Disruptor

“Auch.” Mark said after his usual thing. After eating breakfast and leaving to work he received a phone call.

“Good morning Morgan.” He greeted his friend with a joyful voice.

“Did you find anything about you-know-what?” Mark felt bad because of his fail attempt at gathering information.

“Not a single thing. What about you?”

“Nothing on my side and I’m stuck at work until evening.” Morgan stated in a discouraged tone. Even though the life of that woman is at stake, he was excited to do something meaningful. His personal quest to bring hope to everyone using his fireworks is temporarily on standby due to the need to check his inventions reliability and safety before they can actually use them.

“Any ideas then?” Mark asks as he was entering the subway.

“Maybe you can investigate the hospital. She could be part of the staff.” Morgan made a valid point. Even if that was assuming a bit too much, it was a good first step in their search.

“I will check it after work. I will call you if I find something.” Morgan bid him good luck and good bye. For the rest of the day he only had three things to think about. One of them was the way he is going to get the information required to find the woman and save her, opposed to what the paper told him to do which was to kill her. The second thing revolves making out his feelings about Chris. If it wasn’t for his self-control and morality, he would have grabbed Chris and dragged him to the bed. Oh no. Now he had a fourth thing to worry about. Thank god for the desk for hiding his lower body.

The third real thing to take care about is about his job. He sometimes thinks about what would happen if his so called powers were revealed. Mark could see Ward Meachum firing him for being a freak. There would be no place for someone like him.

“Time is up. The next day I would like to cover up your defense mechanisms towards women and come up with the first day of actual therapy.” Sarah gets up and accompanies the client to the door. A formal handshake and words of courtesy later their job ended.

“You seem absent Williams. Something on your mind?” Sarah asks as she walks to her desk and starts organizing the documents regarding her latest clients.

“A lot of things but it won’t affect my work Ms. Porter.” Mark replied praying that she doesn’t fire him.

“I can lend an ear if you want.” She offered with interest on his personal dilemmas. He wasn’t keen on sharing how is he dealing with people wanting to kill him and, of course, he won’t tell her about his love problems.

“I appreciate it but you don’t need to worry.” He tried to sound fine and carefree. Sarah narrowed her eyes but decided to let it go. She had been on this job for a long time and knows when to enquire and when to wait patiently. Sarah packed her things and opened the door, waiting for Mark.

“Have a good day Williams.”

“Same Ms. Porter.” They both left their offices and headed to the elevator after saying goodbye to Clarissa. Sarah pushed the 13th floor button which made Mark question her about what’s on that floor.

“It’s only an office floor. I have to deliver some documents and tell them how is the staff faring, mental and psychologically speaking of course.” Mark could sympathize with her. That burocratic crap seems endless and tedious. They remained in silence until they reached the designated floor and they parted ways.

Back in the outside world, Mark looks in his phone how to get to the Metro General Hospital using the subway and after half an hour of riding the metro, he arrived at the hospital. He was overwhelmed by the large crowds composed mainly by patients and medical staff.

Mark had to hug the wall from time to time to avoid getting squeezed by the rushing doctors, nurses and patients and eventually managed to reach the nurse appointed to be a receptionist so he started by talking to her.

“Excuse me.” Mark got her attention and decided to be plain and direct so he grabbed the photo of the woman and showed it to her.

“Do you know this woman? I think she is a nurse here.” The receptionist looked at it but she shook her head.

“I’m sorry mister, I’m fairly new and still getting my bearings. I don’t know everyone in the staff yet.” She excused herself which made Mark quickly tried to put her on ease.

“Don’t worry! Could you please tell me of someone who might know? It’s a bit important.” The receptionist nodded, picking up the phone and dialing numbers.

“Of course. What business do you have with this person?” Oh no. Now what should he say?

“I am… working on a research regarding the differences in stress responses in a specific array of jobs and how these people develop mechanisms to cope up with them.” Mark was truly impressed by how he quickly made up that lie using his knowledge on psychology and researches he actually read. The receptionist seemed to buy it and called someone over the phone. A few minutes later a tall and a bit overweight woman called Shirley Benson, discovered thanks to the ID card in her shirt.

“How can I help you mister…?” She asked with interest and suspicion. Mark wasn’t smart enough to think of a fake name so he proceeded to use his own because… why not?

“Williams, but you can call me Mark.” He went to shake her hand but Shirley didn’t seem friendly enough to accept a handshake so quickly so he pulled back his arm and started explaining. “Do you know who this woman is by any chance?” He showed her the photo and, for a brief moment, the administrator didn’t move a facial muscle but Mark was completely sure that she recognized her thanks to his senses.

“No, sorry but I can’t help you.” Shirley turned around to get back to her office when she froze in place due to Mark’s next question.

“What happened the day of the murder? Was she involved?” At first he found himself a bit scared because she reacted that way but a cocky smile was drawn on his face after her words were spoken.

“Follow me.” Mark waved at the nurse receptionist who was left intrigued by the whole scene. Both of them walked through a bunch of corridors with people going everywhere until they reached the administrator’s office. Windowed walls, photos of family on the desk and some personal stuff on a board. Messy desk filled with unfinished work and three chairs. Two for visitors and one for the administrator herself. She invited Mark to sit down and after both of them were on their respective seats, the interrogation began.

“What business do you have with this hospital? Are you a journalist or something?” The tone she used made Mark feel a bit intimidated.

“As I told the receptionist I’m a psychologist but my job is not important.” Shirley was starting to complain but Mark quickly raised his voice to interrupt her. He had the impression that he should not let her question him unless he allowed her or else she would have the upper hand in this conversation. He needed to get as much information as he could for that woman’s sake.

