Chapter 95 - Chapter 95: Angry!

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….

A tiny, button-sized listening device.

The man had planted it on her bag with smooth, practiced movements while pretending to be flustered. 

If it weren't for the specialized training she'd received over the winter break, she might never have noticed it. 

The way he did it felt too professional… he definitely wasn't just some random student. She'd never seen him at school before, either.

He's after Lemu, she realized.

She frowned, thinking for a moment, then carefully tucked the bug right back where she found it.

"Bumblebee," she said clearly, "please head to the Malibu beachfront villa."

"Right away, Miss Alice," the car's synthesized voice replied.

….

Bumblebee delivered Alice back to Lemu's luxurious seaside mansion.

Alice left her backpack in the living room and found Lemu up on the rooftop terrace, sitting at the semi-outdoor bar counter.

He was munching on chips while sipping… freshly ground soy milk?

"Want some?" Lemu offered, holding out the bag. "These Lays are one of my favorite flavors. Really good."

Alice shook her head, sliding onto a tall stool opposite him. Her expression was worried. "There's something I need to tell you."

"Shoot," Lemu said around a mouthful of chips.

"I met someone at school today, I think he might be some kind of agent," Alice explained quickly. "He was asking about you, trying to get information. And he put a listening device on my backpack."

She rested her chin on her hands, leaning on the counter, concern clear in her eyes. "Do you think it's connected to that agent we ran into at the Disney Concert Hall? Or is something else happening?"

Lemu rubbed his brow for a second but kept his smile easy, not wanting to worry Alice more than necessary.

"A listening device, huh?"

"I left the backpack downstairs in the living room," Alice said.

Lemu reached over and patted her shoulder comfortingly, then picked up a chip and held it out to her mouth. "Don't worry about it. When you've got cool stuff, people get jealous. It happens. I'll take care of it."

He popped the chip into her mouth when she opened it slightly.

"I'll go check it out in a bit. Don't overthink it, okay?" He leaned in slightly, a playful glint in his eyes. "Need a comfort kiss to make you feel better?"

"Okay~"

Suddenly, Alice's worried expression vanished, replaced by a sly, charming smile. She leaned forward conspiratorially. "What kind of kiss do you prefer? I haven't tried many, but I'm willing to learn anything you like."

Her eyes sparkled with mischief. "Want to practice… right now, Master~?"

Lemu let out a cold, sharp laugh. "You really think I'd fall for that? Haven't you messed with me enough already?"

He took a small step back, giving the impression he was about to walk away. But then—faster than Alice could blink—he leaned in and pressed a quick kiss against her cheek.

It was like a pebble dropped into still water, sending invisible ripples through her entire body.

Alice stood there, completely stunned. Her eyes wide, breath caught in her throat, as Lemu flashed her a cheeky grin and darted off before she could even react.

It wasn't until long after he was gone that Alice finally stirred. Slowly, she lifted her hand to her cheek and touched the spot he'd kissed.

A small, gentle smile began to spread across her face as she tilted her head to one side.

Feels… actually pretty nice… yeah, good.

She reached for the soy milk Lemu had left behind, took a slow sip, then popped a couple of chips into her mouth.

….

Back in the living room.

Lemu—perhaps using his slime abilities, or perhaps revealing that he was, in fact, the slime himself—plucked the tiny, button-sized listening device off Alice's backpack with a flick of his fingers.

He examined the little gadget in the palm of his hand. As his gaze darkened, the Great Sage immediately activated, scanning and analyzing its composition.

This wasn't cheap tech.

Battery life of 160 days. Direct satellite uplink. Signal-masking capabilities sophisticated enough to slip past most detection systems.

Damn, Lemu thought. This is some serious spy-grade equipment.

'Great Sage, trace the data stream. Let's see who's behind this.'

'Report: Tracking complete. Target is a S.H.I.E.L.D. safe house located in downtown Los Angeles.'

S.H.I.E.L.D.?

Nick Fury? Were they really making a move? Lemu mulled it over for a moment, then made his way down to the basement, bug in hand.

Once downstairs, he pulled out a secure comms device and placed a call—to Coulson.

Sure, Great Sage could probably hack into the system, pull Fury's personal number, maybe even pinpoint his exact location. But that kind of move would be the digital equivalent of kicking in the front door and declaring war.

That wasn't the play. Not yet. Using Coulson as a go-between was the more controlled, strategic option. Lemu kept his tone civil—at first.

"Hey, Agent Coulson? I need to talk to your boss about something. Can you put me through, please?"

There was a pause. On the other end, Coulson's voice sounded slightly uneasy. "Mr. Echevarria… are you asking for Director Fury?"

"Ah, I'm really sorry, sir, but standard procedure doesn't allow us to connect calls directly to the Director. If you have something urgent, I can take a message and be sure it reaches him. How does that sound?"

Lemu exhaled slowly.

Then his voice turned ice-cold, every syllable sharp as broken glass.

"I said—I need Nick Fury. Got it?"

Coulson froze.

That tone. That feeling—it made the hairs on his arms stand straight up. He'd only felt something like it once before, during his first encounter with Lemu.

But this time… this time it felt stronger.

Like Lemu could reach through the phone line and kill him without ever setting foot in the room. What the hell had changed? After a long, heavy second, Coulson answered in a quiet voice. "Okay… Please hold."

Two short beeps later, the line connected to a new channel.

Nick Fury's voice came through—gravelly, controlled, and unreadable. "Coulson? What do you need?"

"It's me. Lemu Echevarria."

His tone was unnervingly flat, devoid of warmth or emotion. If anything, that made it even more threatening.

"Your people planted a listening device on someone close to me," he said, calm but deadly. "I'm warning you, Fury. Keep your agents away from anyone in my circle."

"If they're touched, watched, bothered, or hurt in any way… I will hold S.H.I.E.L.D. fully accountable."

"Believe me when I say—there are plenty of people on this planet I can't beat. But none of them work for S.H.I.E.L.D."

"Make sure that's absolutely clear."

If the bug had been planted on him, Lemu might have let it go. Maybe played along, toyed with them a little. But Alice? That was a different story.

That crossed a very real, very personal line. And his tolerance for that was zero. There was a long, weighted silence on the other end. Finally, Fury responded, voice low and serious.

"…Okay."

"We don't have any beef with you. Keep your head down, and S.H.I.E.L.D. won't come knocking."

Lemu ended the call without another word.

….

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