Chapter 12
"What?" Steve questioned, truly not expecting that. "How do you know his mother?"
"I'm sorry, I know I should've told you." She said truthfully. "It's a long story."
"Go ahead then, I got time."
She wanted to stall, maybe even pretend to head back to work. But she couldn't keep lying, not to Steve. Natasha really fucked up this time, the least she could do was tell him the truth. Didn't she at least owe him that much?
"You know Stark Industries, the weapon manufacturer? The founder's son presented last year as an omega. It was right after he finished his master's program at MIT. For months he was in the media showcasing his robots and then he just disappeared. It was like he just fell off the face of the earth." She shuddered at the next part, knowing that tony wouldn't have wanted anyone to know what really happened. "Obadiah Stane, his father's friend raped him. Less than a month later he was living on the streets. I met him a few months after that, he was digging through the trash outside the cafe down the block. Clint saw him and offered him a place to stay, but he couldn't keep the pup. I thought he would've jumped at the chance but he didn't. "
"Why couldn't he keep the baby and stay here?"
"The state only allows us to care for omega. We don't have the space or the resources to take care of children too. And it didn't help matters that he was underage at the time, we couldn't take him until after his birthday passed."
"So what, you just left the kid on the street?" Steve asked, seemingly angry. She didn't like where this was going.
"There are other shelters for underage omegas. I'm sure he was fine, Steve. It's not like I could do anything anyway." She said equally as heated. "I tried, okay. I really did and he showed up in the end. That's all that matters."
"What about the baby?"
"He did what he had to do. The pup was dropped off at the hospital and put in the system."
"It's really just the simple to you, isn't it?" She watched as Steve huffed, not even halfway through and he was already mad. She prayed to whatever God was out there that he wouldn't lose it once he found out what she did.
"He made sure to take care of that pup, even till the end. He loved him and it broke his heart when he had to give him up. I admit I wasn't the best at handling him afterward. He was just so young and hormonal and I was all too brash and forward. I thought he'd just pick himself back up but nothing worked. No amount of stuffies or nesting or even job opportunities were good enough for him. All he wanted was his baby back. I really thought having him babysit would be the turning point for him, but I messed up."
"How?"
"After Tony left your place, he was upset. I pried it out of him with no care, no warning. He told me Peter was his and I refused to listen. It seemed so ridiculous then, that the first pup he'd seen in months would be his. I just couldn't believe it. So I had him sent away. The small stash of milk he had ran out after and he stopped producing as much while he was away. The doctors put him on meds to help but it was making him loopy. He couldn't pump for long and then one day he was gone."
"You brought Peter's Oma to our house and then you sent him away? Do you have any idea what you did to that poor kid, let alone my son?"
Natasha held steady as he fumed at her. It was expected. "I thought I was doing the right thing. What if he had tried to take Peter away from you?"
He shook his head gravely, dismissing the urge to answer her. "Where is he now Natasha?"
Silence met him as she looked away. Of course, she didn't know. It wasn't her problem anymore, he thought. With a look of pure betrayal, he left her standing there. The hurt and pain of the recent news would drive him to do something incredibly foolish. Oh, how he was beginning to realize how naive he had been. The scent alone on that omega could have told him all he needed to know. He had to get him back, and he had to save his pup.
"Mr. Stark your 3 o'clock is here." Howard's assistant alerted him. "Shall I send her in?"
"Uh yes, Anton. Thank you." He huffed out, an air of annoyance scenting the air. He hadn't liked the disruption but he'd been waiting for this appointment all day. "Please come in Ms. Carter, I've been expecting you."
The older woman entered, her bright red lips upturned as she smirked at her dear old friend. "So you have, Howard."
"How have you been?"
"We both know I'm not here for idle chit chat, let's not dally. How is Anthony doing? Did he have the pup?"
He sighed, "Listen, about that..."
"Don't tell me he lost it. Did he?"
"Well no, he had the pup a few months ago. We hadn't been in contact then, which was my fault. He gave him up for adoption and it's been eating him up ever since. He won't tell me what happened but I found him in a mental hospital just a couple of weeks ago. I don't think he was admitted there legally. The meds they had him on were making him sick, supposedly they soothe the symptoms of bond sickness. If anything they were making it worse."
"Goodness," She frowned. "That must be terribly frustrating. I take it you don't have a plan yet, as you've called for my assistance."
"Nope," He admitted. "Peggy, you just got to help me get that pup back."