Earth-717: Daredevil Vol 1

Chapter 6: Sex and the City

"Ugh."

Matt coughed as he awoke. Taking a couple seconds to put his thoughts together, he then realized that he was once again capable of making noise with his larynx. He remembered from the post-mortem report that a toxicant that causes acute laryngitis was found in Jennifer Leigh's body. Clearly the effect wore off after a short time.

Matt breathed in and out as he started to take in his surroundings. Lack of natural light, likely meaning that it was not yet morning. Relatively quiet. Body was no longer on concrete, but instead on cushioned surface. A sofa inside of an apartment. A gentle tap against his chest gave Matt a better read, letting him know where the adjacent rooms were.

He recognized the layout. A second later, the door to the bedroom opened, and a familiar person stepped through it.

"Claire."

"Look who's awake," said Claire."Can't wait to hear what you got yourself into this time."

Matt took a few more deep breaths as Claire walked over to the couch. She sat down next to his body, looking down at him with concern. Matt gulped as he got a read on her facial features using his senses. She was frowning.

"How did I get here?" asked Matt.

Claire sighed.

"Stumbled in through my window just after one in the morning. Looked like you had been through hell. Lucky for you, your wounds were nothing I couldn't handle."

Matt shook his head.

"I don't remember . . . ."

"What do you remember?"

"I was tracking someone down. A murderer. Guy with a mask . . . . and a scythe."

Claire raised an eyebrow.

"A scythe? Seriously?"

"Yeah. A gauntlet on his hand with a scythe attached. He was the one who killed that nurse."

"Jennifer?"

"You knew her?"

Claire looked down at the floor and held her hands together.

"Yeah. We weren't close, but sometimes we'd be on the same shift. Talk about this or that. Heard that some of the other nurses were questioned by a cop about her death. You're telling me she was killed by a guy with a mask and a scythe?"

Matt nodded. Claire glanced away for a moment.

"If you told me that six months ago, I would've said you were crazy. But now I know about a man in a mask who tries to help people, so why not one who tries to kill them?"

Matt coughed again. He then cringed as a sharp pain shot up his chest.

"Don't move too much," said Claire. "I don't want you losing more blood than you already have. I thought those cuts might have been knife wounds. Scythe guy did this?"

"Yeah."

"I still think you should let me put some kind of body armour into your costume."

"No. Would slow me down too much."

Claire scoffed.

"So you said last time you came here, barely holding your guts in! Obviously you aren't fast enough. Scythe guy almost tore you apart!"

"It wasn't his speed. If I had the chance, I know I could outfight him. But he came at me with something I wasn't expecting. A gun that fired some kind of gas. Somehow caused my senses to go haywire. I was disoriented, so I couldn't fight back."

"And what would have happened if he had a gun that fired bullets? Would that have disoriented you? I thought you could sense slight movements. How did he surprise you?"

"We spoke. He admitted to what he did, and it was clear he was going to kill again. He got a rise out of me. I was scared. Scared of what might happen if I didn't stop him, and I . . . ."

Matt sighed and blinked.

"He was obviously trying to goad me into making a mistake. It worked. I was careless."

"You're lucky to be alive . . . . and that I'm so willing to help you for some reason."

"You help me because you know I'm doing the right thing."

Claire glared at Matt.

"But are you going to get yourself killed in the process?"

"That's the risk I have to take."

Claire let out another sigh as she looked away from Matt. She then stood up and started to walk away. She made her way towards her bedroom door, but stopped herself from going inside. Placing her right hand against the wall, she then turned around.

"Look . . . ."

Claire stopped when she saw that Matt was already gone. Her living room window was half open. She folded her arms as she looked at her empty apartment.

"You're welcome."

"So you're saying that, as far as you know, Mister Griffin has never made any statements that might lead you to believe he would want to cause Jennifer Leigh bodily harm?"

Larry shook his head. Dakota and Brett were standing in a break room with him. Larry was a co-worker of Jacob's at one of Oscorp's Research and Development facilities, and the latest in a list of employees that the two officers had spoken to.

