Chapter 2: The Man Called Daredevil Part 2
A few hours later, the sun shines down on Hell’s Kitchen as the terrors of the previous night fade away with the darkness. People slowly start their morning routines to prepare for the day ahead. Construction workers yell at one another through clouds of smoke and debris, a couple of kids laugh as they chase each other on the sidewalk, and a woman briskly walks forward with a large cup of coffee in one hand and a cellphone in her other as she is tries to not to drop either of these items. A sharply dressed man in a heather gray suit strolls around all the morning chaos as his white cane sways back and forth in front of him.
The man quietly walks along the sidewalk avoiding pedestrians and curbs with the assistance of his guide cane. He steps into a decrepit building and adjusts his red tie and glasses. A sign outside the building in gold plated letters states NELSON AND MURDOCK ATTORNEYS AT LAW. The cool spring breeze leaves him as he meanders throughout the office.
A man with dirty blonde hair sits behind a desk in a mauve buttoned down shirt and flips through scattered paperwork. He looks up and sees the other man approaching his desk.
“Hey, baby,” the blonde man says warmly, “How was your night?”
The blind man chuckles, “Hey! I’m your partner not your baby.”
“Ouch! Must have been rough.”
The blonde man-Foggy-smirks as he straightens his papers. “Okay, I’m sorry, Matt. You probably haven’t even had any coffee yet.”
“Did someone say coffee?”
Both men turn towards the third figure in the office. A tall blonde woman carrying two mugs of steaming coffee. She places one in front of Foggy and hands the other to Matt.
“Good morning, Karen.” Matt smiles warmly in her direction and takes the cup from her.
“Nice to see you in the office, Matt!”
“Um…Karen, did you make this or…?” Foggy looks nervously at the warm drink.
“I made it! One of the clients, Mrs. Pena, said it was a homemade brew from her country of Colombia.”
Matt takes a sip and grins, “Thank you, Karen. It is very good.”
Foggy is still not convinced and addresses the blonde woman. “Any news to give us?”
Karen shrugs, “Well, I was looking over the records for the past month. Including expenses, we have only gained $8,000. We haven’t been making as much as we had hoped.”
“Money isn’t important. The most important thing that we do is make sure our clients receive justice.”
“Easy for you to say, Matt! I haven’t had a decent meal in ages!”
“Foggy is right,” Karen agrees, “Most of the money is already accounted for. Rent, building expenses, and many of our clients have been paying us back with food or merchandise that they make.”
“So? Let’s go out and celebrate. I’m sure we could all use a night at Josie’s to unwind.”
Foggy and Karen seemed to perk up at Matt’s suggestion. Matt shuffled along Foggy’s desk to take the adjoining seat. A phone rang by the entrance, and Karen ran to answer it as she shut the office door. Foggy took a sip of the coffee, blanched, and dumped the contents into the wastebin.
“It’s not that bad. She has been getting better at handling the coffee maker.”
“Yeah, sure. That or you have just gotten used to the bad taste, Matt. Let’s be serious. What happened last night?”
Matt was silent as he listened to Karen talking on the phone in the other room. He was making sure she was engrossed in that conversation, so she wouldn’t hear the words that would come out of his mouth.
“I was just doing my civil duties as Daredevil.”
“Foggy, we have discussed this.”
Foggy sighed as he ran his hands through his hair, “Yeah, I know, but I still worry about you. It’s not just your average bad guys out there. We have had alien attacks and giant green monsters rampaging NYC. Didn’t Captain America get into some huge fight with some freak with a metal arm?”
“Foggy-I’m fine. I haven’t run into anybody that I can’t handle.”
“No, buts. I don’t want to discuss this again. Let’s focus on these cases so we can pay the electric bill and get you a decent meal.”
Foggy sighed and pulled out the stack of papers in front of him. “I have been looking through the cases that Karen handed to me this morning. All of them are small potatoes-nothing worth more than a grand or two. And, the clients would probably pay us back in small potatoes too.”
“So?” Matt questioned, “If we add them up all together, I’m sure we could be able to make enough for rent and other costs. Like I said, we didn’t become big shot lawyers for the money.”
“Well, you didn’t” Foggy chuckled.
Suddenly, tires screeched outside their office building. Several people jumped out of the way as three men climbed out of the vehicle. Citizens screamed as gunshots filled the air. Foggy got up from his desk and walked over to the window to look out at the commotion. Karen ran inside their office.
“What’s going on out there?!”
“I’m not sure. Karen, lock the doors and shut all the blinds.” Foggy ordered.
Matt got up from his chair and started to walk towards the exit.
Foggy grabbed his arm, “Where do you think you’re going?”
“I’m going to go out and help those people.”
Foggy gasped, “And blow your cover? Matt-seriously. Just wait for it to die down before you go all vigilante on them.”
The three men outside cornered a bystander on the street who was middle aged, had glasses, and looked like he hadn’t slept in days.
The leader of the trio smiled, “Looking good, Harry.”
