The Truth Behind My Son's Death

After picking up our son, my wife couldn't wait to discuss the contract at a hotel with her first love.

To be alone with my wife, Channing Lane asked my son to leave the hotel and buy cigarettes for him to get rid of my son.

My son fainted on the road due to a flare-up in asthma caused by Channing's smell of smoke and was crushed to a pulp by a truck.

When I arrived, my son was still holding the shopping bag in his little hand, the only body part of his that was left intact.

On his smartwatch for kids was a message from my wife's first love, Channing, with a picture of condoms attached to it.

It read, "Buy this and bring it back."

That night, I sent a divorce agreement to my wife.

She just replied to me with a photo of a signed business contract.

"Stop being unreasonable. I'm working."

1

I suspended the meeting and rushed to the hospital, only to be told that my son was already dead.

The body was covered with a white sheet, unrecognizable.

The medical staff comforted me, giving me their condolences.

I only made countless vain attempts to contact my wife, Ann Jameson, so I had to deal with my son's affairs and funeral on my own.

After it was all settled, I sat in the living room and finished a whole pack of cigarettes, though I had quit smoking for five years for the sake of my son.

On the coffee table were my son's smartwatch and the divorce agreement I had printed out and signed.

When the last cigarette was burned out, Ann finally opened the door and came in.

Smelling the pungent smell of smoke in the living room, she looked at me with disgust, frowning.

"Why did you smoke so much? What's wrong with you? I just went out for a business contract. Why throw a tantrum?"

There must have been something wrong with me.

Otherwise, I wouldn't have been so fucking blind as to marry her!

She opened the door to dissipate the smell of smoke and bent down to change her shoes before walking in.

The silk stockings that had been on her legs when she went out were gone now.

I curved up my lips into a cold smile. The love for her in my heart completely vanished.

Ann walked to the coffee table and picked up her glass but found it was empty.

Thus, she compressed her lips into a thin line and turned to say coldly, "I worked hard all night, but why didn't you even pour me a glass of water when I came back? And you took our son away without telling me. Do you know I almost called the police last night?"

With a sullen look, I didn't respond to her question and only asked, "Were you too busy to even see my message?"

Hearing this, she knitted her brows more tightly.

"Didn't I send you a photo of the contract? I was busy with the discussion on business cooperation. What's your problem?

"Okay, I know I neglected our son. I'll go apologize to him later. Will that do? I'm already very tired after working all night, so don't make trouble for me."

With that, she took out a little gift box from the shopping bag at her feet and threw it at me.

It was a limited edition lighter inside.

Faced with her indifference, I suddenly uttered a laugh in a fit of anger.

I laughed at my stupidity and my blindness.

I stayed up all night and scrolled through Channing's posts on Instagram.

This exact same gift box appeared in a photo posted on his birthday a year ago.

I didn't expect that it would appear in front of me again a year later.

My son had had asthma since he was born, so I had quit smoking for five years. However, I couldn't believe Ann had still given me this lighter today!

I couldn't be bothered to argue with her. At this juncture, I wanted no more talk with her except divorce.

But I didn't expect Ann to accuse me first when she saw my cold look.

"What's the problem with you? You took our son away without telling me. Do you know the partner waiting for our son to bring him cigarettes last night got mad because of this? If it weren't for my friendly relationship with him before, do you think this contract could be finalized?"

"Yes, the two of you are indeed friendly with each other, especially in bed. Without our son to buy you condoms, you almost failed to do it last night, didn't you?"

My sarcasm infuriated her.

Ann looked down to take out last night's contract from her bag and slapped it on my face.

The sharp edges of the contract sheets almost brushed my eyeball before they fell to the ground.

"Why are you being so sarcastic? It was you who agreed to let me join the company!"

"Let's get a divorce, Ann, stop."

I reached out and rubbed my swollen eyes.

Hearing this, she flared at me with a nasty look, "It was you who knelt in front of me and begged me for marriage. Now you want a divorce? Sure. I'll sign the divorce agreement as long as you and your son kneel and beg me! Otherwise, don't even think about it!"

After saying this, she stormed back to the bedroom, slamming the door shut loudly.

In the past, every time she got angry and gave me the silent treatment, I would bow down to her and give her a bunch of gifts to plead for reconciliation.

Then, she would wear the dress and perfume I had bought her and go on a satisfying date with Channing. When she came back, she would become the gentle mother of our son again.

Back then, I could tolerate everything for the sake of my son.

Now, however, after all the tolerance, my son was gone.

I had no idea what the point of my tolerance over the years was.

Leaving the agreement on the coffee table, I packed up my son's belongings and left.

2

Before our marriage, I had been pursuing Ann for seven years.

After countless times of disappointment, staring after her as she was chasing Channing, I had finally decided to give up.

