Chapter 1 I was beaten until I was crippled by the school bully and his gang. My mother, a top criminal defense attorney, became the defense lawyer for the accused. In court, she used every word like a scalpel, securing a "not guilty" verdict for the boy who nearly beat me to death. Her reason? The boy's father was the benefactor who sponsored her through law school. Facing my questions, my mother was righteous: "Everyone is equal before the law. I cannot lose my professional ethics just because you are the victim." "Jay was just impulsive. I couldn't bear to see his whole life ruined over one mistake." Watching the perpetrator swagger out of the courthouse, I smiled. I pulled out the emancipation papers I had prepared long ago and threw them in her face. "Since you have such high professional ethics and love repaying debts so much..." "I hope you can defend your own future just as well." ... My mother, Susan, didn't even look at the papers. In her eyes, this was just another rebellious stunt from her teenage son. "Mason, have you had enough?" She picked up the papers from the floor, crumpled them without reading, and tossed them into the trash can. "Mr. Gordon is hosting a thank-you dinner at The Golden Palace tonight. You're coming with me." "Jay will be there too. It's a good chance for him to apologize to you, and we can put this whole thing behind us." I looked at her in disbelief. Put it behind us? I was still in a wheelchair, and the guy who put me there had just walked free. And she wanted me to go to his victory dinner? "I'm not going." I spat out the words coldly and spun my wheelchair around to leave. Behind me, my mother's voice rose, suppressing anger. "Mason! Can't you stop being so petty?" "Mr. Gordon's family isn't well off. He spent half a month's salary on this dinner." "Not going is disrespectful to me and to Mr. Gordon!" I didn't look back. I wheeled myself desperately toward the exit, escaping the suffocating air of the courthouse. Outside, the blinding sun made me dizzy. My dad's car was parked by the curb. Seeing me, he ran over, looking timid as always. "Mason, how did it go? What was the verdict?" Looking at this man who had been a doormat in his own home for a lifetime, I felt a wave of helplessness. "Verdict? Not guilty." My dad froze, his mouth hanging open. "How... Your mom said it was just a formality. She said she'd get Jay probation. How could it be not guilty?" I sneered. "Dad, your wife is a shark. A top-tier defense attorney." "If she wants someone to walk, they walk." "Even if that person broke her own son's legs." My dad rubbed his hands together, looking anxious. "This... well... your mom must have her reasons." "That Gordon guy, he really did help her out back then..." "Enough." I cut him off. "Take me to the hospital. I'm not going home." My dad hesitated, glancing at the courthouse doors. "Um... your mom just texted. We need to go straight to The Golden Palace." "She said if I don't bring you, she'll cut off my credit card." I looked at the man in front of me. Fifty years old, living like a dog. All the finances were controlled by my mother. He didn't even dare to speak loudly in his own house. "Then you go." I took out my phone and ordered an accessible Uber. "I'll go myself." "Mason! Don't be like this..." My dad tried to grab my handle, but I slapped his hand away. "Dad, if you still want to call me your son, don't go to that dinner." "If you go, don't bother coming to see me anymore." The Uber arrived. The driver helped me into the car. Through the window, I saw my dad standing there, conflicted. Finally, he sighed, turned around, and got into his own car. Heading toward The Golden Palace. I closed my eyes, and the tears finally fell. This was my family. A mother with a savior complex, and a father with no spine. And I was the sacrificial lamb they didn't need. At the hospital, I had just laid down when my phone started blowing up. On Instagram, Jay had posted a series of photos. In the pictures, he was holding a wine glass, face flushed with excitement. My mother sat at the head of the table, smiling with elegant grace. Caption: "Thanks to Aunt Susan. Justice might be late, but it is never absent! Cheers!" Justice? Screw justice. I opened the comments. They were full of Jay's delinquent friends praising him. "Jay is the man!" "Lawyer Susan is a legend!" "Where's the cripple? Didn't come to