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Episode 12: Anyone Else But Me August 9th, 1947. New York City, New York. The mansion of Howard Stark. “Put it down, Fred,” Peggy said. She could feel her pulse quicken at the sight of Angie’s tear stained face. Wells tightened his grip on her arm and brought the glass shard to her throat. “He smashed the chair,” Angie gasped. “When we came down he had already…” “Shut it!” Wells snapped. He turned to face Peggy, Howard, and Jack. “You will tell Benton and Miss Adams to come down here now. They will leave this house with me. If you attempt to follow us, I will use their programming to order them to kill each other!” Howard stepped past Peggy. “I got to give you credit, Wells. At least you chose a good vintage.” “Stark!” Jack shouted. Wells pulled Angie back with him. “You stay away from me!” “Relax, Freddy,” Howard said, giving a look to Jack and Peggy and his drew closer. “I’m sure we can work something out.” As he spoke, Jack started moving into the row of wine racks behind Wells. “We are not giving you Miss Adams and the doctor,” Peggy said. “But if you tell us who is behind this, we will let you leave.” “Oh please, Peg,” Wells laughed scornfully. “You are in no position to bargain with me. Not while I have your lovely friend here.” A speck of red began to show on Angie’s neck. She closed her eyes tight as Howard took another step. “Well, she isn’t that lovely. You should see the mess she makes on the tiles in my kitchen. But come on. I’d be a much better hostage for you. How about you just let her go, and take me?” “All of you shut it!” Wells screamed. In the next row, Jack slammed full force into wine racks, causing them to tip over. The creaking of wood distracted Wells, and as he turned to see the source of the sound, Angie stamped down on his foot and ran to Howard. Wells’ cry of pain was drowned out by the crashing of wood and bottles as the wine rack fell on top of him. “Angie! Get out of here!” shouted Peggy. Angie took off for the stairs as Benton and Diana met her. Wells shoved the debris off of him and saw Diana with her pistol drawn. “Whites of their eyes!” he yelled. Both Benton and Diana froze, her gun still raised. Peggy turned back in alarm. “Miss Adams! Put down the gun!” Wells looked smug and nodded to Diana. “You know what to do, Miss Masque. Put a bullet in the head of each enemy combatant in this room starting with Miss Carter. Black Terror, if anyone interrupts, snap their necks.” Diana turned toward Peggy as Jack and Howard moved in front of her. “Diana. Listen to me. Fennhoff has been weakening your conditioning. You can fight this!” Wells rose to his feet, tossing aside his glass shard. “Don’t bother, Peg dear. She can’t hear you. But don’t worry. I’ll look after them. And that brother of yours. Miss Masque? Kill her.” Diana took a step forward with Peggy in her sights. Then fired. Wells was sent staggering back by the force of the bullet, smashing into another rack of wine bottles. Jack spun back to look at Diana as she removed a cotton ball from each ear. “Seriously?” Jack said. Diana shrugged and smiled. “I had advice from a friend of yours. Said it works well against hypnotists.” She looked back as Daniel nodded in approval on the stairs. Benton took out his cotton balls as he saw Peggy rush to the fallen Wells, gasping for air. The bullet had gone straight through his heart. Blood mingled with the wine on the cellar floor. Peggy grabbed him by the lapels, eyes blazing. “You don’t have much time, Fred,” she hissed. “Who is behind this? It isn’t the Council, so who?” Wells coughed up blood but managed to choke out the name. “Ne… Nefaria.” “And where is Nefaria with the key? Where is this bunker?” Wells’ eyes were rolling in the back of his head as his breathing grew shakier. “Ca…Cat…Catski….” Wells gave a final shudder, then fell still. Catskill Mountains. New York City, NY. August 10th, 1947. Nefaria stood before what appeared to be a stone outcropping in a clearing on a hill. Nodding to two Maggia henchmen, they pushed aside the foliage to reveal a metallic door. Carefully, Nefaria removed the Arena Club key from his pocket and inserted it into the key hole. He turned the key, and heard the tumblers give way. The door creaked open, allowing the smell of stale air to escape. Nefaria turned to Dr. Harrow, who was swatting at a curious fly buzzing around his head. “Well, Doctor? Are you satisfied that our information is correct now?” Harrow brushed away the fly, and cleared his throat. “I am glad you’ve found this place, Count. But I won’t be satisfied until I see what’s inside of it.” “And you shall, Dr. Harrow. Carlo? Silas? You and your men go ahead. Tread lightly. No telling how many other surprises the Council has for us. Miss Underwood and Daredevil will cover our rear. Dmitri, you will remain with the rest up here. Anyone attempts to intervene, dispose of them in the most efficient manner available.” Ten Maggia mobsters gingerly stepped into the bunker, followed by Harrow and Nefaria. Daredevil stopped at the doorway, looking at it up and down. Dottie smirked. “Feels like home?” The blank eyes of the mask glared at her, then stepped into the darkness. Dottie shrugged and followed after. Dmitri turned toward his squad. “Spread out. Silencers only. I want to be informed the moment anyone is within 100 yards of this hill.” There was a sudden cry from the left, blocked out by the trees. Dmitri tilted his head in annoyance. “Hammond? Bartel? What is it?” There was no response. Dmitri pointed to three Maggia and they took off down the hill, guns at the ready. Then there was the clear sound of gunfire from the other side of the hill. Dmitri’s eyes narrowed behind his mask, as he grumbled. “Unprofessional idiots. You lot, stay here. You six, with me.” Dmitri and his men started off down the hill, leaving three men behind. They stood at the entrance, awkwardly staring at each other. Peggy Carter dived from a tree branch on top of one of the men. Giving a cry of alarm, one drew his pistol, only to be zapped by Howard and his handheld ‘jitterbug’. Another got tackled to the ground by Jack, who delivered a final blow to knock him out. Peggy’s opponent scrambled to his feet and started throwing wild punches which Peggy easily dodged. A hard kick to the right knee and an uppercut, and he joined his associates in unconsciousness. Jack looked impressed as Peggy dusted herself off. “It never gets old watching you do that.” Peggy gave a small smile, before collecting herself and reaching for her necklace. “Are we coming through alright, Mr. Jarvis?” “Crystal clear, Miss Carter,” the butler’s voice rang out. “Chief Sousa and I are ready to assist when required.” “How about Miss Adams and Dr. Benton? Are they doing alright?” Daniel’s voice rang out over the transmitter. “They’ve got their hands full at the moment. But their keeping the Maggia busy.” Jack gave a side eye to Howard. “I guess Bob and Diana's memories are getting better to remember this place. So far so good?” “Of course it is. I came up with the plan, didn’t I?” Peggy pushed past her allies and moved towards the doorway. “It doesn’t matter who’s plan it is! Our mission is to find Benton’s notes and any serum that’s left. Destroy it, and bring in any Maggia members into custody.” “Peggy.” She paused at the sound of Daniel’s concerned voice. “Just be careful.” Peggy looked out, imagining where Daniel and Jarvis were waiting in the van. “You be too, Daniel. Um, Chief.” She looked back at an amused Howard and Jack. “That Sousa is a real lucky guy,” Howard said. “Oh, no doubt,” said Jack. “Are you going to stand there like gossiping hens?” Peggy said briskly. “Or are going to finish this?” The two men nodded, and followed Peggy Carter into the bunker. Can Black Terror and Miss Masque defeat a squad of 20 Maggia and the Chameleon? Or will our heroes plan fall apart before it begins? Stay Tuned and Find Out! Game On!