Disclaimer: All characters belong to Warner Bros. Studios, except for Monty's family.

Chapter 4

Bedtime Schemes (Part 2)

25th Nov

Celestine walked down the semi-dark hallway, dressed in a blood red nightgown and covered by a satin, black robe. Her blonde hair, which shone into the moonlight like gold, was braided impeccably and her sapphire eyes gazed tiredly at the path in front of her. In her hands she held a bottle of whiskey and a glass.

It had been a long day. A long, infernal day, that required a glass or two of the alcoholic beverage she was holding. It had all started in Britain, at the airport, and concluded a few hours ago, when they all decided it was time to retreat to their rooms, for some rest. Today's family reunion had left her completely drained of energy, as if she had ran a marathon. Instead, all she did was smile and, supposedly, enjoy herself. But joy wasn't exactly what she felt whenever she was in her relatives' presence. Apart from her son and husband, she absolutely hated everyone in that family.

Richard was a power-hungry bastard that was taking advantage of Charles. She simply knew it. Of course, at first glance, the two cousins seemed to share equal power at the company. Richard oversaw the factories in North and South America, while Charles ran the ones in Europe. Simple as that, right? Well, it wasn't really. While this was the theory, there was something more, something that the members of the family, especially Richard, avoided mentioning: the family's bank account.

The family's bank account was where all the money made by the family, from the companies in both the Americans and Europe, went. And Richard was in charge of it. Not only that, but he could also access it whenever he liked, which, in Celestine's eyes, could only mean one thing: Richard was stealing from the family bank account. It all made perfect sense to her. How was it possible for Richard to live in this palace and give his bratty son and snobby wife everything they wanted if he wasn't also stealing? It just wasn't physically possible to make so much money in such a short amount of time, yet Richard, somehow, did it. What was worse was that she and Charles also had to put all the money that they made in their European companies in that bank account, as well. Richard wasn't just stealing money. He was stealing her money.

As that thought cruised her mind, her teeth clenched and her grip on the bottle and glass tightened. For years she had been sure of this, and she had tried to find something, anything, to accuse Richard of and prove she was right. Unfortunately, she had had little success, which only made her blood boil more. Even more frustrating, was her husband's attitude towards all of this. Charles seemed to live in a world of his own where his only goal was to please his cousin, despite how Richard so obviously pushed him around. It seemed as if he didn't even notice it. That infuriated Celestine more than anything.

She stopped for a bit near the window to take a deep breath and calm down. It wasn't a good idea to get angry while she was a guest at the Max Residence. Someone observant, like Angelina for example, might notice her gloomy mood and ask questions or she might snap at someone, which would certainly raise a few eyebrows. Looking outside, she met the icy gaze of the Moon, who seemed to tell her the same exact thing. Keep going and don't say anything yet. Straightening herself, she resumed her walking down the hallway.

After Richard, the person she disliked the most was Angelina. Not only because she was his wife, but also because of how much of a gossiper she was. Nothing could fly past that woman. She always had to know everything about everyone. Celestine didn't like that at all. She was always under the impression that Angelina was observing her, spying her almost. A part of her wanted to believe that she was only imagining it, but sometimes she just couldn't help but feel that Angelina suspected how unsatisfied she was with the way things functioned in the company and for that she was keeping an eye on her (or maybe Richard had asked her to do it; she wouldn't put anything past that man). And so, the tension between the two of them had grown over the years, the feeling of dislike being mutual. They always tried to compete in any situation. Sometimes they even used their children to do so, like today, when they had compared Monty's and Zachary's grades. It happened so often that by now it was a habit and a general rule for her. She simply had to try to humiliate Angelina, wipe off, for at least a second, the confident look her face and cut her desire to stick her nose where it didn't belong.

Other than these two, the rest of the family was insignificant to her. Monty was a spoiled brat and very annoying in her opinion, but not a threat, Nigel and Lydia were simply Richard's pawns (although there was the possibility of them outranking her and Charles, which could be a problem) and, finally, Gabriel and his new fiancée, but when it came to them, she had no worries. They were harmless.

