Search for the Soul Gem

Chapter Fifty-Four

(Tony Stark's Point of View)

     The apartment was violently silent when I entered it. She'd only been gone for maybe six hours, but everything seemed much darker. She filled it up and with her gone, it left a vast, threatening emptiness in her place. I couldn't bear it. Every shadow lurked behind me, waiting to attack me around every corner. The silence suffocated me and settled like a vice in my throat. I couldn't stay here. I couldn't stand it. The video played on repeat in my head. The blood still stained my vision even though it'd been washed away. She's left me the compass, thinking I'd be smart enough to find it out but I couldn't. It didn't spin when we held it but simply pointing to the east wasn't going to help me. There was a lot of land to the east. It horrified me that I couldn't figure it out.

     "JARVIS," I barked, voice hoarse.

     "Sir?" I bent over, finding my shoes.

     "Where is Happy?" I asked absently.

     "He is in Miss Scaffer's office," JARVIS replied. I paused.

     "Lucy's office?" I repeated.

     "Yes sir," I stood and made my way toward the elevator.

     "Would you like me to announce your arrival?" he asked.

     "No, I'll do that myself," I said. The elevator was slow and hushed as I rode it down. No music played. JARVIS didn't say anything. Even the elevator crept along silently. Once the elevator doors slid open, I stepped into the quiet office block that was almost always buzzing with people. It was uncharacteristically empty. Not a single person remained. My footsteps echoed off the walls as I made my way down the hall, trying to figure out what I'd say when I saw Happy. Part of me wanted to shake him. How could he have left her alone! But part of me knew that it wouldn't have made much of a difference. She hadn't been alone. Banner and Peter had been with her and they still got her. They would have gone through him to get what they wanted just like Peter and Banner. But still, what would have happened? As I neared her office, Happy came into view. He was sitting behind Lucy's desk with his face buried in his hand. I hesitated at the door. Did I really think I could handle talking to him right now? Lucy wasn't even gone for more than eight hours. I pushed the door open quietly and stood in the office. It was dead silent, like everywhere else seemed to be. I watched the man silently beating himself up. I couldn't help it but suddenly so much rage filled me. How dare he be upset. This was partly his fault.

     "Did you come here to think too?" I asked, shattering the silence. Happy jumped and looked up at me. He was completely silent. I hadn't seen him since I'd been back. I'd been avoiding it. He swallowed hard but still said nothing. I started toward him. He jumped out of the chair to face me, "I came here to do that. I thought 'maybe this is all a bad dream and she's really down here working late'. Then I remembered. She doesn't work late. That's me," I paused by the window, looking down on messy Manhattan. "She's not the one who stays out all night trying to fix something that doesn't need fixing. She's not the one whose job continuously takes her away from me for extended periods of time. And she's not the one who leaves me alone here at the tower with virtually nothing here to defend against all the shit people in the world who want to hurt her. That's me," I said, still staring down at the streets below me.

     "Sir-" He started but I turned toward him and cut him off.

     "Virtually nothing here to defend," I spat, looking over at him violently. He swallowed hard.