A Mothers Wrath...

"Boss is this it? Like I don't have any problems with the work, but I thought there was more to do than this…" the down casted Thaestus complained aloud to Dante after examining the poor state of the building that needed to be transformed into a store.

In Thaestus eyes, the place wasn't too difficult to fix and turn into something wonderful, however the plans he was given by Dante weren't aesthetic enough in the High Goblins eyes.

The basic division of the building so there was the shopfront and then the storage in the back, went against every artistic fibre in his emerald, green body.

Even though the store would be selling fresh produce at first, Thaestus already had some ideas about selling certain other products over time.

Based on what he'd researched from his phone, they could make a great deal of specialised products from all of the produce harvested daily.

Even before they came over to the site of the store, Dante and Thaestus watched the enormous amounts of harvested produce being handled by the Skeleton Labourers as they stored everything into the underground cool storage rooms.

Just based off some observation, Thaestus figured the crops could last a long time while stored, firstly because of the Tree of Beginnings influence on the property, which would keep them fresh and healthy, so they aren't infected by disease.

After his research though, Thaestus planned to repurpose a great portion of the produce into finished products.

It also became a factor for not wanting to spend too much time at the store since ideas kept sprouting in the High Goblins mind, yet Dante wasn't going to let him getaway so easily.

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"This is more than enough work as it is.

We need fridges to keep the produce cool as well as stands for the produce to be placed so the customers can freely pick and choose what they want.

I know Mum and Dad are organising someone to help me at the start with setting up an electronic payment system or eftpos, for the store, so we need to set up a register for customers to checkout from.

Even the back needs a place to keep the extra produce cool, safe and ready to be brought out onto the shopfloor at any moment." Dante punched Thaestus lightly in the shoulder to stop him from moping about.

"*Sigh* Alright Boss… lets get started!" the sparkle in the High Goblins eyes told Dante Thaestus was about to go all out, so he quickly summoned the Skeleton Labourers before heading to his Ute that was parked near the back shutter door entrance.

It was the space where produce would be dropped off in the future since it had a direct connection to the back storage of the building, but right now the Ute was parked there with plenty of goods in the tray.

The Skeleton Labourers had chopped down many different trees which were already growing back, ready to be chopped again the following day.

Some of it needed to be treated according to Thaestus before it could be used, but the wood that was ready to be used was packed into the tray of the Ute before driven over to the store.

Dante wanted the Skeletons to unload everything so he could head back to the farm and collect more materials that were needed.

The electrical wiring, which Dantes father wanted to finish up, was being taken care of by the High Goblin, since Jonathan had left behind the materials at the store already.

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Dante continued to make several trips from the farm to the store, until everything that was needed for Thaestus to make the place ready for opening.

Using Cherry Wood, Thaestus created bunkers to display fruit and vegetables which had several levels for extra storage, but the expressive thinking High Goblin went on to add cooling functions within each bunker to keep the produce nice and cool.

The refrigerators were rebuilt by Thaestus, improving the efficiency of the fridges to keep everything cool, but he'd also added a sprinkler function which would spray water over the produce to stop them from drying up.

He had also worked on improving the lighting so the bunkers would light up from below to accentuate the produce with white light but also from above to focus on glow of the quality fresh food.

Other areas of the building like the back storage area and the air conditioning system for the building were working on and improve, leaving just the cool room to be set up, which planned to finish overnight.

Dante didn't want to leave the store just in case someone came over to see why people were still their late into the night, but he had to reconsider his even plans once Katherine called asking Dante where he was so late into the night.

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"Sorry mom…

Just working at the shop site, fixing up some of the damaged walls and setting up the bunkers for the produce."

"Do you want your dad to drop by with food?" Katherine seemed worried about Dantes health, especially the last few days with him running around a lot more.

She'd never expected such a 180 change from her son who used to be an avid gamer, but now was focused on work rather than relaxing at home whenever he got the chance.

"NO!

I-I'll be home soon… promise." Dantes loud voice caught Katherine off guard, however instead of thinking it as being 'fishy', she assumed her son didn't want his father to be dragged into the work as well.

