. Just relax and enjoy the party." Another grandchild spoke.

Every other family member and some close friends started voicing their concern and hoping to take advantage of the opportunity.

"Tsk." Old Mr. Wilson clicked his tongue."Cunning foxes, they would never cease firing at each other just to get in my favor. They are all cowards sending a sacrificial lamb to test the water before they dive into it and now they want to steal the prize." He thought to himself.

Fed up with false affection George finally answered. "Okay fine, you all claim to handle my problem. Now will anyone tell me why one of you is missing when I specifically ordered all family members to be present at my birthday banquet?"

All the family members had a look of confusion on their faces when they heard Old Wilson.

"But father every single one of us is present here." Steve said.

"Yes uncle no one would dare disobey your order and be absent today." Bryan who was the son of Sarah and the younger sister of Old Mr. Wilson said in support of Steve his cousin.

"Is that so? Well I don't remember me disowning any family members recently. So unless I am the one blind or it is either all of you but I wouldn't say it is the former."

"Please, brother, you are causing great confusion so would you mind enlightening us?" Sarah asked the question everyone wanted to ask.

Old Mr. Wilson gave a deep frown. "Of course I should. I can't believe I forgot that you are all dimwits."

"Steve step forward." Old Mr. Wilson called out.

Obeying his father's command, Steve moved closer to his father with his head bowed. "Yes father, I am at your disposal."

Old Wilson nodded his head twice. "Now listen carefully to what I am about to say. Of all my children you turn out to be the smartest and most capable..." Old Wilson paused.

The entire banquet hall was in utter shock and silence as they couldn't believe their ears. That was the highest form of acknowledgement anyone had ever received from Wilson's old patriarch. The only words of acknowledgement Old Wilson had ever said to someone was the word "Good"

Could it be that the Old Man was about to crown his next successor?

Steve wouldn't deny that he was not elated at the moment. However, he didn't want to jeopardize his image in front of his father so he remained in his position despite smiling inwardly.

Steve could feel the envy and hatred that the other family members were directed at him.

So he decided to show more modesty in order to boost his image. "Thank you, Fa..."

"Let me finish." Old Wilson interrupted, and Steve instantly lowered his head and closed his mouth.

"In spite of some of the efforts you have made for the family, I find it most disappointing that you are the slowest-witted among my children," Old Wilson remarked.

Steve who had been beaming with joy heard the greatest shock of his life. He instantly raised his head to look at his father.

"What?.... I don't understand what you mean father?" He complained in confusion. Few seconds ago his father was complimenting him but now he was being insulted.

"And that proves it all, doesn't it? How can you be such a fool? When I said someone was missing, I expected you to be the first to figure it out. But your overconfidence has blinded your sense of reasoning, and you believe that you are capable of becoming my heir. What an ignorant fool you are?" Old Wilson ranted loudly.

Other family members stiffened their laughter as the head of the family continued to rain all sorts of insults on Steve, who was biting his lips in rage at the embarrassment he was receiving.

The rest of the guests just watched in amazement as they witnessed another moment of the Old patriarch's ruthlessness. Even though Steve was his first born son, his father didn't hesitate to publicly humiliate him.

"Father I know you are upset but you can't just continue blaming my husband for what he is simply clueless about." Margret defended Steve who was her husband.

"And who permitted you to speak yet, huh?" Old Wilson asked as he glared at Margret.

Margret shivered as the threatening gaze of Old Wilson fell upon her.

"Useless, that is what you both are. However, if you have no idea why I am bothered and you hope to resolve the issue, then why don't you tell me where your first born daughter is, Steve? Tell me where she is right now and give me a reason why I can't see her face among the crowd."

It was at this moment that Steve and the rest of the family realized what had happened.

"Yes, that is true Emily does seem to be absent from this gathering." Some of the family members muttered.

"Uncle is right Steve. Why isn't your daughter present here today? How can you be so shameless to even have the guts to cause such disorder at our uncle's birthday?" Bryan asked as he faked an annoyed expression.

He immediately capitalized on the opportunity to cause his cousin more defamation in order to berate him in front of the family head and the rest of the guests present.

Sensing her son's malicious intentions Sarah poured more oil into the fire. "Surely your lack of discipline is evident by such misbehaviour and I will also reprimand your wife for neglecting her duty."

"Hey don't bring my name into this. How am I to be responsible for that nuisance behavior when I am clearly not her mother?" Margret quickly defended herself.

"Well as Steve's wife you are officially her stepmother." Sarah retorted back.

"That is...um...um...well she never listened to anyone even her own father and she is far more rebellious than any of you think." Margret shuttered while trying to explain and push all the blame back on the culprit.

"So are you saying my older cousin lacks control over his own daughter?" Bryan asked with an evil smirk on his face. "If that's true how can a man that can't control his own daughter and family control a business empire?"

'Stupid woman.' Steve thought as he gave Margret a glare.

By slandering Steve as a live-in husband, Bryan had just chipped away a substantial portion of his reputation.

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AUTHOR NOTE

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