Harry’s face turned white with fright as he was pushed back against a wall. The leader continued to talk, “Did you think you could escape from the organization by hiding out in Hell’s Kitchen?” He pulled his gun closer to Harry’s head. “Now, it’s not too late. The boss thinks you’re worth a second chance if you want to return…”
Harry nervously yelled, “N-no! I made my decision!” He was sweating profusely as the leader clicked his gun into place.
“Hmph. Suit yourself. You had your chance.”
Harry closed his eyes waiting for the bullet to hit him but heard someone scream out in pain. The leader turned to his cronies and saw a man in a light gray suit swinging a Billy club at the second man’s ankles. The leader turned his gun towards the blind man and began shooting, but the man dodged the bullets.
Foggy sighed, “He just had to go play hero.”
“What are you looking at Foggy?”
Foggy turned to see Karen walking into his office. He quickly closed the blinds and said, “Oh-it looks like a drug deal gone bad outside. Karen, let’s go check on our neighbors.”
“Already did. I made sure no one was out in the hall and brought a couple of clients inside for protection.”
“Excellent! Now, how about uh…you…make some more of that delicious coffee for these lovely people!”
Karen smiled and rushed to the coffee maker as Foggy grimaced. He ran his hands through his dirty blonde hair and went to help her. Matt would just have to handle this on his own.
Matt had grabbed the gun from the leader and emptied the remaining rounds from the cylinder. Police sirens wailed closer to the alleyway where the gang was fighting. The leader scoffed and yelled at his men, “Let’s go. Get in the car now! Don’t think you’re safe for long, Harry!” The gang rapidly started the car as the police began chasing them through the streets of Hell’s Kitchen. Harry took off his glasses and wiped them on his shirt as he turned towards his blind savior. “Who are you? W-why did you save me?”
Matt smiled and adjusted his red glasses. “Just a Good Samaritan. Follow me. I can get you a cup of coffee and somewhere to hide low for a while.”
Matt and Harry made their way across the alleyway back to the lawyer’s office. As they entered the building, Karen gasped. “Matt! Where did you go? Are you okay?!”
“I’m fine. I bumped into this gentleman outside who was looking for some shelter from that gunfight.”
Karen looked at the older man standing besides Matt. She took in his scruffy face and disheveled appearance. “Wait…I know you!” She ran to the front desk and pulled out the top drawer. As she shuffled through the files, she opened one and pulled the two men into Foggy’s office. Foggy looked up and stopped talking to his client.
Karen paused, “I’m sorry, Mrs. Griffin. Do you mind if we talk to Mr. Nelson for a few minutes? We will be help you shortly.”
The elderly woman grabbed her purse and walked outside to meet the other clients in the lobby. Harry took the seat where she was sitting as Matt moved closer to Foggy. Karen slammed the file onto the desk and opened the first page. “Harry Adamson. Member of the drug cartel known as the Rigg Family. Disappeared two weeks ago. They posted a reward for his capture at the New York Bulletin.”
“Wow! You must be some big player in this cartel.”
Harry chuckled, “I’m not. I’m just their accountant.”
Matt turned towards the older man, “I see. Their accountant runs off. No wonder they’re nervous. Are you going to tell us why you took off?”
Harry closed his eyes. “I woke up one day and the cartel had become my life. I was disgusted; I wanted to forget my past.”
Matt frowned before he spoke, “There’s no such thing as forgetting your past…not if you keep on living the same life.”
The older man smiled sadly, “No, I guess not. I thought that I could outrun it, but they made it clear today. But, before you turn me into the police, I want to make a request.”
Karen, Foggy, and Matt shuffled closer to one another before the man spoke again.
“I have a wife and daughter that live in this neighborhood. Due to my work, I cut ties off with them about seven years ago. I wanted to protect them. I want to apologize and see them one last time.”
Karen placed her hand on Harry’s shoulder, “Of course we can.”
“Karen…” Foggy glanced at her, “We can’t keep a wanted criminal away from the police. They would think that we are helping him escape from the law.”
The blonde woman glared at her two coworkers, “Please guys. I don’t see any harm in granting this man’s last request. He doesn’t want any trouble. Right, Mr. Adamson?”
The man nodded and looked at the other men with somber eyes.
Matt pinched the bridge of his nose, “So, where does your family live, Mr. Adamson?”
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The trio of Rigg Family cartel members pulled into an abandoned warehouse by the waterfront.
“Geez Ricky. What’s the rush? We know that Harry isn’t going to go too far. We can finish the job later tonight once the cops leave the area.”
The leader-Ricky-glared at his partner, “What’s the rush? I’m the Rigg Family Assassin. I’ve never missed a target. If word gets out to the boss, my life is on the line.” The three men exited the vehicle as they sauntered over to the decrepit building.
“Well, the boss doesn’t know yet.”
Ricky grinned, “And he won’t ever know.” He quickly removed a pistol from his waistcoat and fired two rounds into each of the men behind him. “You failed to help me get rid of the traitor. Both of you are problems. The Rigg Family doesn’t need men like you.”
Blood splattered across Ricky’s clothes as the two cronies gasped their final breaths.
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As the last client walked out of the Nelson and Murdock office, Karen locked the door and moved back to the office where the three men were staying.
“I think the police are gone from this street, but I would still be careful walking outside.”