But on the day I was about to leave, she had suddenly changed her mind and directly proposed marriage.

At that time, I was so excited that I was trembling all over and couldn't even utter a complete sentence.

She had agreed to get married on the condition that I left all of my company's cooperation with the Lane family in her charge.

I had only thought she was finally moved by my earnestness, so I had readily agreed to all the conditions she had proposed.

The wedding I had held for Ann was the most luxurious one in the city.

That day, however, it was her first love, Channing Lane, who had attended on behalf of her family.

At the sight of him, I had stopped in my tracks and asked Ann what she had meant by this in a voice that only the two of us could hear.

That was the first time she had given me the cold shoulder.

"I've already agreed to marry you, so what do you think I mean? My family all live far away, and he's my only friend who lives nearby. If you insist on thinking too much about this, I don't think there's still a need for us to get married."

She knew my weakness so well.

She knew that I could even give up my dignity just for a chance to be with her.

So, I had chosen to endure in silence.

The wedding had eventually been completed in a weird atmosphere.

There was no smile on the bride's face.

When I was toasting alone and explaining to everyone on her behalf, she had already gotten into the car in her wedding dress and left with Channing.

On the wedding night, she had only left me a cold message.

"Channing is not feeling well. I'm taking him to the hospital."

I could only wonder which hospital in the city it was where the hospital bed I had seen in the photo was even a double bed.

In this photo that had been sent by an anonymous number was a sweet scene of Ann and Channing lying in the double bed together. There was even a satisfied smile on Ann's sleeping face.

It wasn't until then that I had understood.

I was just a plaything and a complete joke in their relationship.

Channing had taken over his family's business but was always surpassed by me in business.

He had found a way to regain confidence from Ann.

Therefore, they had made every attempt to humiliate me.

I had sent innumerable messages and made countless calls to Ann, unwilling to give up.

But all of them were in vain.

When she came back the next day, she had turned her phone on sullenly and responded to my questions in a cold voice.

"Didn't I tell you I was in the hospital? Do you think I could charge my phone there? Why are you so unreasonable? If you are not happy with me, then we can get a divorce."

How could I possibly get divorced the next day after getting married?

Such negative news would have a fatally adverse impact on the company.

Thus, I had tolerated it again.

After she accepted the cooperation with the Lane family, she had been making outrageous concessions of giving up my company's interests. She might have thought that I was unaware of it, but it was more likely that she just didn't give a damn about my feelings.

I had endured again and again, always hoping that one day she could see Channing's true colors.

However, out of my expectations, I dug my and my son's own grave with such consistent tolerance.

That midnight truck had not only crushed my son to death but had also brought me to my senses.

3

Unexpectedly, because of scarce land at the cemetery, the burial was scheduled for a year later.

I paid an additional 50 million dollars so that my son could be buried ahead of schedule.

The company's funds were all used in various projects, so I immediately decided to deduct the cost of the grave for my son from the payments on the Lane family business' goods.

This was what Channing owed me.

To my surprise, Ann came to my old house with Channing on the day the payment was made.

As soon as she entered, she threw the receipt at me. Behind her was Channing and several bodyguards he brought with him, all with sinister looks on their faces.

"Howard Spencer, what do you mean? Why did you pay so much less than the sum written on the contract?"

The delicate makeup on Ann's face was distorted in anger, which disgusted me.

Without giving me a chance to answer, her hostile questioning came in rapid succession. "I just went to pick our son up, but why did his teacher tell me that you had already withdrawn him from school? Are you out of your mind? He's just started school this year!

"Are you making such a fuss just because I went to negotiate a contract? What's your problem?

"Also, why didn't you give me the custody of our son in your divorce agreement? Your company is so big. I don't believe there is no other woman you can find to give birth to another son of yours. Why are you so petty as to fight me for custody?"

When I heard her mention our son, I clenched the urn so hard that the veins on my arms instantly bulged.

The next second, I raged, "Yes, I must be out of my mind when I married you! How dare you shamelessly talk about our son now? Why didn't you think of our son when you were sleeping with your lover? Why didn't you remember our son had just started school when your lover asked our son to buy cigarettes for him?

"My son hadn't even learned many words, and yet he was asked to buy condoms for his mother and her lover. Ann Jameson, I never thought you could be so despicable!

"I'm telling you, don't even think about touching my son again even if I burn him to ashes! Also, you've been fired, and the contract you signed has no legal effect. Didn't you see the email?"

Hearing this, her eyes turned red with anger.

Just as she was about to storm over, she was stopped by Channing standing beside her.

He said sternly, "Annie has negotiated so many deals with me for you. She has worked so hard, yet you are firing her now. Isn't it too ungrateful? I just asked your kid to buy me a pack of cigarettes. Why are you so mad about it?

