The Heir

chapter 31

THE day of the banquet has come. Victoria was nervous and excited at the same time. It felt like a judgement day, but on the contrary, a good thing was about to happen—her much-awaited promotion as the Griffith Group’s new general manager.

“Do you need a hand?”

She turned her gaze in the direction of the bedroom’s door and found her husband leaning on the door frame, still dressed in his wet exercise clothes. She did not know why he had to do some exercise just when there were leaving.

“Max, if you don’t move now, we will be late for the banquet. You know Grandma will give us a scolding and maybe a beating if we are late.” She shook her head and still try to zip the back of her dress on her own. Through the mirror, she saw him sauntered towards her and zipped her dress for her. “Thank you.”

“We are not running late. You just prepared way too early because you are so excited.”

“Of course, I am. Aren’t you excited too? Our lives are about to change.”

“I am excited to see your cousins’ gloomy faces—”

“Max…” she said in a firm tone. “We shouldn’t be happy for someone else’s downfall. And besides…” Victoria heaved a sigh and sat on the chair. “Whether my cousins, especially the male ones, have a position on the company or none, it doesn’t mean that they won’t be getting any favors from my grandmother.”

“Are you worried?” Maximilian crouched in front of her and caught her hands. He gently squeezed them, which brought her comfort somehow.

“I told you before, I am worried about Franklin. He is capable of everything… anything.” She bit her lip.

“Well, it seems to me that he accepted his defeat this time. Look, everything is going on smoothly, isn’t it?”

Victoria faked a smile to show him that she agrees with him. But truth be told, that was the thing that bothers her the most. The calm before the storm, as what they say. She could not help but think that her cousin Franklin was doing something behind her back.

“Come on, Victoria, this is your day!” He patted her cheek and stood up.

“And you should hurry up,” she told Maximilian, changing the course of their conversation.

“Aye, aye, Madam!” He grinned and then headed to the bathroom.

After a few seconds, Victoria stood up and picked her phone from the bedside table. She phoned her grandmother’s secretary, who answered her call after a couple of rings.

“Yes, Victoria?” asked Charlotte.

She cleared her throat. “Is everything okay there?”

“Yeah, everything looks fine. The guests started to arrive as well as your relatives. Aren’t you coming here yet?”

She heard voices in the background, guests chitchatting with one another.

“Max and I are getting ready. We will be there soon.”

“Is the president of the LS Group really coming?” Charlotte lowered her voice a bit. The voices in the background became distant too. “Everyone here is anticipating…”

“Well… I do send him an invite through Vanessa. But she said she cannot guarantee that he will come.”

“It would be nice if he comes. There are a lot of tales and speculations about him on and off the internet. He should end them now.”

“What tales?” Victoria’s brows furrowed.

“Oh, gosh! You are so outdated. You should browse the internet at least once a day.” Charlotte laughed. “Anyway, back to the topic, I heard from some guests that he was spotted on a jewelry store. There’s this video circulating that captured him. And that he went to one of the top restaurants in town. Things like that…”

“Wow, I think there is already too much scoop there.” She glanced at the bathroom door. Her husband was not coming out yet. “I think I should tell my dear Maximilian to hurry up.”

“Yes, you are missing a lot, you know.” She heard someone called Charlotte. “Anyway, I have to hang up. See you later.”

“Hm…”

The call ended the same time her husband exited the bathroom.

“Who was that?” Maximilian asked as he dried his hair with a towel.

“Charlotte. I was just asking how things are going.” ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

Her husband pulled the chair in front of the vanity mirror and sat there. “Can you fix my hair for me?”

Victoria smiled. “Of course. Anything for you, my dear.”

THE banquet hall Mrs. Griffith chartered was already filled with guests when Victoria and Maximilian arrived. Relatives, business tycoons, and a few politicians close to the family were present.

He grabbed two flutes of champagne from the waiter who walked past them and handed one of the flutes to Victoria. His plan was to sit in a corner and silently watch the happenings, but his wife has another plan. When he was about to leave Victoria’s side, she clutched an arm to him and whispered to his ear.

