Nightmare Revenge

Six month later, Dean stubbornly maintained his innocence in court, ignoring Robert's advice to take a plea deal. His divorce from Laura and the custody battle for Laila concluded swiftly due to the accusations against him. Finally, at the last hearing, "Gavel! Gavel! Gavel!" the judge read out the final decision in the courtroom.

"The defendant is found guilty of embezzling company funds amounting to $786,248.20, supported by conclusive evidence. The defendant is sentenced to five years in prison and a fine of $786,248.20, plus legal fees of $150,000."

"Gavel! Gavel! Gavel!" Dean, hearing the judge's verdict, hung his head. His hands clenched into fists. He glanced towards the spectators but didn't see his ex-wife there, his heart aching to see his daughter. The police immediately escorted Dean, who was weak but still clenching his fists, out of the courtroom.

"Only five years. Be patient, Dean. Five years isn't long. Wait for Daddy, Laila. Daddy will definitely come home," Dean told himself silently, trying to convince himself and suppress his sadness.

*****

Time moved on. A month had passed since the verdict was read. Dean was curled up in his cell, his head bowed.

Suddenly, "Teet," the sound of the cell block door opening echoed. Soon after, "Click," "Creak," "Clack," his cell door opened. A prison guard brought a young man into Dean's cell.

The young man stared sharply at Dean, who was sitting in the corner near the door. "Thud!" "Click!" "Creak!" The guard closed the door again. Dean saw the shirtless young man with a thin body covered in blue tattoos, typical of repeat offenders, and knew that the young man had been in and out of prison many times.

The young man sat next to Dean and turned, offering him a cigarette.

"Sorry, I don't smoke," Dean said.

"Okay, okay," the young man replied.

"Why were you arrested?" Dean asked.

"Just the usual, killed someone, hehe. My name's Zack, who are you?" Zack asked.

"Dean," Dean replied simply.

"Hoo, so you're the one. How long are you in for?" Zack asked.

"Five years. What do you mean, 'so you're the one'?" Dean asked, a little surprised.

"Nah, before I came in, I got a job. Just some extra cash for cigarettes and weed," Zack explained.

"A job? What kind of job?" Dean asked, confused.

"This,"

"Stab!" Suddenly, a knife plunged into Dean's side. "Aaah!" Dean, in pain, immediately collapsed sideways, clutching his bleeding, stabbed side.

"Wh-why did you stab me?" Dean gasped.

"I told you I had a job, remember? I was ordered to finish off someone named Dean whose description matches you. So, sorry, I don't have a problem with you. At most, if the guard finds out, I'll add a year or two here, but I'm chill," Zack replied, standing over Dean, holding the small, blood-stained knife.

"Help... help... there's a killer here!" Dean screamed.

"Oh, you can scream all you want, it's useless. The guards here are all deaf. You might as well shut up," Zack said, crouching down and covering Dean's mouth.

"Ugh... uguh... guh," Dean tried to speak, his mouth covered.

"Oh, you're asking who ordered me? Okay, I'll tell you. He's my senior. His name's Mark. Ring a bell?" Zack asked.

Dean's face immediately turned red, all the veins in his head bulging. His eyes widened, staring sharply at Zack in front of him when Zack mentioned Mark's name.

"Oi, don't glare at me like that. Relax, man. But yeah, seeing your reaction means I got the right guy. Alright, don't hold a grudge against me, and if you become a ghost, don't visit me, okay? I'm just doing my job, no hard feelings, Bye-bye,"

Zack immediately slashed Dean's neck, causing Dean excruciating pain. Fresh blood gushed out like a slaughtered cow, soaking the cell floor. Dean's eyes began to roll upwards, and his consciousness slowly faded.

"So this is how it ends. I'm killed in prison. Mark holds a grudge against me for hurting Laura, hahaha... I won't be able to see Laila... I wanted to see Laila grow up... Laila... Laila... Daddy misses you," Dean screamed in his head before his consciousness disappeared.

But suddenly, Dean felt no pain in his neck or his side. He opened his eyes and saw Zack, who was already standing, wiping his hands, motionless, like a statue. He looked around. Color seemed to drain from his vision, making everything appear in black and white, including Zack standing before him.

"What is this?" Dean asked.

He immediately stood up and looked down. He gasped; he saw himself still lying in a pool of blood, also in black and white. He looked at his own hands.

"Am I dead?" Dean asked.

"Hello, hello... relax, you're not dead yet... but you will die. So the question is, do you want revenge?" someone asked from behind Dean.

Dean immediately turned around. Behind him was a very thin man, wearing a tuxedo, carrying a cane, and sporting a tall, pointed hat. His face looked grotesque with a long, crooked nose and large, round eyes, topped off with a wide smile.

"Wh-who are you?" Dean asked, scared.

"Hmm, before you ask, please answer my previous question first: Do you want revenge?" the man asked.

"Revenge on whom? Alex?" Dean asked.

