Chapter 2 The Man They Threw Away

Chapter 2: The Man They Threw Away

The rain fell harder as Ethan stood motionless outside the Hawthorne estate, the cold drops soaking through his suit within seconds. The grand mansion behind him was alive with laughter and celebration. To the Hawthorne family, tonight marked the end of a mistake. They believed they had finally rid themselves of the useless man who had clung to their wealth for three years.

Ethan didn't look back.

The elderly man standing before him, however, couldn't stop staring at him. His eyes were red with emotion, and his hands trembled as he opened the rear door of the black limousine.

"Young Master," he said respectfully, "please come home."

Ethan remained silent for a long moment before finally stepping inside.

The luxurious interior was a world apart from the life he had been living. Soft leather seats, polished wood panels, and a quiet elegance surrounded him, but none of it impressed him. He had been born into this world. He had simply walked away from it years ago.

The limousine pulled away from the estate.

The old man sitting opposite him couldn't hide his guilt. "My name is Samuel. I've served the Carter family for over forty years. We searched everywhere after your disappearance. Your grandfather never stopped looking for you."

Ethan looked out the window at the city lights flashing by. "How is he?"

Samuel lowered his head. "Very ill."

Those two words made Ethan's expression change for the first time.

"He has refused treatment several times," Samuel continued. "The doctors say his condition grows worse every day. He held on because he believed you were still alive. Every year on your birthday, he would prepare your favorite meal and leave your seat empty, hoping you would one day walk through the door."

A painful silence filled the car.

Ethan closed his eyes.

Fifteen years earlier, after a deadly attack on the Carter family, he had been separated from everyone he knew. Believing his grandfather had abandoned him, he had survived alone, taking odd jobs and eventually building a quiet life. When he met Isabella, he thought he had finally found a family that loved him for who he was.

Instead, he had spent three years proving his worth to people who had already decided he had none.

Samuel carefully placed a leather folder on the table between them.

"The family's assets, businesses, and current reports."

"I don't need them."

"You will."

Samuel pushed the folder closer. "Your grandfather officially named you his successor six months ago. Since then, every branch of the Carter Group has been waiting for your return. The board refuses to appoint anyone else."

Ethan opened the folder.

Inside were reports from hundreds of companies, international investments, private banks, luxury hotels, shipping lines, technology firms, and hospitals spread across dozens of countries. The numbers were almost impossible to comprehend.

The Carter Group wasn't merely wealthy.

It was powerful enough to influence governments and financial markets.

Samuel spoke quietly. "Your personal net worth now exceeds three hundred billion dollars."

Ethan simply closed the folder again.

Money had never interested him.

What interested him was why the people responsible for destroying his family had suddenly gone silent after all these years.

"They've made a move, haven't they?" he asked.

Samuel's face became serious.

"Yes."

"Our investigators recently discovered someone has been buying shares in Carter Group companies through shell corporations. We believe the same organization responsible for the attack fifteen years ago has returned."

Ethan's eyes narrowed.

"So they finally decided to come out of hiding."

"They underestimated one thing."

"What?"

Samuel smiled for the first time that night.

"They never expected the heir they failed to kill would return."

The limousine slowed before an enormous pair of iron gates stretching nearly fifty feet high. Guards immediately saluted as the gates swung open.

Beyond them stood an estate so magnificent it looked more like a royal palace than a private residence. Marble fountains lined the driveway, priceless sculptures decorated perfectly trimmed gardens, and the mansion itself glowed beneath golden lights against the dark sky.

Dozens of servants had already gathered outside despite the heavy rain.

The moment Ethan stepped out of the car, every one of them bowed deeply.

"Welcome home, Young Master."

Their voices echoed across the estate.

Without warning, the massive front doors opened.

An elderly man supported by a cane slowly walked forward despite the desperate protests of doctors and nurses surrounding him.

His silver hair was neatly combed, but illness had stolen much of his strength.

The instant he saw Ethan, tears filled his eyes.

"Ethan..."

His voice cracked.

"My grandson..."

The cane slipped from his trembling hand as he staggered forward.

Ethan caught him before he could fall.

For a long moment, neither of them spoke.

The old man simply held his grandson's shoulders as though afraid he would disappear again.

"I thought..." he whispered through tears, "...I thought I would die without seeing you one last time."

Ethan felt his own throat tighten.

For fifteen years, he had believed this man had abandoned him.

Now he realized the truth.

His grandfather had never stopped searching.

"I'm home," Ethan said quietly.

The old man's tears finally fell.

"Yes," he whispered with a smile filled with relief. "You're finally home."

At that exact moment, hundreds of miles away, the Hawthorne family was still celebrating their victory.

They toasted to Isabella's freedom.

They laughed about the penniless husband who had signed the divorce papers without a fight.

None of them noticed that the phone of Gregory Hawthorne, the family patriarch, began vibrating relentlessly on the table.

The caller ID displayed the name of the president of the city's largest bank.

When Gregory finally answered, the man's frightened voice exploded through the speaker.

"Chairman Hawthorne, something unbelievable has happened. Every bank connected to the Carter Group has frozen negotiations with your company. Our biggest investors are withdrawing overnight, and several of your major partners have canceled tomorrow's contracts without explanation."

Gregory's smile slowly disappeared.

"What are you talking about?"

The banker swallowed hard.

"I don't know why... but someone far more powerful than the Hawthorne family has just entered the game."