The door slid shut effortlessly behind him despite being several inches of reinforced steel. Bullseye looked around his cell. There wasn't much to see; a small, seatless toilet, a cheap scraggly bed and a box-shaped wash basin.

'The bogroll's a nice touch,' he admitted.

He ran a hand over the wall, feeling the worn paint give way to coarse concrete and… something else – like a rat between the bricks. He listened carefully, and swept the room over with his eyes until he found it. Bullseye put an ear to the wall to confirm it. Something was scuttling around in there.

The wall gave way with a final expulsion of dust and Bullseye felt the tip of a drill being driven into the side of his head.

'Jesus Fuck!' he yelped, jumping backwards, a hand over the wound, eyes searching for the break. Where he had been listening, there was nothing to see save for a fresh hole, the size of a pencil. Bullseye looked at it furiously.

'I wish this was the weirdest thing that had happened to me today,' he growled.

'I'd quite like to hear about your week, Lester.'

The voice emanated from the fresh tunnel with unnerving clarity. The shock spread down to his core, chilling the blood in his veins.

'Boss?'

'You know,' said Fisk, 'you came very highly recommended but so far, every assignment I've set you has returned disappointing results. You andMs. Natchios are testing my patience.'

Bullseye crouched down to the hole, eyeing it cautiously. 'I understand that boss but I came here deliberately because I had to get some information to you and my current situation wouldn't allow me to drop by during visiting hours, you get me?'

'Get to the information.'

'I know who Daredevil is.' A wide grin spread across Bullseye's face. 'Are you sitting down?'

Fisk's tone embodied a singular purpose.

'Who?'

'The blind lawyer. The very same one that's defending Hoffman – Matthew Murdock.'

The voice suddenly sounded further away.

'I had Hoffman killed yesterday. As soon as I heard how public your pursuit of Murdock had become, I took pre-emptive measures in the event of your capture.'

'Wow, ye of little faith. Wait, you mean you dug that little hole in a day?'

'Tell me what you know!'

Bullseye sighed and rolled his eyes, sliding down to sit on the cold floor.

'I broke into his apartment to wait for him to come back, he was gone a long time so I had a nose around and I found the suit. Then, when he eventually came back, he basically admitted it and dropped the blind act completely.'

'Very clever,' muttered Fisk. 'Did you kill him?'

'Well, no, I thought maybe you'd want to have all the information first before acting, just in case you wanted to do something different.'

There was silence on the other side of the hole.

'Well done, Lester. This changes things.'

'Yeah? Should I call the Bugle?'

'That won't be necessary, Lester. We're going to tell the police.'

Foggy stepped out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped firmly around his waist, his wet, uncombed hair dripping onto his shoulders.

'Matt!' he yelled, 'Matt, wake up your phone's ringing.'

'Tell them I'm in a meeting,' he grumbled. Jean had been kind enough to set down a blow-up bed for him but most of the air had escaped during the night and now his face was plastered firmly to the floor.

'Oh, it's Claire. Should I still tell her you're in a meeting?'

Matt sat up immediately and held out his hand for the phone. Foggy tossed it to him and walked away, sniggering under his breath. Matt pushed answer and pressed the phone to his ear.

'Claire?'

'No, this is Peter Parker.'

Matt shook his head and rubbed his eyes.

'Right, what's going on? What's up?'

'Wake up! This is important.'

Matt considered throwing the phone across the room.

'Are you listening?' asked Peter.

'Yeah, what is it?'

'I'm doing some work experience at The Daily Bugle and I just heard Eddie Brock say he's headed over to your place ASAP. Also, something about a raid.'

That idiot actually did it.

'Thanks for the heads-up, Peter. I owe you one.'

'No, now we're even. I gotta go, good luck.'

The line went dead. Matt was already pulling on his clothes.

'Foggy!' he cried, gathering up his socks and shoes.

'What?! What?!' said Foggy, running back out from the bathroom, clutching his towel in place.

'That guy went to the papers about me. I think the police are at my place. I need you to hide the suit here. Ask Jean if she's got a safe or something.'

He was pulling on his shoes when the bedroom door opened and Karen stepped out, still half-asleep.

'Matt, what's going on?'

'I can't explain right now,' he said, pulling on his shoes. 'I have to go and you two have to stay here until I'm back. Please!'

'Matt, you said you'd keep us in the loop from now on!' said Karen, suddenly wide awake.

'Foggy can fill you in, I can't wait. Please, Foggy, hide my suit and don't go outside. I'll be back as soon as I can. Be safe. I've got to go.'

Karen drew breath and opened her mouth but gave up immediately. Foggy put a hand on her shoulder and pursed his lips.

Matt was out the door when he heard her finally speak up.

'He's never going to change, is he?'

'Let's talk about it when I'm not dripping wet and naked,' said Foggy.

