He smiled to himself. Right on schedule. The only question had been just who would be outside his door, but he already knew the answer to that. Aside from the obvious security cameras, there were now sensors installed in the VDI headquarters building that would detect the residual radiation emitted by those who had been exposed to the cosmic cloud. It was a necessary precaution to protect himself. He would have no Invisible Girl prying into his affairs, and he fully expected that as he tried to regain the trust of Reed and Sue and the others, Sue would surely do some snooping around.
The interview last night had gone well. He'd managed the difficult task of expressing seemingly sincere contrition for his actions and gratitude to the Fantastic Four for stopping him without appearing too obvious -- or so he hoped. It felt good to be in the public eye again, even if he feigning humbleness instead of being his usual self.
His real goal had been to subtly add to the growing mistrust of the "heroes." If the radiation had made him unstable, surely it could eventually affect the others as well, and make them dangerous and potential threats to the city. And human greed was a marvelous thing. He had not been behind the initial lawsuit against Reed and the others, but he had subtly encouraged others to join in the litigation -- indirectly, of course, so that it could not be traced back to him.
He glanced at the watch around his wrist. It was more than a mere timepiece -- it controlled his mutation and let him appear as his former self. He had spent weeks researching many methods to control the radiation's effects, including even dabbling in more mystical arts -- an interesting experience, that -- before falling back on science. Reed, Sue, and Johnny could turn their powers on and off, why not he? The watch produced a dampening field that negated the radiation and restored his appearance, which certainly had it conveniences. By necessity the power supply in the watch was small, so it had a limited duration, but it functioned generally long enough to accomplish what he needed to do. He could probably help Ben with a similar device, but offering that would be the actions of a forgiving man, which he was not.
Pressing the intercom button on his phone, he buzzed his secretary. "Laura, let them in," he said.
He stood as the double doors to his office swung opened and Ben Grimm stomped into the room, followed by Susan Storm. He felt, much to his chagrin, a stir of desire upon seeing her. He would make her suffer as he had suffered, but he could not deny part of him still wanted her. As Leonard had once pointed out to him, he could have any woman he wanted, including ones more beautiful and more accommodating than Sue. But she'd been the only one to spurn him. And for that insult alone he wanted her to pay.
"Susan. Ben," he said calmly.
"Skip the chitchat," Ben grumbled. "What are you up to, Vic? How come you're not all shiny anymore? Or frozen?"
"Because my people found a cure, Ben," Victor said calmly. "For real this time."
"Right," Ben said. "And we're just supposed to trust you? I trust you about as far as I can throw you. Actually, come to think of it, that's pretty far. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't punch you through your window again."
Victor sat down wearily and sighed. "I hope you didn't just come here to threaten me."
Sue took a few cautious steps forward. "No, we came to talk to you." She gave Ben a pointed look.
"I've been expecting you," he said. "And I know you don't trust me, but I am sorry about everything that happened and I want to make up for the things I did."
"Sure you do," Ben said, looking suspiciously around Victor's office.
"Why don't we go out to lunch somewhere?" Victor suggested, following his gaze. "You pick the place. That way you can relax and stop worrying that a horde of Doombots or something is going to emerge from the shadows and attack you."
Sue studied Victor carefully. He knew she was trying to figure out his motive for suggesting they go out in public. She understood him well enough to realize he never did anything with a reason. Did he want to be seen with them for some reason? Or was he truly concerned with finding a neutral ground to make the conversation easier? "Le Madeleine," she finally said, naming a French bistro in the theater district.
"Perfect," he said. "Leonard?" His assistant appeared as if out of nowhere at his call. "Call ahead and make sure we have a table waiting."
The manager of Le Madeleine was more than happy to accommodate the surprise celebrity guests, giving them the best seats in the garden terrace, overlooking the street. A special stone bench had already been brought in for Ben, as the ever-efficient Leonard had no doubt alerted the staff to the need for such a thing. Ben claimed not to be hungry, but Sue suspected the more exotic menu just didn't appeal to him. She, however, ordered the most expensive things on the menu. A petty little revenge, but Victor could easily afford it. His companies had lost a lot of money over the past year, but he was hardly destitute. And she'd taken a quick peek at the market that morning before heading over to VDI to see his company stock had made a massive jump since his reappearance. Reformed supervillains, it seemed, were good for business.
She'd gone to this particular restaurant more than once in the past with Victor, which was why it was the first place to come to mind. They'd had dinner here a few nights before the ill-fated launch to his space station. It was in the middle of a busy part of the city, so Victor certainly couldn't try anything there. Still, it was awkward. What did you say to the man who tried to kill you?
So she asked lame, idle questions about Latveria and Victor's treatment and what he did remember as Ben sat in stony silence. Sue didn't blame Ben for being angry and paranoid; after all, Victor had tricked him into giving up his powers and then almost killed him. For his part, Victor seemed utterly calm, and for some reason that infuriated her. Part of her wanted Victor to beg for forgiveness -- for everything, for what he had done with his powers, and for how he had treated her during the two years they were together -- but she knew too well Victor was a man who would not beg.
Halfway through the mean, the maitre d' came over to the table and bent his head to Ben's ear -- or rather, where his ear should be. "Excuse me, Mr. Grimm," he said, "but you seem to have attracted a crowd..." He gestured to the street, where a group of ten or so children had their faces pressed against the glass wall enclosing the garden. They looked like they wanted to enter, but did not dare.
Sue smiled. Despite his monstrous appearance, Ben was a favorite with the kids. "Go ahead, go talk to them," she said. "I'll be fine."
