Chapter Nine: Confrontation

Daredevil took the long way to the bridge. He knew it would be better to arrive early, but he still wanted to take his time. He kept hearing Jack Murdock's voice in his head: My son will never use his fists! The voice wouldn't shake.

Then, ringing clearly in his super hearing, Matt heard footsteps. The owner was trying to keep quiet, but it didn't matter. No one could sneak up on Daredevil. He stood there, listening. The footsteps were all too familiar. Daredevil continued his journey to the bridge, listening all the way.

It was almost midnight when Daredevil arrived at the FDR Bridge. He listened, but didn't hear anyone, except for the person following him. Just then, out of the shadows came Angelica Demon.

"You're early." She said sounding amused. "In a hurry to fight, are we?"

Daredevil smiled. "If it comes to it. I don't suppose there's any other way we could settle this?"

Demon laughed. It was a cold laugh, no warmth at all. "For the Man Without Fear, you're a little cowardly, aren't you?"

"Is that what you call it? I just thought it was caution. Anyway, who said I was afraid?"

"Ah, a mutual friend of ours." Demon responded, gesturing for someone to come out of the shadows. "You really didn't think he was afraid of me, did you Mr. Murdock? I'm insulted." She turned to the man beside her, "I guess you're a better actor than I gave you credit for, my dear Charlie."

Daredevil didn't react. "Yes he was good. I didn't suspect him until this morning. I am impressed; you managed to fool my hyper senses quite well."

"Oh, is that so? Tell me, what gave it away?" Charlie smirked. He didn't sound defenseless and full of trust anymore. His voice was devoid of life and happiness. It cut Daredevil to the bone, seeming to chill him from the inside out. At that moment, Daredevil almost shuddered, for the first time that night he was truly afraid.

"Next time you plan on tricking someone, don't act so innocent. I could tell by your muscles you exercise extensively, yet when you told me about your career, you neglected mentioning any training, training that I knew would have been important in your life. A man of your stature would have decided to stay in a hotel, thinking himself fit enough to fight a woman, but you chose my home, which has few exits and cover. My only option was to assume you picked my home in order to spy on me.

"You gave yourself away, though I didn't notice it until later. When you told me about Angelica, you said that you found an article, but I did some digging of my own this afternoon, and no such thing exists. But you were able to fill in the blanks, weren't you?"

Daredevil inclined his head, "also, the phone call was risky. I heard you talking to Miss. – it is Miss, correct? – Demon this morning. I didn't want to believe it, but I had to when I heard your footsteps following me. That was the clincher, I knew I'd been right."

"Bravo Daredevil! Finally, I believe I've found a foe with some level of intelligence. Leave us Charlie; you've done your part. It is midnight, Daredevil, we have an appointment, I believe."

Demon waved Charlie away, turning to face the Man Without Fear. "Time to play."

At that moment, something strange happened. "You think you can dismiss me so easily, Demon?" Charlie almost shouted. "Who do you think hired you to set the bomb in the first place?! You are both pathetic!"

Angelica's back went ridged. Daredevil could almost smell the anger in her blood; the stench of adrenaline soaked the air. Oh no, this is not good. He thought.

Daredevil was right. Angelica attacked. Daredevil heard her pull out a long knife, heard as the metal sliced through the air, leaving a sharp, whistling noise in its wake.

Charlie dodged the knife with apparent ease. He took out no weapon, just sent a powerful kick toward Angelica's knife. It was perfectly aimed, and the knife went flying.

Demon snarled. Daredevil heard her breath become raspy. She lunged at the knife, only to be blocked by Charlie.

Angelica retaliated by knocking his arm away. Charlie didn't even seem to register the impact. He kicked, but Angelica dodged. The kick didn't land, instead Charlie lost his balance. Demon saw her chance.

Again, she lunged at the knife, and this time she reached it. She swung the knife in a graceful arch. Charlie didn't have time to react. In a moment the knife was sticking out of his abdomen.

