LLAD (Chapter 3)

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 punch at his brother-in-law's face in retaliation.

They fought on the floor, hitting each other.

Helen screamed at the sight. She tried to pull Erick away from Shane's onslaught, but instead she was hit by her son Erick's leg kick.

“What's going on?”

Suddenly a woman's voice came from the living room. Everyone including Shane and Erick turned their heads in the direction the voice came from. 

There stood Ciara Winstone, the woman Shane had married two years ago.

However, Shane's eyes were fixed on his wife's hand which was holding hands with a man who was very familiar to Shane.

“What's going on?” asked Ciara when she and the man arrived at the place where Erick was lying. “Shane, why did you hit my brother?”

Shane didn't answer his wife's question, but was still staring at his wife's hand that was in the hands of the man who was none other than Derek Blackstone, his former boss.

“Look, he's just a loser and a rude man who doesn't know himself.” Derek sneered at Shane with a condescending look.

Shane's anger was rising. He stood up and stepped towards his wife and forced her to let go of his hand that was in the man's grip.

“Hey, what the hell are you doing, Shane?!” Ciara asked while screeching and not accepting Shane's actions.

Shane stared in disbelief at his wife. “You're asking me, honey? I should be the one asking about all this!”

Ciara threw Shane's hand away violently. “Let go of my hand. You're so disgusting, damn it. I don't even want you to touch me anymore. You're nothing to me anymore.”

“What do you mean, I'm your husband, Ciara.” Shane's face turned red as he held back the explosion of anger that felt like it was burning his body even more.

Meanwhile, Helen and Briel seemed to be helping Erick to stand up. His jaw felt like it was shattered from Shane's punch earlier.

Ciara smiled sweetly at Shane, “I'm sorry to say this, Shane, but we're over. I don't love you anymore, or rather I never loved you. You were just a fun distraction until I met a great guy like Derek.”

There was silence in the room. No one was talking. Shane was still staring at his wife's beautiful face in silence.

Ciara had to finish her words. She then looked at the man next to her with an adoring gaze, then kissed his cheek. “Look at this great man. He's filthy rich and can fulfill all my needs even though I don't work. Derek is everything you don't have, Shane. He's rich, handsome, successful, and generous. He treats me like a queen and spoils me with gifts. He owns a big advertising company, and I'm going to marry him soon after we divorce.”

She then looked at Shane with disgust. Ignoring Shane's stunned and hurt expression. She added, “You're just a pathetic loser who's already unemployed. You have nothing left. You're just a useless human being, and I'm glad to be rid of you.”

Shane felt a sharp pain in his chest, as if someone had stabbed his heart with a knife. He could not believe what he had just heard. Ciara had rudely insulted and dumped him in front of everyone, while praising the man beside her.

He loved Ciara with all his heart, no matter how much Ciara belittled him. He had done everything he could to make his wife happy. But Ciara had thrown him away in favor of a jerk, but a man with a lot of money like Derek.

Shane knew all too well how many women Derek had.

Helen and Erick laughed out loud at Ciara's disdain for Shane. Helen had never agreed when Sam Winstone, her dad, wanted to marry Ciara off to Shane.

“A loser doesn't belong in this house.” Derek approached Shane who was still frozen where he stood, shocked by his wife's decision. “Not to mention that you're also a traitor who sold my ad company's data to a company that I do business with. A lowly bastard like you-”

“Enough!” Shane shouted as he could no longer contain his anger.

Derek couldn't accept being yelled at like that by Shane, his former lowly subordinate. A punch flew from Derek's hand towards Shane's face, causing Shane to fall back down. 

Erick, who saw that looked surprised for a moment, but he seized the opportunity. He rushed forward and smashed his elbow into Shane's stomach.

“Argh!”

Shane clutched his solar plexus, which ached from Erick's elbow. Derek came forward again and delivered a series of punches to Shane's face that left him motionless.

“Die, you loser!”

Shane was in bad shape after being ganged up on by Derek and Erick. The punches delivered by Derek had made Shane spit out blood.  The blood even soaked his neck and chest. 

Suddenly, Shane felt something strange. The mysterious ring given to Shane by his late parents, which he had used as a pendant for his copper necklace that was always around his neck, instantly emitted a bluish light after being splashed by his blood.

'What is this?'  

His eyes were dazzled by the ring's bluish light.

Shane suddenly seemed to change dimensions. All around him was a bamboo forest. Suddenly an old man with his hair all white appeared and attacked him.