Chapter 1

Johnny felt silly when he looked in the mirror and saw his reflection, the ancient black suit he had found after digging through the closet for 15 minutes made him look like a 1930's gangster. But he had no choice, Nana's party was tonight, and he could not use his usual outfit of a black jacket and a green sweater. Johnny wished he could afford to buy a new suit, but most of his income went to keeping his father's garage and pay for all the dates he had with Ash when he refused to let her pay for them.

Johnny thought back to his father who went to prison almost 4 years ago. He could never manage to get enough money to pay the bail, which increased to $ 250,000 after Big Daddy fled from the cell. 6 months later, it was time for the trial and the gang were charged with a series of robberies, the gold robbery was the most serious. The prosecutor called for life imprisonment. That was when the miracle happened. The notorious law firm of Leo, the Lion and the Skunk took on the case of defending Big Daddy and his brothers and managed the impossible of getting the minimum sentence of 4 years in prison for the brothers and 5 years for Big Daddy. The lawyer Mr Lion even managed to get the prosecution for the escape invalid because Big Daddy suffered from a severe form of claustrophobia after his time as a prisoner of war during a war. And simply had a panic attack which he could not be responsible for.

Johnny could not understand how the court fell for it because his father had never been in the army and was definitely not claustrophobic and he could not understand who it was who hired the law firm, which was one of the most expensive in the state. The bill he had heard landed at over half a million dollar. Who would pay so much to help a a group of robbers and thieves and then keep quiet about it?

Well his uncles were released six months ago. They mentioned that they worked as bodyguards to pay off a large debt. He had not seen them in the garage much in the last six months. But he could swear he saw them hanging around the Moon theater almost daily up until a month ago and followed Ash as she went home. Ash was another mystery over the past month. Ash had taken a month off without warning, Buster was not happy about that but could not refuse as there were several others who would like to get their hands on her and her singing voice together with Johnny's accounted for a large part of the theater's income. She had moved out of her old apartment and changed her address. Johnny had not visited the new address, and neither had anyone else in the theater group. It was almost like Ash was shy about her new home because she always changed the subject when it came up via phone call with her. He wondered if she was ashamed of not being able to afford to keep her old apartment, which was a fairly large apartment for a lonely girl. And why had one or both of his uncles followed her for several months like her shadow . It did not make sense.

"Oh shit! is already 4 o'clock. I must go now or I be late". Johnny sprinted out of the garage and jumped into his old black truck and drove off like a rocket. The traffic was quite sparse, he managed to reach Nana's mansion in time. On the outside, he met Meena, who was wearing a light blue dress with a silver necklace around her neck.

"Hi Johnny! You go old-fashioned today." She giggled.

Johnny just wanted to die of humiliation, but what could he do. If Ash saw him now, she would laugh until next summer. And since she would be here after a month's absence, she would see him. Johnny saw a blue super sports car coming up at the entrance followed by four black SUVs.

"Do not tell me that Mike has bought a car again!" But it was not Mike who got out of the fancy sportscar but Ash Quill.

She wore a white dress with gold embroidery, pearls were sewn along the bottom. Her hair, or more like her spikes reached down to her shoulders. Ever since a judge was hit by some of her spikes, she had a choice between wearing a striped prison uniform for assault or cutting off most of her spikes and removing the tip of those who were left. Now her spikes were as soft as silk and if she shook her body during a concert it would not matter.

"Ash! Where did you get that car from?" Mike shouted from the entrance. "That's a Lamborghini Veneno Roadster. Only 10 were made and they cost more than $ 8 million each."

"It's rented okay!" Ash said embarrassed. "I can't show up at Nanas party in my old scrap car! And by the way, do you have the right to say anything? when you buy a new car every few months." Johnny rolled his eyes. Ash's old scrap car was a 2015 Audi A5 Convertibles that he knew had cost $ 45,000. When he had asked her how she could afford it, she had answered, successful day trading.