toast?" Jay replied: "Probably crying at home, hahaha." I stared at the screen, my fingers trembling. Suddenly, a notification for a money transfer popped up. From my mother. Amount: $300. Note: "Stop throwing a tantrum. Buy yourself something nice. I told Mr. Gordon not to worry about the medical bills. Their family has it hard, we need to be understanding." I stared at the text, my stomach churning. I wanted to vomit. I threw my phone hard against the wall. Chapter 2 I stayed in the hospital for three days. In those three days, my mother didn't visit once. Instead, Mr. Gordon, Jay's father, showed up with a basket of bruised apples. He stood at the door in his dusty work clothes, looking simple and honest. "Mason, Uncle is here to see you." He put the apples on the nightstand and rubbed his calloused hands. "Jay is just a kid, he doesn't know his own strength." "I already scolded him." "Look, your mom got Jay off the hook. Let's call it even, okay?" Even? I looked at the basket of rotting fruit, probably picked from a dumpster, and laughed out of anger. "My leg is worth a basket of bad apples?" Mr. Gordon's face changed for a second, then he forced a smile again. "Oh, Mason, don't say that." "When your mom was in law school, I saved money from my own food budget to help her." "You have to have a conscience. Look how sensible your mom is." "Besides, your family is rich. You don't need this medical money, right?" "My Jay needs to get married soon, he can't start life in debt." In that moment, I finally understood what "shameless" meant. This family was a parasite. And my mother was the fool offering her neck, complaining that the blood wasn't flowing fast enough. "Get out." I pointed at the door. "Take your trash apples and get out." Mr. Gordon couldn't keep the smile on his face anymore. "You kid, no manners at all." "No wonder Jay beat you up. You deserved it." He grabbed the apples and left, cursing under his breath. Before leaving, he spat on the floor. I rang the nurse call button to have someone sanitize the room. Disgusting. Truly disgusting. That afternoon, the head nurse came in with a bill. She looked uncomfortable. "Mason, your account is overdue." "If you don't pay, we have to stop your medication." I froze. "Overdue? Didn't my mom... didn't Susan pay?" The nurse shook her head. "Ms. Vance came yesterday and withdrew the $10,000 deposit." "She said... she said the other party was in financial trouble, and she lent it to them for a turnover." "She said you should figure it out yourself." My mind went blank. She took my life-saving money... withdrew it... to give to the guy who beat me up? Is this something a mother does? With trembling hands, I borrowed the nurse's phone to call my mother. It rang for a long time. I heard the sound of mahjong tiles clacking and my mother's loud laughter. "Hello? Who is this?" "It's me." The other end went quiet for a second. Then came my mother's impatient voice. "Mason? Where's your phone? Why are you using a strange number?" "Susan, did you withdraw my medical funds?" I used her first name. "How dare you speak to your mother like that?" Her voice rose an octave. "Mr. Gordon needs to put a down payment on a house in the city. They were short." "I thought you wouldn't spend that much in the hospital, so I let them use it for an emergency." "Don't you have savings in your account? Use that first." "Don't be so selfish. You have to learn to help people in need." Help people in need? She was dismantling my bones to build a fire for someone else! "That was for my surgery!" I screamed into the phone. "The doctor said I need a second reconstructive surgery next week, or I'll be disabled for life!" "You gave the money to Jay to buy a house? Are you crazy?" I heard Mr. Gordon's voice in the background. "Oh, Susan, if Mason really needs it, we can wait on the house..." Then came my mother's firm voice. "Mr. Gordon, don't listen to the kid's nonsense." "Doctors just like to scare people. It's not that serious." "Buying a house is a big deal. Jay needs to find a wife, he can't do that without a house." "Mason, figure it out yourself. Don't bother me again." Click. The call ended. I stood there, frozen, holding the phone. The nurse looked at me with pity. "Mason... maybe call your dad?" My dad? The man who had to ask for cigarette money? I shook my head. "No need." "Please process my discharge