Over most of the next week, Peter continued his investigation in any way he could. Looking to find and capture Scorpion in particular, he patrolled the city as often as he could, especially during the night. He wasn't allowing much time for sleep, but after so many years, he had largely gotten used to running on what little he could get. Whenever there was a job to do, that came first, especially when it came to someone as insane as Scorpion.
Of all his foes, the former disgraced private detective was by far one of the most worrisome because he seemingly had no moral compunction at all. Peter might consider giving an olive branch to some of his enemies, because he knew they were just wronged people deep down, and he could still see the good in them. With Scorpion, however, there seemed to be no decency left of any kind; the man was a sadist, through and through. Peter tried to keep in mind that it was likely the experiment that gave him his powers that messed with his mind as well, so if he could ever be cured, maybe then he would stand a chance. Until that happened though, he needed to treat Scorpion as the homicidal psychopath he was.
However, that was all a moot point if Peter couldn't find him. He scoured the city, listened to the police radio regularly, but there was no sign of his long-tailed foe. Given that the man seemed to be associated with some larger scheme, this likely meant that either his employer had everything he needed (which Peter really hoped wasn't true), or that what they needed next was unavailable to them at this time. To this point, Peter also tried to keep up with any news on technological advancements or anything coming into the city that was public knowledge.
In addition to all this digging on his own time, Peter stuck with Eddie at the Bugle as much as he could since the man was still investigating the tech thefts going on in the city. He kept saying that he just knew there was a bigger story there, even if others disagreed with him. Peter certainly didn't doubt it, which was why he volunteered to come along as the photographer if he was ever needed, which Robbie thankfully had no issue with, even encouraging it.
As Peter worked so closely with Eddie, he continued to be impressed by the man. He seemed to not only have a knack for putting people at ease, but he always, ALWAYS seemed to maintain an upbeat, grateful attitude in life. In all their hours working together, Peter never once saw the man frown, and he always had a smile on, especially around others. It didn't seem to be the fake kind that one wears to mask something going on in life; Peter had had too much experience with that himself not to recognize it in others.
One day, they took a break from their investigation throughout the city to grab some lunch, stopping by a cheap burger place. Peter was more than content with this selection; he'd learned to thrive off places like this in the instances he ate out. In fact, he couldn't remember the last time he'd ate anywhere that could be considered "fancy".
As he and Eddie chowed down, Peter tried to ask the man what his thoughts were based on what they'd investigated that day. They hadn't turned up much, but still, sometimes other people just see things that another person does not, so it couldn't hurt.
"You know it's okay not to worry about work all the time, right?" Eddie asked in response as he took another bite of his burger.
"Sorry," Peter apologized, somewhat surprised by Eddie's response. The man was normally so into his work that his answer had caught Peter off guard a little.
"It's okay man," Eddie replied as he swallowed. "I'm not upset with you. I just believe in having a strong work life balance, even in the middle of a workday. Right now, the scale is leaning more in favor of life, at least until this burger and fries are gone."
Again, Peter was amazed at the happiness that Eddie just seemed to exude in everything. It was something he honestly wasn't sure he could wrap his mind around.
"How do you do it?" Peter asked, drawing Eddie's attention again.
"Do what?" Eddie asked as he finished chewing, covering his mouth as he did so.
"Find that work life balance," Peter responded. "Even more than that, you just seem so happy all the time."
Eddie took a quick sip of his drink, then leaned back in his booth seat, looking up as he appeared to ponder the question. Finally, he just shrugged.
"I guess I just have everything I want, really," the man finally replied. "That is, at least the important stuff. I have a good job, with coworkers I like and get along with, a decent place to call my own, and most importantly, a beautiful woman that I get to call my wife that is waiting for me every day when I come home."
Peter looked down, not really responding to Eddie except with a couple of nods. Really, he had two of those three things, and he felt that should be more than enough. Surely the third thing wasn't THAT important, was it?
"Why do you ask?" Eddie asked, drawing Peter's attention again.
"No reason," Peter said. "I guess you just seem so happy, and I was curious as to why."
"You know, the people who usually ask something like that are the people that are looking for that happiness themselves," Eddie countered.
"I am happy," Peter tried to counter in return. Eddie's tilted head and slightly squinty expression showed he wasn't buying it. He didn't say anything at first though, almost like he was letting his doubt of Peter's statement reverberate back onto him, leaving him to think about it.
"You know what," Eddie finally said, "Anne and I aren't doing anything this evening, so why don't you come over for dinner?"
"Oh, I wouldn't want to impose," Peter said, waving his hands.
"No imposition," Eddie assured him. "Anne and I both grew up having people over at our places all the time, so I know she'll be fine with it. Also, she's a wonderful cook, so I know for a fact that you won't want to miss out on that."
Peter slowly was starting to realize that Eddie wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily. Plus, with him spending so much time patrolling the city as Spider-Man this week, he hadn't exactly made much time to go to the store for groceries recently, and his fridge had been looking particularly more and more empty.
All that to say, a nice home cooked meal sounded REALLY good, despite that he had just eaten.
