As soon as the car stopped steadily, a hurried sound of claws scratching against the door came from the yard, mixed with whimpering low growls.
Logan smiled, took out the key and just opened the door when a black shadow rushed over, almost knocking him off balance.
It was Ares.
It had only been a few days since they last met, and this fellow seemed to have grown a bit more.
Its fur shone brightly, its paws scratched his arms, its tail wagged like a little motor, and its tongue licked his face wildly.
“Alright, alright, stop licking, it’s filthy.” Logan pushed the dog’s head away with a smile, bent down to rub its ears, “Were you a good boy at home? You didn’t tear up the house, did you?”
The temporary nanny hired to look after the dog nearby hurriedly said, “Ares has been very good, it’s just that every day it crouches at the door waiting for you to come back.”
Logan’s heart softened for a moment, and he rubbed the dog’s head a couple more times.
He settled the nanny’s wages, and after she left, he slumped onto the sofa.
Ares immediately edged closer, resting its head on his legs, lying there obediently and motionless.
He rested for just a short while, then took out his phone and called Maggie.
It rang three times before the other side answered.
The background noise was a bit loud, sounding like it was in a coffee shop.
“Hello? You’re back?” Maggie’s voice carried a hint of pleasant surprise, along with a bit of deliberate, suppressed care.
“Yeah, just got home.” Logan had an unlit cigar between his lips, his fingers stroking Ares’s fur, “Free tonight? Come over for dinner.”
“No, I have to help Matt review tonight.” Maggie paused, then softly added, “Are you okay? You sound a bit tired.”
“What could possibly be wrong, I just went on a business trip.” Logan didn’t say much else, “Alright then, go do your thing, I’ll come find you tomorrow.”
After hanging up the phone, he didn’t have much appetite, so he simply took Ares out for a walk.
The man and dog walked leisurely along the street, and the setting sun stretched their shadows out very long.
When passing by the park, Ares happily ran around a couple of times, and when it came back, it had a branch in its mouth, presenting it to him like a treasure.
Logan took the branch with a mix of amusement and exasperation and threw it away.
Watching the dog happily trot off to retrieve it, the lingering hostility he had accumulated from killing people unknowingly dissipated by more than half.
Meanwhile, at the S.H.I.E.L.D.
New York branch.
Nick Fury stood before the large screen, his single eye staring at the satellite photos sent back from above, his face as dark as the bottom of a pot.
The photos showed the cave stronghold in the Hindu Kush Mountains.
Corpses lay scattered across the cave entrance, the rock walls were riddled with bullet holes, and the barrels of two heavy machine guns were twisted into bizarre pretzel shapes.
“Tony Stark has broken free. Have you found out who saved him?” His voice was low, carrying his habitual oppressive presence.
Agent Coulson stood to the side, holding a folder and pushing up his glasses: “There is no exact news yet. According to intelligence reports, on the day Stark went missing, his bodyguard Logan Howlett also left New York, and his private jet’s destination was the Afghanistan border. We speculate that it should be him.”
“A bodyguard?” Fury narrowed his single eye, pointing at the twisted gun barrels in the photo, “Can an ordinary bodyguard twist heavy machine gun barrels like this? Can they leave dozens of militants with only a single fatal wound all over their bodies?”
“We investigated Howlett’s background; his identity is very clean.
Born in Texas in 1980, he served in the military, worked in security after retiring, and came to New York three years ago.” Coulson paused, his tone carrying a hint of puzzlement, “But it’s too clean, clean to the point of looking deliberately fabricated. This chapter was copied from novelping . com without permission.
Furthermore, according to the analysis of the site traces, besides close-quarters combat marks, there are also obvious signs of magnetic field disturbance.”
“Mutant.” Fury concisely drew a conclusion, “Go investigate and find out if he has any connection to the X-Men. In addition, head over to Stark Tower, talk to Tony Stark, and probe his stance.”
“Understood.” Coulson nodded in acknowledgment.
The next morning, Coulson appeared at the Stark Tower lobby carrying a briefcase.
He wore a crisp suit and a mild smile, putting on the standard airs of a government worker.
At this moment, Logan was slumped in the lounge.
His vacation started counting from today, and he originally planned to leave at noon, but suddenly Jarvis’s voice echoed in the room.
“Mr. Howlett, downstairs there is an Agent Coulson asking to see Mr. Stark, saying he is from the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division.”
Logan raised an eyebrow.
S.H.I.E.L.D.
arrived quite fast.
He picked up his flask, took a sip, and slowly stood up: “Where’s Tony?”
“Mr. Stark is in the laboratory, and Miss Pepper has already gone to receive him.”
Logan smiled playfully.
Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division—this name was so long and tongue-twisting, as if afraid others wouldn’t know they dealt in covert operations.
