Hello everyone!

Thank you again to all of my awesome readers, I know I've said this before but it really does mean a lot to read reviews and know that someone is getting as much enjoyment out of my story as I'm getting writing it, even for as sad as it can be at times.

I really appreciate the comments so I again wanted to say thank you to Indigene Sky, perplexion08, and skydancer121. You guys are so awesome!

This chapter is a bit longer but I was having a hard time finding a natural breaking point so I figured I would just post it.

Enjoy!

"There's only four of them," Peter whispered as he glanced conspiratorially over at Tony.

Tony winced as he tried to understand what Peter was saying. When he couldn't quite parse it out, he whispered, "You gotta talk louder, Pete. I can't hear you. Ears." He carefully tipped his head from side to side to indicate his problem. His ears had been ringing for the last few days and he could barely hear anything Peter was saying.

Peter couldn't help but hiccup a sob at the answer and he carefully glanced over at his dad to help deal with some of the distance. He spoke a little louder and enunciated, "There are only four of them here. Jeff's the leader, Danny's his number two, and the ones who keep hitting you are Rick and Brad. At least that's what they call themselves." Peter shrugged noncommittally and because he was hoping to get some of his dad's input.

"Tha's good, Pete." Tony answered with a small, exhausted smile but he didn't ask any questions.

Peter's voice wavered as he realized that Tony didn't have the strength to ask anything. In an effort to deal with that realization and his own nerves, Peter just kept talking, "There are a few other storage spaces too. I'm not sure how helpful they'll be but they're there…" Peter trailed off, waiting to see if that caught Tony's attention. When his dad still didn't say anything, Peter just kept going, "I think they might end up being useful for something..." Peter started before Tony cut in.

Tony was having trouble focusing fully on what Peter was saying, he was trying but concentration when your brain is attempting to escape your ears is not really conducive to focused study. It took him a moment to realize what Peter said so he interrupted as he recognized it, "Storage room?"

Peter thought it was a little weird but he was thankful that Tony was at least talking, so he nodded, "Yah, it was kind of hard to tell exactly where it was but it one of the rooms they have cameras in for some reason."

"I bet that's where my suit is." Tony mused almost to himself.

But to himself with a son who has superhuman hearing became just not to the cameras, "What do you mean, where's your suit?" Peter asked quietly, fear peppering his words.

Tony looked over at him, the lack of analysis from Peter worrying him, "You didn't think I was waiting for something, did you?" He asked incredulously, his voice a little sharper than he had intended.

Peter's eyes widened at the his stupid oversight, "To be honest, I hadn't thought about it," Peter answered, embarrassed. Then he felt that familiar feeling of panic slip back down his spine as he hurriedly whispered, "What happened to it?"

It was Tony's turn to look sheepish, "They cut the housing away after they dragged us into that van." Then his expression turned deadly serious, "Trust me, if I had my suit, they'd be dead."

Peter shivered. He hadn't known that and for some reason that added another layer of despair to their situation. But it was more than just that, the honesty and implication in Tony's voice scared him because it was resolved. It was less about what he said and more about the way he said it, Tony only ever got like this when someone he loved was threatened and Peter could not help but worry about how far he would go to protect him. An almost palpable tension settled over the room, so Peter tried to redirect the conversation, "I could get your suit and then we could get out of here. There's only ever three of them up at a time, so I can take them out, grab your nanobot storage, and we can leave, I found…"

But Tony was shaking his head before Peter finished his statement, the action rattling his bruised brain and causing more pain and ringing. Still his voice was somehow clearer, "No, Pete. If there are cameras, there's no way you can get there, find it, and get back before someone finds you. And what happens then, how do you explain your escape?" Tony paused and waited for an answer but when one was not forthcoming, he lowered his voice impossibly quiet again, "They want Spider-Man. If you do that they'll be a step closer to knowing who he is." Tony met Peter's eye, willing him to understand, and then he continued, "They'll hurt you if they find out." Tony spoke in a harsh whisper, willing Peter to understand why he could not let him get them out.

