Chapter 7.

There was an unusual silence between Slade and Mamita as they walked away from the scene.

"Why didn't you accept the money?" Mamita finally asked.

She had wanted to ask the question earlier, but she didn't want to do it in the presence of a stranger. She had respected his decision in public, but she wanted to understand why he had chosen not to take the money. It was a handsome amount that anyone would have taken at the first thought.

Slade took a gaze at her. He understood her concerns. If she had not asked the question, he would have thought that something was wrong. A part of him already knew that the question was unavoidable.

"While I was in prison, I learned a lot. Someone told me that helping someone shouldn't be centered on the premise of rewards. That if getting rewarded was why a help was rendered, then it was not necessary in the first place." Slade explained.

"Money might end up being a harbinger of disaster. That was why." Slade came to a stop.

He watched as Mamita nodded slowly. She has always been in support of him. He was not surprised. She always took his side when he was younger. For example, when he did something wrong and was to be scolded by his mother, the nanny had a way of bailing him.

He was happy that she had not changed. She still had faith in him and respected his choices and decisions.

As they walked on, his eyes strayed to the ring that the old man had given him. For the first time, he paid closer attention to the details of the ring.

At first, he had thought that the inscription on the ring was something random. Although he knew from the looks of the old man that he was an important person, he didn't know that the old man was a tier-level important.

The stylish curving at the base of the 'K' reminded him of something. The Jendall Kurtis Family! The strongest and most powerful family in the whole of Pinnacle County.

No one in the country would want to dare offend this family as they control mostly all the important business sectors in the country. Their influences cut across all the trade sector since their nature of business hints at the Consortium style of operations.

It was not only a powerful family but a very ruthless one. The type no Mafia group dares to offend.

Slade's mind suddenly tripped off the thoughts as soon Mamita stopped walking. It was at that moment he realised that they had arrived at their destination.

"We are here." Mamita announced.

Slade looked up at the building. His heart sank deeper into his chest, leaving the former position. There was not much difference between his family house and where Mamita was living.

The only difference between both buildings was that this one had a roof, and it has not passed through the rage and pangs of flames!

It was a shabby one-bedroom apartment in a slum. Slade felt so sad that she had to live like this for these many years. A tear strayed from his eyes.

"Come in, let me offer you some water first and prepare a place to bathe. Then I can fix you something to eat." She called at him and headed towards the building.

Slade followed from behind. It was hard to tell, which was heavier between his heart and his legs.

Stepping inside the building didn't make him feel any better. What's the difference between living like this and a homeless person? Who did this to his family?! Who reduced his beautiful Mary-Poppings-like nanny into this?! This is an unforgivable offense! This is unforgivable!!!

He decided that the only way to not break down was not to pay too much attention to the interior of the house.

Mamita returned with a bowl of water and wanted to go prepare some place to bathe when Slade held her hand.

"Please sit." He urged her. "I will be on my way soon, so please rest for now. You have been through a lot already." Slade urged her.

His demeanor changed, and his aura swelled.

"I promise you that whoever did this to you and to my family will pick their intestines on the floor as they crawl to their death!" Slade's eyes had turned so red that Mamita became receptive.

"I promise that everything that belonged to us that was taken will be restored one after the other to the very least! Nothing will be left unaccounted for." Slade growled at the end of the last word.

He slowly helped her settle into the haggard bed. He tucked her in carefully, then leaned forward. He planted a kiss on her forehead.

He helped fix her pillow properly, placing his hand under her head. By doing this, he slipped some of his qi energy into her nape to help heal her neck and take away the pain.

Mamita had no idea that he had done this. He didn't want her to know either. By the time he was done, she was already fast asleep.

He sighed, towering over as he took one more gaze at her.

"No one will dare to touch you anymore!" He swore then left.

As he got into a cab, a new worry seized his mind. He recalled what the leader of the construction had said about his girlfriend. He wouldn't have taken the words of the leader seriously if his nanny had not burst out in tears, too.

His heart beat increased. Did his girlfriend really do that? Is she really engaged to someone else? Especially the Langley family? The Langley family who sent construction workers to demolish his family house? Those who broke his nanny's arm?!

Aside from those thoughts. How about what they shared before he went to prison? How about the promise she made to him? Did those mean nothing to her?

Slade shook his head in denial as he gulped. He didn't want to believe this. He had to see her first.

They arrived at the West Jade Ave.

The cab couldn't drive into the area. The area was flooded with so many cars. This area is where the most opulent and luxurious villas in Pinnacle County are located.

Could this be true? If his girlfriend was being engaged here, doesn't it really mean that she was marrying a very wealthy person? Vixton Langley?!

Getting down from the cab, Slade started to walk towards the scene. There was a grand cathedral down the street. There were beautiful flowers and balloons all over the place.

The flowers, balloons, influential people, and lots more didn't really bother Slade until he saw some posters. On the posters, there was his girlfriend and Vixton kissing.

Slade gritted his teeth, and his palm fisted. The scar on his wrist tinged with pain that he was almost dropped down.

It was not only the sun that could make the scar hurt him. If Slade was going through a lot of emotions and his heart was filled to the brim, the scar would react to it. The reaction of the scar affects his strength a lot. It makes him extremely weak.

Yet, Slade didn't stop. He had seen posters of Mariana, his ex-girlfriend, kissing someone. In fact, he is now at their wedding, standing in front of the cathedral.

Slade knew that he should leave, but he didn't. He wanted to see her with his eyes!!! In person! He still didn't want to believe this.

This was very hard for him. It was an emotional wreck, yet he continued walking towards the building.

"You're not allowed to be here." A sudden voice said behind him.