He wasn’t in a hurry to leave; instead, he sat back down on the sofa, intending to watch the show.
Before long, footsteps came from outside.
Pepper led Coulson toward the laboratory.
When passing by the lounge, Coulson’s steps paused slightly, and his gaze pierced through the glass door, landing on Logan inside, who was puffing on a cigar with a lazy expression.
It was him.
Coulson had an idea in his mind, but his face remained expressionless as he continued walking forward with Pepper.
Inside the laboratory, Tony was pacing around a pile of parts.
The electromagnet on his chest was connected to an external power supply, and with a welding torch in hand, he was pondering the blueprints for mark ii.
Hearing the footsteps, he didn’t even raise his head.
“Pepper, I said, no visitors today.”
“Mr. Stark, this is Agent Coulson, from… Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division.” After finishing that long name, Pepper herself found it a bit tongue-twisting.
Tony put down the welding torch, turned around, and wore a standard fake smile on his face: “Oh? Agent? Looking for me? I recall I haven’t evaded taxes, nor have I sold contraband weapons, right?”
Stark is joking.” Coulson smiled mildly, handing over his ID, “We are here to understand the specifics of your lost contact in Afghanistan.
After all, since it involves overseas militants, we need to make a record.”
“A record?” Tony raised an eyebrow, pulled over a chair to sit down, and spread his hands, “There’s nothing much to say. Encountered a sandstorm, got separated from the team, and was rescued by locals. It’s just that simple.”
“Yet according to the information we hold, you lost contact for a full month.” Coulson said unhurriedly, “Furthermore, near the location where you lost contact, we discovered a militant stronghold where everyone inside was dead, and the manner of death was… very special.”
Tony skipped a beat in his heart, but didn’t show it at all on the surface.
Instead, he scoffed: “Agent, you wouldn’t happen to think I did this, would you? I was unarmed, with shrapnel still in my chest, and I could kill dozens of militants all by myself? You overestimate me too much.”
“Of course not you.” Coulson smiled, changing the subject, “I heard that your bodyguard, Mr. Logan Howlett, also went to Afghanistan on the day you lost contact?”
Tony was crystal clear in his mind; this was aimed at Logan.
He leaned against the back of the chair, his tone casual: “Yeah, I had him go locally to look for me, is there a problem? Isn’t a bodyguard’s duty to protect their employer?”
“No problem.” Coulson nodded, his tone flat, “It’s just that we’re very curious how Mr. Howlett managed to find you in the vast mountains, and how he rescued you from the hands of dozens of militants. After all, ordinary bodyguards don’t seem capable of doing such things.”
“He’s amazing.” Tony said it matter-of-factly, “Former special forces elite, hand-to-hand combat champion, isn’t beating up dozens of grunts a piece of cake? Otherwise, why would I spend so much money to hire him? Just for looks?”
Coulson was choked up by him for a moment, but didn’t get angry.
He knew Tony Stark had always been impervious to reasoning, and trying to pull words out of his mouth was as hard as ascending to heaven.
“Then I wonder if Mr. Howlett is around right now? We’d like to chat with him as well.”
“Not here.” Tony said without thinking, “Just finished saving me, exhausted, taking a vacation to rest. When he’ll be back isn’t certain, maybe two weeks, maybe a month, depends on his mood.”
Coulson: “…”
He had already seen him earlier; this was clearly telling bold-faced lies and deliberately fobbing him off.
After chatting idly for a few more sentences without extracting any useful information, Coulson had no choice but to stand up and take his leave.
Before leaving, he deliberately glanced toward the direction of the lounge.
The door was half-open, and he could faintly see a person sitting inside, raising a wine glass and shaking it at him, as if provoking him.
Coulson helplessly shook his head and turned to leave.
After the people left, Tony strolled over to the lounge, pushed open the door, and saw Logan leaning against the sofa with a malicious smile.
“You’re deliberately watching me make a fool of myself, right?” Tony sat down with annoyance, “S.H.I.E.L.D.’s people have already come knocking, aren’t you worried at all?”
“What’s there to worry about?” Logan shrugged indifferently, took a swig of alcohol, “They don’t have any evidence anyway. They can’t just haul me off to be sliced up because I can fight, right? If it really came to that, you’d be the first one to object.”
Tony rolled his eyes, but didn’t refute.
He indeed wouldn’t agree.
“However, S.H.I.E.L.D. has set their sights on you, act more low-profile from now on.”
“Got it.” Logan nodded nonchalantly.
He stood up, picked up the jacket draped over the back of the chair: “Alright, I’m on vacation. Don’t look for me if there’s nothing, and try not to look for me even if there is something. Unless it’s good news like a salary raise or a bonus.”
“Get lost, get lost, get lost.”
Tony waved his hand impatiently, watching Logan sway as he walked out, the corners of his mouth unconsciously curling upwards.