Heroes For Hire: The Gang Wars Trilogy Book 1: After Midnight

chapter 4: Big News

Peter parker sat at his desk, in his office suite on the top floor of none other than Parker industries. Even he had never thought he would come this far. Just a friendly neighborhood kid from Queens, and now he was the business mogul Forbes magazine called Tony Stark-Lite. He could see the comparison, that billionaire playboy had once been his mentor. Inside the world of business and out.
Taking another sip of his hot coffee, Peter opened the news feed on his desktop to see what was going on in the world. A local article, by Peter's close friend Ben Urich caught his eye. Opening the link to the Daily Bugle page, the full article spread out before him:
Monsters in New York? What's new?!
Last night, Hank's tavern was the subject of two attacks. The first was apparently a gang-related drive-by shooting. Nothing big for the big apple.
But, according to witnesses, the second assault was instigated by 'a wolfman' with 'claws and fur and everything!'
What's going on New York? Monday night it was Frankenstein, last night it was the wolfman! When are these Monster Murders going to stop? When are the authorities going to do something? Is this even a real thing?
Police refute the existence of these monsters, claiming the violence is the result of escalated tensions between rival street gangs. Most of the victims last night were known to be affiliated with the Flashing Blades. All of them, as well as the NYPD and other frightened civilians would like to think locals Misty Knight and Jessica Jones for having been there to save the day. According to one of the young toughs ''If it weren't for those super-broads we'd all be dead right now! The Maggia is behind all this! Better watch out, Hammerhead cuz the Heroes For Hire are gonna getcha."

-

The ten-by-ten cell smelt of antiseptic and sterility. The phosphorescent bulbs blinked in the cage embedded into the ceiling of his cell. There was no window for him to see it through, but he heard the moon in the night's sky. He heard it beckoning to him, calling him to arms. It needed him to carry out it's bidding. If he did not something terrible was going to happen, if only he could be sure of what.

But he was unsure of everything. He had been sure he would be able to stop the thief at the Met after escaping, it was what Knoshu had led him to do. It was his destiny. He had failed.

He sat in a single-man cell in the intensive management unit of the New York jail. He had been segregated after an altercation with half the inmates in his assigned dorm. Most of them ended up in the infirmary with severe wounds, and in one case internal bleeding. The scum of the city had mocked him, and were only more blind fools oblivious to the duty they impede him from performing.

Marc hadn't slept since his arrest on Monday, and tho he had no way of keeping track of the time in isolation it was Wednesday. Every time he tried to rest, his mind would not allow it. He was bombarded with visions. Same as the premonitions he had prior to escaping Ravencroft, but different. Much more vivid in detail. Mixed with memories, and hard to decipher. He barely ate the meager meals they provided him. His health was deteriorating.

The loudspeaker built into the locking mechanism crackled with static. "Mr. Spector?" a gravelly voice called.

"You've got an attorney visit. Stand against the far wall facing it with your hands behind your back."

-

Foggy sat patiently in his side of the visiting booth for dangerous inmates. Considering the privacy one is legally given with their defense counsel no cameras were on either the visitor or inmates side. The loudspeakers and call buttons built into the locking mechanism also came wired with microphones, and these had recorded many inadvertent admissions of guilt for a number of defendants. But, taking any efforts to corrupt the recordings would be suspicious so Foggy did not.

The buzzing and whirring of a door opening alerted Foggy. On the other side of the shatterproof glass the door opened and Marc Spector entered in handcuffs. He was seated roughly by an attending corrections officer who then exited, leaving the two alone.
Foggy looked at Marc, and wondered how Matt had seen someone worth saving. Marc seemed a shell of a man. His dark brown hair seemed to be prematurely thinning on top, or migrated to the unkempt beard that had begun sprouting on his face. His dark eyes sat sunken into hollow sockets ringed by the shadow of restlessness. His jumpsuit seemed much too large for him like he was swimming in the polyester of the fabric.