Chapter 42
Kassidy found it strange, not necessarily in a bad way, that she was sitting in the back of a car with whom she assumed was the devil of hell's kitchen cause she didn't know of anyone else running around Hell's kitchen dressed like this.
She'd always heard about how intimidating he was and the stories of how he leapt over rooftops and fought with incredible skill and yet...
He was a bit intimidating at first but him sitting in a car instead of leaping across the roofs was a strange sight to say the least.
But... he didn't seem like the devil either. If anyone had been? It was the spider that saved her.
"We will likely get close to the station but I'll get out and take you inside and make sure you're settled." Claire told Kassidy.
Kassidy gave a small nod at that. "Thank you..." And again, it sounded like Kasey.
Matt wouldn't say anything about Kassidy sounding like Kasey, but he knew, between the three adults in the car, it was a mutual thought. He turned, speaking directly to her.
"I would take you in myself, but that wouldn't end well. When you get in there, make sure to tell them everything, and tell them to expect a call from me soon."
Kassidy was ever so slightly spooked when he spoke as it had been quiet for a minute but nodded back at him before hesitating a little. "Are you sure you want me to tell them everything?" She asked him.
"You seemed to know the person who stopped him..." she explained.
Matt hesitated, thinking over what that could mean for Kasey. Kassidy had made a very valid point there...
"If you're comfortable with it, I'd prefer if you left my friend out of the story. You can replace her with me if it makes it easier." No one would doubt the devil of Hell's Kitchen bloodying up a man to save a kidnapped girl.
She gave another nod. "Okay." She agreed. "She... She sounded like she had a good reason even if I wasn't involved..." she told him, shifting a little.
"But I don't want her in trouble because of me either... I don't think she does that often from what I heard..."
"No, she doesn't. She has a good heart, but we've had a stressful past couple of days and I think it got to her. Thanks for understanding."
It wasn't very Devilish of him to be thanking her, but then again he never was the one who knighted himself with that title anyway.
Kassidy was a little surprised by it but smiled. "It's the least I can do since she saved me." She replied, sounding a bit more relaxed.
Claire glanced back at them slightly and smiled to herself.
It was nice to see people seeing Matt's softer side when he's Daredevil. It was rare for it to occur at all but seeing Kassidy start to relax, sitting next to him?
It made her happy.
"Alright we're almost there," Foggy told them.
"Good." Matt nodded once, hearing the police station up ahead. It had its own unique sound to it, with policemen speaking through communications constantly, the metallic sound of the holding cells opening and closing, basically whatever sound a police station made, he could hear it.
"Try to avoid dark alleyways from now on." Matt told the young girl.
She gave a small laugh. "I'll at least try to avoid being pulled into one," she agreed with a smile as Claire got out of the car when Foggy stopped.
"Thank you," she told him sincerely before following Claire to the station, under the umbrella.
Matt waited for Kassidy to get out and walk a good amount away before shifting, putting his leg up on the seat. "She had Kasey's voice."
Foggy turned to look at him. "Not just that... she looks nearly identical to her, Matt." He told him. "Main difference is their eye color really-"
Matt nodded. "I don't think she was blind either. It's strange, really strange." He noted, waiting for Claire to come back.
"Did Kasey say anything about it?" Foggy asked him while they waited for her.
"No, nothing. Just that she was the victim of an attempted kidnapping, probably by the same people who wronged Kasey in the past." Matt explained, leaning his head back against the window.
"Once Claire gets back we should get out of here. Just because I have one friend in the force doesn't mean the rest are too fond of me."
Foggy gave a small laugh. "Yeah, fair enough."
It didn't take long for Claire to come back and slide back into the car with a sigh. "She's safe." She told the two of them. "I... I gave her my number as well if she needs anything." She leaned back a bit. "I'm sure Foggy already told you she looks and sounds like Kasey?"
"He did. Not mentioning the obvious name similarities." Matt shook his head, his mind flipping through everything he heard about her. Kasey supposedly not existing, having come from those men, Kassidy sounding and looking like her twin... It all knotted his thoughts.
"Maybe Kasey can answer some of the questions?" Claire offered. "That is if she really did go back to the apartment."
Foggy had started driving back that way while they talked. "She, uh, wasn't looking too great when you guys came over earlier..."
"I trust her to keep to her promise. We made some sort of progress, and I trusted her with my identity. She's had enough secrets to last a lifetime, so I figured I'd give her a break from it." Matt continued, before sprouting a nervous smile.
"Although, Claire, I might need your help again." The pain in his leg was continuous.