"Mr. Stark," Peter pressed, his voice a little louder, "I'm fast enough, you know I am, I could do it." Peter retorted earnestly.

"No," Tony snapped, fear ringing clearly in his tone, "You're not allowed. We'll wait for the others, they'll find us."

But Peter was not giving up that easily, he was starting to get angry, his voice raising a few octaves as he let his dad know it, "They've had almost a week. We can't keep waiting, you can't keep doing this!" He leaned toward Tony as far as he could and hissed his next response, "He hates you. You're alive 'cause he wants something and no other reason."

"And that's exactly why you're not goin' to do anything. They'll keep me alive until the others find us," he cocked his eyebrow when he saw Peter perk up to protest and pressed forward before he could say anything. "No. Don't say anything, the adult is talking now," he snapped, fear driving his orders. "They're staying away from you. They're focused on me and I can handle it. If there's even a chance they'll find out who you are, you need to not do that thing."

Peter opened his mouth to retort but Tony cut him off with a glared and a hiss, "No, Peter."

But Peter wasn't done, his own terror urging him on, "I'm sick of them hurting you. Not when I can," he felt the tears spring to his eyes as he involuntarily hiccuped, "Not when I can do something about it. Please let me." He begged.

"No. That's it. End of discussion." Tony barked before turning toward the door, ending any conversation.

"That's not it this time," Peter retorted, his voice furious, "Its not the end of the discussion. I'm not a kid anymore, so you can't just say that. I'm here, with you. I'm the one that has to watch this happen so you can't even say that this is just affecting you. I want you out of here. I want you safe."

Tony's own anger flashed passed the pain, as he turned bodily back toward his insolent son. His voice betrayed his frustration but what he said highlighted his fear, "And I'm the one they're focused on, if you do anything like that, they'll notice you. I don't want them paying attention to you. So leave it. I'm not having the conversation. You're my son and until you stop calling me dad, you have to listen to me." It was a weak argument but Tony was having trouble thinking of anything else.

Peter heard the desperation in his dad's voice and snarled at the comment, "Fine," he snapped, "But if this gets worse, I'm not asking next time." He slumped back into his seat with a humph, annoyed at the way the conversation had gone but when Tony didn't say anything else, he assumed they had come to an uneasy agreement.

Tony's chest clenched as he realized there was little he could do to keep Peter from doing exactly what he just said he would do. He wanted these people to stay away from his son and he knew the others would find them, he just had to hold out until the other Avengers got there. FRIDAY would have sent an alert so it was just a matter of time. He tried not to think about why it was taking so long.

Jeff sent Rick back to his room, told him that he would deal with the rest of his shift. He knew he only had about half an hour before Danny showed up. But in all honesty, he just wanted to sit and think.

He was staring unseeing at the screens in front of him when Danny arrived for his shift.

The knock caught his attention but he didn't turn until the door snapped closed behind him. When he finally turned, he caught to look of mild surprise on Danny's face but before he could say anything, the man asked, "Boss? What're you doing here?"

Jeff sighed and filled him in, anger at the situation driving him to his feet as he tried to explain his frustration and anger to his sniper. The story didn't take long to tell but once he was done he was simmering with rage. Fortunately, or unfortunately, Danny was much calmer.

Danny looked his boss up and down for a moment and considered what he had told him, before he said, "Did you really think he was indifferent? I mean, come on, boss, he's a kid and the only person he knows in this situation is Stark. You had to know that he didn't really trust you."

Jeff turned, still seething with indiscriminate rage until the words sank in and his expression fell. Huffing his shoulders into a slump, his response was colored by defeat, "I know." He sighed, "I just felt bad for him. He's just a kid. And we're putting him in a situation he has no business being in and now I can't even trust him enough to give him an out for the worst of it." He flipped the chair from in front of the monitors around and slipped into it, running his hands agitatedly through his hair.