"Ash what a lovely white dress." Meena said in an attempt to change the topic of conversation from expensive supercars that neither of them should be able to afford. Or even afford the tires for the blue sports car

"Oh! this old cloth. It's my dress from prom in the end of high school. I do not exactly have many dresses in my closet."

Johnny recognized the brand of the dress; it was an Oscar de la Renta dress, similar to the one he saw in the window of an exclusive fashion store last week. The price tag on that dress was $ 15,000. And he saw that Ash also wore a necklace with diamonds with a stone at the bottom of at least 20 carats, and she had earrings with large sapphires. He wondered if she had won the lottery.

While the group was talking,the four black SUVs drove up and 10 polar bears, 8 tigers and 2 gorillas got out of the cars. Everyone of them wore dark suits or dresses and sunglasses and was wearing in ear headsets. "The V.I.P. has reached her destination, all units occupy specific positions inside and outside the building. They all started to spread out and Johnny recognized the two gorillas. It was Stan and Barry, his two uncles. They got closer to the group and Johnny exclaimed. "What are you two doing here?"

"Sorry kid! Cannot talk about it, we are on duty, you know. The boss will kick us in our asses if we do not come into place soon".

They both hurried past him and entered the building.

"Who can have such a large security detail?" Rosita wondered. "It's just us from the theater group here plus a few other guests to celebrate the three-year anniversary of the new Moon Theater."

"Oh! Nana must have invited some important guest or something, maybe the governor". Ash said quickly before rushing into the house. Four female tigers quickly followed her discreetly.

Johnny was confused. Ash came driving in a supersports car. She claimed it was rented but he doubted that there was any car company in the city that had such a rare car for rent. And such a car would cost a fortune to rent for just a few hours. And then there was the dress. Ash claimed it was from a prom. Bullshit. It was brand new. Ash was lying to them, but why? And the ice on the cake. 20 bodyguards appears seconds after Ash arrives. He had known Ash for almost 4 years now. And from friends he now hoped for something more. A fiancée. But in the last month, after Ash's 21st birthday she had begun to behave differently. Shy, came up with various excuses to avoid meeting the others from the theater group. A month ago, Johnny had a problem with his truck and was checking the engine when he saw Ash jump into a black limousine with the four SUVs behind and i front. And these SUVs were the same as those that now stood 10 meters away from him. What was going on?

Johnny was awakened from his thoughts of Rosita shaking him.

"Do you have any idea what this was about?"

"No not exactly! But something is up. Do not tell the others but I think Ash may have something to do with it, but I do not know how".

"Ash!? What do you mean"?

"Several reasons. She shows up in a multi-million-dollar supercar, her dress is custom made, and finally not 2 but 20 bodyguards show up seconds after her. Also, I have seen her jump into a limousine".

"But Ash does not earn more than a few thousand dollars a month. No more than us".

"Maybe but the signs say otherwise. Her necklace was diamonds. Glass does not sparkle like that".

"Hello guys"! Buster said. "Does anyone know why four female tigers I've never seen before refuse to let Ash out of their sight?"

"I guess they're part of her security detail!" Johnny said uncertainly.

"Security detail!? Why would Ash have a security detail? Her ex does not threaten her again, I hope".

"No, I think Lance took the hint after I threw him in the garbage container full of rotten fish"! Johnny said proudly. "But something is wrong. Ash has a supercar. a dress for $ 20,000 at least and expensive jewellery. I do not know what's going on and I do not think Ash is going to tell us about it when she denies everything. We have been her friends for 4 years. But we do not really know much about her background. When the party is over, I plan to follow her and find out where she lives now. And aftet that I suggest we gather and then I talk about what I found. Buster you who have her employment information, can you dig a little for personal information about her"?

"Okay! But only because I'm worried about her. She's like a daughter to me that I never had, and I can see that she is uncomfortable with something".

