Shane was still silent. He felt like he was plunged into an abyss of anxiety. He was still standing in front of Fred, the security guard who worked at the Winstone family home, who had just delivered Mrs. Winstone's message to him.
He said to himself. 'My mother-in-law is waiting for me? How did she know that I was coming home? Could it be that she already knows that I've been fired from the company?'
Shane still stepped inside, even though a storm of bad thoughts was now raging in his head. The thing he was most worried about was the condition of Drew, his brother.
“Welcome, loser.”
The 53-year-old Helen Winstone's voice was shrill, welcoming Shane's arrival. By now even Shane was standing in the center of the spacious living room like a palace hall.
“Now your level has dropped even further, from loser to unemployed.” Helen smiled sarcastically.
Of course it was easy for Helen to know that news, because the owner of the company was someone she knew very well.
Shane closed his eyes and let out a long sigh, giving in to reality. In the end he had to be honest with what happened to him at the company to his mother-in-law. “You're right. I just got fired from the company I work for.”
Squinting her eyes, Helen moved closer to Shane, then walked around the young man's body, looking him up and down with a disgusted gaze. “You're getting poorer and poorer. What amazes me even more is that you still have the guts to come back to this house.”.
Shane raised his head. “Sorry, Mom. But you should know that I was fired for slander that I never did.”
“Bullshit!” Helen screeched so loudly that her anger exploded like a volcano ready to spew its hot lava. “You must have made a big mistake for the company to fire you on the spot!”
“No, Mom!” exclaimed Shane.
“There's no point in you coming back to this house. You think it's a shelter for poor people like you and your brother,” Helen said, not letting go of her dagger glare at Shane.
During his two-year marriage to Ciara Winstone, all of his salary as an ordinary employee at the Blackstone Company would always go to his wife.
Despite working, Shane's life was not much better living in the Winstone household. He still had to wash clothes, mop floors, cook, and even worse, Shane was once told to wash his wife's feet.
At first Shane thought that his hard work would melt the hearts of his wife and family. But that seems to be just a dream.
Even bad luck is now approaching Shane. Just this morning he was fired from his job. He looks even more despicable in the eyes of the Winstone family.
“Why are you silent? What are you thinking about, damn it?” Helen asked.
“Nothing, Mom.”
“I'm really unlucky to have a son-in-law like you. Already living in, now you're living for free with your sick brother.” Helen gave Shane an even more disgusted look. “To make your life more useful, clean this room right now and wash all the clothes that are piling up in the laundry room!”
Helen's attitude towards Shane had always been arbitrary. Shane could only restrain herself, without being able to do more, because she had no other choice.
'Will it ever end?'
Helen didn't care what her trashy son-in-law thought. She simply left the room.
Not wanting to waste any time, Shane quickly went to the laundry room to put the dirty clothes into the washing machine, then returned to the living room with cleaning tools and started cleaning.
In the Winstone family home, there are three maids. Their presence, ever since Shane had brought his younger brother to live in this house, seemed to be just a display.
“Hahaha... Hahaha ....”
Shane winced when he heard the sound of people laughing. He turned his head toward the doorway of the living room. There stood Erick, Ciara's older brother, with Briel, his girlfriend.
They were obviously laughing at Shane. Underestimating Shane who was now an unemployed man.
“Oh, so now your brother-in-law has become a lackey in this house?” Briel gave Shane a condescending look. “Tsk tsk... what a pity. It's no use having a handsome face if there's no money.”
Shane didn't care. This kind of insult had actually been received often, especially since the last year since he brought Drew, his brother, to live in the Winstone family's house, since their parents died.
“No need to bother me. You'd better find something else to do in this house,” Shane said without even looking at Briel.
Briel was really annoyed by Shane's indifference. Briel actually liked Shane and flirted with him several times, but Shane remained petrified, indifferent to the woman.
Erick's face was red with anger. He didn't like hearing Shane talk like that to his girlfriend. “How can you speak ill of my lover like that? I think I should remind you of who you are and where you come from!”
