"Back then... how did you... survive the crash?"
"Luck."
"And during those three months... where were you?"
"Sleeping in the ocean."
"How did you... deal with those kidnappers?"
"With superpowers."
"Impossible! I heard... it was a nuke! Was it?!"
"Rumors."
"You're seriously... brushing me off like this?"
"I'm speaking... plainly. What else do you want me to say?"
"A type of plant."
"Oh my god, I'm going insane!"
"Are you even human?"
"F**k!"
Afterwards.
Kristin, now ice-cold, flung a few photos and a key at Leon.
"This is your idea of 'being responsible'?"
Leon casually flipped through the photos. They showed refugees, forced by armed men to haul crates of weapons, cutting-edge firearms bearing the Stark Industries logo.
"You don't seem surprised."
"This town is called Gulmira. It's been taken over by a terrorist cell, fully armed with weapons that were supposedly discontinued by Stark Industries' shut-down weapons division."
"If these photos go public, your company won't just be facing a trust crisis. Its already-plummeting stock is going to crater."
Kristin, hair tousled, skin still glistening with sweat, sat against the headboard, wrapped in a white bedsheet that just barely concealed her slender frame. Her feet peeked out, polished and trembling slightly, as she watched Leon rise and begin getting dressed.
"You threatening me?"
Leon's eyes narrowed.
"No," she replied. "I'm reminding you, Stark Industries is teetering on the edge. One misstep, and it'll go down hard. Don't you think it's time you did something?"
"Like… I don't know… trace who authorized this shipment?"
She planted the bait with care.
Kristin had dreams, not just of being Mrs. Stark, but of taking the company for herself one day. There was no way she'd sit back and watch her future empire fall apart.
She didn't have solid proof yet, but after digging around, she'd already begun to suspect one man:
Obadiah Stane, Tony and Leon's own uncle.
Now she just needed Leon to start suspecting him too. Once Tony caught wind, he'd start digging. Then everything would fall into place.
Kristin was confident in her plan.
What she didn't expect…
"I know."
Leon's tone was calm.
"It was all Obadiah."
"My crash, Tony getting kidnapped by the Ten Rings, and these weapons getting out."
"…What?"
She froze.
She'd rehearsed the speech. She had all the cues lined up, the emotional levers ready to pull. And now he just... confessed?
This was Leon Stark, the undisputed king of hedonistic rich playboys. Since when did he talk like this?
Kristin suddenly realized how little she actually knew this man.
"When were these photos taken?"
"Yesterday."
"Got it."
Leon leaned in, kissed her lightly on the forehead.
"Thanks, darling."
By the time Kristin came back to her senses, Leon was long gone.
And yet, a strange warmth bloomed in her chest. That single kiss… had her flustered. Was this what it felt like, to be recognized by Leon Stark?
She sat there for a while, lost in thought.
Eventually, Kristin tried to get up. But the moment her feet touched the floor,
"Agh, !"
She winced. Her legs gave out and she collapsed back onto the bed.
"Damn animal…"
"Even a pile driver doesn't go that hard!"
…
Leon had barely stepped out of the room when Pepper appeared, clearly upset.
"Leon!"
"Hey, Pepper."
"Stane's been sending people all over looking for you. I spent thirty minutes searching. Just where the hell have you been this past hour?! Don't tell me you were off, "
She trailed off, but her expression was dangerous.
"Come on, you think I'd do something like that?" Leon said, unbothered, waving the photos Kristin had given him. "I was handling serious business. With a journalist friend."
Right on cue,
The door behind him creaked open.
"Leon, you tore the zipper off my evening dress," Kristin's voice called sweetly. "Get someone to send me a new one, oh! Hello, Ms. Potts."
Wrapped in nothing but a white sheet, Kristin blinked at Pepper.
Pepper's eyes went from Kristin to Leon and back again, her face darkening.
"This is your idea of 'serious business'?" she asked icily.
"…It counts, doesn't it?" Leon shrugged with a sheepish grin.
Scene transition.
Now in one of the hotel's VIP lounges, Leon sat between a stone-faced Pepper and a clearly amused Tony.
"Hey, kid, what cardinal sin did you commit to get our lovely, composed Pepper this riled up?" Tony chuckled.
"Don't ask," Leon grumbled.
Pepper was still glaring daggers, so Leon wasn't about to hand Tony more ammo.
Glancing around the lounge, he noticed they were alone. "Where's Rhodey and Yinsen?"
"Rhodey's on a mission with the Air Force," Tony said. "And Yinsen? That guy's too responsible for his own good. Even after I gave him vacation time, he insisted on staying to help with the company's transformation."
"I see…" Leon nodded. "Then I think I understand why he wants to be alone right now."
He handed Tony the stack of photos.
"This is Gulmira, right? I remember Yinsen mentioning it was his hometown."
Tony took the photos, flipping through them. His usual smirk faded into grim silence.
"This happened yesterday," Leon added.
Tony sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Pepper, besides Leon and me, who else has the authority to approve weapons shipments?"
"The board of directors and… Mr. Stane."
"…Tony, are you saying, ?"
Pepper stopped short, her voice caught in disbelief.
It couldn't be, Stane was family.
"I don't want it to be true," Tony muttered. "But we have to find out."
Leon leaned in close to Pepper and whispered, "Pepper, I need you to do something for me. Here's the plan… Make sure Happy goes with you."
Pepper nodded solemnly. "Got it. I'll head out right away."
She clicked off down the hall in her heels.
Silence settled over the room.
"…Leon," Tony said quietly. "He's been running the company day-to-day. He has near-unlimited access. And I've been giving him advanced tech for years…"
"What more could he want?"
Leon exhaled.
If not for the memories of his previous life, this revelation would've shattered him too.
Being betrayed by someone you trusted, someone close, it left a taste in your mouth no words could describe.
"Maybe that's just human nature."
"You start with one sheep… then want two. Then three."
"Desire rolls downhill like a boulder off a mountain. Once it starts, it never stops."
Every 250 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter
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