“The important thing. Is this woman connected to the murder? Is she a victim or a perpetrator?” Mark asked feeling like he was an actual inspector working on a case.

“For your information Claire is unable to kill somebody! She is the victim here and if it wasn’t for Louisa’s sacrifice she would be dead today!” She confessed in anger and indignation. Mark widened his eyes in surprise by the sudden outburst but he was happy inside because she just showed him that Shirley knew everything he needed to save this Claire woman.

“So she is a nurse! What can you tell me about her?” He really needed more in order to try and get her to safety but a name was a really good start.

“Why are you interested in her? Are you trying to finish the job? Because I’m calling the police!” Mark was terribly offended by such an accusation. Even though he was tasked to do so, he would never kill another human being!

“She is in danger Ms. Benson! I’m just here to make sure she is safe!” Mark stated quite annoyed which was ignored by the administrator who was already picking up the phone and dialing the number when, out of the blue, Mark pulled the phone wire until it broke leaving Shirley with it on her ear.

“What the hell do you think you are doing?!” She shouted as she stood up which was answered by Mark in the same manner.

“Listen to me before making stupid decisions and tell me what you know about the incident!” Mark’s voice overshadowed Shirley’s who, for once in her life, felt really intimidated. She stood there in silence for a few seconds considering her options and decided to give him what he wanted so she sat down and started explaining.

“A few months ago there was a group of children who got in here for treatment illegally thanks to Claire. I questioned and threatened with firing her but she could not leave those kids on the verge of dying. Half an hour later everything went to hell. They appeared out of nowhere and kidnapped those children and… Louisa… got murdered saving Claire. It was horrible but we couldn’t do more than saying that a mugger stabbed her in order to keep this place up and running.” Shirley explained the story with a mix of dismay and fear which passed to Mark who was shocked by what she was explaining. It sounded pretty surreal and, if he didn’t experience unbelievable things beforehand, he wouldn’t have trusted her.

“Who were the kids?” Shirley didn’t know about anything on that matter since she wasn’t there personally and wanted to stay away from that nightmare which is why Mark decided to enquire further on Claire.

“She left the hospital after our ‘little disagreement’. Now she lives with her mother in Harlem.” Yes! This was actually going better than expected!

“Do you have an address?” Mark was excited due to the amount of progress he was making until Shirley spoke up.

“I don’t trust you and do not even think that I’m not going to call the police.” She warned Mark hinting that he should bounce fast.

“Yeah… thanks for everything Ms. Belson.” Mark got up and left the office before giving her the chance to charge him with the phone bill. He turned the corner and a few steps later he had a crazy idea. Mark took a look from behind the corner and saw Shirley on her office with an angry face looking at the broken phone only to pick up her own mobile phone afterwards.

Mark quickly grabs his own and uses the camera to zoom on her hands and record it. Luckily for him she turned around and could actually look at her screen. She took her time to look for the name on her agenda and after touching on the phone icon the number was briefly displayed before putting it on her ear.

Mark hides behind the corner to take a look at the video and stops it on that moment with the number. He smiled full of cockiness and quickly left the hospital to call Morgan on the phone. Unfortunately he didn’t answer but he got a message from him saying that his boss is near and couldn’t talk at the moment. In that situation Mark sat on a nearby bench and started to text him everything so far.

Finishing with the messaging, he focused his attention on the map app to know how to get to Harlem. He had plenty of time as he took the subway and sat on one of the many seats inside. Mark copied down the number from the recording and thought of waiting until he reached Harlem to phone her. That plan didn’t cover the boredom during the journey so he decided to use the remaining time in texting Chris. Shaking hands and nervous thinking managed to type a desirable first message.

[Hey Chris! Mark here. How are you doing?] Mark left the phone on his hand, watching the walls pass on the other side of the window until the mobile phone vibrated.

[Mark! I’m getting some ingredients and stuff for the bar. What about you? ] He unconsciously smiled after reading it.

[Doing some errands at the moment. A bit bored in the subway.]

[What errands? Need help?] Mark chuckled like a teenager talking about his crush on high school.

[No worries, it’s not a big deal.] He inserted a smile face as he was curling up on his seat. He found himself in a better mood even though they only exchanged pleasantries. He tried to type something but his mind was not working properly. He found himself erasing the message because it didn't make sense to him. In reality he only needed Chris to keep talking to him. He didn't care about what, but he wanted to say anything to Mark. A few minutes later he sighed and decided to be a rational man and bid him good bye for now. The fact that his station was there had nothing to do with it in one slightly bit.

[Gotta go. Talk to you later!]

[Take care!] Chris inserted a kissing emoji which made him blush as he was leaving the subway to discover that part of the town called Harlem. It was quite shocking how there was only one white person for every twenty or thirty black people. The architecture of the buildings was a testimony of how the different districts of this city develop independently of the others. Traversing through the streets, Mark decided to enjoy a bit of the scenery displaying to him for a while before mustering the courage to call someone in danger on the phone. Leaning on the wall of an establishment, he dialed the number and after a few tones someone answered.

“Hello?” A woman voice could be heard at the other side of the speaker.

“Excuse me, is this Claire?” Mark thought a bit too late that he should have started by introducing himself.

“Who is this?” Just as he thought.

“I’m Mark Williams, I’m contacting you because…“ He actually forgot to think of a way or excuse to warn her of the danger she was in. “Because I have information saying that you’re in danger.” He expressed his lack of tact with a facial expression, judging himself for that blunt statement.

