Cinderfella

"No mama, don't leave me. I promise to be good," is wailed through a dark room. A man's shadow sits up from the bed, unseen grey eyes staring blankly at a cold, concrete wall. The pounding of his heart, echoing through the small room with each sad beat.

After a while, the eyes focus and the heartbeat slows down. The man reaches for a light to point at the calendar on the wall. It lights up today's date: March first. His birthday. Also his mom's deathday. Every year on this date, that nightmare has haunted him. He doesn't know if it's a memory from the actual event or just his fears of being told it was his fault his mom died. He was only 3 that day. Just turned 3 at that. He was told the accident happened on the way to getting him stuff for his birthday. He was told he threw a fit about wanting a certain toy he didn't get and a certain cake he wanted. He was told he survived because his mom protected him, even though he was a selfish, spoiled brat. He was told he didn't deserve to live in their family.

What he wasn't told, was that his name is Samuel Archer, the grandson of Gerome Archer, one of the richest men in the world. Archer Enterprises was a leader in electronic development and processing. He wasn't told that his mother, Annabelle Archer, was Gerome's only daughter. That Gerome loved his daughter so much, she was set to inherit everything from him. Until she met that man. Douglas Winters. Oh how Gerome hated that man. The one that stole his baby girl's heart. Sam wasn't told that his mother had to start at the bottom of every company Gerome owned, so she can learn everything about it when she takes them over. Sam didn't know, his mom met his dad at one of these companies. He didn't know his dad recognized Annabelle as the CEO'S daughter and thought, if he married her his life would be perfect. Beautiful wife, riches beyond his imagination, and a place as the boss in a mega powerful company. Sam didn't know his dad wooed his mom and eventually swept her off her feet. She was so in love with him, she begged her dad, "That's who I want to marry, dad. He loves me and makes me happy."

Gerome had his doubts about Doug, but he wanted his little girl to be happy, so he said yes. Annabelle and Douglas had a magnificent wedding, with the leaders of businesses, heads of state, and Archer family members as their witnesses. Doug was beyond impressed with the people Gerome knew. That was who he wanted to be. A man who knew the most powerful people. Annabelle came back from their honeymoon with a surprise. She had gotten pregnant. Douglas acted like he was over the moon excited about his future child. He wanted to go to every health check. He took Annabelle shopping for the best baby stuff. He decorated the nursery himself. But, he had hidden his true intentions. He was excited, but not for the reasons everyone else thought. The baby stuff they bought, wasn't for Annabelle's child. It was for Doug's child with his mistress. She was pregnant with their second child at the same time as Annabelle. He wanted the child with Annabelle only because he knew the child was his ticket to immense wealth. That is once Gerome and Annabelle were out of the picture. Then he'd have control over Archer Enterprises until Samuel was old enough to take over himself. But by then Douglas would have stolen everything from him and given it to his true love, Tracy, and their children together.

What no one knew, was Douglas kept his mistress and daughters a secret so well hidden, not even private investigators could find them. Because Gerome did investigate him, but he found nothing. And no one will learn his secret until the plans made by him and Tracy are finished. They spent hours, while Doug was on 'business trips' plotting how to take over Archer Enterprises. Every detail was planned, even multiple scenarios for each step of the plan, just in case. But there was one scenario they never considered and it almost ruined everything. Almost. It just ruined Samuel's life instead. And it would take him 18 years to learn just how carefully the plot was carried out.