Just as she was thinking about her complicated family dynamic, she turned right, entering another corridor and froze. Down this new hallway she had just set foot into, there was a room whose door was cracked a little bit, just enough for the light to spill onto the floor and wall, like a fire spreading into the house. Celestine heard unintelligible voices from inside, which weren't that loud, almost just whispers, yet still intrigued her. Something inside told her this wasn't just an ordinary conversation, but something more secretive. There was no way she would miss it.

Quiet as a mouse, Celestine tip-toed to the door and positioned herself near the door hinges, so if the door would swing open, no one would see her. After a few seconds, her decision proved to be a good one, as the old butler working for Gabriel and Olympia exited the room, walking in the direction opposite to her.

When he was out of sight, Celestine readjusted her position, so she could hear better what was going on inside. For a few moments, there was nothing. Then, suddenly, Olympia's loud voice came from the room, like an explosion.

"Richard giving Nigel and Lydia half of his wealth, just because they are going to mentor his brat?! And what about us!"

Celestine stood petrified. Her fingers around the glass and bottle went numb and she almost dropped them. She leaned against the wall, convinced her hearing was starting to let her down. It had to! What other explanation could there be for what she had overheard? Richard giving away half of his immense fortune just like that?! And for something so simple like mentoring his son, whatever that meant? No. No. It couldn't be. She refused to accept it.

From inside the room, she heard voices again. Steadying herself, she continued to listen, drinking in every single word.

"And what do we get, the leftovers?! And why didn't he call you in as well?!" Olympia shouted again, this time, Celestine suspected, addressing Gabriel. "Why didn't he give you the same chances as he gave the others?!"

"My sibling never liked me much. You know that, Olympia. I told you numerous times." Gabriel's voice said.

Then there was quiet for a while. Celestine couldn't tell what they were doing, since she couldn't see them. She just stood near the door, hardly being able to breathe. So, she hadn't misunderstood. Richard was really giving away his money to Lydia and Nigel for simply teaching his son Heaven knew what. A feeling of nausea cruised her body and she felt like she was going to be sick. She wanted nothing more than to go to her room, lie back and calm down from the enormous shock. But she knew she couldn't do that. Not yet. She had to listen more, find out more and only return to her room when she knew at least a good portion of what was going on.

A while passed and she couldn't hear anything anymore. Only barely audible footsteps, walking at a regulated pace, like a clock's ticking.

"No!" Olympia suddenly yelled, startling Celestine. "None of them will get that money! I will! We will!"

"But how are we going to do it?" Gabriel asked. "Richard hasn't even considered telling me about all this."

"Well, then you'll just have to participate without an invitation, won't you?" She heard Olympia sneer. "You have to demonstrate him that you are just as fit for the job as Nigel and Lydia!"

"But how?" Gabriel's voice echoed his previous question. "I was never able to be as good as them, no matter how hard I tried!"

"Baby," Celestine could tell by the way she said the word that she was smiling. Then, the woman said something else, in Greek by the way it sounded, that, of course, she couldn't understand. "You're forgetting that this time you're not alone. You have me and I'm going to help you. Together we are unstoppable!"

Celestine had heard enough. Silently, as to not reveal her position, she walked away, in the direction of her room. When she was sure they wouldn't be able to hear her anymore, she broke into a run and didn't stop until she reached her and her husband's chamber.

Opening the wooden door, she hurried inside, closing it after her. Her heart was racing and the words she had heard earlier were echoing in her mind. Richard is giving away his money, she , no. Richard was giving away her money.

Letting that information sink in, her shock and desperation slowly melted into anger. That no good in-law of hers. Who did he think he was, stealing from the family bank account, then giving half of it to his siblings?! And without announcing anybody else! As if she and Charles didn't have a say in this. As if they were that unimportant.

Shaking with fury, she went over to her nightstand and slammed the bottle and glass on it, the sound reverberating around the room.

"Celi?" Charles' whispery voice reached her ears, but she didn't even flinch. "You're going to wake up Zach. What's wro-"

"What's wrong?!" She whipped around, a ferocious look in her sapphirine eyes, which burned with azure fire. The chubby short man backed away in alarm at the sight of his wife.

"Your two-faced, thief of a cousin, that's what's wrong?!" She yelled again.

"Richard?" Charles asked. Then, with a groan, he pinched the bridge between his eyes. "What don't you like this time, Celi? Is he stealing your money again? Is he taking advantage of us or whatever? Is he-" But he was cut off in mid-sentence by Celestine grabbing his shoulders and hissing in his face.

