Novel & Cerita Adrian Tepes

-Cherie- I don’t want to turn around because I know I’m going to crumble into little pieces in front of the man I did not want to meet so soon. But I mustered up my strength to face the absolute legend, Alpha Kai Volkov. Even in his old age, the man looks like a powerhouse. I see where Creed gets his stature from because this man is massive - I feel dwarfed just looking up at him! Wearing a black t-shirt and jeans with combat boots, he seems awfully at ease. His long blonde hair, now silver, is braided down his back, crow's feet and wrinkles marr his face but he doesn’t seem like an elderly man.

commanded Leopold, waving while fixing a sharp gaze on Adrian. Sensing the high expectations the leader had for him, Adrian decided to cut to the chase. With a respectful bow, he said, "Greetings, Your Majesty. I am Adrian Xander. May I ask why you’ve been anticipating my arrival?" Adrian's directness caused some of the people around to frown slightly, but Leopold chuckled heartily and answered, "Mr. Adrian, you are indeed as legendary as they say—a hero unmatched. Well then, I won't beat around the bush. I'll tell you exactly what I need from you."

“Excuse me?” “Actually, sorry. Let me correct that.” Elijah’s smile widened. “Your Replacement. Because honestly, I don’t think there’s much competition here.” Kira almost laughed. Almost. Adrian’s hands clenched into fists. “You have no idea who you’re talking to.” “Adrian Westbrook. CEO of Westbrook Industries. I know exactly who you are.” Elijah’s tone didn’t change. Still polite. Still calm. “And I know exactly how you treated Kira for nine years. So no, I’m not impressed.”

Katerina got up from the couch, shaking her head in both disgust and annoyance as she walked toward the bar. One of the girls walked toward our table, but both Ezra and Diego didn’t pay her a second glance. “They smell like aphrodisiac,” Ezra stated, and Diego shook his head. “Forcing their pleasure out of them. Something that my father has as a profession. It is a shame that he doesn’t see it as wrong and doesn’t have anyone to tell him off, don’t you think?” Diego said, standing up as he looked at the woman, Katerina. “What are you going to do?” I asked, and he looked back at Cosimo. “On my mark, we are going to leave…”

“It doesn’t work that way, Adrian. You already know so much about me—my past, my weaknesses, my life. The least you can do is offer some kind of information back.” His mouth curved into a faint smirk, and he leaned in, bridging the gap between us. “Fine,” he said softly, his breath warm against my skin, sending a shiver down my spine. “I’m Adrian. I have enough power and resources to get you everything you want—freedom from Callum, security, protection.” His eyes darkened, a flash of heat in his gaze. “But that comes at a price.”

Celine was also unaware of the whole thing and was following him closely behind. "Hey, guys. Sorry I'm late." Adrian said as he took off his backpack and placed it near the edge of the stage. He had his cool facade on auto-mode again and it was pretty hard to tell exactly what he was thinking. Which was understandably, why I was surprised when he turned to address me. "Oh, I don't think you guys have met yet. Maddie this is-" "Celine. Celine Castillo but you can call me, CC." A minute ago she was just behind Adrian but now, she was right in front of me with an outstretched hand and a smile on her face.

But Elena finally turned to us, her voice quieter than before but anchored with steel. “What happens now?” Adrian glanced at her, then at me. It wasn’t disrespect, he simply needed my nod. So I gave it. “We hand him over,” I said. Adrian raised a brow. “You’re sure?” “He’s confessed,” I replied. “On record. And if we hand him to the police, they can go straight to Tevin Reynolds. That gets us closer to the real threat.” “Tevin is slippery,” Adrian murmured. “You know that. He’s survived three bankruptcies, two internal coups, and a merger collapse. He plays dirty. He hides dirtier.”

“Dude! Chill out, I’m already in school. I just had a hard time finding a space to park my car.” I said on the phone to one of my best friend, Ethan. I needed to make sure I hurry up cause in the next five minutes I’ll be officially late for class and I can’t afford to be locked out of the lecture hall. God I hate being late and I won’t have been late if my assistant had done his damn job then I won’t have to wake up early to fix a mild issue at the company. And yes, I said company, well let me introduce myself, my name is Adrian Wealth, I’m a 24 year old tech genius and CEO to the world’s biggest tech company, AW tech world, so yeah some say I’m a billionaire but to people at school I’m jus

“Oh yeah, I remember you. You’ve been around for a bit. I was just telling my colleague, Sade, how beautiful she is. Hard to believe she’s got four kids.” Adamo let out a tight chuckle. “Yes, she is. What company are you from again?” Trenton pointed to his name tag. “Adler. We specialize in topicals.” Adamo’s jaw ticked. “So, you’re a scientist or a salesman?” Trenton chuckled. “Scientist.” He turned back to Sade, flashing her a wink. “Don’t forget that number.” With that, he walked away. Sade exhaled, reaching for a drink. “Are you getting something?” she asked Adamo.

The originating credential resolved to a single user: Trent Devin Trent Devin was the kind of man everyone assumed was all clean lines and soft power. Mid-thirties, carefully groomed hair, thin-rimmed glasses that caught the light when he wanted to look vulnerable. He ran Adrian’s tech stack, the architecture behind the empire, and had been with Cross Media for five years. Adrian had promoted him from a promising systems architect into the role of Chief Technology Officer because Trent had a talent for smoothing chaos into product. Trent stayed late, drank coffee until his hands jittered, and smiled at the right moments. He had access to everything, including the keys to the studio servers,