“Stay beside me, Max. I want you to be with me the whole time…”

He took a sip of champagne and walked with her towards the crowd. They were almost halfway to the hall when Victoria’s cousin, Iris, appeared out of nowhere.

“Well… well… look who is finally here!” Iris gave his wife a peck on the cheek and smiled at him. “Oh, Victoria, you look gorgeous tonight!”

“Ah… thank you,” Victoria replied sweetly.

“Your dress looks classy too. Where did you buy it?” Iris took a sip of her champagne without looking away.

“Oh, it’s the same modiste.”

“You used to call my wife’s dress a low-cost fashion, didn’t you?” Maximilian chimed in. “What’s gotten into you now, Iris?” Perhaps you are trying to get close to my wife now that she is about to become the new general manager.”

“Come on, Maximilian!” Iris laughed. “You are about to become a joker.”

He was about to say something when he noticed that the old Mrs. Griffith was being assisted as she went up on the makeshift stage. Victoria saw it too and immediately pulled her towards the crowd. They occupied the vacant seats in front.

“This is it,” Victoria leaned her head on his shoulder.

“Yeah.” Maximilian grabbed her hand and gently pressed it.

Her hand was cold. Perhaps she was still feeling nervous.

“A pleasant evening to everyone,” Mrs. Griffith said on the microphone.

Franklin stood right next to his grandmother on stage. Ah, this one really loves having exposure, Maximilian thought.

“First, I would like to thank everyone for joining us this evening as we celebrate an important milestone not just for the Griffith Group but for my family as well. May we soar higher and higher to success.” The guests cheered and applauded that made the old Mrs. Griffith pause. “And also, I would like to take this opportunity to announce that the Griffith Group has a new general manager.”

Maximilian heard Victoria took a deep breath. He turned to her, and his free hand patted her knuckles.

“Everyone, I present to you, the new general manager of the Griffith Group… my grandson, Franklin.”

The guests applauded once again while Maximilian and Victoria were shocked. It was not what they were expecting. What happened?

“H-how come it was Franklin? T-that should be me, right, Max?” Victoria turned to him with tears rolling down her cheeks. Disappointment and betrayal were written all over his wife’s now pale face.

She withdrew her hand from his grip and ran out of the hall crying.

Maximilian was about to follow his wife when he saw Franklin looking in his direction, grinning from ear to ear. Something did happen behind their back! His wife’s instinct was right, after all.

He postponed following Victoria and remained seated. The voice at the back of his head told him that he should stay because he has a much greater thing to do.

Old Mrs. Griffith then passed the microphone to his grandson.

“It is a great honor to be chosen as the new general manager of the Griffith Group,” said Franklin.

“I am so proud of you, son!” Uncle Carlson shouted.

Franklin turned his gaze in his father’s direction and bowed. “Thank you, Father.”

Maximilian’s fists clenched above his lap. If they think they already ousted Victoria in the picture, well, they were wrong. Of course, he would not let that happen. Franklin may have manipulated the Griffiths, but he calls the shots at the LS Group. He looked around, and his vision caught Vanessa, who, just like him, was sitting in the front row, only a few tables away. She was looking at him too. And as if they have telepathy, they nodded at each other.

“And to make this night more meaningful.” He returned his gaze on the stage when old Mrs. Griffith spoke on the microphone again. “We invited the new president of the LS Group. If you are here, may you please join us here on stage…”

The guests started whispering at each other, sounding like bees. Each one has a tale to tell about the new president. One guest near him even claimed that he had seen the new president in person, saying he happened to be at the same jewelry store where the video that gone viral days ago was taken. Some claimed that the man on the video and the man who chartered the top local restaurant was the same person, and that was none other than the mysterious new LS Group president. So many speculations, a lot of expectations from the public, but for Maximilian, it was nothing but a tale their tongues speak. No one amongst the guests really knows the real identity of the new president, aside from Vanessa.

And then… slowly, he rose from his seat.