Secret Scion

Rose merely shot Xavier a faint smile. “Grandpa, I'm a part of the Schmidt family. Of course, I'll always prioritize this family's benefits. I don't have the say in who gets to become the next patriarch as well."

It was not as if Rose did not want to become the next head of the family; it was just that she could not force it to happen. Instead of exposing her true intentions at an unstable time like this, it would serve her better if she were to conceal her intentions from the get-go. Once the moment had arrived, she would start planning on becoming the next Schmidt matriarch. Anyway, it was not as if Garrett could replace Xavier as the patriarch of the family this soon. Xavier could not help but sigh deeply upon hearing Rose's answer. "It'd be fortuitous for us if only you were a man, Rose. I promise you this; even though you can't become the matriarch of our family, we'll still make sure you live a great life here."

As soon as he finished speaking, Rose's phone started ringing out loud. She pulled it out and was about to turn it off when Xavier interrupted her, "It's getting late. You should rest as well." After exiting Xavier's room and closing the door behind her, Rose picked up the call that came from an unknown number.

"Ms. Schmidt, this is Radley Leonard."

Rose stopped in her tracks immediately and asked, "Where are you?"

"I'm in the Capital City. In fact, I'm near the Schmidt residence right now. Ms. Schmidt, are you interested in meeting up for a couple of drinks with me? I'd like to talk about the matter concerning Mikaela and Garrett."

Radley intended to talk about Mikaela's matter?

Did Asher not bribe her some time ago? Could it be that there were new changes in this matter? Having thought that far, Rose replied, "Name your place."

Half an hour later, at a small bar that was located close to the Schmidt residence.

Radley happened to be sitting in a secluded corner. Now that he was about to negotiate with Rose, he could not help but feel anxious. He tapped his right thumb on the cocktail glass rhythmically, his gaze forever trained on the entrance of the bar.

Soon, a gorgeous woman in a black dress walked into the bar. As she looked around the area, Radley quickly stood up and beckoned to her. "Over here, Ms. Schmidt."

Rose approached his table and asked, "Are you alone?"

"Sorry, Ms. Schmidt. Mikaela can't show herself just yet," Radley replied. "What would you like to drink?"

"Juice, please," Rose said.

Soon, a waiter served her a glass of juice. After taking a sip from her glass, Rose said, "I thought you were at Rollinsford. I never expected you to be here all this time. Are you involved in the whole 'Mikaela causing trouble at the Schmidt residence' fiasco as well?"

Radley shook his head immediately. "You're overthinking it, Ms. Schmidt. That was Asher's idea, and it has nothing to do with me. Asher is a sly and cunning man, but my sister, Mikaela, is just a naïve and innocent girl who doesn't know much about how the world works. That's why she got manipulated by Asher very easily. Then again, I can't just sit by and watch her fall into his trap. Hence, I decided to invite you out for a few drinks and talk about this."

After Rose heard Radley's reply, she knew straight away that there were new changes in this matter. She folded her arms in front of her ample bosom while leaning back on the couch. Then, she cast an interested look in Radley's direction before saying, "Well, I'd like to know what you think of this matter."

Radley took a sip from his glass of cocktail while formulating his reply. "The Schmidts are an elite family in the Capital City, so they won't allow Mikaela to live with them. However, she's now pregnant with Garrett's child. That's why the Schmidts don't dare to do anything for now, resulting in the matter not being solved after such a long time has passed. Perhaps I'll be able to help solve this problem for the Schmidts. In return..."

"What is it? Just tell me."

"In return, I'd like the Schmidts to do two things for me."

Rose nodded immediately. "Name them."

"First things first, I want to stay in the Capital City to develop my career here, but since I'm an outsider, it's difficult for me to establish my foundation in this city. That's why I hope that the Schmidts can personally help me out with this problem."

"No problem." Rose did not hesitate to accept the first condition. "I'll just spread the word about you being a friend of the Schmidts with a wealthy background. With this affiliation, you'll be able to enter the second and third-rate elite circles without any problem."

"You're indeed a decisive woman, Ms. Schmidt. The second condition comes with a backstory. I have a friend in the Capital City. He sought me out a few days ago to pool together our assets and open a bar here, but in the end, he conned 300 grand out of me. I want to get my money back. I know that friend of mine has connections in the underworld, but I suppose he shouldn't be that big of a problem to you, Ms. Schmidt."

A faint smile played on Rose's lips as she replied, "I can agree to these conditions, but I'd like to know just how you are planning to deal with my family's problem."

Radley elaborated with the corners of his mouth slightly lifted, "I know where Mikaela's hiding place is. As long as you help me out with these two conditions, Ms. Schmidt, I'll tell you where she is right away. By then, you can just make her get an abortion. Won't your problem be solved then?"

"What about the leverage Asher has over Garrett?" The Schmidts were not that threatened by Mikaela's pregnancy. It was the security footage that left them paralyzed with fear.

Radley just shook his head in return while chuckling bitterly. "Ms. Schmidt, Asher doesn't have any security footage in his hands at all. He was just scaring you guys with that threat. That's why I told you that he's an extremely sly and cunning man."

