CHAPTER 106

Kyle King

I ignored the bottle that Xavier dropped beside me and continued ranting about Avaline and my mom. Luckily, Xavier got the message and allowed me to curse and lament about the fall of my marriage with Avalline. I also told him everything that happened at Tessa’s house and my next plan.

‘I thought you were going to say, ‘It’s over, man. Let’s get our things and return to our beloved country.’ and not this. Well, you never listen to me, so I am not surprised.' Xavier repiled, adding more ice cubes to his beer.

I glanced at him and said, ‘I had to see her, Kyle. She finally agreed to let me see her, even though the terms of the meeting were against me. Right now, I don’t think I will be returning to the States on Saturday. No. I have to finish this race.’

Xavier laughed. ‘I don’t get you, man, but whatever. If you want to continue this thing with Tessa, I will advise you to do something about Avaline. She’s scaring me, to be honest, and I don't think I will love to stay in the same house with her for an extra day.’

I sighed, ‘I will keep you updated about Tessa and as for Avaline. She’s leaving tomorrow with my mum tomorrow.I had to bribe my mom with a large amount of money for her to agree to this. So, that solves the scary part?’

‘Yeah, thank you. I still can’t believe they ganged up against Tessa. What were they hoping to achieve from that?’

I shrugged. ‘I feel they wanted to scare her a bit and warn her to stay away from me. I texted Tessa to be sure she was alright, and she replied with a smiley face and said thank you. I really can’t wait for Ava to be gone, though. She has caused enough damage already.

Xavier agreed. ‘She certainly has. The team members were even talking about you and her today. Thank God you didn’t show up; otherwise, you would have been so angry with their various questions and statements. They feel like you deserve everything, and Ava is your nemesis.’

‘You agree with them, right?‘ I asked, knowing his answer, before he replied.

‘I mean, they aren’t totally wrong, but I am not going to blame you like I always do. You had to make a decision, and I respect that. You’re also human, and you’re prone to mistakes. You're also in charge of picking the lessons and using them properly, which you’re already doing. I just want you to take things slowly this time. We are done with the hotel project, so I suggest we have a small party to celebrate the successful completion. What do you think?’

I replied, laughing,'You have said a lot, and even though I have the urge to argue, I won’t because you’re always right most of the time. As for the small party, we can do it immediately; Ava and my mom are out of town.’

Xavier nodded. ‘Alright. What’s up with the divorce, though? Did she sign the papers yet?’

I shook my head and replied, ‘No, she didn’t sign them, but mom made me promise I would hold on with any further action until I returned home. You can guess why she said so, though. That woman is in love with Ava and would never see anything that Ava does as wrong. This explains why Ava isn’t remorseful.’

‘Once we return to Nashville, we will finally seal the divorce. For now, enjoy the moment and just play it cool.’

It was just a matter of time anyway.

The house was lively when I arrived. Ava, my mom, and some vague faces I knew as mom’s friends were all over the place, laughing and enjoying Celine Dion’s music playing in the background. It was a hectic day after I left Xavier and returned to the hotel to get my last payment check. Mr. Robert deducted thirty percent for the damages he claimed my team caused and for not keeping to the terms of the agreement.

I tried to remind him that the only term I broke was using the restaurant to host a crucial client for the King’s company, and I had apologized profusely for that. He didn’t listen anyway, and I left angrily.

Glancing at Ava and my mom, I decided this wasn’t the right time to start an argument because of my mood. I ignored everyone and walked into my room, ensuring the door was locked. I didn’t want Ava sneaking into the room later to try any form of mischief or drama.

My phone buzzed as I took off my shirt. It was a letter from Christine. Strange. She wasn’t supposed to be sending any official messages, jobs, or what have you, but to the board of directors who were currently in charge.

Without dwelling much on her decision, I read through the mail and couldn’t believe the contents. D.K. company was having financial issues? How? Uncle David had collected his shares and payments, which left a small dent in the company’s account. Also, the Roberts project paid a lot, and according to my calculation, it improved the profits of the company.

I scrolled down, still reading, and I found the attached copy of the company financial reports. The D.K. company's board wanted me to review the expenses and explain the large amount of money that had disappeared since Uncle David left.

No! Not another money issue again. I knew a few of the expenses on the list, but the rest, especially the one with no descriptions, was fishy. Was someone in the company stealing from the company’s account? No. This couldn’t be right. Whoever did this knew I was oblivious about the withdrawals and used that to their advantage. I forwarded the mail to my accounts manager and instructed him to trace whoever spent the money.

I had a sick feeling that whoever did this was an insider.