Bennett watched her carefully as she took the seat opposite his. The door automatically locked behind her, and Dazzler tensed, balling her fists.
Bennett eyed those fists then looked back to her face. “As I said earlier, my name is Markis Bennett. I’m an agent working on a special assignment for S.H.I.E.L.D.”
“How is that possible when S.H.I.E.L.D. has been disbanded?” Dazzler demanded.
“A small contingent of us have been reinstated, informally, for this specific assignment.”
“Informally?” She folded her arms. “So, is it black ops or have you gone rogue?”
Bennett ignored her comment. His face showed no emotion, but his eyes were sharp and analyzing. He wasn’t a junior. This guy had experience. “The assignment involves something you’re very familiar with. MGH.”
“MGH?” Dazzler couldn’t stop the way her face screwed up, nor how her body tensed further, or how she pressed herself back into her seat, as though trying to move away from his words.
“We understand this is a sensitive topic for you,” Bennett said, calmly, eyes darting to her balled fists again, “but you know the Mutant Growth Hormone better than anyone. That’s why I’m here.”
Dazzler stared at him, her face fierce and her blue eyes burning – a self-defense mechanism to cover her fear. She knew MGH, all right. It was a dark part of her past that she’d rather forget. A past that had seen her held prisoner by Mystique, and her DNA forcibly extracted to create the MGH steroid that would be used by others longing to be drunk with power.
Mutant power.
“What the hell has this got to do with my father?” she asked.
“We’re still trying to figure that out,” he said, eyes narrowing briefly with accusation. “All we know so far is that there appears to be a new supply of the steroid on the streets, and early tests have shown it’s the same MGH that was derived from you. High profile missing persons tend to flag in our systems. When we learned that your father was missing and that the MGH derived from you had resurfaced, well, we have to assume the two are related. Do you know if your father was having any financial trouble, or any problems that might’ve led him to become involved in the distribution of MGH?”
“No.” Dazzler automatically shook her head. “There’s no way.” First, her father didn’t know she was a mutant. Second, her father would simply never do anything criminal. “If there’s one thing my father takes a hard line on, it’s upholding the law,” she said. “He’s a man rigid in his intent, and he won’t bend on that for anyone.”
“Well, right now he’s disappeared, and there are no signs of a struggle.” Markis did little to hide his skepticism. “It very much looks like he just left and doesn’t want to be found. Your father is a smart man who knows the law, knows the loopholes, knows what can take a criminal down. If he was in trouble, if he needed help, wouldn’t he leave some clue for us to find?”
“If he had time to, sure. But if he was taken by force–”
“There were no signs of a struggle,” Markis repeated.
“That doesn’t mean he wasn’t taken by force,” she countered. “Check my father’s career history. It’s impeccable.”
“You want to find out what happened and clear his name? Then help us.”
“Help you how?”
“There are mutants involved. That’s how this all started. They contacted us to see if we knew anything about the new batch of MGH that had surfaced. We didn’t, but we agreed to assist and investigate things on our end. As you can imagine, the information exchange has been very one-way. Since S.H.I.E.L.D. was disbanded, the relationship between us and the mutant community has been non-existent. It’s… difficult for us to access information from the mutant world now. Given we’ve linked your father’s disappearance to this, we’d like you to step back into your role as Mutant Liaison.”
“You want me to work for S.H.I.E.L.D. again? You want me to put a target on my back again? Everything that happened to me last time, happened because Mystique and her mutant allies thought I was betraying the mutant community by working with S.H.I.E.L.D. What do you think is going to happen if they find out I’m working with you again?”
“This MGH could be a real problem if it spirals. Do you understand what the consequences could be if the steroid becomes widespread? For humans and for mutants. No one would be safe.”
Dazzler turned to look out the window at the late-night Manhattan streets. Across the road on the opposite sidewalk, she spotted the guys from her band laughing and talking as they headed toward the subway, on their way to the party. She felt a huge stab of regret for turning down the invite now. Still, she knew deep down it wouldn’t have made any difference. Bennett would have still found her. Her father would still be missing. This problem wasn’t going to just go away. The Mutant Growth Hormone was a powerful steroid that could indeed prove an exponential threat in the wrong hands.
And she knew that better than anyone.