Shane again stopped his activities that were cleaning the table. His eyes were closed. His patience was wearing thin.
“What's going on?” asked Helen who suddenly appeared.
“Look at your poor son-in-law, Mom. He dares to speak harshly to Briel.” Erick looked like a toddler complaining to his mom.
If it hadn't been for the request of Sam Winstone, Ciara Winstone's grandfather, perhaps Shane wouldn't have married Ciara.
Sam Winstone was once saved by Lucas Morgan, Shane's father, and felt indebted. The old man wanted to return the favor by marrying his granddaughter to Lucas' son, who was none other than Shane Morgan.
Helen turned to Shane who was currently silent. “Is it true what my son said?”
Shane was silent as he sighed for a moment. He was reluctant to clash with anyone again. The Winstone family's treatment of him was getting more and more absurd.
Helen felt sick to her stomach at the sight of her trashy son-in-law. “Sometimes I think, I'd rather have a street dog than a poor trashy son-in-law like you, Shane. Even just cleaning the house always turns out badly.”
Shane raised his head. His eyes were already red because he was really angry right now.
“Don't talk anymore, Mom!”
Shane was still trying to contain his anger that was churning in his chest. He shot a dagger-sharp glare at his mother-in-law.“I'm not your mom! Let alone my son, a filthy carpet like you doesn't even deserve to be my son-in-law.” Helen continued to put Shane down.Erick didn't like Shane's attitude towards his mom. “What do you mean looking at my mom like that? Getting into trouble with my mom, that means you're getting into trouble with me too!”Briel approached her lover. “Teach this trash a lesson, honey.”Not waiting for long, Erick slapped his sister-in-law's face with a hard slap that hit her like a hammer, and cursed, “You really are a rotten bastard! You even dare to offend us, especially my mom. You really are blind and ignorant!”Shane fell down from the hard slap from Erick's hand. His vision fogged up as if he was seeing stars circling above his head.Unable to contain his anger, Shane stood up and grabbed Erick by the collar of his shirt and pulled him down. He threw a
Somehow, Shane's body could easily avoid the old man's attack. Several fighting moves were made by Shane to ward off the old man's attacks.“Hahaha... good.” The old man laughed loudly while rubbing his white beard. “Apparently your body's natural reflexes are working well. I'll teach you another martial art style.”The white-haired old man taught Shane some martial arts moves, which were transitional moves from basic martial arts to advanced Chinese martial arts.Even more surprisingly, Shane quickly mastered all the moves the white-haired old man taught him.“Who are you?” asked Shane with a look of surprise and confusion on his face as soon as the training was over.Suddenly, his eyes darkened, and...“Get up, asshole!”A kick to Shane's waist by Derek brought Shane to his senses. Before the questions he asked the white-haired old man could be answered, he had already shifted back to reality.'What exactly happened? Is this a dream?'He looked around the place again and found that
“No, Drew. You're my top priority. You need help too,” said Shane, who disagreed with his brother's words.Drew, with his pale face, just smiled while shaking his head. The look in the 8-year-old's eyes seemed to say that he wanted Shane to help the poor woman. Shane's mind and heart were at war. In the end, Shane chose to comply with Drew's request.“Promise me that you'll be okay, Drew,” said Shane who was only responded to with a weak nod by Drew.At this time Shane was standing right in front of the woman who covered her face with the mask.A man who had previously surrounded the woman who covered her face with the mask said while pointing at Shane. “Stay out of it, asshole!”Shane glared at the man who spoke harshly to her. The anger that was burning in his body due to the various bitter events he had experienced, made him not accept the snapping voice. No amount of harsh words could shake Shane's resolve.Instantly Shane felt the fire in his chest flare up even more, united wit
