While Claire quietly studied Melinda May, May was doing exactly the same.
After a long moment, she reached a simple conclusion.
This woman is unusual.
She had known Evenson for quite some time. They had fought side by side on missions.
She had seen him exhausted.
She had seen him bleeding.
She had even seen him coughing up blood after his battle with the Ghost Rider, his magic depleted and his body pushed beyond its limits.
That had been the appearance of a man who had survived a brutal fight.
This...
...looked like he’d been thoroughly disciplined.
The scratches covering his body were bad enough.
The perfectly defined hoofprint across his face, however, was almost artistic.
Another inch and it could have qualified as permanent disfigurement.
Then recognition struck.
Wait...
Isn’t she the woman who dumped him a while back?
For reasons no one had ever questioned, everyone who knew Claire had left assumed Evenson had been the one abandoned.
After all...
That seemed far more believable.
May nodded to herself.
A relationship dispute.
Mystery solved.
A faint sense of satisfaction even surfaced.
He used to tease me for how I handled Andrew.
At least when I hit my husband, I put a phone book between us.
No bruises.
No blood.
Professional.
While May was congratulating herself, Claire finished evaluating her.
Threat assessment: minimal.
Long black hair.
Decent appearance.
Then, with perfect composure, she announced,
"Middle-aged."
"Flat-chested."
"Crow’s feet."
Thud.
Evenson had only just managed to stand.
Now he collapsed right back onto the floor.
Claire...
Are you determined to leave this shop with a body count today?
Predictably, May’s composure shattered.
"...I’m going to kill you."
Her knuckles cracked.
She rolled up her sleeves and stepped forward.
"Wait!"
Evenson threw himself between them.
"You can’t beat her!"
"She’s a Sorcerer!"
May had been prepared to ignore everything else.
That sentence stopped her cold.
"...What?"
She looked at Claire.
Then back at Evenson.
"You’re telling me..."
"...she’s a mage too?"
"Not exactly."
Evenson hurried to clarify.
"I’m a Warlock."
"She’s a Sorcerer."
He blinked.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"This is my normal expression."
May looked as though she’d just witnessed a ghost.
"If one day I told you I’d started dating a Hydra agent..."
"...you’d probably make exactly the same face."
Evenson considered it.
"...Honestly?"
"I’d probably accept it."
"Hmph."
May snorted.
Her gaze drifted over his injuries again.
"This isn’t one of your... relationship games, is it?"
"I didn’t interrupt something, did I?"
She still remembered Evenson explaining the centuries-old hostility between Warlocks and Sorcerers.
In her mind...
Choosing a Sorcerer as a girlfriend practically confirmed he was a complete masochist.
Suddenly everything made perfect sense.
This wasn’t a battle.
It wasn’t a lovers’ quarrel.
This was...
Whatever bizarre recreation the two of them enjoyed in private.
May shuddered involuntarily.
Then took two discreet steps backward.
Claire froze for a second.
Color slowly crept across her cheeks.
Then...
She glanced thoughtfully at her own right hand.
Remembering how it had felt to smack Evenson around...
She had to admit...
It had been oddly satisfying.
Seeing that expression, Evenson panicked.
"No."
"No."
"No."
He waved both hands frantically.
"Don’t look at me like that."
"I know exactly what you’re thinking."
"You think I’m one of those deranged weirdos who enjoys getting beaten up."
"I’m not."
"Absolutely not."
"We only found out each other’s identities today."
"A few unexpected complications happened."
"And somehow..."
"...everything spiraled into this."
"Oh."
May visibly relaxed.
She could accept friends possessing supernatural abilities.
She drew the line at discovering they had supernatural bedroom preferences.
She turned toward Claire.
"Claire Ludwig."
"That’s your name, isn’t it?"
Although phrased as a question, it clearly wasn’t one.
Claire frowned.
"You know who I am?"
"Did he tell you?"
She shot Evenson a suspicious glance.
He immediately adopted the expression of a completely innocent man.
May shook her head.
"No."
"S.H.I.E.L.D. investigated you."
"We found your name."
"Nothing else."
"I suppose your background is considerably more complicated than we imagined."
Claire’s expression cooled.
"S.H.I.E.L.D..."
She immediately understood.
Given Evenson’s relationship with the organization, they were the only people likely to investigate her.
"You people really do enjoy wasting enormous amounts of time and money on things that don’t concern you."
Her tone carried no trace of politeness.
Very few people appreciated learning they had been investigated.
May remained unbothered.
"Internal security is part of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s job."
"And Evenson is extremely important to us."
"Investigating the people around him is standard procedure."
She sighed.
"I wish people like you understood that."
"People like us?"
Claire asked.
That wording suggested there had been others.
May pointed at Evenson.
"Him."
"When he found out we’d investigated you..."
"...he exploded."
"Our Director was furious."
As she spoke, May discreetly shot Evenson a meaningful glance.
I’ve done what I can.
The rest is up to you.
Claire’s expression softened almost imperceptibly.
Really?
She hadn’t expected him to react like that.
The irritation she’d been carrying since earlier suddenly eased.
"...Evenson."
"You may stand up now."
Relief flooded through him.
He shot May a look filled with heartfelt gratitude.
You’re a lifesaver.
May chuckled.
"You keep him on a pretty short leash."
Claire smiled sweetly.
"Naturally."
"I’m Kamar-Taj’s official observer."
"It’s my responsibility to keep a close eye on him."
She intended it as a joke.
Anyone who knew the circumstances understood the arrangement was largely symbolic.
May did not.
Her expression immediately turned serious.
"Observer?"
She folded her arms.
"Evenson is an official consultant for S.H.I.E.L.D."
"His conduct is governed by the laws of his country and by S.H.I.E.L.D."
"No outside organization has the authority to monitor him."
"That includes... whatever Kamar-Taj is."
Before Claire could respond, Evenson hurriedly interrupted.
"It’s voluntary."
"The whole situation is... complicated."
"Complicated enough to fill a twenty-thousand-word report."
"Trust me."
"You don’t want the full version."
May shot him an annoyed look.
I’m defending you.
Why are you undermining me?
Evenson silently returned an equally obvious answer.
Because she’s my girlfriend.
You’re not.
May rolled her eyes.
"Fine."
"You don’t report to me anyway."
"You can explain all of this to Director Fury yourself."
Given Evenson’s current status, only Nick Fury or Alexander Pierce had the authority to overrule him.
Fortunately...
That wasn’t why she’d come.
She raised her right hand.
"But first..."
"Let’s settle the matter between the two of us."
Claire’s eyes narrowed.
A dangerous glint flashed across them.
Between the two of them...?
...Did I misjudge this woman after all?
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