“So you’re the psychologist…” Shirley did warn her then which didn’t put him on a good side. “I don’t know how you got this number but-“

“I know it sounds crazy but there is an organization that wants you dead Ms. Claire!” A bystander passing by forced him to fake a laugh praying that he didn’t call the police or anything along those lines.

“… What is the name of this organization?” Mark gulped. It would seem that he had the best luck ever… or she is mocking him.

“The Hand.” After that name was spoken, several seconds passed before another sound came from the speaker of the phone.

“Where do you want us to meet?” Mark sighed in relief. This was the last sprint before meeting her although Mark didn’t know if he was excited to finally be able to warn her or to actually make it this far.

“I’m on Harlem but… it’s my first time here so I don’t really know…” He confessed.

“Ok, I will send you the location in a minute. I’ll be waiting.” She hung up with that mysterious and enigmatic way. His phone buzzed and the message from Claire popped up with the promised place. Mark walked his way thanks to the neverending knowledge of his mobile phone until he reached his destination. It appeared to be a small restaurant with wooden furniture and a stand on the front door for reservations and to ensure the order of a waiting line. Currently there was nobody occupying the stand so he could enter without difficulties. It was not lunch time yet but there were way few people eating inside. Taking a look around the restaurant rewarded him with no signs of Claire so he approached the counter where the owner of the establishment was cleaning it.

“Excuse me miss.” Mark got her attention even before saying that but his parents raised him to be a polite man.

“Yes? How can I help you?” The kind woman asked. He smiled just for the good vibes he was getting from that person.

“I’m meeting someone here in this restaurant. Her name is Claire but I don’t know if she-“

“Hello stranger.” Mark turned around when Claire’s voice came from behind. A quick look was enough to verify that she is the woman in the photo and, overall a beautiful woman with dark and long hair in a ponytail, a gray sweater and denim trousers. A simple outfit but Mark is a fan of simple.

“H-Hello Ms…?” He was a bit shocked for the sudden introduction and he genuinely didn’t know her last name.

“Temple. So you are Mark.” He nodded. It seemed that Claire was surprised about him and far from being the actual meeting… did she expect someone else?

“Let’s have a seat. Mom, do you mind if we get an interior table?” The owner nodded with a smile, pointing out one of the tables far from the windows. Mark expressed his gratitude, hiding his surprise about the parenthood between the two of them, and heading with her daughter to the designated table. After sitting down Mark looked at Claire’s eyes. Common sense would dictate that if somebody warns you that you are in danger, you should be nervous or at least have a sense of unrest but she was calm and collected.

“I know it's unbelievable bu-“

“I believe you Mark. But please keep it down.” Mark covered his mouth with his hand like a child would do and nodded. Claire was having second thoughts about this whole situation.

“Would you mind telling me what this is about?” He interlaced his hands with doubt on where to start, what to omit or if to speak the whole truth.

“It’s a long story but… I came across some evidence that points towards your possible murder.” Claire listened as he picked up something from his pockets. A photograph, a newspaper and a note. The first thing on which she laid her eyes on was the newspaper. Her pained expression and sadness was a testimony on how much did she cared about Louisa. Mark didn’t push her in looking the photo and the note because he knew she needed time to process the trauma he kindly reminded her about. A few minutes passed before she put the newspaper aside and moved on to the next things. The photo stroke her as surprising and when she read the note, more than fear, it was a feeling of defiance.

“So someone of the Hand wants me dead…” Mark was not sure about revealing that mystery but in the end he thought she deserved to know.

“Actually that assignment is for me to complete…” She raised her head to face Mark with strong emotions towards him.

“Excuse me?” She was not really amused and he could swear that he knew why.

“I’m not going to kill you, but that doesn’t mean I’m the only one with this task. And if I could find you, they can do it easily.” Claire looked elsewhere lost in thought. Mark was right about it and she didn’t sense any danger from him. He is more like a harmless person more than a murderer which raises another question.

“Care to explain about you working with the Hand?” He gulped as she questioned him about it. Mark took a moment to actually tell her the story.

“I’m not working with them. They are forcing me to do these… They almost killed my best friend in front of my eyes…” He stated biting his lips with guilt. Claire widened her eyes at such revelation.

“I-I’m sorry…” Mark sighed rubbing his forehead as Claire apologizes. It was too recent for him not to feel anxious and terrible when the topic comes up.

“No… no need for apologizes. You didn’t know.” Mark grabbed his arm squeezing it in a vain attempt to put aside those thoughts.

“Thanks for telling me Mark. It seems I will have to pack my things again.” She sighed tired, trying to remember where she put the suitcases. Mark, on the other hand, narrowed his eyes in suspicion by that final remark.

“Again?” He asked really piqued. She nodded and started explaining.

“The first time I temporarily moved was when Fisk’s henchmen kidnapped me and the second one was when… Louisa died.” Now Mark felt bad about asking her. That aside, it would seem that Claire had a lot more experience than him in dealing with problems of that category.

“My house is available if you want.” That sounded way different than when he thought it on his head. Maybe a bit too blunt for his taste.

“Oh really? It would save me some trouble looking for a flat.” Mark didn’t believe how that happened but he was not going to question how easily it was. His main thought about the suggestion was to protect her and if she moved in it would prove quite easy to do that.

“I have to pack up my stuff. Do you mind coming with me?” Mark smiled and nodded agreeing with that.

“I will protect you. Don’t worry!” He said excited only to be tuned down by Claire.

