Chapter 7 Destiny Would Make Enemies Meet

• “Hehe. Consequences?” Irvine reacted as though he had just been told the funniest joke he had ever heard. “All thanks to you showing me the door the last time, I've become the manager here! Right now, I am the one who calls the shots, so I'm going to mess with you however I want. What consequences are there even to speak of?”
• Confronted with his counterparts' brazenness, a frosty glint of discontent flashed across Winston's eyes. Just as he was moved to respond, the phone in his pocket suddenly rang.
• As he had not left prison that long, very few knew his number.
• Shelving his anger for the moment, Winston pulled out his phone to check. The call was from Colton.
• “Hello, Mr. Coldrell. Where are you now? Might you be available at the moment? Colin Ryderman and I would like to meet with you over a meal to discuss the treatment plan for Old Mr. Ryderman!”
• When the call connected, Colton's voice emanated from the other side.
• “I'm currently at... Forrestor's! I've just been bitten by some rabid dogs and have to deal with them, so I'm afraid lunch would have to wait!” said Winston stoically.
• “Huh? What's that about? Have you run into some trouble? Sit tight. We're close by and will be right with you!”
• Wizened and familiar with the ways of the world, Colton understood right away what was being communicated, and thus he hastened to wrap things up before ending the call.
• “Who the f*ck are you calling a dog, Coldrell?” Having figured out the insinuations within Winston's words by now, Irvine was infuriated.
• “Doesn't matter. Come on and conduct that body search on me now! Send more people if two of them aren't enough to get it done!”
• Upon hearing that, the two security guards called for reinforcements through their walkie-talkies before they closed in on Winston and Jennifer.
• Their location at the entrance drew the attention of numerous intrigued bystanders nearby and created a serious logjam around the doorway.
• As he watched the security approach, Winston's expression darkened. “Stand down if you don't want any trouble!”
• “Haha. Trouble? What trouble could there possibly be? Should anything happen, I'd answer for it. Just get him!” Irvine hollered at the security guards with a sneer.
• “How dare you!”
• From amidst the crowd came a stern bellow. The crowd parted themselves two ways, and out came Colton and a lean middle-aged man.
• “M-Mr. Ryderman. What brought you here?” When he saw that middle-aged man, Irvine approached fawningly with the smugness completely wiped from his face.
• The middle-aged man shot him a look. With Colton at the lead, he arrived before Winston.
• “Mr. Coldrell, I presume? I'm the fifth son of the Rydermans, and by the graciousness of others, am known as Colin! I've heard much praise of your skills from Colton, so it's a real honor to be able to make your acquaintance!”
• “Mr. Ginsel flatters me!” Nodding, Winston extended his own hand in response.
• “Give me a moment, Mr. Coldrell. No matter what happens, I shall be looking to resolve this situation today to your satisfaction!”
• With that, Colin came before Irvine, exhorting, “Now tell me, what happened here?”
• “Mr. Ryderman, I...”
• Never in Irvine's wildest dreams had he expected Winston and Colin to be affiliated.
• Mr. Colin is the owner of this mall, so if he were to find out about what I did, he would surely punish me for it.
• “Hmm? Not going to talk, eh?”
• Seeing Irvine's apprehensiveness, Colin could obviously sense something was amiss. With that, his expression only grew more solemn still.
• “Why don't we let me try to explain things? Here's what happened...”
• Unable to stomach the false allegations directed at her, Jennifer decidedly stepped forward to recount the incident in its entirety.
• Slap!
• After he had heard everything, Colin was in a positive fit, swiping a ferocious backhand across Irvine's face.
• “You're just asking for it, you bloody b*stard! Go on and pack your things immediately. Now, get out of my face!”
• “Mr. Ryderman...”
• Those words left Irvine momentarily stunned.
• Pack my things? Does that mean that he's firing me?
• “I've realized my mistake, Mr. Ryderman! What I've done is inexcusable, but please, give me another chance!”
• Though he knew he would be punished, he was not expecting it to be that severe, as it had to be known that he had worked extremely hard to get to where he was.
• “Why? Do you need me to show you where the door is?” Colin's expression dimmed.
• Subjected to the glare of that frigid gaze and cowed by the knowledge of his counterpart's true identity, Irvine could not help but shudder.
• “Please calm down, Mr. Ryderman. I'll go. I'm leaving...”
• Ashen-faced and badly spooked, he turned tail with nary another word.
• Not expecting the situation to devolve the way it did either, Monica glared hatefully at Winston before she followed suit.
• Only after Irvine departed did Colin turn apologetically to Winston. “I'm so sorry for my subordinates' misdemeanor, Mr. Coldrell. Please do not take it to heart!”
• “Oh? Do you own this mall, Mr. Ryderman?” Winston's brows raised as Colin's decisiveness and cold-blooded impartiality did somewhat take him by surprise.
• “Bet you weren't aware of that, Mr. Coldrell. The mall notwithstanding, this entire street is practically owned by the Rydermans!” quipped Colton with a laugh.
• As Winston nodded in acknowledgment, a glint flashed across his eyes.
• Though not too impressed by the ownership of a single street, having been disconnected from the events on the ground for some time, he thought that there might be many trifling matters that needed to be attended to where the Rydermans could prove useful.
• The more influential they are, the more potent they would be for any future search for raw medical ingredients.
• With that issue out of the way, the four of them had no further reason to continue hanging around the mall.
• Mindful that Anna was alone at home, Winston did not make his way straight to the restaurant. Instead, he opted to make a detour home alongside Jennifer first.
• Their arrival coincided with Anna rousing from her sleep once more.
• Constantly needing to sleep to recover her energy and spirit, that was where she was at; owing to the weakness of her own constitution, she fell asleep almost as often as she woke.
• Reluctant to leave her alone at home, Winston gathered a few things before the three of them made their way over to the restaurant.
• The name of the restaurant was the Lucullan. It was an upper-middle-class establishment with clean and well-illuminated interiors and a fair degree of patronage.
• By his own estimations, Winston realized that he had not dined out in almost four years.
• “What are you doing here, Winston?”
• The trio had only stepped through the doors when they were greeted by a familiar voice.
• Turning in its direction drew a frown from Winston.
• Destiny would make enemies meet, or so they said. In the center of the dining area stood a group that consisted of none other than relatives from both Winnie and Hugh's sides.
• “Tsk Tsk. Would you look at this guy, getting hitched up with a young lass like that the moment he got out of prison?” among them, a middle-aged woman scrutinized both Winston and Jennifer before she started exclaiming in cynicism.
• That woman was Winnie's aunt. Despite having benefited much from her association with Winston in the past, she showed a dramatic change in attitude toward him four years on.
• The gaze of the other diners in the restaurant was invariably drawn in her direction when they heard that.
• “Haha. You really do dread loneliness, don't you, Winston? Not going home to see us after being released and coming here to hook up with some other girl instead?”
• Emily, the smirking mother-in-law of his, was not to be outdone either. “It's rather fortunate that we've seen your true colors. It looks like we've made the right choice by finding Winnie a more reliable partner!”
• “Leave me alone!” Winston bellowed as he regarded the lot of them with passivity.
• Emily's expression grew sullen when she heard that. “What sort of attitude is that, Winston? Just to be clear, things have changed compared to four years ago, and everything you own now belongs to us. Also, Winnie is set to be engaged to Hugh, so don't you get in the way of her happiness. Get those divorce papers signed as soon as possible!”
• Then, she turned her attention to Jennifer. “I wonder whose daughter this. Such a poor sense of judgment! Fancying an ex-con like him without a dime to his name? Does she not know the meaning of shame?”