Danny looked hard at the man in front of him but didn't have much to offer in way of advice. Instead, he glanced behind him and grabbed ahold of one of the extra chairs in the room. He dragged it over backward and sat down in front of Jeff, dropping his head onto his folded hands on the back of the chair. Still, he didn't say anything.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, the only sound was the muffled voices of their two prisoners from the headphones on the console but the volume was too low to make out what they were saying. Instead, Jeff looked hard at Danny, "Why is this taking so long? Why the hell hasn't he given us what we want?"

Danny glanced up and met Jeff's eyes, "He's got something else he cares about more and he's not going to give you what you want until you figure out what it is. That's it. We thought it would be the pain but obviously giving in would exact a higher price." Danny paused as he took a second to think, "Maybe he's a bit more without that suit than we thought."

Jeff glared at him but didn't say anything.

Danny just shrugged and continued, "It doesn't get you want you want to underestimate him now. You know I'm right so instead of pouting about it, you better start finding another way to go at him." He didn't break the staring contest.

Jeff continued to glare but lost the high ground and after a few moments flicked his eyes to the feet of Danny's chair, sighing heavily, "Yah I know."

Silence dropped over the two again as Jeff glanced back at the screen. Peter and Stark were sitting silently too, in fact Stark looked like he was asleep, so Jeff let his attention drift back to the man in front of him. After a few minutes, he glanced back up at Danny, "Alyssa called today. She said Bella's getting worse." Tears pricked his eyes as he remembered the conversation that had woken him in the middle of his down time. He still heard the choking sadness in his wife's voice as she asked him when he was going to be able to come home. And then he turned back to the screen again and anger twisted through the agony in his mind. Stark was still alive, they were five days in and he didn't have what he needed and Stark was still alive. He looked at Danny, "What do you think I should do?"

Danny thought for a moment, his head still resting nonchalantly on his crossed arms. Once he had a formed suggestion, he lifted his head off his arms and his eyes held that steely look that Jeff had long ago come to associate with the sniper in him. The fortitude in his expression matched his eyes when he answered, "Let him know you have nothing to lose. Threaten his wife. Tell him that if he doesn't give you what you want you'll bring her to him. Tell him you'll go after his driver or someone else he cares about. Ultimately, you need to redirect him because he doesn't care enough about himself to give up the information you need." He paused for just a moment as he let that sink in, then he continued, "And we should think about getting rid of that kid. The longer we keep him here, the more of a liability he is."

"I know," Jeff sighed, "But we can't just let him go." He scrubbed his hands against his face before running them through his hair again.

Danny knew what that meant and vocalized it, "Then he's here because you can't bring yourself to kill him yet."

Jeff looked up at him with a tortured expression, his hair sticking up at odd angles from the continuous fidgeting, but he answered, "Yah. I know I'll need to but I have to deal with the most important stuff first. We'll break Stark, then once we get what we want, we'll deal with the kid." His voice was resigned but assured.

The weight of the implications strangled the conversation into silence.

Eventually, Jeff looked back up, "Danny, you might as well get some sleep, I'll take your shift. I'm not sleeping at all tonight anyway."

"You sure?" Danny asked as he narrowed his eyes at Jeff's reasons.

"Yah I need to come up with a way to deal with him." Jeff answered, even while the real reason for his insomnia hung over the pair. Danny stayed for a bit, watching the screens as their captives slept uncomfortably in the chairs but when Jeff didn't say anything else, he left his boss to stew.

Jeff sat and stared hard at Stark, like he could divine the answers from watching the man sleep uncomfortably slumped in the chair. But the longer he sat, the less control he felt. He was so tired of being a pawn, so tired of everyone else deciding his fate. He took another drag on his beer, trying to calm his nerves or dull his mind he wasn't sure but in either case, it wasn't working. Instead, he slipped closer into the vortex of his thoughts. He was circling insanity. Twisting in the tearing and competing winds without any way to pull him out of it and at every point when he managed to come up for air, Stark was right in front of him. Stark was the reason he had no control. He was the reason he had to do all this. He was making decisions for everyone around him. He was the reason why Jeff was going to be forced to kill a teenager. He was the reason why that same kid was suffering even now. Jeff's thoughts twisted in that direction for the entirety of the shift as that vortex turned from water to blood. He was going to get what he wanted, one way or the other.

