Keifer's POV
Fvck that Mykel. Because of him, my fist is in so much pain. He pissed me off when I saw him, so I couldn't stop myself.
I made sure I broke every bone in his body. If I could've killed him, I would've. But he won't get to suffer if I end his life too quickly.
He should be thankful—I gave him mercy.
"Where have you been?" Keigan asked me.
"Somewhere. Roaming around."
He chuckled in disbelief. "Roaming around? And it took you almost 5 days?"
"I didn't notice the time."
"It's days, Kuya. You've been gone for days if you don't notice it." he said before walking away.
I couldn't help but stare at him. What the doctor said about him… It makes me worried about my brother's mental health. I hope the doctor's wrong and that Keigan isn't suffering from DID.
Then I noticed Honey approaching me. She subtly glanced at Keigan before speaking.
"Your girlfriend's out of the hospital."
"That's good." I said and started walking. She followed me. "Did you throw away the phone?"
She nodded before handing me a piece of paper. "Your cousin said you need to work on this."
My forehead creased. That guy really knows when to pick his timing. I just accepted the paper and read it.
Looks like I've been promoted in the company. From coffee boy and photocopy guy, now I'll be facing potential shareholders and investors.
I turned away from Honey and walked straight out of the suite. My strides were long as I headed for the elevator and out of the hotel.
My driver opened the car door for me. "Sir."
"Watson Enterprise, now." I said as I got inside the car.
He quickly shut the door and got into the driver's seat. He started the engine, and I continued reading.
Even the possible companies we could invest in were listed. My eyes lingered on one particular company.
Fernandez Corporation, also known as Fer Corp.
Michael Angelo Fernandez, CEO of the local company. Looks like I might have something I can use against him. I smirked at the thought.
My smile faded the moment the car stopped. The door opened, and I quickly headed inside the building. Employees were greeting me while I remained stiff. I quickly made my way to Clyde's office.
He was sitting in his swivel chair. As soon as he saw me, he stood up and walked toward me.
"You're late," he said. "We have a meeting to attend."
I arched a brow. "We?"
He arched a brow back. "Part of your training."
I gave a short nod before following him. We went straight to the conference room. I sat in an empty seat along the side, beside the managers' secretaries, while Clyde sat at the end of the long table.
"Let's start," he said.
They turned on the projector and the speaker up front began the presentation. I listened attentively.
The meeting lasted for three hours. I thought that would be the end of trailing behind Clyde, but he brought me along to his next meeting with the investors. Even his meeting with the Finance department—I was dragged along.
The entire day passed attending his meetings.
"Please tell me this is the last time we'll attend a meeting together," I said as we entered his office.
"Unfortunately, this is not the last time," he answered before walking toward his executive desk. "By the way, you have to visit the youngest elder. I heard he's not feeling well."
Uncle Kier.
"What happened?"
"Why don't you find out?" he said without even looking at me.
I almost punched his face—if I hadn't remembered that he just had his stuff replaced because of the things we broke during our last fight.
I just turned away and walked out. My strides were large as I exited the building. As usual, my driver was already waiting. I got inside the car and asked him to drive to Uncle Kier's house.
His house was by the riverside. Far from the city and from the other Watsons. He chose to live away and separate himself because he didn't want to be part of the greed of the other Elders. No wonder my Grandfather chose to entrust him with the key to the Watson bank.
It took us a few hours to get there. And when we reached his house, a cold breeze welcomed us.
"Where's Uncle?" I asked his butler.
"He's in the patios. I'll bring you to him," he said and walked ahead.
I followed after him. Uncle Kier's house was simple. A house of an ordinary man living an ordinary life. He really preferred a simple life—something the other Watsons never even considered.
The butler opened the sliding door and pointed toward Uncle, who was sitting on a rocking chair.
I walked toward him. "Uncle Kier."
He looked at me with sleepy eyes. "You disturb me."
"Sorry, I heard you're not feeling well. So, I decided to pay a visit."
He laughed briefly. "At least you thought to visit me."
Did he just speak Tagalog?
"W-what? You j-just spoke—"
"Tagalog? B*tch please! I can speak 8 languages fluently."
Btch please?*
Where on earth did he learn those words? I never imagined the most respectful, youngest elder would say something like that.
I let out a small laugh at what I heard from him.
"Seriously, Uncle. You don't look sick."
He pointed at the bench not far away. I took it and placed it beside him so I could sit there.
"I'm not sick. I just feel dizzy after talking to the eldest."
He's talking about the firstborn Elder. I know those two don't get along. I also know that he's one of the reasons Uncle Kier chose to stay away.
"Why?"
