Chapter 57

When all the reports were done grandpa Hernandez asked Janine Hernandez for an explanation on what had happened at Nationalia. The woman was still so proud despite getting the whole family banned.

Janine stood up and cleared her throat before finally speaking.

"I hope everyone here will understand that getting banned from the Nationalia was important for the task our family had assigned to me." Janine explained.

"We are banned aunt Janine, not just you! All of us. Every single Hernandez, whether or not we were involved!" One of the nephews argued.

"Let Janine finish." Fredrik scolded.

"As I was saying, that ban will be nothing since our trip was a success." Janine declared.

"Aunt Janine, with all due respect the Madams sent us away, how was that a success?" Adrianna asked. "We went there to see if we could have future partnerships with their family's companies."

At what Adrianna said the whole room was silent, everyone except her family knew the real goal was to get Adrianna noticed by Mrs. Reyes.

"Adri, dear, that wasn't the reason for our visit." Aunt Janine began to explain.

"What?! Then what did we go there for?" Adrianna felt like she wouldn't want to know the answer.

"Well, we went there so that Mrs. Reyes could be charmed by you. And we succeeded, the Madam loved you!" Aunt Janine praised.

Adrianna's jaw dropped in disbelief. She never thought her family would stoop this low.

"You are all crazy!" Adrianna declared.

"Adri, the Reyes Heir even carried you away in his arms. That moment was so sweet." Aunt Janine said full of delight. "The moment you marry into that family the ban on our family will be lifted and I'm sure our application to become members will be swiftly approved."

"When I marry? I am already married!" Adrianna shouted.

"Adrianna, the family believes that annulling your marriage to Cedric is for the best." Fredrik explained.

"I will not let you do this to me. I am leaving." Adrianna stood up and left. Cedric simply followed behind her.

"Charles, Gracia, talk to your daughter…." As they left Cedric could hear grandpa Hernandez reprimanding Adrianna's parents.

When they got in the car Cedric received a message from Ian telling him that he had given the documents to Ram Abad and Alexi Sebastian.

Adrianna cried on the way home. She held Cedric's hand tightly as he drove.

"You're lucky your family is dead." Adrianna cried.

"It's the ones we love the most that can hurt us the most." Cedric said with a sigh.

"I don't understand them Cedric! They say they have my best interest at heart and yet they do things like this to me!" Adrianna complained.

"Well, I think it's because in their world, you being with a better man is the best option." Cedric explained.

"But you are the better man, you will always be the better man for me.�� Adrianna kissed Cedric on the cheek as they drove off.

When Cedric was sure that Adrianna was fast asleep in their room, he stepped out on the balcony and dialed Ram's number.

"It's past midnight Ced. This better be important." Ram said in a groggy voice, he was clearly woken by Cedric's call.

"Ian sent you the files on Fredrik and John Hernandez. I want their names ruined, I want them to lose control over Island's Inc." Cedric went straight to the point and told his friend what he wanted.

"Alright. I'll have it in the morning release. I'll make sure the reporters hound their office as well. Now let me sleep!" Ram shouted, dropping the call.

Cedric grinned. He knew Ram wouldn't directly go to bed. He would organize everything for tomorrow first. He then dialed a second number, it was Alexi.

It took Alexi a while to pick up, but when he did Cedric heard a woman's voice.

"Is Alexi there?" Cedric asked.

"He's in the shower. Are you willing to wait?" The woman said in a seductive tone.

"Tell him to call me back. Say Cedric called, he'll know what to do." Cedric dropped the call after that not wanting to hear what else the woman might say.

Cedric wasn't surprised that Alexi was with a woman, Alexi was a notorious womanizer dating almost every actress, singer, and model out there. He just didn't touch people he did business with. What surprised Cedric was that Alexi had left his personal phone with the woman. Alexi was very protective of his privacy.

Within five minutes Alexi was calling him back.

"Stupid girl, she took my phone and answered your call. Sorry bro." Alexi explained.

Cedric repeated to Alexi what he had told Ram. "Ian sent you the files on Fredrik and John Hernandez. I want their names ruined, I want them to lose control over Island's Inc."

"I'll hand them over to Katerina. She should be able to find charges against them that the government can file. If not the government then we'll make the victims file them. I'll go wake her up now." Alexi promised.

"You bring those girls home? To the Presidential Palace?" Cedric asked.

"It was… er.... a maid, ok?" Alexi was embarrassed that he had to explain it to Cedric.

"I still wonder how you still managed to win an election." Cedric laughed. It was probably because despite Alexi's womanizing habits he still showed up to do his job and looked good doing it, as a result his constituents were willing to look the other way.

"Yeah, yeh. Bye." Alexi clearly was not willing to extend the conversation.

Cedric went back in after his conversation with Alexi. Although Adrianna's parents had arrived an hour ago Adrianna refused to go out to speak to her parents, she was mad at the whole family.

Cedric had his fair share of disagreements with Gracia in the past, even Charles, initially did not want him to marry Adrianna. But despite all that they still allowed the wedding to continue and they only objected to the marriage because they didn't want Adrianna to suffer.

It was true that most of the time Gracia belittled Cedric, that was because in her eyes Cedric did nothing but rely on his wife's income. Cedric didn't like it when Adrianna and her parents fought. It was because Cedric knew that they were just both looking out for each other.