When the man didn't comply immediately, Eddie pressed the gun harder into his head.

"Get in," he ordered, his tone commanding yet calm. "Now."

This time, the guy obliged him, turning the knob and beginning to crack open the door. Eddie then grabbed the man, forcing him inside quickly before closing the door behind him. He then directed him into the living room, his weapon trained on him the whole time.

"It's funny," the man spoke up, "I would have never suspected you as the type of man to own a gun. You seem like the type to do more with his fists."

"I learned recently that often fists aren't enough," Eddie explained. "Now, take out your own gun and set it on the table, slowly."

"I don't have a gun," the man insisted. Eddie pushed the gun into his head again, not buying the man's denial. His former assailant finally complied, gently removing his gun from his jacket-shielded left side of his waist area and setting it on the table as instructed.

"How'd you know I was coming?" the man questioned.

"I'm a reporter," Eddie replied sternly. "Knowing things is my job. Now, take out those specialized knuckles of yours too."

The man complied much more readily this time, reaching into his jacket pocket, bringing out the brass knuckles. Eddie eyed them, his blood already starting to boil at the memories that seeing them brought to the forefront of his brain. As soon as the man set them aside, Eddie shoved him away from his now discarded weapons, the man turning slowly turning around to face him. He kept the gun raised, trained on his previous assailant.

"So, what happens now?" the man asked. "You just shoot me, leave me to die here in cold blood?"

"Better you than me, right?" Eddie replied. "I know that you were sent here to finish the job."

To his surprise, the man simply chuckled.

"What, did Spider-Man tell you that?" the guy asked. "That's rich! You really think that something like that will stand up in court! The charges you two attempted to pin on me didn't stick, so what do you think that this is going to do!? Your woman will just lose you in a different way."

Eddie kept his gun trained on the man as he contemplated what his words. The more he thought about it, the more he had to admit that was he was saying made sense. As far as the law was concerned, he will have shot someone who was technically an "innocent man." Anne would likely have absolutely no sway in the proceedings as the D.A, since the case would be personal, and he would likely be locked up with the key thrown away. Unless...

"You're right," he said. Tilting the gun upward, Eddie then set it down on the table next to him, maintaining eye contact with his opponent, who looked intrigued to say the least. "But if it just looks like you just came and attacked me and my home, that's a different story. After all, we both know that, should you fail to finish the job, it doesn't matter what happens with the police, since your boss will likely have an even worse fate in mind for you. So, what do you say?"

A smile crept across the face of Eddie's opponent, who reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out a knife.

"A fair fight it is then!"

Eddie felt a little humiliated for not considering that the man could have a blade on him. He considered picking back up the gun, but he elected against it as the man circled around him, drawing closer. The man then charged him, jabbing at him with the knife. Eddie dodged a couple of stab attempts to his gut, patiently awaiting his opportunity. The man then tried an overhead stab, but Eddie caught it, using the man's momentum to shove him into a countertop. He then came at the guy from behind, putting one arm around his neck while the other grabbed the man's wrist, eventually shoving it against the wall near the kitchen area, causing him to drop the knife.

His attacker struggled against his chokehold, backing them up until he'd slammed them into the back door, Eddie's head smacking hard against the glass, momentarily stunning him. This gave the man just enough time to break free. He then struck Eddie a couple of times in his stomach, but he quickly recovered, striking a blow of his own to the man's nose. He hit him a few more times, with blows to his face and side, causing the man to eventually drop to the ground. Looking up, he then scrambled back towards the table.

Recognizing that he was likely going for the gun, Eddie rushed over and grabbed the man by his shoulders, tossing him against a wall. He then lunged for him with a punch, but the man spun out of the way, causing Eddie's fist to shoot straight into the wall. Adrenaline carrying him at this point, he quickly turned back to the man, who'd picked up a lamp. He proceeded to swing it repeatedly, but Eddie quickly regained the advantage, scooping the man up over his shoulder before tossing him over the couch, sending him crashing into the glass table in the center of the living room, shattering it.

Seemingly defeated, the man found himself barely able to move. Eddie then went back over to the table, grabbing the gun. He came and stood over the man, cocking the gun and pointing it straight down at him. He put his finger on the trigger, but now that the time was here, he found himself hesitating to pull it. He wanted to so badly; every time he saw the man's face, or even thought about him, what he did to Anne, all he could think about was this moment. This way, he and his wife would be safe. Still, as he stood there, the gun nearly starting to tremble with his hand, questions entered Eddie's mind. Would it be worth it? Would this really make him feel better... or worse?

Suddenly, there was a knock at the front door. Eddie glanced over to it before quickly coming back to his defeated opponent. He looked back and forth a couple more times, his mind racing even more now as he tried to decide how to handle the matter. He ultimately put his gun away, tucking it in his backside. The man seemed like he'd be going nowhere, so hopefully, with any luck, he could simply explain that he was busy and get whoever was at his door to go away so that he could wrap this up.

