2025-01-19 01:30:50
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The Slumdog Billionaire 208. Fight To Survive
The air inside the vent was thick with dust, the stifling heat clinging to Ethan’s skin as he squeezed into the narrow space. Every movement sent metallic creaks echoing through the silence, and he froze, holding his breath each time, terrified the sound might bring his captors running.His heart raced as he inched forward, his knees and elbows scraping against the rusted metal. The vent was darker than he had imagined, a suffocating tunnel that seemed to stretch endlessly. The faint light from his room faded quickly behind him, leaving him to navigate blindly.One step at a time, he told himself. His father’s voice echoed in his mind: “When the world tries to close in, focus on the next step. Keep moving.”He bit his lip to keep from crying. Thinking about his father only deepened the ache in his chest, but he had to focus. He couldn’t stop now.The vent forked into two passages. Ethan hesitated, staring into the black void of both tunnels. He leaned toward the left, listening carefu
The Slumdog Billionaire 209. Adopting The Billionaire’s Son
The cold night wrapped around Ethan like a suffocating blanket, but the faint glimmer of lights in the distance gave him a sliver of hope. He wiped his tear-streaked face with the back of his hand, his legs aching as he trudged through the overgrown field. Every sound—every rustle of leaves, every distant animal cry—made his heart race. He clutched the crowbar tightly, his only comfort in the vast unknown.The lights came closer, revealing a small cluster of ramshackle buildings. Their weathered wooden walls leaned precariously, and smoke curled lazily from one of the chimneys. It didn’t look like much, but to Ethan, it was a lifeline.He hesitated at the edge of the settlement, his instincts screaming to be cautious. What if the people here were connected to his captors? What if this was another trap? But exhaustion clouded his judgment, and the hunger gnawing at his stomach pushed him forward.Ethan approached the largest building, a dilapidated house with its paint peeling in long
The Slumdog Billionaire 210. Adopting The Billionaire’s Son
The morning air was crisp and sharp as Ethan stepped out of Martha’s small, rickety home. The settlement was alive with activity. People milled about, some hauling crates of supplies, others repairing broken fences or patching holes in the weathered roofs of their homes. It was a small, tightly-knit community, the kind where everyone knew each other. And Ethan didn’t belong.He felt the weight of their stares as he walked cautiously toward the center of the settlement. He kept his head down, gripping the crowbar tucked beneath his jacket. The conversations around him quieted, replaced by murmurs and whispers.“Who’s the new kid?”“Doesn’t look like he’s from here.”“Trouble, if you ask me.”Ethan clenched his fists but kept moving. He wouldn’t let their judgment shake him. He had dealt with enough bullies in his life to know that standing tall was better than showing fear.At the edge of the settlement, Ethan found a group of boys around his age playing a rough game of soccer. The fie
The Slumdog Billionaire 211. School Bullies
The following morning dawned gray and cold, the sky heavy with the promise of rain. Ethan stood in front of Gus’s workshop, his fingers still sore from the previous day’s effort. He tightened his grip on the wrench in his hand, determination burning in his chest. Gus’s voice echoed in his mind: “Fix the wiring.”Ethan hadn’t slept much, his thoughts consumed by the generator. He had stayed up replaying everything Gus had told him, analyzing the parts he had taken apart and reassembled. The challenge wasn’t just about proving himself to Gus or the settlement—it was about proving something to himself. He wasn’t going to let this beat him.Gus approached with his usual gruff demeanor, a steaming mug of coffee in one hand. “You’re back,” he said, his tone laced with mild surprise.“Of course,” Ethan replied, straightening. “I told you I’d figure it out.”Gus smirked but said nothing. He gestured toward the generator. “Well, get to it. Let’s see if you’re all talk.”Ethan crouched in front
The Slumdog Billionaire 212. They Always Hate The Poor
