"I'll have Sherry coordinate the new drug development with Oscorp. I've already settled things with Mr. Norman, so you just need to handle the paperwork."
"Dump the complicated red tape on Oscorp. They have the connections to clear the path for us."
"Put the medical robot project on hold for now. No rush. We'll take it one step at a time."
"That's all. Let me know if anything else comes up."
Luca hung up the phone and tossed it aside. He picked up Aurantius Haro and leaned back lazily in the car seat.
Shamila, who was driving, glanced in the rearview mirror.
"Young Master, was that Miss Raina you were speaking to? How is she working out?"
Shamila asked because Raina was her recommendation. She wasn't an HR expert, so she worried if her pick was up to Luca's standards.
Luca didn't hide anything from her.
"Her ability is impeccable. But her identity and her motives for joining the company... I still haven't figured those out."
Shamila nearly ran a red light.
She quickly corrected the car, her tone turning icy.
"Young Master, are you saying Raina Peterson is a spy sent by someone else?"
If that were true, it was a massive failure on her part. Her voice hardened.
"Do you need me to eliminate her? Or have Wrench arrange an 'accident'?"
Seeing Shamila go full assassin-mode, Luca laughed and waved his hand.
"Focus on driving! Don't be so tense. I said it's possible."
"Young Master, in these matters, it's better to kill the wrong person than—"
"Not necessary. She doesn't have access to core secrets yet, and she's useful. Even if she's a spy, using her saves me a lot of trouble right now."
"Should I investigate her background?"
"No. Let's keep her where she is for now and observe..."
Luca let the topic slide.
He suspected Raina might be Hydra. But instead of purging her and alerting them, it was better to keep her close, feign ignorance, and exploit Hydra's resources through her.
Why not use the enemy to build his empire?
However, Luca might have been overthinking it.
Taking advantage of Hydra wasn't that simple.
As Shamila drove the car back into the Connecticut estate, Luca immediately sensed something wrong.
It was late, but not dead-of-night late.
Green Bull and Longbow were with him, but Shield Mountain (Dunshan) and Thresh should still be awake at the villa.
Yet the house was pitch black. No lights. No movement. Even as two cars pulled into the driveway, no one came out to greet them.
"Young Master, something's wrong!"
Cautious as ever, Shamila stopped the car short of the garage. Her hand went to the Hoi-Poi Capsule box Luca had given her.
From the trailing car, Green Bull and Longbow reported in.
"Young Master, I tried radioing Captain Dunshan. No response!"
"Signal is being jammed!"
Luca, who had been dozing with Haro, snapped awake. His brow furrowed.
"Don't panic."
He tapped the temple of his [Tracking Glasses], switching to thermal mode.
The lenses lit up.
Inside his own home, he saw over twenty heat signatures. Heavily armed soldiers.
They were everywhere. Only the third-floor room where Gina slept was clear (thanks to Baymax guarding it).
In the living room, seven or eight armed men stood guard. Two heat signatures were tied up in the corner—Dunshan and Thresh.
And sitting on the sofa was a single unarmed figure, seemingly waiting.
"Damn it. They actually came to my house? Do they think I'm made of clay?"
"Haro! Remote link to Hakimi! Activate Villa Defense System! Defense Mode A!!"
The Aurantius Haro in his arms flashed red. It connected instantly to the villa's super-AI, its voice changing to the hive-mind monotone.
"Linking to Hakimi. Initiating Defense Mode A!"
"REPORT. REPORT. Detection systems suffered EMP attack. 40% of defensive armaments damaged and offline. External program attempting to breach main server. Main server integrity: 100%."
"Cut the chatter! Deploy whatever works! Open fire on all intruders!"
"Hakimi acknowledges!"
CLACK-CLACK-CLACK.
The sound of mechanical gears shifting echoed throughout the estate.
Hidden panels slid open. Machine gun turrets and laser emitters rose from the flower beds, the walls, the ceilings, and even the innocuous bookshelves inside.
In the basement lab, a dozen mini-Haros piloting "Repair Mechs" grabbed guns and charged up the stairs, chirping "Haro Attack! Haro Attack!"
In an instant, the peaceful luxury villa transformed into a lethal fortress of war.
Inside, the intruders shouted in panic.
BEEP-BEEP-BEEP.
Target locks engaged.
Luca watched the feed on the car's screen. Every intruder had at least two guns pointed at their head.
A few sporadic shots rang out, followed immediately by screams.
Luca kicked the car door open. He threw a capsule.
POOF.
The black-and-white Haro Mech appeared.
Shamila and the others deployed their own gear—Green Bull in his Power Armor sneakers, Longbow with his high-tech bow, Shamila with her dual SMGs.
As the noise inside the villa died down, Luca stepped into his mech, his eyes cold.
"Let's go. I want to see who's blind enough to knock on my door looking for trouble."