The end of his shift came too quickly. It was heralded by Danny's knock before the door opened with a quiet snap. Jeff didn't get out of his seat, just chucked the empty bottle into a pile he had created in the corner of the room. Danny stepped up to his side and leaned on the console, "Boss, you look like shit. Maybe you should try to get some sleep."

"No, I'm gonna deal with Stark now." Jeff snapped as he smoothly stood and headed purposely toward the door. But before he could make it, Danny called out to him, "Go clean your face and change."

Jeff turned on his heel and almost reprimanded him but stopped short when he realized he was right. His bluster softened before he responded, "You're right. Meet me at the room." Then he took off toward the door. It only took about five minutes but Jeff had to admit he felt more in control. The rage and the frustration simmered just under the surface but his expression was schooled. He saw Danny in front of the door and squared his shoulders before they entered.

Peter heard the key grate in the lock but he was so tired he couldn't lift his head. He had tried to sleep but he was still angry from the fight and frustrated at his inability to get them out. Still that didn't stop the events at hand and his heart dropped when the door swung open and he unconsciously turned his eyes up to see Jeff and Danny. He wasn't sure why but Jeff's expression terrified him farther. It was like an unbridled storm contained by a thin layer of control but the lightning was already crackling at the edges. Peter immediately had to squash the terror that almost made him want to scream. The lightning was electrifying the air in the room, suppressing his ability to take in a full breath for fear of it electrocuting him. Peter wanted to scream, to break his handcuffs, to escape but he forced himself to listen to what his dad said, to pretend to be the weak teenager everyone always assumed his was. He sucked in a breath and held it as he waited for the storm to break. Needing to do something, he glanced over at his dad and carefully kicked his chair, "Mr. Stark," he said quietly. The man jerked awake, his eyes blinking owlishly toward Peter who just inclined his head toward their seething company.

Jeff ignored Peter. He could feel the kid's eyes on him but his gaze was fixed solely on the slowly waking Stark, it was time for him to get what he wanted, then he could deal with the teenager. Jeff stalked toward Tony and leaned down into his face, hissing with rage. "Listen to me Stark," he started before he smacked Tony hard, forcing him to clarify his gaze. When he met Jeff's gaze with his own contained rage, Jeff continued, "I want you to understand how serious I am when I tell you this. You're going to give me what I want but because you obviously don't care enough about yourself, I'm going to have to come up with a new way to convince you." He glanced back at Danny before he continued, "So I've been thinking that Ms. Potts might be appropriate motivation. Do you think you would be as quiet if she was in your position?"

Tony unconsciously sat up higher at that, he couldn't hide the fear that the threat caused to flash across his face even though he knew Pepper would be at the Compound. His mind immediately slipped to the protocol they had set up after Thanos. He had even made sure to set everything up so she wouldn't have to leave if anything ever went wrong again. The signal was if Tony ever went missing. And given what happened last time, he had no doubt that's where she would be. Still he wasn't about to tell them that she was in probably the most secured place in the world, so he forced himself to cover the fear with a laugh, "Good luck with that," he scoffed.

"I got you, didn't I?" Jeff asked with a snarl, angry at the provocation and continued arrogance from the man who should be submissive.

Tony smirked the best he could and continued to goad him, "Yah you did, congratulations." His voice dripped with a sarcasm and confidence he didn't really feel but when he thought about the danger Peter was still in, he kept pressing Jeff's buttons, "But you're imagining that you're going to be able to find her after you've already taken me. If that's your plan, I'd rethink it." He saw how angry Jeff was getting and he continued, knowing that if he could piss Jeff off enough, he wouldn't even think about Peter. His voice lowered, unconsciously drawing Jeff closer, and he hissed, "because without a better plan, it'll just be easier to kill me and save yourself a lot of trouble."

