As confusion rippled through the crowd, William finally clarified, his voice filled with emotion: "As a grandfather, I am truly proud of what you've accomplished, Lucas Cavendish Knight."
The room fell silent for a mont before erupting into surprised murmurs. Lucas stood there, stunned.
"Anyway, please enjoy yourselves," William concluded, leaving the platform.
As the guests began to buzz with this unexpected revelation, Neil leaned in close to Lucas. "You didn't tell you were part of the Cavendish family," he whispered urgently.
Lucas, still processing the information, blinked rapidly. "I... I didn't know. But now that you ntion it, Cavendish did feel familiar. They must be from my mother's side of the family."
Neil looked at Lucas incredulously. "How can you not know your mother's family? Are you dense or sothing?"
Lucas scratched the back of his head, feeling awkward. "Well, my mother died when I was born. I never really knew much about her family."
Neil's eyes widened in shock. "What? She died at your birth?" His brow furrowed in confusion. "But wait, what about all those tis you've ntioned your mother in speeches? Like at your first Oscar win, when you said, 'Every achievent I managed to fulfill deserved at least a little celebration and a pat on the back.' If your mother died at birth, who were you talking about?"
Lucas felt a wave of embarrassnt wash over him. He couldn't exactly explain that the quote was from his previous life's mother. Scrambling for an explanation, he said, "It's... it's sothing my nanny used to say. She kind of took on the role of a mother for ..."
Neil studied Lucas for a mont before seemingly accepting the explanation.
Lucas sighed inwardly, realizing he needed to be more careful with his words. The mories and experiences from his past life sotis blurred with his current one, and he couldn't afford such slip-ups.
As they were talking, a woman approached Lucas. "It was a pleasant surprise. You're not only part of the Knight family but also the Cavendish," she said.
Lucas and Neil turned to see Cassie, with Sean hovering uncomfortably beside her.
Lucas's expression softened slightly at the sight of Cassie. Despite his initial disgust towards Diddy, he nodded politely. "I'm pleasantly surprised as well," he said. "But whether I'm a Knight or a Cavendish doesn't really matter. I'm still going to be ."
Cassie smiled, a hint of admiration in her eyes. "You'll still be you? Like, fighting Hollywood supervillains and having them jailed like Harvey Weinstein?"
Lucas and Neil chuckled, with Lucas casting a pointed glance at Sean. "Sothing like that."
Sean, noticing Lucas's look, shifted uncomfortably. He nudged Cassie, "Let's go."
But Cassie ignored him. "Wait, let have a mont with the most popular guy of the year, alright? Maybe even get a hug?"
Sean sighed, his expression clearly saying 'just get it over with'.
"Can I have a hug?" Cassie asked, opening her arms.
Lucas and Neil exchanged puzzled glances at the sudden request. Lucas shrugged and accepted the hug, but Cassie whispered in his ear, "I have sothing that a hero like you might be interested in."
Lucas raised an eyebrow, feeling a card slip into his pocket. As the hug ended, he nodded at Cassie, watching as she left with Sean.
Once they were out of earshot, Neil leaned in. "What was that about?"
Lucas, his hand brushing against the card in his pocket, murmured, "I'm not sure, but I think things just got a lot more interesting."
He couldn't help but chuckle to himself, feeling like an undercover cop in Hollywood. Whatever Cassie was up to, it likely involved Diddy. Although the situation seed to be moving quickly, perhaps faster than he felt prepared for, Lucas knew he couldn't ignore such an opportunity.
This could be his chance to uproot more of the industry's darker elents, potentially shifting Hollywood's focus from worshipping power to celebrating art, creativity, and higher values. However, Lucas was acutely aware that the people involved with Diddy were big nas in the music industry. Unlike the Weinstein case, this situation could have far-reaching implications across multiple sectors of entertainnt.
"What are you thinking?" Neil asked, noticing Lucas's contemplative silence.
"Nothing," Lucas replied, just as they spotted William approaching, having just greeted so other guests.
Neil composed himself, used to dealing with Hollywood influencers.
William extended his hand to Neil. "You must be my grandson's manager. It's a pleasure to et you."
"Likewise, sir," Neil nodded, shaking William's hand.
"Thank you for taking care of him over the years," William said warmly.
"It's my job, sir," Neil replied professionally.
William then turned his attention to Lucas. They looked at each other for a mont before William spoke softly, "You resemble your mother so much."
Lucas smiled, a hint of sadness in his eyes. "Well, she is my mother after all."
William chuckled, then his expression turned more serious. "Look, I'm sorry it's taken so long to reach out. I hope you can forgive ."
Lucas sighed, feeling a mix of emotions about his mother's family suddenly appearing in his life. "It's alright."
William, noticing Lucas's discomfort, glanced at Neil. The manager imdiately understood the unspoken request and excused himself, leaving Lucas and William alone.