"Well, then it's decided. When we have more facts, we can decide what to do and whether we have to confront her. But now we have to go in before Nana cuts off our ears if we arrive late" Rosita said.

The whole group entered the large mansion that was Nana Noodleman's residence and saw that she was talking to Ash at the stairs. Four female tigers in black dresses and 5 polar bears in suits stood nearby trying to look invisible. There was definitely something wrong here. It was clear to Johnny's trained eye that the polar bears had taken up a protective position around Ash and the female tigers had guns hidden on their legs.

Nanas Butler announced that the meal was ready, and all the guests entered the great hall. There were several tables around the hall with name tags on them. The theater group got a table for themselves but Ash was not with them. Johnny saw her sitting next to Nana and the governor of the state of Calatonia. At the same table sat 3 tigers and another 5 bodyguards stood nearby. He could see that Ash looked very uncomfortable and uncertain. She cast several glances towards the theater group with pleading eyes. Eyes that Johnny could drown in, but what a way to go.

Several dozen dishes were served but Ash did not eat much. After just over an hour, the meal was over, and the guests moved to the ballroom where there were tables with dishes and drinks. Ash went to a table and poured herself a large drink of whiskey. She emptied the glass in one go and poured another. After that she went and sat down on a secluded couch with 10 bodyguards within 10 steps. Johnny wondered if he should try to talk to her, but how would he reach her? He had grown a little in recent years but he was not nearly the size of his father but had almost the same strength. However, he realized that he would not reach her, the 5 polar bears seemed to be able to eat him for breakfast. While he was wondering what to do, Ash got up from the couch and approached Johnny.

"Hi Johnny! do you want to dance"? Ash asked with a cheerful voice. It was noticeable in her voice that she was quite drunk and johnny could not dance to save his life. But he could not deny Ash anything and it was not like she had asked him to sleep with her. With great anxiety he followed Ash to the dance floor. After embarrassing himself, Ash was still in his arms cuddling.

"Johnny! Your fur is so soft and comfortable that I just want to sleep on it forever. I wish this evening never ends".

After talking to each other for several hours and sharing many embarrassing dances, at least for Johnny's part.

"Johnny, I have something I need to tell you, or rather everyone in the theater." Ash was interrupted by a polar bear tapping her on the shoulder. "Lady Porcupine! We have to go now. your limousine is waiting. Your sports car has been loaded on a trailer and is now taken back to Porcupine Hall as we speak". Ash was almost pulled away from Johnny and before he knew it, she was out of the room.

"She was about to tell me about what was going on and then that polar bear comes and destroys everything. That's it! I will knock out all the information from my uncles when I get my hands on them".

He followed Ash and saw her get into a black limousine with the four SUVs in front and behind it. Johnny jumped into his truck with the intention of following but the engine refused to start.

"Fuck! The battery is dead again". He banged his skull against the steering wheel repeatedly.

Meanwhile, Buster had returned to his office at the theater and read a newspaper he had found on his desk. It was about a month old and listed the richest people in the state. Buster liked to see which people were richest and sometimes dreamed of seeing his own name on the list but knew it would never happen.

"Let's see now. Nana Noodleman is in 28th place with 350 million dollars. Mr. and Mrs. Noodleman has 100 million dollars and is in 59th place". He looked at the top of the list and dropped the coffee mug on the floor.

The top of Calatonia's richest list is taken up by a new person this year of 2020. The heiress to the Porcupine real estate empire, the Porcupine Conglomerate with over 1500 business and Porcupine shipping company Ltd, has reached the age of 21 and now has full control of the United States' largest corporate empire.

