Chapter 35: Lynn: You'd Be Better Off Just Giving Me the Cash
Half an hour later.
"Damn it. Steve and I really thought you were dead."
Natasha stared at Lynn, her emotions a complicated mess.
"Tony, Steve, and I... we were already planning your funeral. We even bought the plot!"
Hearing this, Lynn just handed her and Steve a fresh cup of coffee. "So… can I get that in cash?"
His immediate reply left both Natasha and Steve speechless.
Beside them, Tony Stark, who had been looking Lynn up and down, suddenly grinned and threw up his hands. "Steve, I like this guy."
"Hey, you probably know who I am."
Tony offered his hand to Lynn, sliding off his sunglasses. "I'm throwing a party this weekend. You in?"
"Will there be beautiful women?"
Lynn shook Tony's hand. "If you can get that singer—Taylor—to come, I think I can clear my schedule."
"No problem."
Tony shrugged, picking up a coffee from the table. "She's famous, sure. But come on, I'm Tony Stark. Nobody says no to my parties."
"It's a deal, then."
Lynn raised his hand, and Tony slapped it.
Lynn then glanced at George Stacy, and a thought seemed to strike him.
He got up, pulled a photo from George's desk drawer, grabbed a marker, and handed it to Steve. "Sign this."
Steve Rogers, though a bit confused, did as he was asked and signed the photo.
Lynn took it back and handed it to George. "You're welcome."
George, Steve Rogers's most loyal fan, gave Lynn a look of pure appreciation.
He carefully put the autographed photo away, then cleared his throat. "So, uh... I'd like to know what exactly happened last night."
"Why did Ms. Romanoff say Lynn was... sacrificed?"
At George's question, Natasha shot Lynn an inquiring look.
'You mean you didn't tell him about your Death Sorcerer status?'
Lynn just glanced back, and Natasha immediately understood. She turned to George with a smooth explanation. "It's like this. You know how we borrowed Lynn for that case in the suburbs?"
"Well, it turned out there was some follow-up. SHIELD asked Lynn to help out again last night."
"Things... went sideways, and for a moment, we really thought Lynn was... gone."
George Stacy listened to the explanation and gave a reluctant, "I-guess-I-believe-you" nod.
'The real story probably wasn't that simple. But whatever secrets they were hiding, he knew better than to ask.'
"This is his official loan-out form."
Natasha handed a file to George, smiling. "The case isn't over, so we're hoping to borrow Mr. Hall for a while longer."
"SHIELD has already cleared it with your commissioner."
"Oh?"
George took the file, glanced at it, and passed it to Lynn.
"This is such a pain."
Lynn ignored the form, leaning back in his chair with his hands behind his head. "I'm NYPD, not a SHIELD agent. What help could I possibly be?"
Before he could finish, Natasha cut him off. "Oh, you can be a lot of help, Lynn. And you know, SHIELD is very well-funded."
She held up one finger. "That's your per-diem."
Hearing the implied number, Lynn's eyes instantly lit up.
'My Potion Crafting is at LV3 now. I can make higher-level stuff from Mephisto's grimoire.'
'But the more powerful the potion, the rarer and more expensive the ingredients.'
'His current 'rainy-day' fund was only a couple hundred grand. And that was his lifestyle money.'
So, at the offer of ten thousand dollars a day, Lynn made an instant decision.
'Who cares what the job is.'
'If SHIELD was willing to pay, he'd help them take out Hydra, for crying out loud.'
***
At that same moment, on the 23rd floor of the Triskelion, in Alexander Pierce's office.
"Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff made a big mess in New York last night. Have you found out why?"
At the question from Secretary Pierce, the bald-headed Agent Sitwell replied, "Yes, sir. We've looked into it."
"Last night, Rogers and his team launched an assault on the underground fortress of a Count Korthess."
Sitwell held up a tablet, showing footage of the excavation at the estate.
"Korthess? That vampire?"
Pierce let out a small, contemptuous laugh. "He's trash. SHIELD chased him out of here like a dog. If that useless Council hadn't seen some value in the vampires and protected them…"
"They'd have been driven all the way to Europe by now."
Pierce gently tapped his desk.
Sitwell immediately stood at attention, waiting.
After a few seconds, Pierce continued. "How did Rogers and Romanoff find him? And more importantly, can we be sure they don't know about the... connection... between Korthess and the Council?"
At this, Sitwell shook his head. "We're not clear on that, sir. We just know the Avengers are involved now."
"As for the official report, neither of them has filed one yet. But…"
"But what?"
Pierce snapped at Sitwell's hesitation.
"Rogers, Romanoff, and Tony Stark... they all went to the Manhattan precinct."
"Then find out what they were doing there. And I want you to monitor every move the Avengers make."
Pierce stood, walked to his bar, and poured a glass of red wine. "Now that Korthess is gone, I suspect their next move will be to target the other hidden vampire covens in the country."
"Once you've confirmed their next target, find a way for Steve Rogers to... discover... the relationship between the vampires and the Council."
"Sir?"
Sitwell looked at Pierce, his disbelief clear.
But one cold glance from Pierce, and Sitwell snapped back. "Understood, sir!"
"Then get it done. Have Rumlow assist you. The old men on the Council... they're finished. When Hydra split off to form AIM, the agreement was that we would all develop independently. No interference."
"But now, the Council has been in contact with AIM again. Heh. Interfering with my Project Insight…"
"They've outlived their usefulness."
"Yes, sir."
Sitwell nodded, took a respectful step back, and then turned and left the office.
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