Chapter Seven: Standing His GroundThe morning sun filtered through the cracked window of Martha’s small house, its faint warmth doing little to cut through the chilly air. Ethan was already awake, sitting on the edge of his cot, staring at his blistered hands. His muscles were sore, his body aching from the unfamiliar labor of the previous day. But the hum of Gus’s generator still echoed in his mind, a small victory in an otherwise hostile world.Martha walked into the room, her sharp eyes taking in his weary expression. She tossed a piece of bread onto the table in front of him. “Eat up. You’ll need your strength.”Ethan grabbed the bread, biting into it without hesitation. “What do you need me to do today?” he asked between bites.Martha smirked. “Gus said you did good, but don’t think that means the rest of the settlement is impressed. You’ve got to keep proving yourself.” She gestured toward the door. “Jake mentioned some supplies need moving over by the south yard. It’s backbrea
The Slumdog Billionaire 213. Beaten and Face Slapped
The tension that had simmered in the settlement since Ethan’s arrival finally reached its boiling point. It started with whispers—Eric and his group spreading rumors about Ethan to paint him as weak and privileged. By the end of the day, the murmurs had grown into outright hostility.Ethan kept his head down, working harder than ever. He hauled crates at the south yard, helped Gus clean engine parts, and even fixed a broken cart wheel for one of the older men in the settlement. But no matter how much he did, the sneers and stares followed him like a shadow.By sunset, Ethan was exhausted. His shirt clung to his sweat-soaked skin, and his muscles ached with every step. He had just finished returning a toolbox to Gus’s workshop when he noticed a group of boys lingering by the edge of the yard. Eric stood at the center, his arms crossed, a smug grin plastered across his face.Ethan ignored them and started walking toward Martha’s house.“Hey, rich boy!” Eric’s voice rang out, cutting thr
The Slumdog Billionaire 214. Smart But Poor
Ethan woke to the sound of soft rain tapping against the roof. The cool morning air seeped through the cracks in the walls, but the chill was nothing compared to the soreness that gripped his body. His ribs ached, and every movement sent sharp twinges of pain through his muscles. The fight with Eric had taken more out of him than he’d realized.Martha was already bustling around the kitchen when Ethan shuffled into the main room. She looked up from a pot simmering on the stove, her sharp eyes immediately scanning him.“You’re walking like an old man,” she said, smirking. “Did you bite off more than you could chew?”Ethan winced as he sat down at the table. “I won, didn’t I?”Martha snorted. “Winning doesn’t mean much if you can’t get out of bed the next day.”Ethan ignored her jab, his focus shifting to the plate of bread and boiled eggs she slid across the table. He ate quickly, the food giving him a small burst of energy. As he chewed, Martha leaned against the counter, watching him
The Slumdog Billionaire 215. The Bullies
The morning sun painted the sky in shades of gold and pink as Ethan pedaled his newly restored bike through the dirt paths of the settlement. The cool wind brushed against his face, momentarily numbing the aches still lingering from his fight with Eric.People were starting to acknowledge him now. A few nodded as he passed, some even offering a small smile. It wasn’t much, but it was a start. Ethan had proven himself through sweat and determination, and slowly, the settlement was beginning to accept that he wasn’t just some rich kid playing survival.But Ethan knew better than to get too comfortable. Trouble always found a way back, and today, it came in the form of Eric.Ethan spotted him by the scrapyard, standing with two of his usual cronies. They watched him with smug expressions, their whispered conversation dying the moment Ethan rode by.He felt it in his gut—something was coming.By the time Ethan reached Gus’s workshop, his instincts were on high alert. He found Gus working
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236. The Grand Finale