Lady Ashlen Monroe Porcupine age 21: Had an estimated fortune of $ 195.5 billion last year which makes her the richest person in the world. She currently lives in Porcupine Hall which was built by her father Lord James T Porcupine in 2000. This gigantic mansion has 358 bedrooms with 385 bathrooms, 8 kitchens, 3 libraries, a bowling alley and 2 cinemas and hundreds of offices for administrative staff. 5 large swimming pools, 2 of which is indoors. A winery, 2 racing tracks and large gardens form part of the massive estate of over 15 000 acres. 3 floors of car parking space are designed to accommodate 285 cars, helipads on the roof with room for 5 helicopters. A private airport with 7 private jets of different sizes. The entire property has an estimated service staff of over 1000 people.

It is known that Lady Porcupine has not lived on the property since 2015 when her parents were lost in an accident together with the rest of the Porcupine family. Lady Porcupine! was the only survivor as she had not yet arrived at her father's wrecked yacht and was still ashore. The heiress to the world's largest fortune had vanished without trace until recently. Retainers to the family recognized the young lady who had been wanted for 5 years outside the well-known Moon Theater. They confronted her and she admitted that it was her. The new multi-billionaire was no other than the local singer better known as Ash Quill, the rock star princess. but her real name is Lady Ashlen Monroe Porcupine. Only child and heiress to the Porcupine Empire.

Over the article was a picture of Ash taken from a distance when she steps into a dark limousine. And even though the picture was far away, Buster immediately recognized her. Buster could not believe his eyes. Ash was over 500 times richer than Nana which without further ado had the Moon Theater rebuilt at a cost of several millions. No wonder the confident Ash was gone, this must be something that turned her life upside down. When the article indicated that she was trying to escape from her background. Probably because of her parents' death. For the first time in over three years, Buster Moon did not know what to do. Ash was like a daughter to him in a way, and several times she had happened to call him daddy to everyone's laughter. But now he was afraid of losing her forever. And he was not sure how he would cope with that. To be honest, she was the star of the theater. Her singing voice had scouts ringing every month for disc recording or touring, but she had always refused and stayed at the theater with the others. She had discussed with Johnny about making a record together. But Johnny was concerned about financing. What a joke! Buster thought.

Meena saw Ash leave the party and also noticed that Johnny could not start his truck. When she had not drunk any alcohol this evening, she sat behind the wheel of her car and followed the convoy of black cars. After leaving town and driving for almost an hour on the motorway to the south, the convoy took an exit road towards an illuminated complex surrounded by a high wall. The convoy drove through the open steel gates in the wall, which were then closed automatically. Meena Stopped her car a short distance up the road about 100 meters from the gate. She was sitting in the car wondering what to do for almost 15 minutes before making a decision and getting out of the car and approached the gates.

She pressed the intercom that rang before a camera was aimed at her.

"Please provide your name and reason for visiting Porcupine Hall at midnight". An annoyed voice sounded through the intercom.

Meena who was not as shy anymore as 4 years ago said confidently.

"I'm a friend of Ash and I want to talk to her".

"Ash? Who's Ash? Do you mean Lady Ashlen Monroe Porcupine? She does not meet anyone at this time of night! Come back tomorrow and we'll see if she receives you".

Meena was about to give an angry answer when the voice in the intercom was interrupted by someone she recognized well.

"Meena! is that you"? Ash's voice was easily recognizable after 4 years of friendship. "What are you doing here at midnight"?

"Ash! I need to talk to you. Everyone in the group is worried and does not understand what is going on with you".

"Sigh! I knew this day was coming but I'm still not prepared for it. Okay! pick up your car and I'll let you through the security gates".

"But Lady" the voice from earlier said. "Ah! Shut up! safety procedures or not, this is my house and I decide who comes in or not. I do not let my friends return to the door just because the security has a different opinion".

Meena laughed as she walked back to her car. That was the Ash she knows well. Strong and independent. At the car, she met Johnny, who finally got his truck started and managed to catch up with her and saw her car on the exit road.

