Chapter 544
“Karma? If karma actually existed, the Mercer bloodline would have been eradicated decades ago. How do you think you survived this long?
When I was thrown out of the Mercer estate, my mother was already dead, and I had absolutely nothing.
No home, no food, no warm clothes p>
I was only ten years old. I was just a child, and my own grandparents tossed me out into the cold.
I couldn’t understand it. Were their hearts made of stone? Did they never stop to
think how a ten-year-old boy was supposed to survive on the streets?
I looked for work, but who would hire a child? To keep from starving to death, I had to join a pack of young beggars.
You grew up with a silver spoon in your mouth, surrounded by a small army of servants. A spoiled rich heir who got whatever he wanted. You could never understand what it feels like to claw your way up from the very bottom.
I could have scraped by, but for some reason, I was constantly targeted. I was always the one getting beaten. The other street kids rarely faced the same brutality if they just kept their heads down.
Once, I starved for an entire day just to beg a handful of change. The second I tried to buy a cheap piece of bread, it was ripped from my hands. I cried for hours.
Back then, I lived with a few other kids in an abandoned sewer pipe.
We scavenged torn clothes from dumpsters, piling them up to use as blankets. It was the only way to survive the freezing rain and wind.
When I went back that night, I told them what happened. They said it was normal for unwanted strays like us.
One of the kids broke off a tiny piece of the stale bread he had saved. ‘Eat it. Keep your strength up so you can try again tomorrow p>
But the exact same thing happened the next day. The other kids managed to scrounge up some food, but mine was always stolen.
They saw I was on the brink of starvation and took pity on me. Every kid broke off a tiny piece of their own food, and that was the only reason I survived p>
Shane paused, taking a sip of the water Allen nervously handed him. He stared down at Adrian and continued.
“Do you know why I’m keeping you alive right now? Because I need you to hear this. I want you to know exactly why this is happening before ou die
If you die too soon, I won’t have anyone left to tell this to. I’d have to take these secrets to my grave p>
Shane glanced at his assistant. “Give him some water too p>
Allen shivered. He really didn’t want to get anywhere near Adrian.
If the boss was so worried about the old man dying, he shouldn’t have beaten him in the first place.
The man was already poisoned and coughing up blood, and now he was supposed to hydrate him? Insanity.
But Allen kept his complaints to himself. He had a paycheck to collect, so he cautiously tipped a bit of water into Adrian’s mouth.
Shane picked up the thread. “On the third day, I finally begged half a piece of bread, and again, someone snatched it. I realized they weren’t just bullying me; they were
deliberately trying to st
death.
me
Furious and desperate for answers, I secretly tailed the men who took my food.
They turned a couple of corners and immediately threw my bread into the trash.
One of them complained, ‘If Mrs.
Mercer wasn’t paying us so well et
would waste my time w this little street rat. Its badk
The other laughed, ‘What bad luck? What other job pays this much for doing nothing p>
‘But she specifically ordered us to make sure he starves p>
‘It’s not hard. We just cut off every food source he finds p>
That was when I knew. Someone was actively orchestrating my slow, agonizing death p>