"His breath smells," he answered, and we both laughed in unison.
He really knows how to make fun of the Eldest. He may be strict sometimes and scary, but this is the real him.
"He scolded me because I helped you," he explained in a serious tone. "They loathe you so much that they've forgotten who you are in this family."
I've already accepted that fact.
He looked away and sighed. "I've loathed this family since the day I was born. Because of my last name, people have always looked at me differently."
"Is that the reason why you never involved yourself with their businesses?"
He wrinkled his nose, as if thinking carefully about it.
"Sort of." He chuckled. "I'm the outcast of the family. The youngest and most careless."
"Yet the smartest."
He shook his head. "Your grandfather is the smartest. He knew his monster of a son would kill him for his money, so he decided to name his inheritance to you. And your mother made sure that no one would dare touch you."
But that also became the reason for her death. In protecting me and the inheritance, she failed to protect herself.
Up to now, I still wonder if it would've been better if the inheritance wasn't named to me.
"Uncle..." I called him. "Why didn't he give the inheritance to you?"
"I told you, I'm careless. That company would've ended up bankrupt." He said and laughed.
I chuckled a bit. "Are you happy with your life now?"
"I'd be happier if my wife was here sitting and talking to me."
He's one of the few Watsons who had only one wife, or at least didn't have any other woman in their life besides their wife.
A bit rare in this family.
"How did you manage to have only one woman in your life?"
He creased his forehead. "What a stupid question."
"Because you're one of the few Watsons that I know with only one woman."
He looked at me seriously. I scratched the back of my head. Looks like I went too far with the questions.
"Are you planning to have more than one woman?" he asked.
I immediately shook my head. "N-no. Of course not."
Having another woman aside from my Jay-jay is definitely a no. She alone is already more than enough for me, so why would I even look for someone else?
"Then you answered your own question."
I chuckled while shaking my head. He's right. It was a stupid question. But the smile quickly faded when I remembered something.
Maybe he could help me.
"Do you know how to overcome the curse?"
He suddenly burst into laughter. He almost choked, so he sat up straight. His butler, whom I didn't even realize had stayed, quickly handed him a glass of water.
He returned the glass after drinking.
"There's no such thing as a Watson curse."
I know that there's no curse. But I still would like to call it that. Because we become different when we fall in love, and that's not normal.
"I-I know but the thing is—"
"It's happening to you," he said and raised a brow.
I simply nodded.
"It's not a curse. The thing that happens to you is because of Watson's attitude," he said and sighed. "The possessiveness, superiority, and pride."
The major traits of a Watson.
"What should I do? I hurt her because of those traits."
"I was about to ask, then I remembered why." He looked at me intently. "Don't push yourself to remove that part of you, but learn to control it."
"That's exactly what I'm trying to do."
He gave me a questioning look. "Are you?"
Am I?
For the past few weeks, I've been trying to control it the way I think it should be. Or maybe I'm doing it the wrong way.
"I-I don't know if I'm doing it right."
"Why don't you go back to the start? Try to change your tactics—maybe it'll work now. If not, then change tactics again."
"I don't have enough time," I said, and he sighed.
He stood up a bit slowly. I immediately tried to help him, but he shrugged my hands away. His butler bowed quickly in front of him.
"Mister, anything you need?"
"Drop the 'Mister,' it's only my grandson," he said and walked back inside the house.
I followed him after. He continued walking until he reached his room. He looked at his butler who also followed us.
"Cook some dinner for us and ready the guest room. My grandson will stay here for tonight." He looked at me. "You stay here. I'll just get something."
I nodded shortly, and he entered his room. I didn't bother to sneak a peek. I didn't know what he was going to get, but whatever it was, I knew it could help me.
I decided to call Keigan on the landline. I called the hotel, and they connected me to our suite.
["Make sure you'll be back early in the morning. I want you to meet someone."]
I mentally rolled my eyes. "Yeah. Sure."
We ended the call without any proper discussion or goodbyes.
I also called Honey to ask her to watch over Keigan. Because of what I learned from his doctor, I became more worried about him.
["Your brother is talking to a girl. I have a bad feeling about it."]
She said, and I could sense her irritation.
"What were they talking about?"
["I didn't hear clearly, but the girl said she knows you because of her former friend."]
My eyebrows knitted. Who now? She knows me from who? I've met a lot of women before, but I don't remember any of them anymore.
"I'll handle it tomorrow," I said and bid our goodbyes before ending the call.
I set the phone down and turned again to face Uncle's room door. I took a step back when I saw him standing there, staring at me from the doorway.
"S-sorry. I used your telephone without permission."