The night was a violent symphony of fire and chaos as flames roared through the mansion, their hungry tendrils consuming every inch of the legacy that had stolen Ethan’s life. Sparks exploded into the night sky, illuminating his face as he stood at the edge of destruction. The heat from the inferno scorched his skin, but he didn’t move. Not yet. He had waited for this moment his entire life. The people who had erased his existence, destroyed his family, and hunted him in the shadows thought they were untouchable.They were wrong.Behind him, his men stood at attention, the tension in the air thick as smoke. Jake limped over, his face streaked with blood and soot, shotgun still in hand. His eyes scanned the burning wreckage.“Is it over?” he asked, his voice hoarse.Ethan didn’t answer right away. His mind was still racing. He knew William Knights, the man who had orchestrated so much of his suffering, had escaped through that secret elevator. As long as that man was out there, this wa
235. The War Of Vengeance
The night was dark, the city skyline glowing in the distance as Ethan sat in the back of his armored SUV, staring out at the mansion ahead. This was it. The place where the people who had stolen his past, erased his existence, and murdered his father sat comfortably, thinking they were untouchable. Not anymore. He adjusted his gloves, his suit crisp but reinforced with light armor beneath. His men sat around him, checking their weapons. Jake, his most trusted right-hand man, loaded a fresh magazine into his pistol and glanced at Ethan. “You sure about this?” Jake asked, his voice low. Ethan didn’t hesitate. “I’ve waited too long. They built their empire on my suffering. Tonight, we take it all.” Jake smirked. “Good. Because I’ve been itching to put some bullets in these bastards.” The convoy of black SUVs moved toward the mansion’s gates, headlights cutting through the darkness. The moment they reached the entrance, two guards stepped forward, rifles in hand. They barely h
234.The Grand Plan
Ethan stood in front of the mirror, staring at his reflection. Just weeks ago, he had been a nobody—an orphan struggling to survive, beaten down, bleeding in the streets, laughed at, discarded. Now, he was standing in a penthouse, draped in the finest clothes money could buy, staring at the skyline of a city he was about to conquer. But he wasn’t satisfied. Not yet. The world had taken everything from him. His identity. His family. His dignity. Now, it was his turn to take everything back. Ethan didn’t just want money. He wanted power. And power came with knowledge. With Henry Knights backing him, Ethan was thrust into a world he had never imagined. Private meetings with billionaires, closed-door deals with CEOs, whispers of the elite who controlled the world from the shadows. At first, they laughed at him—just like everyone else always had. They saw him as an outsider, a street rat pretending to wear a crown. That was their first mistake. Because Ethan wasn’t just preten
233. The Orphaned Billionaire
A Name from the ShadowsEthan’s heart pounded in his chest, the weight of William Knights’ words pressing down on him like an invisible force.Someone erased you. Someone wants you dead.The words echoed in his mind like a curse.He had spent years thinking he was nothing—just another poor kid scraping by, unwanted, unloved. But now? Now he wasn’t just a nobody. He was a target.Ethan clenched his fists. “If someone tried to erase me… that means they had a reason. Who the hell am I?”William chuckled, a slow, knowing sound that sent chills down Ethan’s spine. The old man turned to face them fully, his sharp blue eyes gleaming with something unreadable. “That, my dear boy, is the question that will change everything.”Henry stepped forward, his expression dark. “Enough games, William. If you know something, tell us.”William sighed, swirling his drink in his glass before taking a slow sip. He set it down carefully before speaking.“The Knights family is powerful. Wealth, influence, con
232. The Hidden Heir
Chapter Thirty Two: Buried Secrets and Unraveled Truths Of The Hidden HeirEthan stared at Henry, his pulse hammering in his ears. The weight of what he had just heard pressed down on him like a suffocating blanket. Blood compatibility? The Knights name? This wasn’t just a coincidence—there was something deeper, something hidden in the shadows of his past.“You’re saying…” Ethan’s voice was hoarse. “I might be… related to you?”Henry exhaled sharply, standing up and pacing near the hospital window. “I don’t know for sure. But blood matches like this? They don’t just happen randomly. Not in the way the doctor described it.”Ethan swallowed hard. His mind raced back to the fragments of memories he barely clung to. His parents—who were they really? His childhood had been a blur of hardship, of barely scraping by, of always feeling like an outsider. No real records, no family history. Was it because his past had been deliberately erased?Henry suddenly stopped pacing, his jaw clenched. “I
