After saying a quick goodbye to Charles and Erik, Alex left the Xavier estate.
He arrived at a private suite in an upscale hotel, where Howard Stark was already waiting.
To Alex's surprise, Peggy Carter was there too.
His gaze swept over Howard, then over Peggy, as if he had just uncovered so kind of shocking secret.
A man and a woman alone in a hotel room?
What's going on here?
"Why are you standing at the door like an idiot? Get in already," Howard called out casually while straightening his tie in front of the wardrobe. When he looked up and caught Alex's suggestive expression, he couldn't help but let out a bitter chuckle.
"What are you imagining now, kid?" Howard waved him in. "Co on, we've got serious business to talk about."
Of course, Alex knew they weren't here for anything indecent—he was just teasing Howard.
Not because he trusted Howard's character—far from it. Frankly, he wouldn't be surprised at all if the infamous playboy did make a move on Peggy Carter.
But let's be real—Peggy Carter was not soone a guy like Howard Stark could handle.
Alex walked in, glanced at Peggy, and couldn't help but poke the bear: "Agent Carter, I see you're here too. Hopefully this ti you'll send soone without a fear of heights to tail ."
Peggy's face darkened like a bruised eggplant.
Last ti, she had soone tail Alex—and not only had he caught them, he'd dumped the poor guy on a rooftop and even sent her a ssage threatening her.
It had been humiliating. Absolutely humiliating.
"Alex, do you know what it ans to attack a federal agent?" Peggy's voice was frosty.
"I don't care."
Alex shrugged. "Though I am curious—what's the penalty for threatening a high-ranking official of, say, the Strategic Holand Intervention, Enforcent and Logistics Division?"
Peggy nearly exploded.
Wasn't that a direct shot at her?
"Peggy, Alex—cool it! We're all on the sa side here!" Howard jumped in, clearly getting a headache from the tension. "Let's not turn this into a duel. What happened before was a misunderstanding, rember?"
Howard knew Peggy had ford a bias against Alex because of that misunderstanding—and yes, she had sent soone to follow him. But he'd already cleared things up with her after their last secret founders' eting.
In that eting, Howard had revealed the existence of mutants to the others. S.H.I.E.L.D. had investigated and confird the truth of Alex's intel.
So yes—Peggy had completely misunderstood him.
Still, given Peggy Carter's pride, there was no way she'd ever apologize to Alex over sothing so trivial. At best, she'd just drop the investigation and leave him alone from now on.
And from her point of view, that was already a huge concession. She hadn't even pursued charges after her agent ended up in the hospital.
But who knew Alex would greet her with sarcasm and smug threats the mont he saw her again? She couldn't stomach that.
"Alex, Peggy didn't target you personally. She just… misunderstood so things. And now it's cleared up."
"She's not going to co after you again," Howard explained patiently. Then he pulled Peggy aside and tried to talk her down.
Eventually, he managed to calm her down.
"Mr. Stark, I don't know what you wanted to et about," Alex said, folding his arms, "but here's the thing—I'm not in the mood to talk if I'm in a bad mood. And seeing people I don't want to see? Puts in a very bad mood."
Like, right now.
"Alex, co on—have a little grace, will you?" Howard was at his wits' end. "Girls don't like guys who nitpick every little thing."
Alex didn't miss a beat. "That's fine. Girls fight to win my attention, not the other way around."
Howard Stark: "…"
Damn. That was a serious flex.
Even he wouldn't dare say sothing like that.
"Alex—"
"Stark!"
Peggy cut Howard off sharply. Clearly, she wasn't going to waste another second in this room. "You'd better pray you get sothing useful out of this."
With that, she spun on her heel and slamd the door behind her.
Now it was just Alex and Howard left in the room.
"Alex…"
"Mr. Stark," Alex said with a straight face. "Now that the old lady's gone, don't tell you're about to lecture too?"
"No," Howard said, walking over and clapping a hand on Alex's shoulder. "Actually, I was going to say—pissing off Peggy to that extent? Kid, that's not sothing just any man can pull off."
Then he shook his head with a sigh. "But honestly… Peggy's a bit of a tragic figure too."
"You going to be the hero who saves the poor damsel?"
"What? No! Rogers was my friend!"
"Then you should help her. You owe it to your friend."
"…You really think so?"
Alex's eyes widened. "Holy hell, you were actually considering it? Damn, Stark. That's beast behavior right there."
Howard coughed, trying to cover his embarrassnt. "Ahem—anyway! Let's get to business."
He pulled out a sleek designer suit and handed it to Alex.
"What's this for?"
"Put it on. We'll talk on the way."
Howard began fixing his own tie in front of the mirror.
"No, no—Mr. Stark, you better tell now. I don't want to get dressed up just to find out you're selling off sowhere."
"You brat." Howard shook his head, equal parts amused and annoyed.
He couldn't understand how Alex could be so casual with him. Stark was a founder of S.H.I.E.L.D., a tech mogul, one of the most powerful n in the world. Most people trembled in his presence.
But this kid? Treated him like so third-rate side character.
Still, Howard secretly enjoyed this more relaxed vibe.
"Three days ago," Howard began, "our people spotted what looked like a UB6 vehicle."
"UB6?"
"Yeah—the designation we gave that chanical lifeform you found. Turns out, you were right. That car was a sentient machine."
"We've been studying the energy signatures these things give off. Not only do they emit a unique frequency themselves, but even objects they touch can carry residual radiation."
"Three days ago, one of my colleagues detected that sa radiation… on General Ross's car."
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