Never Judge

When Cedric entered the VIP ward once again, his mother was still sound asleep. Cedric's father looked up when he noticed Cedric come back in.

"Will you give me an update?" Emilio Reyes III asked as he stood up and walked over to his son.

Cedric gave his father a worried look, he had just noticed that his father seemingly aged in the past few hours. He looked older, it must have been an effect of the stress.

"I don't think I can give you an update with mom around." Cedric told his dad.

"It's fine." Emilio said as he looked over to his sleeping wife. "She won't wake up." 

"Alright. Well, for starters I'll be having a press conference in a bit." Cedric said with a frown. Emilio patted his shoulder as he told him this. Emilio knew that his son hated these things the most. "It's mostly to clarify who I am and to give everyone an update on how mom is doing."

"What do you plan on telling them?" Emilio Reyes asked.

"The truth." Cedric said with a shrug. "There is no reason for me to lie. I'm your son, I went through poverty training as part of our tradition. As for mom, I plan to tell them that people have ill wishes towards us, so they took it out on mom."

"Do you think they will buy it?" Ayanna Reyes asked, joining the conversation. 

"It's the truth." Cedric said with a shrug. "I can't tell them anything else because there is nothing else to tell."

"They will surely ask how she is doing." Ayanna said as she looked over to her mom who was sleeping on the hospital bed. She seemed peaceful which was a relief to Cedric, he was worried that his mother would have to live through the same nightmares his son did.

"Well, I will simply tell them the truth, that mom is recovering." Cedric said with a shrug.

"Fair enough." Ayanna said with a nod. "Do you want me to come with you?" She offered. Cedric knew that having his sister there would add to his credibility, but he was worried that bringing her along would risk her safely.

"Cedric, I know why you are hesitating." Ayanna said as she glared at her older brother. "I will be fine." 

Cedric smiled, it was funny how his sister knew exactly what he was thinking. They had been apart for thirteen years but she still knew him so well. Ayanna had always been his closest confidant growing up, so she knew almost everything about him. His time under poverty training hadn't changed his personality by much.

"If I say no, will you still insist?" Cedric asked her with a grin.

"Of course, and if you refuse I will still be there." Ayanna said with a laugh.

"Just let her." Ray said as he rolled his eyes. "We both know that if Ayanna wants something, she gets it. Even if it is contrary to her safety."

"There is nothing wrong with me supporting my brother." Ayanna said as she crossed her arms over her chest. 

Cedric smiled and simply nodded. "She will male me credible."

"You are the CEO of the Reyes Group, you are credible on your own." Emilio Reyes told him with a nod. "If you didn't hide your identity for so long people wouldn't even question who you were."

"I know dad, Alexi gave me the same lecture." Cedric said with a laugh. "What's done is done, and it ended up protecting us."

"Good luck." Ray told his best friend and brother-in-law.

"Thanks." Cedric said with a smile. "If you will excuse me, I would like a word with my wife." Cedric told them before he turned and sat next to Ayanna who was carrying their son.

"Adir." Cedric said as he took her hand and held it.

"Mmmm?" Adrianna asked as she looked him in the eyes.

"I will never let this happen to our family again." Cedric said. "I'll be confirming to everyone who I am. I have a press conference ready." 

"I have faith in you." Adrianna told her husband with a gentle smile. 

"Thank you." Cedric told his wife.

"You haven't even eaten at all today Cedric." Adrianna said as she pointed at a plate on the table in front of them. 

Cedric was surprised to see his favorite food prepared at the hospital. He was half expecting some takeout.

"It's the VIP ward, don't act so surprised." Miguel said as he approached. "The chef here has a list of your favorite meals and dietary restrictions. I don't even need to give instructions, I just say who is up here and they cook it. Now eat, doctor's orders."

Cedric laughed and didn't complain. He ate his food in peace as everyone around him rested.

Eventually, Dave called him back to give him an update.

"Boss, we have set the press conference for thirty minutes from now." Dave informed Cedric. "Mae and I are on the way to help out with preparations." He explained.

"Are they all coming?" Cedric asked. He didn't want to have to repeat himself during interviews in the future. He also wanted everyone to get the details instead of assuming things about him and his family this time.

"Yes. No one declined our invitation." Dave confirmed. "As a matter of fact, all of them have a representative there already. They are simply waiting for us."

"Good." Cedric said as he nodded to himself.

"Any other surprise question I should expect?" Cedric asked his assistant.

"Some may ask about share prices, they took a dip after news of the ancient broke out." Dave explained. 

"That's expected, my mom was shot." Cedric said as he thought of the possible reasons for the price drop, "I expect that after this the stock prices will go back up."

"That's it boss. If there is anything else that we hear we will inform you." Dave dutifully told Cedric.

"Thanks. I'll see you in a bit." Cedric said as he dropped the call.

Cedric closed his eyes and massaged his temples, he was getting a headache with everything going on, but he knew he had to power through it.