More advance chapters on P@treon.com/Saintbarbido.
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(Angel's P.O.V)
The walk back to my room was done silently.
Vandal Savage, my father was dead by my hands. The freedom I had desired so much was finally mine. And I intended to use it to move up some of my other plans.
Without Savage around anymore, someone had to take over. And despite only being 10 years old, I was that somebody.
I couldn't trust anyone else with this responsibility. It was my birthright and my battle right. I was the one who put the sword to his neck.
"Shade, did you take care of the other thing?"
I questioned while climbing up the stairs from the underground section of the Mansion.
"Just as you commanded Young Master, all the threats have been neutralized."
He whispered from the shadows.
"And my sister?"
I added.
"The young mistress is still asleep. I made sure not to make a sound."
He replied to which I nodded in satisfaction.
"Good. You have pleased me. After this, take a week off and be with your family."
I also needed to talk to the Calculator and properly thank Shade for his services. I'm thinking a nice bonus and maybe an all expenses paid for trip to Hawaii.
A happy minion is a loyal minion. Less chance of them stabbing you in the back.
The second I entered the mansion proper through climbing the stairwell, it immediately felt like a ghost town.
There was no sound. The maids weren't running around nor was Mordecai's ugly face to be seen anywhere.
"I don't see any bloodstains."
I commented while going up to my room.
"I opened a portal under them that led to a Volcano."
Shade responded with a tone akin to amusement.
"The look on their faces as they realized what was happening brought me...extreme satisfaction."
Oh yeah, Shade had a hidden dark side as well. Not surprising, you don't become a villain and stay one without being 'wrong' in some way.
In any case, he did good. I will have to double that bonus I was thinking about.
Now I wouldn't have to worry about getting backstabbed by the Staff who were all fiercely loyal to my deceased father.
Nor would I have to worry about them using Candi to control me. They were the final loose ends.
"And the footage?"
"Sent to all relevant parties. I anticipate a reaction soon, young master."
That made me spare a glance at the shadows to my side.
"What kind of reaction?"
"It depends."
I could almost feel him shrug his shoulders.
"You have no doubt proven your power by taking Vandal Savage, the Immortal's life. But some of his...associates have schemed to do the same for years. Those are the ones to watch out for. They will...resist."
Resist. How laughable.
"Then they too shall face the same fate as my Father."
I said in a tone colder than any Ice I could create.
"Brother..."
A small voice called out to me from the side.
That's when I realized the door to Candi's room was open, and my little sister, her Teddybear Teddy hanging from her right hand was standing on the entrance.
"Hey."
I walked over to her, getting on one knee to put us at eye level.
"What are you doing up at this time?"
"I couldn't sleep."
She answered in a soft voice, staring behind me.
"Where is everyone?...its sounds so quiet."
Good senses and she's only 4.
We shared the same color of hair, the same tone of skin and the same eyes too.
She might have been mistaken for my twin if it wasn't for the age difference.
"Just go to sleep Candi. I'll come by in the morning okay?"
I urged her inside, tousling her hair. She frowned, whether it was due to patting her on the head or the nickname I called her. It was definitely the nickname.
"Could...could you read me a story?"
She shyly asked.
I looked down at myself, my clothes were not damaged during the fight, nor was I hurt. But I still felt like taking a shower and eating my fill before leaving this place.
To that end, I shook my head.
"Maybe tomorrow night."
I also had a lot of things to discuss with Shade. She looked disappointed but nodded in acceptance.
The door softly closed behind her and I moved on, even past my room, before coming to a stop at the door leading to Father's office.
Before I could shower or eat, there was something much more important I had to do. I needed to find out what exactly I was inheriting.
He thought I didn't know about the high tech safe hidden behind a portrait of him.
In fact, no one should have.
Too bad I had had Shade spying on him for months, without being detected.
And with his powers, getting inside the safe was a matter of a single shadow portal and a hand that reached in.
-0-
I hummed in gratitude as my Minion placed a set of documents on the table in front of me.
I made myself comfortable on Father's chair and immediately sank into the set of papers held within what looked to be a folder made of skin.
"Get me something to eat. I anticipate being here for some time."
I sensed Shade's presence slink away to carry out the order, and then used my innate heat sense to scan the office for any peeping toms.
Satisfied I was alone, I perused the first page and my eyes almost popped out.
"30% Stake in S.T.A.R Labs? 15% ownership of Kord industries? What the fuck?!"
