Chapter 2
Peter stood atop the small warehouse roof, looking down through the broken skylight. His breathing was heavy, and his eyes were stinging red, full of tears. The cacophony of sirens was reaching closer every second. Below the skylight lay shattered glass and a lifeless man. Peter needed to leave, but he couldn't stop staring. He had been dreaming of this moment for weeks, but now that it was finally here, all he could feel was regret.
"What did I do?" Peter whispered to himself.
Ben's killer lay motionless on the dirty floor.
10 Minutes Earlier –
Peter followed the Oldsmobile through town. He couldn't believe it. After all those hours of searching, the sleepless nights, and the guilty feelings, the killers fell into his lap. Peter tracked the car to a small warehouse on the docks. The docks were notoriously rife with criminal activity. He wasn't surprised they ended up there. Peter swung to an adjacent structure to monitor the killer's movements.
Two men exited the vehicle. Both were similar looking but with slight differences. Peter kept replaying the night his uncle repeatedly died to pull any additional information about the killer he could remember. The passenger matched the description in his memory, but everything happened so quickly that he couldn't be entirely sure. The two men entered the warehouse. Peter swung over and landed on the roof.
A small skylight protruded from the center of the roof. Peter had to wipe the glass with his suit to gain visibility. Peter looked through the glass but wasn't sure what he was seeing. Inside were six men armed with guns. The place was stacked with sealed crates; however, a few had been pried open. Peter couldn't quite make out what was in it, but whatever it was looked like advanced technology. Not exactly something you'd expect a rundown warehouse on the docks to be storing. And with the caliber of goons inside the building, this had to be something shady. Peter could barely make out what they were talking about. Something about a shipment and making sure everything was accounted for.
Peter could barely focus. He didn't have time to piece together this new mystery. There was only time to think through some of the different outcomes. Peter finally found Ben's killer. His heart was racing his body electric. So many thoughts raced through his mind.
"Am I going to do this?"
"Can I even go through with it?"
Peter started to feel nauseous. He's wanted this for so long. He wants revenge. For his uncle. For May. For himself. But as he stands above the man responsible for the worst day of his life, he hears Ben whispering to him.
"We have the power to be better. To be better is a responsibility you can't forsake. If you're trying to be better, you're upholding your responsibility."
Peter gained sudden clarity as if the dark clouds above him had given way. He relaxed his shoulders and unclenched his fists.
"No. I need to do this the right way. It's my responsibility to be better."
Peter started to soak up as much information as he could when the rooftop door suddenly swung open.
"You can totally see this lady changing clothes in the apartment next door!" The first goon said.
"I don't know, man, that seems creepy." the second goon replied incredulously.
The first goon rolled his eyes. "Shut up, man. Just help get this thing set up."
Two goons carrying a large telescope burst through the door. Peter was so focused on the situation below that not even his spider sense was triggered.
Peter jumped, spinning around to face the peeping toms, startling both goons. The goons dropped the telescope, which broke into pieces. Peter stumbled backward into a broken pipe. He lost his balance and crashed through the dirty skylight before he could correct himself.
Peter flipped in the air, sticking a perfect superhero landing.
"Uhh…this isn't where I parked my car?" he quipped to the startled goons.
Silence filled the room before one of the goons started shouting.
"What the hell? Get this guy!"
Almost in unison, the other goons drew their weapons and descended upon Spider-Man. Peter webbed the closest goon's gun to his face before flipping into the air. A torrent of bullets sprayed the areas where Peter once was. Two webs quickly shot from Peter's wrist shooters, sticking to a stack of crates. Peter pulled them down on top of 3 other goons. The two goons from the Oldsmobile tried running for the exit. Peter webbed the doors closed as he approached Ben's killer. Peter may not want to kill him anymore, but that won't stop him from making him feel his pain. The goon with his gun webbed to his face tore free and tackled Spider-Man. Once again, Peter's tunnel vision for his uncle's killer prevented his spider-sense from alerting him.
Peter arm-dragged the goon over his shoulder, slamming him into another crate. He swung around to find the two men running down the access stairs from the roof. Peter dove behind another box while the two men emptied their clips.
"The exit's stuck! We gotta go through the roof!" the Oldsmobile passenger screeched to the goons on the stairs.
The goons that weren't webbed or buried under a pile of crates raced to the roof access door. Peter managed to web two of them, dangling them from the elevated staircase. The two men from the Oldsmobile made it through the door as Peter's webs sealed it shut.
