Lee gave herself a week to recover from her last dance with the heroes before stepping outside her apartment. This was mostly due to her find herself with next to no food. So after spending 20 minutes writing up her list she grabbed her jacket and left.
The last thing she had expected while shopping was to bump into Captain America while looking at apples. "Hello Ms. Almar." He greeted her. Lee did her best not to tense under his gaze. "Captain." She greeted back. "I didn't think I would be seeing you again." She heard him chuckle a little. "Same here. Though it is nice to bump into you." The fact that he hadn't lost the friendly tone he'd had at the bar told Lee she could relax around him. "Like wise. Unlike most men you are nice to be around. I take it you've been well?" At the bar she could get away with not talking much to him because it gave the impression she'd had a bad day. But here she had to talk. "Yes, thank you for asking. How about you?" Other then the damage your teammates did to me? "I've been fine." She answered as she moved away from the fruit and headed for the bread. "Picking up some personal items?" Lee asked him after noticing he was following her. "Yeah. The others are alright with ordering things on line but I prefer doing my own shopping." Lee grabbed a couple loafs before moving on. "How's the spider problem?" For a moment she thought he stumbled but when she looked he was just looking off to the side with a blush dusting his cheeks. "Not as good as we would like it to be." He finally answered. "Oh?" Lee made herself look busy comparing soap but made sure to give him her full attention. "Last night Tony and Clint caught site of her and took it upon themselves to try to catch her. She slipped away after sustaining multiple wounds." Nodding like someone who wasn't paying attention Lee placed the soap she both liked and could afford into her basket. "Did they really think that if the whole team couldn't catch her the two of them could?" She asked as she eyed the hair dye. "I'm not sure. But Tony seems to think he might be able to bring her down next time. At least that's what he hinted at before disappearing into his lab." Steve shrugged as he grabbed some soap for himself. Lee was thankful that she had stopped dead in front of the brushes. "So Ironman believes he's come up with a way to stop Shadowspider from getting away?" She looked over at him while shuffling a few brushes only to see him shrug. "He once thought he built a way for us to visit Thor in Asgard. He is still paying for the damage done to city. I expecting we're going to have to abandon Shadowspider to take him to the hospital." Lee chuckled. Sounds like I might not have much to worry about. But, they have been known to surprise people. Looking at her basket Lee let out a small sigh. "Well I have everything." She turned to him. "It was nice running into you Captain." She went to pass him but he stop her. "Please, call me Steve." She gave him a small smile. "Very well Steve. Have a nice day." She then continued on her way to the check out.
The swing through the city while invisible had been meant to clear her head. It had not been meant as a means to track and follow Captain America. Yet Lee found herself following him after spotting him leaving Stark tower on his bike. I must be out of my skull. Following an Avenger? What's next? Asking for interrogation tips from Black Widow? Stopping on the side of a building Lee watched as Captain parked his bike and slipped into a building. What the? Why's he going to a hospital? Is he looking for any one who came in with my injuries? Lee lunched herself from the wall she was on and swung over to the hospital. She knew it was a long shot but she had to see what he was doing there. So she began checking the windows for signs of him.
Lee had given up. Whatever room he had gone into she couldn't find it. She knew he was still there as she could still see his bike parked each time she checked. Lee had just lined up a shot at the closet building to head home when a laugh made her pause. Crawling over to a window on her right Lee was pleasantly surprised by what she saw. There was Captain America reading to a little boy. The boy's arms were in casts and Lee could see a wheelchair in the corner of the room. The boy was smiling and laughing as Captain read to him, clearly finding the story funny. It was a nice site that warmed Lee's heart a little. Just like what dad did for us when we were sick. Lee suddenly shook her head. We? There was a we? No one said anything about me having siblings. A harsh cough was what drew Lee back to the little boy. Captain was on his feet rubbing the boy's back and holding a cup of water as the boy kept coughing, his face turning redder by the minute. Captain looked helpless as he watched the boy slowly stop coughing and took the water from him. The pain in his eyes at not being able to help made Lee sigh. Here he is making that boy feel special and yet he feels it's not enough. I don't think anyone can do more for that boy. Lee took one final look at the scene before her then took off down the street.