No matter how good Rose's temperament was, she could not suppress the flames of rage that erupted from within her the moment she heard Radley's response. How dare Asher use such underhanded tricks to fool everyone at the banquet! At that moment, a strong surge of humiliation was all she felt.

However, Rose still looked calm on the outside. She did not want Radley to see through her true emotional state, after all. She did her best to squeeze out a faint smile before replying, "Radley, I hope that this alliance of ours can last for a long time."

As long as Asher did not have the security footage in his hands, it would be way easier for the Schmidts to deal with Mikaela.

Meanwhile, in a suite located somewhere in the Hillon Hotel.

A young couple was engaged in a heavy make-out session while locked in a tight embrace. They had been at it for a very long time, but in the end, they chose not to breach the last barrier that would conjoin their bodies and souls together.

"We'll continue next time," Asher breathed out to Noelle, trying very hard to suppress the surging waves of lust in his body as he clambered out of bed and started smoothening out his clothes.

The latter's face was as red as a tomato. Her seductive red lips were still moist with the essence that they had exchanged earlier, making them look increasingly charming. When she heard Asher's words, she suppressed the desire to cover her face with the blanket. At the same time, she could not help but look forward to their next rendezvous. In the end, she just replied with a soft hum that was as tiny as a mosquito's buzzing.

Noelle was glad that she was able to improve her relationship with Asher on the trip to the Capital City. Even though Asher did not say anything down the lines of cementing their relationship to her, she knew that there were many times when Asher had already acknowledged her as his woman without the need to say it.

For example, Griffin was quick to call her his sister-in-law. Another example would be their hot and heavy make-out session that had taken place earlier.

The next day, Asher could not help but feel that something was missing after he sent Noelle off. This made him feel melancholic.

However, having gone through two years of challenges and mental refinement, Asher was able to control his emotions well. There were still many things for him to deal with, so it was not the time for him to feel emotional.

After lunchtime, he said to Marguerite, "Mom, I'm heading out later, so I won't be back for dinner in the evening."

"Okay. Come back as early as you can." Marguerite nodded with a smile.

After that, Asher drove away in the Audi A6 that Tristan had compensated him previously. Back then, he intended to return the car to the Andersons, but since Solomon did not say anything about it, Asher decided not to return it.

He pulled out his phone and quickly located Huxley's phone number in his contacts list. After the

call was connected for a while, Huxley finally picked it up. "What is it?"

He sounded very calm and quite cold at the same time.

Asher said with a smile, "Do you have time tonight? I'd like to treat you to a few drinks."

"Tonight? I may have to put it on a raincheck. I have a meeting with a client."

"What about tomorrow?" Asher continued.

"I'm also busy tomorrow." Huxley turned him down immediately. When Asher frowned, he heard Huxley continue, "If you have anything to say to me, you can do it on the phone." Asher finally realized that Huxley did not want to meet him at all. All those reasons about him being busy were just excuses.

"We haven't had drinks together as brothers for a very long time. I just want to treat you to a few drinks, that's all. Why don't you pick a time, then? I'm always free," Asher reasoned. Huxley was silent for a moment. Then, he finally relented, "I'll call you after I'm done with my client tonight." After that, he hung up on Asher.

The latter licked his dry and chapped lips, a bitter smile curled on his lips.

On the other hand, Tristan made a fast recovery after the surgery was done. Yesterday, he heard from Savannah that Griffin had thrashed Jeremiah's car. Hal had gone over to the Quinn residence to demand for a proper explanation. That piece of news made Tristan's day, which made him yearn to cause trouble.

Around noontime, Tristan contacted a few friends as he planned to teach Castor a lesson. How dare an outsider like him cause a ruckus in the Capital City! In Tristan's eyes, Castor was too arrogant and bold for his own good. Besides, his younger sister was so sexy and delectable. She got lucky last time since Griffin was there to save her, but Tristan refused to believe that she would get lucky the second time.

The memory of Dove's sexy figure and gorgeous looks made Tristan's heart itch for her uncontrollably.

Meanwhile, Castor had made decent progress when it came to his business in Alexandrius. He did not dare to compare himself to the local elites, but at least he was doing better than some of the wealthy offspring of the elite families who only knew how to waste their days away with unproductive entertainment. Not only did Castor invest in a few companies, but he also opened a restaurant on his own. The chefs were all Rollinsford locals; naturally, the overall taste of the cuisine offered by that restaurant was more to the southern style.

When it was dinnertime, customers kept rushing into the restaurant. Business was booming by then.

Since Dove had nothing to do, she decided to help out at her brother's restaurant.

"Cas, has business always been this good ever since you opened this restaurant? It looks like you've earned buckets of gold over the past two years,” she joked.

Castor replied, "Profits are secondary. All I want to do is to establish my foundation in the Capital City. I've worked hard for two years, so I can't return home empty-handed."

Dove knew that Castor had suffered greatly over the past two years. When he first arrived at Alexandrius, he had no friends and relatives to rely on. He had to face all the hardships and challenges on his own as a result, which was insanely tough for him.