"Fine, but make sure your home within in the next hour, otherwise I'll send your father along with your dinner."

Dante sighed before telling his mother he would leave soon.

After hanging up the call he shouted out the High Goblin setting up the cool room in the back storage room of the store.

"Thaestus, I need to go.

How much work is left?"

"Other than the refrigerator machine which needs to be fixed up… everything else is pretty much ready to go Boss."

"Alright, I'm going to send you over to Terronious with the Skeletons for the night." Dante thanked his blessing that he had Astakron, who sent over the four Skeleton Labourers and Thaestus to Terronious without Dante having to go himself.

Watching a dim white light cover the 5 individuals before he could blink, Dante was left alone in the building which was practically finished with its renovations.

Locking up the building, Dante left for home, utterly exhausted the second he stepped into his vehicle.

On the drive home which wasn't more than 15 or so minutes, Dante thought about searching for a small truck with a cooling system in the back, as well as forklift, that would be vital for the store.

The truck would transport the goods over from the farm on pallets which would then be unloaded by the forklift at the store.

Dante thought about buy second-hand goods which could be improved by Thaestus, but the main problem was money.

He didn't want to ask his parents for money either, so his only option was to wait until he had enough funds, though Dante was blissfully unaware of his parents' actions, who were waiting for him to arrive at home so they could tell him the good news.

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"Do you think this is enough?

Its second-hand goods… would Dante mind?" Jonathan asked his wife, having spent part of the day picking up various items like trollies, baskets and even an eftpos system.

His dear wife had organised all sorts of items for Dantes store after they learnt it would be primarily selling fresh produce for the time being.

Katherine knew a few different clients she'd worked with who were more than happy to help her out with second-hand goods they weren't using anymore.

As a lawyer with a decent amount of authority in her firm, she'd helped many families and small businesses when they hired her, after which they offered her their assistance if she ever needed it.

Seeing that her son didn't know a great deal about the starting a small business, Katherine called up a few of her old clients and asked for anything they could spare.

To her surprise, one of her former clients had done surprisingly well for himself and offered to hand over a small truck to her with some other equipment that would be helpful for Dantes store.

After the client learned the store would be selling fresh produce, he'd even offered Katherine to pass on his information to Dante since he worked in transportation of fresh produce across Australia.

"Trust me honey…

This will be fine for him.

He is starting off a business and doesn't need anything expensive at the beginning.

Did you at least get the truck checked today?" Jonathan nodded back at his wife, passing over a small, itemised list of the work done on the truck by the mechanic.

The cost for the repairs wasn't much, but in the eyes of both parents, the vehicle would largely reduce the work on his shoulders.

While they continued discussing amongst themselves about their son's business plans, Dante walked in through the backdoor of the house.

Seeing his parents in the lounge room, Dante went over and joined them, as he crashed onto the floor.

"Hey!

Your mother just vacuumed this place up.

Don't get it all dirty with the crap on your clothes." Jonathan said, but before he could say another word, Katherine's scowl stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Sweetie its fine… don't listen to your father.

Go have some dinner.

I made pasta tonight." Katherine got up and sat down beside Dante while brushing her son's hair back as he closed his eyes for a moment to rest.

"We've also got some news to tell you as well.

So, hurry along." Jonathan said, while walking over to the kitchen to grab himself a drink.

After cleaning himself and fetching some food from the kitchen, Dante sat down on the sofa, as his parents updated him on what they'd both to help him along with his business.

Slightly teary eyed, Dante hugged both of his parents and thanked them dearly for the equipment they scourged together, before heading off to bed.

Though it was late at night, they quickly showed him the Light Truck, a Fuso Canter, which had an enclosed cargo bay which was perfect to protect the produce from spoiling.

Dante was even able to drive it with his current license, so he wasn't worried about having to find another driver for the time being.

Since it had a tuckaway lift included with the truck, and there were several pallet jacks back at the farm which were already fixed up by Thaestus, Dante had everything he needed to get started.