"Hi Johnny! Get into my car. Ash lets us into some kind of fortress with a wall and security gates and everything. They called the place Porcupine Hall". Johnny almost fainted. He knew the property well. when he was little, his grandfather worked as a gardener on the property and Johnny had visited him a number of times during working hours. He remembered playing with a little porcupine girl a few times now almost 15 years ago, a girl with the most sweet deep blue eyes. She was the first one he had a crush on. And the only one until Ash showed up Four years ago. Now he wondered if the little girl and Ash were the same person. There was only one way to get an answer, he jumped into Meena's car and they drove up to the gate that opened when they got close. They drove through a large park towards a giant white mansion 5 storeys high. With towers in every corner. They were met outside the gate by two well-known gorillas in black suits.

"Welcome to Porcupine Hall!" Barry said to Meena before he saw that Johnny was in the car.

"Well! This is awkward" Stan said and scratched his head.

"Awkward!" Awkward! Is that all you have to say? I meet you a maximum of 5-10 times in six months. You say you work as bodyguards but not for whom. And now I discover that you are in the largest private mansion in the country probably working for my girlfriend, I mean best friend Ash. How come she hired you? She does not even know you, and six months ago you were released from prison. No one can get a job as a bodyguard that quickly after being in state prison! Not without contacts. Now you have to explain everything to me or else".

Humble Johnny had reached the end of his patience. Ash had problems but no one told him anything about it. Someone would talk now! He grabbed his uncles' suits and lifted them off the ground. And started shaking them.

"Speak now! What are you doing here, what is Ash doing here? Why". He was interrupted by a soft voice.

"Johnny! Please put your uncles on the ground before their suits burst". Ash said while she went down the stairs. She was wearing a blue bathrobe and purple sandals.

"Ash! What is going on? Everything has been confusing the last month".

"Confusing! Tell me about it! My life has been turned upside down. But I guess I owe you that explanation I mentioned earlier tonight. Please come into my little house, it's quite chilly tonight." Ash said and turned around again. After walking through a long corridor richly decorated with paintings and expensive furniture, they reached a room with a fireplace and several couches. Ash sat down in an armchair facing one of the couches while the others sat down on the couch. A female fox dressed as a 1800s maid came carrying a plate of refreshments and put it on the table then she left the room. "Sorry about that, but the head of the household has always been old-fashioned the entire staff is dressed as they were in the 19th century". Ash sighed and then handed over a newspaper article to her two friends. The same article that Buster just had read.

The two friends read the article with wide eyes.

"This may explain some of this crazy month! It is about four weeks since my family's lawyers ambushed me after nearly 5 years of hiding. They did not take no for an answer. I am the only heir to all this crap. If I refused to take control, the corporate empire would shatter. Economic chaos would affect the entire state and then the whole country. Financial crash and recession all over the world would follow. At least that's what my business economists were trying to tell me".

"But why did you never say anything? We are your friends" Meena said.

"I was scared! I'm scared even now. Losing you would kill me! Please do not think differently of me for something I cannot control"! Ash said with tears in her eyes.

"I'm still the same person. Just with just a slightly larger bank account". Ash tried to joke.

Johnny burst into hysterical laughter which lasted for several minutes. Ash and Meena Exchanged anxious glances with each other. While Johnny laughed, Stan and Barry came into the room and sat down on another couch. Johnny soon got together.

"Hey, kid! I guess we also owe you an explanation. 3,5 years ago, just before the trial. Ash visited your father and us in prison. She offered to pay for lawyers and all but in exchange we would not be allowed to tell anyone about the identity of who was behind it. Your father declined her generous offer, saying that he should be held accountable for his own actions. Well! Ash did it anyway. The notorious law firm of Leo, the Lion and the Skunk was hired at a cost of $ 553,000. Then we could not understand how she could afford this. But apparently, she had taken a lot of money with her on the run. Now we are in debt to her. And our family always repays a debt. Now we have been working for her for 6 months. Okay, paid job for a month but we have kept an eye on her for six months,we make sure that she does not get into trouble when she is in town". Barry said.

