Lucas' Revenge

Chapter One

"Oops, I'm so sorry, Mr. Monteiro, I...I'll tell my team."

Lucas put down the phone then studied the next monthly report from another department when he saw a group of men working outside his floor-to-ceiling glass windows, exactly across from where he was sitting. They were installing a giant billboard.

He ignored the men and continued working. He would not let them distract him, he had tons of work to do.

After an hour of working, he got so tired. He leaned back against his chair and instantly, his eyes collided with the newly installed giant billboard in front of him.

Fucking shit!

It was a giant picture of Samantha Miller, smiling and waving at him with a caption. MISS UNIVERSE SAMANTHA MILLER. YOU ARE THE PRIDE OF AMERICA.

What happened next? As expected, Lucas cursed and dragged his heavy mahogany desk in the opposite direction so his back would be facing Samantha Miller's billboard.

After the strenuous effort, he sat down behind his desk and sighed with relief that he would not be seeing Samantha's face while working. He turned on his laptop again and leaned back on his chair while waiting for it to process. Then, there she was again, on his laptop screen, a reflection of her smiling and waving at him. Dammit!

Lucas instantly became angry. After four years, Samantha Miller still haunted him. He thought she was a bitch who made him fall in love with her intensely. He had never loved any woman before the way he did to her.

But she betrayed him and played with his emotions. She lied to her parents to save herself. It was so convenient for her to throw all the blame at him when she was the one who was so hardheaded, going to the bar despite his warning. She turned the table, and her parents believed her.

***

Lucas remembered clearly the moment his parents found out. His father, Enrique Monteiro, was in rage and his mother, Sophia Castello Monteiro, freaked out.

"How could that newspaper tell lies about you, Lucas? You only drink alcohol during occasions. You don't even smoke. And what's worse, they accused you of being under the influence of drugs! Oh my goodness, Enrique, we have to do something about this. This could ruin Lucas. His eligibility to graduate summa cum laude could be affected."

"I'm not really after that, Mom, it doesn't matter anymore."

"It matters to us because we know how much you worked hard for it. You're very brilliant, you deserve that award." Lucas' father said, then turned to his wife.

"Don't worry, sweetheart. I'll make sure that this newspaper will learn a lesson for writing fake news. They're doing it to get more sales."

"Thanks, honey. I'm so worried." She immediately went to her husband's comforting arms.

That same day, Enrique called his lawyer and sued the newspaper publication company. In the end, the said publisher stopped its operation. They lost the case and paid one hundred million dollars to Lucas Monteiro for moral damages.

Lucas could not get Samantha out of his mind. He missed her so much. He was willing to forgive her and give their relationship another chance. He called her phone and texted her several times. He wanted an explanation, but she never answered him.

He was desperate to see her, so he went to Miller's house. Instead, Samantha's mother faced him by the doorstep.

"My daughter doesn't want to see you again. Stop bothering her."

"Mrs. Miller, I already proved my innocence about the incident in the bar. The newspaper company also admitted that it was fake news. I'm not an alcoholic or a drug addict, my lab results I showed to the media could attest that."