“You'd better come with me. I have something to talk to you about.” Dr. Gerard walked away from the emergency room. Shane immediately followed him to his office.By now Shane was sitting across from Dr. Gerard in his office.“What?! Drew needs to be operated on immediately!” Shane gasped in shock after listening to the doctor's explanation of Drew's condition. All he felt was endless confusion and despair.Doctor Gerard nodded and explained, “His weakened condition is caused by his kidneys that are completely dysfunctional. The long-term treatment he was on could no longer help him. The only way is a kidney transplant operation.”“Then how much will the surgery cost? Where should I look for people who are willing to donate their kidneys to Drew?” Shane threw a few questions at Dr. Gerard.“This hospital has a list of several people who are ready to become donors. We just need to check the level of compatibility. I happen to have found the right donor for your brother,” Dr. Gerard said
Alexa looked like she was thinking. “I need a good person who has a sincere heart like you to protect and take care of me.” Alexa's face instantly turned serious. “Especially since you're good at martial arts.”Shane rounded his eyes as he scratched his head. Even Shane was still confused by himself suddenly being able to do martial arts moves.Is he really good at martial arts?Even Shane was still not sure about all that. He had to get back to that bamboo forest dimension to convince himself that it wasn't a dream.Alexa ventured to grasp Shane's hand, then continued to say, “How about we get married?”“What?! Marry you?!” Shane's eyes, which were still staring at Alexa's face, widened.“Don't be afraid, guys. We're just contractually married until I get what's rightfully mine and find my missing brother.” This time Alexa's voice sounded fiery.“You must have your reasons for thinking of contract marriage with me. You can tell me, Alexa.” Shane looked suspiciously at Alexa.“Alright
Alexa was a little surprised, because it was the same disease that her brother had lost, but she tried to stay calm as she said, “It seems like you really love your brother. I can see how anxious you get whenever you think of him.”“My parents passed away a year ago.” Shane smiled bitterly. “So, I only have him as my family. I love him very much. When I asked for a little brother, God in his kindness brought him into our family life. A three-year-old boy I found in the forest.”“What? So you found him when he was 3 years old? That means he's not your biological brother?” asked Alexa, looking probing.“That's right. He is not my biological brother. But my parents and I love him very much. So what?” Shane looked confused.“What's your brother's name?” asked Alexa, who was increasingly curious about Shane's younger brother.Before Alexa's question could be answered, a nurse approached. “I finally found you here, Mr. Morgan. I've been looking for you. Dr. Gerard has been waiting for you.
Shane then told us how he found Drew. Shane, who was still in college at the time, went hiking with his friends and found Drew there in a state of dehydration and almost lost consciousness.Alexa shed her tears while clenching her hands into fists. “Chaterine and Raymond have to pay the price! I can't imagine how scared a three-year-old would be in a cold, dark forest. They really have no heart. They should get what's coming to them.”Shane said to himself, 'Apparently Alexa's life is much more miserable than mine. Even though she's a famous actress and lives with a lot of money. Who would have thought, behind her happy smile in front of the camera, there was a big gaping wound that was quite deep,' “You have to be strong, at least for Drew. He must be happy to see his real sister again.”Alexa smiled in the bitterness of her heart. “Thank you, Shane. My sister and I are so lucky to have met someone like you. With your strength you will be my and Drew's guardian angel. With my fortun
Not wanting to see those sickening faces again, Shane immediately went to his room and started to clean up all his clothes with trembling hands.Every memory he slowly had to leave behind and then forget. But the hardest thing was facing the fact that the love he once had for Ciara would slowly turn into ruins. He never expected that Ciara had played with the sanctity of their marriage bond.Shane had returned to the living room with a medium-sized suitcase filled with his and Drew's clothes. Without saying anything, he left the Winstone family home.Second after second passed until before he knew it, the day he had spoken to Ciara arrived. The day that Shane never expected to come. Yes, today is the day of his divorce from Ciara Winstone, his wife.Shane had arrived at the registry office first. He sat in the waiting room with a determined expression, waiting for the divorce proceedings with Ciara. When Ciara and Derek showed up a few minutes later, the atmosphere instantly became
