The Ides of July // Loki - Book 1 ✓

Chapter 6: No One Man

ANNA TURNS BACK to face the man in the leather jacket, who releases her arms and strides confidently from the elevator. She watches him walk, briefly considering jamming her thumb against the button to close the doors and take her away - away from here and from everything in her head - and back to her own bed. Instead, she turns to face the man in the suit, trying to inject confidence in her voice as she steps out of the elevator.

"What is Restitution?"

The man lifts an eyebrow, his brown eyes glinting with something she can't quite read, "Well, the dictionary defines restitution as the restor--"

"I know what it means," she interrupts. "Why am I here?"

"That's a wonderful question," he replies. "I, for one, am not equipped to answer it. My colleague acted of his own volition in bringing you here. I'm not quite privy to his motives myself at the moment."

The man in the leather jacket has returned, and he hands Anna a bottle of water which she stares at warily before accepting it.

"She needs our protection," he tells the man in the suit matter-of-factly.

"From..." the man in the suit replies, clearly unamused.

Anna takes a deep breath, "Iron Man. Tony Stark."

The brown haired man in the suit turns his head slowly to face her, and a look of annoyance is quickly replaced by amusement.

"Iron Man," he repeats. "Bullshit."

The man in the leather jacket reaches into his pocket and reveals a cell phone, which he hands to the other man. After a few seconds, Anna can hear the sounds of Istanbul's Sultanahmet district through the tiny speakers of the phone along with her own shouts of horror. Her mind replays the incident again, matching the sounds of the video with the horrific images scarred into her brain, and she feels sick.

"Hmph," the man in the suit hands the phone back, then steps forward to extend a hand to Anna. "My apologies, I didn't mean to be rude. My name is Magnus."

She takes his hand lightly, expecting a firm handshake, but instead he pulls her toward him and spins her around. In a deft movement, he transfers her hand to his left hand and drapes his right arm over her shoulder, squeezing her shoulders reassuringly.

"I understand you've been through quite the ordeal, my dear, and you mustn't worry," he tells her. "You are certainly safe and very welcome here."

She looks up at Magnus, then back at the man in the leather jacket. His hands are tucked into his pockets as he watches her, his thick black hair waving away from his forehead, and his lips pressed tightly together. A tattoo peeks out from the collar of his shirt on the side of his neck, the black ink swirling against his tanned olive skin. He meets her eyes and nods before turning away and disappearing down the opposite end of the hallway.

Turning her attention back to Magnus, she allows her shoulders to relax. Her heartbeat is racing, and she's certain he can feel it pressing through her palm into his. If he does, he says nothing about it, but continues chattering away about her safety as he leads her down the stark white hallway.

"Tell me," he says, squeezing her hand, "What were you doing when it happened? When Iron Man attacked?"

"I..." Anna stutters, "I was meeting a source. He, um...I'm a journalist. He..."

Her voice trails, and the man tightens his grip on her shoulder.

"It's okay, you're safe," Magnus replies. "That bastard can't hurt you here."

Anna looks up at him, and she sees the fire in his deep chocolate brown eyes. His arm feels heavy around her shoulder, like a thick wool blanket protecting her from the elements in the midst of a cruel blizzard, and she believes him. What she doesn't believe, however, is how or why this could've happened in the first place.

"But...but...why," she mutters, surprising herself by saying it out loud. "Iron Man, he's good. I thought he was good. Rifat - the man who was killed - he was a decent man. He didn't...I don't..."

Magnus freezes, roughly turning Anna to face him with his hands in a vice grip on her upper arms. She feels the absence of his arm on the back of her neck, the cold air causing the hair on her skin to stand on end, and looks into his eyes. The fire is still there, but now it's blazing hot with anger.

"Iron Man," he spits out, "has far too much power. Unchecked, he's like a disease run rampant, destroying everything in its path. He is not good. He is a plague on humanity and a danger to us all. No one man should have all of that power."

"I thought..." Anna replies, her eyes clouded with confusion. She blinks back tears, her head throbbing and her arms aching from Magnus' strong grip, as he shakes her.

"You thought wrong," Magnus interrupts, his voice sharp as a dagger to the chest. "He tried to kill you, and he won't stop murdering until someone stops him. Until we stop him."

Now playing: "POWER" by Kanye West.

*****
Author's Note

Impatiently waiting for Loki? Don't worry. He's coming soon!

x