“I just need you to be a couple more arms to grab suitcases. And just so you know, I’m capable of defending myself.” That was reassuring for Mark since he was not the skilled fighter he was supposed to be in order to survive this death game.

“Shall we get going?”

“Sure!”

At the corridors of the Prosecutor’s Office, a determined Jennifer was walking with confidence towards her office and, for her surprise, she found Inspector Mendez sleepy, waiting in front of the door.

“Carlos?” The inspector jumped, finally waking up at the sound of the prosecutor.

“Ms. Sanders! I have news!” Jennifer smiled at that message. Carlos stepped aside so she could open the door and when both went in, something made them stop their movements. Looking at her desk there was a suspicious looking box. Jennifer and Carlos looked at each other perplexed and a quick message delivered by body language cleared out that both of them had no knowledge of this.

They started approaching the desk from both sides until they were just next to it. Jennifer, without touching the box, used her ear in order to try to hear something from inside but no sound came out from it.

“Is there a possibility that the delive-“

“Not even once.” Jennifer stated very seriously. Their offices could only be accessed by a one of a kind key that each prosecutor owned and only worked on their own offices. Of course there was a Master Key in possession of the Head Prosecutor but it was really well guarded and it would be nearly impossible to steal it.

“May I open it?” Carlos offered and she nodded not very sure about it, warning him to be careful. With a knife that he grabbed from his pocket, the Inspector cut the lid open and carefully opened it. Nothing happened. Both of them took a quick peek of the interior and found a bunch of photos. Seemingly inoffensive they decided to take the contents and scatter them through the remaining of the desk.

Jennifer was the main character of all the photos in all kind of situations such as buying groceries, hanging out with co-workers, having fun with Morgan and Mark and even investigating crime scenes. Among the pictures there was a single note which, at closer inspection revealed to have a word as message: Cease.

“Is it a threat?” Carlos spoke receiving a silent treatment from the prosecutor. She was trying to remember some of the events the photos captured to no avail. She moves a lot and lives a lot.

“They have followed you… but for how long?” The inspector wondered, scared about the prosecutor’s well-being. Jennifer kept on searching through all the photos like she was looking for something in particular and, much to Carlos’ surprise, she smirked after being unable to find it.

“They don’t seem to be so professionals after all.” She stated with a wry smile which provoked Carlos to be uncomfortable.

“What do you mean?” The prosecutor sat on her chair and took a closer look to the ‘Cease’ note. It was made with newspapers letters alongside magazines’. It was highly improbable to find a clue on the note and the photos but she will ask the forensic team to examine them nonetheless.

“It means that we’re getting closer Inspector. What news did you have for me?” Carlos quickly grabbed a folder he was keeping on his bag and handed it over.

“This is from the laundry establishment next to Leland’s building.” Jennifer opened the folder, showing some photos of the interior of the laundry building. The security camera was disposed in order to watch over the washing machines and the window wall next to them. The first couple of photos didn’t show anything in particular but a couple of them captured a man in robes passing by the window. None of them managed to reveal his face but he was hugging the wall and then disappeared.

“Have you found anything about this man?” She asked with a bit of adrenaline pumping through her veins. This brings them one step closer to the truth of this giant puzzle.

“The recording reveals that this man jumped to the wall and then he doesn’t fall to the ground.” Carlos was not annoyed at the fact that Jennifer was right with her crazy hypothesis but he still could not believe she nailed it.

“He was wearing gloves so we won’t get any fingerprints from the wall but talk to the neighbors. Someone must have seen something for sure.” She suggested as she was putting the photos back inside the box with such calmness that the Inspector could only protest.

“But what about your safety? They have been behind you and have threaten you with those!” Carlos exclaimed as he pointed out at the box with the photos.

“That reminds me. I have to check the security cameras of this building.” Jennifer got up from the chair and looked through the window. Carlos could still not believe her carelessness and carefree attitude.

“Jennifer, you are in danger!” The prosecutor turned around with a serious and scary expression on her face.

“And what do you suggest? That I hide while those people get away with their crimes? Never.” She states shaking her finger. Carlos judged her by her decision and decided something that Jennifer was against.

“Well then, until we put those criminals behind bars, I will be your personal bodyguard.” Jennifer shouted a ‘what?!’ making him add an ending to that sentence. “And it’s not negotiable.” The prosecutor could not believe what she just heard. She was not going to have a bodyguard.

“You wouldn’t come to a female’s bathroom right??!!” Jennifer was out of real and important situations in which having a bodyguard was absurd.

“I would stay by the door, obviously.” Carlos wittily replied using common sense. Jennifer cleared he throat fearing the answer to her next question.

“And are you planning to protect me in my own house too?”

“Indeed. If those people can break into people’s houses and this office so easily then the most effective way to keep you out of harm’s way is to be with you inside.” Jennifer raised an eyebrow for two things. The fact that a policeman is going to stay at her house, presumably for free, and that his last sentence sounded like a sexual innuendo.

“If this situation lasts more than one month, I will make you pay the rent.” She remarked in a serious yet subtle fun joke tone.

“Deal.” They shook hands and went to the door.

“By the way, I intend to go to a charity event this evening. You will be my partner.” She decided without taking his opinion into consideration.

“I wouldn’t have thought you liked attending those kind of events.”

“I know, but I aim to get some more intel about this case.” Jennifer shared with the Inspector as she opened the door for him.

“Do you have a lead?” He enquired with interest leaving the office.

“We’ll find out. Just follow my lead.”

Claire and Mark were on the stairs of her building reaching out to her apartment.

