Being Dumped by My EX, I Marriied His Older Brother-Chapter 11: I’m Here, Don’t Be Afraid

A private room in a Chinese restaurant.

Justin Kane was surrounded by a group of influential figures, all showering him with compliments and hoping to secure a business partnership with him. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

He just listened quietly, nodding occasionally. His deep-set eyes revealed no emotion, making him inscrutable.

His long fingers would occasionally tap on the tabletop a few times, his demeanor languid and noble.

That is, until Assistant Cheney rushed in and whispered in his ear, "Your wife is in the restaurant next door. There’s been an incident."

Justin Kane’s expression darkened instantly, a chilling aura erupting from him as if an iceberg had just imploded.

"We’re going over there. Now."

He stood up and strode out of the room.

The influential figures were stunned, seeing him so tense for the first time.

’Could something terrible have happened?’

...

At that moment, Nina Thorne was so incensed by Cole Kane’s arrogance that she actually laughed.

"Get a marriage license?"

After she finished laughing, Nina sneered, "Putting aside the fact that we’ve already broken up, even if we hadn’t, Cole Kane, do you really think I’d still want someone as filthy as you?"

Her gaze swept coolly over Serena Kane, sparing neither of them. "One of you is stupid enough, and the other is manipulative enough. You’re two pieces of trash that belong together."

"Let’s go."

Nina Thorne pulled Misty Hughes away with her.

Cole Kane’s face instantly darkened, like a sky right before a tempest.

"Nina Thorne... It wasn’t enough for you to hurt me, you have to insult me and my brother, too."

"You... you’ve gone too far."

Serena Kane looked as if she had been gravely insulted, lowering her head to sob while pretending to wipe away tears.

Seeing Nina about to leave, Zane Jarvis couldn’t take it anymore. "Young Master Kane, you’re just going to let her get away with this? Because I’m not!"

With that, he kicked the back of Nina Thorne’s knee.

THUD.

Caught completely off guard, Nina Thorne fell heavily to her knees, the impact so hard it felt like her kneecaps were about to shatter.

The jolt aggravated the back injury from earlier, and a cold sweat broke out on her forehead from the pain.

"Nina, are you okay?"

Seeing her friend being bullied, Misty Hughes was furious. "You’ve all gone too far! How can you bully someone like this?"

"You again, getting in the way. Get lost."

Zane Jarvis was just looking for an excuse to rough up Nina Thorne, and he aimed a kick at Misty Hughes.

Seeing this, Nina reacted instantly.

In a moment of desperation, she threw her arms around Misty, shielding her with her own body.

The kick was about to land on Nina.

Cole Kane froze, about to step in and stop it, but Serena Kane pretended to feel dizzy and collapsed against him, grabbing his arm.

"Brother, I feel so dizzy... It must be from having that cold water poured on my head. I think I’ve caught a chill."

Hearing this, the concern in Cole Kane’s eyes vanished instantly.

’Nina really is too willful,’ he thought. ’She deserves to be taught a lesson, something she won’t forget.’

Zane Jarvis’s kick went wide, hitting Nina Thorne’s arm instead. She grunted in pain.

But that, it seemed, wasn’t enough to satisfy Zane Jarvis.

He aimed another kick, this time right at Nina’s back.

In that instant, a vicious glint flashed in Serena Kane’s eyes.

’Zane is really letting off some steam for me this time.’

’This is exactly what she deserves. Teach that bitch a good lesson!’

"That’s enough."

"Stop!"

Cole Kane couldn’t watch anymore and tried to shout at them to stop, but his voice was drowned out by another, colder command.

At the same time, a figure appeared out of nowhere and grabbed Zane Jarvis’s ankle in a vice-like grip.

Before Zane could even react, his ankle was violently twisted.

CRACK—

The sound of bone snapping and Zane Jarvis’s blood-curdling scream erupted at the same time.

Immediately after, Zane was viciously kicked in the stomach, his entire body slamming face-first onto the floor.

BANG!

Zane let out another scream like a pig being slaughtered.

"Eldest Brother..."

Cole Kane and Serena Kane cried out in shock when they saw who had arrived.

Justin Kane didn’t spare them a glance. He knelt down and asked Nina Thorne worriedly, "Where are you hurt?"

Nina Thorne looked up.