Claire gave a deep sigh. "Yeah, I'm sure after sprinting out of the car on your busted leg." She replied sarcastically. "Hopefully I don't have to reset it again." She replied, pinching the bridge of her nose.
He grimaced at the thought, that wasn't fun the first time. "Sorry about that." He didn't want to let his leg hold him back when Kasey needed his help.
She sighed. "There wasn't much else you could really do about it this time." She replied. "You kept her from making a mistake she would've never healed from so," She shrugged. "I can't be mad at you. Just the situation."
Well that was a relief. As much as he went against what people told him, and rushed into situations, he hated making them upset. Especially his friends. He pulled his phone out, pulling up Tony's contact to let him know. "I'll have to text Tony and let him know."
Claire glanced back at him. "I agree he should be informed but do you think he'll want to come get her immediately?" She asked after a moment. "Cause I'm not sure that's what she'd want..."
"I'll let him know she'll be staying with me for today. He's got a kind heart, and truly cares for her. At this point I think he just wants her safe and content." The clicking of his texting accompanied his response.
Claire nodded at that. "Alright." She agreed.
It took them a bit to get back to the apartment but they helped him up the stairs once again, his mask having been tucked away again. As they got closer to his apartment, Matt could hear Kasey's steady heartbeat from inside. It sounded a bit slower but not alarmingly so and he could hear her soft breathing as well while Foggy worked on opening the door.
Matt listened to her carefully, determining that everything was perfectly fine, as Kasey wasn't in trouble, but just asleep. "Let's keep it down, I think she's asleep."
He chuckled lightly. "Although I don't blame her. It's been a long night for all of us."
Foggy and Claire both nodded as Foggy got the door open and helped Matt inside.
Claire took over while Foggy shut the door and led Matt into the living room but stopped and gave a small laugh when she saw Kasey. "I think she fell asleep waiting for us." She told Matt. "She sure doesn't look to be in a position that you'd usually fall asleep in."
Kasey was leaned against the back of the couch, head tilted to the side, threatening to fall over at any moment, sound asleep.
She was no longer in her suit but was instead wearing one of Matt's old t-shirts that was a bit big on her tiny frame but the gray hoodie she was bundled in practically swallowed her whole. She was also wearing a pair of sweatpants she had rolled up considerably and drawn the drawstrings tight around her waist.
Her shoes sat by the stairs and she was barefooted. Her long blond hair was messily hanging around her neck and back, still slightly damp. She no longer reeked of iron as well, so he could assume she found and took a shower to clean up.
He heard her take a deeper breath as she shifted ever so slightly.
"She's very much out." Matt commented, the steady, slow breathing telling him more than enough. He did appreciate her taking a shower before falling asleep on his couch.
"I should have an extra blanket around here. She can use that for tonight, I don't want to move her too much and risk waking her up." Matt himself felt like he was about to collapse, he was so tired. Of course he hadn't noticed till now, with everything that has just occurred.
Foggy came over and quickly kept himself from laughing too loudly. He wasn't sure if Matt could tell that she had raided his closet or not but it made him grin.
Claire also found it a bit amusing and let Foggy take Matt from her. "I'll get her situated. Go get out of those wet clothes and I'll look at your leg again." She told him as she grabbed one of the spare blankets she and Foggy had pulled out a while ago.
Matt irked a brow, wondering why the two sounded so amused. "What's the laughing for?" He asked, managing to get himself to his room. He'd be able to hear them answer from there.
He went to his closet to get a change of clothes, finding that a couple of his pieces were missing from their usual spots. As he chose a different pair, it hit him why they were laughing.
Oh.
Foggy had followed him into his room to make sure he was able to get around alright. "I take it you figured it out?" He asked. Matt could practically hear his grin.
Matt chuckled lightly. "Yeah, I figured it out once I found some of my clothes missing. She must look ridiculous." He pulled a dry shirt over his head, running a hand over his hair to fluff it out, hopefully to make it dry faster.
Foggy chuckled back. "Just a bit. Your hoodie is practically devouring her." He laughed a bit. "I hadn't realized how tiny she was compared to you till now. Sure, she was short but holy shit Matt. She's so tiny!"
Matt laughed, remembering how small she felt when she hugged him. "I'm sure that thing is like a blanket on her." He took a seat on the edge of his bed, letting out a sigh. "Man this thing sucks."
Foggy made a small hum noise and joined him on the bed. "And if what Tony's been saying is anything to go by, it's just gonna get deeper." He sighed. "We don't even know all the deals involving her, Matt. And there's at least twenty-four others?" He shook his head. "The fact he's even willing to share that kinda thing with us? I just... I don't know. It feels weird."