“So what do you need? Clothes, toothbrush..?” He asked to break the silence.

“Yes, and also a prepaid phone. It’s very important that I get it.” Mark, piqued by curiosity, asked her about this important phone.

“Well, after some… problems with the Hand, two friends of mine went outside the country to track them down. Before leaving they gave me the phone if an emergency happened.” Claire explained finally arriving at the door.

“They’re very prudent indeed. That should come in handy… I guess?” She was one second far from unlocking the door when she was stopped by Mark’s hand.

“What happens?”

“There is somebody inside your house.” He made a pause to look at Claire. “Any roommate?” She shook her head which resulted in him gulping. That meant trouble.

“But how do you know?” She whispered. “Can you sense them too?” That took Mark by surprise. Was she able to feel people too?

“Yes… you?”

“No, but a friend of mine can.” When she finished the sentence, the door slightly opened which creeped them a lot.

“This is the plan. I distract them and you get everything. We make our escape and laugh at them when we’re safe.” Claire nods in agreement to everything he said. Mark slowly opens the door and, after signaling her with the hand to advance, he rushes to the origin of the calmness. Reaching the dining room he finds a middle age man sitting on the couch. He has a full beard, a scar crossing his left eye vertically and, from the look of it, he doesn’t seem to be the friendly kind of person.

“I didn’t expect to find another subject so early.” Mark frowns at his statement. That can only mean that he is indeed with the Hand.

“You know that breaking into other people’s apartments is illegal right?” The man gets up showing that he is a taller person than him.

“I do what they command which is why Ms. Temple is not going to leave this place alive.” Claire, who was on her bedroom looking for the phone, froze in place when she heard that remark.

“If the Hand wants her…” He adopted an attack stance. “You will have to go over me.” The man laughed noisily. Mark was unaffected by that, he was merely giving Claire time to get everything.

“You made the wrong choice. Before you die I feel compelled to tell you the name of your murderer.” He made a pause in which he creaked his knuckles.

“Jack.” At that moment Claire appeared behind Mark and his eyes sparkled with the sight of opportunity. Before Jack started moving towards him, Mark pulled out a small ball from one of his pockets.

“Blazing Star!” He throws the ball after pushing a button at Jack, taking the chance to drag Claire away from the apartment a leave. Jack grabbed the ball with his hands and before he could do anything with it, a burst of shining light came out of it, inflicting pain to the man’s eyes rendering him blind.

Both nurse and psychologist were running down the stairs, gasping and breathing loudly as they reached the streets before continuing their escape.

“This way! To my car!” They entered Claire’s car as fast as they could and drove away from that place. A few minutes passed before they could talk without feeling in danger.

“Oh my god… That was creepy as hell!” Claire comments to his copilot as she drives. Mark, surprisingly calm and collected, was lost in thought. There was something weird with that Jack guys. He was too calm for the whole attempted murder and escaping from him was way too easy to be real… Maybe he was overthinking things?

“Mark?” He came back to Earth and enquired Claire about what she wanted.

“What did you throw him?” She asked stopping the car on a red light. Mark pulled another ball and showed it to her.

“It’s a firework. I have a friend that makes them and he uses me as a tester sometimes.”

“Testing them on criminals?” Mark chuckled at the irony of using fireworks to fight crime.

“I don’t think he will complain, after all I saved his life with one of those.” At first the sentence was spoken in a carefree tone but then it was replaced with a subtle, yet noticeable moody demeanor.

“So Claire, what do you know about the Hand?” There was still time to kill before they reached Mark’s house so getting some information was never bad.

“They are an organization who has ties with practically everything in the city. We don’t know what they’re after but Danny and Colleen, the friends I told you about, are tracking them all over the globe.” That sounded really important. Also it seems that she has close ties with those two.

“And how did you get involved in all this mess? And please don’t say it was my fault.” Claire chuckled at the final remark.

“Believe it or not, it had to do with Daredevil.” Mark gasped.

“No… way…” Claire nodded and laughed when he displayed a fan boy facet of his personality.

“Yes. It’s a very long story and we don’t have a lot of time.” She states looking through the car window, pointing at one of the buildings and asking Mark if that was his. After having trouble looking for a free parking lot, they entered his apartment.

“Make yourself at home.” He introduced her to his flat. Claire looked a bit surprised about the size since it was bigger than hers. ”Thank you. I wouldn’t mind staying here if it were me.” Mark blinked a couple of times before Claire felt compelled to explain herself.

“I mean that your house is quiet spacious and welcoming, not that I…” The psychologist tilted his head, lost about the whole situation.

“Nevermind. I think it’s time to call my friends.” She said shaking the phone and heading to the kitchen. Mark nodded and decided to call Morgan to update him with what happened.

“Mark! I was going to call you. Did you find that woman?” Mark confirmed it.

“Claire is at my apartment right now.”

“If I didn’t know you better, I would think that she is in your bed.” Mark rolled his eyes as his friend was laughing at the other end of the phone.

“Ha, ha. Make yourself useful and come here so we can discuss our next move.”

“On my way pal. See you!” After bidding him a safe travel, he hung up and sat on his sofa deep in thought leaving Claire space to do what she wanted. Mark started wondering about that guy, Jack. They managed to escape from him and stay safe but he was a subject too… or at least he knows about their existence which means he had the same assignment as he had.

“They don’t answer the phone.” Claire sighed in a tired tone sitting next to Mark.

“At least they will know that you called them. In the meantime I’m lost… I don’t know what we should do next.” Mark confessed developing a little headache as he was leaning forward.