All that was left was finishing the signage on the outside of the building, which Thaestus promised to get around to, and the name of the store, but Dante had already planned to use his last name.

Thragen Farms Produce was the name chosen for the store.

It also happened to be the name of the store Dantes grandfather had opened nearby the farm back in his day, so he liked the idea of continuing the business name.

The labelling of the produce used his fraternal grandfathers face as the brand icon, with a couple of tweaks to lighten up some of the wrinkles.

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Waking up the following day, Dante prepared himself to leave his home for the day, however as he walked out of the backdoor, locking up the place, his mothers call came through to his phone, telling him to drive over to her firm office.

It happened to be in the city, which wasn't too far away from home, however he knew it wouldn't be easy to drive the Light Truck to the office so Dante drove the Ute over.

Wearing high-vis clothing, Dante arrived at the firm building close by to Victoria Square, which was roughly in the middle of the city.

Parking outside the multi-storey building, Dante made his way over to the entrance of the building, only to be stopped by someone calling out to him.

"Hey… what are you doing here?" asked a man wearing a nice navy-blue formal suit.

The mans sharp appearance told Dante he was probably a lawyer, however the smirk across the mans face and what he'd said told Dante the man was looking to cause trouble.

Not wanting to say anything, Dante decided to walk in but just then he felt the same man grab onto his shoulder, pulling him back.

"Didn't you hear me you giant oaf, what are you doing here?

This place won't take trashy clients like yourself." The suited man didn't try to hide his disgust for Dante, yet the man in question couldn't care one bit.

He knew better than anyone that his mother was one of the most decorated lawyers in the firm, even attaining the position of Senior Partner, so he wasn't concerned by the young man in the suit who was at most a handful of years older than him.

Dante assumed the man was most likely an intern or someone new to the firm, so he couldn't bother answering the man, however he didn't appreciate being grabbed and stopped from entering the building.

"Remove your hand… otherwise I'll snap it… and you…" Dante turned around and stared directly into the eyes of the brunette-haired man with light green eyes.

Dantes body towered over the suited man, ready to pound him under the might of his deathly glare, yet the suited man didn't budge.

Though he couldn't look up at Dantes piercing eyes staring straight into his soul, instead he focused on the lady walking over from the elevator.

"… Y-You better leave… O-Otherwise don't blame me when I sue your ass to kingdom cum." The man said, before walking past Dante while trying to bump him, yet he sent himself stumbling instead before steadying himself.

"Ahh David, your finally here.

I thought you wouldn't make it in time." said the lady walking over wearing a form fitted suit that gave her the edge to appear above the rest.

Her 'Boss' attitude could be felt by anyone who saw her walk past, even David cowered before her, praying he never ended up on her bad side.

Just as David was about to tell her that he was held up because of the muscular giant in the doorway of the building, his mouth was left agape after hearing her address the giant.

"Dante sweetie you made!

Why are you standing in the doorway? Come in.

Did you eat breakfast in the morning?" the 'Boss' lady asked as she reached Dante, standing before him and fixed his bed hair.

"Yeah, I grabbed some fruit on my way out, Mom.

Why am I here?" Dante felt irritated by the suited man, called David, however he didn't want his emotions to flair up before his mother, even though she'd picked up on his glaring eyes in Davids direction.

"*Sigh* Come up with me to the office and I'll fix you up some breakfast.

At the same time, I can explain why I called you here.

You too David…"

The group headed up to her office, all the while David remained quiet and fairly pale after learning that Dante was the son of his boss and mentor.

He wanted to apologise but he knew it wasn't the right time nor would it come across authentically.

After Katherine told David to direct Dante to the office while she went to grab some breakfast for her son, David tried to say something however Dante stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Don't want to hear it…

You're lucky I haven't caved your face in already, let alone told my mother about your behaviour." Dantes fury seeped into his words, but he tried his best to stay clam since he knew his mother would return any moment.

"I-I'm really sorry…" David tried to speak up however he struggled to get the words out especially after he noticed the stern face staring straight at him, ready to rip him into shreds.