"He is going to give Nigel and Lydia half of his fortune."

The man's jaw dropped, and his beady eyes widened. For ten solid seconds none of them said anything, keeping the same pose, unable to move.

"WHAT?!" Charles shouted in disbelief. Celestine quickly shushed him urgently. Both glanced worriedly in the direction of Zachary's bedroom, which was connected to theirs through a door.

After another few moments, seeing as their son's sleep had not been disturbed by the yell, they continued their 'little dispute'.

"Half of the fortune? What for?" He asked, quieter this time, but just as perplexed.

"For mentoring Monty, whatever that means. I think it has something to do with him taking over the company when his older. And, as if that weren't enough, Gabriel and Olympia found out about it too and they're going to try and take it themselves." Then, glaring at Charles she added. "I told you something like this was going to happen. You always said I was crazy and told me to shut up whenever I pointed out how suspicious this whole Richard affair was. Now look where it's gotten us! What are you wearing this for?!" She grabbed his hand and pointed at the golden ring on his finger with a beautiful M carved on it. "This is supposed to show that you are powerful, that you have a word to say!"

Letting go of him, she began pacing around the room. "Yet, despite that, you still let that cousin of yours step on you and take advantage of you, of us! What about me? How do you think I feel when I see my husband let others use him how they please? What about Zach? What's he going to do when he inherits the company and sees that he's treated lesser, just because of his father didn't have the guts to-"

"I GET IT!" Charles' sudden outburst made Celestine jump a bit and then stare at him in shock.

"Do you think I don't know that this whole thing is unfair?" Charles snarled. "Do you really believe I don't notice the power imbalance between me and Richard? Do you think I'm ok with this? Well, Celi, I have news for you. I'm not! I too feel the same as you and I'm also afraid for how our son will pull through this in the future. Is that clear?"

Celestine, still a bit startled, asked. "Then why didn't you say anything all these years? Why didn't you confront him?"

"Because" Charles said exasperated, "I can't risk offending Richard. Can you imagine what would happen if I did? Plus, is not as if he will ever admit that he's taking advantage of us. He'll deny it and without proof, we can't do anything."

Both stayed silent for a while, each caught in their own tornado of thoughts. Celestine was rather surprised at this side of her husband she had just discovered. She had always thought Charles just didn't notice how his cousin was making tons of money off their backs, at times even suspecting him of being a complete imbecile. Not even once had she considered the fact that he might know, but he wasn't saying anything, out of fear of what Richard might do. And truth was that she agreed with this reasoning. Richard could be very dangerous if provoked. They had witnessed it before with people outside of the family and she was sure that blood relations didn't matter to him. If he wanted to hurt them in order to prevent a potential 'revolt', then he would do it, either by taking huge amounts of money from them or even finding a good reason to kick Charles out of the corporation. No. Not a good idea to directly confront Richard. And now that she saw her husband's point as well, she was glad he didn't say anything all this time.

Meanwhile, Charles processed what his wife had just told him about the fortune. Although he didn't know exactly how much money Richard made per year, judging by the lifestyle he, Angelina and Monty had, it wasn't hard to imagine. Now, half of that immense wealth was an enormous amount, he was sure of it, more than enough to buy London and all the other European capitals. As he compared that to what he and Celestine had, his heart sank. How could he ever expect his older cousin to take him seriously when there was such a gap between them? But then he reminded himself, that was again Richard's fault, because he had been the one to steal from the bank account; he was just as sure of that as Celestine was. And he was also sure that, if not for his cousin, he would be much richer now. So, considering that they should be equals and that Richard had taken advantage of them, it seemed only fair that his fortune should be split in two: half for him and half to remain his cousin's. But how could that happen? Richard wanted to offer the money only to Nigel or Lydia, from what he had understood. So how could he get his hands on that inheritance?

Suddenly, it hit him. "I know!" he exclaimed rather loudly. Celestine hushed him and reminded him of their sleeping son.

"Right. Sorry. But my point is, I know what to do to get that money. I am going to mentor Monty." His wife stared at him, an eyebrow raised.