"No, never," said Larry. "He spoke about her a few times, but it was always positive. You know how it is. When you spend so much time working together, you inevitably learn about who people are involved with."

Dakota and Brett glanced at each other, because they both knew exactly what he meant.

"Far as I ever knew, she was a great girl, and Jacob considered himself a lucky guy. Always seemed like he thought the world of her. Didn't even know they had broken up until you told me."

Brett continued writing on his notepad. Dakota put her hands on her hips.

"And what about your relationship with Mister Griffin?" asked Dakota. "You two are on reasonably good terms?"

Larry scratched his dark blonde hair for a moment.

"Yes, of course. He's good at his job. Wouldn't say we were necessarily very close, but he and I were always friendly to each other. He's really well liked around here. Good guy, known for being reliable. Can't think of anyone in the lab who has any contempt for him."

Dakota exhaled as she looked over at Brett.

"Okay," said Dakota. "Thank you for your assistance."

"You're more than welcome," said Larry.

At that moment, another man walked into the room. Larry nodded at him.

"Donovan."

Donovan returned Larry's nod before looking at the two officers.

"Officers. You get what you need?"

"Yeah, I would say so," said Brett. "We appreciate your cooperation, Mister Zane. Please extend our thanks to the rest of your employees."

"I'll do that, if you can let us all get back to our jobs."

Dakota stopped herself from saying something in response to Donovan's rude tone, knowing that it really wasn't worth it. She and Brett then turned away and left through a nearby hallway. Once they were outside, they walked down the block towards their squad car, which was parked out in front of a mattress store that was situated next to the Oscorp facility.

Dakota and Brett both entered the car, with Brett in the driver's seat.

"That was fun," said Brett.

"Yeah, right," said Dakota. "We got a conga line of folks who all talk about Jacob like he's a goddamn patron saint. Never did anyone wrong, never pissed anyone off. I can't believe this."

Brett shrugged.

"Some killers are charming."

Dakota shook her head.

"No. It still doesn't add up. Yes, the killer must have used some sort of synthesized chemical on her, so of course it makes Jacob look suspect. But there's something else. It seems a little too obvious. Almost like someone knew that Jacob would get blamed for this."

"You really think he's innocent?"

Dakota closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead.

"I think there's something we're missing, but I don't know how to find it."

Brett smiled.

"You'll find it. Or maybe I'll find it, and you'll find some way to take the credit."

Dakota momentarily chuckled. She then looked down and put her hands in her lap. Brett looked over at her with concern.

"Hey."

Dakota blinked, but otherwise didn't respond.

"Dakota? What is it?"

Dakota was silent for a few seconds.

"Something about this case, it's reminding me of, um . . . ."

Dakota paused and looked out the window.

"Ricky?" asked Brett.

"Yeah."

Brett nodded and went silent. Having worked with Dakota for a while, he knew that he did not need to say anything when she thought of her brother. He just needed to give her a few moments to herself. As expected, a minute later, Dakota cleared her throat and looked forward.

"Alright," she said. "Let's go."

Brett turned the keys and started driving down the street. As they left, Donovan watched them with narrowed eyes from the window in his office.

"You sure this is what you want to be doing?"

"Yeah," said Matt. "I'm sure."

Dakota rolled her eyes.

"Alright."

Dakota stretched out her legs and ran in place as Matt took off his sweater. As he did, his shirt was pulled upwards, allowing Dakota to get a view of his chest. While she did get the chance to appreciate his incredibly well toned body, her eyes were drawn towards a cut on his chest that had been stitched back up.

"Ouch," said Dakota. "What happened there?"

Matt tossed his sweater back in his bag before turning towards Dakota.

"Accident. Got a bit careless when I was taking out the garbage, and uh . . . . fell down. It's not as bad as it looks, trust me."

"You really sure this is what you want to be doing? I mean . . . ."

"As I said, it was an accident. It happens, but not often. I wouldn't have suggested this if it wasn't what I wanted to do. I like to keep in shape."

Dakota ran her eyes up and down Matt's body, figuring to herself that he wouldn't notice.

"That, I can tell."

"Besides, if I fall, you'll be there to catch me."

