Betrayed by My Wife, I Became the Serpent Lord

Chapter 002

Nick stood in the doorway as hundreds of snakes slipped soundlessly into the room. One small snake made its way up Joseph Sloan's leg.

Joseph was still lounging in bed with his eyes half closed. He reached down with one pudgy hand and stroked the snake.

"Alison, your skin feels incredible. So smooth and cool."

"What?" Alison frowned. He wasn't touching her.

Then she saw a forked tongue flickering beside Joseph's shoulder. A pair of green eyes stared straight at her.

She screamed and shoved him so hard that his head struck the wall.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Joseph snapped. He was about to curse her again when he noticed another snake coiled between his legs, its head raised menacingly.

All the color drained from his face. "Why is there a snake in here?"

The snake struck.

Its fangs sank into the most sensitive part of his body. Joseph let out an ear-splitting howl before his eyes rolled back and he passed out.

Alison trembled as she grabbed for her clothes. Something cold brushed her fingertips, and she flung the bundle away in panic. It landed on the nearby heater and caught fire.

Only then did she see how many snakes surrounded the bed. There had to be over a hundred. They hissed and raised their heads whenever she moved, and several had already bitten her. With her clothes burning and snakes covering the floor, she could do nothing but huddle on the mattress.

Nick decided he'd given them enough time to appreciate their visitors. He pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Alison looked up, ready to scream for help, and froze. Nick was the last person she'd expected to see. She'd assumed he would still be arguing with Michael Davis about the house.

Her shock quickly turned to anger.

"You did this, didn't you? You sent these snakes! You're too much of a coward to stand up to Michael, so you come after me instead!"

Nick had wondered whether she'd show even a trace of guilt when she saw him. Apparently, in her mind, he was still the one in the wrong.

He walked to the side of the bed, glanced at the unconscious Joseph, and turned back to his wife.

"When are you going to give me my money back?"

"Your money?" Alison scoffed, seemingly oblivious to the snakes. "Once I took it, it was mine. The house was mine too, and I can give my things to whoever I want. If you were worth a damn, I wouldn't have had to go looking for money in the first place!"

"I see."

After three years of marriage, Nick looked at his wife and wondered how he'd ever found her attractive.

He turned to Joseph and slapped him hard across the face. Then he slapped him again and again until the man's cheeks were swollen and purple. Joseph finally groaned and opened his eyes.

The sight of Nick, with the red-crested snake perched on his shoulder, sent him scrambling backward against the wall.

"Shut up."

Nick delivered two more slaps, wiped his hand on his clothes, and spoke coldly. "Do as I say, and I'll let you leave."

Joseph's gaze darted from the snake on Nick's shoulder to the dark purple swelling around his injury. He swallowed hard.

"I'll do anything, Nick! I swear! But Alison came to me first. She said all she wanted was three thousand dollars. It was her idea!"

Alison stared at him in disbelief. Minutes ago, he'd been whispering sweet nothings and promising to leave his wife for her. Now he was blaming her for everything.

"What are you looking at?" Joseph snapped at her. "You think you're some kind of beauty? I must've been out of my mind!"

He dropped to his knees and began slapping his own face. "Nick, I'm sorry. I made a terrible mistake. Tell me what I can do to make it right."

Watching the two of them turn on each other, Nick felt his anger cool. That didn't mean he intended to let them off easily.

"You had your fun with her," he said. "So what do you think you should do now?"

Joseph hesitated, then stood with a vicious expression. Before Alison could react, he lunged at her and began raining punches down on her. She fought back at first, but he was much stronger. Soon her face was swollen and bruised.

"That's enough," Nick said at last, waving him away. Making Alison suffer was only a small part of what he intended to do.

Joseph stopped immediately and looked at him with a desperate smile. "Anything else, Nick?"

"She emptied my savings account and sold my house. What do you suggest I do about that?"

Joseph gritted his teeth. "If you want, I'll pay you back myself."

"You're a quick learner, Joseph."

Nick could see what the man was doing. Joseph hadn't once dared ask about his injury. He was hoping that if he appeased Nick first, Nick would eventually save what remained of his manhood.

"Actually, I've got a sheep-buying business starting in a few days," Joseph offered eagerly. "We could go into it together. You take eighty percent of the profits and I take twenty. I'll cover the investment. I can put in at least thirty thousand dollars!"

"Thirty thousand would barely cover the treatment you need," Nick replied after a moment's thought. "Besides, Alison owes me the money. Why should you pay her debts?"

"Then I'll make her sign an IOU! If she won't pay, I'll collect it for you!"

The pain between Joseph's legs was steadily getting worse. The thought that he might never recover terrified him.

When Nick remained silent, Joseph found a pen and paper, seized Alison's hand, and forced her to write a debt acknowledgment. He even pricked her finger and pressed a bloody fingerprint beneath her signature. She struggled, but she couldn't overpower him.

Once it was done, Joseph knelt on the bed and offered the paper with both hands.

"Will this do?"

Nick read it carefully. Joseph had put the debt at forty-five thousand dollars and signed himself as guarantor.

"Fine. You can go."

As Nick slipped the IOU into his pocket, a snake dragged Joseph's clothes across the floor toward him. Joseph snatched them up and dressed as quickly as he could. He wanted desperately to ask what would happen to his injury, but he was afraid of angering Nick.

"Go home and soak the affected area in warm water steeped with frozen eggplant for half an hour," Nick said. "I'll come and check on you tomorrow."

Joseph thanked him profusely and hobbled out with his legs spread wide.

Once the door closed, Nick turned to Alison.

"Now then. What am I going to do with you?"