"Here's how. I am going to remain here for a little longer, while you and Zachary go back to England, after Thanksgiving, arguing that I 'have some business here to take care of'." Said Charles, quoting with his fingers. "While I rest here, I am going to prove Richard that I am the fittest for the role of a mentor and make him choose me. After I become Monty's tutor, I will, inevitably, get closer to him and the others here and find out the things they don't want to share with us. And, obviously, I'll get the money as well. Now, this will help us sabotage the others and gain control of the entire corporation. We will own everything, and we'll later pass it down to our son. What do you think?"

As Celestine listened to him, her expression changed from one of confusion to one realization. A smile spread over her face, revealing her pearly white teeth and her azure eyes now glowed with hope.

"Yes! You're right! Goodness, Charlies, I never knew you were such a genius!" She exclaimed, hugging him.

With a smug smile, the man said. "Ah, I can assure you that there are numerous things you don't know about me, Celi. I can be quite dangerous when I want to, and Richard is going to find that out."

The woman laughed, overjoyed to find that, behind his pudgy physique and rather obedient nature, her husband was tougher and cleverer than she had given him credit for.

"Let's go to sleep now, shall we?" The man suggested. "Tomorrow is going to be a busy day."

And so, comfortable in their bed and covered in the satin sheets, they slipped into a deep slumber, fueled on by the moonlight, which, in their dreams, gained the contour of money and success.

XXX

Richard couldn't sleep. He didn't know exactly why, he just couldn't. No matter how many times he tossed and turned, the much-needed sleep wouldn't come. He tried closing his eyes once more and keeping them like that. After not even ten seconds, he opened them again, threw away the blankets, frustrated, and sat up.

He gazed around his room, which now, bathed in the Moon's glow, looked like an ocean blue. On the nightstand, the digital clock's blood red numbers indicated it was 1:00 AM. Glancing over his shoulder, Richard met the sight of Angelina sleeping peacefully beside him. How he envied her.

Sighing, he got up, figuring that if he couldn't sleep now, he might as well just go on a walk. It wasn't as if anyone would tell him anything. He put a robe over his pijamas and exited his and his wife's room.

As he absently strolled down the hallway, he wondered why this sudden insomnia was torturing him now. He rarely had trouble falling asleep. Usually, the work at the company exhausted him enough to sleep like a log throughout the night. True, today hadn't been that tiring, but still, it didn't justify staying up so late. Maybe he was worried about something. But about what? He had no reason to be concerned. The numbers were growing, money was flowing in, the corporation was doing better than ever, and his lawyers were taking care of all the not-so legal actions he and the others had committed (like the obtaining of those documents which enabled them to build a factory in place of the people's houses), so it was no danger there. However, something was on his mind. Something he couldn't quite place his finger on.

Richard put his hands in the pockets of his robe, making a left turn and entering a new corridor, still very deep in thought. Perhaps what worried him was that day's discussion with his siblings and son. But that made no sense. What was there to be anxious about? It was just a stupid competition and although both Lydia and Nigel were very competitive from what he knew, it wasn't like they were going to kill each other for the money. True, the price was extremely high, and so was the stress, but how could they achieve success without a bit of strain?

He knew he put a lot of pressure on his family and sometimes demanded too much, but that was the proper way to do it. If he let them do how they pleased, then they wouldn't be where they were now. He had to poke them a bit and make them work hard. Diamonds were made under pressure, after all.

Plus, his father had proceeded the same with him and look where he had gotten. The richest, most powerful Director of one of the most powerful corporations in the whole world. Of course, it had been a horrible struggle. He remembered even now how exhausted he always was because of his Dad's demands, how he yelled at him whenever he did something wrong.

Once, Richard had a breakdown in front of him and simply collapsed at his feet, sobbing. His father had watched him coldly, then lifted him onto his feet and made him sit down at his desk. He gave Richard a pack of cards and asked him to build a castle out of them. It took a while, but he managed it. After he had finished building it, his father removed one of the cards from the bottom and everything collapsed. The words he told him next stuck with Richard until now.

"Did you see how the castle that took you almost forty minutes to make, collapsed in merely one moment? You know why? Because somewhere, there was a weak link, which made everything crumble. Same with our company. All it takes is one weak link to ruin everything we had built for years. One weak leader that can't deal with the pressure and everything crumbles. Don't be that weak leader, Richard. The marketing world eats them up. So, dry your tears, stop your crying and get back to business."

