A Game

"SOLD! To Mr. Daniel Kozlov for 850 million!" Wilford slammed the gavel three times closing the bid with a huge smile on his face. 

A collective gasp swept through the room, followed by a cascade of murmurs and exchanged glances. The transaction had left the audience awestruck and reeling from the dramatic turn of events.

"What a grand way to close the auction. Please, a round of applause for Mr. Daniel!"

Daniel, a faint hint of a victorious smile playing on his lips, stood up and acknowledged the room with a nod amidst the roaring applause before turning to the direction of the auctioneer.

Swiftly, he and Lucas approached Wilford and after completing the formalities they left the awestruck audience and…Jake behind.

"That heartless son of a unicorn." Jake muttered as he slowly slid back into his warm hiding spot but was soon exposed as guests began to leave one after the other, gossiping about how ridiculously rich Daniel Kozlov was hot on their lips.

Wilford, noticing that some of the guests were leaving quickly spoke into the microphone, "Now now, ladies and gentlemen. Though the auction is over, the night has just begun. We have an after-party right here sponsored by our very own Mr. Rodrigo Montero! Please enjoy yourselves and have a wonderful evening. Goodnight!"

After Wilford's announcement, another round of drinks and food was brought in and some of the guests that were preparing to leave stayed back to join in on the fun while the rest left as fast as they could.

They just couldn't help it. The auction was carried out privately with no media outlets invited so they had to do the honor of spreading the news of what transpired there by themselves.

To these people, in the face of juicy gossip, a juicy piece of lamb was truly lacking in comparison.

In Rodrigo Monetro's study,

Exuding an air of refined sophistication, its walls were dressed in mahogany panels, adorned with shelves that hosted an impressive collection of leather-bound tomes. 

A majestic fireplace, crafted from marble, cast a soft glow that danced on the polished oak floor. 

However, despite the luxury, someone couldn't seem to enjoy the elegance.

"Rodrigo! You didn't keep to your end of the deal!" a voice bellowed in the room.

Rodrigo, who was helping himself to a glass of red wine, shook and almost spilled some wine on himself. 

With a sigh, he dropped the bottle and grabbed the glass before turning to face his fuming friend, "You old fart! Can't you at least sit down before you start bursting my ear drums out?!"

 'This man hasn't changed one bit, still as hotheaded as always.' 

He was just escorted in by one of the waiters and the door hadn't been closed properly before he started screaming at the top of his lungs.

"And do you think I didn't want to keep to my end of the bargain?! That boy was a variable I didn't consider, damn it!" Rodrigo continued, finishing his wine in one gulp with a wince.

"You know how much this land means to me, Rigo! If not that I had invested most of my company funds in the petroleum investment scheme, I'd have fought to the death with that small rat today!" Simon fumed intensely as he paced around the study.

Placing his empty cup on his mahogany desk, Rodrigo sat and twirled as he tapped his chin, "Simon, I understand how you feel. What transpired tonight was also beyond my expectations. I never even considered that Daniel would know about let alone be interested in Valentina Estates. I presumed only the well-versed businessmen would."

Daniel's interest in Valentina Estates was indeed out of Rodrigo's expectations and it caught him off guard hence he wasn't sufficiently prepared to stop the surprise that popped up today. 

'But 850 million? Even I couldn't fork out such a humongous amount. So what exactly is Daniel planning that he'd go all out just to get his hands on Valentina Estates?' He mused, a frown creasing his graying eyebrows. 

As Rodrigo was lost in his thoughts, Simon who was pacing about halted with astonished eyes as if something had clicked in his head. 

Briskly, he spoke excitedly as he walked toward his friend, "But isn't he your adopted son? Which means the estate is still practically in your hands, right? Then there should be a way for you to collect it from him!"

Lifting his green eyes to stare at Simon who was already fantasizing about how they had already retrieved the documents from Daniel, Rodrigo shook his head with an exasperated smile.