“We will figure something out, don’t wor-“ Claire was trying to cheer him up when she noticed something when he leaned. “Hold on a sec.” Claire said when she revealed the back of Mark’s neck. The psychologist was not sure what face to make when Claire did that. At first she was unsure of what she was seeing but after a light provided by her cell phone, she discovered what was unsettling her. There were several marks of stings on the back of his neck and considering the swollen of the one which looked most recent…

“Serious question. Are you going under the knife?” Mark raised his eyebrow in surprise and quite perplexed by that random question.

“Erm… I was stabbed… once… in the arm.” He plainly answered weirded out by the situation.

“Ok, let me rephrase it. Did you have head or neck surgery?” He shook his head slightly.

“And one final question and I’m beginning to think I know the answer already. How did you get your powers?” That actually was a good question… also a tricky one. He tried to recall an exact point of his life story in which happened but it evaded him hiding between ordinary and boring days. He thinks that it was after his headaches disappeared but he couldn’t think of anything more.

“I’m not really sure actually… I believe it happened so gradually that the origin is kind of lost in my mind. If that makes any sense.” Mark narrated as she finished examining him and decided to step back.

“I’m saying it because I’ve met a friend whose powers came from some experiments in prison.” He found himself astonished by how much she knew about pretty much everything important.

“Now I understand why you said it was a long story.” Mark stated getting up and heading to the kitchen.

“Do you want anything to drink?” He opened the fridge and started naming the options. “I surprisingly have wine, beer and… Why the hell is there vodka in here?!” Claire laughed at the unexpected yelling, leaving her with no option but to follow him to the kitchen.

“You have a drunk ghost?” She joked as she grabbed the bottle of wine.

“I blame Morgan. Always blame him if something weird happens.” She chuckled after opening one of the cabinets looking for glasses as Mark grabbed a bottle of water for himself.

“You’re the first person I know who doesn’t like a good drink.” Claire states completely perplexed about finding someone with such a dislike towards alcohol.

“And you’ve just discovered why I didn’t make any friends at college.” He smiled with a subtle sadness at the same time Claire was pouring some wine on her glass.

“Someone like you must have made some.” She expressed leaning on the counter next to the fridge.

“Everyone went their own way and who knows what happened to them.”

“And this Morgan?”

“He is a childhood friend who still hasn’t matured. And in his particular case it’s not a bad thing.” Mark explained drinking some water.

“How so?” She asked with curiosity.

“You will see for yourself when he arrives.”

“Welcome to my apartment.” Jennifer announced unlocking the door and letting Carlos inside. He discovered her house is quite spacious and only with the essential to survive, translated into little to no decoration at all.
“Jennifer? Why your apartment feels so… empty?” He wonders while she leaves her bag and goes to her room.

“It’s empty when there isn’t an important case!” She shouted from her room. The inspector had no clue what she meant by that until he stepped on her living room. The whole wall was ‘decorated’ with papers, photographs, strings and arrows. It was a lot to process but the Inspector noticed some facts and names finally figuring out that they were from the case they were investigating.

“Wow…” The inspector wondered if the prosecutor really relaxes and if she is actually a workaholic.

“If you have any ideas regarding the case do share!” Jennifer kept on shouting. She was busy looking at her wardrobe with an annoyed face since there was nothing she liked at first look. She discarded the long, dark dress because of the lack of color even though it’s fancy and looks amazing on her. Carlos, on the other hand, was digesting all the information the prosecutor chaotically organized. From what he could discern, Jennifer had the hypothesis that the mastermind behind the thefts and the break in of Leland’s house is a rival of William Fisk who wanted to study the strategy he used to amass money and power. He agreed to her idea of that person being Japanese with the robed man as proof and also with the backup idea of framing the yakuza, intentionally misleading the investigations. She was really a genius.

“What is your favorite color Carlos?” He put a strange face at the sudden, unrelated question.

“Red. Why?” He asked piqued with curiosity.

“I don’t know which dress to pick for the charity event.” She shared looking at herself in the mirror. Trying a short dark blue dress and immediately discarding it as an option. Carlos didn’t want to enquire more about it and focused on the wall again. There is no doubt why she is regarded as a promising prosecutor who could become head prosecutor one day. For a mind to come up with such ideas, crazy yet perfectly plausible has to be brilliant… or mad.

Minutes passed in silence as both of them were busy on their own matters when Jennifer came out of her bedroom. Carlos stood up to meet her and was astonished and charmed by the prosecutor’s apparel. She is wearing a ruby red dress that reaches the floor with butterflies embed on the dress with yellow strings. Her gold, round earrings and necklace with depictions of stars adorned her face culminating in high black heels.

“You… you look beautiful.” He managed to express making Jennifer put a comically angry face at him.

“Are you saying that without all this I’m ugly?!” She faked being offended. The inspector was lost at words and after a second she contained her laugh unsuccessfully.

“It’s a joke. No need to worry. By the way, what are you going to wear?” She wondered looking at her partner. He made a wry smile and picked up a bag with a suit.

“I always keep it on the trunk of my car. That way I can change faster without going home.” Jennifer could only see the pragmatic view of it and clapped to his foresight.

“So what is the plan?” He asked getting comfortable on her sofa. The prosecutor adjusted her earrings with a wicked smile.

“Well, there will be a certain someone attending the event with important information about this whole mess and I mean to procure it.” She states with a subtle excitement in her tone which the inspector caught as quite surprising.

“And who is this person and why we can’t contact them by ordinary means?” Carlos asked wondering about this mysterious person.