She was met with the sight of Justin Kane kneeling before her. The soft light enveloped his handsome, sharp features, making the anxiety in his eyes all the more apparent.

The moment Nina saw him, all the grievances she felt inexplicably turned into tears that streamed from her eyes.

She shook her head, saying nothing.

Justin Kane’s heart clenched. He coaxed her in a low voice, "It’s okay. I’m here."

He carefully helped Nina up, afraid of hurting her, and gently wiped the tears from her face.

Nina stopped crying, her voice choked with sobs. "I want to go home."

She was simply too tired and in too much pain to keep dealing with them.

Justin Kane said softly, "Okay. We’ll go home."

The look of adoration on his face left Cole Kane and Serena Kane, standing a short distance away, completely stunned.

When Justin Kane’s icy gaze swept over to him, Cole felt an inexplicable shudder run through him.

He hurried over to explain, "Eldest Brother, it was Nina! She was being too willful. She shoved Serena’s head into the sink! She did something wrong, but instead of repenting, she just spewed insults."

"Zane was just upset for Serena, that’s why he lost his cool and attacked her..."

"You let an outsider bully Nina, and you call yourself a man?" Justin Kane’s glare was as sharp as a knife, practically silencing Cole and stopping him from even breathing too loudly.

As the heir to the Kane Family, Justin Kane’s presence was incredibly intimidating.

Nina Thorne’s expression was indifferent. She didn’t look at Cole Kane again.

From the moment he stood by and watched Zane Jarvis attack her, Cole Kane had died in her heart.

Utterly and completely.

"Eldest Brother."

Serena Kane hesitated before approaching, her head lowered timidly. "I don’t know what I did to make Nina so angry, to make her hate me so much and even attack me."

Justin Kane’s sharp gaze fixed on her, his words holding a deeper meaning. "What the reason is, you should know perfectly well."

Serena Kane’s eyes darted away, and she guiltily shut her mouth.

Cole Kane jumped to Serena Kane’s defense. "Eldest Brother, don’t be so biased toward Nina! Serena is the real victim here..."

"Cole, if you’re not going to use your brain, you can donate it to someone who will," Justin Kane cut him off coldly. "I’m starting to seriously doubt whether you’re capable of managing the branch office."

Justin Kane said no more, wrapping a large hand around Nina Thorne’s shoulder and leading her away.

Misty Hughes followed beside Assistant Cheney, and they stood side-by-side on the curb.

She watched, dazed, as Nina Thorne and Justin Kane got into a luxury car and drove away.

After everything that had happened today, her mind was having trouble processing it all.

’Nina doesn’t just know the Kane brothers; their relationship seems complicated.’

’Oh my god...’

’What incredible secret have I stumbled upon?’

...

Nina Thorne’s back was aching fiercely, and her whole body went limp as she leaned against Justin Kane.

Her face was deathly pale, a cold sweat beaded on her forehead, and even her breathing had grown weak.

’None of this is right.’

’Nina would never lean on me like this voluntarily. She looks like she’s in a lot of pain.’

Justin Kane’s heart leaped into his throat, and his eyes darkened. "Nina, what’s wrong? Where does it hurt?"

Nina felt like every bone in her body ached, the pain so intense she was trembling.

She had been holding on through sheer willpower, but now that she had relaxed, her consciousness began to fade.

"It hurts... everything hurts..."

"Justin, I feel awful... Am I going to die?"

Nina’s voice was faint, her brows tightly furrowed in agony.

Justin Kane’s heart felt like it had been slashed open. A look of fear crossed his face. "Don’t be scared. You’re not going to die."

Nina leaned weakly against him, a fine, dense sheen of cold sweat on her forehead. Her face and lips were an unnatural shade of white.

"Quick, to the hospital!"

Justin Kane held Nina Thorne tightly, his eyes filled with intense anxiety. "Nina, I’m here. Don’t be afraid."

"I’m here, don’t be afraid..."

Half-conscious, Nina heard the familiar words overlap with what a boy had told her ten years ago.

Instantly, an image from a decade earlier surfaced in her mind.

A twelve-year-old Nina Thorne was drowning, about to sink to the bottom of a lake.

In her daze, a young boy had saved her, telling her in a clear, reassuring voice, "I’m here. Don’t be afraid."