231. The Rich Man Hit Me With His Limousine
Ethan’s footsteps echoed faintly along the quiet street as he walked home from school, his bag slung over his shoulder and his face still bruised from the day’s bullying. His head hung low, exhaustion weighing him down, but his mind was racing with determination. He refused to let their words define him, even as the pain gnawed at his body and heart.The air was cool, the street dimly lit by flickering lampposts. In the distance, the soft rumble of an approaching car broke the stillness. Ethan didn’t pay it much attention—until the roar of the engine grew louder, the sound of tires screeching jolting him to attention.Before he could react, the blinding headlights of a sleek black car came into view, barreling down the street. Time seemed to slow as the car swerved, skidding out of control and heading straight for him.Ethan tried to jump out of the way, but it was too late.The impact was brutal, sending him sprawling onto the pavement. Pain exploded through his body as he hit the gr
230. The Bully
The classroom echoed with laughter, the cruel, mocking kind that made the walls seem to close in around Ethan. His clothes were dirty and torn from the shove he’d just received, his knees scraped raw against the hard tile floor. A group of boys stood over him, sneering down, their faces twisted with malice.“Look at you,” one of them sneered, his voice dripping with disdain. “The poor little charity case. Do you even have a decent pair of shoes, or are those borrowed too?”The others laughed, the sound echoing in Ethan’s ears like nails on a chalkboard. He clenched his fists, refusing to meet their eyes. He wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of seeing the anger—and shame—burning inside him.One of them, a taller boy named Lucas, leaned down, grabbing the front of Ethan’s shirt. “You think you belong here? Huh? With people like us? You’re a joke, Knights. A nobody.”Ethan gritted his teeth, his jaw tightening as he tried to stay silent. But the sting of the words cut deeper than any p
229. From Begger To Boss
Ethan sat at his workbench, meticulously tightening a bolt on a worn-out carburetor. The rhythmic clinking of metal against metal was the only sound in the shop, a comforting melody that grounded him. Around him, the settlement was alive with the hum of industry—people working, laughing, and building something bigger than themselves.Jake walked in, wiping sweat from his brow. “The new shipment just came in from the border town. Got some good stuff this time—real parts, not the junk we usually get.”Ethan smiled, setting his tools down. “That’s great. We’ll start sorting through it later.”Jake plopped down onto a nearby crate. “You know, things are finally looking up. Feels... weird.”Ethan chuckled. “Weird?”“Yeah,” Jake said, shaking his head. “For so long, it felt like we were barely surviving, and now... we’ve got something real here.”Ethan nodded, but his mind was elsewhere. He could feel it—the calm before the storm. Everything was running smoothly, but he knew Eric wouldn’t s
228. New Heir
Chapter Twenty-ThreeA New BeginningEthan stood outside the workshop, watching the dust settle from Eric’s retreating vehicles. His chest heaved with relief, but his mind was already racing ahead. He knew this victory was temporary. Eric would regroup, and next time, he’d come back with something worse.Jake stepped up beside him, still clutching a metal pipe. “Think he’s gone for good?”Ethan shook his head. “No. He’s just licking his wounds. He’ll be back.”Gus, who had been watching from the shadows, grunted. “Then we need to make sure next time, he doesn’t get the chance to walk away.”Martha approached, her expression wary but proud. “You handled that well, Ethan. But this can’t be how you live—always waiting for the next fight.”Ethan exhaled slowly. “I know. That’s why I need to make this place strong. Strong enough to stand on its own.”Jake smirked, nudging him. “You got a plan for that too, boss?”Ethan’s eyes darkened with determination. “Yeah. I do.”---The next morning,