Flashbacks suddenly invaded her thoughts. Memories of lying prisoner in that bed, drugged and having her mutant DNA extracted… DNA that her enemies used for their own gain. In mutants, the steroid would enhance their powers. In humans, MGH would improve speed, agility, and strength, or even unlock powers the humans never knew they had. It made her feel sick to think of people using her “essence” without her consent, and worse still to think of them using it to hurt others.
She watched her band turn the street corner and disappear from view. She turned her focus from them to her reflection in the window. Highlighted by the SUV’s interior lights, she saw the glittery blue star over her left eye and the hardness of her face, framed by waves of long blonde hair. Her stab of regret for not being with her band turned into a sadness that sat deep within her. A sadness that made her long to be a normal human without such mutant troubles.
“Is Mystique involved?” Her quiet voice was razor sharp as she turned back to Bennett.
“We don’t know,” he said. “So far, we’ve found no trace of her involvement. But, of course, we can’t be sure. She did escape from our custody, so anything is possible. That’s why we need you. No one will become suspicious if you ask around about MGH among your kind–”
“My kind?” she cut him off. She didn’t like the way he used the word.
“Mutants,” he said. “You understand this is not information we want getting out. If people know they can get their hands on MGH, our problem will only grow larger. We need you to make some quiet inquiries among your people.”
Dazzler’s face hardened further. “Stop saying ‘your people’ and ‘your kind’ like we’re some kind of other, like we’re second-class citizens. You humans are so quick to forget everything mutants have done for your kind.”
“And you mutants are quick to forget the damage that some of your kind have unleashed on the human population.” Bennett’s face turned mean for the first time. “We’ve lost a lot of innocent people because some mutants felt the need to dominate us and treat us like bugs to be squashed.”
“And some humans have felt the need to hunt down innocent mutants like dogs and exterminate us because we might one day pose a threat!”
Bennett took a subtle breath and regained his calm composure. “So how about we work together to stop this from spiraling and any more of our people getting hurt. Let’s find out who’s behind this and shut them down. The clock is ticking.”
The silence sat for a moment as she studied him. Dazzler tried hard to stay strong and in control, but she couldn’t stop her throat from giving an involuntary swallow. “If the MGH on the street is from me then Mystique must be behind it. She’s the one who took the steroid from me originally. She must have stored stock somewhere or recreated it from a sample.”
“Possibly,” Bennett said, “but without proof nothing is for sure.”
“So what exactly do you think I’m going to be able to do to help you?” she asked. “Some mutants still hold a grudge against me and don’t trust my loyalty to them.”
“Like I said, this started with the mutant community. They contacted us, and other powerful mutants were aiding us.”
“Were? As in, past tense?”
For the first time, Bennett’s steady face flashed concern. “We’ve lost contact with those mutants. Now, there is a chance their absence could be intentional, but we do not believe this to be the case. We believe they are missing. That’s why we’re talking to you now. Our mission status has been elevated to the highest level. We have no choice but to involve you.”
Dazzler straightened a little. “Who’s gone missing? And why do you keep saying we? Who else is involved?”
Bennett turned to the small screen embedded in the SUV wall and turned it on. Dazzler recognized the face that appeared: the cropped brown hair, the chiseled cheekbones, the sharp eyes fixed directly upon her. It was ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. Director, Maria Hill.
Dazzler instantly scowled at the woman. If she’d been a cat, she probably would’ve hissed at her.
“It’s good to see you too, Dazzler,” Hill said.
Dazzler turned back to Bennett. “You didn’t say she was involved.”
“Of course he didn’t,” Hill said frankly. “You wouldn’t have got into that car if he had.”
“No, I wouldn’t have!” Dazzler spat and shuffled toward the car door.
“Magneto and Cyclops are missing,” Hill said quickly, urgency lacing her voice.
Dazzler, gripping the door’s handle, paused. She looked back at Hill.
“Along with your father,” Hill added, and arched an eyebrow. “You still want to walk away?”
“Magneto and Cyclops are missing?” Dazzler asked.
Hill nodded.
“Well, you don’t exactly have a great history with Cyclops,” Dazzler said. “You tried to hunt him down once, remember? He’s probably hiding from you.”
“It’s true we haven’t always seen eye to eye,” Hill said, “what with Cyclops trying to stage a mutant uprising and me being forced to defend the human population, but that’s in the past now. Besides, Magneto was the one who contacted me about the MGH. He was the one who brought us in on this.”
