Too Late to Hold Me Back novel Chapter 545

Shane couldn't wrap his mind around it. They had already driven his mother to her grave and reduced him to a starving beggar in the streets. Wasn't that enough?

Why were they so ruthlessly cruel? Why couldn't they leave him just a sliver of a chance to survive?

"From that moment on, I swore I wouldn't give them the satisfaction. Not only was I going to survive, but I was going to thrive just to spite them.

I vowed to bankrupt the Mercer Group and crush every last one of them under my heel.

As soon as I made something of myself, I promised I would destroy your family until there was nothing left but ashes!"

"After those thugs left, I crawled over to the trash and ate that discarded half a piece of bread. I needed my strength.

That night, I didn't go back to the sewers. I sought out The Syndicate, the most powerful underworld organization in the city.

I offered them half of everything I scavenged in exchange for protection. That was the first step of my glorious ascent.

From then on, I manipulated my way into the boss's inner circle. I kissed his feet every single day.

I woke up earlier than anyone else and went to sleep last, doing whatever it took to make myself indispensable to him.

Finally, I earned his trust and became his right-hand man.

Everyone envied me. They thought I had reached the pinnacle by earning the boss's favor. But I was the only one who knew that being a loyal dog was never my end goal.

The moment I saw an opening, I orchestrated his downfall and took the throne for myself...

I climbed higher and higher, stepping over bodies to get there.

But by the time I was powerful enough to sit at the same table as the Mercer family, I realized that taking my revenge wouldn't be easy. Dragging you out into the light and destroying you legally was almost impossible.

So, I had to work twice as hard. If the legitimate business world couldn't break you, the criminal underworld would..."

Shane leaned in, his face twisting into a mask of pure malice. "Do you know how your parents really died?"

Adrian writhed on the floor, his voice trembling. "The car crash... it wasn't an accident?"

He wasn't stupid. The horrific realization dawned on him instantly.

And now, she's teamed up with Ethan to tear my empire apart.

Not like that idiot Julian, who walked right into every trap I set.

Let me be completely honest with you. The drugs Mara used on your family? They all came from my labs.

Your precious daughter, Mara, was nothing more than my obedient pawn."

"Boss..."

Allen practically lunged forward to stop him.

Drug trafficking was a severe criminal offense, a secret that could put them behind bars forever.

"What are you so terrified of? He's not going to live to tell anyone."

Shane pointed a mocking finger at Adrian.