Another sequence of knocks came from outside as Eddie rushed over to the door.

"Just a second!" he called out. When he arrived at the door, he turned one last time to check and make sure that the man hadn't attempted an escape before cracking the door open a little, sticking his head out just enough to see that none other than Peter Parker was the one who'd showed up.

"Hey man," he said, trying his hardest to act casual. "Look, now really isn't a good time, okay?"

"I'm sorry if I've intruded, but I really want to try and patch things up between us," Peter insisted. "I promise, I won't take long."

"I appreciate that," Eddie replied, "but really, I can't..."

The sound of broken glass being moved around drew Eddie's attention back to the living room. The man had managed to crawl away from the center of the room and seemed to be trying to make a break for the back door. Eddie bolted back over to him, not even bothering to shut the front door behind him. He came on top of the man, grabbing him and turning him over. He then proceeded to start laying into him, punching him in the face repeatedly.

"Eddie, stop!" he could hear Peter call out from behind him. Eddie ignored him, continuing to deliver blows with his fist straight into the man's face and head before suddenly, he felt himself being ripped away from his target.

"No!" Eddie called out, struggling to get free. He nearly did so a couple of times, but finally Peter managed to draw him to a standing position, pulling him to himself.

"He's down, Eddie," his friend assured him. "It's over."

Eddie drew in and let out air as the weight of the last several minutes slowly started to let go of him. He glanced over to the man, who was pretty much unconscious from his blows. He was just lying there, seemingly down for the count. There was still a lingering frustration in him though, a part of him that wanted to do more, to do worse. He then glanced over at Peter, who displayed a mix of emotions on his face, mostly sadness and concern.

Unable to take it anymore, he shoved Peter away and stormed off by himself.

After that, Peter had trouble talking to Eddie for a while. He called the police, who quickly responded to the scene. Both he and Eddie were questioned thoroughly about what had happened as the man was hauled out in a stretcher by emergency responders. Peter caught a glimpse of Eddie's face as they did so; his friend's expression was one of pure disgust and anger, even hatred. Eventually, the cops turned their attention more to the house, gathering evidence and information from within, allowing Peter to finally approach Eddie, who was standing off to the side, surveying the situation. It took a few seconds for either of them to speak up, but eventually, he worked up the courage.

"I'm glad you're okay."

"Thanks," Eddie replied after a brief hesitation, still refusing to take his attention away from the scene.

"Hopefully this will all be over now," Peter said.

This time, Eddie said nothing in reply, so he opted for a slight subject shift.

"How's your hand?" he asked, gesturing to his wrapped right hand.

"It's fine," Eddie answered him, his tone somewhat clipped.

Peter bounced on his toes, his concern growing. His friend and coworker seemed more closed off than ever, but he couldn't give up. There was a particular aspect of this whole thing that he'd been tiptoeing around to this point, but maybe he might as well just get it out in the open.

"I saw it, Eddie," he said. "I saw the gun."

His friend slowly turned to him, an angry but still composed glare coming from his eyes.

"So, what?" he asked. "You're going to judge me now for getting a weapon to defend myself?"

"No, I just..." Peter stammered out, trying to figure out how to properly put his thoughts to words. "I'm worried about you man."

"Yeah, I know, you're worried about my soul and all that," Eddie explained, his tone growing more frustrated. "That's all that you've been saying ever since that guy stormed into my home and nearly killed the woman I love. But you know what, Peter? I also seem to be the only one that's actually willing to do anything about this!"

Peter swallowed nervously.

"If I hadn't shown up, would you have killed him?"

Eddie looked off to the side, either contemplating the question or trying to ignore it.

"Would you have?"

"I don't know," he replied. "But wouldn't the world be a safer place if I had?"

"Is that really why you would have done it though?" Peter asked.

This time, Eddie just stared right at him, though he remained silent. He didn't end up having much time to respond as an officer came back up to the two of them, asking Eddie to come inside and look at something.

"I think you should go home, Peter," he said. "Let me handle this."

Peter looked at his friend, his mind desperate for some answer that would convince the man to let him stay, to listen to him. He came up empty in the end though, so he slowly turned around and began to walk away. He glanced behind him after a few steps to see that Eddie and the officer were already back in the house, a feeling of dread coming over him as he did. So much had happened in the place, a place that had once felt welcoming to him now carried a sense of foreboding with it. Two events there had taken a once good man and were now threatening to destroy him.

For all the power that Peter had inside of him, he'd rarely felt more powerless to help than he did right now.

After the initial investigation in his home had concluded, Eddie made his way back to the hospital, reflecting on the evening's events as he sat on the bus. He had told the police exactly what he'd planned to from the beginning, that the man had attacked him in his home, a scuffle had ensued, and he'd overpowered him. The police seemed to be going along with his story as well, but there were a couple who'd asked him a couple of particularly prying questions that he still wasn't sure if he'd answered properly.

