8

A/N: This is really unadvised, but I'm still in love with the movie, and my brain hasn't been shipping on anything else lately. This story will be hard and different, but I am intrigued with where it is going in my head. There will be very much a psychological edge to this. I will try to throw out a chapter every 2-6 days. I hope you decide to read.

The Darkest Time

Chapter 1

It was a day similar to all others. Tony was in his workshop lost in his latest project. This one was a particular labor of love for him. Rhody's birthday was coming up in a month, and if he stayed focused, it would be ready by then. Pepper knew about it, of course. He was being secretive, but the little boy in him needed someone with whom to share the excitement, and Pepper was always there for him. Despite her tendency to compensate for his over-exuberant nature, she had really bought into the excitement. She'd even insisted that she have a voice in the exterior design of the tentatively named "War Machine." Tony had pouted, of course. He wanted to control all of it, but she wore him down, ignoring his excuses until he finally gave her a seat at the table.

Pepper told him she was proud of him, and while it carried an condescending air, he knew she got excited whenever he focused on "doing for others". It was all part of the long term Tony Stark as Decent Human Being campaign that she and Rhody had been waging ever since he'd come home from Afghanistan. Pepper, in particular, was very enthusiastic about his efforts to notice how his actions impacted others.

"Jarvis! Tell her to get her tight little posterior down here."

"Miss Potts has not yet arrived for the day, Mr. Stark."

"What the hell time is it?"

"Almost noon, Sir."

"Where is she?"

"I've called her cell twice, and left messages."

Tony put his hands on his hips. "And you are only now telling me about this!"

"Miss Potts has asked me to not alert you every time she does something unexpected. You'll recall two months ago when you pulled her out of her Brazilian bikini waxing. That went very poorly…for both of us. I have agreed to give her a two-hour window before we send out SWAT. I still have 13 minutes before that window is closed."

"You are not supposed to be afraid of anything, especially a woman who spends her whole life teetering on four inch heels, Jarvis."

"Your fear is much deeper than mine, Sir."

"Whatever! I did not approve the window. Find her…though if she is at the bikini waxing place again, we'll stand down until the appointment has been completed. Go!"

Tony shook his head. He was often unsure of who his employees actually thought they were working for. She had this way about her, this authority; that was equally intoxicating and annoying.

Thirty minutes later, he had moved onto something else, and was deep in the motherboard of the head-piece when Jarvis alerted him.

"Mr. Stark, we may have a problem."

"What?!"

"I sent Mr. Hogan over to her apartment to confirm that she wasn't there. Her car is still in her parking place. Mr. Hogan knocked repeatedly. He then contacted the manager to open the door. Mr. Hogan reports that her apartment is empty. Her purse is there, and her keys, but she is not."

Tony straightened up. "Where's Happy now?"

"He is waiting to see if, perhaps, she went for a walk or a run."

"She did neither, Jarvis. I got a feeling in my gut. This is the real thing. Contact the police, FBI, Homeland Security, and Shield. And get me a car."

"Mr. Hogan believes this could be a trap. He strongly encourages you to stay in your home. You can coordinate efforts from here."

"Jarvis, I want a vehicle parked outside front door in the next 30 seconds or I'm going to drop a 2 liter bottle of Coke right into your operating system and walk away. I swear it on my father's grave."

"Uh, would you prefer the classic Corvette or the Porsche?"

"30 seconds, you annoying chunk of overpriced hardware!"

…………………………………………………………………………

Things work differently for the rich and famous Tony Stark. A normal citizen would be wrestling with authorities for days, but Tony had the apartment complex swarming with uniforms and suits within an hour of Jarvis' first 911 call. Then they arrived, and soon her apartment was filled with people fighting over jurisdiction. Crime scene investigation took over, and kicked them all out including Tony.

It quickly became apparent that no amount of celebrity could give Tony Stark control over these circumstances. His frustration at its peak, he fled to the beach outside her complex. The only relief came in an Air Force blue uniform striding down the beach toward him.

"Rodey!"

Colonel James Rhodes quickened his step. "Jarvis called. If he wasn't a.i., I'd say he was damn worried."

"Please tell me I'm overlooking something simple. Tell me that tomorrow's headlines read, "Millionaire Playboy Calls Out The Calvary On PA Getting Highlights In Salon."

Rhodey shook his head. "I don't have a clue, Tony. I ran through the possibilities in my head on the way over. I can't figure it. It's been four hours now. There's no precedent for Pepper to be out of touch that long. I don't know what to say."

Tony let out a deep breath. "Okay, so we're waiting for a ransom demand. Jarvis is monitoring everything, and so we wait."

Rhodey pushed sand around with his shoe. "Yeah, I was thinking about that too. I'd be in agreement except kidnappers usually make the phone call before now…Ya' know, um, before the authorities get involved. That's sort of how they work."

Tony walked away. "I've been racking my brain trying to think who's out for revenge. I mean, it could be dozens of people I've tangled with, but Rhodey, they all love the spotlight. I would expect something a lot more public than this."

"Yeah, I was thinking about that too. It's almost if someone decided that this was the darkest way to reach you."

Tony turned and frowned at him. "I don't get it."

Rhodey shrugged. "You're a doer, Tony. Waiting, patience, these are not skills you possess. If you knew who it was, you'd be in the air busting heads until she was recovered. This is a lot more insidious. You are completely powerless. You don't know what to imagine."