He chuckled slightly. "A Watson never says sorry." He shook his head. "Looks like I'm not alone in this family."
I noticed the thick book he was holding. I looked at it carefully and realized it was a photo album. He walked over to me and handed it over.
He slung an arm around my shoulder and gently pushed me forward so we could walk.
"What is this for?" I asked while walking.
"Time to reminisce the past."
We continued walking until we reached the dining room. Uncle's butler was there, setting the table.
"The food will be ready in a minute, Sir," Uncle's butler said and motioned for us to sit.
We did, and I placed the photo album down. I opened it and raised an eyebrow at the first photo that greeted me. It was more like a hand sketch but printed like a photograph.
"That's our great-grandfather," he said and pointed his finger. "He's a pirate."
So that's the reason why we have lots of gold.
I stared at the face in the image. Even though it was just a hand sketch, it still managed to convey the superiority of my ancestor.
"But I thought Watsons are more into the good side. Politicians, officers, or business owners. A duke or part of a royal family."
"I guess he's an exception," he said and motioned for me to turn the page.
The second image was a photo print, but it had a black-and-white with yellowish tint. It was very old, and one wrong move could tear it apart.
Lined up were what I assumed to be an entire family. From grandparents down to their descendants. There must have been over fifty people in the photo. No one was smiling—not even a single happy face.
"That's the family before the First World War."
No wonder why it looks so old.
The next page showed scenes from the war. Some men were holding guns while others sat beside dead bodies. A few more pages held old photos—transitioning from war to national recovery.
But the war photos were abruptly replaced by images of palaces and men standing beside Queen Victoria.
So we're really related to the royal family. Jay-jay will definitely laugh at me if I tell her about this.
I kept flipping until I stopped at a photo of seven men. I recognized five of them. It was Uncle Kier and the four Elders of the family.
But who were the other two?
"That's your grandfather. The one who left you with the inheritance," he said and pointed to the man in the center.
I stared at him and for some reason, I saw myself. From his posture to the way he glared—and we also looked alike. I continued observing him until I noticed the man beside him.
I pointed at him. "Who's this?"
"That..." He paused and stared at the photo. "That's our older brother. He passed away at a young age."
"W-why?"
"Suicide, but I know it's more than that," he said, removing the photo from the album. "We found him hanging from a rope inside our old barn. Your grandfather and I knew he couldn't do such a thing, but the Eldest convinced the whole family that he killed himself because a woman broke his heart."
He was talking about the current first-born Elder. Looks like he wasn't really the eldest... and something dark must've happened in the family a long time ago.
"Is that really the reason?"
He shook his head. "That would never happen. I know him. He always protected us and always, always reminded us that he'd never leave us."
"You think someone did that to him?"
"Yes. But no further investigation was done and it was never proven to our parents." He placed the picture back into the album. "I know someone did this to him. He was supposed to be the inheritor."
I chuckled a bit. "Very suspicious."
He was the one who turned the page. I looked at the photo and felt like burning it. It was my Dad's baby picture.
"The monster." I whispered.
I paused in thought. If my grandfather wasn't the eldest or even second-born, then why did he get the inheritance?
"Uncle," I said, and he turned the page. "If my grandfather is not the oldest, how come he received the inheritance?"
I heard him let out a quiet laugh. "Your grandfather is being slick as fvck. He impregnated the Eldest's wife and took the child away—that's your father, by the way. To make it short, the Eldest turned into a beast and our parents lost their trust. They decided to give it to your grandfather."
I chuckled and shook my head. Now I know where I got that slick attitude.
He turned the pages again, and I saw my Dad during his teenage years. He looked exactly like Keigan. They were like twins in appearance. He was with a group of people I assumed were his cousins, but one of them stood out. There was something about him… like I'd seen him before.
This can't be.
"W-who's this guy?"
I saw the disappointment on his face. "Remember that I told you about my older brother and how he was brokenhearted because of a woman?" I nodded briefly. "That woman got pregnant by a different man. When my brother died, they blamed her and made her life a living hell until she decided to kill herself—while she was in the last month of her pregnancy." He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "We managed to save the baby before she lost her breath."
I looked again at the man who looked so familiar to me. "It's him."
"Yes, and we named him Angel. Your grandfather decided to adopt him."
He really looked familiar… and it feels like I've seen him before. But I can't tell where or when.
"Where is he now?"
"He's dead." he answered shortly.
I looked at him in shock. "I-I..."
"More than 20 years now."
He died before I was born. It doesn't make any sense. If that's the case, then where and when did I see him? And how? And I can't shake the thought that someone I know… looks exactly like him.
Demon.