The Grey Zone (Black Noir / The Boys Fan Fic)

Ch 10 Cat and Mouse

The worst part of working as a Private Investigator was playing the waiting game.

Jess was waiting for The Agency to trace Nathan A Lawson's whereabouts, she was also waiting for the mysterious forum poster to click her phishing link - and until then she couldn't do much more - so she stayed in her apartment waiting for various online deliveries.

Always waiting for the next drama to occur.

Phil was also sick of waiting. He was plagued by the thought of his stalker stealing his Writer's Guild of America Award. The thought of sleeping alone in his home, knowing that the stalker had once again let themselves in made his skin crawl. For the past couple of days, he decided to bounce from working on the set, to attending parties, to staying with the friends he met along the way. Jess kept in contact with him, just in case of emergency, but he was still acting cold with her after the dressing room incident.

She didn't mind his erratic behaviour though. If anything, it made his movements unpredictable for the stalker and that was a bonus. It would only be a problem if he stopped checking in with The Agency with updates of his location. Jess had hoped that the stalker may accidentally expose themselves while trying to keep up with Phil's social life, but as of yet no more gifts had arrived and no more theft attempts had been made.

In the meantime, Jess had kept herself busy by adding to her Homelander theory board. She had learnt little about Vought as a company from this stalker assignment, nonetheless, the small crumbs of information about how the media side of Vought operated had helped to shed some light on how they protect the reputation of the supes.

The unnamed PR exec that previously made Jess and Chrissy sign an NDA agreement had been added to the bottom of the cork theory board. Her nameless face served as a reminder to find out who the direct press handler for Homelander was. Perhaps if she could get to that person, she could use them to expose Homelander in some way. She still wasn't 100% sure how she would take him down, but she knew she could.

It took a few days for The Agency to track down Nathan A Lawson, which was good timing, but it felt like an eternity for Jess. On day three of her waiting game, Reggie finally got in touch. "We searched his personal email, but we can't access his work emails. There's no sign of any foul play towards Mr.Madison, but interestingly he is due to have dinner with Ivetta Miller this evening." He explained.

Ivetta was not a suspect on the list, but she was one of the women who sat around Phil's table at the Vought fundraiser event a few nights ago. She was a regular face at upper New Yorker events and seemed to be somewhat of a wing woman for Phil.

"Can you get me a reservation for two at the same resturant? I'd like to see their dynamic together." Jess requested. It wasn't a red flag, but it was interesting that Ivetta could be friends with both men considering they were apparent rivals. However, it was essential for Jess to keep an open mind, as it of course could have simply been down to the fickle nature of the industry. Most people in New York would try to befriend anyone who could get them their next big gig.

Jess wasn't one to judge, she used people in a similar way for her investigations. This time she saw the dinner reservation as an opportunity to smooth things over with Chrissy. She had received the apology flowers and thanked Jess for them, but Jess still felt slightly guilty for not simply listening to her pleas to not enter the dressing room.

"Hey. I know this is short notice but are you free for dinner tonight after work? I have a reservation at Nobu and my friend bailed on me!" She typed. It would give the two of them time to clear the air and Jess was keen to keep up with everything happening on set in her absence. Chrissy was still keen to prove her use to those within the industry and being seen out with Phil Madison's friend would be a bonus for her; she wasn't going to turn down dinner, especially not dinner at Nobu, a place notorious for celebrity sightings.

Whilst she waited for a reply to the text, she scanned over the forums to see if AnnWantsAHalo had been active at all. Only two people had clicked her phishing link, a poor performance but it was an obvious trick that people were wise to these days. She breathed in deep, trying to figure out how she could definitively discover who was behind the account. Whoever it was had been radio silent over the last couple of days, with no new posts.

In an effort to perk up her mood, she decided to get ready for her evening instead of planning her next move. Nobu was a bouji venue, so she needed to look the part, especially if she wanted to get close to Nathan A Lawson. Before she knew it, 7pm had rolled around and it was time to meet Chrissy at the restaurant. She left the apartment in a relaxed but glamourous ensemble of a balloon sleeve corset top, high waisted jeans and heeled boots. After spritzing herself with a cloud of perfume, she closed the door and all was still in her apartment.

The vapour of her perfume had barely settled before a black shadow appeared at the window. Black Noir.

He had been watching from afar for at least an hour, waiting for her to leave.

This time he wasn't on a rooftop across the street. He was clutching at the window frame, carefully prizing the window open.

As with most New York apartments on this side of the city, the poorly maintained building didn't put security high on the agenda. So unlike Phil Madison who mistakenly left his window open, someone with a little know-how and brute force could easily gain access to Jess' apartment. Of course, they'd have to scale five stories up, so this wasn't a major concern for her. Someone would have to be extremely determined to gain access.

Unfortunately for her, Black Noir was.

He could have simply walked into her apartment, crushing the lock or breaking the door off the hinges, but that was too obvious and he enjoyed the game of cat and mouse that he had created. The last thing he wanted was for her to get spooked and go underground again, after all, he had already waited years to see her face again.