“Why would he do that? What did he say?” Dazzler asked.
“He found the MGH on some young mutants and inquired whether we had any intel on it. It was news to us. We suggested he speak to the scientist who assisted us previously, to find out what type of MGH it was. Both he and Cyclops were investigating it from their side, while we looked into things on our side, but they played a lot of things close to the chest. We agreed to check in with each other at regular intervals. They made their first check-in fine, told us they wanted to keep this issue contained and not alert the rest of the mutant community. Magneto headed to New York, and Cyclops was in Vancouver to speak with the scientist. However, they both failed to meet their second check-in. We haven’t been able to locate them since. They’ve disappeared, like your father, and we need to know why.”
Dazzler turned to Bennett. “And you still don’t think Mystique is involved?”
“We can’t be sure,” Hill answered for him. “All we know is that you have links to the three missing parties, and the MGH that’s been tested contains your DNA. This has firmly become a mutant issue now, one that involves you whether you like it or not.”
“So, you need me on the inside.” Dazzler nodded to herself as she considered the possibilities.
“I know you have reservations about working with me again,” Hill said, “but if you care at all for your father or these mutants, then you’ll help us get to the bottom of this. No one in the mutant community will speak with us willingly.”
“How do I know I won’t be betrayed again?” Dazzler couldn’t help the snarl that curled her top lip.
“I never betrayed you,” Hill said.
“No, you just never cared enough to notice that Mystique was posing as me and that I was missing. I was kept prisoner for months, being bled dry of my DNA! You can’t expect me to forget that.”
“I don’t,” Hill said frankly. “But I do expect you to direct your anger in the appropriate place. At Mystique. She’s the one who took you. She’s the one who pretended to be you and infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. Don’t forget, I was the one who gave you the opportunity to come back and help take her down. I gave you the closure you needed.”
“And then she escaped from your custody. How am I supposed to get closure from that?”
“You want closure, then help us,” Hill said plainly. “Magneto saved you from Mystique. He was the one who freed you from being her prisoner. You don’t want to return the favor and help find him now? Even Cyclops took you in afterward when you needed it. And your father? You really don’t want to find him?”
Dazzler looked out the window again, anything to avoid their eyes. Hill was a great emotional manipulator.
But this time, she was also right.
Dazzler owed Magneto a debt. Cyclops, too. And how could she possibly walk away knowing her father was missing? Despite all the strained years with him, despite him turning his back on her, he was still her father. He was the only family she had left since her beloved grandma died.
“Every second they are missing is another second they could be dead,” Hill said. “Meanwhile, MGH is beginning to spread into the streets. We need to move on this. If you won’t help, we’ll do it our way, but my guess is it’s going to take us a lot longer from the outside than it would with you on the inside. So, what’s it going to be?”
Dazzler glanced briefly at Bennett, who looked as though he questioned whether she was up for the challenge, then she stared at Hill’s uncompromising gaze. Dazzler did not want this nightmare to resurface in her life again. If her father was missing, if Magneto and Cyclops were missing, if someone was leaking her MGH onto the streets, then she wanted to stop them.
And she didn’t trust anyone but herself to do it.
“All right,” she said. “But I work alone. You stay away from me.”
“No can do,” Hill said.
“We need to work together,” Bennett said, pulling another phone from his pocket and holding it out to her. “We stay in contact via this. All the information we have so far is uploaded on there, along with your new S.H.I.E.L.D. credentials.” He also handed her a credit card. “These funds will support your investigation.”
“We’ll need regular updates,” Hill told her. “You pass us information, and we’ll do the same. We’ll cover the human side. You find out what you can from the mutant side.”
Dazzler eyed the phone and credit card, then took them from Bennett. “Fine. But I still work alone. If I see you guys sticking your nose in or getting too close, it’s over. The mutant community won’t trust me if they sniff S.H.I.E.L.D. involvement.”
Dazzler opened the door and climbed out.
“Blaire,” Hill called.
Dazzler looked back at the screen.
“Be careful,” Hill said in a slightly softer tone. “If someone managed to take Magneto and Cyclops prisoner, or worse, kill them, that wouldn’t have been an easy feat. They must be powerful or have a powerful network around them.”
“Yeah, well, I have a powerful network too.” She stared at Hill. “They’re called mutants.”