"Hmm, almost right. You don't seem to know what happened, do you? Like where that debt came from, why your wife divorced you over just that, why your secretary betrayed you, and why your wife's brother sent that man to kill you?" the man asked, leaning his horrifying face close to Dean's.

"Wh-what do you mean? If it's Alex, yes, he framed me and conspired with my secretary, that's all, right?" Dean asked.

"You don't suspect your wife at all?" the man asked.

"Huh... she's a victim too. She divorced me because she couldn't stand all the debt collectors coming," Dean replied.

"Tsk... tsk... tsk... this is what happens when you're blind and can't see because of love. I admit your wife is beautiful. Alright, to make it quick, I'll just show you," the man said.

"Snap!" The man snapped his fingers, and "Whoosh!" a red hologram screen appeared in front of Dean's face. Dean's eyes immediately widened, seeing his wife Laura having dinner with Alex at a fancy restaurant.

"Hey, what is this?" Dean asked.

"Oh, this is live. Just imagine you're watching a live stream. Just watch for now, and use these headphones for the audio."

"Snap!" Two headphones immediately appeared on Dean's ears, allowing him to hear the conversation on the screen.

"Cheers!" Laura and Alex clinked wine glasses together.

"By now, he should be dead in his cell, right?" Alex said, glancing at his watch.

"Yeah, my brother told his friend to go in there and finish him off," Laura replied.

"You're pretty crazy, betraying your husband like that," Alex said, taking a sip of his drink.

"It's all for you, babe," Laura said, smiling affectionately at Alex.

"Hahaha, the plan from five years ago is finally happening! Starting with Laila's birth, getting your family to use his correspondence to take out debt, framing him for embezzlement at the office, and now his position is mine, all thanks to you, babe," Alex gloated.

"Yeah, it took forever. I had to keep servicing him, even at night. It was really exhausting and disgusting. But luckily, until the very end, he didn't realize that Laila is your child, not his," Laura said.

"That's good, right? If he had realized, we could have been found out too soon, and he would have known we'd been together since two years before Laila was born," Alex replied.

"Don't worry, babe, he's stupid. He didn't even realize he was sterile, and he didn't realize I had him checked," Laura said.

"Well, now we just wait for news from your brother. The sooner he's out of this world, the better," Alex replied.

"Then what about his secretary? Are you still with her?" Laura pouted.

"Oh, don't be jealous. I told you, I only used her to get those documents. I just didn't expect Dean to ask his secretary to report it to the police. It was close! Luckily, I acted fast by holding her sick mother hostage at a hospital I know and threatening her to serve me," Alex explained.

"So what about her? You didn't fall for her, did you?" Laura asked.

"Of course not! She just offered her body to serve me, and I only exploited her weakness. My goal was to make sure she didn't cause trouble and expose our plan, not because I have a crush on her or because she's sexy or anything. It's all for our plan," Alex replied.

"Good! So, when are we getting married?" Laura asked.

"As soon as possible, babe. As soon as I get news that he's out of this world, we'll get married. I want to be with my child too, you know," Alex replied.

"Hehe, I love you, babe," Laura said.

"Me too, I love you," Alex replied.

They clinked glasses again and continued eating the food in front of them. After that,

"Oh yeah, have you registered with the doctor?" Alex asked.

"Yes, can you come with me tomorrow to check on my pregnancy?" Laura asked.

"Of course, babe. I'll go with you to the doctor, for our second child, hahaha," Alex replied.

"Plop!" The hologram screen in front of Dean burst like a balloon. The man stared at Dean, who was frozen solid, tears streaming down his face, mouth agape, but his face as red as a tomato.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" Dean screamed, as loud and as hard as he could.

"Whoa, I like your spirit! So, you can answer my question now, can't you? Do you want revenge?" the man asked.

Dean fell silent. He dropped to his knees, both hands clutching his head. Memories of himself with his daughter, his only treasure, shattered like a broken mirror, scattering everywhere and all become empty in instant. But something cold and dark filled his heart as his rage crystallized. With an empty gaze, Dean turned to look at the man who was leaning in, smiling beside him, staring at him.

"I want revenge... I want to kill them one by one," Dean said.

"Perfect, I accept your answer. Next question: Do you want to act alone, or do you want instant action, in other words, me to act? If you choose instant, I will act right now, and your revenge will be carried out immediately. How about it?" the man asked.

"Right now?" Dean asked.

"Yep, right now. I recommend instant, because you won't be able to get out of here quickly, will you?" the man said, coaxing Dean.

Dean fell silent, his teeth clenched, his anger overflowing. He desperately wanted to get revenge on Laura, Alex, and everyone who had hurt him, as quickly as possible. He turned to look at the man.

"Do it now, and show me," Dean said.

"Hohoho, alright, with pleasure." "Snap!" The man snapped his fingers again, and "Whoosh!" the hologram screen reappeared in front of Dean's face, along with the headphones on both his ears.