Matt rushed down the hall and jumped the stairs three at a time. When he got outside, he had to be more subtle. He took the first empty cab he found and gave the driver his address. When they reached his building, he tossed some notes onto the dashboard and hurried inside. There was too much activity to make out anything specific but Matt could tell, there were far more people on his floor than usual.

He slid back into character, holding his cane tightly, and took the elevator to his floor. Surrounded by the clicking and whir of machinery, Matt could feel his own liver and spleen being pummelled by his hammering heartbeat.

The elevator doors opened, putting him face to face with an officer that, upon recognizing him, immediately dropped a hand to his holster.

'Mr. Murdock, my name is Detective Ray Peters…'

Matt snapped to attention, something about this man stood out to him. The voice grated on his memory like a something drowning under a sheet of ice, fighting ferociously to break free.

'What's going on?' asked Matt, roughly.

'We're conducting a search of your residence in response to testimony that you're the vigilante known as Daredevil.'

He followed as Matt walked into his apartment.

'Daredevil? I'm blind. Where's your warrant?' he said, paused on the threshold, surveying the team of inspectors searching through the mess Bullseye had left behind.

'We don't have a warrant but we did have probable cause. There's a bullet hole in your window.'

Matt turned to him with venom in his tone. 'Probable cause has to be readily apparent. I live on the eighth floor, detective, did you boys spot it birdwatching on your lunch break?'

'They're called eyes, Murdock, get some!'

He recognized that voice easily: The Daily Bugle's Eddie Brock.

'Why don't we trade, Eddie? Give me your eyes and I'll give you some integrity. Win-win.'

Someone, in another room, chuckled under their breath.

'Mr. Murdock,' said Peters, 'when we arrived, judging by the state of the residence, it appears you've been the victim of a burglary. Is that correct?'

Matt struggled to think.

'I don't know. I was out last night.'

'You know, according to eye witnesses, you were present at the station shooting yesterday. Is that true?'

'Yes it is. I'm often there because I'm a lawyer.'

'Did you see the assailant?'

Matt leaned towards the detective, shortening the space between their faces down to a few inches. 'No,' he said, shaking his head slowly.

'Of course. I'm sorry. What about the people you were with, did they see him?'

Matt sighed. 'I think so but I'd have to ask.'

'We'd like to speak to them,' said the detective.

'Why?'

The detective took on an impatient tone. 'We believe we have the suspect in custody. They've confessed but we'd like someone to confirm that we haven't just picked up some crazy. If you wouldn't mind giving us their names?'

'Karen Page and Franklin Nelson.'

'Do you know where we might find them?'

'No.'

'When was the last time you saw them?'

'Last night, we were working late at Franklin's apartment. That's where I've just come from.'

The detective's eyes lingered on him but Matt felt sure of the lie's security.

'Is there anything else I can help you with, detective?'

'Well you're going to have to come down to the station so we can get an official explanation for all this down on paper and then we might have to─'

'Where did the tip come from?' asked Matt.

'Actually, it's tips,' said the detective. 'Several people in custody, right now, swear that you're Daredevil.'

'Does that not seem a bit too coincidental or convenient to you?' laughed Matt. 'I bet these are all criminals that went down along with Fisk, aren't they.'

'In the interest of their safety, I can't tell you their names, but I can tell you that they're not all criminals that went down with Fisk.'

Matt suddenly became very aware of his cane.

'Some of them have even asserted that you're not blind at all, Mr. Murdock, and due to the suspicious state of your residence and the bullet hole in your window, which has clearly been tampered with from the inside, I think it's best if I don't dismiss their claims out of hand. Now,' the detective pulled out a set of cold, metal cuffs, 'let's do this the easy way.'

Shit.

'Okay, will do, buddy. See you soon.' Foggy hung up and slipped the phone back into his jacket. Karen and Jean were watching him interestedly.

'Soooooo… Matt's been arrested and we've been asked to go to the station and identify Bullseye.'

Karen's mouth hung open wordlessly.

'Uhh, what?' said Jean.

'Apparently someone in prison accused Matt of being Daredevil so they've taken him in for questioning and also they want to talk to Karen and I about Bullseye.'

'Right, right. And what's Bullseye?' asked Jean.

'The guy that killed a station full of officers just to get to us. They think they have him in custody.'

'Well, obviously, you can't go,' said Jean.

'Excuse me?' said Karen, looking at her with wide eyes.

Jean took hold of her hand and squeezed it, gently.

'You've still got at least one assassin out there trying to find you. For all we know, this Bullseye could have turned himself in deliberately in order to bait you out of hiding.'

'Do you have a better idea?' snapped Karen.

'Well, maybe we should just, you know, wait and see? Keep an eye on the news, see what comes up, wait until the coast is clear.' Jean looked around for the remote and switched on the news.

Karen crossed her arms, shrugged and sank a little further into her end of the sofa. Foggy puffed out his cheeks and made a loud humming noise.