'Don't be that weak leader.' The words echoed in his head even now. Back then, he had thought his Dad was too severe. Now however, he knew the man had been right. If the leader wasn't strong, if the Director himself was that weak link, then everything would collapse. That was why he always demanded so much of everyone. Nigel, Lydia, Angelina, Charles even Gabriel, sometimes, he pushed them all to their limits in order to reach the perfection. However, with his son he hadn't acted quite the same and let him run free since early childhood, not really caring about him. Now, he regreted it.

It was crucial that Monty learned how to properly run a company, otherwise their future was compromised. Soon, everything would be in his son's hands and if he wasn't prepared, it would go downhill quickly. This time, he hadn't let himself give in to Monty's shouted protests. He would not let his son be that weak leader. The boy had to grow up and learn the responsibilities of a Director. That was why he had raised the price so high. Normally, he wouldn't have given half of his fortune so easily. It was an enormous amount, after all. But here, it was necessary that Lydia and Nigel had the right motivation. They were the only ones that could do this, since he didn't trust others enough and he was too busy to do it himself. One of them will be his son's mentor and the other one will remain at his side. Done and done.

Lifting his eyes off the ground, Richard found himself standing in front of his office. He sighed. Not even at night he could escape work. But, since there wasn't really any other place he could go now, he guessed he could stay there for a bit. He scrambled in the dark after the spare key, hidden properly in a secret compartment in the wall (honestly, it wasn't like he would leave his office unlocked at night, when everyone could come in) and entered the room.

Just like the rest of the mansion, the office had been flooded by the moonlight. The Queen of the Night stared through the window upon the desk he had spent so many hours seated at, an air of coldness on her expressionless face.

Richard closed the door behind him and turned on the light, then approached his desk and sat down on the chair. Despite having sat there before numerous times, it felt weird now, for whatever reason. How ironic. Maybe it was because he was dressed in his pijamas and it was the middle of the night.

Looking around, his eyes landed on his framed photos sitting in front of him. There was nothing special about them, they had sat there for years. One of them showed him and Angelina at their wedding, and another one with him, his wife and a newborn Monty. However, the one that grabbed his attention was the picture sitting between these two and for whatever reason, he felt inclined to take it in his hands and study it better.

The photo showed his family at the time when he was around twelve years old, standing in front of this very mansion. In the middle of them all, stood his father, Albert Max, and his twin brother, Frederick Max (or "Uncle Fred", as Richard used to call him when he was a child). The twins had been the founders of the Max Corporation. They had taught each one of their kids the art of capitalism and passed them the responsibilities of running the business. Thanks to that, the company stood tall and proud even today.

Here, they stood side by side, their two golden rings with a carved M on it visible to the camera. Years later, they would give these rings to their oldest children, respectively Richard and Charles. Beside each of them, stood their wives arms linked with their husbands'. To the left, there was his mother, Veronica Max, smiling arrogantly and to the right, his aunt, Pauline Max, looking as pompous as he remembered her. In front of the adults, there were the kids. He was standing in front of his father, who had a hand resting on his shoulder. Richard could see how proud his younger self looked because of that. To his right, it was ten-year old Nigel, smirking widely at the camera, and to his left, a bit further away, eight-year old Lydia, looking unnaturally calm. Richard realized at that moment he hadn't seen his sister that relaxed in a long time. Four-year old Gabriel, whose shyness at that time was very big, was almost hidden behind his mother, barely letting himself be seen by the camera. And lastly, further to Richard's right, in front of his aunt and uncle, was Charles, around the same age as he was at the time, chubby as always, looking a tad awkward as well, but not near as much as Gabriel. Maybe the reason for his cousin's nervousness in the picture was the fact that he was about to leave America the very next day and move to London. His father and uncle had decided that it was for the best to split up, so one could run the companies in Europe and the other one the ones in North and South America. At the end of the day, Richard had witnessed the two brothers shaking hands and promising each other that they will always remain partners and equals. That was how he and Charles became the leaders of the Max Corporation.

