?Chapter 1658:


    “Please don’t hit me! I have money, I swear! I’ll call someone to bring it right now!” he pleaded desperately, hunching over and shielding his head with trembling hands.


    The attackers halted their assault, but the man on the ground barely managed to rise—until one of the men seized him by the arm and hauled him upright.


    He was frighteningly thin, his face swollen and bruised to a sickly shade of blue. Brenna’s gaze lingered as something about him seemed strikingly familiar to her.


    “Isn’t that Mack?” Ethan murmured in disbelief. “Haven’t seen him in ages. He’s gotten so thin, probably hooked on drugs.”


    “Yeah. I wouldn’t have recognized him if you hadn’t said that,” Brenna replied coolly, watching as the group shoved Mack.


    “Hurry up and make the call! If you trick me, I’ll beat you to death,” one man snapped at Mack, his tone edged with impatience.


    Shaking uncontrobly, Mack retrieved his phone from his pocket and dialed Ruby’s number with trembling fingers.


    Not far away, Ruby was sweeping the street when her phone buzzed. She nced at the screen, saw Mack’s name shing, and hung up without hesitation.


    She despised Mack now. A few months earlier, the little money she had scraped together from Brenna’s help had been taken by him. He had even hit her when she tried to resist.


    Mack had no home, so he stayed at her ce and ate her food. When he couldn’t get money from her, he beat her. And he never looked for work.


    Now, after years of drug use, Mack’s appearance had deteriorated sharply—he looked more like a vagrant than the man he used to be. In such a state, no employer would even consider hiring him.


    He spent his days wandering the streets—bars, hotels, fancy restaurants—hoping some rich woman might pity him. But with his current face and stench, no woman would even look twice at him.


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    With no job, no money, and an addiction gnawing at him, he could only squeeze money from Ruby.


    Ruby was unable to kick him out. Every time she tried, he hit her harder. Her life had be a living hell.


    She had actually just seen Mack sprinting for his life, but she felt no pity for him. If those people killed him, she would even feel happy. That was why she had pretended she hadn’t seen him earlier.


    “Messing with me, are you?” The man’s temper red when Mack’s call failed to connect. With a sharp gesture, he ordered his men forward. They beat Mack again.


    Mack’s phone went flying, hitting the ground with a sharp crack before shattering.


    Within moments, Mack stopped moving.


    “Let’s go!” the man shouted, turning away to leave.


    Brenna stared, her eyes fixed on Mack. “Why isn’t he moving?” she asked. “Could he be dead?”


    A small crowd began to form around Mack. A middle-aged man crouched beside him, checked his breathing, and gasped, “He’s dead! Somebody call the police!”


    Hearing that, Ruby dropped her broom and ran over. She checked for a pulse but found none.


    “It’s good that he’s dead… Good that he’s dead…” she sobbed. “At least he won’t hurt anyone anymore…” Tears streaked down her face. No matter how vile Mack had be, he was still her son.


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