Jeff's eyes narrowed as he glowered at Tony, "Your business secrets are worth your and your wife's lives?"

Tony stared back, his gaze hard and unflinching, "Well considering you'll never find her, my life is worth every penny of it."

Jeff snapped, "Fine, then I guess I'll have to get as much enjoyment out of this as I can," he snarled before he quickly reared back and kicked his foot out, catching Tony high in the chest and with enough force for the chair to tip just past the balance point. Without a way to brace himself, his head connected solidly with the concrete floor beneath him, making a muffled thump as it bounced.

Fear finally took over when Jeff attacked him. Tony realized he might have miscalculated and as his head bounced off the concrete floor, he fought to stay awake, fought to avoid giving this prick what he wanted. Then he heard Peter scream and his heart broke. His son was dealing with enough as it was and he was going to watch him beaten, again. Terror joined the heartbreak as he realized this might be the thing that forced Peter to try to escape. He prayed it wouldn't be.

Peter could see Jeff's façade breaking with his dad's continued provoking and with every word, he could found his own apprehension become harder to control. As he watched the exchange, he unconsciously sucked in a deep breath and held it, trying to calm his racing mind. The world was about to break around them and his heart sped up with the thought of the possible consequences. Then Tony told Jeff it would be easier to kill him. The façade shattered and Peter watched the exchange in horror and couldn't help but react when he heard Tony's head connect with the floor, "No, don't!" he yelled. But no one was listening to him. Talking was a reflex though, one he had contained for too long for this to be okay, "Stop! Please!" He begged but Jeff's full attention was on Tony.

Jeff snarled down at the man on the floor, "Don't ask for something you're not sure you want." He brought his foot down into the middle of Tony's chest. A sharp snapping sound echoed through the room as at least one rib gave way under the pressure, followed quickly by a choking cry. Jeff felt control returning even while his anger and frustration drove him closer to lunacy disguised as control. His gaze narrowed on Tony. "You arrogant prick," Jeff spat, kicking Tony hard in the side to a vocal groan, "you think you get to decide what everyone else gets. That you are somehow better than the rest of us. You're going to give me what I want." He stomped down again onto Tony's chest, earning another sharp snap and a breathless scream for his efforts. Jeff couldn't help the smile that crept across his face, this was what the man who was killing his daughter deserved. It was even more gratifying when he heard that damned kid in the background, telling him to stop, that he was going to hurt Stark. He snarled back at Peter, "Of course I am." Then he drove his foot again into Tony chest. He could hear the man wheezing and gasping so he did it again. This time though, Stark choked on his scream, gagged on his spit, and struggled to pull in another breath. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew this was stupid but then he kicked Stark hard in the side and he felt a little better.

The foot to his chest made Tony's heart skip a beat as a rib gave way in his chest, followed closely by a scream he couldn't prevent. Panic joined the swirling emotions in his mind as he saw the rabid look in Jeff's eyes, Peter had been right, this man wanted to kill him and he realized that could be the outcome of this attack. His panic took over and he was looking for an out, his eyes flicking over everything before eventually landing on Peter. He was tipping back in his seat. Tony saw the fear there, heard it as he screamed. And while it should have scared him more, for a moment, Tony felt calm, at least it was him. Then Jeff snarled in his face and Tony was forced to pay attention as pain exploded in his chest again. It was followed by a heavy pressure, like someone was sitting on his chest, keeping him from taking a breath. His overactive mind immediately informed him that his lungs were refusing to expand, he was suffocating. Intense sadness slipped through his mind as his body reacted to the lack of oxygen. He thought of Peter and Pepper before his mind started to float at the edges.

