The Paralyzed Man's Revenge

The Debt Collector

"Arthur?!"

Julian’s voice shrieked, clashing with the silence of the frozen Edinburgh forest. He pushed his body back until he was squeezed against the expensive Bentley leather seat, trying to get away from the window. His eyes widened, and the veins in his neck tensed as he stared at the silhouette behind the glass slowly stepping forward through the glare of the headlights.

Arthur remained silent. He just stood there, right beside the driver's door. He raised his hand, then tapped his fingertips against the bulletproof window. Knock. Knock. Knock. The tapping sounded soft, yet in Julian's ears, it thundered like a death knell.

"You... you're supposed to be dead! I saw you fall! Are you a ghost? Go away! Get away from me!" Julian screamed. His hands fumbled wildly across the dashboard, his movements chaotic and panicked. He was searching for the secret compartment where he kept his Glock 17.

Target detected searching for a weapon. Activating electromagnetic interference on the trigger mechanism, the system's voice hissed inside Arthur's head, cold and mechanical.

Arthur smiled thinly, an expression that looked terrifying under the dim lighting. "Looking for this, Julian?" Arthur asked. His voice didn't come from his mouth, but instead echoed through the Bentley's own speaker system.

Julian managed to pull the black pistol from the compartment. He aimed it at the window, directly at Arthur's face, with both hands shaking violently. "Die! Die again, you bastard! Don't you dare spy on me!"

Click.

No explosion. No bullet piercing the glass. Only the sound of the firing pin hitting empty steel could be heard. Julian pulled the trigger repeatedly, his face flushing red with frustration and terror, but the weapon felt like a broken plastic toy in his hands.

"This car's system belongs to me now, Julian. Your life does, too," Arthur's voice rang out again, filling the soundproof cabin.

"What do you want?! Money? I'll give you millions of pounds! Just take it all! I have access to the foundation's accounts! Just... please let me go!" Julian began to sob. The arrogance he had flaunted at the nightclub earlier evaporated without a trace, replaced by the foul smell of cold sweat and disgusting fear.

"Money can't heal shattered bones, Julian," Arthur replied. He pressed his phone against the window. The screen showed a photo of Lily lying in a hospital bed with both legs wrapped in thick casts and metal braces. "Remember this? That night at the Glencoe warehouse? You laughed while breaking her legs with that baseball bat just because she accidentally spilled coffee on your shoes."

"That was Mother's idea! Evelyn told me to teach her a lesson! I only... I only did what she said so she'd be proud of me!" Julian screamed, tears and snot beginning to decorate his once-handsome face.

"Oh, I know it was Evelyn's idea. But it was your hand holding the bat," Arthur whispered. His gaze sharpened, glinting with a hatred he had nurtured at the bottom of the abyss. "And now, it's my hand that will collect the debt."

With a single command in his mind, the Bentley's entire locking system disengaged simultaneously. Click.

Julian tried to hold the door shut with his shoulder, but Arthur pulled it open with a single, impossibly powerful jerk. Arthur grabbed the collar of Julian's designer suit and dragged him out, letting the man fall face-first onto the rough, cold asphalt of the forest road.

"Don't! Mercy, Arthur! We're brothers! We're the same blood!" Julian crawled backward, trying to get away, but his back soon hit his own car's tire.

"Brothers?" Arthur gave a short laugh, a dry laugh that contained no humor whatsoever. He stepped forward, then with a swift motion, he stomped on Julian's right palm. "I don't have a brother who lets his own sister be crippled for a moment's pleasure."

Arthur crouched in front of Julian, who was groaning in pain. He gripped the man's pinky finger with his thumb and forefinger.

"One for every one of Lily's cries that night," Arthur said calmly, almost like a whisper in an old friend's ear.

Crack.

Julian's roar split the silence of the night, startling the birds in the surrounding trees. The sound of the bone breaking was crystal clear. Julian writhed like a worm sprinkled with salt, trying to pull his hand away, but Arthur's foot locked his wrist to the asphalt like an unshakeable iron vise.

"Stop! Please, stop! It hurts so much!"