Checking the locks and alarm for the fifth time Lee cast her eyes to the file on her desk. She hadn't left that there nor did anyone have the key or code to her apartment. Yet there it was. A file sat dead centre on her desk. She crossed the room slowly looking for any signs of someone still being there before opening the file. "What?" The first page that greeted her contained details of a drug/human trafficker named Archon Bennett. Looking over the information reviled to her that it wasn't human trafficking he dealt in. It was mutant trafficking. "A girl with my skill set would sell pretty high." Lee realized. She had recalled the name Bennett being mentioned by the man she had questioned in the past. This could be a break. Or a trap. Turning to the next page Lee noticed it was Archon's schedule. The next few pages were pictures of people that worked for Archon as well as some details on them. However the last page caught her attention the most. It was a plain sheet of white paper with a single sentence. "I will collect one day." It was written in black ink. The writing didn't strike her as familiar but she knew if this person could break into her home and leave with out leaving a trace of themselves behind they had to be good. Looking over the schedule Lee circled 10:30 pm two weeks from that day. Archon it seems was getting a new supply of drugs and Lee was going to make sure he and his friends were tied up that night with Archon singing like a bird to Lee.
Panting hard Lee strained her ears for any trace of her pursuer. She hadn't meant to catch the eye of the Hulk but when she spotted him about to pummel some gang wannabes she had acted without thought and threw a trashcan at his head. Just you wait Lee. When this story airs it's going to be Hulk chases villain spider after SHE attacked innocent teens. Stupid kids! You would think they would know better! The wall next to her exploding startled her out of her thoughts but before she could run or even dodge a large green hand wrapped around her and she was pulled out. She struggled against the Hulk but it was in vain. Even with her strength she couldn't hope to compare to the Hulk's. He brought her to his face and growled at her. Ok Lee think! His skin's too thick for my fangs to pierce him. He's not as dumb as the world paints him to be but he doesn't use his head a lot. Hulk tightening his grip on her was enough to force her out of her thoughts. "Easy there big guy!" She snapped before pulling herself together. "Your friends want me alive after all." She finished as he stared at her. That was went it hit her. "Guess this means we're going to the tower then. After all your friends have been trying to catch me for a while now. And here you are, holding me in your hand and I can't get free. You win. Better take me to the tower so I can confess to everything and explain myself." Lee sighed. Please let this work! "No." Her blood ran cold at that. "What? You don't want to show the others how much better you are then them? Stark thinks he's so great in that tin suit of his. And Thor thinks he's amazing because he's a god. But you? They know you're strong but they don't think you're any good on your own. If you take me to them they will have to admit that you're the best." Lee could see him considering this and almost smiled as he jumped in the direction of the tower.
Crashing through the large windows near the top of the tower had not been a part of Lee's plan. But she was willing to take what she could get. Shaking her head to clear it she looked around the room and found the Avengers all there along with a woman she knew to be Stark CEO. Hulk thrusted out his fist with Lee in it, showing them he had her. "Well I'll be damned. He caught her." Stark laughed. "Good job Hulk. Now set her down so we can make sure she can't get away." Hulk eyed the archer before placing Lee on her feet. Black Widow had both her guns locked onto her. "Don't do anything stupid." The archer warned as he grabbed a set of heavy-duty cuffs from Stark. Lee let him walk around her and take hold of her wrist before doing a flip over him and pulled him flush against her, hissing at the other Avengers with her fangs in full view. Moving fast she fastened the cuff over his wrist and placed a hand around his neck, keeping his head in the way of her's. "How far do you really think you'll get Shadowspider?" Captain asked her as he moved carefully to get a better look at her. "Doesn't matter what I think. All that matters is what happens. Don't try it Barton! Wouldn't take much to knock you out and then throw you out the hole the Hulk was nice enough to make for me before I take off. And we both know they will be more inclined to save you before coming after me." She growled as she tightened her hold on him as a warning after noticing him reaching for a small gun on his thigh. "What do you want Shadowspider? What are you after?" Lee turned her head towards Captain, wondering if telling him would really make any difference for her. "What I want? What does it matter to you what I want? None of you would let me have it. None of you truly even care what I want." She was slowly edging towards the hole, keeping out of reach of the Hulk who was giving her the death glare. "I do! Tell me and I'll see about helping you." Offering your enemy help Captain? Hard to know if this is a distraction or if he truly means it. Does not matter. It will all end the same. "No." She then threw Clint at Black Widow before diving out the window, activating her invisibility as she fell.