papers." "But your leg..." "I'm not treating it anymore." Since the world was this rotten. There was no need for me to pretend to be a good kid anymore. I went home once. While no one was there, I packed everything that truly belonged to me. Except for the emancipation papers, I left nothing. My sneaker collection, limited edition figures, and the gold bars I had saved since childhood. I put them all on a resale app. Fire sale. Cash only. With the money, I rented a small apartment with an elevator in the next city. Then I went to a private orthopedic clinic. Although I missed the optimal window, the doctor said with enough money, I could walk normally again. But I could never play intense sports. I used to be the captain of the basketball team. Now, I was a cripple who couldn't walk steady. But I didn't cry. My tears had run dry that afternoon. Chapter 3 Half a month later. I was in rehab, sweating profusely as I dragged myself along the parallel bars. The door to the ward burst open. My mother, Susan, stormed in with Jay and Mr. Gordon behind her. Her face was grim, holding a document. "Mason! Why are you hiding here?" "Do you know how long we've been looking for you?" I ignored her, gritting my teeth and moving my feet. Every step felt like walking on knives. Jay was chewing gum, looking impatient. "Aunt Susan, I told you he was hiding." "So dramatic. It's just a broken leg, he didn't die." My mother slammed the document on my bedside table. "Sign this. Now." I glanced at it. Letter of Forgiveness. For the school. "Because of the fight, the school wants to expel Jay," my mother said righteously. "As long as you sign this letter stating it was 'mutual combat,' the school will keep his enrollment." "Jay needs to apply for college. We can't let this little thing ruin his future." Mutual combat? I stopped moving, turned around, and stared at her. "Six guys beat me up while I curled in a ball protecting my head." "You call that mutual combat?" "Susan, the great lawyer. How can you lie like that?" Her eyes flickered, but she quickly regained her dominance. "If you say it is, it is." "I'm a lawyer. I know how to make it work." "Sign it. Don't waste everyone's time." Mr. Gordon chimed in. "Yes, Mason. We're all family, why make it so awkward?" "If Jay gets expelled, how will he find a job?" "Why is your heart so bad, kid?" I looked at the faces of these three people. It felt incredibly absurd. "What if I don't sign?" Jay spat his gum on the floor and walked over to shove me. I was unstable and fell hard. My knee smashed into the floor, sending a jolt of agonizing pain through my body. "Ah—" I screamed. My mother jumped, instinctively reaching out to help. But Jay stopped her. "Aunt Susan, don't spoil him." "He's faking it." "Mason, I'm telling you. You're signing this today." "Or I'll beat you every time I see you." He raised his foot, aiming for my broken leg. "Stop!" My mother finally shouted. Not to protect me. But because she was afraid of liability. "Jay, don't hit him. There are cameras here." She pulled Jay back and looked down at me. "Mason, I'm asking you one last time. Will you sign?" "If you don't, don't expect a penny from me ever again." "And don't think about coming back home." I lay on the floor, cold sweat from the pain soaking my shirt. But I laughed. "Home?" "The home that took my medical money to buy a house for my attacker?" "The home that defended him in court?" "Susan, did you forget?" "I already cut ties with you." I pulled my phone from my pocket. The screen showed a recording in progress. "Jay pushing me, and you forcing me to sign a fake forgiveness letter... I recorded it all." "This time, I won't let you get a 'not guilty' verdict." My mother's face went pale instantly. "You... you set me up?" I pushed myself up from the floor, inch by inch. Like a dog with a broken back, but with the eyes of a wolf. "You taught me, Mom." "Everyone is equal before the law." My mother panicked. She was a top lawyer; she knew the value of evidence. Jay pushing me caused a secondary injury. Plus, coercing a victim to sign false legal documents. If this got out, her career would be stained. "Mason, give Mommy the phone." Her tone softened, trying to use emotional blackmail. "We are family. Let's talk this out." "Jay just has a temper, he didn't mean it." I looked coldly at her outstretched hand. "Jay, grab the phone!" Mr. Gordon shouted