Grace had been crying. Not only was almost everything that she owned in the mansion gone — her books, her art, her pictures and sentimental gifts from her family — but her father was gone, too. He was alive, but he was off to the save the world again. Her heart ached with worry.

Pepper drove them to a nearby hotel to stay at until Tony got back. Maya and Pepper sat on the bed talking, and Grace was in a nearby chair reading. When she'd put on Savior, her small bag was still on her back, and everything in it came with her. She was in the middle of Catching Fire, and she needed something to distract herself from all the worried thoughts going through her head.

"Fun fact," Maya was saying. "Before he built rockets for the Nazis, the idealistic Wernher von Braun dreamed of space travel. He stargazed... Do you know what he said when the first V-2 hit London?" Pepper looked at her expectantly, and, from her chair, so did Grace. She went on. "'The rocket performed perfectly. It just landed on the wrong planet.'

"See, we all begin wide-eyed. Pure science. And then the ego steps in, the obsession. And... you look up; you're a long way from shore."

Pepper shook her head a little. "You can't be too hard on yourself, Maya. I mean, you gave your research to a think tank."

"Yeah, but Killian built that think tank on military contracts."

"That's exactly what we used to do," Pepper replied. "So, don't judge yourself."

Maya smiled softly. "Thank you, Pepper. I really appreciate that."

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Pepper looked at Grace, silently imploring her to go hide. It was probably just the food they'd ordered, but Pepper knew Tony wouldn't want anybody seeing her, especially after what happened at the hospital.

Her book in hand, Grace went into the next room — the bathroom. It was big, and there was a little window over the toilet.

"Hi, good evening," Grace heard Pepper say. "Come on in."

She heard a slightly muffled reply. "Good evening."

But then Pepper screamed. "Maya, run!"

There was a thud, more screaming. Grace went for the door, going to open it — to go help Pepper and Maya. She still had Savior on her wrist after all. Her heart beat in her ears, but then she heard another voice and stopped.

"Hi, Pepper," an eerily calm, male voice said. There was a pause. "So, you want to tell me why you were at Stark's mansion last night?"

Then, Maya. "I'm trying to fix this thing. I didn't know you and the master were gonna blow the place up." She was probably working for him — that man.

Which means he's Killian.

"Oh, I see. So, you were trying to save Stark when he threatened us?"

"I've told you, Killian, we can use him."

Another pause. Then, Killian chided, "Pepper, Pepper, Pepper." Grace was worried about her; she hadn't spoken in a long time.

Maya continued. "Look, if we want to launch a product next year, I need Stark. He just lacked a decent incentive. Now, he has one."

"Speaking of, where's the girl?" Killian asked.

Grace's heart stopped. He meant her. She fumbled for the button on the bracelet.

"What girl?" Maya replied, causing Grace to stop yet again. Why would she play dumb if she was working for Killian?

He sounded annoyed. "The kid. Stark's daughter. What was her name — Grace?"

"We don't need her-"

"Go. Get. Her."

There was a long pause, then footsteps coming towards the bathroom door. Grace had tears in her eyes, and she could barely see Maya's expression when she opened the door.

"Run," Maya whispered. "Run to somewhere safe."

Grace, after a moment's hesitation, turned blindly, shakily and scrambled up onto the toilet, then pulled the window open and jumped out, thankful the room was on the first floor. Behind her, she heard Maya say, "She's not here!"

"What do you mean she's not here?!" Killian shouted back. Grace just ran.

She ran into the trees behind the hotel, trying to hide in them in case Killian looked out the open window. Finally, she stopped and pressed the button on the bracelet.

The suit unfolded, going around her. Sai's voice rang out through the helmet. "Hello, Grace." Tony still had work to do; she sounded a bit more automated than Jarvis. "Awaiting instructions from your father."

"He's not here!" Grace shouted. She was breathless — from running and fear.

Sai calmly replied, "He can give me instructions remotely from-"

"No! I-I just-I need to- I need to-" She stopped, looking back at the hotel. She felt sick. She didn't know what to do, but there was one thing she was thinking of that screamed louder than everything else. "Pepper. She's-She's in trouble. I need to save Pepper-"

She started to run back towards the hotel, but Sai stopped her, preventing the suit from moving. "My previous instructions were to protect you-"

"And keep me with Pepper!" Grace argued.

"If possible," Sai reminded her. "But if Miss Potts is in danger, I can't let you go back for her."

"Wouldn't Dad want me to?"

Sai paused, then finally said, "Not if you would get hurt doing so."

"But I won't! I'll be careful-!"

"Grace-"

"Let me go!"

"I can't-"

But Grace wasn't going to back down. She was here, she had the suit, and Pepper was in trouble. She can't stand by when she can do something about it; it would be her fault if Pepper got hurt... or worse. So, Grace screamed, "Then I'll take off the suit and go in with nothing!"

Sai stopped, thinking. She said nothing, but, then, suddenly, Grace could move. She ran back to the hotel, towards that open window. In her head, through her fear, she thought of Nat and almost tried to channel her somehow. She and Tony taught her self defense. She could do this. She had to be brave.

With a bit of difficultly due to the bulky suit, she scrambled back through the window and burst out of the bathroom, arm up as she prayed that the blasters were fully operational.

But no one was there.

Her heart sank. "No, no, no-"

"I'm sorry, Grace," Sai said, and she actually sounded apologetic.

"B-But Pepper, she-she-" Tears poured from Grace's eyes. "I-I-"

"What would you like me to do now?" Sai asked.

