Chapter 453: Colin’s Cruel End

First, Aaron went in front of Serena and knelt before her. The woman sitting in the wheelchair noticed him. These days, she was always waiting to see him—it made her feel as if Alex was still with her.

"Alex?" she said in her usual way, her distant, blank gaze finally showing a sign of recognition.

Aaron hummed.

Both brothers—whenever they met her—she always called them Alex, and they never corrected her. There was no point; her memories seemed stuck in the past.

"I brought someone here," he said softly. "You might want to see that person."

She simply looked at him as Aaron stood up and stepped aside. The next moment, two guards from the Obsidian group dragged a man into her sight, stopping a few feet away.

Serena looked at the man. The moment she recognized that face, her body stiffened, her expression hardened, and her eyes widened in shock. Slowly, anger began to flood them. Her hands gripped the armrests of her wheelchair tightly, her jaw clenched, and she gritted her teeth in fury.

She wanted to say something—to express the rage building inside her—but the words wouldn’t come easily. Her mouth had barely spoken in nearly two decades.

Justin, Natalie, and Marina had arrived there as well.

"Justin, it might worsen her condition," Marina said.

"It won’t," Justin assured her.

Serena looked like she wanted to step out of the wheelchair and go to that man, but she couldn’t stand, no matter how much she wanted to move. Her rageful eyes turned moist with the pain resurfacing from the past.

Colin was equally shocked to see her. "You... you’re alive?"

Aaron replied, "She managed to survive because she was waiting for this day to come. She was waiting to kill you with her very own hands."

Colin swallowed hard. He had seen, in the past, what Serena was capable of. She had ruthlessly killed many of his men that day.

Aaron pulled out a gun and held it in front of Serena. "Do you want to use this?"

With her moist eyes, Serena looked at the gun but gently shrugged it away. At the same time, her restless and vengeful gaze searched for something else.

This time, Justin stepped forward—as if he understood exactly what his mother wanted at that moment. He pulled out a sharp and beautifully crafted dagger and held it in front of her.

The handle of the dagger bore the symbol of the Obsidian crown: a jagged black crown with glowing cracks.

It was the symbol of the most powerful, ruthless, and mysterious group—Obsidian—feared by powerful figures around the world.

Back then, after Garwin’s accident in Belvorn, even Howard Everthorn had received a warning from them. The very sign of the Obsidian group was enough to terrify him.

Serena’s eyes narrowed at the sharp, perfectly crafted dagger. Her hands slowly moved forward to take it from him.

Meanwhile, Justin turned to Natalie. "Take Grandma inside, and don’t come out until we’re done."

Natalie wanted to stay, but she realized if Justin had asked her to leave that meant something horrific was going to happen. She was not weak hearted but she knew she shouldn’t witness anything disturbing in the situation she was in—and it wasn’t good for the old lady, Marina, either.

Natalie took the old woman inside, and Marina obeyed.

Justin looked at Colin. "You must remember how she tore open your men using just a dagger. Now it’s your turn, and I assure you it would be as painful as it could be."

Colin swallowed hard once more. He could already feel the blood draining from his body.

Serena’s weak hand gripped the dagger’s handle with all the strength she could gather.

Meanwhile, Justin signaled the guards to bring Colin closer, as Serena couldn’t stand properly yet.

"No!" Colin struggled to free himself as he shouted and begged. "Just kill me right away. Use the gun!"

Aaron felt a sense of grim satisfaction seeing the fear in Colin’s eyes. It was the same fear Serena had once felt when Colin had tortured Alexander—when she begged him to kill them quickly, but he refused.

Colin had enjoyed torturing Alexander, who never made a sound of pain to not let his wife know the kind of pain he was suffering. But she was well aware how much pain he must have felt and made her feel even worse that he was enduring it for her sake.

Even when Alexander was dying, he cared more for his wife than himself. He didn’t want her to witness his agony. Even in death and pain, his eyes only sought for her and despite pain, he smiled at her as if he was assuring her he was alright.

Aaron’s eyes turned moist at the painful memory.

Colin was now right in front of her, confined by the strength of two strong guards, unable to move even an inch.

Serena’s vengeance-filled, dark gaze lingered on Colin’s terrified face for a moment before moving to his neck, then settling on his chest.

"Take his shirt off," Justin instructed the guards.

While the two guards held Colin down, another stepped forward and tore apart the dark blue shirt he was wearing. It was already wrinkled and disheveled. The jacket of his suit had long been discarded.

Now, kneeling there bare-chested, Colin was dragged closer to Serena. In response, her grip on the dagger tightened even more, her gaze fixed on a specific point on Colin’s chest. Her hand moved—it was still a little shaky, but her resolve was firm.

With every ounce of energy she had, she stabbed him just below the collarbone, where the first rib of the rib cage is attached to the sternum by cartilage. A perfect stab—even after so many years of holding a knife. Not too deep, but just enough to carry out what she had planned.

A cry escaped Colin’s mouth, but it had no effect on Serena. It was as if she could neither hear nor see anything but her revenge.

She tried to drag the knife downward, but her strength wasn’t enough.

Justin knew exactly what his mother wanted. He covered her hand with his, helping her tighten her grip on the knife and guiding it downward, causing the first rib to separate where it was attached.

Blood oozed out, but the stab was precise—expertly placed to avoid making Colin bleed out too quickly.

Justin and Aaron looked at Serena, whose moist eyes were full of sorrow, hate and anger at the same time, but then she had a wicked evil smirk on her lips.

She stabbed once more, and this time it was the second rib, where once more Justin helped her and they repeated the same thing.

Colin’s painful cries wouldn’t stop.

"The rest... let me do it for you. You just watch and enjoy," Justin said to her as he took the knife from Serena, who allowed him to take it.

Her gaze stuck only at Colin as if she couldn’t wait to see him suffer.

Justin stood in front of Colin like a demon. The two guards knew what they had to do and released him—Colin was already in immense pain, his rib separated.

Colin began to speak through gritted teeth and pain. "Aiden... be human..."

In response, Justin kicked him in the shoulder, knocking him to the ground. The guards held Colin’s legs and arms firmly while Justin knelt beside him, making sure Serena could see everything clearly.

"This is what she wants—in exchange for what you did to her husband," Justin said to Colin. "And, coincidentally, it’s what I want for what you did to my parents."

"Aiden, please... Ahhh!"