Mr. Hat was right, the call was a trap. They’d dangled Mel on TV, knowing Liam would reach out. She was bait and regardless of how obvious that was, they knew he’d fall for it. He was such an idiot. He’d put them both in danger by not thinking.

The only bright spot in all of this was Mr. Hat being well prepared. Instead of being forced onto the street with nowhere to stay, or worse being caught by The Hunt, they’d moved apartments in the nick of time. Liam couldn’t say for sure if this was a plan Mr. Hat had in place for months, or a last second workaround, born from the addition of another person in the first apartment. All he knew was Mr. Hat had kept them afloat.

With his ears turning red, Liam looked to Mr. Hat. The man was gazing out the window. The scowl on his face grew larger by the minute. He’d just said the team damaged the only chair in the last apartment. Surprisingly sounding hurt when he talked about it. Did he care that much about the chair? It was a piece of garbage. No, Liam knew what he was mad about and it had nothing to do with furniture. He was upset with Liam’s stupidity and trying to vent at something else.

Trying to change the subject Liam asked, “What are they doing?”

Liam was still pressed up against the wall, refusing to look. However irrational it was, he was afraid the team would spot him if he moved from cover. So his only way to get information was from Mr. Hat.

“H-Bar is looking through the kitchen, Gladius is in the bathroom, and Skip just entered the bedroom. Still looking for any clues to what we were up to,” Mr. Hat said. Not bothering to look over at Liam.

“Did we leave anything that could point them here?”

By saying we, Liam was trying to take some heat out of his question. This was Mr. Hat’s place after all and Liam knew nothing about it so he couldn’t leave any hints behind pointing The Hunt here.

“No, this place is clean,” Mr. Hat said. Shaking his head for added emphasis.

Relief flooded through Liam at more good news. All of which seemed to come from Mr. Hat. Just another example of how Liam was screwing things up and Mr. Hat was pulling it back together.

“Can we listen to what they’re doing?” Liam asked. He’d never placed a surveillance system in the old place, but that didn’t mean Mr. Hat hadn’t. He’d planned everything else out in advance, maybe he’d foreseen this need as well?

“I don’t put cameras where I live. It’s an unnecessary security risk,” Mr. Hat’s tone begged Liam to argue, and he wanted to. He could point out how much help they’d be in providing security. About how the system could be offline to reduce the risks of hacking. Or even how it’d be a help now. Yet Liam held himself back, deciding prudence was the best option for now.

Unwilling to look out the window and not wanting to pester the other man with needless questions Liam moved back to his gear. Pulling the next piece of equipment out of the bag, a shoulder piece. It was in good shape, the repairs he’d already finished at the old apartment were stubbornly holding on. Into the good pile you go, Liam thought as he set it aside.

After the shoulder piece was the right glove. Liam kept his mind focused on each new part of the suit. Going over them like he’d done a thousand times before.

The suit was what mattered, Liam told himself. He needed to be protected next time he faced an enemy. With weapons to call upon if need be. Without it, today could’ve gone so much worse. At least fixing the suit was something he could do to remedy that.

Piece by piece Liam went through the bag. Separating its contents into three piles, damaged, newly damaged from the walk over, and in working condition. To his surprise only a couple pieces ended up in the newly damaged group.

Time flowed as he worked. Neither fast nor slow. It was just the steady and inevitable progress like the erosion of a stone. Liam left monitoring The Hunt to Mr. Hat.

When Liam was nearing the end of the bag, Mr. Hat spoke up, “Ullr just got there. They’re grouping up.”

Just worry about the suit Liam kept telling himself. Trying to zone out the man standing next to him. The piece of equipment he was looking at now had a loose wire. Nothing some simple soldering wouldn’t fix. If only he could get his hands on a soldering iron. The little tool box Mr. Hat provided was a godsend, however it only contained the simplest of equipment. Liam had the feeling it was something meant for kids. Mr. Hat just took the sticker off before handing it over to Liam. If that was the case it’d explain the plastic handles on all the tools.

“I’m sure they just reviewed the call. They’ll know about me now,” Mr. Hat said.

Liam flinched at the comment. It wasn’t heated or said sarcastically, but Liam still heard the not-so-subtle meaning. Mr. Hat had been on the streets for years without The Hunt knowing about him. Then along comes Liam, and that’s gone in one week, all because of a stupid call.

