Peter Reid

Chapter 11 ~ Blood

Peter's POV

Peter sat his phone down on the lab tabled and rested his head next to it. He was used to being the one in danger, he didn't like not knowing what was going on. Lifting his head, he looked at the fun project he started last Friday and cleared it away. Pulling out a new piece of paper he got to work. Experimenting with designs and materials he grinned. Grabbing Tony's nanotech and some steel he got to work.

As the night went on, he hummed to Tony's music and glanced up to see him and Bruce leaning over green liquid. As he looked down, he wondered if colors should be incorporated into the design. Glancing up he changed the holograph to incorporate a soft lavender. It was a color Spencer seemed to always wear. Leaning back, he looked over his tech. "Hey, kid. What are ya working on?" Tony said startling him out of his thoughts.

He grinned, "a gun." Both men seemed a little concerned by the topic, making Peter roll his eyes. "Not for me, for Spence. He gets jumpy when he doesn't have a way to protect himself." He toned down on his grin, glancing at his phone. "So, it's going to be a weapon for him. It's a gun that passes as a watch and a beaded bracelet as bullets. He has to do is touch the bracelets together and press this small button. If it's not done at the same time than it doesn't activate."

Tony looked interested, "why the purple?"

A smile formed and he shrugged, "I like bright colors and Spencer likes purple. Just because it's supposed to be inconspicuous, doesn't mean it shouldn't be colorful." He turned back to his work.

"Your fine with him shooting people?" Tony asked and Bruce looked at him with curiosity. "Your whole thing is the no-killing rule."

Peter frowned twirling the metal in his hands, "I don't like killing. But neither does he... he- back- before- In 2007 Spencer was kidnapped by a serial killer." He watched both men tense. "During that time, he was drugged, beaten, and forced to pick someone to die while he was live-streamed to his team who saw everything... the man wanted him to confess a sin so he could feel justified to kill him" He watched Bruce turn a little green in the knuckles. "But he was smart even in that state, he was able to give his team the location without making his captor suspicious. However, after the message he was drugged again... in his state, he told the man how he had abandoned his mom." Peter took a deep breath rubbing at the metal. "He was forced to dig his own grave. But his team got there in time. Their flashlights alerted the serial killer, and, in the distraction, Spencer took the other man's gun and shot him. He saved himself..."

Taking a deep breath he continued, "if he had this, he could've avoided the situation entirely. Maybe he never would've become addicted to the drug he had been drugged with. Maybe he never would've had so many sleepless nights... he told me about it a year after it had happened. Spencer was staying the weekend and had a bad nightmare. He told me how he wished he never had to shoot the man. That the man had a split personality, one of a cold calculated killer and an abusive father, both heavily religious. Then his real personality, a kindhearted kid who had to take drugs to escape his hell of a life. The real personality was one of the reasons that Spencer lived..." Peter continued, "but maybe I can be the reason he survives, you know?"

Tony had his arms around Peter, and he realized he had been crying. "I didn't know about that."

Peter shrugged into Tony's chest, hugging the man back. "It was never realized to the public. The FBI keeps it on the down-low. You guys can't bring it up. He's moved on, he's gotten past that part of his life. Please," he said, and Bruce's hand landed on his shoulder.

"We know how to keep a secret, thank you for sharing." The man was no longer green, but he looked so sad. "When I meet Spencer, I promise not to say a word. I know how hard it is to lose inner demons."