Sighing, he placed the photo back on the table and leaned back in his chair. He remembered everything as if it was yesterday. Hard to think that was all his family back when he was a child. 'Or at least most of it.' Just as he thought that, he jumped, surprised that something like that had even crossed his mind. It was true that the photo really didn't show all his relatives (at least not anymore), but he still shouldn't have thought about it. That person was no longer considered part of the family and it would stay that way.

Burying his face in his hands, Richard made a mental note to control his thoughts better, or else he might lose himself. 'Don't think about the past.' He told himself. 'Don't think about people. Think only about the company. Always the company.'

Richard lifted his head and met the Moon's gaze again. The exhaustion and the late hour must have played some sort of trick on him. There was no other explanation for all these random memories coming back to him. He stood up from his desk, walked towards the door, turned off the light and exited the office. He needed some sleep. Now.

On his way back to his chamber, he decided that he would ignore the feeling of uneasiness that kept him awake. Whatever it was it shouldn't keep him from work and make such thoughts and doubts cloud his mind. It was unproductive. Plus, everything would be fine. One of his siblings would take the money, Monty will be prepared to take his place and the company will thrive. That was the most important. That was what he, what everyone was working for. The company, always the company.

XXX

"And then, he decided that either Uncle Nigel or Aunt Lydia will mentor me. Can you believe it? Teach me what to do when I already know everything!" Monty spoke loudly into the phone, while sitting on his huge bed in the darkness of his room.

From the other end, came Elmyra's optimistic tone. "Oh, come on, Monty. I bet it won't be so bad. You might actually learn something new."

The boy scoffed. "Yeah, right. Learn how to make a deal? Knew it since I was ten. Learn how capitalism works? Knew it since I was four. There is literally nothing those two can teach me and I wish my moron of a father would realize that too and let me be."

"Well, never say never!" Elmyra said in a sing-song voice. "Also, you might wanna talk more quieter, Monty. Your parents might hear you."

Max rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me what to do. Let them hear me, I don't even care." He said, but his voice was now notably lower. He then sighed. "I just dunno what to do. I don't want this, but I can't find a way outta this situation either. It's as if I'm stuck."

And it was the most annoying thing ever. This had never happened to him before. Usually everything went the way he wanted, even if he had to bribe someone or make threats on the way.

Now, however, it seemed like there was no way out of this. He felt like a fish caught in a hook, like the situation was completely out of his control and it was extremely frustrating for someone used to always be in power.

"Well, I don't really know what to tell you, Monty." Said Elmyra.

'Big surprise.' The boy thought drily.

"I mean, if I were in your place, the teacher would probably find it too annoying to even mentor me." She continued in her usually happy tone. "Like my ex-violin teacher who gave up after our first lesson, saying I have two left hands and then kicked me out. Even Elmer once lost his temper with me because …"

But Elmyra's voice grew more and more distant as the words she said earlier sank into Monty's head. His face slowly grew brighter as realization dawned on him.

"…But in the end, it was all good, I guess, 'cause he wasn't mad at me anymore for ruining his taxidermy collection and-"

"That's it!" Monty shouted, startling the girl. "Elmyra, you finally had a great idea, for once!"

"I did?" She said, confused.

"Yes! Don't you see? If whoever wins finds teaching me too difficult, then they'll give up! How much patience can they have, anyway? All I have to do is drive them nuts and they'll leave me in no time!" He could have leaped out of the bed and ran a marathon at how excited he felt.

"Oh, Monty, that's a brilliant idea!" Elmyra exclaimed. But then, her voice gained a note of seriousness. "Wait, won't you get in trouble for it?"

"Nah." Monty said dismissively. "I'll be fine. Even if my Dad punishes me, I'll get out of it somehow."

"Ok, if you say so." Elmyra said, but there was a hint of doubt in her voice. "Well, I gotta go. I'm kinda tired and tomorrow's Thanksgiving anyway. Goodnight, Monty!"

"'Night." And with that, he hung up and placed the phone on his nightstand.

Then, he tucked himself in, mischievously chuckling to himself. Maybe things weren't as bad as they seemed in the beginning. Looking out of the window, he was met with the Moon's palish face. His eyes suddenly felt heavy, as if the angelic glow was making him drowsy. With a last yawn, he drifted off to sleep, his hope for the newly developed plan shinning just as bright as the night's diamond.