The Royal Contract

Nothing made sense.

He had been working since last night since he could not sleep after leaving the hospital. The scene in that room kept replaying in his mind when he closed his eyes.

Honestly, nothing about it should bother him. He had countless dinners with his parents when they were alive. He made several memorable memories with his mother he would cherish for the rest of his life.

However, he had never been part of such a happy family. He had never had a chance to bond with his biological father and sister until last night. He never had a stepmother or a brother-in-law.

Somehow last night affected him, no matter how much he wanted to deny it. His father seemed to crawl into his heart. However, that sounded ridiculous, hearing it in his mind.

But did he still have that muscle in the center of his chest? Did he still have the ability to love?

.....

“This entire situation is hilarious.” He said to himself, standing up from his seat and pacing the floor, knowing that his father, who raised him, made sure that love was the last thing he would feel.

His father had planted so much hatred in him that doing good was just an act he played for the sole benefit of his audience. Not because he had a pure heart.

He was the devil in disguise as an angel in a white robe with all his horrible intentions and selfish reasons. So, how could he suddenly change overnight, just because he was laughing with them?

“No. That is not simply possible.” Gerald shouted angrily, refusing to believe that Ethan could affect him this much.

He would not allow that man. His biological father had abandoned him and left him to fend for himself and the same man who had destroyed his mother’s life.

“Yes, Ethan, I blame you for my misery.” He shouted again as the man’s face flashed before his eyes.

In truth, it would have been easy to hate him if he had been the same as his father, Joaquin. But the more he had known his father, the more he wished he had been the one who had raised him.

It was the reason that had angered him more and more.

But honestly, was it the only basis of his fury? His mind nagged at him.

“What else was there?” He inquired, uncertain what his mind was getting at with the question. But he refused to dig dipper because he might not like the answer.

He quickly walked to the side of his home office, grabbing a bottle of scotch. A glass should do the trick to calm himself down.

He had a few cases to work on today. Important one. He needed his mind on the game and not going on haywire. He had to stop thinking about him and his impending death.

“Aaahhh!” He shouted, wanting to release the tension his mind created in his body.

Taking a deep breath, he walked to the wall where he had thrown the papers and started picking them up. One of the things he also learned in life. He always had to clean up his messes if he wanted things done right on the first try.

So far, lately, he had created many messes but only managed to sort some of them. He had to work harder on them before they could come back to bite him in the ass.

He had to stop making excuses and focus on his goals. All these lies and revelations had diverted him enough, already wasting his valuable time.

The phone on his table rang, snapping him back to the present. “Yes,” Gerald answered automatically, seeing who was on the other side of the line.

There were only two reasons why she would call. It was either about work or Ethan. But the former seemed more probable because she never contacted him about their father.

“I need you to come to the hospital immediately.” She said without any introduction or greetings. The urgency in her voice told him it was not a social call.

“Why, Dani? Did something happen to Ethan?” Once he heard his question, he could tell he sounded stupid even in his ears.

Of course, his sister would not have called him if this was not a life and death situation. He had figured out his sister had not warmed up to his presence in their lives, unlike Ethan and Laura. Not yet anyway.

Although he could feel she tried, it had not been easy. Not even if he had apologized to her. But should that even bother him when he was not through with his plans with all of them? When his revenge was still underway.

“I am not sure if your interest with our father was purely to get to know him or take revenge. I don’t even know if I should be calling you. But this is what Dad would want.” Dani said with indifference.

“He would want you to be there.” Dani took a deep breath as if she was controlling herself. From shouting or crying, he could not distinguish, but he could sense her emotions were on edge.

“So, come if you want to or not. It is up to you.” Suddenly, Dani sounded like their father when Ethan gave him a choice to acknowledge him or not.

Then, before he could respond, the line went dead. Dani did not wait for his answer. Maybe she could predict that she would be waiting for a long time.

Because he stood in the middle of the room, staring at the air before him. They were invisible in his eyes, but he seemed to see numerous images before him.

The father that he might not see ever again.

Eventually, he grabbed his things and his coat, hanging on the back of his chair, and moved towards the exit of his massive house. He had no more time to waste.

He needed to see him one more time if this was the last. He had to tell him how much he hated him. How much he loathed him for being his father.

Because all his childhood life, he had dreamed that Joaquin was not his father. He wanted a father just like him, Ethan.

But why did he have to meet his real biological father when he was about to leave him again. Why did he have to know him if they would not have more time together? It was just not fair.