Tony Stark had been standing off to the side watching everything unfold like a spectator at a show. But the moment John Garrett spoke those words, his entire expression changed.
"What did you say?"
In the next instant Tony rushed forward, grabbed Garrett by the collar, and yanked him off the ground. His voice exploded with anger.
"My parents were murdered?! They died in a car accident—at least that's what everyone said! What happened? Tell me right now!"
Tony's relationship with his father had always been complicated. Growing up, he and Howard Stark rarely saw eye to eye, and their interactions were often tense. Yet despite that strained relationship, Tony had always been incredibly close to his mother.
And after discovering the old recordings and relics Howard left behind, Tony eventually realized something painful.
His father had loved him all along.
For years Tony had believed his parents died in a tragic accident. That belief had haunted him, filling him with regret that he hadn't spoken to them one last time before they were gone.
But now—
Now someone was telling him they had been murdered.
Ethan frowned slightly and glanced toward the silent Winter Soldier standing nearby.
This was turning into a headache.
He had completely forgotten about this mess. If he'd remembered earlier, he never would have allowed Steve Rogers to come along.
Garrett gritted his teeth, refusing to speak further.
"Promise you'll spare my life," he said slowly, "and I'll tell you everything."
It was the only bargaining chip he had left.
Tony's jaw tightened.
"…Fine," he said finally. "You have my word."
Garrett's eyes lit up with relief.
He immediately pointed at the Winter Soldier.
"It was him! He's the one who killed your parents!"
Tony turned his head and looked toward the silent assassin.
The Winter Soldier stood motionless. Without an order, he remained like a statue.
But Tony didn't attack immediately.
Instead, he turned back toward Garrett with cold eyes.
"How do you prove it?"
Tony Stark wasn't stupid. There was no way he would believe something like that based only on a single accusation.
Garrett hurriedly nodded. "There's a video. I can show you."
Tony released him.
Garrett dropped to the ground and quickly crawled toward a nearby computer terminal. His fingers trembled as he opened a file and pressed play.
A grainy black-and-white recording appeared on the screen.
The footage opened with a stretch of highway.
Tony recognized the road immediately.
It was the exact location where his parents' fatal accident had occurred.
A car appeared in the frame moments later. It veered off the road and slammed violently into a large tree. The front of the vehicle crumpled inward.
Then a man dressed in black stepped into the shot.
His left arm was metallic.
The driver's side door creaked open.
An elderly man in his sixties slowly climbed out of the wrecked vehicle.
When Tony saw the man's face, his pupils shrank instantly.
His breathing turned ragged.
That man…
It was Howard Stark.
In the video, Howard saw the approaching figure with the mechanical arm and weakly raised a hand.
"Please… help me…"
Instead of helping him, the man grabbed Howard by the hair and forced his head upward.
Howard stared at him in shock.
"Sergeant Barnes?!"
Hearing that name, Steve Rogers froze.
Sergeant Barnes?
Could it really be—
At that exact moment the man raised his metal arm and smashed it violently into Howard Stark's face. The image blurred as blood splattered across the camera.
Tony's entire body began shaking.
But the video wasn't finished.
The Winter Soldier walked to the passenger side of the car. Tony's mother was inside, desperately calling out her husband's name.
With a single brutal strike, he killed her.
Then the Winter Soldier slowly walked toward the camera.
He stared directly into the lens.
And crushed it with one punch.
The video ended.
Garrett spoke again, his voice shaking slightly.
"Winter Soldier… remove your mask."
The Winter Soldier obeyed instantly.
The mask came off.
A familiar face was revealed.
Tony recognized it immediately—because he had just watched that same face murder his parents.
But Steve Rogers recognized it even more clearly.
That face belonged to the man who had grown up beside him.
His closest friend.
The partner who had fought countless battles at his side.
Bucky Barnes.
Tony's body trembled with rage.
He raised his arm and fired a repulsor blast straight at the Winter Soldier.
Without Garrett's command the Winter Soldier normally wouldn't act, but survival instincts still remained. He raised his metal arm and blocked the blast.
Tony lunged forward again, charging directly at him.
He wanted revenge.
"Tony! Don't!"
Steve shouted desperately.
But Tony couldn't hear him anymore.
Seeing Tony attacking Bucky, Steve immediately stepped forward to intervene. There was no way he could stand by and watch his best friend be killed.
Tony stopped briefly when Steve blocked his path.
His voice trembled with fury.
"Captain… what are you doing?"
Steve's expression was painfully conflicted.
After a long pause he looked at Tony and said quietly, "Tony… Bucky is my friend. HYDRA controlled him. He didn't choose to do those things."
"But he killed my parents!"
Tony roared, cutting him off.
Steve fell silent.
Tony continued, his voice trembling with hatred.
"There is no 'but.' He killed them. And for that, he's going to die."
Tony attacked again.
Steve moved instantly to stop him.
Within seconds the two men were locked in combat with the Winter Soldier caught between them.
Natasha Romanoff watched the chaotic fight unfold with growing anxiety. Unsure what to do, she finally turned to Ethan.
"…You're not planning to do anything about this?"
Ethan shrugged calmly.
"Help Tony kill the Winter Soldier?" he said casually. "Sure. I could."
Natasha's eyes widened slightly.
"I— I never said that," she replied quickly.
The mission wasn't finished yet. Right now Tony clearly wasn't in any state to handle the server problem. Fortunately they had already located it, so modifying the command protocols wouldn't be difficult.
And if Tony actually asked for help…
Ethan would absolutely step in.
Tony Stark was his friend.
Steve Rogers was not.
Although Ethan respected Steve, that didn't mean he agreed with him—especially not in a situation like this.
Ethan's gaze slowly shifted toward John Garrett.
He sighed softly.
"…You really shouldn't have told Tony that."
Garrett noticed the dead calm in Ethan's eyes and immediately shivered in terror.
"Y-you can't kill me!" Garrett shouted. "Tony Stark promised he would spare my life!"
Ethan looked at him as if he had just heard a ridiculous joke.
"After everything you've done, you think you're walking away alive?"
More than eighty percent of the world's highest-ranking leaders had died because of Garrett's plan.
And he still expected mercy?
Unless he had abilities like Ethan's, no one on Earth—not even ten Iron Men—could protect him from the consequences.
Instead of letting the world waste time putting him on trial, Ethan decided Garrett would be far more useful contributing something else.
With a small flick of his fingers, telekinetic force snapped Garrett's throat instantly.
As Garrett's body collapsed to the floor, Ethan glanced inward at the system interface within his consciousness.
The summoning progress bar had climbed to 52%.
A satisfied smile appeared on his face.
Aside from the Battle of New York, this was the most profitable harvest he had ever gained.
HYDRA truly lived up to its reputation as a nest of poisonous vipers.
....
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