Authoress Note: Welcome to Chapter 5 of Iron Maiden. I want to thank those who have left reviews for this story. It does mean a lot to me that you guys are enjoying this story. I can't wait to show you guys what happened during this story. Without further ado Chapter 5. ENJOY!

Chapter 5

Time had passed and there was no sign of finding Tony alive and it was beginning to tear everyone apart, from Pepper, to Obadiah, to Rhodey, and finally to Tony's little sister. It had made the tensions run high. Tensions ran a bit too high for the young woman that was trying to keep the company running the way that her brother would have wanted it to run in his absence.

They ended up having a talk about the search for Tony was now coming to a close. But it caused turmoil for everyone in the room.

Pepper and Abigail watched Obadiah and Rhodey in the deep conversation.

Obadiah, grave, looked over and caught Pepper's and Abigail's eyes before walking off shaking his head.

Rhodey walked slowly to leave the room, when Pepper stepped into his path.

"So that's it? Everyone's pulling the plug and moving on…" Pepper said, trying her best to remain calm. She wasn't about to lose it in front of Abigail who needed her the most at the moment.

"There's nothing left we can do. If there was any indication Tony was still alive-" Rhodey said before being cut off by a choked sob from Abigail and Pepper cutting him off with some fiery words.

"Spare me. I read the official email. Thought maybe you'd have something different to say." She said as she wrapped her arms around Abigail to lead her into her office. "If anyone could figure out how to beat the odds, it's Tony. If it was you over there, he'd be finding a way to get you back. Or inventing a new one."

"What do you want me to do?" Rhodey questioned taking a breath as he looked at Pepper. He wanted to find Tony for Abigail so she wouldn't have to bury another family member. He knew that she was the only Stark left besides her older brother and leaving the Stark name in her hands… he knew that sooner or later things would get too hard for her and she would end up giving up.

"Be a better friend to him." She snapped before storming out of the room with Abigail trying her best to get the young 21 year old out of there. She needed to get the girl home before anything else could happen and cause more torment for the girl. She felt terrible that she was now finding out everything that was happening wasn't going to stop.

"Do… do you really think that Rhodey would give up on Tony?" Abigail asked softly sniffling as Pepper got her to the garage

"No, I don't think he will. He'll find Tony. I promise you, he will find Tony."

Abigail sniffled softly hoping that Pepper was right that they would find Tony and bring him home soon.

IMIMIM

Abigail stood with Pepper at the airbase waiting patiently for her brother to finally be reunited with her.

The rear ramp of the C-17 came down causing the light to blind Rhodey and Tony who was in a chair.

Pepper looked relieved, patting Abigail's hand lightly.

Rhodey wheeled Tony down the ramp. Rhodey stopped when Tony began to speak to him.

"Help me out of this thing-" Tony said struggling to his feet, before faltering.

Rhodey steadied him on his feet. "I got you, pal."

They walked together as Pepper and Abigail came forward. Pepper's eyes met up with Rhodey's, and he nodded to her.

"Thank you." Pepper said softly before turning to Tony, who was a ghost of his former self, but she put a brave face on.

Tony managed to smile looking at the two most important women in his life. He noticed that both their eyes were red. "Your eyes are red. A few tears for your long-lost boss?" Tony mused as he looked at Pepper.

"Tears of joy. I hate job hunting." Pepper said softly.

Happy came around and held the limo door open for Tony. "Good to see you again, Sir."

"You do something new with your hair?" Tony questioned as he looked at Happy, his brows slightly furrowing.

"Wouldn't dream of it, Sir."

Pepper and Abigail helped Tony into the limo before they both joined Tony in the back.

Pepper's eyes met with Happy's in the mirror.

"Where to, Mr. Stark?" Happy questioned looking back at his boss through the mirror.

"We're due at the hospital." Pepper pointed out to Happy.

"No - to the office. I've been in captivity for three months. There's only two things I want to

do. I want to eat a cheeseburger. And I want to hold a press conference."

Pepper looked stunned at what Tony was thinking.

"Tony." Abigail said softly.

Tony's eyes slid to his little sister and a small smile came to his lips. "I missed you Abs…"

Abigail bit her lip softly knowing that he had missed her as much as she missed him. "I'm glad your back, big brother." She said softly as a few tears slid down her cheeks.

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This is the end of Chapter 5. I hope that you enjoy this next chapter. I tried my best to write this out and make it as long as I could. Please leave a review and let me know what you think of this chapter. Reviews help me keep going when it comes to writing. I hopefully will update next week with a brand new chapter. Until next time.