Rise of the stolen heir

5

Mason's brows furrowed into confusion as he narrowed his eyes into skepticism at the unfamiliar men in front of him.

"Distinguished... what?" Mason wondered, glancing over his shoulder for the supposed heir, but all he could see was Ana, Mike, and his men.

Mike and his men guffawed, amused. "Mason is no rich heir, he's just a filthy pauper!" Mike sneered, and his men burst into a round of annoying laughter.

Mason ignored their jeers, focusing on the confusing situation. "Excuse me, are you certain you're at the right house?" Mason asked the men.

Tension eased off his shoulders. At least, these men weren't here to beat him or his sister.

Before the men could respond, Ana interrupted, her voice shrill. "No! That was passed down through generations!"

Mason spun, beholding his sister, desperately trying to wrestle a golden necklace from Mike's grasp.

"Well, this looks like it cost a fortune, and now it belongs to me," he sneered, palming her face and shoving her to the ground.

"Ana! Get away from my sister." Mason rushed towards her, grasping her arm and pulling her up, but Mike threw his leg at Mason, followed by his fist, connecting painfully to his jaw.

"How dare you hit our boss?!" The man in suit who had spoken earlier thundered, veins popping out on the sides of his head. "Get them, guards!"

In an instant, the guards in suits pounced on Mike and his men, pinning them to the ground with ease. The sound of grunts and wailing filled the air as the guards subdued them.

Mason held Ana close, his mind racing with thoughts. “What was going on? Why were these men fighting on my behalf? And who was this prince they kept referring to?” Mason reasoned, his throat ran dry as he tried to make sense of the chaos.

Soon, Mike and his men were escorted in front of Mason, forced to kneel on the ground with swollen eyes and bruised faces.

Mason's ears twitched as the sound of a car door being opened. Mason glanced towards the direction, and saw an elegant man in a tuxedo emerging from a sleek Ferrari. He strode towards Mason, offering a curt bow as he introduced himself.

"Williams at your service. I am your steward," Williams said, adjusting his bow tie and clasping his fingers beside him.

Mason puckered his forehead in confusion.

“My steward? When did I have a steward?” Mason asked in his head.

He shook my head, thinking this must be some kind of mix-up.

But before he could speak, Williams walked away from him, halting in front of Mike. "Who are you?" he asked, scrutinizing Mike. "What do you want from Mr. Mason? Why are you beating him up?"

Mike answered, blood dripping down his broken bottom lip. "I came to collect a debt. Mason owes me a hundred thousand dollars,” Mike resorted to lying.

Mason widened his eyes at Mike's incredulous lie, and he opened his mouth to protest, but Ana beat him to it.

“He's lying!” Ana exclaimed. “He was sent by Mason's boss to throw us out of the house for reason's nobody knows.”

“I'm not lying, believe me. Mason is the liar. He took a loan from me and refused to pay off,” Mike spat out more lies.

“What?!” Mason exclaimed.

“I'll handle this, sir,” Williams said in an assuring tone, nodding at Mason, silently asking him to calm down.

Williams arched his brows. "How much?"

Mike's eyes glinted with surprise as if he was shocked that Williams bought his lies. “What did you ask?”

“How much?” Williams repeated, his voice firm as he eyed Mike.

"A hundred thousand dollars," Mike rasped, breathing heavily.

Ana gasped, and Mason's jaw slacked. He exchanged looks with his sister before she yelled, exposing Mike for his lies.

“I'll handle it,” Williams said to both Mason and Ana.

Williams waved his hand, and another man in a suit swiftly appeared, smashing bundles of dollars against Mike's face.

"That is two thousand dollars, take it and never bother Mason again," Williams spat, glaring at Mike

Mason's eyes grew large in surprise as his chest rose and fell. Mason rubbed my eyes, staring at the cash stacked on the floor. Mike's face held creases of confusion as he tried to process what was happening.

“But first we have to teach you a lesson for lying and assaulting our boss,” Willams spoke, and then he wagged a finger in the air.

Some bodyguards lunged at Mike and his men. Mason could see terror glinting in Mike's eyes.

The men kicked Mike more, and he coughed out blood, begging profusely, "I'm sorry, please."

Amidst Mike's cries and apologies, Williams turned to Mason, saying, "Dear Mr. Mason, we are pleased to have finally found you after all these years of searching. I'm sorry you had to suffer this long."

Mason gulped, unsure of what to say.

"The Lachlan family needs you as you are their only heir. Please, come back with us to inherit your fortune," Williams stated, remorse in his voice as he and the rest of the men lowered themselves to their knees with pleading gazes.

Mason's pulse raced, and his throat constricted at what he had heard.

“Inherit my fortune?” The words echoed in his head.

Mason's stomach twisted itself into knots.

“How on earth did I... Oh, my goodness!” He yelled in his head.

The walls of his throat ran dry like the roads of a desert, and each saliva he gulped down scorched my throat. He shared a look of surprise with his sister as thoughts flew around his head.

Mason's parents were late and he was no son of a rich man. Did his father keep the said fortune away from him until he turned twenty-seven? Mason couldn't comprehend what was going on.

His heart swelled in his chest. Was this a prank? Sweat gilded down his spine, causing my tattered shirt to stick to his back.

“What do you say?” Williams asked.

"Inherit my fortune?" Was all that slipped out of Mason's lips.

Williams nodded, rising to his feet. The rest of the men mirrored his actions, their eyes fixed on Mason with an unsettling intensity.

Mason felt like a trapped animal, unsure of what to do next. Part of him wanted to run away, but another part wanted to see the end of it.

"The rest of the family and board of directors are awaiting your return, and you must return at once to claim your inheritance," Williams explained, his voice firm but gentle. "I know you're still confused, but I promise to reveal everything once we arrive. Come with me."

Mason's heart raced as he glanced at Ana, her forehead was creased with confusion. She met his gaze, her jaw slacking in disbelief.

After a moment of consideration, Mason nodded, then turned to Williams, who was waiting expectantly. "I'll need to take my sister with me," he stated, and Williams nodded graciously, leading them to the car.