Stark's Shadow

Chapter 26 - I Hate Learning More Lore

I wake up, and Desta is gone. I get up and get dressed. I think to myself how calm it is for once as I enter the kitchen.

"Olive," I hear Fury say, then look and see him in a dark corner.

"Can I eat my fucking breakfast before you, whatever you do?" I ask making annoyed and distressed hand movements in his general direction as I keep walking.

"It is four in the afternoon, Olive,"

"And?" I ask, turning around, "For one, you're being very unnecessarily dramatic, which is saying a lot; coming from me. And for two, I woke up at one in the morning and finished reading all the files I stole so you could take them. I went to sleep at noon, Nick! Noon!"

Fury says nothing for a moment, "Are you even going to remember anything you read?"

"I was almost finished," I state, "And I've been taking notes on the important things."

"What is the important thing?" Fury asks, curious.

"Me, duh,"

"What about Desta?"

"She's got a right to privacy, and while you and Shield disregard that, I don't. I left her history alone. She can tell me what she wants if she wants to when she is ready,"

There's silence while I make myself something to eat. I offer Fury something, and he turns my offer down. I take that personally and make him some anyway.

I set a plate down, "Eat up, Nick,"

"I said I didn't want any, but thank you,"

"I'm Italian, shut up and eat it," I say annoyed.

He sits down and eats with me. Not a word is said. I swear, we don't hate each other.

"I'm surprised you haven't asked about Desta yet,"

"She's her own person. An adult one. I don't need to babysit her,"

"We found her family," Fury said, but I couldn't quite place what his tone was.

"Oh, lovely, she's visiting them?"

"As you said, she's her own person,"

I sit up and look right into his single eye, "What does that mean, Fury?"

"I don't know where she is, she went missing after I told her,"

"Told her what?" I start to panic, "What did you say? What did you do? If anything happens to you, I will make sure the same happens to you. Find her, now."

He sighs, "I thought you'd respond like that. I was wondering if you might know where she is?"

"Not a clue, but I can look in my room for some kind of note,"

So that's what I did. I turned my room upside down looking. Fortunately, I don't have many personal belongings, so it wasn't hard to search or clean up after.

"Anything?" Fury asks as he walks in.

"No, nothing," I tell him as I finish cleaning up.

"That was fast, maybe I should get you cleaning up after the Avengers instead of having you join them," He says in a tone that could be serious or a joke. I never know with him. He's so fun.

"It's easy between my powers and not owning much,"

He nods. I nod back. It felt like some weird unspoken understanding passed between us, but maybe that was just me.

"Any other ideas?" Fury asks.

"Yes, one idea," I tell him, summoning shadows of everyone in the building, "Find Desta," I command the shadows and they dive under my bed and melt into the darkness.