Tony put up a hand. "That's enough, Old Friend. This is not the time to bring out your notes from Psych 101."

"Tony—"

"No, I got to think this through, Rhodey. You want to help? Great. I need ideas not psychobabble."

"Then the media is the next step. Her disappearance leads every major news network tonight. Some may have stumbled onto it already, but we need to be proactive."

Tony nodded. "I want to do a press conference."

"With note cards?"

He sighed. "Right, nothing spontaneous. We need to be very careful here."

Rhodey nodded. "FBI has the best intelligence on this sort of thing. I'll go grab someone. We'll start mapping this out."

"It's best if I go home, isn't it?"

"The alternative is getting your suit on, and dropping on every redhead in L.A. County. I mean, I get the impulse, but it's not very productive. "

"Rhodey, you're going to have to keep me grounded, literally and metaphorically."

"It's what I do, Bro."

………………………………………………………………………………….

Tony Stark had done hundreds of press conferences in his lifetime, and he hadn't been nervous at a single one. Tonight, he was terrified. He didn't answer a single question without first glancing at Rhodey and the FBI contingent, but the last question almost made his knees buckle.

"Mr. Stark, are you aware that the circumstances of Ms. Potts' disappearance match identically three disappearances in the last 18 months. Beautiful, accomplished women snatched at their addresses with no sign of struggle. Have you considered that this might not have anything to do with your money or status? Have you considered that this might be an everyday psycho who just happened on the lovely Pepper Potts?"

Tony stared into the sea of people, unable to imagine a response to such a question. Rhodey immediately stepped forward. "Okay Folks, that's enough for tonight. We'll let you know the minute we hear anything. Thank you."

Rhodey led Tony back into his home, and guided him to the living room where scores of people were setting up a command post. Tony pulled away from Rhodey and turned to the FBI team following them. "Is it true?! What happened to others?"

A woman stepped forward and faced him. "I'm Agent Kelly. We have considered that angle, and are pursuing leads from a number of directions."

"Answer the damn question. Have three other women in the area disappeared? Have they been found? What happened to them?"

She nodded. "There have been three confirmed. All disappeared under circumstances similar to Ms. Potts. Only one of the bodies has been recovered."

"He killed them."

"We can only confirm one dead, but she was tortured and then murdered."

Tony turned to Rhodey. "I'll offer money. 50 million to start. 50 million if she is returned safely. Do you think it's enough?"

Agent Kelly interrupted. "Mr. Stark, if it is a sexual predator, there isn't enough money in the world to get him to stop."

Rhodey gripped his arm tightly. "Thank you, Agent Kelly. Mr. Stark and I need to talk." He pulled his friend out onto the balcony. Ocean breezes blew in, and if this were any other night, the hypnotic power of waves rolling in would have calmed them both, but tonight, only fear held any power.

Tony pulled away. "I need a drink. A bottle. Hell, I need a case of scotch. This is killing me. I won't get drunk., Rhodey. I swear. Hell, I just need to maintain."

"The minute you go to the bottle, I will lose you. I know that. A drunken haze is too damn inviting right now. Once you are there, you're not going to want to leave. I can't compete with that."

"Jesus Rhodey, don't you hear me? I'm dying."

Rhodey got close and hissed in his face. "So fuckin' what! What do you think she is going through right now? You cannot compete with whatever she is facing. Plus, she doesn't have a fuckin' choice. If you want to help her, then you have to suffer along with her. You want to give up and climb into a bottle, go ahead, but neither she or I will ever forgive you for it."

"God, I hate you right now."

"If it helps keep you out of the liquor cabinet, then I could give a shit."

Tony turned away, but Rhodey wasn't ready to be ignored. He grabbed his arm. "Listen to me! Forget all that crap about being powerless. I was wrong. You are powerful. You can push this until we have her again. You are rich and brilliant and and famous. Make people care about Pepper. Nobody knows her like you do. You control that. If you fall into a bottle, then that edge is gone. You have to teach the world how special this woman is. It's your best chance of getting her back."

Tony nodded. "You're right."

"I know, Man. I'm right a significant chunk of the time. That's why I'm going to stick with you. You need Colonel Common Sense in your life."

……………………………………………………………………………

Tony opened his eyes and saw Pepper standing over his bed.

"Pepper!" He reached for her, but she backed away. "God, I've been going crazy. Where were you?"

"Hey Boss, do you want me to lay out some clothes?"

Tony sat up. "No, I want to know what happened."

She pulled a silk shirt out of his closet and looked it over. "I like this royal blue on you."

"Pepper, look at me."

She blinked at him, a red lock falling across her check. She smiled and pushed it away. "Yes."

"What happened to you?"

She shook her head. "We really can't have all of the answers all of the time."

Tony stood up and took a step toward her. "Are you okay?"

"I don't think so."

"Please Pepper, tell me something. I'm so scared."

She reached over and stroked his cheek. "Life is never fair."

"I'll do anything. Please!" He tried to hold her, but found nothing to grasp.

Then she was at the door. "Bye Boss."

"No!" He dived for her, but she was gone. "No! No!"

Someone grabbed his shoulder and he looked up. Rhodey was standing over him. "It's okay, Tony. It's just a dream."

"She was here!"

"I wish."

"How many hours?

"You've been asleep for two. She's been missing for almost 36."

…………………………………………………………………………

Chapter 2 on Saturday or Sunday