Rereading the information on Archon Lee sighed before opening her desk drawer and removing a bottle of painkillers. Popping two in her mouth before washing them down with her water bottle she let her free hand drift down to her cracked ribs. The Hulk's grip had done nothing to help with the pain and she now worried if she would be fit enough to go after Archon. She had one week and four days to heal and be ready for him. She didn't trust the information given to her but she was going to use it none the less. And why not? It was the only sure fire lead she had in a long time. Lee might not have known who left it and why. But she wasn't going to waste the gift.
Lee questioned her sanity for the fifth time that day as she stood outside Stark tower looking up at the floor she knew to be home to the Avengers. It'd only been a day since she tricked the Hulk into taking her there and ultimately escaping from them yet there she stood. Almost as if asking to be caught. Street clothes Lee! You are in street clothes. No chance in hell of them recognizing you. She reminded herself. "Ms. Almar?" Turning Lee began wondering if she had some kind of magnet on her that attracted Captain America or something. Because there he was with Dr. Banner clear coming back from getting coffee. "Cap-Steve." She corrected herself as he and Banner walked over to her. "Bruce this is the woman I told you about. Ms. Almar this is Dr. Banner." She shook hands with Banner and gave a friendly smile. "Nice to meet you." Banner greeted her. "Same." Banner then turned to Steve. "I better get inside before Tony comes looking for me." He then said bye to her before heading for the doors. "Not the social type?" She asked. Captain shook his head. "I think he was more doing that to spare us from Tony finding us together. You really don't want him to see the two of us talking." Lee tilted her head in confusion. "Something wrong with that?" She asked. Steve sighed. "Not if you don't mind being dragged up to the top floor and having Tony prying into your personal life." As if I need more Avengers in my life! "Point taken." Lee glanced up at the tower. "Rumour has it that something happened on the top floor the other day. Everything alright?" She turned her eyes to Steve and found him staring at the ground. "We almost had Shadowspider." He sighed. "Almost?" He looked up at her and nodded. "She convinced the Hulk to bring her to us. But as she was being cuffed she managed to take one of us hostage before fleeing. No one got hurt though so that's something to be thankful for." She nodded. "If she can get free so easily while in Stark tower how can you hope to catch her?" She asked. At that he smiled at her. "Because she told me she's looking for something." What?! No I didn't. "How so?" She asked. "I questioned her on what she was after and she told me it didn't matter because we wouldn't let her have it. She's looking for something. Or maybe even someone. We just have to figure out who or what by looking at the people she's gone after in the past." Lee nodded as she realized what he meant. "You're looking for a pattern to show you the answer. It's a good idea." But it won't work. I've gone after everything from drug dealers to petty purse-snatchers. Murders to rapist. There's no really pattern. … … Other then the fact that I'm hunting criminals. But that's not much of a pattern! No way they'll work out why I'm doing it. "I wish you luck with your search then Steve. Good day." Lee then turned and headed down the street. She had ten days to ready herself for Archon and the last thing she needed was to be worrying about her hunts leaving enough of a pattern for the Avengers to work out her plans.
