𝙷𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚒𝚛𝚘𝚗

Ch.8

📍Avengers Compound
Tony Stark (1st Person POV)
12:00pm

Everyone's been asleep in the compound for a while now. If not asleep, quiet in their rooms. Probably worrying their heads off just like me. I've been calling Pepper and setting up ways to get the media off of our asses all night. I was gonna go on a little drinking binge, but figured that that probably isn't the best way to go right now. I'm fresh off of a call with Pepper when I hear Javis report to me.

"Sir. You've got a package."

Right now? It's 12 in the morning.

"From who?"

"Package from: Unknown" Jarvis reports.

"Hm." I walk up from the lab and onto the front porch. It's a tiny box with a folded up note taped to it. I pick up the box, look around the front of the compound a bit, and go back inside. Resetting the alarms of course.

I make it back down to the lab and get to work on opening the package. I don't bother reading the note. Most of the time when obsessed little fan girls send me stuff, they send a long detailed note with it and I'm really only here for the food and money they send. I open this little compact box and there's so. Much. Bubble wrap. What thing so small could be so important? I finally get through it and...it's a hard drive. All my hopes up for some hard drive that's probably a fan confessing their love for me. But having nothing better to do, I put it in my computer.

I click on the file it brings up. It takes a while to load and I almost close it and forget about it. But then I see it.

Her.

Her, tied up, cut, bruised.

‎" سلام احمق Tony stark..." The anonymous voice begins. I'm in shock. He continues talking but I don't hear a word. I can't take my eyes off of her. She's really there.

I immediately rewind the video to listen to what the man in the dark is saying. The voices are obviously distorted and changed. I shift in my seat as he goes on about this technological advancement that I couldn't give less of a shit about. I want him to tell me how to get her back.

But when I got to that part, it was worse than I thought.

He goes on about me and Val's relationship and my arc reactor and his gadget and blah blah blah... But then, this coward threatens to kill her if I don't pay. All of this, for money?

He pulls out a scalpel and goes to cut her, her gut wrenching scream echoes throughout my lab. It's slice after slice after slice into her forearm. Jesus. After not too long, she's out. I panic, but slightly calm down when I see her chest still moving up and down. At least she's alive.

Him or his men or whoever the fuck, stitch her up, and he turns his attention back to me like nothing had just happened.

"Oh, and just know that even if you do pay, the public will know about your little "friendship" with the new avenger. The clock is ticking, Stark." The video blacks out.

I sit there in disbelief for a second, not knowing what the hell to do. Then I remember the note. I quickly shove my computer aside and open the rolled up paper. It's a bank account. Fuck. Yes.

I immediately jump up and run to my holographic desktop.

"Jarvis, I need you to trace where this video was taken right now." I demand as I plug the hard drive in.

"On it sir." There's a pause.

"Calculating...Calculating..."

"Calculate faster!" I snap.

"Unknown."

"Unknown? What do you mean unknown? This is a simple task for you, trace the damn video."

"I'm sorry sir, the origin seems to be bouncing off of multiple satellites from complete opposite sides of the earth."

"Dammit." I whisper.

Okay, Plan B.

"Jarvis who's bank account is this?" I read the bank account that was on the note aloud.

"The Bank account is currently vacant, with no current or previous owners. Would you like me to find the bank it is from?"

"Yes." I say frustrated.

"It is from one, Industrial and Commercial Bank co."

"Where?"

"There are a multitude of Indu-"

"Which one did this specific bank account come from Jarvis!?" I raise my voice.

"I'm sorry sir. But like I said, the satellites-"

"GOD DAMMIT!" I shout as I push all of my papers off of the table and place my head into my hands. I sit like this for a while, trying to think of what I should do.

"I need a drink. Just one." I mumble to myself. I walk over to the fridge, get a beer, and get back on the couch. I can face this tomorrow.