"Well, at least we know now, and can properly deal with it. In both ways." By that, he meant they could attack the Black Out corporation both as lawyers, and him as his alter ego. He couldn't let that sort of thing slip by him in his own city.
"Not until your leg heals, but... yeah." He agreed reluctantly. He wasn't even sure if going after them legally would do anything. If they've been taking people, at least 25 of them- for this long? He hated thinking about it.
Claire poked her head in the doorway once Matt had fully changed. "She's still out like a light," She informed them.
"I'll probably just let her sleep until she wakes up. Let her get as much rest as possible." Matt told her, drowsiness making an appearance in his tone.
Foggy moved out of the way so Claire could come work on Matt's leg. "I agree that's the best option. But you need rest to. I'm going to tend to your leg and let you sleep. I got to run some errands but I'll be back probably before either of you are up." She told him. "Foggy," She looked at him. "Is going home to get rest too."
"What- no I'm-" He tried to argue.
"You are." Claire replied. "You can come back later but you still have work."
Foggy sighed but nodded. "Alright, fine... Call me if you need anything, okay?" He told Matt.
Matt nodded, clapping Foggy on the shoulder. "Thank you again Foggy, and I'll make sure to let you know if anything comes up." He really was glad that Foggy had come along to help. "Claire's right, make sure you get some rest too."
Foggy nodded. "And you do as she tells you, alright? I'm serious." He told him but his tone was light. "Call me when you guys wake up, alright?" He lightly squeezed his good shoulder and bid them both goodbye as he left.
Claire gently tapped his good leg. "Scoot back and prop it on the bed." She instructed him.
"Will do, Foggy." Matt heard him leave, and shifted, putting his back against his backboard and propping his leg up for Claire to look at. He felt bad about running on it when he was specifically told not to hurt it again, but he didn't really have a choice.
She didn't have to look much to know it was worse than it had been and she took a deep breath and sighed. "First of all, it's not your fault, you had no choice." She told him firmly, knowing what was going through his head. "But," She continued. "You've really messed it up. I have no idea how the hell you were even walking if I'm honest."
Matt thought for a second before shrugging lightly. "Adrenaline? But that explains why it was hurting worse on the way back than when we went out in the first place.."
Claire took a deep sigh. "No, like... You shouldn't be awake right now." She told him seriously. "It's really bad, Matt. Worse than it was earlier... I have to reset it again and I can guarantee it's gonna take twice as long to heal probably." She looked at him, concern in her eyes. "Don't think for a moment that I don't think what you did wasn't worth it but you're gonna have to deal with the consequences regardless."
Matt frowned, already knowing what that meant, and he didn't like it. He didn't speak for a good while, speaking up only after he considered a few things. "...How long would you say?"
She took a deep breath again, pulling the chair she brought in the room up to the bed and sitting down. "Before all that? Six weeks is usually the minimum for this kind of break. Now? Probably closer to the longer side of it." She replied softly. "Maybe... three months? That's if you stay off of it."
Matt nearly choked on his own breath, sitting up more than he had been. He ignored the pain coming up from his leg. "Three months? Claire I can't be incapacitated for three months!" He whisper-yelled, as to not wake Kasey.
Claire gave him a sharp look. "I know." She hissed quietly. "But it's that or you never use it again." She told him seriously. "And I'm not exaggerating Matthew." She sighed. "I'm going to go by the hospital to get the proper stuff to cast your leg, it might help it heal faster than the webbing. It'll keep you off of it too." She ran a hand through her hair tiredly.
Matt leaned back against the backboard with a soft thud, and ran his hand down his face in dismay. Three months. Too many things could happen in those three months. Too many things that he wouldn't be able to stop. "Fine. Make sure you get some proper rest too, Claire. You've done as much as us, if not more."
She gave a small nod. "Please, try to get some rest till I get back, alright? We'll cast your leg and I'll let you sleep." She promised as she stood up. "I'll reset it when I get back cause you might move it again if I don't cast it."
Matt nodded tiredly. "I'll try as much as I can." He knew he'd get some sort of sleep tonight. The tired burning in his eyes indicating his level of drowsiness.
Claire nodded at that and turned the light off and left his room to let him rest.
He heard the quiet click of the door shutting again and only the soft noises of Kasey sleeping in the living room and the rain outside filled the apartment.
It was almost peaceful, that brief time when the world was silent, save for the sound of rain and breathing. He readjusted, pulling his covers up over himself. It wasn't long before he drifted off to sleep.
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