“I’m sorry. I screwed up and you’re paying for it.”

Mr. Hat turned from the window, his eyes flitted across Liam’s face, pulling in everything. Liam felt like his very soul was being examined by the discerning gaze.

After the look Mr. Hat said, “Try to hold off on the whole idiot thing next time.”

“I’ll try but sometimes it just takes control,” Liam said automatically. Only when it was out did he freeze and realize what he just said.

The faintest ghost of a smile edged its way onto Mr. Hat’s mouth. Gone a moment later as the man turned back to the window. But Liam knew what he’d seen. The guy may act like a robot, but there was a human under the surface. He was only hiding it most of the time.

With a sigh Liam turned away. He needed a plan. In the past whenever he was stuck on something, he’d make one. The memory of the final test at the academy floated to mind. That plan hadn’t been flawless, as made plain by the numerous close calls. Yet he’d executed it and gotten through the challenge, near the top of his class.

Could he do something like that now? Plan out his next steps so he wasn’t blindly costing both of them their freedom. However, to do that he’d need some information first. Like where to start and what the ultimate goal was?

“The cops just arrived and are taking over the search. The Hunts teleporting away.”

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“That’s good, they’ve given up on finding us.”

“I think it’s so they can meet up and decide what to do about me.”

Mr. Hat let the blinds fall back into place. With the Heroes gone there was no point in continuing to watch. The police would go through the apartment in a slow and methodical way. Documenting everything as they went. Eventually they’d find both men’s fingerprints and find out who Mr. Hat was. There was nothing they could do about it.

Sure they could go over there and try to stop the search, but the Heroes would only arrive a moment later. While Liam didn’t know how strong Mr. Hat was in a fight. He doubted it would be enough to take on The Hunt. Otherwise why was he slinking around living in these conditions?

“I’m surprised they didn’t leave someone to protect the scene,” Liam said.

“It was a simple search to see if you were still around, or if you decided to leave something that would go against the official story. They didn’t find either so there was no reason to stay. Especially when the team can teleport back if needed.”

Leaving clues of his innocence was a great idea. Liam was a little ashamed he hadn’t thought of that himself. What could he leave? He didn’t have any evidence that proved what happened, so that was out the window. He could leave a note and try to explain things, but everyone would ignore that. Which left him out of ideas. Well it was a good idea. If only he could figure out how to use it.

“Nothing we can do about the search then?” Liam asked. Hoping the older man had some ideas.

“No we’re stuck here while they zip around the city.”

“If only we could move around like that. It’d save us a lot of trouble,” Liam said.

“Life would be simpler,” Mr. Hat said, nodding his agreement.

The two fell into silence again. The pause growing as they both stood there, thinking about their own demons with The Hunt. Mr. Hat was the first to break, walking away from the window and into the kitchen of the little studio apartment.

This apartment wouldn’t offer any of the personal space the last provided, Liam lamented. Having only one room would be a pain. Not being able to get away from Mr. Hat would get old fast.

Watching Mr. Hat from the corner of his eye, Liam was surprised to see the man open a well-stocked refrigerator. Liam had been surviving on peanut butter sandwiches for the last week. Yet, only a block away, this man had more food the entire time? What was this? Keep it together Liam, keep it together. Don’t go shouting something you’ll regret later. He needed Mr. Hat now more than ever. He couldn’t afford to aggravate the man.

Liam went back to working on his suit. Intent on distracting himself from the glorious food only a few feet away. As with all things there was only so long a person could hide in their work. And faster than planned Liam found the bag empty. All the parts sorted into the level of repair they needed. Without the tools to move forward, Liam was forced to come back to reality.

“I’m making progress on the suit, but there are a few tools I need. Would you be able to get them for me?” Liam ventured to ask.

“What’ll you need?” Mr. Hat asked with a mouth full of pizza. The smell of melted cheese begging Liam to come over and get his own slice. His stomach rumbled just looking at it. Something Mr. Hat picked up on.

“To get everything working, but not at full capacity, I’ll need a few cheap things like a soldering iron. I can make a list for you,” Liam said, “To be at full power we’ll need some very specific parts.”

“You mean expensive.”

“Well, yes, that too.”