"That's only one, Julian. There are nine more. We have all night for this," Arthur said. He reached for the man's ring finger, applying slow pressure to prolong the torture.

Crack.

"Argh! Just die! Father will kill you! Alistair will find you and mince you alive!" Julian raved amidst his excruciating pain, his wounded pride trying to summon a protection that didn't exist.

Arthur didn't blink. He reached for Julian's middle finger. "Alistair? That man won't even know where your carcass is if I decide to leave it at the bottom of a lake. But I have a better plan for our dear father."

Crack.

Julian nearly fainted. He was gasping for air, his face now smeared with dust and dried tears. "Enough... what... what do you actually want? Just say it... please don't break any more... I can't take it...

Arthur released Julian's fingers, which now hung limp, swollen, and bluish. He looked at his brother with deep disgust. "Evelyn's power doesn't lie with Alistair. It's in what she keeps in her secret safe in the mansion's private study. I want the code."

Julian fell silent for a moment, his eyes darting restlessly behind swollen eyelids. "I... I don't know. She never told me. It's her private safe."

Arthur reached for Julian's thumb again, applying slow pressure that made Julian let out a soft scream before the bone actually snapped. "Don't you dare lie to me. I saw you go in there three days ago while she was in London. Give me the code, or I'll start working on your toes."

Fear Points increasing rapidly: 1,200. Target has reached his mental limit, the system reported via the visual interface in the corner of Arthur's eye.

Julian sobbed heavily, his shoulders shaking from deep depression. He knew Arthur wasn't bluffing. Those red eyes staring at him were no longer the eyes of his obedient, weak brother whom he could always bully. They were the eyes of a predator returned from the dead.

"One... one... zero... nine..." Julian whispered in a hoarse voice that was barely audible.

"Continue," Arthur commanded sternly.

"One one zero nine, two two eight. That's the code! I swear! It's the date of death of the man she loved before she married Alistair! Please, let me go now! You've got what you wanted!"

Arthur released his grip and stood tall. He straightened his black coat as if he had just finished a tedious administrative task. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped a small bloodstain that had splattered onto the tip of his polished shoe.

"You just sold your mother for a few knuckles, Julian. How does it feel to be a traitor?"

Julian could only curl up on the asphalt, clutching his shattered hand to his chest. "You... you are the real monster..."

Arthur looked at him one last time, cold and hollow. "I am only a mirror of what the McAlister family created. You should be proud of your handiwork."

Arthur walked back toward his van without looking back. Before getting into the driver's seat, he glanced briefly at the Bentley, its lights still on in the middle of the dark road. "That car will remain automatically locked from the outside. The engine will shut down completely in ten minutes. The temperature tonight in this forest will reach minus five degrees. If you're lucky enough, maybe a hunter or a forest patrol will pass by tomorrow morning."

"Arthur! Don't leave me here! Arthur! Come back, you bastard!"

Julian's desperate roars continued to be heard even as Arthur's van began to drive away, disappearing behind a bend in the path. Inside the van, Arthur stared at his system screen, which glowed bluish, casting a strange warmth on his face.

Main Mission: Obtain Evelyn's Secret Access - Completed.

Reward: 2,500 Vengeance Points & Skill 'Shadow Step' (Level 1) has been activated.

Arthur took a deep breath, inhaling the cold air coming in through the gap in the window. The sense of satisfaction he felt surprised him slightly. He thought he would feel a bit of regret, but all there was was a calm emptiness.

"To Glencoe mansion," Arthur murmured to his automated navigation system.

He knew this was only the beginning of their destruction. That code wasn't just numbers; it was the key to dismantling the big lie that had killed his mother and destroyed his childhood. However, mid-journey, a red notification flashed rapidly on the monitor screen.

Warning: Anomaly detected. Someone with high authority is tracking this van's digital position through the Edinburgh police encryption line.

Arthur narrowed his eyes, his fingers tapping the steering wheel in a steady rhythm. He knew who it was. The female detective who constantly sniffed out his trail like a bloodthirsty hound.

"It seems I have a very persistent guest," Arthur whispered as he turned the wheel sharply, taking his vehicle into a darker, unmapped back alley.