Peter craned back in his seat so he could see his dad struggling the best he could against the blows. But his hands were pinned under him and his eyes were darting even as he twisted his head, trying to escape the pain or find a way out, Peter wasn't sure but the snapping sound of another bone was impossible to miss. "Stop! Please, stop. You're gonna kill him!" Peter felt tears prick his eyes as he pulled at the handcuffs, ignoring the way the metal was starting to weaken from even his controlled strength. At one point Jeff snarled something in his direction but he couldn't comprehend it because Tony start to choke. He was having trouble getting in a breath as Jeff slammed his foot down onto his chest again. Peter felt the metal weakening farther as he slipped closer toward uncontrollable panic, "You're killing him! Stop it! Stop!" Then Jeff switched and slammed the top of his foot into Tony's unprotected side. Peter could hear his dad trying desperately to take in a full breath and it wasn't coming, instead he was making this odd gurgling sound, his body bucking involuntarily against the chair. Peter knew beyond a doubt if that continued, his dad was going to die. He couldn't stop the tears that started to fall and his voice rose a few octaves as he desperately tried to get someone to listen to him, "Look at him, please look at him! Stop!"

Then Peter heard the choking sobs gurgle to a stop and he lost the little control he had left, he screamed, "Stop! He's dying! Stop, please!" But Jeff didn't listen, just slammed his foot into Tony's side again. The cuffs finally gave way against the strain and Peter pulled his hands into his lap a split second before he screamed, "Dad!" and darted from his seat, slamming into Tony's chair and flipping him none-too-gently onto his side. It wasn't pretty but the action was enough to get Tony to cough up the bloody phlegm he was choking on. Peter reached over the chair and carefully held Tony's head so he could cough because after that initial bout, he didn't have the energy to hold his head up. Peter leaned down carefully, making sure his dad was still breathing and the painful pressure on his chest released slightly when Tony sucked in a wavering breath. But Peter didn't realize that all the movement in the room had stopped. He was so focused on whispering to his dad, that he didn't catch Jeff step up behind him, a twisted look of rage complementing his seething gaze.

Jeff's voice was low when he finally spoke, "What did you just say?" He demanded as he grabbed Peter's arm and yanked him away from Tony. He obviously had heard what Peter said but it was still difficult for him to reconcile it.

Peter realized his mistake and immediately snapped his mouth shut, even as tears continued to roll down his cheeks and he gaze flicked back toward his dad. He almost recoiled when Jeff leaned down onto his face and spat, "You little shit."

Then Jeff abruptly let go and stepped away, his hands slipping into his hair. "Goddammit," he cursed as he turned to Danny. Looking his man in the eye, he continued, "goddammit, I knew there was something wrong with this damn kid. Shit." Danny had stepped forward in surprise and, as Jeff spat obscenities indiscriminately, he flicked his hand across his shoulder. Jeff seemed to get the expression or the permission and he spun quickly, slamming his fist into Peter's face.

Peter could handle being attacked and recover pretty quickly but his spider senses had been so on edge for so long and he was watching Tony, so he was not able to brace himself and the fist caught him by surprise. His head snapped painfully as the hit connected and he felt stars explode behind his eyes at the power behind the blow, "Wh-what?"

Then Jeff stepped into his face again, snarling, "I knew you weren't just an intern, but his son?" He glanced back at where Tony was drooling blood onto the floor, "I guess you do kind of look like him…" Then he turned threateningly back to Peter, "You're an ungrateful little bastard, you know that?" He slammed his fist into Peter's face again before roughly pulling his chin back to force him to focus, before he spat, "Things are about to get much worse for you and your father." As he stared hard at Peter his mind spun over the new information and he smiled sickly when he realized it had ultimately been a good idea to keep the kid around. Calling over his shoulder, he ordered, "Uncuff him." As Danny moved to do his boss's bidding, Jeff leaned back into Peter's face, "You're going to have some time to talk to your dad but I would make it count because once I come back in here, I'm going to make your world a living hell."

There you have it!

I knew Jeff had to find out eventually and I was trying to come up with a way that would be through desperation and stress because Tony and Peter are both too smart for it to just happen. I hope what I wrote made sense.

Let me know what you think and as always, I hope you have a wonderful night/day and stay creative!

-Lily