Frank seemed to freeze for a while except for the interval, angry twitches on his face. He looked deadly frightening.
How can I disagree? Everyone is listening and watching.
Do I have to return the shares? But they are MINE. MINE.
Nathalia kept her eyes fixed on the floor. Like a frightened little lamb, she shivered slightly.
Poor girl. Even though she was born in a rich family, but no one treats her as their family member. Even her own father is using her. The crowd thought.
Anne Carter had her fists clenched. She felt like she could not breathe. No. We can't give her back the shares. Those are ours, my children. She can't have them!
Though Evette was furious, she remembered the mistake she made just then and dared not say anything now.
However, Zack Carter had had enough, and as usual, he suddenly grabbed the reporter's shirt and threw a punch at his face, yelling, "It's none of your business! You stay away! Asshole."
Before the reporter managed to free himself, he had suffered a few more punches and kicks. His face was covered with bruises while Zack's looked murderous.
The reporters all had their cameras on, recording every moment of the violent excitement and brutality.
Some jumped in to help pull Zack away. Someone shouted, "He is humiliating the whole media group! Look at his murderous face. No wonder he beats his sister and insults her mother. He's a brutal animal!"
The purpose of the conference would never be achieved. Zack Carter had admitted guilty himself with action. No one would ever believe him anymore.
Frank was terrified. He intended to pull Zack back, but he was surrounded by reporters with their cameras. "Security! Security! Stop it!" He shouted.
A dozen security guards hurried in, but they couldn't do anything against over a hundred reporters.
Surrounded, Zack was scared as well as angry.
Anne's face had turned pale. She cried desperately, "Zack, calm down, Zack, they were doing it on purpose to make you angry, don't fall into their trap."
"Be good, my boy. Apologize to the reporter. Ask him for forgiveness."
Anne was still hoping to save the last bit of trust, if there was any, from people for her son, but Zack would not hear. He was totally controlled by his anger and fear as he shouted at the reporters, "Assholes, all of you! I'm going to hire the best lawyer and sue you all. You will be spending the rest of your life in jail!"
The crowd was outraged by such a threat. "Zack Carter! You are a bully!" someone yelled back.
"The Carters do not own the world! Don't you think you can do anything you want!" another voice thundered.
"There are law and justice, and it's NOT called the Carters." another supporter exclaimed.
Then a voice led the crowd. "Zack Carter has verbally and physically insulted us, the media. People, is that acceptable?"
"No!" the crowd chorused determinedly. Tension had reached its peak, and an explosion of anger was foreseeable.
"Is that acceptable at all?" the leader asked again.
"Not at all," the crowd shouted as they charged at Zack Carter. It suddenly turned into chaos.
Those that took the bride dared not speak nor stop the fight. It was a minority against the majority.
The Carter couple were screaming for the security guards to help their son. The guards were doing their job, but it was pretty much one against 10. Hearing her son crying in pain, Anne couldn't think anymore and ran into the crowd. Instead of saving her son, she was getting beaten herself badly.
Watching both his son and wife getting beaten, Frank was distraught. He grabbed the microphone and bellowed, "Stop! Stop right now! Or you will regret it!"
The reporters refused to listen to him. Someone shouted back, "Like father, like son!"
"Are you going to hire the best lawyer and sue us as well? Send us to jail? Huh? We shall show the world the real Carter!"
The screams and cries from Ann and Zack were like arrows shooting straight into Frank's heart. He was panting heavily with pain and anger. He felt defeated and helpless. The usual air of a successful and powerful leader had evaded him.
Evette had been standing there, agape and terrified, one hand covering her open mouth, eyes wide open staring at the chaos.
Nathalia retreated to a corner and watched in silence. Do you feel the pain now? Now you know what it is like! An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth.
The chaos didn't get under control until the police arrived. Zack and Anne were both covered with bruises and blood.
Tears with melted makeup running down Anne's face, her clothes torn, her hair loose and messy, she was hardly recognizable.
She ran into her husband's arms and sobbed hard. It was the first time she had ever been beaten and humiliated like this. She felt not only pain but also embarrassment.
Zack Carter's face had swollen up, and his bruised eyes almost shut close from punches. Pain ran through every vein inside him. He cried out loud as he buried his head in his father's shoulder. "Dad, kill them all! Revenge for me. It hurts so much, ow...I'm in so much pain, Dad."
Frank was almost in tears seeing the state his wife and son were in.
Hearing what Zack said, the reporters were again outraged. "Zack Carter, you love killing, don't you?! You brutal, merciless barbarian. You have no respect for life."
"What! Do you want to kill us? Come on then. Do it! Here and now, show us!"
"You surely deserved the beating! You don't even deserve to live!"
Though extremely enraged, Frank couldn't say anything against them, but secretly he remembered all the faces.
Nathalia had found satisfaction watching the fight. Now seeing that it had come to a pause, she slowly walked to the front from the corner. "Everyone, please forgive my brother. He's young and a bit impulsive, but he meant no harm..."