“It’s… someone famours yet humble…” She started explaining in a very enigmatic way. “A person who values justice over anything else. Charming yet mysterios and a master of reading people.” The inspector narrowed his eyes at the same time he raised the eyebrow already suspecting where she was going to.

“But he is an amateur compared to me of course.” He hides his face with the hand regretting taking her seriously. She laughed before speaking again.

“Not really but I don’t think it’s safe to say who it is yet.” She grabbed a black stole in order not to freeze outside.

“What is my role then?”

“Just look for anyone suspicious and for Jeri Hogarth.”

“Why her?”

“I loathe that bitch. Get changed and let’s get going.”

“So the plan is to wait?” Claire asked leaning on the wall with an empty glass on her hand. Mark was near the door expecting Morgan to come home soon.

“We don’t have any leads and I know that those bastards will figure out that you are alive so…” He didn’t feel comfortable finishing that sentence which ended up with an obvious… you know.

“What a way to cheer someone up.” She expressed leaving the glass on the table with a hint of tiredness on her voice. Mark felt guilty for being unable to tell her anything to comfort her, biting his lips. But it was true, the only thing they could do was to wait for their enemy to make a move. Mark doesn’t know the real extent of their domain but he was hoping to find a weak point or something to use against them.

“You sure look different from the others.” Claire suddenly said making Mark turn around weirded about the statement.

“Why do you say that?”

“Because… you seem lost. You look like… an ordinary person in a horrible situation.” Even though that was the absolute truth, he was pissed off by that remark.

“Sorry for bein ‘ordinary’ and not one of your superheroes. When your dear friends come back from their holidays you will get them to save the day.” Mark answered sarcastically and with an anger tone. Somehow he was more annoyed than usual and Claire was a bit surprised by the outburst.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean it as-“ She was apologizing when she took a closer look at Mark’s face, widening her eyes.

“Your eyes… are…” Mark forgot for a brief moment the situation, heading to a nearby wall mirror. Clearly as the sky, there was no doubt that his eyes were in a bright and shining yellow color. A second later the entrance door opened revealing Morgan with an innocent and excited smile.

“Hello!” He shouted closing the door and finally witnessing what is actually happening. He looked horrified at the sight of yellow eyes since the last time he saw them, he was almost murdered in cold blood.

“Is there a bad guy here?” Claire looked weird at the newcomer and Mark smiled at his friend like nothing happened.

“Hey Morgan!” He said ignoring the question, returning his eyes to his original brown color. Claire remained silent for a brief moment in order to ask the one million dollar question.

“What the hell just happened?” Morgan focused on the lady and smiled at her.

“Hello. I’m Morgan, Mark’s best friend. Nice to meet you!” He approached her and offered her a handshake. She replied in the same fashion thinking that he was a carefree, laidback person.

“And answering to your question, I think it’s triggered by strong emotions. He becomes something like the green thing that destroys buildings but maintaining human form.” Mark was impressed and, at the same time, judging how he gets so bored that he comes up with such theories.

“I’m not judging you because that actually makes sense but…”

“But you are judging me.” Mark nodded with honesty leaving Claire to wonder how those two became friends in the first place.

“I’m able to sense emotions for a few weeks now but the strength… I don’t know.” He was thinking about the possibility of being a mutation of his cells or something until Claire spoke up her mind.

“Have you thought about it coming from an experiment?” Mark unconsciously rubbed the back of his neck as Morgan found himself surprised by her suggestion.

“Then those dreams…?” Both looked at the psychologist with curiosity by that enigmatic sentence so he proceeded to explain.

“When I had those terrible headaches I usually dreamt about people in white cotas and… well… they did stuff.” He turned around pained about remembering the horrible nightmares. Claire, on the other hand, was thinking about Luke Cage and how scientist had no moral values.

“Are you saying that they have been experimenting with him inside his dreams?” Claire joined Mark on his task to judge Morgan in silence.

“What I wonder if the Hand is responsible for this too or if there is a third party involved.” Claire shared her worry with them. Somehow this was becoming a big jigsaw puzzle and nobody was sure that some of the pieces belonged to the same puzzle.
“I believe it was them. They don’t stop calling me Subject 5…” Mark said going to the kitchen in order to get more water.

“And why are they targeting you?” Morgan asked Claire. “Is it because you were involved with Wilson Fisk?” She found herself shocked about that piece of information.

“How do you know that?” Morgan briefly explained how they found the assignment behind a newspaper clipping with Fisk’s arrest. She carefully listened to his story until something switched on in her mind. Without explanation she reached for her phone and called a number.

“What’s wrong?” Mark approached them after hearing Morgan.

“If they are looking for me because of Fisk, it’s only a matter of time they go for the one who put him behind bars.” Mark and Morgan looked at each other without knowledge of such person.

“Damn it. He doesn’t pick up the phone!” Claire expressed with tiredness. There were now two friends who didn’t answer her calls.

“I’m sorry but I have to go to his place and warn him.” Claire grabbed her coat and headed to the door but was intercepted by Mark and Morgan, covering the door to freedom.

“I know that you are worried about him but you are their target right now. It’s way too dangerous to go there.” Mark stated very seriously.

“But Ma-“ She was interrupted by Morgan with a surprising and shocking suggestion.

“And if I go with her?” Mark and Claire looked at him, not believing his words.

“I have a bunch of fireworks ready if something happens. I only need to ignite one of my babies and make a ruckus to scare them. And if that doesn’t work I’m sure it will attract the attention of the police.” Claire was a bit skeptical about his plan but it would allow her to go and warn Matt so she decided to go along with it.

