Chapter 269

John was taken aback by Jasper's arrest, but Mike's suggestion piqued his interest.

He could almost see the gears turning in Mike's head.

Mike was greedy, and Michael had tasked him with breaking the contract. He did the dirty work, but got nothing in return.

Now, with Jasper arrested again, John saw an opportunity for a new contract.

So Mike handed the two contracts back to John, saving him time and maybe making himself some serious cash.

"How much do you want?" John asked, trying to sound casual.

But Mike declined. "No, Mr. Williams, I can't take the money!"

"Are you messing with me?" John asked, his brow furrowing.

"Mr. Williams, you got it wrong. I haven't given the contract to your uncle yet, so he doesn't know. But he knows Jasper signed with you. If I suddenly have extra cash, what do you think he'll think? He'll suspect something's up between us. It's risky for me. If he suspects me, I'm in trouble," Mike explained, sounding a bit down.

John scoffed. "You, a traitor, worried about that? Just cut to the chase. What do you want?"

Mike chuckled over the phone. "Hey, Mr. Williams, ever heard the saying, 'Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime'? You get what I'm saying? I don't need cash, I need some industries as a backup."

John raised an eyebrow, surprised at Mike's request for his industries.

"But not your domestic businesses, Mr. Williams. I'm talking about your overseas operations. Those smaller ones won't really affect you, and they can be my safety net. Plus, they're a lot more discreet than just numbers in a bank account," Mike explained, laying out his request.

As Mike listed the industries he wanted, John took a moment to recall them.

John didn't see much value in those companies. Since Mike wanted them, John figured he could make a deal.

"Alright, when do you want to make the trade?" John asked, sounding casual.

"How about tomorrow night? I'll come to you in person. That'll give you time to get the contract ready. Take care, goodbye!" Mike said, wrapping up the call.

John rubbed his forehead and set down his phone.

Bianca, lying next to John, looked worried. "Honey, is what that guy said true?"

John gave a faint smile. "True or not, we have to give it a shot. But I don't think he's trying to pull one over on me."

Bianca could tell that John was brimming with confidence. It looked like she'd be heading the Taylor family once he got the contract.

"Thanks, babe. How can I ever repay you?" Bianca smiled softly, her hand trailing down from John's chest, over his abs, and slowly reaching his lower abdomen.

John's desire flared up again. Just as he was about to dive back in with Bianca, his phone rang.

With a reluctant sigh, John answered, recognizing Mason's number. He couldn't ignore a call from Mason.

On the other end, Mason asked him to come to the hospital; he had something important to discuss.

"Looks like I gotta go again," John sighed, kissing Bianca on the forehead before getting up and putting on his clothes.

"Babe, what does your grandpa want?" Bianca asked, a hint of worry in her voice.

John gave her a reassuring smile. "It's just Grandpa. What could he possibly do to me? Don't worry, I'll be back soon."

After getting dressed, John left the winery.

When John arrived at the hospital, Mason and Michael were already waiting for him.

"Grandpa, Michael, didn't expect you two to be up this late," John said with a faint smile, especially noting Michael's calm expression. It was hard to read what Michael was thinking.

Mason waved gently, motioning for John to sit beside the bed.

Once John was seated, Mason asked, "I heard you got attacked today. Any idea who did it?"

John furrowed his brow. "My guys think it was the Brown Family, but I can't figure out why Paxton would pull something like this."

John's crew had tangled with the Brown Family before, so they recognized them right away. But he was genuinely baffled as to why Paxton would stir up trouble now.

"From a strategic standpoint, it doesn't make sense for Paxton to mess with us right now. But if there's a bigger payoff, he might go for it. Still, I can't wrap my head around what that could be." John turned to Michael, hoping for some insight.

Michael, ever composed, said, "There's a rumor going around the Brown Family that the old leader of the Taylor Family left behind a secret before he died, something that could bring the family back to its former glory. Paxton wants to uncover this secret, so he sent his guys to grab Jasper."

"Is Paxton out of his mind? If the Taylor Family had something like that, Jasper would've used it by now. Why would he be skimming off the top?" John found the idea ridiculous, not worth taking seriously.

But as he noticed Mason's serious expression, a chill ran down his spine.

The smile vanished from John's face, replaced by sheer disbelief. "Grandpa, is it true? Does the Taylor Family really have something like that?"

Mason let out a deep sigh. "Yeah, the Taylor Family's got some serious power, hidden away by the old head before he passed. Why Jasper hasn't tapped into it yet, I have no clue. Maybe there's some kind of catch."

Michael's face turned serious too. He'd heard Isabella drop hints about her family's secrets, but hearing it from Mason was a whole different story. He was totally blown away.