"NO!" Peter shouted.
He looked straight up through the skylight he fell through. Peter took a deep breath, crouched down, and jumped straight back through the hole he had made. Peter spun in the air, catching both men as they made it onto the roof. Peter unleashed a torrent of webs at both men. One dove out of the way, but the other was cocooned to the wall. Peter leaped at the other goon and grabbed him by his jacket.
In the whole light of the city streets, under clear skies, Peter was finally faced to face with Ben's killer. Peter's anger was boiling as hot as ever, but Ben's words replayed prominently in his head.
"Why? Why did you kill my uncle?!" Peter screamed, anger and sadness dripping from every syllable.
"He was a good man. And you took him from me. From his wife! He could have made a difference. So, why? Why did you do it?"
The goon looked terrified. He tried pleading for his life.
"Please, I don't know what you're talking about! I don't know your uncle!"
Peter gripped the goon's jacket tighter. He spun halfway around, flinging the goon next to his webbed-up buddy.
"Three weeks ago. In front of the library. I saw you. You were at my uncle's window. Did you want money? Huh? Did you want his car?" Peter growled.
"Ah-what? Library? I-I don't—" the goon stammered.
"YOU TOOK HIS LIFE! You shot him right there and ran away! Why?"
The goon's eyes widened. It was almost as if a light bulb just went off.
"Wait, WAIT! I remember I REMEMBER!" the goon pleaded. "It wasn't me, man. Please, please! It wasn't me!"
The goon crawled forward as Peter took a step back.
"It was him! I was the driver, but he did it. He's the one that shot your uncle!"
The goon was pointing back at the web cocoon on the wall. Peter was confused. He had been obsessing over this moment but didn't expect it to play out like this. Peter was uncertain. He was ready to dish out the pain he had been feeling, but now he didn't know where to direct it. Peter took another step back as he questioned himself.
Sensing Spider-Man's hesitation, the goon smirked as he pulled a knife and pepper spray from his jacket pocket. He lunged at Spider-Man, swinging the knife and spraying the pepper spray.
Peter's spider-sense ripped through his brain. The goon swung at his face with the knife, but he was able to duck just in time. The spider-sense may have saved him from the knife attack, but it didn't do anything for the cloud of capsaicin that soaked his mask. Peter choked on the spray and clawed at his mask with one hand.
His spider-sense raged again. The goon tried to take another swipe, but Peter blocked his efforts. This time, Peter knocked the goon away. Peter struggled to catch a breath and pushed the goon away. The goon stumbled backward, tripping over the same pipe that toppled Peter earlier. Peter tore his mask off as the goon fell back through the skylight hole. Peter lunged to stop him, but he was too late.
Peter looked down through the broken skylight. He was still trying to catch his breath. Tears stung his face as the capsaicin residue tormented his eyes. Sirens started to howl in the distance. Someone probably heard all of the gunshots and called the police. Broken glass littered the ground around the Oldsmobile passenger.
"No, no…what did I do? I didn't mean to—" Peter tried to reason with himself. It wasn't his fault. He wasn't going to kill him. He changed his mind. It was an accident. The sirens grew stronger as they approached. Peter broke from his trance, webbed an adjacent building, and swung off into the night.
Peter kept repeating Ben's words over and over in his mind. He was responsible for being better. He vowed to never let his emotions take him down this path again. If he hadn't been on this quest for vengeance, he wouldn't be responsible for the death of someone. Even if part of him thought the goon deserved it, it wasn't the responsible way to be better.
Peter swung away into the night, leaving the scene behind.
A black SUV approached and stopped as NYPD and emergency services created a perimeter. The driver steps out, surveys the scene, and returns to the vehicle. He turns to the two men in the back seat.
"Doesn't look good, boss. Might need to let the big man know," the driver stated.
"Shut ya mouth! Let me worry about it. Take us back."
The man who spoke had a deep, gravelly voice. The dark window tint shaded the light that hit him, obscuring his face. His arms were gray and rough looking.
The man beside him took out his phone and leaned against the window. The street light illuminated him just enough to make out the shape of his face. He had a broad look with a larger-than-normal forehead that protruded like a caveman. His hair slicked up into a tight flattop.
"Boss, it's Hammer. We got a problem."
End Chapter 2 -
