Vengeful Heir: The Rise of Ethan Bennett

Chapter Four

Ethan drove through the winding mountain roads, leaving the city far behind. The tall buildings and suffocating reminders of his past shrank into the distance as the fresh air of the countryside filled his lungs. The weight of his recent days in the Steele household seemed to lighten with every mile he put between himself and them. He didn’t look back. He didn’t need to.

The remote cabin he had booked sat nestled in the mountains, away from the prying eyes and judgmental whispers of those who had belittled him. When he arrived, the peace of the place felt almost foreign to him. He hadn’t experienced true quiet in so long. The absence of noise allowed his thoughts to catch up, to settle in the stillness.

As he unpacked his bag and surveyed the rustic interior, he felt a strange sense of relief. Here, there were no reminders of Sophia’s betrayal, no cruel laughter from her family. It was just him, the mountains, and the quiet. For the first time in months, he allowed himself to take a deep breath, closing his eyes as the tension began to release from his body.

But the peace didn’t last long. The memories of the past weeks gnawed at the edges of his mind, Sophia’s cold dismissal, Henry’s condescending offer of “compensation,” Max’s mocking words. They had taken him for a fool, assuming he would just walk away quietly. But Ethan knew better now. He knew who they truly were, and he knew what he had to do.

Sitting down in the living room, Ethan pulled out his phone, his fingers hesitating over his assistant’s number. He hadn’t spoken to anyone from the city since leaving. Cutting off communication with the Steeles had been the easiest decision he had made in a long time. He had no desire to hear from any of them, and he knew they wouldn’t be reaching out to him anytime soon.

But this call wasn’t about the past. It was about the future.

With a deep breath, he dialed. Liam answered on the second ring, his voice steady and professional as always.

"Sir, how can I assist you?"

Ethan leaned back in his chair, his voice calm but filled with purpose. "I need you to start moving deeper  on the Steele family assets. Quietly. Begin with the smaller properties, the ones they won’t notice right away. We’ll expand from there."

There was a brief pause on the other end of the line. Ethan could almost hear Liam processing the request, recognizing the significance of the task. "Understood, sir. I’ll start the paperwork immediately."

"Keep everything under the radar. No one should knows it’s us."

"Of course sir, well understood"

As he hung up the phone, Ethan felt a strange mixture of satisfaction and determination. He wasn’t acting out of spite, not entirely. This was about reclaiming the dignity they had stolen from him. It was about showing them that they had underestimated him, and that their arrogance would be their downfall.

He stood and walked to the window, looking out over the vast, untouched landscape. The sky was a deep blue, the sun casting a warm glow over the rolling hills and distant mountains.

It was beautiful, peaceful, everything his life hadn’t been for so long. And as he stood there, watching the world stretch out before him, he felt something he hadn’t felt in a long time "Hope".

For days, Ethan stayed in the cabin, embracing the solitude. He spent his mornings hiking through the mountains, his mind clearing with each step. The physical exertion allowed him to burn through the lingering anger and frustration, leaving only focus in its place. By afternoon, he would return to the cabin, his mind sharper and his resolve stronger.

Each evening, he would make a call to Liam, getting updates on the slow acquisition of Steele assets. So far, everything was going according to plan. Liam was discreet, ensuring that no one in the Steele family would suspect what was happening until it was too late.

One night, as Ethan sat by the fire, his thoughts wandered back to Sophia. He had loved her once deeply. Or at least, he had loved the version of her he thought was real. But the woman who had stood in front of him during the divorce proceedings, cold and unfeeling, was not the woman he had fallen for. That woman had never existed. It had all been an illusion, a carefully crafted mask to manipulate him into a marriage built on lies.

A part of him still hurt at the thought, but another part of him had begun to harden. He couldn’t afford to dwell on the past anymore. There was no use in clinging to what had never been real. Sophia had made her choices, and now he would make his. He would take from her family everything they had taken from him piece by piece, until there was nothing left.

The next morning, Ethan awoke with a renewed sense of purpose. He spent the day drafting plans, mapping out each step of his strategy. His vast wealth gave him the power to act swiftly, and with Liam’s assistance, they would continue to acquire Steele assets, moving from smaller investments to larger stakes in their company. The goal wasn’t just to undermine them financially it was to dismantle everything they had built, leaving them vulnerable and exposed.

By the time evening fell, Ethan had finalized the next phase of his plan. The Steeles had no idea what was coming. They had spent years laughing at him, treating him like a worthless outsider. But soon, they would be the ones on the outside, looking in at the empire he had quietly built while they reveled in their ignorance.

Later that night, as he sat outside on the porch, staring up at the stars, Ethan felt a strange sense of peace wash over him. It wasn’t the same kind of peace he had felt when he first arrived at the cabin. This was different. This was the calm that came with knowing he had taken control of his own fate, that he was no longer at the mercy of others.

The Steele family had thought they could break him, but they had only made him stronger. He had found clarity in their betrayal, and now, he had found the strength to rise above it.

Ethan’s phone buzzed beside him. It was a message from Liam.

“The acquisitions are going smoothly. We’ve secured several key assets. More to follow soon.”

Ethan smiled to himself, feeling the satisfaction settle deep in his chest. The groundwork had been laid. The pieces were falling into place.

The Steeles wouldn’t know what hit them.

***