Quinn moved to stand beside him, her gaze falling upon William. The man before her was a stranger in her eyes.
She bent down, offering a hand to help Orion rise from the cold ground. However, Orion rejected her assistance,
pushing her hand away as he hoisted himself up.
His eyes, aflwith anger and resentment, bore into William."Did you slaughter all the animals | cared for?" he
demanded."They were mere animals," William retorted, his tone icy. "Would you sever ties with your own father
over a few animals?"
Orion's fists clenched, his chest rising and falling with the force of his suppressed rage.Observing his son's
reaction, William sneered, "Look at you. I've raised you all these years, and you've chosen to squander your time
on such an indecent occupation, tending to these animals. If word were to get out, it would be a disgrace."
"Enough!" Orion's voice rang out, shaking with either fury or sorrow. "What, in your eyes, constitutes a decent
job? Is it sleeping around with different women? Is that what you consider decent?"
The sound of a harsh slap echoed through the base, silencing Orion's words. William, his fury now fully ignited,
glared at his son, his face a mask of rage. "Where did you pick up such perverse ideas? You dare to raise your
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtvoice at your own father over a few animals? You're a fine son indeed.""Animals?" Orion chuckled bitterly.
"To you, they may be animals. But to me, they were vibrant, living beings. "You've committed countless sins, yet
you persist in your wicked ways, taking the lives of so many innocents. Do you have any idea how many lives
were here?" Orion's voice grew increasingly strained as he spoke, his mind filled with images of the lovable
creatures that once wagged their tails and frolicked around him. Now, they were nothing more than lifeless
bodies. His eyes reddened."Over three hundred lives! You've taken over three hundred lives!"
William's fury matched Orion's. "Don't be ridiculous! What lives are you speaking of? They were nothing more
than animals, food for the table. Do you consider yourself compassionate? If so, why don't | see any sympathy
from you when you eat meat?"Those lives are lives too. Why don't you save them? If you're so capable, change
the world. Make everyone a vegetarian!"
William scoffed, "What are you prattling on about life for? You're not even focused on your work!"Orion fell silent,
his father's words rendering him speechless.
He could only glare at William, resentment seething within him. To sextent, his father was right."What's
wrong? Lost your tongue? Where's your love? Your compassion? Go on, kill me. Avenge your precious cats and
dogs!" Orion's chest heaved as he stared at his father, unable to form a single word. The night was filled with the
howling of the cold wind, its chilling silence spreading, unbroken.Quinn's fingers clenched, the oppressive
quietness too much to bear. The standoff continued, neither party willing to concede defeat.Orion suddenly
laughed. "So, as long as | don't bend to your will, everything | do is considered idling around?""Exactly! | won't
allow my son to waste his life on these animals!" Orion's lips twisted into a sneer, but he remained silent.He
realized that no matter what he said, it would be in vain. No matter how much he argued, those animals would
never return.William, too, seemed to lose interest in the argument, casting a cold glance at Orion before
departing with his men.Before he left, he issued a final warning, "Reflect on your actions. | didn't raise you to
waste your tadopting strays. Letbe clear, if | find you raising another animal, I will kill it until you
abandon this foolish notion!"
Orion's body swayed at his father's words, his steps faltering.Quinn quickly moved to support him, preventing
him from collapsing.Orion's fingers tightened, the knuckles cracking under the strain. He turned his back to
William, his voice barely above a whisper, "Being your son is truly a tragedy."His words weren't loud, but in the
oppressive silence, they reached William's ears.
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