The Consortium's Heir

Chapter 303

Darius seemed very composed and did not even open his eyes while he nodded.

Then, he opened his eyes, saying, "I've considered the possibility of this."

He rested his arm against the car window, fists curling as he continued wearily, "Given Austin’s age, he wouldn’t have the guts to behave this way if he didn’t have someone influential supporting him.Not to mention, he could never afford such an expensive sports car."

His deduction garnered a sharp inhale from Erin.

‘Judging from his looks, someone must’ve told him about his relationship with William not long ago while spoiling him rotten to gain his trust.When I got close to him earlier, I noticed he had sunburn marks on his body and calloused hands—something only manual laborers develop," said Darius.

He leaned further into the car seat, his eyes narrowing.

"That person must’ve lied to Austin.Also, I bet said person owns some of Anderson Group shares.Otherwise, Austin wouldn’t have believed them."

"Try investigating from this angle," Darius eventually said while massaging the back of his neck.

Without waiting for Erin's response, he immediately grabbed the door handle and alighted the car.

Outside, Austin had lost all hope, thinking Darius would not give him another chance to explain himself.

Yet, as he shut his eyes in preparation for death, he suddenly heard the car door opening.His eyes shot open while he whipped his head toward the sound; true enough, Darius was walking toward him.

Hope reignited in his eyes after seeing that.

No one expected Darius to step out of the car—not even Edward.

Seeing the former approach, Edward halted and turned to look at Darius.

He greeted with the utmost politeness, ‘Mr.Reid."

Darius nodded, but instead of approaching Austin, he went to Maurice.

After getting his gun confiscated earlier, Maurice tried his best to blend into the background.

He also knew Darius was not someone he could afford to cross when the latter first arrived at the scene.

Maurice’s breathing deepened while his body stiffened, his eyes quickly darting toward the ground.

Darius did not expect the young boy to become even more fearful than ever by his mere existence.

Thus, he stopped halfway.

"Does your dad treat you well?"

That immediately dispelled Maurice's fear, sparking curiosity in him instead.

His eyes widened as he looked up at Darius at once. Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

Although he wanted to know why Darius asked that, he refrained from asking it since he dared not upset the latter.

He nodded and replied compliantly, "yeah, my dad treats me okay."

Darius kept a close eye on Austin’s expression the entire time.

He noticed the increasing suspicion and alertness in the latter's eyes, which made him recall the email he had received much earlier; it was from an official department in Ashweir City responsible for overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on highway roads.

When William Anderson got arrested, Darius had invested a lot of money into this department in exchange for updates and information on William.

A long while had passed since, and there was no response from them, so Darius assumed his expenses were all for naught.

Hence, receiving an update from them now was a pleasant surprise for him.

Not to mention, the email included detailed descriptions of William’s every action while in jail.

That far exceeded Darius’ expectations in a good way.

The email clarified William’s relationships with others in a straightforward manner.

For instance, they explained how Maurice came to be William’s nephew; Maurice appeared at an orphanage’s gates a month ago.

He then lived there until he was five before getting adopted by a daughter from the Anderson family.

However, she and her husband’s family refused to acknowledge Maurice as their family member.

That was why they named him Maurice and did not allow him to take their family name.

The other information in the email was essentially the same as what Darius previously learned; William had many affairs that led to several unofficial families.

Some of his mistresses and children knew of his identity, while others did not.

William had five illegitimate children, excluding Kate—Maurice was one of those five, but someone had switched him and Austin's places when they were children.

Throughout the past few years, William hesitated whether to name the young Austin or his legitimate daughter, Kate, as his heir.

Sadly, before he could decide between them, he got arrested while rushing to Elizabeth’s rescue.

Having been in jail, he could never keep his position as Anderson Group’s chairman for long, even if he got released now.

The other directors in the company would never allow their chairman, the face of the company, to be someone with such a negative image.

Therefore, William intended to withdraw from the company and bequeath his position to an heir once he could leave jail.

At that moment, Maurice remained unmoving, his gaze downcast.

Even so, he could feel Darius’ gaze boring into him.

Maurice dared not do anything since the latter did not speak to him.

All he did was freeze in silence.

Like him, nobody at the scene dared to speak when they saw Darius in such a contemplative mood.

A long while passed before Maurice raised his head to look at Darius.

Although he seemed tense, there was also a hint of calmness in his eyes when he spoke.

"Sir, I know you re someone remarkable with plenty of wealth, so please feel free to tell me what's on your mind."

While speaking, his lips curled into a bitter smile, and he shrugged.

"I’m sure you can already tell I’m not well-received by any of my so-called friends here.None of them genuinely like me."

It felt like a weight got lifted off Maurice’s shoulders when he admitted that.

Deep down, he let out a sigh of relief, but it did not show on his face.

He calmly locked eyes with Darius and continued, "They don't treat me well, not because of something I did or howI behave—it's because my parents adopted me."

His words shocked everyone at the scene.

Nevertheless, he resumed candidly, "I always knew I had grown up in an orphanage and that my adoptive family only showed up when I was old enough to attend school."