Obadiah's voice was soft, like a feather landing on her heart, yet it carried a bone-deep chill.
"You shouldn't be here, kid."
Pepper's breath caught, her blood seeming to freeze into shards of ice in that single moment. The knuckles of the hand she held behind her back were stark white from the force of her grip, the small flash drive nearly embedding itself into her palm.
Her mind went blank, seeing only the alternating images of the man's gentle smile and his cold, cold eyes.
*Run!*
It was her only thought.
"Obie, I…" Pepper's voice was hoarse and trembling. She tried to force a smile, only to find her facial muscles had gone rigid. "I was just… a little tired, wanted to head home early."
"Is that so?" Obadiah's smile didn't waver as he slowly advanced, his tall frame casting a shadow that completely swallowed her.
The familiar scent of cigar smoke mixed with whiskey now smelled like a fatal poison.
"Because I get the feeling you found something you weren't supposed to see."
He knew.
He knew everything.
Fear was an invisible hand, clamping down hard around Pepper's throat.
The instant Obadiah raised his hand, as if to pat her shoulder again, Pepper's survival instincts took over.
She snatched the cup of scalding coffee from the desk and hurled it straight into Obadiah's face.
"Ah!"
Obadiah instinctively jerked his head to the side. The hot liquid splashed across his expensive suit, and the kind, avuncular mask on his face twisted into a snarl.
Now was her chance!
Pepper spun and ran, her high heels clattering a frantic, panicked rhythm on the polished floor. She didn't dare look back, using every ounce of strength to bolt for the office door.
"Stop! You damn bitch!"
Obadiah's furious roar echoed behind her, the facade completely shattered, leaving only raw, ugly fury.
Pepper's heart hammered against her ribs, threatening to burst from her chest. She yanked open the door and fled into the empty hallway. The red numbers of the elevator gleamed in the distance, so far away they seemed to be on the other side of life and death.
She frantically jabbed the down button, the sound of footsteps growing closer and closer behind her, despair slowly beginning to drown her.
Just then, the doors of the elevator on the other side opened with a *ding*.
Several men in black suits stepped out. The one in the lead had an unremarkable face, but his eyes were exceptionally sharp.
It was Agent Coulson!
Like a drowning woman grasping a lifeline, Pepper didn't hesitate for a second and dashed toward him.
"Mr. Coulson!"
Coulson was clearly surprised to see her there. The agents behind him immediately fanned out, their hands already moving toward their waists.
"Miss Potts? What are you…"
Pepper had no time to explain. She glanced down the hall and saw Obadiah's figure emerge. He straightened his collar, suppressing the rage on his face, but his eyes were fixed on her like a venomous snake.
Pepper had to take the gamble.
She rushed up to Coulson, a professional, slightly apologetic, and urgent smile plastered on her face.
"Sorry, Agent Coulson, Tony called an emergency meeting and asked me to come down and get you. We have to hurry, or we'll be late!"
She spoke in a rapid-fire burst, turning naturally as she talked to guide Coulson toward the elevator, her movements so fluid they seemed rehearsed a thousand times.
Coulson paused for a second, glancing from the grim-faced Obadiah in the distance to the unsettled Pepper, whose eyes held a deep, hidden terror. He nodded thoughtfully.
"Of course. We wouldn't want to keep Mr. Stark waiting."
He made a gesture for her to proceed, and they stepped into the elevator together.
The elevator doors slid slowly shut, cutting off Obadiah's murderous gaze.
Not until the stainless-steel doors had closed completely did Pepper's taut body finally go limp. She slumped against the cold wall of the car, gasping for air.
She had made it.
For now.
…
Malibu Beach House.
Tony Stark was in a good mood. He was humming an AC/DC tune as he walked into the living room with a glass of whiskey. The dance at the party had left him flustered; Pepper's averted gaze and faintly blushing cheeks tickled his heart like a feather.
Maybe he should be a little more direct?
"Jarvis, call Pepper."
No reply.
The living room was unnervingly quiet.
"Jarvis?" Tony frowned and called out again.
Still, only silence.