"What's with this tension…?" Katherine asked playfully as she handed Dante a bowl of cereal and some fruit.

After taking a seat behind her desk, she looked over at David and noticed him sweating profusely, even avoiding eye contact with Dante and herself.

She was about to question David what happened to him, but Dante spoke up first.

"Mom… beside breakfast, which is always great to enjoy with you around, I really need to head to take the truck over to the farm, and the equipment you and Dad bought."

"*Sigh* Well I was going to introduce David here to you and have him help you with your work, but it seems like there's a tense issue between the two of you."

Katherine looked over at the two, trying to see some sort of reaction from either of them, yet David continued to avoid her line of sight and Dante seemed ready to explode.

"Mom… I refuse to work with this prick… that called me a giant oaf…"

"David, you said what?!" Katherine lost her cool and slammed her fist onto her table, stunning Dante who rarely seen his mother this furious before and nearly sending David flying out of his sea who'd seen his mentor unleash her fury many times.

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Dante told his mother what transpired downstairs, all the while David squirmed in his seat, wanting to race straight out of the office, but he could feel the cold eyes of his mentor looking over at him with anger and fury usually reserved for the courts.

"David… *sigh*… haven't I told you before…

You do not have the right!

To stop no one!!

Who do you fucking think you are?!" Katherines' explicit words left Dante reeling back in his seat, having never thought his mother would say such a thing.

David on the other hand knew she'd only started and prayed for the abusing tirade to end as soon as possible.

Only after 15 minutes did Katherine finally stop her criticism of Davids actions, with an explicit profanity laden lecture, that left Dante questioning if he knew his mother at all.

"… M-Mom…"

"*Sigh* Yes sweetie…" Katherine felt exhausted after speaking for so long, leaving her parched.

Dante turned to look over at David, who sweat through the light blue shirt he wore underneath the suit coat, which he'd expected seeped through onto the leather chair as well.

"… Can I go?" Dante thought he'd be able to leave now that it'd become obvious to his mother that David wasn't someone who should be working with her dear son…

Ohh… he had no clue how truly wrong he was…

.

"You know… I never expected her to force us to work together…"

"Yeah, well… your Dads the person who gave me a truck and plenty of other stuff for free…

Can't refuse his generosity… even if I want to smash your head into the ground." Dante and David, we're left shocked that Katherine forced them to work together like school children.

Dante tried to oppose the decision when his mother told him to work with David, however after learning the truck was gifted to him by Davids father, he had no choice but to following along with his mother's decision.

Even if he wanted to call his father to calm his mother down somehow, Dante knew it wouldn't work.

David had it worse since Katherine called his father right away and told him what happened.

Nothing could save him from another abusive tirade, this time from his Italian father, who told him to work happily with Dante and apologise for his actions otherwise he wouldn't be aloud home again.

David tried to argue it was a misunderstanding while Katherine listened in on the call since it was on loudspeaker in her office.

Dante was also present, leaving David quite embarrassed after he saw the mother and son staring daggers straight at him, but what surprised him most was the reason his father gave the truck and offered his services to Dante.

It all went back decades earlier when Davids mother was about to be deported for overstaying her visa, but the reason she'd overstayed was down to health issues, but the cost to hire a lawyer to fight their case was too high.

Luckily Katherine offered her services after her parents learned their neighbours could be sent back to Italy.

David at the time was very young and knew very little about the family problems but once he was old enough, he eventually heard what happened, which became his reason to pursue law as a career.

Davids father reiterated the story of the past over the phone, as he told his son that it was time for their family to repay the good Katherine had done for them.

He just thanked his lucky stars that his father promised not to tell his mother, otherwise he knew their would-be hell to pay once he got home.

Katherine and Davids dad both agreed both boys would be working together from now, leaving the two boys lost and annoyed nothing worked out in their favour.

"Well… we are stuck together now… so what do you need me to do?" David asked Dante, who was driving them away from his mother's firm building.

"A bar…

I need a fucking drink…"