Daredevil heard the knife cut into Charlie's flesh. The sound was terrible; it was the sound of death. Daredevil wanted to peel the sound from his ears, smother the smell of blood. He heard as Angelica reached at the knife to pull it from Charlie's body to stab him again. Daredevil's stomach tightened, he couldn't let that happen. It was bad enough that he hadn't been able to stop the fight, hadn't wanted to stop the fight.

Daredevil didn't want to fight; he never did. He still felt the bruises from their last fight. But he knew he had to. He pulled out his billy club and jumped between Angelica and Charlie.

Demon laughed. "You think you can stop me? You don't have the guts to kill, do you?

"No." The word had barely left his lips when Demon attacked.

-DD-

Daredevil blocked a second blow with his billy club, feeling the force of the blow move up his arm. He retaliated with a well-aimed kick to her tibia. The kick should have been enough to knock Demon down, but she managed to keep her balance.

Demon didn't wait for Daredevil; she hit him with a punch to his ribcage. Daredevil barely had time to register the stab of pain that told him he'd broken at least one of his ribs before she hit him in the jaw. This time Daredevil managed to roll with the punch, coming up to knock her down with his billy club.

She lay on the ground, seemingly helpless, but Daredevil wasn't taking any chances. He moved toward her, making sure to approach her head, rather than her legs. Quick as a viper, Angelica Demon snapped up, flipping her legs over her head, hitting Daredevil in the face. Once again, Daredevil was struck with the realization that Demon was good.

Demon turned to face Daredevil. Slowly moving in a circle, each looking at the other. For a moment, the only sounds were hearts pumping, hard breathing; then Daredevil jumped. In one graceful, powerful kick that seemed to be only a blur, he had Angelica pined. "Give up?" He asked.

"Not in your life, Mr. Murdock." Angelica spat.

Daredevil suddenly lifted his head. He heard sirens, a long way away, but coming closer every second. He turned to Demon again, "Are you sure you don't feel like giving up?"

She didn't answer, only pushed against Daredevil's leg, still pressed against her chest. She managed to slip out of Daredevil's clutches, only to be grabbed again, this time with harder force.

"Look, you've proved you're tough, you don't need to keep doing this. I'm not letting you go, so you might as well just stop." Daredevil said calmly, holding Demon by the neck, once again pushing her against the wall.

Angelica didn't say anything for a moment, and then spoke in a cold, threatening voice that would have made anyone shudder and hide under the bed, "I don't care what happens to me, as long as you are ruined! I'll tell everyone who you are."

Daredevil answered, almost apologetically. "Oh yeah? Who's going to believe that a blind man defeated you? After all, I am just a blind man. But be my guest, try it. I'm sure your cellmate will be interested." Daredevil sounded confident, but inside he was simply praying that she would believe him.

Angelica's heart skipped a beat. She was getting nervous. "Oh, don't worry about that. People will believe me."

Demon stopped talking; she was desperate. All the ice was gone from her voice now. It sounded like a kitten's purr; the sound of her, clearly defeated, sent another pang of regret through Daredevil. He hadn't wanted to do this.

Just then, Daredevil ears perked up. Years of battling thieves and thugs on the streets had trained his lightening fast reflexes to react without conscious thought to certain sounds. And the sound of a bullet speeding through the air was one of them.

Daredevil ducked. He tried to pull Angelica down with him, but it was too late. Daredevil smelled the coppery smell of blood. Not my blood, he realized, Ob God. Angelica.

He heard Demon slide down onto the ground. His radar sense picked up her staring shocked, at the crimson stain spreading down from a hole on her breast. Daredevil flinched as he heard her last breath push through her lungs. Then he registered laughing.

The laugh was hysterical, but clipped, as if the person laughing couldn't quite get enough air. Daredevil suddenly realized who it was. It was Charlie, one hand over the knife in his belly, the other holding a smoking gun.

"Bitch." He said. Then his arm went slack, his face a pasty white, and crumpled.

Daredevil tried to block out the sound of Charlie's heart slowing, the sound of life leaving the body, but he couldn't. He stood there, mesmerized by the slowing heart, until the spell was broken – until the sound stopped all together. It was too much, and Daredevil hated it. He hated all of it.