'Well we're gonna have to go down to Riker's at some point,' said Foggy, 'or they're going to get very suspicious. Oh, Jean, Matt said that Eddie Brock was at his apartment, check if he's on.'

Jean tossed him the remote without looking.

Foggy scrambled to catch it, rolling his eyes at her. He flicked through the channels until Brock's face appeared and his expression soured, causing Karen and Jean to turn and face the screen.

The volume was too low to make out what Brock was saying but the headline stood out in bold at the bottom of the screen.

MATT MURDOCK: ATTORNEY OUTLAW

Foggy fumbled for the volume setting.

'…police are saying that several inmates in Riker's prison, many of whom are believed to have never had any prior contact with each other, have accused the attorney of being the masked vigilante known as Daredevil, with some claiming that the reason they didn't come forward sooner is through fear that no one would take their accusations seriously due to Mr. Murdock's supposed disability.'

'He has an incredibly punchable face,' said Jean, coldly.

Karen snuggled up to her a bit more.

'Now, over at the Bugle, we did a little bit of our own investigation into Mr. Murdock and his business partners and we can actually reveal that he, and his partner, Franky Nelson, were allegedly fired from Landman and Zach over accusations of gross misconduct, specifically regarding clients!'

'What the fuck?!'said Foggy.

'Come on, Foggy, you know what he's like. No one takes Brock seriously anyway,' said Karen.

Foggy relaxed a little but his face had set into a hard scowl and he muttered something under his breath that Karen shook her head at. Brock continued on.

'Not just that, but their only employee, Karen Page, was in police custody facing charges of first degree murder until, that very same day, all charges were conveniently dropped and she began working for Mr. Murdock and Mr. Nelson. Now, viewers, if that seems suspicious to you, you're not alone but let me tell you something else, it gets worse.'

'Foggy,' said Karen, 'give me the remote.'

'Here you go,' he said, flinging it onto the couch beside her.

Karen seized it and switched the TV off, pulling out the batteries and throwing them down behind the sofa. Foggy looked at her incredulously.

'What are you doing?' he cried.

'He annoys me,' she said, avoiding his eyes.

Jean looked her lover over, clearly trying to answer an unspoken question but Karen gave her nothing. Getting up, Jean walked over to the set and turned it back on, sitting at the table away from Karen.

Karen glowered at her and Foggy could see that she was squeezing her fists into a ball so fiercely that her knuckles and fingertips had gone white. Brock flashed back onto the screen.

'Viewers, I want you to think back to 2010, when Vermont witnessed its most horrific series of killings, ever. Fifteen, young, beautiful, innocent women were slain by the madman popularly known as The Death's Head Killer, known as such for his tendency to flay the skulls of his victims, rendering them to the point that they could only be identified by their dental records.'

Brock paused for effect. Foggy felt like he had never experienced such a pure silence before like Hell's Kitchen itself was holding its breath.

'Now, you probably remember, that the killer was eventually caught in mid-2014 and identified as Doctor Paxton Cruz but, the detectives assigned to the case firmly insisted that to carry out many of the abductions and the killings themselves, Cruz must have had an accomplice. I hope you're still with me, viewers, as this, this is where it gets very interesting.'

Karen was visibly shaking now and, every time Brock paused, Jean took the opportunity to examine her. Foggy, however, remained glued to the screen, his face an unreadable mishmash of emotions. Karen's breathing was getting heavier.

'This accomplice was never found. What was also never found, viewers, was the body of Cruz's daughter, Paige, and, despite confessing to her murder, Cruz never told detectives where to find her body. Even more suspiciously, his accounts of her murder changed frequently, with varying dates, locations and motive. This means, viewers, that the daughter of The Death's Head, has never been found, dead or alive.'

Foggy felt nausea pooling in his stomach and Jean had turned impossibly still.

'The information I'm about to share with you, viewers, has never before been released to the public. If you've stuck with me through all this, I can assure you, I am about to arrive at the point.'

Brock stretched his neck out and took a deep breath.

'In August 2014, a credit card belonging to one of the victim's was used to pay for a one-way bus ticket from Burlington, Vermont to New York City. When interviewed, the driver of the bus described the mystery passenger as a woman in her late twenties with short, dark hair, brown eyes and very pale. That's where the trail goes cold, viewers. Until you see that Karen Page appeared in Hell's Kitchen around September 2014. I use the word appeared here because it is the most accurate word to describe someone who had no previous address, gave no references, paid her rent one year upfront in cashand was described by neighbours as very pale, with red, puffy eyes and a hasty dye job. Mere months after she appears, she's arrested on suspicion of murder. Now, can we say for certain that Karen Page is in fact Paige Cruz, daughter and accomplice of the Death's Head serial killer? Of course we can't. But one thing is for sure, she, and Mr. Murdock have a lot of explaining to do.'

Foggy and Jean's gazes were fixed on Karen and she tried to pretend she couldn't tell. After an eternity, Brock's segment finally ended.