A sense of foreboding washed over him. He set down his glass and strode toward his workstation, trying to manually reboot the system.
Just then, the floor-to-ceiling glass doors to the living room were slowly pushed open from the outside.
A figure stepped in, silhouetted against the moonlight.
"Thinking about that little secretary of yours so late at night?"
The newcomer's voice was warm, with the teasing tone of an elder.
Tony recognized the man and his tense nerves relaxed, though a flicker of confusion followed.
"Obie? What are you doing here? I think Jarvis is on the fritz."
"He's not malfunctioning, kid," Obadiah Stane said, walking toward him, wearing that familiar, kind smile. "I just gave him a little vacation."
There was a strange undertone to his words.
Tony took a step back, watching him warily. "What did you do to Jarvis?"
"Relax, Tony." Obadiah went to the bar, poured himself a drink, and swirled the amber liquid. "I just wanted to have a little chat with you… with no interruptions."
He turned around, the smile gone from his face, replaced by a coldness that was alien to Tony.
"Your father, Howard, he always said you were the smartest kid I'd ever meet. But he was wrong. Your greatest strength, and your greatest weakness, is that you're too naive."
Tony's heart sank. "What are you trying to say?"
Obadiah raised his glass toward Tony, as if in a toast, or perhaps a judgment.
"I filed an injunction in the boardroom, you know?"
"What?" Tony's pupils contracted sharply.
"To lock you out. To stop you from interfering with any more company decisions," Obadiah said nonchalantly, as if discussing the weather. "I wanted to protect you, to protect this company. But you're too disobedient, Tony. You had to go and build those useless toys and shut down our most profitable weapons division."
His voice suddenly rose, laced with long-suppressed anger and jealousy.
"Do you have any idea what I've given for Stark Industries?! Thirty years! I gave it my youth, my everything! Why should you get to have it all from the moment you were born, while I'm forced to live in your shadow?!"
Tony stared in disbelief at the crazed man before him. This man he had respected like an uncle since childhood now wore a mask of such ugly, unfamiliar greed.
"So… Afghanistan. That was you?" Tony's voice was hoarse, each word forced through his teeth.
"I gave them enough technology to build a missile, but those incompetent fools couldn't even manage to take you out!" Obadiah sneered, a flicker of cruelty in his eyes. "But that's alright. The job they couldn't finish… I'll do it myself."
He pulled a small device from his pocket and aimed it at Tony.
"This is my latest invention. A high-frequency sonic device. It won't kill you, just… paralyze you temporarily. Quite humane, wouldn't you say?"
Without a second thought, Tony spun around and bolted for the workshop in the basement. His suit was there!
But it was too late.
*VMMMM—*
An invisible sonic wave pulsed through the air. Tony felt a sharp, searing pain in his brain as every muscle in his body seized up. He crashed heavily to the floor like a statue.
He could hear, he could see, he could even feel the cold floor beneath him, but his limbs were completely unresponsive. He couldn't even move a finger.
An unprecedented wave of fear and helplessness washed over him.
Obadiah strode forward like a conqueror, looking down on him, his face a mask of vengeful glee.
"Don't struggle, Tony."
He knelt down, leaning close to Tony's ear, and spoke in a low, cruel voice that only they could hear.
"Oh, and I forgot to tell you. What I originally told the Ten Rings was…"
"Kill him, bring back the armor, and Stark Industries will be ours."
*BOOM.*
The words exploded in Tony's mind like a thunderclap.
Of course.
Pepper.
Pepper had discovered the truth! She was in danger!
Rage, regret, worry… a thousand emotions churned in his chest, threatening to tear him apart. He wanted to scream, to fight, but his body was as heavy as lead.
He could only watch, helpless, as Obadiah's triumphant face loomed over him.
"Look at this little thing in your chest. So beautiful." Obadiah's gaze fell upon the Arc Reactor in Tony's chest, his eyes filled with avarice. "This is the future of Stark Industries! With this, I can build countless iron suits!"
He reached out, his cold fingers touching the reactor's casing.
"And now, it's mine."