Ben looked at Victor. "Don't even think of trying anything," he warned, then made his way to the garden entrance and joined the children on the street. They swarmed around him, asking excited questions and holding up pieces of paper for him to sign. Ben carried a marker big enough for him to manipulate with his hands for just such an occasion. He shot anxious glances over his shoulder at Sue and Victor as he spoke to the children.
"So," Victor said. "Why don't we talk about what's really on your mind, Sue?"
She folded her arms across her chest. "And what's that, Victor?"
"Why exactly what happened happened," he said. "Why I did what I did. You don't believe me when I say I never wanted to hurt you, do you?"
"Well, you've never been as concerned with the welfare of others as much as your own," she said testily. "Everything you do is for you. Everything." She hoped her own personal bitterness wasn't as apparent as she thought it was.
He nodded. "I know. I can't deny that I wasn't a stellar example of humanity. But I'm not the same man I was, Sue." He put his arms on the table and leaned closer. "Look at what happened to each of us," he continued. "I'm sure you must've had this discussion with Reed and seen the same things I have. The cosmic rays amplified something about us that already existed. Your brother's hot-headedness became literal. Ben's solid and protective nature manifested physically. Reed's reaching for knowledge and spreading himself thin with all his scientific research. You..."
"Me?" Susan prompted as he paused.
"You...being taken for granted and feeling invisible," Victor said. "Reed used to make you feel that way, and I'm ashamed to say I was no better, only instead of science it was money and power. I treated you badly, Susan, and I'm sorry. In some ways you were just another possession to me."
"And now?" she said, her casualness somewhat forced as she shifted in her seat and dropped her arms to the table. She had to admit that one of the sweetest feelings in the world was when an ex admitted he was wrong.
"Another regret to add to the pile," he said, reaching across the table to put his hand over hers. "I hope you have found what you deserve with Reed now and that he's learned his lesson. I learned mine. While I was recovering I was forced to examine my behavior -- the cloud amplified my urge for power and look what almost happened. If you hadn't stopped me..." He gently rubbed his forefinger over the back of her hand, then realized what he was doing and pulled his hand back almost guiltily, settling back in his chair. "I know you probably don't believe me, but I'll do whatever it takes to prove it to you -- that I'm not the same man I was."
"I want to believe you, Victor," Sue said, drawing her hands into her lap, feeling a little guilt of her own over allowing such an intimate touch. "But...it's going to take more than words. Actions speak louder."
"Why do you think I kept this?" He touched one finger to the scar on his temple. "I could easily fly down to Miami and have the finest plastic surgeons in the country take care of it. But it was there when I woke up after I was transformed back, so I decided to keep it as a reminder. It's there to keep me from falling back on my wicked ways." He looked at her sadly, an expression she'd never seen on his face before. "I don't expect immediate forgiveness. Go back to Reed and Ben and your brother and talk about this. Tell me what I can do to prove myself to you. Give me a chance. I'm a changed man, Susan. I really am."
"I really hope so," she said. Silence fell for a few moments as she picked at her food, looking down at her plate. Without meeting his gaze, she asked with forced lightness, "So...are you...are you seeing anyone?" she asked. She regretted the words the minute they left her mouth. Why the hell had she asked him that?
"Not really," he said, then he chuckled ruefully. "Well, there's this Hollywood actress. Her publicist's idea, actually. He's trying to get her seen. I figured it couldn't hurt. She actually looks a little like you. Could be why I agreed to it."
She lifted her head and looked at him. "Like me?" she repeated.
"Same hair, same build," he admitted. "What can I say, I know what I like. And maybe we should change the subject before this gets uncomfortable. Actually, I'm sure Reed is anxiously awaiting your safe return. You should probably head back to the Baxter Building. Lunch is already taken care of, don't worry about it."
"You're right," she said. "I should get back. We'll, uh, well talk later?" She felt flustered for some reason and couldn't understand why. He rose as she did, then winced and leaned forward, bracing his hand on the table. "Victor?" Sue said, moving around the table to his side. "What's wrong?"
"I'm having weakness spells," he said reluctantly. "One of the side effects of undoing what the radiation did to me. It'll pass in a few minutes."
"Let me help you," Sue said, slipping her arm around his waist. He put his arm around her shoulders, leaning on her slightly as they headed to the garden entrance. Ben was still outside, swarmed with children.
"My driver will bring my car around," Victor said. "I'll be all right from here."
"Maybe..maybe Reed can..." Sue began.
He shook his head. "I don't think either of us are ready for that just yet," he said. "There's too much trust to be rebuilt." After a pause, he added, "I am truly sorry, Sue. For everything." He bent his head and gently kissed her lips. "For some things more than others," he murmured.
His limo pulled up just then, and his driver stepped out to open the door. "I know Reed's going to want to see my notes on what was done to cure me," he said. "Let me know how you want to do this." He moved into the limo and shut the door.
As Susan hurried over to Ben, Victor idly glanced out his tinted limo window to the van in which he knew the tabloid photographers were hidden and barely suppressed a triumphant smile. While he believed what he had said about the energy from the cloud enhancing characteristics that already existed, he had another theory about why Susan's power manifested as invisibility. It wasn't solely because she felt ignored; it was also because she was a person who valued her privacy. She'd never been comfortable in the limelight, and in every interview she let Reed do all the talking, not out of any need to defer but out of dislike of the attention. She'd always hated it when her name popped up in gossip columns, and the attention she'd received once she became the "Invisible Girl" had been hard on her. There'd even been an incident with Ben smashing the cameras of a particularly persistent paparazzi who'd harassed Susan. Another lawsuit, of course.
It was going to be fun to watch her squirm when she saw the papers tomorrow morning.