CHAPTER 1

"Mr. Zeno, your grandmother's condition is fatal. We need money to commence her treatments; for now, the money you gave will do for two months, but I can't promise we'll continue after that if you don't bring in more funds," Doc Ezra explained to Zeno outside the emergency room.

"I understand, Doctor. I'll pay all her medical bills; please take care of my Nana! I promise to pay every month till it's all covered!" Zeno pleaded.

He was heartbroken; he had just lost his parents to an accident twenty-two hours ago. Today was supposed to be their twenty-fourth wedding anniversary, and they were driving over to pick him up from a client's house so they could all go out and celebrate, but they were unfortunately faced with a terrible fate.

His parents died instantly without any goodbyes, while his Nana was heavily injured and was now in a coma.

"It all depends on you; keep to your word. Good luck!" Doc Ezra said and left him standing in the hallway.

Zeno stood there, his whole world crumbling at his feet. He felt lost.

For twenty-three years of his life, this was the first time he was going to be alone; he had always been surrounded by his lovely parents and his sweet Nana. Now, he was orphaned and was on the verge of losing his only family member whom he loved so much.

Courage coursed through him when he thought of his Nana; he was going to do everything and anything possible to see that his Nana was properly treated. He can't let her die.

This time, he had a choice; he didn't get this much of a chance with his parents.

He was going to cherish and fight for the only person the universe had left behind for him.

~~

Sebastian Orion was dressed in his expensive, custom-made black shirt and black pants; his shiny black shoes and his customized Rolex watch completed his cold, intimidating billionaire mafia look.

His tall and sharp features were a bonus to his looks. His hair was neatly cut and styled to the back; only two strands of hair were brought out on each side of his smooth face, just above his eyes.

He stood in front of his big mansion, waiting for his ride.

"Sir, the car is ready," a man in an all-black outfit informed him through the earpiece.

A black Lamborghini with his name written on the plate slowly came to a stop in front of him, the door slowly and smoothly flying open like a bird's feather.

Before he could step down the stairs, an agitated young voice stopped him.

"Daddy, why can't I come with you this time?!" A boy of four ran out of the big house, carrying his small suitcase in his small hands.

He sure looked like a mini Sebastian. His facial features looked like they were cloned from his father's face, and his aura was the same as his.

The men in black all looked scared when they saw the young boy. They knew their boss didn't like it when someone failed in his duty, and they had failed.

He had instructed them a week ago to keep the boy occupied and find him a temporary nanny before he left for his business trip.

But they failed.

No one wanted to accept a nanny job from Sebastian Orion. They feared him, scared of what might happen to them if they worked in such proximity to him.

Rumors of how people who had offended him suddenly went missing without a trace were hot on the streets. No one dared take such a risk of working in his house!

"I'm sorry, boss, I failed you. I'll accept every punishment," Ida, his PA, rushed and bowed before him, taking the blame for his shortcomings.

Ida dared not say he couldn't find someone simply because they said they were scared.

His boss believed the money he put out with the offer would fetch just anyone.

Sebastian knew the reason they couldn't get his son a nanny; he'd heard the rumors too, well... not entirely rumors.

He only nodded and turned to his angry son.

"Ken, I'll be back as soon as I strike a deal with the president of France." He bent to his son's level, patting his hair.

Ken only pouted and turned his face away from his father.

"You will be well taken care of by a nanny. Don't be as stubborn as the last time. Okay?" Sebastian coerced his son.

"Whatever!" Ken turned in the opposite direction and stumbled back into the house.

His men knew that his son was the only one who had the right to talk and act however he wanted with their boss; any other person would be put six feet under.

"Double the price, Ida," Sebastian commanded in his deep voice.

"Yes, sir," Ida replied.

~~

Zeno had just gotten down from the boxing ring, and sweat could be seen dripping down his toned masculine body, adding a sheen to his skin.

Again, he emerged victorious. People's voices could be heard cheering him on around the ring as they held up a sign that had his name on it, waving it gingerly from left to right.

They were happy their bet had been won.

Zeno was glad he had those many supporters; that meant that a lot of people placed a bet on him. He was sure the payout for tonight would be huge.

He ignored his opponent's boss who was busy accusing him of foul play and demanding a rematch.

The old man was just crazy; how could he demand a rematch when his opponent was passed out cold in the ring?!

He wasn't in the mood to entertain the greedy old man; all he wanted was to meet his boss and cash out for the night; he needed all the money he could get for his Nana's medical bills.

He pulled his black shirt over his head as he walked up to his boss.

"Mr. Rico," Zeno called the middle-aged man who was backing him and chatting with a younger man who looked like he was made from money.

"Ah, Zeno! Nice fight, boy!" Mr. Rico patted him on the shoulder, causing him to wince painfully.

"Ugh!" Zeno grunted.

"Oh, sorry boy. Forgot it was a tough one," Mr. Rico said with a chuckle.

"It's fine," Zeno replied.

"This is Mr. Nicholas; you'll be seeing him more often. Nicholas, this is Zeno; he's our best boxer here." That was all Mr. Rico said before he dragged Zeno away from Mr. Nicholas. He didn't even allow them to greet each other.

"Here you are! Boy, great fight tonight." He handed a light envelope to Zeno.

"Don't forget to do your best next week; bring me more money! Ha-ha-ha!" Mr. Rico laughed loudly.

Zeno didn't share his amusement; he just stood there weighing the light envelope in his hands. He already knew how much was inside; no matter how huge a fight was, he never received anything higher than twenty bucks. It was little but he had no choice; anytime he asked for a raise, he was always told that the money made was put into maintenance and bribing some official who let them run the underground boxing.

He resorted to accepting whatever he was given; he didn't want to be unreasonable.

"Thanks, Rico." He put the envelope into his shorts pocket and left.

"Anytime boy, anytime," Mr. Rico said to his retreating figure.

Outside the building, men and women could be seen smoking and chatting.

"Hey look! It's our champ!" a girl said from the midst of guys; she was in a sports bra and baggy jeans, with her checkered shirt tied around her waist.

"Hey, man! Congratulations on your win tonight!" a guy said as he puffed his smoke.

Zeno smiled and walked over to them.

"Thanks, Anna, Will," he said to them as they did a secret handshake.

Anna and Will were siblings; they were the only ones he could call friends. Over the years, he's made more enemies than friends due to his line of work; his opponents always hated him after a fight.

"Hey, Champ, wait up." Anna ran up to him as he was about to mount his power bike.

"What's up, Anna?" he asked.

"I know you're in a fix right now. I saw this ad online, and I decided to save it for you here." Anna handed him her phone.

Zeno reluctantly took it; he had thought it was another underground job. He didn't think he would be able to make it if he took two boxing jobs.

"What!" Zeno asked unbelievably.

The first thing that caught his eye was the price at the top of the ad; he couldn't believe it; what job could offer such an amount in this day and age?

He quickly read through it and it finally dawned on him.

"A nanny?" he asked with a raised brow.

This must be a scam. Who pays a nanny twenty thousand dollars a month?!