He was still kind of upset about the guy getting wheeled off to a hospital instead of spending the night in jail. Yes, he'd been roughed up a bit to say the least, but in his mind, the guy didn't deserve that kind of care. Regardless, with any luck, the charges would stick this time, and he wouldn't be seeing the man again for a long time.

More than anything though, he thought about the moments before Peter had arrived, where he'd had the gun trained on the man. Going into the whole thing, he wasn't even a hundred percent sure how he would handle the whole thing; Eddie had simply planned to gain a surprise advantage over him and take care of the situation. He'd be lying if the thought hadn't crossed his mind though, and in that moment, he could have ended it. He felt he'd been perfectly justified in doing so too, so what reason had he had to hesitate?

Maybe it was Peter's persistent warning. Even as upset as Eddie was with him, he had always understood where the man was coming from. He knew that Peter had experienced great loss before, specifically at the hands of another person, so he knew that his friend was only trying to help him. At the same time, it was getting difficult to have him and everyone else seemingly try to deter him from getting any real sense of justice. Peter, Spider-Man, Robbie, everyone had seemingly been against him in this, making the world around Eddie start to feel smaller.

His thoughts were still swirling even as he walked into the hospital, making his way to Anne's room. When he arrived, Anne herself was asleep, but her parents were there, her father's arms crossed as he looked at Eddie in particular.

"Where have you been, son?" the older man asked.

Eddie didn't shy away, looking straight at the man.

"I've been taking care of some things."

"What could be more important than being here?" Anne's father replied.

"You two were the ones who told me to give myself a break," Eddie countered, "so that's what I did."

"It's just that we've been trying to call you," Anne's mother spoke up. "Since you never answered us, we were starting to get worried."

"Like I said, I've just been taking care of some things," Eddie replied, looking back over at his resting wife. "But I'm here now."

"What do you really mean when you say, 'taking care of some things?' Eddie's father-in-law questioned, coming closer to him.

"Carl, leave him alone," the man's wife spoke up.

"No," the man refuted, "I think we have a right to know, seeing as the police stopped by to ask us a few questions just before you arrived."

Eddie turned back to the man.

"What?"

"We know about the incident at your house, Eddie," Anne's mother spoke up. "We're glad that you're okay, but we're worried about you. The police said that you've been on the scene of a couple of different incidents like this recently. What's going on?"

Eddie sighed, looking back at his wife, who continued to rest peacefully even through the conversation.

"I was tracking down the man who attacked Anne and me," he explained.

"Why would you do something so reckless?" Anne's father questioned.

"Is it reckless for me to want to get justice?" Eddie retorted. "To make sure that my wife, that your daughter is safe?"

"It is reckless for you to..."

Anne's father then shut his eyes, drawing in a breath as he took a moment to compose himself. He then looked Eddie in the eye, his expression more gracious as he continued: "Eddie, I get it. You're a protector, and that's a good thing, but you must keep your head and your emotions in check right now. Taking the law into your own hands and getting in over your head is the last thing that Anne needs right now."

"What she needs is to be safe," Eddie insisted, "and as long as that guy was out there, she wouldn't be."

"You're not listening to me, son," Anne's father said.

"No, all I've been doing is listening," Eddie refuted. "Listening to everyone telling me to be careful, to not get in over my head, to not do something that I'll regret because this situation is getting to me. Well, guess what, I decided to be the bigger man between the two of us and do what's necessary."

"Watch your tone, son," Anne's father warned.

"I'm sorry if you disagree with me, but I won't apologize for what I've done," Eddie continued.

"Yeah?" Anne's father said. "And what if, while you were out there, the people that you were hunting down came here, instead? What if they caught her while she was here, resting and vulnerable? We might have lost our daughter... and it would be your fault!"

His blood hot, Eddie finally reached his tipping point, and he struck Anne's father in the face. The man wasn't having it in return, and the man retaliated even as his wife begged him to stop. It wasn't long before Eddie gained and advantage over the older man, grabbing him by the shirt and punching him in the face.

"Eddie!"

The desperation in his mother-in-law's voice gave him pause, and when Eddie turned and looked at her, he could soon see why: when she stepped out of the way, he could see his now awake wife staring at him, tears already beginning to form in her eyes. Eddie suddenly felt trapped by her gaze; it was not unlike the look of fear and desperation she had when they were attacked.

Except this time, she was afraid of him.

As a couple hospital workers entered the room and asked what was going on, Eddie's attention remained locked on his wife, the horrified look on her face covering his person with shame. He then slowly backed away, eventually turning and running out of the room.

Thanks again to everyone who's stuck around for this story and series especially. You all are amazing, and I hope that I you continue to enjoy it, even as we prepare to enter some darker, heavier and more brutal content.

Continuing to pray for you all; stay safe and healthy!

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance." James 1:2-3