The Guilty Party
Part 2
Matt opened his eyes, and they hurt. He shut them again, and it hurt. Everything hurt. Even his hair hurt. They’d taken his mask off, and his head felt cold, exposed and vulnerable as he lifted it up. Every muscle whined and twitched in protest, telling him that he was absolutely drained of strength, and he felt sick, too. But he had to get up, had to get away; there was a vibration around him that screamed movement, and vehicle, and ultimate destination: hospital.
“Lemme out,” he slurred, aware now of the seatbelt and the people on either side of him, holding him in place in the back seat of a car. He tried to straighten up, and shifted his legs involuntarily. Agony shot through his left leg, concentrating both in his wound and in his stomach. “I’m gonna throw up.”
“We’re almost there,” the woman told him from his right, but ‘almost’ wasn’t good enough. Matt vomited all down his front, gasping for air and crying with pain at the same time. What had happened to him?
“Please,” he mumbled as soon as he could speak again. “No— ”
The car turned, and though it slowed, it was enough to set Matt retching again. They were driving steeply downhill, he realized, then turning again. Parking garage?
“No hospital,” he tried again. “Please.”
The car stopped. The door on Matt’s left opened and the man next to him released his seatbelt, then turned to release Matt’s.
“No hospital,” Thor told him. ”I have healing stones here that I will gladly use for the mighty warrior who helped me defeat the spawning ulardabr. But first, we must get you upstairs.”
He pulled Matt out of the car and into his arms like a young child, or a bride, and although Matt was close to passing out from the pain, he never quite did. He was vaguely aware that he was whimpering and retching a third time as they went up in an elevator, up and up and up. Then Thor laid him down on something soft – a bed – and asked, “How long have you been blind?”
Matt coughed and swallowed and managed to sputter, “What?”
“How long have you been blind?” Thor repeated patiently.
Unable to deny it now, Matt murmured, “Since I was nine.”
“Then the healing stone will probably not restore your sight. I am sorry.” Thor went away for a moment, then returned. He held something over Matt’s leg, and Matt heard a hard crack, then a softer crumbling sound. Something grainy poured into the wound, burning like salt, then like fire, and Matt screamed.
+++++
Roused from full sleep into a pleasant doze, Matt was aware that a door was quietly opening and there were soft footsteps. Then, only slightly louder, Matt’s burner phone announced itself.
“Foggy. Foggy. Foggy.”
Matt shot into full consciousness, but before he could roll over and start groping for the device, somebody else had pressed the button. After a moment of silence, Foggy’s voice came over just loud enough for Matt to hear.
“Matthew Michael Murdock, you’d better not be bleeding out somewhere, or so help me G-d …”
“Matthew Michael Murdock can’t come to the phone right now.” It was Clint speaking, keeping his voice low and turning away from Matt.
But Matt could still hear Foggy reply, “All right, okay, I understand. Uh … is he safe? Just tell me what you want me to do to get him back, I’ll do it. Anything. Just don’t hurt him.”
“Foggy!” Matt called, sitting up and reaching out, and Clint pressed the phone into his hand.
“Your friend thinks we’ve kidnapped you,” he said, laughter audible in his voice as he sat down on the side of the bed, and Matt pressed the phone to his ear.
“Foggy, I’m all right.”
“Matt!” Foggy cried. “What happened? Where are you?”
“I don’t know,” Matt replied. He asked Clint, who replied, “Avengers Tower.”
“Avengers Tower?” Foggy repeated. “Whoa, Matt, how’d you end up there? Wait a minute, was that one of the Avengers on the phone just now?”
“His name’s Clint,” Matt said, and Foggy actually squealed like a girl. “Clint Barton? Hawkeye? Matt, that is so cool! Who else did you meet? If I come pick you up, will you introduce me? Oh, G-d, I can’t pick you up. We’ve got an appointment with Mrs Zepeda in ten minutes, and I’ve been calling you all morning.”
Matt realized he wasn’t even sure where Avengers Tower was, only that it most definitely was not in Hell’s Kitchen. Foggy probably knew the address. Foggy was a great fan of the Avengers, but Matt had always been more concerned with his law studies than with celebrity superheroes. Maybe he shouldn’t have been. Slowly, he said, “I, uh, I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
Of course, Foggy picked up on his hesitation immediately. “Matt, what happened? Are you hurt?”
