Sins of the Father

Chapter 5: City That Care Forgot

Kate was up in the booth in the Danger Room as K and Logan were at it again with their training down below. She'd gotten bored waiting for Kurt, and Tyler had homework, and Jubilee and Noh had gone off on a date, and there weren't any missions to run right then, according to Scott... So, she was texting back and forth with her old teammates just to catch up on how things were going with them.

There was, of course, the usual brushoff from Tommy when she asked him if he was ever going to take them up on the offer to join the team — I'll get around to it.

And Cassie had finally moved out of her parents' place and had a steady enough job that she was pretty sure she could support herself and maybe start doing a little moonlighting again, to which Kate could only respond, Come here and practice first. Don't want you to go out all rusty and fall on your butt in your public debut.

Sure that's not just an excuse to hang out?

Oh, it's definitely that too.

And in addition to messing with Cassie, Kate was having a particularly good time teasing Billy and Teddy about "Santa Stark." Yeah, he called ahead. K has him trained to do that now.

You mean he doesn't just waltz up like he owns the place?

Nope. He calls ahead AND brings presents. Be jealous.

The response was a picture of Teddy in his natural green with the caption "green with envy" that had Kate cackling.

She took a second to look down at where K was fighting Sabretooth again — she was getting better every time — before her phone buzzed again and she sat back, wondering if it was America finally getting back to her. She was hard to pin down when she was out with the Ultimates — or sometimes out of their reality. There was no telling with her.

But the number on the text message wasn't familiar, and Kate frowned the slightest bit as she opened it up — only to very nearly drop the phone in pure shock.

The text contained a picture of Kurt — unconscious and tied up and wearing a collar — and an unsigned message, though there was no mistaking who it was from: I hope you check your phone often, Hawkeye, because I told you before that you owe me a few days in the Pain Room. I'm starting right now. Up to you how much time I spend with HIM and not you.

It took her a full half a second to remember how to breathe, and she wasn't even looking as she slammed her hand down on the intercom. "Logan!" she gasped out.

He called out his kill code, and both of them looked up at the tone she had taken. "What are we doing?" he called back as he picked K up onto her feet.

"Get up here. Fast. Please," she told him. She had the phone in one hand in such a tight grip that her fingers hurt, and she both couldn't stand to look at it and couldn't make herself look away. "It's — it's Kurt."

Logan took off at a run, with K on his heels, both of them skidding into the control booth before he rushed up to her. "What are we looking at here?"

She wordlessly handed him the phone so he could see for himself. When his eyes narrowed as he read through the threat, she took a breath that caught in her throat and didn't actually help her that much. "I don't even know where he went shopping. I don't know where to start."

"Call her up and find out," Logan told her, handing the phone back to her and watching her carefully.

"But don't cry, and try to stay calm," K added, taking a seat on the other side of Kate.

Kate took a few deep, centering breaths. "Right. Calm. That's what I'm feeling right now," she said through her teeth as she looked at the unfamiliar number. She took a deep breath and pressed the call button, half leaning on Logan and clutching his arm as she waited for the pickup on the other side.