William, now alone with Lucas at the table, leaned in. "To make up for lost ti, I'd be willing to give you so of my most prized properties - stocks, real estate, you na it."
Lucas chuckled, shaking his head. "Do I look like I need more wealth?"
William laughed softly, nodding in approval. "Indeed. Considering your own fortune, you're quite wealthy yourself. And you have a noble heart, like , giving your wealth to those in need."
Lucas couldn't help but doubt that last part, eyeing the opulent surroundings. 'Noble? You?' he thought skeptically.
William, noticing Lucas's doubt but choosing not to address it directly, continued, "I'm grateful you didn't inherit your father's... less admirable traits. His greed in underpaying his team, his selfishness in thinking only of himself, his pride in believing he's above others. He's a terrible man." William downed his glass of wine in one gulp.
Lucas found himself nodding in agreent.
William pressed on, his voice tinged with old anger. "I rember how he cheated on my daughter when she was pregnant, with several won no less."
Lucas smiled wryly, understanding William's frustration. "Are you going to spend the day scolding Vince in front of ?"
William chuckled, looking slightly embarrassed. "My apologies. I lost myself for a mont there." He sighed deeply. "Sotis, I can't help but rember how much my daughter suffered because of that man."
Lucas's expression softened slightly. Despite his reservations about this sudden family reunion, he could sense the genuine pain in William's voice.
"I understand," Lucas said quietly. "It's not easy to forget that kind of hurt."
William nodded, seemingly grateful for Lucas's empathy. "You know, you're so much like her - your mother. Not just in looks, but in spirit too."
Lucas just smiled, a mix of curiosity and sadness washing over him. Though he was intrigued to learn about his mother, the fact that she died at his birth made it hard to form a real connection.
'Maybe she was similar to my previous life's mother,' he thought, before quickly pushing the idea away.
As the evening progressed, Lucas and William engaged in lighter conversation, touching on various topics. William then began introducing Lucas to his circle of influential friends.
"Lucas, I'd like you to et Senator McCain," William said, gesturing to a distinguished-looking man. "He's been a close friend for years."
Lucas shook the Senator's hand, exchanging pleasantries.
Next, William led him to a group of executives. "And this is Lucian Grainge, CEO of Universal Music Group."
Lucas nodded, shaking Grainge's hand. "It's a pleasure to et you, sir."
As they moved through the crowd, Lucas found himself being introduced to a veritable who's who of the entertainnt and political world.
Throughout these introductions, Lucas maintained his composure, but inwardly, he was processing the sheer magnitude of influence concentrated in this room. He couldn't help but wonder about the potential connections and opportunities these introductions might lead to.
As they finished another round of introductions, William turned to Lucas with a proud smile. "You're handling yourself well, my boy. These connections could be invaluable for your career."
Lucas chuckled, a hint of amusent in his voice. "Invaluable, huh? If it was a few years ago, sure. But now?" He left the implication hanging in the air.
William laughed softly, understanding Lucas's point. "Well, at least these connections could be very helpful to you in the future. You never know."
Lucas nodded, pondering the statent. The entertainnt connections might not add much to his already established network, but the political ones? Those could potentially be useful down the line.
While he wasn't a fan of politicians who lied to the public's faces, Lucas couldn't deny that having such connections might co in handy soday. Though for now, he didn't see an imdiate need.
As their conversation continued, William circled back to his earlier offer. "I was serious about offering you so of my wealth, you know."
Lucas raised an eyebrow. "William, I appreciate the gesture, but as I said before, I don't really need more wealth."
William tried to push the offer again. "You're sure? So of this wealth could be very useful for future projects."
Lucas smiled, shaking his head. "I really appreciate it, but I'd rather we donate it to charity. It'll do more good that way."
William's expression shifted, a mix of relief and puzzlent. On one hand, he was glad Lucas wasn't like his father—greedy and self-serving—but on the other, he wondered if Lucas might be too good for his own sake.
"You really don't want it?" William asked, his voice softer, almost disbelieving.
"No, I'm fine," Lucas replied. "Even without considering my business ventures, my Bitcoin alone is worth a fortune."
"Bitcoin?" William furrowed his brow, unfamiliar with the term. "What's that?"
Lucas chuckled, sensing his grandfather's curiosity. "It's a digital currency, kind of like gold, but online. It's been around for a while, and I invested early."
William nodded slowly, trying to grasp the concept. "So, it's like stocks?"
"Sort of," Lucas said, keeping it simple. "But it's more decentralized, not controlled by any governnt or bank."
William's eyes lit up with newfound interest. He clearly wanted to bond with his grandson. "Maybe I should invest in this Bitcoin too, then," he said with a chuckle.
Lucas smiled, amused by the thought. "Well, it's definitely a different ga, but who knows? It might suit you."
---
For advance Chapters, go check my p-a-treon/NewCor714.
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