Supreme Mars novel Chapter 63

A loud and derisive sounded in the dark.

A second later, Mr. Harris and Lizzie emerged from the woods. Lizzie seemed weary and a bit timid, but Mr. Harris was wearing a dark scowl on his face. "So now you remember that I'm your father?"

A loud thud sounded as Shawn slumped to the ground, his eyes filled with shock and his limps felt sapped of their strength.

"I- Impossible," Shawn muttered. "That's impossible... Y- You... You were dying... You shouldn't have been able to get out of bed... You..."

Mr. Harris took several long strides towards Leo. "You're right." Mr. Harris stopping beside Leo. "If Leo hadn't cured me, I would still be bedridden."

Shawn flinched. "Leo?"

"How could you, brother?" Lizzie said, her tone laced with hurt. "How could you do this to our father? I can't believe you, Shawn."

All of a sudden, Mr. Harris surged forward with his hand raised. "I'm going to beat you to death, you good-for-nothing son!"

Old age had slowed Mr. Harris' movement greatly, so Shawn managed to avoid the blow.

Anger filled Mr. Harris' eyes. "Hold still!" He raised his hand again. "Don't you dare avoid me!"

Shawn avoided the strike again.

Before Shawn could move again, Leo's cold voice sounded once again. "I'd stand still if I were you."

Behind Shawn, Nadine raised her leg and delivered two swift kicks to the back of Shawn's knees.

Shawn screamed as his knees buckled. The next thing he knew, he was on his knees in front of his father.

A loud slap tore through the night.

Shawn stumbled, holding on to his swollen cheek.

Blood trickled down the corner of Shawn's lips, evidence that Mr. Harris had struck his son with his full strength.

"I heard everything, Shawn," Mr. Harris growled. "You told them to take the girl away and kill Leo." Mr. Harris' fist trembled at his sides. "Is there a single ounce of humanity left in you? Our family might not be wealthy, but we've always lived our lives as good and honest people! But you..." Mr. Harris pointed a shaky finger at Shawn's face. "You're nothing but a disappointment! I should do society a favor tonight, by ridding it of vermin like you!"

Mr. Harris turned on his heel and strode back towards the woods. Stopping in front of a tree, he reached up and broke off a thick branch.

Shawn could only watch petrified as his father returned from the woods with the makeshift bludgeon in his hands. There wasn't a single doubt in Shawn's mind what his father was planning to do with that branch. No doubt at all. Shawn wanted to run, wanted to bolt out of there and never look back. But he couldn't, thanks to Leo's bodyguard.

Seconds later, the beating began.

Shawn screamed and howl in pain as his father rained down blow after blow on his body.

"Dad! Please, stop! I was wrong, okay? I won't do it again! I swear to God I'll never— Argh!!!"

"I had no idea about the treatment, okay? Please, you have to believe me, dad! I was blinded by greed! That's why I agreed to it in the first place!" A few more blows landed on Shawn's torso, causing him to howl. "Fine! I don't want the money! Please... just stop!"

"You useless piece of trash!" Mr. Harris swung the branch like a baseball bat. "I'm going to keep hitting you as long as there's a breath left in me! Stop begging! Nobody can stop me!"

The beating continued.

Shawn was bleeding in more than one place on his body at this point. At some point, the branch broke in half, so Mr. Harris went into the woods and grabbed another branch before continuing his beating.

Both Marie and Lizzie could only watch in shock as Shawn was beaten to the edge of unconsciousness. He wasn't even screaming or shouting anymore; he just lay there motionlessly as Mr. Harris continued to strike him with the branch. As much as they both despised Shawn and his detestable ways, this was difficult for both of them to watch, especially for Lizzie. Shawn was still her brother, after all.

"Leo... Please..." Lizzie gave Leo a pleading look. "Please tell dad to stop."

"Sorry, Lizzie." Leo's eyes remained hard and stony. "I can't help you. It's up to your father now."

Lizzie stared into Leo's steely eyes and had to fight a shudder when she saw the sternness there.

"I know what you want me to do, Lizzie," Leo continued. "But I can't do it." Leo looked right into Lizzie's eyes. "And I won't." Leo jerked his chin towards Marie. "I wouldn't be fair to that young lady if I do."

Marie and Lizzie shared a glance with each other.

"I don't really believe in gods and deities, or even karma," Leo went on. "But I do believe that bad people should be punished." Leo held Lizzie's gaze again. "Have you considered what would've happened to Marie if I hadn't been here tonight?" Lizzie's silence was all Leo needed to continue his speech. "Those men would've taken her, Lizzie. They would've taken her and God forbid, they would’ve defiled her."

Leo's words drew a sharp gasp out of Lizzie while Marie hung her head in defeat. Marie herself was fully aware of what would happen if those guys had managed to take her.

There wasn't a single doubt in Marie's mind that those guys would've gang raped her. They would've taken not just her virginity, but also her dignity. Her life would've been over.

What surprised her was that her savior was her brother-in-law, the man whom, just yesterday, she'd deemed unworthy of Lydia's affections.

"So, this is the man my sister fell for?" Marie thought. "Just what kind of a man is he?"

The beating went on and on until Mr. Harris was too tired to continue. Tossing the bloody branch aside, Mr. Harris stepped to the side to catch his breath.

"Wake him," Leo said coolly.

At first, Lizzie thought "waking him" consisted of gently patting Shawn's cheek or something. But what Leo's bodyguard ended up doing was far worse. She grabbed a fistful of Shawn's hair and dragged his unconscious body towards the edge of the lake. When the bodyguard shoved Shawn's head into the water, Lizzie nearly screamed.

Shawn's body began to twitch on the ground as bubbles formed in the surface of the water.

A series of gurgles sounded as Shawn continued to struggle.

Finally, Nadine yanked Shawn's head above the water and dragged him back towards Leo. Shawn was still sputtering out water when Nadine dumped him at Leo's feet.