“Also, if you forgot, I said I could defend myself. It’s not my first time dealing with the Hand.” Mark was against the whole idea but from what he knew, Claire had a lot more experience in combat than him. Ironically, the person who would protect her more is herself.

“… Ok, but at the first sign of trouble run away and call me. Immediately.” Morgan smiled like the child he was and Claire nodded. Both of them opened the door being followed by the psychologist who wanted to bid them a safe travel.
On the street they were approaching Claire’s car when Mark suddenly stopped them when they were about to enter.

“What’s wrong?” Morgan asked.

“I was thinking that… It will probably be better to user your car, Morgan.” Claire asked him the reason behind that thought.

“If your friend is being targeted, they will surely recognize your car. It’s better to ensure the surprise factor as long as you can.” Claire gave him some credit for his careful thinking, ultimately agreeing to his suggestion.

After bidding them good bye, losing them in the distance, he went straight to Claire’s car praying that his bad feeling was not real. He had a sneaking suspicion that something was really wrong with all this. A closer inspection revealed a small object on the floor of the backseats that emitted a constant light.

“A transmitter or some kind of locator device…” He whispered angrily. He knew that getting away from that man was way too easy but he discarded the uneasy sensation. The good news are that Claire and Morgan were safe for now. The bad news is that Jack will come here to finish the job. With that thought lingering in his mind, he went back to his apartment to prepare himself and the house for the battle. He pushed the furniture to the walls and closed the curtains so nobody can see the interior from the outside.
“I should turn off the lights as well.” He told himself taking his senses into consideration. Knowing where the enemy is without the use of his eyes is a huge advantage he was willing to get and keep for the incoming fight.

Some time passed in which Mark wondered about why he was excited for the battle to come rather than being anxious and scared. He reflected on his fight with the Hand’s henchmen on Hell’s Kitchen. They were three against one and yet he knew he could have defeated them if he put more effort but at the time he was not able to use what he learnt with Bakuto.

“…?” His thoughts vanished when he detected somebody in the vicinity. Someone with strong determination was entering the building and, from where he was going, Mark deduced that they were in the elevator. From inside his apartment he heard the elevator stopping on his floor which was his queue to get in position. The steps ceased at his door and, a few seconds later, his door opened with a loud noise.

The only light coming from the outside corridor revealed a scary silhouette who was marching inside the apartment. They took a few steps before finding themselves covering their face with both hands as a projectile of sorts was reaching it. If it were a bullet they would have died but, fortunately for them, the consequence of the shot was igniting the sleeves of the jacket with a tiny fire.

“Oops! I forgot to say cheese! Mark was hiding behind the wall of his kitchen with the FW launcher on hand. As Jack was revealed by the fire to be the unknown visitor, he extinguished the fire with his gloves. The owner of the house grabbed a frying pan strategically located on the counter of the kitchen and dashed towards his opponent in order to slam his face with it. He didn’t expect that Jack would plainly aimed to punch the frying pan instead of him, resulting in a kitchen tool only useful for… nothing.
The hole that he made on the pan shocked its owner who retaliated with a knee to the gut and smashing his head with what remained of his weapon. Jack recovered quite quickly from his attack and satisfied his revenge by hitting Mark’s chin with an uppercut, launching the psychologist to the middle of the dining room. He was surprised to have survived that after witnessing what happened to his weapon.

As Jack approached him, Mark managed to get up only to, afterwards, start trying to punch his enemy. Contrary to his initial expectations, he was able to land a few hits on him before he grabbed his arm and punched Mark in the face with no option to defend himself. Mark was getting angrier and angrier due to the impotence to actually inflict him with noticeable pain and for receiving those free hits.
In an instant he headbutted his opponent with all the might he could muster and, with Jack backing up with his forehead bleeding, Mark hit a roundhouse kick to his face which would make Chuck Norris proud. Jack landed on the floor and before he could get up, the yellow eyed psychologist kicked him in the stomach and stomped his feet on his right hand, cracking and breaking bones resulting in a cry of pain. Mark smiled at the sound of his agony and rejoiced on it, putting more pressure on his hand before talking.

“You got the same assignment huh? Do you know who send those?” The psycho asked in a very disturbing tone. Jack smiled full of cockiness at his question which was rewarded with the breaking of more bones of his hand. Mark is truly enjoying the experience.

“I won’t ask again.”

“I… I don’t know… if you don’t complete it they will go after your loved ones.” Mark narrowed his eyes for a brief moment only to go back to his pleasure smile.

“I don’t care about your loved ones. If you try to kill Claire I will kill you myself.” He didn’t hold back and completely broke his hand. Jack’s face was distorted in pain as he rolled away from Mark, who was slowly walking towards him. He grabbed him by the neck and slammed him to the nearest wall and started to choke him. His expression was absolutely delightful as he felt his life leaving his body.

“P-Please…”

Something in his head screamed to stop. He immediately let go of him and backed up with his hands trembling. What was he doing? He was actively trying to kill someone??! Mark found himself in a state of shock and Jack had the idea of getting the advantage and reduce him. He tackled him to the floor and viciously punched him with the healthy hand. The knuckle was dyed in red as Mark’s nose bled and bled. His mind was all fuzzy and was not able to defend himself.
Jack stopped and looked at his victim. He should not have spared him.

“Give my regards to Ms. Temple when you meet her in hell.”

The last thing Mark heard was a blunt noise and something falling on the floor before his consciousness faded away…