**Chapter Seven: Blood, Not Bond*
Jayden knew now that blood didn't mean loyalty.
He'd spent so much of his life wishing for a family beyond his mother—believing that maybe somewhere out there was a father who'd come find him, rescue them, give them a better life. And now that man lay in a private hospital room with half his body numbed by medication, and the weight of a crumbling empire resting on his son's back.
Family was never about blood.
It was about choice.
And Jayden was done waiting for someone to choose him.
He would choose himself. And he would fight.
The day after the viral blog post attacked his name, Jayden walked into school and felt the shift in the air. Students stared, but not with confusion anymore—with suspicion. Some whispered behind their hands. Some outright glared at him. The security guard who used to nod respectfully now barely made eye contact.
A few teachers treated him like something radioactive.
At lunch, Kevin slapped down a printed copy of the blog article on the table between them.
"You see this?"
Jayden didn't flinch. "Yeah."
"It's got screenshots, Jayde. Your face. Your name. They're calling you a corporate thief. A scam."
Brian joined them, breathing hard, holding his phone.
"They're pushing this story through WhatsApp groups," Brian said. "Parents are seeing it. Our classmates' families are reposting it like it's gospel."
Kevin leaned forward, voice low. "You need to tell us the truth. Now."
Jayden looked them both in the eyes.
And for the first time, he let the truth spill—not all of it, but enough.
"My father is Richard Lexington," he said. "I didn't know until recently. He kept it secret. My mum raised me alone, away from all this. I didn't ask for this life, but I'm in it now. And the people coming after me? They're not just trying to ruin my name. They want to erase me completely."
There was silence.
Brian's mouth opened and closed.
Kevin leaned back. "So… it's true."
Jayden nodded. "But I'm still me."
Kevin stared at him for a long moment.
Then nodded once.
"Alright."
Brian shook his head slowly. "Man. This is insane. So… what do we do?"
Jayden looked around the cafeteria. "We keep quiet. And we watch everything."
That night, Jayden sat beside his father's hospital bed.
Richard looked weak but alert.
"Your mother is missing," Jayden said.
Richard didn't respond.
"You knew, didn't you?" Jayden pressed.
Still no answer.
Jayden stood up. "If anything happens to her because of you—"
"She's not dead," Richard said suddenly.
Jayden froze.
"She's being watched. Moved. Quietly."
Jayden turned. "By who?"
"By my people. I moved her after I saw the first death threat aimed at you."
Jayden's voice dropped to a whisper. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because if you knew where she was, they'd break you."
Jayden's fists clenched.
"You don't get to decide what breaks me," he growled.
Richard exhaled. "You're stronger than I ever was."
Jayden walked out without another word.
---
Three days later, Jayden was invited—ordered, really—to attend a black-tie gala at the Hilton. It was an annual gathering of Nairobi's elite families and corporate heads, but this year, it carried extra heat.
Richard Lexington's heir would be seen for the first time.
Or so they thought.
Jayden had no intention of being paraded around like a trophy.
He arrived in a worn black suit and blended in with the catering team.
Nobody noticed the boy carrying the tray of wine glasses. They didn't look closely at the student adjusting the flowers on the head table.
Jayden moved quietly through the golden ballroom, eavesdropping.
He caught snippets of conversations about market shares, government contracts, and whispered threats wrapped in polite language.
Then he heard it:
Gerald Macharia.
Brandon's father.
Speaking to another man near the bar.
"…we weaken Lexington's holdings further, and the board will have no choice. One more fire, one more 'accident,' and the company collapses into our hands."
Jayden's blood ran cold.
This wasn't business.
It was a war plan.
The next morning, the news broke.
A fire had destroyed Lexington's tech development facility in Mombasa.
Two workers were injured. Millions lost. Evidence unclear.
But Jayden knew the truth.
He raced to the hospital. His father had been rushed back into intensive care—another stress-induced episode.
Leona met Jayden in the corridor.
"They're calling a board vote," she said. "They want to remove Richard permanently. And they're pushing to block you from stepping in."
Jayden didn't blink. "When's the meeting?"
"Tomorrow. 8 a.m."
Jayden nodded. "Good. I'll be ready."
The next morning, Jayden walked into the Lexington Global boardroom wearing the same old hoodie from his Kibera days. Some laughed. Others rolled their eyes.
But they stopped laughing when Jayden connected his laptop and loaded a live economic breakdown of the company's trajectory over the next six months—complete with recovery strategies, counter-leak security protocols, and a list of offshore investors willing to stabilize the company under new leadership.
"I built this model myself," Jayden said calmly. "No assistant. No executive. Just me. If you want the company to survive, you'll stop looking at the name on my birth certificate and start paying attention to the numbers."
Silence.
Then murmurs.
Then one old board member stood and clapped—slowly, deliberately.
The rest followed.
Jayden didn't smile. Not once.
When it was over, Leona walked him out.
"That was either suicide or genius," she said.
Jayden replied, "It's survival."
The next day, Sasha cornered him outside the school gates.
"I heard about the board," she said. "You crushed it."
Jayden didn't stop walking.
"Jayden, please. Just talk to me."
He turned. "Why? So you can run back to Brandon and report it?"
Her eyes widened. "No. I left him. For good."
Jayden narrowed his gaze. "And now what? You're back because you miss me? Or because you miss what I've become?"
"I miss both," she whispered.
Jayden didn't flinch. "You broke something I can't rebuild. And I won't even try."
He walked away again.
This time, she didn't follow.
That night, Jayden found a package waiting for him at his door.
No return address.
Inside: a photograph of his mother sitting alone in a small concrete room.
A pair of bloody earrings.
And a note that read:
**"You're playing a rich man's game. But you were born to lose."**
Jayden stared at the photo for a long time.
Then he stood.
Grabbed his phone.
Dialed Leo.
"Activate the Guard," he said.
"They just crossed the line."
---
**End of Chapter Seven**