Choices

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten: Doing Something Fatherly

"I've never felt so enlightened. Every page I turn I only find myself feeling more alone." -Elysium: Bear's Den  

-

 "Are the results up yet?" Tony asks as he takes apart my leg in the laboratory.

 "Nope, Lucis is still examining the data: 48%," I reply from where I sit on the edge of a table holding the tablet.

 When we first woke up, Steve stood in the kitchen cooking breakfast. Tony gave him a hard time about being a hostess; Steve ignored him as he said he always made breakfast for him and Bucky, so he was just doubling the ingredients. After breakfast, all four of us headed to the hotel. Steve and Bucky offered to go for backup just in case the kidnapper decides to attack again. Steve called for a taxi before we ever left so we would not be outside any longer than we had to be. It would be a nightmare if paparazzi or anyone took any picture of us- both of us in our pajamas with my obviously missing leg.

 When we entered the hotel, Bucky went ahead of us to make sure there was not anyone in the lobby. I kept an arm around Tony and Steve's shoulders as I swung towards the elevator. Bucky distracted the man at the front desk, ensuring he wouldn't look at us up until we got on the elevator.

 To everyone's relief, the monster was not there. The suite is just how we had left it. Since Tony doesn't have any of his technology with him, he used a program on his phone to examine the room. However, the program only holds the footage and dimensions of the room; it requires a different database to conclude the results. As Tony scanned the room, I slipped away to change into daytime clothes. A pair of jeans makes the missing leg look a bit more unobtrusive.

 After we packed up, Bucky got the job of carrying the two suitcases since I still needed help walking. Yes, I could have jumped, but one can only jump so far on one leg before either falling or getting tired. I kept one arm around Steve's arm to stay balanced as Tony left to call the valet. We soon had to part ways as Tony and I were headed back to California. We thanked Steve and Bucky for taking us in for the night before we leave for the air base.

 As soon as we got to the tower, Tony and I go up to the living level. After unpacking, the two of us headed up to the workshop. Tony works on my broken prosthetic as I analyze the files. We're in a different workshop than where we usually go. Luckily this one has no stairs.

 "Ah," Tony puffs as he pulls something out from the prosthetic. He holds the melted device up, "Recognize what this is?"

 "The cooling unit?" I guess as it is too deformed for me to know.

 "Precisely so," Tony sets it back down.

 "Why did it break?"

 "Appears to be by a break in the circuit, technical dysfunction. I'll see to it that the next one won't have the same issue."

 "Ah, but what melted?"

 "The ATX power connector. It was attached on both the leg and the base," Tony tosses the melted device into the garbage can.

 "Oh," I slowly nod as I look down at the tablet, "92%."

 Tony humphs in response. I drum my fingers against the table as I wait for the data to finish being evaluated. A few minutes later the results are shown on the glass screen. I study the statistics and characteristics of the room. It feels as if someone's hand is gripping my stomach and slowly squeezing it as the suspected is confirmed.

 The concave footprints are just as large as the ones in Alex's room. There are only three toe outlines on each foot. I do not think the monster had been standing there for as long as he had been in Alex's room, reason being that I could not see the footprints when we were in the room. Just because I couldn't see them with my own eye doesn't mean I can't see them clearly on the digital room model. Tony's technology is much better than my eyesight.