With a sudden push, the window lifted and he slinked inside.

The apartment was perfect for someone who wanted to go unnoticed. He knew that she would be living there under another alias, but as he picked through the strewn plastic bags left behind from online shopping, he found a myriad of names; Jess, Jessica, Jessalyn, Jessamyn.

Aside from clothes and the tech she used for work, she didn't have many belongings. He assumed she had not been in New York for long because of this. There were no framed photos of family and friends, no paper trail of bills, no signs that other people had visited.

He took his time studying the kitchen and living space for the smallest details. However, Jess was two steps ahead. She rarely left a trace wherever she went. Due to her reputation as The White Widow, she became a high-priced target among dark web messaging boards. She moved often, paid in cash, cleaned up after herself and didn't attach herself to sentimental objects.

The rickety floorboards creaked under each of his footsteps. Even the quietest ninja supe would be no match for her poorly maintained apartment flooring.

He hovered over her laptop, sifting through the post-it notes featuring names that he vaguely recognised. The name Nathan A Lawson was underlined on a note stuck to her desk. On the wall, she had pinned up a chat log from a film forum with a user called 'AnnWantsAHalo'. Black Noir laughed a little - without sound - just a sharp breath out through the nose and a shoulder wobble. He had noticed that she had not yet connected the dots with the username.

His intrigue grew. What did the media arm of Vought have to do with Homelander taking out a foreign village?

As he breathed in the last of her lingering perfume, he began to walk towards the bedroom. That's when the Homelander incident theory board caught his eye. It was propped up against the wall, away from the windows, in a short doorway between the living space and the bedroom; a flurry of post-it notes and photos.

He held the cork board up with both arms to take in everything.

It featured Homelander's face all over it, with newspaper clippings and printed cut-outs of anti-Vought blog posts. Black Noir always assumed it would be impossible to meet someone who hated Homelander more than him, but this made him think that Jess came quite close.

What troubled Black Noir the most was the addition of high-up Vought Investors and Executives on the board. For Jess, it wasn't just about Homelander, it was about the entire company too. Whilst she didn't know the full story of what happened in Thailand, she knew it stemmed from Vought's business and she knew that they had helped to cover it up.

He liked the idea of someone sharing his hatred of Homelander, but if she chose to bring the whole of Vought down with him, he would potentially be called to step in.

Black Noir was torn by the implications. How far was she willing to go to find out what happened? Why did she care so much?

In his mind, he had created a fantasy of a woman. The White Widow. Someone who shared a common enemy. Not a supe with an ego like those he worked with, just someone with skill and their own moral code. Knowing that she was getting closer to Vought employees, keeping tabs on high up members and documenting her evidence made him feel uneasy.

But there was part of him that believed this added to the fun.

Being in the apartment and discovering her work gave him the same rush that he experienced when he followed her home a few nights ago. He'd lived by the rules for so many years - granted they were not rules that normal people lived by - but he had been the loyal dog Vought wanted him to be. Now it felt like he was having an affair with an anti-Vought agent.

She just didn't know about it.

Black Noir carefully put the research board back down exactly how it was before. He wanted to find out the connection between Vought media and her theory board, but it wasn't going to present itself right there and then. There was so much he was missing. How she got here, why she was with Madison, how far she'd researched into Vought's activities. Of course, with a little help from Vought researchers, he could simply pop a flash drive onto her laptop and get all of the information he needed - but he couldn't risk Vought finding out about her. They took any threat - big or small - seriously.

He was on his own this time. Completely.

Continuing into her bedroom, he took a deep breath in. Even through his mask he could smell her in the room. It was intoxicating for him. He knew there would be nothing related to the case in her bedroom, but to be in her most personal space was even more exciting for him. It was the closest he had been to her and he was savouring the moment.

He slowly bent down onto his knees. This time he wasn't looking for clues, he wanted a trophy. Pulling open the bottom drawer of the dresser across from her bed, he carefully picked out a lacey pair of her underwear. Of course, he looked down on the other supes for their sexual proclivities, but he saw his actions as far less harmful. For a trained killer, this was as thoughtful as it got.

Beneath the mask he smiled to himself, raising back up on his feet. He wasn't done yet.

He had already watched her get ready for dinner before and had noticed her toss laundry into a basket. There was something in there he wanted. Another pair of lacey underwear - one that she had already worn. The rush he felt from being in her personal space had made him get a little ahead of himself. He wanted that feeling to last, so what better than to take a piece of her with him back to Vought Tower. It would be his little secret.

He rummaged through the basket and picked out the second pair of underwear. Both pairs were carefully stashed into a little pocket on his arm.

Satisfied with his trophy, he went to exit through the window but something caught his eye. One more post-it note on the dresser countertop.

"Black Noir footage?" was scribbled on it.

His game of cat and mouse just got more interesting.