"I heard from Annie that you filled up the ashtray in just one night. We are all men. You must have asked your son to buy things for you before, haven't you? Besides, your son will also have to smoke when he grows up. What's wrong with me helping you teach him how to smoke in advance?"

I didn't expect Ann's lover to be even more shameless than her.

Wrapping one of my arms around the urn of my son's ashes, I took out his smartwatch from my inner pocket with the other hand and threw it to Channing.

"My son was born with asthma and couldn't stand the smell of smoke. Unfortunately, his mother doesn't remember it. But can you tell me which brand of cigarettes the Durex in the photo is? How come I've never seen this cigarette brand before?"

When Ann heard what I said, she looked at Channing awkwardly with a flicker of panic in her eyes.

However, Channing laughed with a sarcastic look on his face.

"Isn't this more normal? Every man needs to experience this. You should be thankful that I taught your son in advance so that he won't cause you trouble by bringing a bunch of your grandchildren home!"

His words enraged me.

Before I could realize it, I had already taken action.

I used all my strength to smash the ashtray full of cigarette butts on the coffee table on Channing's head.

After a thud, blood gushed out from his forehead, his hair covered in cigarette ash with a few cigarette butts stuck in it.

The thick glass ashtray shattered into pieces on the floor.

He gaped at me in disbelief.

Ann rushed toward me and slapped me hard in the face before he could react.

"Howard Spencer, are you insane? What's wrong with what he said? It was my fault for forgetting our son's asthma. You could just tell me. How could you hit him? You've really let me down!

"Is this how you teach our son? Do you want to make him end up in jail when he grows up?"

The burning pain on my face sobered me a little more.

Channing unhurriedly walked toward me, stepping on the glass fragments.

He pulled Ann behind him and uttered, "I'll take care of it.

"Just stay away."

4

How ironic it was that my wife's lover wanted a fight with me.

I had just taken out my phone to call security guards in, but he quickly raised his hand to signal to his bodyguards.

Immediately afterward, I was pushed to the ground by his four bodyguards, causing the urn in my arms to fall to the ground.

My phone also flew far from me.

I instantly turned pale with fright.

Fortunately, the urn was not broken.

He noticed my worry and looked at me with malicious pleasure and disdain.

"What's wrong? What is the precious thing hidden inside? Is it the 50 million dollars you should have given me?"

I wasn't allowed the time to say anything before he lifted the vase on the coffee table and crashed it hard on the urn with both hands.

"Stop!"

Amid my howl of pain and my horrified gaze, the urn shattered, my son's ashes inside scattering on the ground.

Some of the ashes flew up with his steps.

I felt the veins on my face bulge as if all the blood in me stopped flowing. I couldn't make any sound from my throat.

Channing walked up to me, trampling on my son's ashes, and lifted my chin with the front of his leather shoe.

"So my fifty million dollars is gone just with one sentence from you? Are you making a fool of me?

"I don't accept that contract! Either you compensate me for the money you failed to give me, or you divorce Ann and return her son to her."

Hearing his voice, I struggled hard and managed to raise my head under the four bodyguards' restraint of me.

I glared at Ann's face, which was filled with detestation.

"Tell them to stop right now and get out of my house! Or you'll never know where my son is for the rest of your life!"

I snapped with threats, but Ann wasn't deterred in the slightest.

Instead, she walked up to me with a cold smile on her face.

She stepped on her son's ashes with her high heels, leaving a trail of footprints.

Then, she trampled on my face with the sole of her shoe, to which our son's ashes were sticking.

She exerted so much force that the ashes almost embedded into my face.

"How dare you still threaten me now? Look at the cigarette ash here. Didn't you tell me you would quit smoking? It doesn't matter that you refuse to tell me where my son is. I've called the police and will file for divorce. Do you think the judge will award custody of our asthmatic son to me or a nicotine-addicted father like you?"

The hatred on her face stung my eyes.

I endured the intense pain on my face and looked up with my bloodshot eyes.

Before I could make a sound, she grabbed a handful of ashes from the floor and stuffed it into my mouth. Caught off guard, I was choked by it and coughed violently.

"You like smoking, don't you? Are these cigarette ashes enough for you? I just asked my son to buy something. Why are you giving me attitude?"

After venting her anger, she finally regained some composure at the sight of my pained look.

Then, she pulled out a new divorce agreement from her bag and vigorously pressed my hand on it.

Looking at the fingerprint on the agreement, she sneered complacently.

"Now, let me see how you can fight for custody with me!"

Suddenly, the phone that I had just dropped aside rang. She quickly walked over to pick it up and pressed the answer button in front of me.

On the other end of the line was a cemetery staff's questioning voice.

"Mr. Spencer, the burial time you reserved for your son is almost past. Could you tell us when you'll arrive?"