The atmosphere in the room changed instantly. Shane raised his eyebrows, while Alexa held her breath. "What's going on, Jordan?" asked Shane, his voice remaining calm even though his heart was ready for anything.Jordan hung up the phone and looked at Shane with a look that was hard to interpret. "The car didn't take another road to avoid you. They were just outwitting you. Now they're near this building, as if waiting for an opportunity."A chill ran down Alexa's spine. Shane fixed Jordan with a piercing stare, like a hawk locking its gaze on prey. "Increase security throughout the building. Make sure no one can enter without authorization."Jordan nodded and immediately gave the order to the security team. Meanwhile, Julian remained standing where he was, staring coldly at Shane. Inside the room, the tension was palpable, as if time had stopped and only uncertainty ruled them.Shane knew that whatever happened next, this was no coincidence. This was a warning, a real threat, and he
Alexa felt the anxiety rolling in her chest like waves relentlessly crashing on the shore. She felt fear. She remembered the incident with her fiancé, Chris Raleigh, who died in an accident. The car they were traveling in was chased by several black sedans.Shane looked at Alexa with a gentle yet firm gaze. "Alexa, calm down. I'm right here. There's nothing to worry about," he said, his voice like a soothing breeze in the desert of Alexa's heart."How can I be calm, Shane? I'm afraid of a repeat of what happened a few months ago." Alexa's face turned pale."Are you referring to the accident that happened to you and your fiancé?" Shane asked.Alexa just nodded her head. Her eyes glanced into the rearview mirror, seeing the shadow of a black sedan that kept looming over them like a ghostly figure unwilling to let go of its prey. The car followed them at the same distance, like a wolf stalking its prey in the dark.The driver sitting in the front felt something was wrong. "Mr. Morgan,
At the door of Drew's ward, a female nurse who was paid twice his salary was waiting for Drew with an attentive face.When the door opened, Drew's bright eyes immediately lit up at the sight of Shane. Without hesitation, the eight-year-old boy held out both hands. Alexa smiled, then she stepped closer, but her steps were halted when Drew suddenly shook his head just seconds before Alexa touched the boy."Shane, hold me," Drew said hoarsely.Alexa's hand was still frozen in the air. Shane who saw that immediately felt bad, although in the end he still gave Drew a hug.The boy hugged Shane tightly. Alexa, who had lowered her arms, looked a little disappointed when she saw Drew's reaction. She held back, hiding the feelings etched on her face.Shane felt the tension. "Be patient, Alexa," he said softly, patting Drew's shoulder gently. "Drew just needs time to accept you as his brother."Alexa nodded slowly, though her heart was a little pricked. "I understand, Shane."Drew's small eyes
Shane and Alexa made their way to Drew's hospital room. Alexa deliberately wore a mask so that no one would recognize her as actress Lexy Court. While Shane continued to walk casually beside Alexa, with Alexa holding Shane's hand.They continued to talk, especially about Drew.The rows of hospital corridors that were pure white and smelled of antiseptic seemed to separate them from the outside world full of intrigue and lies.A luxurious and sexy looking woman seemed to walk from the direction of the corridor opposite to the direction Alexa and Shane were headed. Alexa, who was focused on talking to Shane, did not notice the woman's appearance.As they crossed paths, the fancy and sexy-looking woman squealed, trying to stop Alexa."Hey, you! Wait!"Shane turned to the woman with a furrowed brow, while Alexa who had glanced at the woman, immediately looked down.Alexa said to herself, 'She? Why did I have to meet this rotten woman?'The woman was Scarlett Hayes, a movie actress who had