"It's time you woke up from your fantasies Si. Daniel isn't the little boy of twenty years ago. As strange as it may seem, I can't dare to say that I'll be able to get my hands on the estate documents even if I get on my knees and beg him." He said, his smile breaking into a peal of amused laughter when he saw Simon's expression change.

"What?! Listen, Rodrigo, if you don't want to give me the estate just say it! Why would you tell me you can't talk to your son?! Who gave him the opportunity he has now? He can move in the business industry today, who made that possible for him? Whose name made that possible, huh?!" 

With an angry face, Simon questioned Rodrigo one after the other without taking a single breath, one would almost take him for a rapper.

Rodrigo shook his head in mirth, "You may not believe me but I had no hand in Daniel's progress neither did I contribute to his achievements. He did that all by himself and about me taking him in…" 

He halted his words and stood up to face the starless sky through the floor-to-ceiling window under Simon's eager watchful eyes, "….I actually haven't been completely honest about his origins."

"At this point, I'm short of words."

Slumping on the leather couch, Simon let out a big sigh and glanced at Rodrigo's face. He wasn't sure, but it seemed like although Rodrigo was staring at the sky, his eyes looked like they were somewhere else, lost in thoughts about something entirely different.

'Well, looks like I won't be getting my hands on that estate anytime soon.'

In a rundown restaurant,

A man cloaked in a gray trench coat strode through the door, his gaze fixated upon a woman draped in a black dress and a somber veil, seated at a table heading straight towards her. 

"Apologies ma'am, I wasn't able to save the estate. The competitor came really prepared." He lamented as soon as he sat down, his face tinged with disappointment. 

"As expected. I mean he isn't the leader of K for show. It's okay, it's our first time meeting with him anyway so let's just take it as a preparatory phase. At least now we understand him better. Forget it, I'll call you again when I need you." She remarked as she dropped the teacup in her hand on the cracked table and made to leave.

Noticing her intention to depart, the man quickly interjected, "But ma'am what about the estate? Will the second branch be left alone after pulling such a stunt just barely after the President's demise?" 

His boss only called him when she needed him so he had to at least ask her the question that had been burning inside him since he received the news of what the second branch did before she disappeared on him again.

The woman paused in her movements and stared at the man through the intricacies of her veil.

"Wouldn't it be odd if I left them alone? Take care Xander and don't make a move until I ask you to. You must await my command, do you understand?" She said and with that, she turned on her heels and left.

Xander shuddered, feeling a chill run down his spine as he watched her leave. Just now, he felt the aura of a CEO emanating from the lady. He knew he wasn't wrong to choose to stand on her side and follow her.

Outside the rundown restaurant, the woman walked down the narrow path and into an alley where a black sedan was parked.

She got into the car backseat and pulled off her veil revealing a pair of captivating upturned brown eyes framed by dark lashes, a pointy nose, and blood-colored heart-shaped lips.

In the driver's seat, a voice teased, "So my dear Addilyn, did you beat those bidders till they tapped out and pleaded for mercy?"

Snapping her eyes at the mischievous person in the driver's seat, Addilyn pouted in annoyance as she threw her veil to the side and scoffed, "What do you know? That Kozlov guy is filthy rich, we didn't even get a chance to compete. He completely floored us."

"Haha… When you got the list of the people attending the auction, I told you not to underestimate any of your competitors, especially Daniel Kozlov. He is one hell of a crazy dude." The driver had a cold glint flash through their black eyes when Daniel was mentioned.

Addilyn sighed, frustration evident in her voice. "I underestimated him, Dawn. He's on a different level."

Dawn smirked knowingly, "As much as I don't want to admit it, he's way more than that. With his involvement here in the auction today, he's playing a game we don't understand yet."

Addilyn's eyes narrowed as she frowned, "Well, what's our move now? We can't let this setback define us. We need Valentina Estates back and if it continues to remain in Kozlov's hands, then we can as well kiss it goodbye but we definitely can't afford that."