The Return of The Zillionaire Heir

Chapter 7: The Phantom’s Fool

 

“Nadia? Are you okay?” Ethan reached for her in the passenger seat.

 

Both their airbags popped in front of them. Ethan breathed fine when he noticed there wasn't a scratch on her head. He winced while thinking of the car his uncle had given him.

 

It was his first day home, and he had already walked on thin ice. Ethan got down. He went around the car, noticing the slightly crumpled side, before helping Nadia out. Luckily, there wasn't any smoke coming out of the engines.

 

Everything was fine, save for egos.

 

The Phantom’s driver acknowledged the crowd they attracted. Their collision blocked the entire route. He stepped down, pulling off his sunglasses.

 

“You should be on your knees right now.”

 

Ethan glanced at the 5’11 man with lanky arms. His arrogance stinked like sewage. The man reminded him of Beckham.

 

“It wasn’t a red light yet. You ran into us,” Ethan defended, stepping in front of Nadia as the protector in him came into the limelight.

 

The man smirked, giving him a condescending once-over. “I wasn’t talking to you. Can't lesser humans know their place?”

 

The car's honking around them grew. He heard sirens. The police were close to clearing out the chaos they had caused on the street. Ethan turned to Nadia.

 

“Get back into the car."

 

It wasn’t a question. It couldn't have been. Even Nadia's sassy attitude had no choice but to bend to his command.

 

Ethan heard the passenger seat door slap closed, and then he faced the Phantom's driver.

 

“Who else would you be talking to, huh?” He crossed his arms over his chest. “Lesser humans? You awfully remind me of some idiot that I know.”

 

Red cheeks. The stuttering. He had caught this man off guard. Ethan saw that he wasn't used to people standing up to him. The man was probably a pompous rich dude with zero sense of humanity.

 

The man raised his chin. “I meant to speak to the owner of the—”

 

“It's okay. Not everyone who claims to understand English actually does. I'm the car owner. Ethan Walton,” he extended his hand, mocking the man, "a pleasure to meet you.”

 

“W—Wal—Walton?” The man's eyes popped from their sockets at the mention of his last name.

 

“Yes, like the zillion-dollar dynasty. Does it ring a bell?” A smile smeared across Ethan’s face as he taunted the man and enjoyed the look of horror his words elicited.

 

Fear added tremors to his voice. “You can't be serious."

 

“Don't piss your pants, dude. It's embarrassing.” 

 

The man looked at his shaking legs and at his crotch, noticing the map of wetness being formed there. He immediately placed his palms over it and fell on his knees.

 

Tears rolled down his cheek as he rubbed his palms together, pleading earnestly. “I'm sorry, Mr. Walton. I'm so sorry for what I've done. Please, let me get out of this alive."

 

The last words shocked him.

 

Did this man think he would kill him on the spot in broad daylight just because he was a Walton?

 

Ethan's face contoured, and his arms were still crossed. “You have ten seconds to scramble.”

 

In flight mode, the man rushed to his feet, jumping into his flashy car and clearing out of the route in barely five seconds.

 

As Ethan walked back to his car, he wondered how big his family was—even wealthy, arrogant men trembled at the sound of their name.

 

The Waltons were a big name in the city. But if there was a king at the center of it all, what he just saw confirmed that his uncle wore the crown.

 

“You like it, don’t you?” Nadia asked as soon as the engine roared to life. “I always opt out of telling people my name first. It can get suffocating.”

 

Ethan didn't respond. He sped to the location he wanted, making sure to watch his surroundings. Another crash couldn't happen again. If people feared his uncle, then it would be wise for him to do the same.

 

When they arrived, he said, “This is it."

 

“Fix the car before you show up. I'll hate to see you fail your test.” Nadia commented, dropping down and rushing up the porch stairs of the classic modern home.

 

Ethan waited. He watched her disappear behind the door without a clue who lived here. Aaron has already charged him with protecting her. If he left now, that would go against everything.

 

So, he waited some more.

 

About fifteen minutes passed. Ethan tapped his foot on the floor of the driver's side. His eyes scanned the premises. There was a large tree in the center. A couple more sparsely covered the vicinity.

 

The driveway thinly cut through the neat lawn and trees and stopped at the foot of the building.

 

He sighed, turning the engine back on. Nadia made a valid point. He had to fix the car before showing up at the house.

 

He was about to leave when he heard a loud crash inside the building. It sounded like someone had fallen from upstairs and landed on something like glass.

 

He immediately jumped out of the Lamborghini, rushing up the stairs, only to come to an abrupt halt.

 

Ethan needed to hold a weapon. After what happened with Beckham, he wouldn't ever go anywhere dangerous unarmed. He reached for the glove compartment.

 

Searching inside it, his hand felt a cold metal, but his face paled when he realized what it was. Though he still grabbed it without a second thought and barged into the house,

 

The scene he met was terrifying.

 

Some deranged guy stood before Nadia as she tried to crawl away from him.

 

The smile on the guy's face sent cold shivers up Ethan's spine.

 

He cocked the gun in his hand, announcing his presence.

 

Ethan had never held a gun before in his life, but hopefully he would manage to look as menacing as he could.

 

The guy looked over his shoulder. “How did you get inside here?"

 

“Does that matter? Step away from her.” Ethan thought he deserved accolades for that frigid tenor.

 

He sounded like a killer, but this guy looked more like one.

“You won't shoot."

Ethan pulled the trigger on the wall next to the guy. The cracking sound had even him flinching. It was loud, like in the movies. He struggled to keep a straight face as he spoke.

“Next time, I won't miss.”