The Royal Contract

He had Vince looking for Nick as he flew back to New York City to deal with him. He needed answers and a way to clear his name with the Council, or he could kiss his throne goodbye. 

He knew that his father was, at least, doubtful that he could do such an act against Alex. But the Council might not be as forgiving of his involvement with Nick and his apparent illegal activities.

"Where have you been?" Prince Edward rushed inside his office, not letting his secretary stop him from seeing him.

Finally, Vince learned from someone he had been in close contact with inside the building that Nick was coop up in his office. He was not accepting appointments at the moment.

He could not let the opportunity to face him slip by again. He had to take immediate action before Nick disappeared again on his radar.

"What do you want, Edward? As you can see, I am overwhelmed with work." Nick did not even look up from the papers he was perusing as he spoke to his visitor.

He did not need him to poke around his office today. Although he was expecting that he would show up soon enough. After what he did to him, he was bound to confront him. 

He was not expecting that they would meet this soon. Not when he was in a crisis and not prepared to deal with him yet. Although, no matter what Edward said, he would never admit any wrongdoings. He was confident that all Edward had was speculations. It would never stand in court.

If he was a criminal, Edward was as evil as a villain as he was. He had not just explored his dark side yet. The prince was also capable of doing horrific things. According to his observation, he just lacked the motivation to do it. 

"Why did you frame me up? Make me look like I am trading with the leaders of the underworld business." Edward accused his partner, remembering introducing him to what he said was legitimate clients.

He had known that Nick was a bit shady, but he thought they were partners, and Nick would not put his business and his life in jeopardy. But he was proven wrong.

He sought his help to get what was rightfully his, but instead, he got framed for something he did not do. This was not what he had signed for when he made a deal with Nick, the devil evidently.

"I have no idea of what you are talking about." Nick finally looked up and stared at the enraged face of his former partner. 

Well, he was expecting that he would finally say adios once he discovered what he did to him. Unless he could convince him that he had nothing to do with what he was accusing him of.

In his current situation, Edward pulling all his investment out of his company would be detrimental. It could trigger a chain reaction once the board and the company's investors heard about it.

They might think that the company was going under, and they might abandon ship. After all, Edward did invest a large sum of money in his company. That could not happen. It had to be stopped.

"What about Alex and Dani's abduction?" He questioned him, believing that he also had something to do with it. "That was not what I asked you to do. I only wanted you to bring Alex's company down." 

He walked closer to his table and planted the palm of his hand on his table as he stared him down. He could see in his eyes the pride in his accomplishment, but his words denied his accusation.

"What?" He acted surprised. He dropped the pen he was holding and pushed his chair backward as his expression abruptly changed into concern. "What are you talking about?"

Nick knew everyone would be pinning this abduction on him. After all, he did have a motive due to his connection to both the groom and the bride.

But he had prepared himself for this. He had made a flawless alibi that would throw all suspicions away from him. It would have been perfect if not for the unexpected situation in his company. 

"Don't act like you are innocent," Edward shouted at him, even slamming his fist on the table. "I know that you planned all this." 

But Nick remained silent, watching his visitor blow up some steam. Edward continued with his charges, blaming Nick for his current situation in the kingdom. He 

"You took Alex and Dani after the wedding and then pinned the blame on me. After all, everyone knew that I had a problem with my cousin." Edward told him what he thought of his idea.

"I know you are the one who transferred all that money into my account. Then, made it look like I was paying off those mercenaries for the abduction." He persisted, voicing out all his speculation about the case.

He would not let Nick get away with this. He would not take the fall for his crime, not without a fight. Not without trying to prove his innocence and taking down Nick. 

He had wished numerous times for his cousin to be removed from his path, but not like this. He did not want his blood on his hands.

"As much as I want to be the villain in your story, I am sorry to disappoint you, but I am not. Many people would want to abduct your family, even you." Nick pointed out.

When Edward was about to interrupt, he stopped him, holding his hand up in the air. "As you can see, my company is under attack as of now. I am under a lot of stress because I can lose my company if I don't stop whoever is doing this."

Something in what Edward said sounded alarming bells in his head. He had no idea what he was accusing him of, at least about the last part of his statement.

He did not transfer any money to his account recently. Definitely, he was not involved in the hacking of it. He was curious if what happened to Edward was connected to what was happening to him and the Hamilton Empire.

Someone was coming after all of them, pulling the strings that were creating havoc in their businesses and lives.. An invisible enemy, a man without a face.