"You know what, sure," he finally responded. "Why not?"
"Alright," Eddie responded. "How does 6:00 sound?"
"Can we do 7:00?" Peter asked in return. "I have a quick errand that I have to take care of this evening."
"Sure, that should be fine," Eddie replied. "Anne loves having as much time as possible to prepare a meal, so it should be extra good as a result."
"Sounds like a plan," Peter responded.
Later that evening, Peter went off to run his little "errand," which was a trip to the last place in New York that he really wanted to go: The Bar With No Name. Years ago, he had discovered that there was a secret spot just underneath the railway that was really a watering hole for Manhattan's most notorious criminals. It was mostly gangs that came to enjoy what the place had to offer, but the occasional super villain would stop by as well. The place had only two rules: no guns, and no fighting.
Yeah, right.
Peter had only ever entered the building itself one time: he'd been in a similar situation, where he was looking for information, and he'd foolishly thought it'd be fine to go in there, even though he knew he'd stick out like a sore thumb. Surely, they'd eye him, but go back to their own business, right?
Nope.
Instead, a fight broke out in the bar that lasted almost an entire day. It got so bad that Peter had had to break up people who weren't even fighting him, but rather the guy next to them, some of them even coming close to killing each other. By the time it was over, he was pretty sure half of them didn't even know why they'd been fighting in the first place.
In hindsight, Peter couldn't believe how ridiculously naïve he had been that day. Having learned his lesson, however, he was going to try a more secretive way in: the ventilation system. This had become his go to way to get into a place he normally shouldn't be in, so long as it was large enough for him to fit. Thankfully, that was the case here, so, after carefully coming around the side of the building when no one was around, he sneakily entered through the main path just above the door.
Peter crawled through the area just above the main room, doing his best to stay low. The vent could be seen into a little, but thankfully, nobody seemed to care to look up. He made it into a more hidden area, from which he continued to scour the building. He was looking for the bar's owner, a man by the name of Blackie Gaxton. From the info Peter had gathered over the years, Blackie Gaxton was a former mobster who had opted to open The Bar With No Name as means to be able to deal with all members of the mob, and not just one group or "family" as they often called themselves.
The bottom line was that, if anyone had insider information on anything going on in the criminal underworld, it would be this man. He seemingly had his hands in almost everything, at least if his reputation held up.
Finally, Peter came to a spot just above what looked like an office space, where he saw a man sitting at a desk, talking to another man. He listened in, eventually hearing the other guy in the room say, "Thanks Blackie," at one point, which told him all he needed to know. Waiting patiently for the other guy to leave the room, Peter popped open the ventilation shaft seal, dropping in. The man instantly stood up from his seat and drew a gun, but Peter quickly disarmed him, snatching the gun from his hands before he'd even fully brought it up.
"You!" Blackie shouted in a thick but classic New York mobster accent. "What are you doing here?"
"First off, how rude a way to greet your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man," Peter said, waving the gun back and forth before setting it back down as he came to the other side of the man's desk. "Second, I'm not here to try to bring you in. I need some information, and I think you have it."
Blackie let out a series of chuckles and he sat back in his seat, rotating it to face Peter. He didn't even bother to pick up the gun again, suddenly seeming completely at ease as a smile spread over his face.
"So," the man said, "the local wall crawler has stopped by for a friendly little chat, has he?"
"Rumor has it that you know everything when it comes to the New York underworld," Peter said nonchalantly. "That true?"
Blackie leaned forward, folding his hands together and sitting them on his desk.
"Only if they want me to know," he replied. "Plus, I hear things now and then."
"Then you can tell me who's behind the recent tech thefts," Peter insinuated.
"Oh yes, certainly," the man replied, "but I'm not going to."
"C'mon, Blackie," Peter said in mock pleading. "It'll be our little secret."
"Bahahaha!" Blackie cackled loudly. "You...I'll tell you what, wall crawler, you have some guts coming back in here after that stunt you pulled a few years ago."
"You do have security cameras, right?" Peter replied, pointing behind him. "You have to know I didn't start that fight."
"Right, like having New York's biggest thorn in the underworld's side in house wouldn't be seen as a prime opportunity for anyone in here," Blackie countered.
Peter placed his fingers on the desk, leaning towards the man.
"You're not making this very easy for me, Blackie," he stated, trying to sound casually menacing, if that was even a thing.
"Oh?" the man replied, leaning forward to meet him head on, "and what's Ol' Webs going to do if I clam up? Your reputation speaks for itself; you don't have what it takes to make me shake in my boots. So, why don't you just run along, and I'll pretend this little rendezvous never happened. We'll call it our little secret."
Peter stood up straight, his fists starting to clench in frustration. He knew the man was right though; Spider-Man was very rarely the type to use intimidation, and everyone knew it. He didn't know what he expected in coming here, but his bluff had been called.
Disappointed and a bit upset, Peter ignored the smug look on Blackie's face and disappeared back through the ventilation shaft, making his way out of the building and swinging off.
Hope you guys are still enjoying this!
Continuing to pray for you all. Stay safe and healthy!
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast." Ephesians 2:8-9