The Royal Contract

"I think you need to see that." Alex knew that it was a gamble that he had to take. He just hoped that it would not cause more stress for Ethan and worsen his health condition.

Laura trusted him that he knew what he was doing. He had to make sure that he could play this right and execute it according to his plans without compromising Ethan's health condition.

"Where did you get this?" Ethan asked as he slowly examined the content of the envelope.

It was a detailed report that was familiar to him, at least the style. But the content was intriguing, at the same time, a bit disturbing. Whoever did the investigation did a great job.

Then he saw some photos of two men having a serious conversation. It would seem that Alex was into something here.. He did recognize the two men.

"From someone you might know, Stockholm. Does that name ring a bell?" Alex explained how he showed up in his office and offered his services since he could not get hold of Ethan.

He watched Ethan's reaction, hoping to find some clues on what he was thinking. He was a hard man to read as far as he had observed in the times that he was with him. But he was starting to see some telltale signs.

"Ah, that man is quite a genius. He proved valuable to me. If he offered you his services, then you are a lucky man." Ethan said as he continued to look at the rest of the papers.

He finally realized why he recognized the manner the report was written and arranged. It was his good friend who provided the information. It just guaranteed that it came from a good source.

Now, what should he do with the information? It was not the first time that his competitions or enemies teamed up to take him down. It was a regular occurrence that he could easily handle.

But not in his current situation, not when he was also fighting for his life. His company now would be more vulnerable to attack once they learned of his condition.

"If you think he is that good, then maybe I will." Alex took note of contacting the man for more of his services.

If that man could provide him with more valuable intel, it should help him with his current situation. Having two enemies merging up with a common goal would not be easy to beat. 

In all honesty, his business could not handle two attacks coming from opposite directions. His company, if compared to Nick's company, was still relatively small. But with the right resources, maybe it would not be bad at all. 

If he was not careful, Nick might find something that could destroy him now that his cousin was helping him. So, he better came up with a good solution before that came to that point.

"Anyway, what are you proposing again?" Ethan had enough of the chitchat. It would seem that his time was running out.

He wanted to get into the heart of the matter and find solutions to all the problems at hand. If Alex was the only one available to him, then he had no options left but to hear him out.

So far, he was proving valuable to him. Maybe he had something good cooking in that head of his. He would like to see if it would coincide with what he had already thought of a long time ago.

"I want you to have the operation. Then, hand over the company to me while you are out of commission. Let me handle all the operations and deal with the threat at our backs." Alex stated his plans with confidence.

Upon hearing his proposal, it took Ethan a few seconds to process it. Then, he laughed out loud with the ridiculousness of his proposition. "You want me to hand over my company to you, to trust you with all of its operations."

"Yes." He answered, showing Ethan that he was not intimidated by his response.

"I am sick, but not yet insane. Why would I do that? How do I know I can trust you?" But in truth, he knew that he was the only answer to his problems. "Let alone give you rein to my company."

What happened with Nick still weighed heavily on him, but he felt that Alex was different. His instinct might have been wrong with Nick. But this time with Alex, he was confident that it was not.

He still wanted to be cautious and analyzed this matter more carefully before he made his final decision. Nothing wrong with double-checking and being smarter this time.

"I understand your hesitation." Alex expected this kind of reaction from him. He would feel the same way if a similar thing happened to him. But he had prepared for it. "But as of now, you need me. And because I want to do this for Dani."

There was no indication if he had convinced Ethan. His face remained blank from any emotion. But he could sense that he was listening to his proposal, which was a start.

"Still, how do I know if I can trust you? Nick tried to marry my daughter to get my company. Here you are, not yet married to Dani, and you are already thinking of taking over." Ethan looked at him, also trying to study his intention.

Then, he stood from his table and walked towards the window to stare outside, looking at the garden that his wife designed for them. It was one of the things that usually calmed him down. 

He wanted so much to believe Alex since it would be the easiest way to resolve his problems. He could peacefully take the operation and make Laura happy. He would not worry about Dani's future anymore.

"What if I have a solution for that?" Alex told him, which brought Ethan's attention back to him.

He knew that it was a risk that he was taking. But it was the only solution he could think of in the short period available to them. He would not resort to this if he could find another way.

But there was so much at stake. Suddenly, it was a necessary evil Alex had to take.