1.2. No one is kind without ulterior motives

In the car, I was looking at the man sitting on the driver seat next to me. The more I stared at him, the more I felt something was odd. When reading the informations of this world I didn't see any mention of Kevin's brother. Moreover I felt a weird sense of déjà vu which was impossible since I only entered this world thirty minutes ago.

I checked the system to learn more. I quickly understood why I didn't know about him.

Amory Slynt is Kevin's half brother —they have different mother. His mother passed away when he was five and his father remarried with Kevin's mother only a few months later. A year later Kevin was born and Amory was set aside. At eighteen he left the house with his mother's inheritance and the money he had saved up by working and never had any contact with his family since. He changed his last name with his mother's and founded his own company.

The wealthiest company of the country, Slynt Inc.

Damn, are you saying that the richest guy of the country is playing the chauffeur for me right now? But honestly it helped me to understand better why the Herbert absolutely wanted to marry into the Lawson family. With their power they would have been at the same level as Slynt Inc. and would have been able to destroy him. In fact it's what happened in the original timeline.

Of course his name was mentioned in the many informations I received but I didn't made the link between him and Kevin since they had different surnames. But it still doesn't explain the sense of déjà vu…

Well, whatever.

I glanced again at the blue-eyed man. He had an easy smile on and was humming the tune that was on the radio. He felt my stare and turned towards me.

"What?"

I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Why did you help me?"

He didn't say anything for a while —just peered at me as if I was some kind of rare animal in a zoo. Then he turned his sight back to the road.

"You really are a good actor."

I frowned. What is he talking about? That got nothing to do with my question.

"But you won't convince anybody you're strong if you start trembling like a leaf when someone raise their hand a bit too suddenly."

Feeling my glare, he looked at me again. He reached out to me in a quite brutal way. I couldn't help but flinch. When he saw my reaction, he stilled and his eyes softened. He patted my head and ruffled my hair.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you. I'm not like that spoiled brat."

His voice only sounded disdainful while saying those last words. He retreated his hand and stared back at the road. My body finally stopped trembling after a few more minutes.

In the original timeline Kevin used to abuse Angel physically. He would hit him if he didn't do what he wanted him to —and that included sexual things. Even if he didn't love Angel it didn't change the fact that he was attracted to him and felt possessive because of his own pride. I'm sure that if I were to look under my clothes right now there would be bruises. The body's reactions to violence were already quite heavy but it only worsened with my own fear of pain.

I came out of my thoughts when I heard Amory talking again.

"So, where do you want to go?"

"Any hotel should be fine. Oh, but I need to take a few things from my house."

He nodded and quickly obliged. I got out of the car and ran inside the house. All my things were already gathered in the hall but my goal wasn't inside the few bags thrown on the ground. I climbed upstairs and entered Richard's office. I walked in front of the pricey desk and opened the last drawer using the system to unlock the padlock he had put on it.

I took out the black notebook and checked what was written on it. A multitude of blueprints and formulas were scribbled —blackening every pages. I smiled slyly. The original was a genius. He liked creating new medicines and new technological prosthesis.

This is the reason why he didn't want to direct the company —all he ever wanted was to create. He trusted his uncle and thought that he would handle the company like his father did since they were associates before but when he saw that it wasn't the case and that his uncle cared more about profit than people's well-being, he decided to take back the company.

Of course I could easily rewrite everything with the system's help but I just didn't want Richard's to have all those ideas with him and sell them like they were his.

At the end of the notebook was glued a little envelope. I opened it and took out the small piece of paper that was inside. It was a photography of a little boy —around nine years old— and an older man in his mid-forties. The younger one had wavy blond hair and shiny green eyes with a cute little upturned nose. He was smiling brightly like it was the happiest day of his life. The older had light brown hair with green eyes and a straight nose. He was holding the child in his arms, looking at him with a tender smile on his lips.

I could feel the original's love as I watched the picture.

I put the photography back in the envelope and walked out of the house. Amory was still waiting for me in the car. I got inside and fastened my seat belt before he started the car. He gave me an interrogative look.

"Are you sure you have everything you need? You only took a notebook with you."

"It's okay. They can burn everything as much as I care."

He smiled, amused. The rest of the ride was spent in a comfortable silence. When we arrived at the hotel, I got out of the car and looked at the modern building in front of me with a frown.

Mmmh…. Something's fishy.

He came out of the car and stopped next to me. He still had his usual easy smile painted on his face.

"What is it?"

"Isn't that… one of your hotels?"

He smiled wider.

"It is."

While I was glaring at him, he led me inside the building but instead of going to the reception, he directly went inside the elevator.

"Wait, don't I have to book a room first?"

"Do you have money on you?"

… Fuck, I forgot I was completely broke. Seeing that I had became silent, he smirked and brought me in front of a white door with the number 1020 on it. He took out an electronic key and opened the door.

"Here you go. You can stay here as long as you want."

"For free?"

He nodded with an expression on his face saying 'Isn't it obvious?'.

Of course it's not! Who would do that for someone they just met? Like I said, something's definitely fishy.

I looked at him with suspicion. If there is one thing I have learned while I was imprisoned by the system is that no one is kind without ulterior motives. I had a hunch about what were his motives —I am not like those oblivious idiots in novels who can't see when someone literally wants to eat them up— but I just wanted to make sure my thoughts were right. Just in case. Then I remembered he still hadn't answered my first question.

"Why did you help me? Why are you helping me?"

He stroked the beard he didn't have like he was in deep thought. Why the hell is he thinking so much for the answer of such a simple question?

"Mmmh… because I feel like it, I guess?"

That is certainly not an acceptable answer, damn it!

He laughed seeing my dissatisfied face.

Oh, are you making fun of me? Very well. Let's see who's going to laugh last. I'll make you struggle until the very end. I won't give in until you crawl on the ground and beg for my forgiveness.