Shane was dumbfounded by Alexa's request. He could only remain silent without being able to give any answer. By now Alexa had returned to her room.It looks like Alexa followed him to the washroom and Shane didn't notice Alexa's presence. It looks like Alexa also saw when Shane kissed Ciara. Because of this, Shane had trouble sleeping and kept wondering."What does that mean? Is she really jealous or just wants me to be professional?’ asked Shane to himself who was currently walking back and forth. "There's no way Alexa likes me, right? She just wants me to play the role well. Yes, she does.’ muttered Shane.Shane tried to convince himself that Alexa wanted him to be professional, acting as her husband. Shane would continue to believe that. He only went to bed at 2am because he kept thinking about Alexa's words.The next day Shane woke up a little late. He quickly ran to the bathroom and cleaned herself up in a hurry.“Shit!” cursed Shane as he ran from the bathroom towards the walk-in
Catherine feels like vomiting blood when she hears a stranger refer to her as an old woman. While Steven, her boyfriend, always called her the most beautiful woman in Riverdale City."How dare you-""Enough!" Alexa interrupted Catherine. "From now on, my husband will rule this castle.""No way! I'm still Viktor Kingsley's legal wife, even though he's dead!" screeched an angry Catherine.Alexa chuckled and shook her head. "Did you forget or pretend to forget the contents of my dad's will? You only have a 15% interest in my dad's estate. 85% will belong to me and my brother after we each turn 25 or get married."Catherine was silent with anger exploding in her chest.Alexa continued her speech. "This main pavilion will be our domain as well as the west and east pavilions." Alexa's eyes stared intently at Catherine. "Because I am still being kind to you. From now on, pack your things and move to the south pavilion at the back of the palace!"Catherine's face was getting redder and so wer
Outside the room, the atmosphere was as busy as a hive of crackling bees. Uniformed guards stood guard like war statues, while others were busy preparing for the simple wedding between Shane and Alexa.The sound of footsteps sounded like the beating of war drums accompanying the preparations. The registry office officials arrived, their faces serious but understanding of the urgent situation.Three officers from the registry office had arrived, looking like judges who were about to certify the marriage in such a tense atmosphere. They were closely inspected."Please enter," said a guard in a stern tone, as if giving permission to enter the battlefield.Yes, the simple, impromptu wedding would take place in the room where Shane was being treated. The living room was beautifully decorated, like a palace ready to welcome its king and queen.Alexa looked elegant in a white A-line wedding dress with a deep cleavage up to the navel area, while Shane looked so handsome in his black suit, as
The seven men slowly rose to their feet, but one man delivered an unexpected blow. He kicked Shane in the head, sending the young man spinning through the air and within seconds his body hit the ground with the force of a fallen tree in a storm."Argh!" Shane groaned, his voice breaking the tense expectation.After seeing Shane lying on the ground, but still trying to get up, they quickly ran away from the area in front of the registry office that was now in chaos, like a battlefield in ruins. "Where are you running off to, huh?" asked Shane with his labored breathing, still trying to rise from the ground like a phoenix rising from the ashes. "Tell your boss to deal with me directly!"His shirt seemed to be sticky with sweat mixed with blood until his muscular body was clearly visible, making several female reporters scream hysterically like a flock of panicked seagulls."Mr. Morgan! Look at us!""He's an extraordinary man.""If he doesn't have a girlfriend yet, I'm willing to be his
The old man smiled slightly. "Alright, but stop calling me master. I'm not your martial arts trainer. Now follow my moves."The old man began to demonstrate complex yet powerful martial arts moves. Shane's eyes gazed focusedly at the old man, following along closely, trying to mimic each move correctly so as to match and not cause injury.They moved hand in hand in the middle of the quiet bamboo forest, the breeze rustling the leaves, creating a mind-soothing atmosphere."Focus on your balance," the old man said, kicking the air with incredible speed. "Without balance, your strength is meaningless."Shane mimicked the movement, feeling every muscle in his body working hard. "I understand, Master. I will focus on my balance.""You-" The old man was annoyed that Shane was calling him master again.Despite his annoyance with Shane, the old man continued to train Shane in advanced martial arts.They practiced for hours, almost all day. The old man taught Shane new techniques, ways to dodg