Chapter 42 You Can't Afford to Drink
"At my age, I’m already halfway in the ground," Heather said, clutching her chest and looking at Ethan with a somewhat desolate expression.
"All I hope for now is that you’ll live a peaceful life and stop causing trouble. Let go of what happened three years ago. We can't afford to deal with Liam."
"What happened three years ago?" Noah asked curiously.
"Sigh!" Heather let out a sigh. "Three years ago, Liam opened a casino in our impoverished neighborhood. At that time, Ethan was still young, and Liam took him to gamble, even offering to lend him one hundred thousand dollars to bet with, saying that if he won, it would all be his."
"After signing the contract, Ethan successfully received one hundred thousand dollars, but he didn’t know that he would lose it all in one night!"
Clearly, Ethan had been set up.
Heather's face showed a reminiscing expression. "Afterward, the nightmare began. Liam, accompanied by his underlings, came every day to collect the debt. They vandalized our property, painted our walls, and engaged in robbery and arson, making our lives extremely difficult.
"To repay the debt, Ethan's parents went out to work, but unfortunately, they were killed in a car accident, leaving only me and Ethan to rely on each other."
Noah looked at Ethan and couldn't believe that someone so young had experienced so much hardship.
"I didn’t think you would still go to Liam to gamble, Ethan!" Heather said tearfully.
"I just want you to live a peaceful life. You will never win any money from Liam! We can't fight against Liam!"
"I just hate him so much, Grandma!" Ethan clenched his fist and gritted his teeth. "I hate myself for believing Liam's words back then. If it wasn't for me, my parents wouldn't have gotten into a car accident! I will definitely win back what I lost at Liam's!"
Noah shook his head helplessly. It seemed that the events of three years ago had greatly affected Ethan.
Suddenly, the door of the hospital room was kicked open.
Seven or eight gangsters rushed in, their hair dyed in various colors, their faces unkind and menacing. Among them were two individuals who had been chased away by Noah in the impoverished neighborhood.
"Tsk tsk tsk, Ethan, you made it easy for us to find you! You actually came to hide in the hospital!" a gloomy voice sounded.
Following that, a big man walked in from outside, carrying an iron rod in his hand.
The big man was 1.8 meters tall, with long black hair and an ugly appearance. A long scar ran from the left side of his face to his nose, making him look extremely sinister.
"Liam!"
Both Ethan and Heather's expressions changed at the sight of this man, fear appearing in their eyes.
"What are you doing here?" Ethan tightened his grip on the dagger, his gaze alert.
"What am I doing here? Ha, you cheated in my casino, so what do you think I'm here for?" Liam chuckled coldly, then looked at Heather. "Oh, Heather, you’re in the hospital, huh? And in a private room, you must be quite wealthy!"
After that, Liam's eyes flashed and he saw the steak on the bedside table. He sniffed his nose. "Mmm, smells good."
He didn't care and walked to the bedside, leaned the iron rod against the wall, and started eating the steak.
Heather and Ethan dared not speak as they watched this unfold.
"My steak is expensive, you can't afford it," Noah said calmly.
"Huh?!" Liam's gaze turned cold as he looked at Noah.
He hadn't expected this kid to dare to say such a thing.
"That’s the guy who injured us that day, Liam!" Two thugs pointed their fingers at Noah, hatred in their eyes.
"You've got some guts, injuring my underlings. I might not leave you with any legs to walk on later." Liam's voice was icy, leaving no room for doubt.
Then, he tilted his head back, ate all the steak, wiped his mouth, and looked at Ethan. "Ethan, we live in a society ruled by law now, so I can't be bothered to do anything to you. I just want money."
"You cheated in my casino yesterday and won five thousand dollars. According to my rules, you owe me fifty thousand dollars to settle this."
"Fifty thousand? Liam, we don't even have a thousand dollars. Where are we supposed to find fifty thousand dollars for you?" Heather was shocked and begged him to have mercy.
"That's your problem. You can have your grandson sell a kidney, his blood, or his corneas. I don't believe you can't come up with fifty thousand dollars." Liam rolled his eyes and continued, "And three years ago, your family owed me one hundred thousand dollars. After three years with compounding interest, the debt is now one million dollars."
"One... one million!" Heather almost fainted. This was an astronomical number for her.
"It’s not one million. It’s a total of one and a half million," Liam corrected Heather.
"Liam, even if you kill me, I can't come up with that much money!" Heather's face turned pale, and she started coughing. "Cough, cough, cough! Besides, an interest of nine hundred thousand over three years is too high!"
"High? Three years ago, your grandson signed the agreement and the promissory note clearly states the interest rate," Liam unfolded a crumpled promissory note with Ethan's name on it.
Ethan's eyes welled with tears when he saw the promissory note. His family had been destroyed because of that one hundred thousand dollars.
"I know you can't come up with the money, so I've come up with a solution." Liam lit a cigarette and blew a smoke ring.
"Ethan is dirt poor, he has nothing except a healthy body. Here's the deal, give me your grandson. His corneas, kidneys, and bone marrow can all be sold for a total of 1.05 million dollars, and I happen to have the connections." That statement sent a shiver down everyone’s spine.
"Cough... Liam, stop dreaming. Even if I die, I won't hand Ethan over to you!" Heather shouted.
"He's already a waste, what difference will it make if he becomes real waste?" Liam said indifferently, his tone icy and cruel.
"Liam!"
Ethan pulled out a dagger and looked at Liam, hatred burning in his eyes.
"Stop talking and just do it! It's time to pay off the debt from three years ago!"
Liam frowned. "Ethan, I came here to talk business, not to fight with you. I am sorry if you insist on doing this."
In the next moment, four henchmen rushed forward and restrained Ethan.
An iron rod struck Ethan's wrist hard.
Clang!
Ethan's dagger fell to the ground.
"Damn it, let me go!" he struggled relentlessly, but it was futile.
"Ethan, you’re still just a kid. You’re impulsive. Think about my proposal. Challenging me would be futile." Liam looked at Ethan and suddenly smiled cruelly. “Forget it, you don’t look like you’ll cooperate with me. I need to resort to force! Take him away!
"Contact the people immediately and get ready to start!"
After saying that, Liam stood up and walked toward the door.
"Liam... cough, cough, Liam, Liam, I beg you, don't do this!" Heather cried out miserably. She tried to get up and stop them, but sharp pain shot through her knees, causing her to fall back on the bed. "I beg you, if you want organs, don't harm my grandson. Take me instead, my old bones, corneas, and everything can be sold for money! I beg you, don't touch my grandson!"