“I’m not hurt,” Matt said, realizing it for the first time since waking up. He wasn’t wearing his suit any longer, either. They must have taken it off after Thor had applied the healing stone, whatever that was. He remembered the agony, but now, when he stretched out experimentally, there was no pain. Nothing twinged or ached, not even the injuries he’d had before. “Actually, I’m probably even better than yesterday.”
“Are you sure the Avengers didn’t kidnap you?” Foggy asked. “Because it is not normal for Matt Murdock to stay out until ten the next morning and not be hurt. I thought you were dying in a dumpster somewhere!”
Matt laughed. “Foggy, I’m fine, really. And I’m sorry I’m late; I fell asleep, but I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“You slept at Avengers Tower? No, don’t answer that, I’ve got to go, Mrs Zepeda just came in. I’ll see you when you get here, and you’d better tell me everything.”
“I’ll see you,” Matt said.
He ended the call, and with a smile in his voice, Clint remarked, “Well, so much for Daredevil’s secret identity, Matthew Michael Murdock.”
“Yeah,” Matt agreed. “So now you know everything about me; my middle name, my best friend’s name, I’m blind and I also suffer from motion sickness. Sorry about your car, by the way.”
“It wasn’t my car, and Tony invented a car-cleaning robot to deal with things like that.” Clint’s amusement faded slightly. “But since we’re apologizing, bro, I’m sorry I shot you in the leg. I saw that thing, just long enough to think I could hit it, but then it was gone again and I’d hit you instead.”
“It’s okay,” Matt said, because it was.
“I’m deaf, but I’ve got a Stark implant, I see better from a distance, my best friend is named Lucky, and my middle name’s Francis,” Clint added in a gesture of friendship.
Matt couldn’t help smiling at that, and extended a hand. “Nice to meet you, Clint.”
“Nice to meet you.” They shook, and Clint said, “I brought up some clean clothes for you, just in case you didn’t want to run around as Daredevil in broad daylight. You’re about my size, so they should fit. But if you really want to wear your suit, we had it cleaned, too. You can shower, if you want, and I can get you something to eat before I drive you back.”
The door to the room opened again and somebody else came in. “The warrior is awake?”
Go to Part 3
“Lemme out,” he slurred, aware now of the seatbelt and the people on either side of him, holding him in place in the back seat of a car. He tried to straighten up, and shifted his legs involuntarily. Agony shot through his left leg, concentrating both in his wound and in his stomach. “I’m gonna throw up.”
“We’re almost there,” the woman told him from his right, but ‘almost’ wasn’t good enough. Matt vomited all down his front, gasping for air and crying with pain at the same time. What had happened to him?
“Please,” he mumbled as soon as he could speak again. “No— ”
The car turned, and though it slowed, it was enough to set Matt retching again. They were driving steeply downhill, he realized, then turning again. Parking garage?
“No hospital,” he tried again. “Please.”
The car stopped. The door on Matt’s left opened and the man next to him released his seatbelt, then turned to release Matt’s.
“No hospital,” Thor told him. ”I have healing stones here that I will gladly use for the mighty warrior who helped me defeat the spawning ulardabr. But first, we must get you upstairs.”
He pulled Matt out of the car and into his arms like a young child, or a bride, and although Matt was close to passing out from the pain, he never quite did. He was vaguely aware that he was whimpering and retching a third time as they went up in an elevator, up and up and up. Then Thor laid him down on something soft – a bed – and asked, “How long have you been blind?”
Matt coughed and swallowed and managed to sputter, “What?”
“How long have you been blind?” Thor repeated patiently.
Unable to deny it now, Matt murmured, “Since I was nine.”
“Then the healing stone will probably not restore your sight. I am sorry.” Thor went away for a moment, then returned. He held something over Matt’s leg, and Matt heard a hard crack, then a softer crumbling sound. Something grainy poured into the wound, burning like salt, then like fire, and Matt screamed.
+++++
Roused from full sleep into a pleasant doze, Matt was aware that a door was quietly opening and there were soft footsteps. Then, only slightly louder, Matt’s burner phone announced itself.