“Write up the list for the cheaper things and I’ll see what I can do.”

After the reveal of the second apartment, Liam was hoping Mr. Hat was hiding a secret workshop. Somewhere he kept everything Liam was looking for. It wasn’t such a far fetched thought, Liam told himself. The man has multiple apartments after all. Thinking he might have a workshop wasn’t out of the question. Only incredibly unlikely.

“Thanks,” Liam said. Some equipment was better than nothing.

“Don’t worry about it,” Mr. Hat said as he turned around to grab another piece of pizza.

Without work to keep him focused, Liam’s mind was left to wander. Finally settling on his sister and their last call.

She’d believed the news. His sister, who’d always been there for him, had believed people she’d never met over Liam. To say that hurt didn’t do the feeling justice.

What it all meant came pressing down on him. Mel thought he was a killer. She’d turned from him, leaving him betrayed and in need of more help than ever before. Liam stood at the brink, in front of him a chasm so vast he couldn’t see the bottom. Behind him was The Hunt, the news, his sister, everyone he’d tried to protect. They pushed him forward, the pressure bowing Liam over. Moving him closer to the edge. Inch by inch, the irresistible force gained the advantage. It was a fight Liam couldn’t win. No matter how hard he fought the darkness below grew larger, reaching up for him. Luring him into its depths.

Liam tried to push back and gain the upper hand, or at least stem the tide. Only to find his efforts met with insurmountable resistance. A step from the edge a voice came to him. It’s mellow tone providing a momentary reprieve from the pressure building around him.

“Come over and grab some food. I’m sure you wanted something more than a mustard and peanut butter sandwich.”

Was he so far gone he was hearing things? What was this disgusting sandwich Mr. Hat was talking about?

“I’ve never had one of those.”

“Well then you had a sad childhood. I can’t believe your parents would do that to you. I don’t have bread here. You’ll have to settle for pizza or pasta for now. Which would you like?” Mr. Hat asked. He showed off his half-eaten piece of pizza, then opened the fridge and pointed to a tupperware container with cold noodles. Both looked delicious.

“Can I have some pizza?” Liam asked. He wanted to rush over and take the one out of Mr. Hat’s hand, he was so hungry.

“Of course. Come on over. It’s reheated so not the best, but better than you’d find at most chain restaurants.”

Liam didn’t say anything. He only waited for the pizza to finish warming up in the microwave. When the machine dinged he moved forward. The first step almost toppled him over. He’d forgotten about the blackness below, but it remembered him. When he least expected it struck. Pulling him down like a weight on his ankle. Yet the simple promise of food was enough for Liam to fight back. With each tentative step he took, the battle became easier. The ground growing firmer under him until he knew there was nothing to worry about. No abyss to fall into as long as he had something to focus on.

With a slice of pizza in hand, steam rolling off it, Liam dug in. The first bite was pure bliss. The reheated meal was better than anything he’d had in recent memory. The cheese was the texture of rubber and the crust a soggy mess. It was amazing.

Between bites Liam got out, “Why did you really help me?”

Without missing a beat Mr. Hat responded, “I already told you, The Hunt destroyed something I cared about. I’m doing this to get back at them.”

“Doesn’t helping me put you in danger?”

“I’ll be honest with you. I didn’t plan on helping you. I was in the right place at the right time to do so, so I did.”

That should have hurt, except it didn’t even leave an impression given everything going on during the last few days.

“Now that you have me captive you don’t have some dastardly plan for me do you? Like making you a super weapon or something?” Liam joked.

Why was he asking that? Was he hoping to get a surprise answer?

“Could you?” Mr. Hat asked. His serious tone suggesting this wasn’t a joke to him.

“I’m not sure I could and even if I could, I wouldn’t.”

Liam expected something to wash over him during this conversation. Only to find the expected sensation missing. It wasn’t disappointment that settled in, but something else.

“If I’m not going to build you a super weapon then that brings us back to the question why am I here?”

“If you won’t stop asking, I’ll tell you. I need you to make something for me, but it’s much more mundane.”

“And what’s that?”

“It might be easier if you look.”

Mr. Hat reached into the cupboard. Pulling out a thin metal cylinder, clamped shut at both ends. A few wires sticking out along the length of the tube. At the sight, Liam’s blood ran cold.