“Thank you, Karen.” Matt said, “If you could give Mr. Adamson a portion of our “earnings” today, we can head out afterwards.”
Karen motioned to Harry and showed him to the main lobby where the clients had left a variety of food items (pies, kolaches, tamales, to name a few).
Foggy shut down his laptop in disgust, “Ugh. You always pull stunts like this!”
“Give me a break, Foggy. You’re not still mad, are you?”
“Mr. Adamson gave half of his life to the Rigg Family Cartel. He kept secrets from his family and loved ones. I mean-I’m not comparing your secrets to his, but maybe that hit closer to home?”
Matt picked up his Billy club and adjusted his tie. “Stop joking, Foggy.”
Karen opened the office door, “Hey, guys. Are you almost done in here?”
“Great! I am going outside to grab a taxi for us. Mr. Adamson, are you sure you have enough cookies?”
Harry lifted a small bag. “My daughter loves peanut butter cookies. I want to see her smile when I give her these.”
Karen nodded and the four people walked to the exit. “It shouldn’t be too long before we catch a ride.”
A black car pulled in front of the law office and a man in bloody clothes stepped out clutching his abdomen.
“I-I’ve been hit. Someone h-help me.” He gasped.
Karen started to rush down the steps before Harry stopped her.
Matt jumped in front of Karen and pulled her inside the building as bullets began flying. Foggy was still in the hall and ducked to avoid the glass shards from the door. Mr. Adamson slumped to the ground as blood poured out from his body.
The assassin removed his bloody coat and placed it over the dead body.
“My work here is done.” He smiled as he hopped back into the black car and drove off.
Karen stood up on shaking legs and approached the victim.
She quickly pulled out her cell phone to call the police. Foggy knelt in front of the lifeless body. As he turned back, he noticed that Matt was gone. The lawyer whispered, “Somebody has just crossed paths with the Devil.”
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The Rigg Family Assassin stood on top of one of the many buildings in Hell’s Kitchen. He smoothed his dark hair as he took in his surroundings. The man knew that he was not alone.
“Unbelievable. I didn’t think I was being followed.”
Night had cloaked the pursuer and moonlight shined upon his red and black suit. “Surprised?”
“Not really,” Ricky replied, “Who are you? Why did you follow me?”
The masked man smiled, “I’m the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen. You killed someone that I was protecting.”
Ricky gazed closer at the armored man. The red and black attire molded perfectly into the muscles and a holster was strapped onto the man’s left thigh. “I see. Then, I have done you a disservice. You’ve come to kill me as revenge?”
“Nope, I’ve come to make a delivery.” The Devil reached into his holster with his right hand.
Daredevil twirled his club and sauntered over to the cartel assassin. “Wait… I have heard about you. You’re Daredevil. You have been taking down some members of the Russian Mafia and the Yakuza recently.” The assassin pulled out two guns from his pockets. “Now, you want to take out Ricky Donovan-the Rigg Family Assassin! Well, good luck. I haven’t missed a target ever!” Ricky smiled as he fired multiple shots from both pistols.
Daredevil bobbed and weaved as the bullets reflected off his armor. He jumped and cartwheeled in the air and landed on top of the assassin. Using his club, he swatted the two pistols out of the assassin’s hands. Ricky looked into the masked man’s red eyes in fear. “N-no. Please! Don’t kill me.”
Daredevil grabbed the man’s collar and hoisted him over the building’s edge. “When you get to the other side, tell Harry that one day we will break bread together.” He dropped the assassin onto the street and he landed on top of a police car.
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Karen and Foggy walked quietly up the stone steps to a red brick building. The young woman knocked on the door. A preteen girl with blonde curls opened the door, “Hello? How can I help you?” She looked around but there was no one in the entryway or hallway.
“Ellie? Who is it?” Her mother’s voice called out.
“Nobody, Ma. I guess it was just a prank.” Ellie looked down and found a small bag of cookies on their doormat.
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“Well, all of that and we’re still broke.” Foggy sighed in defeat as he and Karen walked the dark streets of Hell’s Kitchen.
“So, what? Here, Foggy, try one of the cookies Mrs. Griffin made.”
Foggy reached into the bag and took a bite out of the peanut butter cookies. “Hmm…not bad.”
“Still, I’m sad that we couldn’t help Mr. Adamson. I wished that he could have seen his family one more time. Do you know where Matt went off to after the shooting?”
“Oh, well, you know him. He’s an expert at Irish goodbyes. Probably a Catholic thing.” Foggy nervously laughed. His cellphone went off suddenly. He flipped open the screen to see who was calling him. “Speak of the devil.”
Foggy answered the call, “Hey, Matt. Karen and I are walking back to Josie’s. Are you free to meet up?”
“No problem. I will see you there in an hour. Just needed to clean up.”
“Alright. See you there.” Matt silenced his cell phone as he listened to the sounds of the city. Sirens, screams, and car horns blared throughout the night. Matt knew that he should probably stay out a little longer to help, but he didn’t want Karen or Foggy to worry too much. Also, he had promised them a night out to celebrate. The citizens of Hell’s Kitchen would have to wait for their devil to return again another night.