“Foggy. Foggy. Foggy.”
Matt shot into full consciousness, but before he could roll over and start groping for the device, somebody else had pressed the button. After a moment of silence, Foggy’s voice came over just loud enough for Matt to hear.
“Matthew Michael Murdock, you’d better not be bleeding out somewhere, or so help me G-d …”
“Matthew Michael Murdock can’t come to the phone right now.” It was Clint speaking, keeping his voice low and turning away from Matt.
But Matt could still hear Foggy reply, “All right, okay, I understand. Uh … is he safe? Just tell me what you want me to do to get him back, I’ll do it. Anything. Just don’t hurt him.”
“Foggy!” Matt called, sitting up and reaching out, and Clint pressed the phone into his hand.
“Your friend thinks we’ve kidnapped you,” he said, laughter audible in his voice as he sat down on the side of the bed, and Matt pressed the phone to his ear.
“Foggy, I’m all right.”
“Matt!” Foggy cried. “What happened? Where are you?”
“I don’t know,” Matt replied. He asked Clint, who replied, “Avengers Tower.”
“Avengers Tower?” Foggy repeated. “Whoa, Matt, how’d you end up there? Wait a minute, was that one of the Avengers on the phone just now?”
“His name’s Clint,” Matt said, and Foggy actually squealed like a girl. “Clint Barton? Hawkeye? Matt, that is so cool! Who else did you meet? If I come pick you up, will you introduce me? Oh, G-d, I can’t pick you up. We’ve got an appointment with Mrs Zepeda in ten minutes, and I’ve been calling you all morning.”
Matt realized he wasn’t even sure where Avengers Tower was, only that it most definitely was not in Hell’s Kitchen. Foggy probably knew the address. Foggy was a great fan of the Avengers, but Matt had always been more concerned with his law studies than with celebrity superheroes. Maybe he shouldn’t have been. Slowly, he said, “I, uh, I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
Of course, Foggy picked up on his hesitation immediately. “Matt, what happened? Are you hurt?”
“I’m not hurt,” Matt said, realizing it for the first time since waking up. He wasn’t wearing his suit any longer, either. They must have taken it off after Thor had applied the healing stone, whatever that was. He remembered the agony, but now, when he stretched out experimentally, there was no pain. Nothing twinged or ached, not even the injuries he’d had before. “Actually, I’m probably even better than yesterday.”
“Are you sure the Avengers didn’t kidnap you?” Foggy asked. “Because it is not normal for Matt Murdock to stay out until ten the next morning and not be hurt. I thought you were dying in a dumpster somewhere!”
Matt laughed. “Foggy, I’m fine, really. And I’m sorry I’m late; I fell asleep, but I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“You slept at Avengers Tower? No, don’t answer that, I’ve got to go, Mrs Zepeda just came in. I’ll see you when you get here, and you’d better tell me everything.”
“I’ll see you,” Matt said.
He ended the call, and with a smile in his voice, Clint remarked, “Well, so much for Daredevil’s secret identity, Matthew Michael Murdock.”
“Yeah,” Matt agreed. “So now you know everything about me; my middle name, my best friend’s name, I’m blind and I also suffer from motion sickness. Sorry about your car, by the way.”
“It wasn’t my car, and Tony invented a car-cleaning robot to deal with things like that.” Clint’s amusement faded slightly. “But since we’re apologizing, bro, I’m sorry I shot you in the leg. I saw that thing, just long enough to think I could hit it, but then it was gone again and I’d hit you instead.”
“It’s okay,” Matt said, because it was.
“I’m deaf, but I’ve got a Stark implant, I see better from a distance, my best friend is named Lucky, and my middle name’s Francis,” Clint added in a gesture of friendship.
Matt couldn’t help smiling at that, and extended a hand. “Nice to meet you, Clint.”
“Nice to meet you.” They shook, and Clint said, “I brought up some clean clothes for you, just in case you didn’t want to run around as Daredevil in broad daylight. You’re about my size, so they should fit. But if you really want to wear your suit, we had it cleaned, too. You can shower, if you want, and I can get you something to eat before I drive you back.”
The door to the room opened again and somebody else came in. “The warrior is awake?”
Go to Part 3