The return flight through the air felt far easier for Henry this time.
He began to enjoy the sense of freedom, even performing various high-difficulty rolls and dives midair.
"Hey, this actually feels pretty good!"
He was like a kid with a brand-new toy.
"Way cooler than Tony's tin cans. Just… it's a little exhausting. And man, I'm starting to get hungry again."
An hour later, at the top floor of Stark Industries Headquarters, in the chairman's office.
Happy paced anxiously, thick bandages wrapped around his arms, his worry and self-reproach almost tangible.
Pepper stood by the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, gazing out at the streets, though her eyes had no focus.
Suddenly, the elevator dinged open, and Henry strode in, clearly wearing an ill-fitting Armani suit. Both looked up immediately.
"Mr. Henry!" Happy rushed forward, eyes red with emotion.
"You're safe! Thank god! I… I couldn't protect you that day!"
"It's not your fault, Happy," Henry said, patting his broad shoulder reassuringly.
"They were prepared. You did your best."
He brushed past Happy, walked to the bar, poured himself a glass of whiskey, and downed it in one gulp.
"Ah! That's the taste." He exhaled deeply, then turned to Pepper.
"Pepper, do I look thinner? Those bastards didn't even feed me—totally inhumane."
Pepper studied him. Henry still had that playful, careless air, but she could see a hint of exhaustion deep in his eyes.
She couldn't imagine what the Stark heir had gone through.
"Welcome back, Henry," she said, voice hoarse.
"We were so worried about you. And Tony… he—"
"Don't worry. Listen to me."
Henry cut her off, walking straight to the main chair, kicking his feet up on the expensive desk.
"I think these two incidents aren't coincidental."
He looked sharply at Pepper and Happy, his playful expression gone, replaced by a piercing gaze.
"After I was captured, the people interrogating me knew Stark Industries' weapons secrets down to the smallest detail, even things Tony and I only discussed in the lab. And the organization that kidnapped me… was Hydra."
"Hydra?!" Pepper and Happy exclaimed in unison.
The Hydra that only existed in history books, supposedly wiped out by Captain America?
"Exactly. And whoever can access Stark Industries' core secrets and also coordinate with an organization like Hydra…"
Henry dragged out the words, his gaze dark and meaningful.
"There aren't many in the company."
Pepper's face went pale; a name she never wanted to consider flashed through her mind.
"You mean… Obadiah?"
"Who else?" Henry chuckled lightly.
"The uncle who watched us grow up, sweet as Santa Claus. I guess the attacks on Tony and me were orchestrated by him. His goal is clear: eliminate the two of us and take Stark Industries for himself."
"That bastard!" Happy slammed a fist on the desk in anger.
"I'm going to take him down right now!"
"Calm down, Happy," Henry waved a hand.
"Gathering evidence is to maximize what we get back, squeeze out every bit of his value. After all, he's been leeching off Stark Industries for years, hasn't he?"
Henry was comforting them. For this old man, once he had Henry in his sights, his fate was sealed.
The reason Henry wasn't dealing with him immediately was that he had something else to handle first.
He looked at Pepper, voice serious. "Pepper, JARVIS will grant you permissions. I need you to use every access level to secretly investigate all of Obadiah's recent financial transactions and communications—especially those linked to his shell companies and anything connected to the Middle East.
Happy, work with Pepper, use all your security contacts to dig up every bit of dirt on Obadiah over the years. Keep this secret. No one can know."
"Understood." Pepper and Happy nodded firmly, determination in their eyes.
"Good." Henry stood, stretching.
"Leave the paperwork to you. I need to go home and prepare a few… toys. After all, I have to retrieve the runaway patriarch of our family."
He turned toward the elevator. As the doors closed, he called back:
"Keep watch over the company until I return. If Obadiah shows up early, hold him off. Don't let him detect anything unusual."
Driving a company car, he raced to a secluded suburban area.
Then he abandoned the car, launching into the sky toward the Malibu cliffside mansion.
He wasn't about to reveal his superhuman abilities yet. Everyone knows a single Stark returning is one thing, two Starks returning is far more… stock market-friendly.
Soon, the white mansion perched on the cliff appeared in his vision, and Henry's mood brightened.
Home. He was back.
He landed at the underground lab entrance without alerting anyone.
After fingerprint and iris scans, the heavy alloy door slid open.
Inside, everything was as he left it: holographic projections and precise instruments filling the space, every bit of futuristic tech in place.
"JARVIS, are you here?" he called softly.
"Always, sir," came the calm British-accented voice.
"Welcome back, Mr. Henry. Significant physiological changes detected. Shall I perform a full body scan?"
"Of course. Pull up the data." Henry began removing the ill-fitting Armani, heading to the testing area.
"Also, test my current strength limits."
Soon, a massive holographic screen displayed Henry's physiological data. Almost every entry was accompanied by a series of green arrows, indicating far beyond normal human levels.
"Cell activity: 28 times normal… metabolism: 35 times… bone density…"
Henry nodded with satisfaction.
"Looks like Hydra's efforts weren't entirely wasted. At least the Super Serum works incredibly well. Now to see if there are side effects."
He approached the strength testing area, where Tony had a limited-edition Bugatti Veyron.
"You'll do." Henry inhaled deeply, grabbed the car's hood, and lifted with a sudden heave.
The nearly two-ton supercar soared overhead as easily as lifting a foam model.