from the side. Jay reacted and lunged to snatch my phone. I was ready. I hit send. The file uploaded to my cloud and simultaneously sent to several big influencers I had contacted beforehand. "Too late." I threw the phone on the ground. "It's sent." Jay stomped my phone into pieces, grabbed my collar, and raised his fist. "You piece of shit, you dare to play me?" Just then, the ward door burst open. Security guards rushed in, followed by my doctor. "Stop! What are you doing?!" The doctor saw me on the floor, blood seeping from my leg bandages, and exploded in anger. "The patient is in recovery! This is assault!" "Call the police! Now!" Chapter 4 The police arrived quickly. Because it was a hospital, a public place, and the circumstances were egregious, Jay was handcuffed on the spot. Mr. Gordon rolled on the floor screaming that I was framing them. My mother stood in the corner, her face grey. She looked at me with disappointment and pain. "Mason, you've disappointed me." "Are you trying to ruin Jay? And ruin your mother too?" I sat in my wheelchair while the nurse treated my wound. I looked at her calmly. "Mom, I didn't ruin you." "Your greed and arrogance did." "Also, don't forget to find yourself a good lawyer." "This time, I'm pressing charges all the way." That night, the video blew up online. #TopLawyerForcesDisabledSonToSignForgiveness# #SchoolBullyAttacksInHospital# #BenefactorOrParasite# The hashtags trended instantly. In the video, Jay's arrogance, my mother's cold threats, and Mr. Gordon's shamelessness were on full display. And my final line: "Everyone is equal before the law." It struck a nerve with the public. Public opinion flipped instantly. Those who praised Susan for "repaying kindness" were now calling her "unfit to be a mother." Her law firm issued a statement overnight, suspending Susan pending investigation. The school, under pressure, expelled Jay immediately. Mr. Gordon's address was doxxed; people threw rotten eggs at his door daily. I lay in my hospital bed, reading the comments. I felt no joy. Only exhaustion. This was just the beginning. I wanted these people to pay the real price. My mother came to find me a few times. Not to apologize, but to beg. She aged ten years overnight; her elite aura was gone. "Mason, drop the charges." She cried pitifully. "The firm is firing me and suing me for damages to their reputation." "Jay is in detention. Mr. Gordon comes to our house every day screaming that I ruined them." "Mommy knows she was wrong. Give Mommy a way out." I looked at her. If it were before, seeing her cry would have kept me up all night. But now, I felt nothing. "Mom, when I begged you not to defend Jay, what did you say?" "You said you couldn't lose your professional ethics just because I was the victim." "Now, it's the same." "I can't give up my legal rights just because you are my mother." "It's called giving you a taste of your own medicine." My mother froze. She seemed to be seeing this cold son for the first time. "You... your heart is so cruel." "I am your mother!" "Did you think about me being your son when you got Jay off the hook?" I asked. She was speechless. In the end, she left cursing. Calling me an ingrate, heartless, saying she should have birthed a piece of pork instead of me. I pretended not to hear. Because Jay committed assault while out on bail, and the circumstances were severe, the charges were compounded. This time, no top lawyer helped him. He got three years. Mr. Gordon got fifteen days detention for disturbing the peace in the hospital. As for my mother. Due to the massive public outcry and evidence of unethical conduct, her law license was revoked. The firm sued her for breach of contract. The career she was so proud of collapsed completely. My dad called me. He was crying. "Mason, the family is finished." "Your mom smashes things at home every day. Gordon comes over demanding money." "He says your mom ruined his son and wants compensation for emotional distress." "We can't live like this." I said calmly, "Then get a divorce." "This..." He hesitated. "It's better to separate." "This family fell apart a long time ago." I hung up and looked at the sun outside. Although my leg still had a limp, I could finally walk without a crutch. I enrolled in an online law program. Since justice was late. I would go and hurry it up myself.
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