Dakota couldn't help but smile as Matt put on his best smirk.

"That's a hell of a lot of faith you got there," said Dakota.

"Consider it a gesture of trust."

A moment later, Dakota and Matt started jogging together on one of the paths in Central Park. Their pace was just fast enough to be a solid workout without completely exhausting them. While Dakota did not doubt Matt's athleticism, she was somewhat surprised at how Matt kept up with her without any signs of being hindered by his blindness.

He had suggested this idea for their date without any hesitation. She had always enjoyed athletic dates, so it was the perfect suggestion as far as she was concerned. But the way Matt seemed so completely confident as he moved still caught her slightly off guard. If she didn't already know, she never would have guessed that he was blind.

Then again, she reminded herself that she had never really spent a significant amount of time with a blind person before. She realized that it was ignorant of her to assume that he would avoid any particular activities just because of his disability. As she looked forward and became consumed in her thoughts, she only barely noticed Matt do something out of the corner of her eye.

He leaped over a branch that was in his way. Dakota did not say anything, nor did she give any indication that she had seen it happen. But she couldn't help but wonder how he had just accomplished that feat. The branch was completely still, but somehow Matt had timed his jump perfectly. She once again started to lose herself in her thoughts when Matt's voice snapped her back into the moment.

"How you holding up?"

"I work as a cop in Hell's Kitchen," said Dakota. "A run would never wear me out."

"Heh, I wasn't doubting you. Say, as a cop, you've gotta have some interesting stories. Any particular cases stand out for you? I mean, that you can talk about."

Dakota smirked.

"Yeah, got a couple good ones. Was this one time, oh, I dunno, just over two years back. Got a call from this woman who was completely frantic, saying that she thought her husband might need medical attention."

Dakota and Matt slowed down their pace somewhat as she told her story.

"I get there, and she's outside with her two kids. Boy and a girl. Looked really similar, so I thought they might be twins. Anyway, she said that the bedroom door was locked, and that no matter how much she yelled his name, he wouldn't come out. She thought maybe he had passed out, had a heart attack, whatever. So I try calling his name, shouting that the police were here. Nothing. So I decide to kick the door down."

"And?"

"I go in there expecting to find a body, but instead, first thing I see is a plain view of this dude's dick. He's sitting right there on the bed, buck ass naked with his laptop. Has these giant headphones on, and he's jackin' it like a madman."

Matt and Dakota laughed.

"He didn't even hear me kick the door down! Wasn't until I waved my hand in front of his face that he knew I was even there. Wife had a fit, obviously. But the dude was real friendly. Didn't even seem embarrassed. Easily one of the most entertaining shifts I've had."

"Well, it's good that you can get some laughs out of your job every once in a while. Imagine it helps offset the rougher days, at least somewhat."

"Yeah. Somewhat."

"How did you file a report on it?"

"Very carefully."

The two shared another laugh. They continued to talk during the rest of their run, allowing both of them to enjoy some lighthearted conversation that they both sorely needed. Afterwards, they ended up going to Dakota's apartment. Dakota wasn't sure why she was bringing Matt back to her place so soon after meeting him, but to her, it just felt right.

Dakota let out a deep breath as she slowly gyrated her pelvis against his. She was on top, and her eyes were closed. She then lowered her neck and kissed him as they finished. She then rolled her naked body off of his and turned to face the ceiling. They both took a couple moments to catch their breath.

"Gonna be honest," she said. "Never thought I'd be screwing a blind guy."

"At some point or another, we all do things we never thought we would do."

Dakota raised an eyebrow and looked at Matt.

"Jesus Christ, you gotta say such profound sounding shit all the time?"

"Hey. Watch your language."

"Excuse me?!"

Matt smirked.

"I'm a Catholic."

Dakota chuckled and punched Matt in the shoulder. Matt laughed along with her.

"You piece of shit," she said.

A second later, Dakota's phone started buzzing. She groaned as she reached out with her arm, not wanting to get off the bed. She grabbed her phone off the nightstand and pressed it against her ear.

"Hello?"

"North," said Brett. "Got something. Something bad."

"What is it?"

"We found another body. And she's also crying blood."