Never Judge

Mae sat at the front passenger seat as Dave sat at the back with Mien. Since they would be going for a long drive Mae had asked their assigned driver to take them to Cedric's place.

"You guys are tense." Their driver teased them as they pulled out of the Solaire Tower driveway. He had been working with Mae and Dave for years and was quite aware of their relationship.

"The job ahead is a little bit stressful so the mood matches it." Mae simply explained. "Are you ready for the long drive?" She asked as she tried to divert the topic.

"Yup, it's Dave and Mr. Mien riding with me, right?" The driver asked.

"Yes, I'll be riding with Ian and the boss in ghost." Mae responded with a nod. Cedric's employees called his favorite Rolls Royce Ghost simply as ghost. It was his most frequently used car and was quite well known.

"The madam and the little prince aren't coming along?" The driver asked, surprised that Cedric would go somewhere without his wife and son for more than a day.

"No, this one is business." Mae explained. "Yoyo has school and Adri needs to deal with things at Island's Inc. So it's just us."

The driver simply nodded and focused on the road. 

It was quite early so there wasn't any traffic, making the drive to Cedric's Mountain View mansion quite quick.

As they drove through the gate, Mien gasped in shock at the size of Cedric's property.

"He is the richest man in the country." Dave said with a laugh. 

"First or second, it's still debatable." Mae corrected.

"Who else could be richer than him?" Mien asked the pair.

"His dad." Dave answered quite bluntly.

"Plus there are debates whether or not his sister, Ayanna is richer than him." Mae added.

"Don't forget the madam." The driver said, joining into the conversation. "Mr. Cedric loves Miss Adrianna so much that if she asked for all his wealth he would give it in a heartbeat."

"Things will get even more complicated with the next generation." Dave explained as he shook his head. "With so many friends marrying each other's sister the distribution of wealth starts to get confusing."

"The Reyeses, Laurences, and Sebastians will practically be one family." Mae said as she thought of how the dynamics will work in the future. 

"If none of Cedric's children choose to be the Reyes heir, the next ones in line will be Ayanna's children. Ayanna's children in turn are the direct heirs of the Laurence fortune." Dave told Mien as he explained how interconnected the families now were.

"The Chans and the Abads also have a possibility of joining wealth, so things can get really complicated." Mae said with a sigh as they pulled up to the house.

"Drive ahead of us and we will follow." Mae told the driver as she opened the door, not waiting for a response.

Mae knew that the driver would do as she asked since that had been their protocol from the very beginning. 

The assistant's car would drive ahead, while Cedric's followed behind. At the head and tail of their convoy were also two sets of security vehicles and four motorcycles on each side.

Cedric hated the fact that he had to travel with so much security, but he was aware that it was necessary. 

A lot of people didn't like the Reyes Group. They were too rich and too powerful to have not stepped on any toes on the way up.

Add to that the fact that under Cedric's leadership, the group became more aggressive. And as much as Cedric tried not to offend people or have people lose so much, it was inevitable.

"Good morning." Cedric greeted Mae as he stepped out of the doors of his house. "Where is Mien?" He asked as he looked around.

"In the car with Dave." Mae told Cedric as she pointed toward Dave's car.

"Alright." Cedric said with a nod as he turned and looked back as the door opened behind him.

Adrianna stepped out and hugged her husband tightly. 

"I'll miss you." Adrianna said as she went on her tip toes and kissed Cedric on the lips.

"I'll miss you too." Cedric told her as their lips parted. "Please stay safe and don't try to leave your security at home. You know how important it is to have them around."

"I won't, I promise." Adrianna told her husband with a loving smile. "I even asked my assistant to limit all my meetings till 3pm. I want to be home when Yoyo is home."

"Thank you." Cedric said with a smile as he gave her one last hug before walking to his car.

"Take care, Adrianna." Mae told her boss' wife before following him to the car.

"You too Mae. Take care of my husband and the boys." Adrianna said with a nod as she smiled and walked back into the house.

"Are we ready to go?" Cedric asked Ian as his oldest assistant walked up to him.

"Yeah, everything is ready, we were just waiting for you." Ian said with a nod as Cedric's driver, John, opened the card door for Cedric.

"It's a long drive ahead, John." Cedric said with a laugh.

"Don't worry boss, I slept like a baby last night and I'm full of energy now." John said as Cedric and Ian got inside the car.

Mae followed suit and got into the front passenger seat, making herself comfortable for the drive ahead.

"Feeling anxious?" Cedric asked Mae as he noticed her uneasy aura that morning.

"Yes, it's going to be hard speaking to Fernando's family." Mae said with a frown as the lead car started to move.

"Did you have his body brought ahead of us?" Ian asked the younger assistant.

"Yes." Mae told Ian with a nod. "I found the best morgue in the city and asked them to keep the body overnight."

"What will you do if they refuse to believe you?" Cedric asked Mae in a concerned tone.