"Not much happened these months except for an annoying porcupine named Lance which we had to learn several lessons. The last time we dumped him on the city dump among the other garbage.

"Wait! Ash it was you who was behind my family's lawyers"!

Ash smiled sheepishly. Before she was almost crushed by a gorilla hug. "Cannot breathe"! Johnny was pulled away from Ash by his uncles.

"Sorry Johnny but keeping the boss alive is our job and we still have 15 years left before the entire debt is paid. She only deducts $ 3,000 in total per month from our pay checks. And we also had to persuade her to do it."

"Yes, she pays us 9 000 dollars each, every month minus the 1500 dollars. That's 7 500 dollars. Or 90 000 dollar per year. We never made that much money on crime. And if we can work for 15-20 years we can save enough money for retirement." Barry Said. "And the retirement benefits in our employment contracts are good. The only bad thing is the income tax"

"Hey! What do you think my income taxes will be this year"? Ash said with a pretended irritated voice. "I think the state's planned sports arena with 100,000 seats Will be paid for by my tax money".

Meena asked Ash. "What were you talking to Nana about at the party before dinner"?

Ash looked embarrassed again. "Well I might have happened to buy the Moon Theater for $ 25 million. With the intention to give it to Buster when he turns 50 next week. Buster has been like the father a rebellious teenager like me needed to get back on her feet. He has done more for me than anyone else can imagine. And I doubt I would still be alive if he had not helped me get out of a very severe depression three years ago. But that is a story for another time" Ash said when she noticed that the others wanted to ask questions she did not want to answer.

"I understand that you have many more questions but it's late and we have to be at the theater at 9 o'clock. I request that you both spend the night here. It is an hour's drive to town and it's almost one o'clock at night. By the way, the gates are locked at night for security reasons. You cannot leave the area until tomorrow, You have no choice." Ash said with a smile.

Johnny had ben silent since he tried to hug Ash with many emotions in his body. He was very confused and tired. He barely noticed when a female lion wearing a maid's outfit showed him to a large bedroom with a king size bed with silk sheets. He just closed the door and fell on the bed. He fell asleep before his body touched the blanket. Meena was in a similar situation. Very tired but still awake. She thought of Ash and all that was revealed during the day. She looked out the window and saw an illuminated park with hundreds of rose bushes and other plants of all kinds. She could have sworn she saw a glimpse of Ash before she disappeared behind a tree. But Ash should be in bed now.

Ash was wide awake. Walking in the park she loved as a child. She knew that tomorrow the rest of the group would confront her. And she was terrified of what they would think of her. Mike might be jealous of her money. Well if he did not overdraw his account on cars and poker all the time, he would have some money left to save. She had secretly paid off his debt to the three bears a few years ago. They stopped trying to kill him every two weeks. She was most afraid of how Buster would react. Would he throw her out of the group because she lied to him? Technically, she was his boss right now, but she did not want to tell him that.

At the same time, Buster had been walking back and forth in his office for hours. Ash was rich. Very rich. The salary he paid her was a joke to her. She could buy the theater 1,000 times and still not notice the difference in her wealth. How could he hope she would stay with the group now? She is a multi-billionaire. Animals like him were not worthy of her attention. A poor theater director against the world's richest porcupine.

"Please Ash! how can I persuade you to stay with us? My daughter". Buster had understood that Ash was orphaned 3 years ago when he found her on a high bridge. She tried to climb over the fence in an attempt to jump into the cold water 120 feet further down. He just managed to get her jacket Before she jumped and with all his might he pulled back the crying Ash over the railing and down to the ground. She repeatedly tried to tear herself free and jump over the fence while screaming that she did not want to live anymore. Buster had to make a difficult decision. He knocked her unconscious and dragged her back to the newly built theater. He had to tie Ash to a couch. And he held her all night while she cried and cried. Later, when she had calmed down, he learned that it was the anniversary of her parents' death. Ash and his relationship changes after this night.

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