My disbelief ended when I realized who Vandal Savage was.
An Immortal. In other words, someone who could cheat the ravages of time. A figure like that would have more than enough time to prepare strategies that benefitted him in the long run.
I held back my surprise and continued reading, not even noticing shade when he placed a meal on the table.
Hours passed and when I finally placed the folder down, I knew I had hit the Jackpot. Even in my wildest imagination, what the Folder contained was unexpected.
Father was arguably one of the, if not THE richest person on the planet.
He had major stakes in almost the top 100 fortune 500 companies on the planet, including Wayne industries(4.5% ownership) , Lexcorp(3.4% ownership), Queen Consolidated(10% ownership) and there was more.
Most of them were under different aliases, no doubt for anonymity.
But some like Lexcorp, Sivana industries and Kord Industries were under a company called Savage Holdings, which was a branch of an international Conglomerate of the same name: Savage Co.
And boy oh boy, from there the rabbit hole went deeper and deeper.
Savage Co. had many subsidiary companies that operated Semi-autonomously. They included:-
Savage Enterprises: Focus on real estate, owning luxurious properties in major cities.
Savage Laboratories: Advances in biotechnology, genetic engineering, and secretive projects.
Savage Holdings: Manages major investments and has influence in the global economy.
Savage Entertainment: Produces popular media, shaping global entertainment trends.
Savage Energy: Deals in renewable energy solutions, contributing to environmental initiatives.
Savage Security Solutions: Provides top-tier security services globally.
Savage Shipping & Logistics: Facilitates global trade and transportation.
Savage Artifacts & Antiquities: Acquires rare artifacts and relics globally.
Some of these subsidiaries were shell companies for Father's more...illegal dealings.
For example while Savage Shipping and logistics, did facilitate global trade and transportation, it was a front for his drug and human trafficking ring.
The last one left a bad taste in my mouth, so I resolved to do a massive restructuring soon.
"Shade, get me the names and personal information of all the Executive leaders of these subsidiaries and the CEO of Savage Co. Oh and invite them to lunch in 4 weeks time."
I instructed Shade.
"Yes. Young Master."
He responded right away but I couldn't shake the feeling that I was missing something.
"Also, set an interview for the position of Personal Assistant. They must be female, below 40, a quick thinker and even faster learner. And they should be willing to work flexible hours. And a nanny as well. If we can find one with experience handling superpowered kids, even better."
Candi's powers had awakened a few months ago. She seemed to have telekinesis though the ability was more magic than a metahuman power.
Just like me.
Which raised questions I wasn't sure I wanted answered.
I made a mental note to contact Ivo. He might have been a friend of my Dad's, but I realized after a few run ins with the mad genius that his loyalties were even more ambiguous than his morality.
If there was anyone who could tell me what exactly Scandal Savage was, it was him.
In the meantime...
"Shade, is there anything else that needs our immediate attention?"
I questioned, closing the folder.
"Everything is ready for evacuation Young Master. I have cleared out the cellar, the ore storage, your weapon compartment and all the books and scrolls in your personal library."
What a competent lackey. I might have to triple his bonus.
"Good work."
The sun's rays shone through the window behind Father's office, indicating it was already morning.
I rubbed the sides of my head as I felt the stirrings of a headache. Not surprising as I had been up for 3 days.
"Candi will be waking up soon. Could I trouble you with fixing her something to eat before we leave?"
"Of course, Young Master. Excuse me."
For the second time, Shade's presence faded, leaving me to finally look into the last thing within the Folder, a small disk that was slotted on the back of it.
Despite being as old as dirt, Savage was sufficiently adequate when it came to handling technology.
Case in point, he had a computer on his desk that I booted up. And after a few tries, I managed to hack it and gain access.
The next thing was to slot in the disk and then I leaned back, clicking and opening the files to see what was inside.
Lots of company revenue sheets, locations with hundreds of different businesses and properties across the globe(he literally had real estate in almost every nation on the planet), secret warehouses, a collection of luxurious vehicles, including personal jets, cruise liners...the list went on.
And lastly...lots and lots of bank statements.
And holy shit, I had never seen so many zeroes in both my lives.
For context, Savage Holdings was a finance focused company that had ownership over a few banks chains across Europe, North and South America.
In some of those banks he had accounts on his name.
The least of which held an amount of...One hundred million dollars. (100,000,000 usd)
And I was the sole heir to all this fortune.
Goddamn, I'm filthy rich.