"Can you track Pepper?"

After a moment, Sai said, "I'm afraid not. I'm unable to register any form of trackable technology belonging to her that is not in the room we are in right now."

Grace looked around, then spotted Pepper's cellphone sitting on the side table and picked it up. "What about Maya?"

"She isn't programmed into-"

"Killian?"

"He isn't programmed into my systems. My tracking abilities aren't fully functional yet. Your father didn't prioritize them over some of my other systems."

Grace closed her eyes, crying. She didn't know what to do.

But, finally, she recalled Maya's words. Run. Run to somewhere safe. Grace took a deep breath. "I-I need to get to somewhere safe."

"I'm afraid you'll have to be more specific," Sai replied.

Grace, in her fear and worry, could only come up with one safe place — the safest place in her mind. "I need to get to my dad."

A pause, then, "I've located an active Iron Man suit at a point in Rose Hill, Tennessee."

"Ok. Just... give me a second."

Grace stepped out of the suit, grabbed her bag from where she left it and shoved Pepper's phone and her book — which had fallen to the bathroom floor — into it, put it on her back, then got back in the suit.

Then, she climbed out of the window again. "Take me to him."

And with that, the suit shot off into the night.

~~~~

Killian left who knows how long ago. Tony's been tied to the bed, being guarded by two of Killian's goons. He'd thought about Pepper — how to save her, if she's okay — Grace — where she is, if she's safe — and Maya — what she was going to say, who she left behind. He tries not to think about what Killian did to her. It makes him sick.

And then something begins to beep.

Tony looks up, as do the guards. At first, Tony is confused, but then he realizes what it is.

The Hello Kitty watch. The timer he'd set for the suit.

It's charged.

One of the guards picks the watch up — they'd taken it, along with all of Tony's other gadgets — and tries to figure out how to turn it off.

"Careful there," Tony says, already calling the suit to him. "It's a limited edition." He looks at the other guard. "Hey, uh, Ponytail Express — what's the mileage count between Tennessee and Miami?"

"832 miles," he replies instantly.

"Very nice."

"I'm good like that." He looks at the watch. "Can you, uh, stop that?"

Tony watches the other guard shaking it. "Break it, you bought it."

The guard throws it on the ground, then crushes it with his heel. "I think I bought it."

"Okay, that wasn't mine to give away. That belongs to my friend's sister — and that's why I'm gonna kill you first."

The guard laughs. "What are you gonna do to me?"

"You'll see."

"You're zip-tied to a bed."

It's been enough the time. The suit will be here in... "This," Tony says, throwing his hands forward, expecting the hands of the suit to come flying into them.

But they don't.

Okay, just miscalculated. Embarrassing, but it's fine. He tries again. "That."

Again, nothing happens. The guard with the ponytail mimics him, laughing. Tony sighs. How far off were his calculations? This isn't supposed to happen.

"Trust me, you're gonna be in a puddle of blood on the ground in five, four, three-" But nothing's happening. "Come on! Two-"

The first guard turns to the one with the ponytail. "How did we get this shift?"

"Alright," Tony says, "I'm gonna give you a chance to escape. Put down your weapons. Tie yourselves to those chairs. I'll let you live. In five, four, bang!" He rattles the beg, but still, nothing happens.

"Wow," the guard with the ponytail says sarcastically. "That was-"

"You should be gone by now," Tony says. Why wasn't the suit coming? It didn't charge up after all, did it? "You should've already been gone."

"I am just beyond terrified," the first guard deadpans.

"Here it comes. Three, four-"

"Shut up."

Tony counts quickly, barely taking a breath. "Five, four, three, two, one!" One hand of the suit crashes through the window, hitting the guard with the ponytail in the head before making its way to Tony. "Told you."

The hand now on Tony's, he blasts it, sending himself and the bed frame flying backwards. He catches himself on the wall, and, with one hand now free, he rips the zip tie off the other one. Quickly, he frees his feet and jumps down.

The guard with the ponytail runs back over and attacks him, but Tony fights back. One leg of the suit come through the window, attaching itself to Tony. He kicks the guard, then turns, his uncovered hand up, waiting for the rest of the suit.

But it doesn't come.

"Where's the rest?" he asks. But he doesn't have time to wait much longer.

Using the foot and hand pieces, he flies into the air, one of the guards' guns in his free hands. He spins, firing into the room. The guards duck.

He flies down, shooting at more of Killian's goons who have made their way onto the scene. They come at him, and Tony has to use hand-to-hand when he's unable to use his blasters. He's lucky he's been teaching Grace self defense; he has to use a few of the moves he taught her.

Eventually, all of the men are defeated but one. Tony points a gun and his blaster at him, but he raises his hands in surrender. "Honestly, I hate working here. They are so weird." He drops his gun, then Tony waves at him. He runs.

Tony begins making his way out of the room, and, as he does so, the rest of the suit flies in and goes onto him. He smiles as walks outside. "Better late than never. It's good to be back. Hello, by the way."

"Oh, hello, sir," Jarvis replies.

Overhead, a helicopter is flying. Tony turns, and his suit spots something smaller flying in the sky.

Iron Patriot.

Tony runs into the empty courtyard, then tries to fly up towards him, but he can't. The suit won't take off. "Aw, crap."

Then, Tony gets a call. He answers.

On the other end of the line, Rhodey says, "Tony?"

"Rhodey, tell me that was you in the suit," Tony replies.

"No. You got yours?"

Tony grimaces. "Kind of. Main house, as fast as you can. There's somebody I'd like you to meet."