S.H.I.E.L.D.'s "Gift"

Sherlock had no idea about the warmth on Tony's side. The moment he saw the figure standing outside the door of his rental house, he had only one feeling.

Trouble had arrived!

Sherlock disliked S.H.I.E.L.D. agents—or rather, he disliked Hydra's harassment—but when trouble came knocking, he was not the sort to run away from it.

Besides, the fact that Coulson had found the door to this rental house meant Sherlock had no way to avoid him.

So, although Sherlock's expression was terrifyingly dark, he still parked at the garage entrance.

Apparently drawn by the sound of Sherlock's engine, Coulson turned with a smile to look at Sherlock as he opened the car door.

"Nice car!"

That was the first thing Coulson said when he saw Sherlock get out of the car.

Unfortunately, Sherlock did not care about Coulson's praise. To put it more bluntly, Sherlock knew that when dealing with a veteran agent like Coulson, he could never follow the other man's lead.

So, instead of responding to Coulson's compliment, Sherlock stared darkly at Coulson standing at his door and said irritably, "If I remember correctly, you promised me in New York that you would never bother me again, didn't you?"

Sherlock's tone was exceedingly stiff as he glared at the good-natured man standing opposite him.

To Sherlock, this was both a threat and a warning. If he allowed Coulson to keep getting close to him, who knew what those Hydras hidden within S.H.I.E.L.D. might think?

Sherlock only intended to witness Iron Man's birth and, while he was at it, help the original owner of this body avenge his parents.

After that, Sherlock intended to return to his peaceful life. Therefore, he rejected S.H.I.E.L.D. and everyone else from the bottom of his heart.

Yet Coulson seemed completely unfazed by Sherlock's coldness. Instead, he looked cheerfully at Sherlock's poker face, with even a trace of happiness in his voice as he replied, "Of course, Mr. Sherlock. I—or rather, S.H.I.E.L.D.—have not forgotten the 'deal' between us."

Coulson put heavy emphasis on the word "deal," as though making his stance clear. The instant Sherlock heard it, his expression darkened another shade.

The reason was simple: Coulson had said "deal," not "condition."

Though only two words apart, their meanings were worlds apart. A condition was something that had to be honored without question, whereas a deal was something that could be honored or ignored once it had been completed.

Whether it was honored depended only on whether it had been a one-off transaction.

For a moment, Sherlock even felt as if he had been played. He began to wonder whether the traces he had left in the Middle East had truly been insufficient to deter S.H.I.E.L.D.—or the Hydra hidden within it.

What Sherlock did not know was that his use of Impaler had indeed failed to deter S.H.I.E.L.D., but it had successfully intimidated Hydra. The reason was simple: S.H.I.E.L.D. had never investigated the place where Tony had been kidnapped. Hydra, on the other hand, had!

Seeing Sherlock's expression darken further as he stared at him in silence, seemingly ready to strike at any moment, Coulson no longer showed the nervousness he had during their first meeting. He merely continued calmly, "The only reason I broke the terms of our deal this time is because I learned that Mr. Sherlock has been investigating certain matters. As it happens, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s database contains information related to them, so I thought I would give those materials to Mr. Sherlock as a token of thanks."

Hearing Coulson's explanation, Sherlock raised an eyebrow slightly, apparently quite surprised by S.H.I.E.L.D.'s move.

But Sherlock quickly understood what Coulson was trying to do.

Judging from their conversation, Coulson had come in his own name rather than on behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D. This meant that Coulson—or S.H.I.E.L.D.—wanted to maintain their relationship with him.

And since Coulson had approached Sherlock before, he naturally became the link between Sherlock and S.H.I.E.L.D. After all, from the terms of their previous deal, anyone with a functioning brain should have been able to see Sherlock's aversion toward S.H.I.E.L.D.

That was why Coulson had come today in a personal capacity to deliver the documents to Sherlock.

Of course, if Black Egg had not authorized this behind the scenes, Sherlock would rather believe the absurd claim that Tony was still a virgin.

Although Sherlock understood their intentions, he had no choice but to accept this favor.

The reason was simple: so far, aside from learning that his parents had not had a good relationship with Obadiah, Sherlock had made no substantive progress whatsoever.

Whether Sherlock wanted it or not, he had to accept S.H.I.E.L.D.'s timely assistance.

After realizing this, Sherlock's expression did not improve much. He forced out an ugly smile before saying to Coulson, "Is that so? Then thank you very much."

Coulson did not care whether Sherlock had seen through his intentions. Looking at the ugly smile on Sherlock's face, he shook his head helplessly, then took a file from his coat and placed it on the hood of Sherlock's Raptor. Smiling, he said, "Now that the gift has been delivered, I'll be leaving first, Mr. Sherlock."

After speaking, Coulson nodded to Sherlock and tapped his watch a few times.

Following Coulson's movements, a 1960 Chevrolet Corvette parked on the corner soon pulled up in front of him.

After Coulson opened the door and got in, Sherlock thought for a moment, then called out to Coulson just as he was about to start the car and leave. "Great car!"

Though Sherlock's tone was somewhat stiff, Coulson's smile became more sincere and more proud when he heard those words. He patted the steering wheel of the vintage car and said to Sherlock with a smile, "Thank you! I call her Lola!"

After saying that, Coulson nodded to Sherlock, started the car, and drove away.

Watching Coulson leave, Sherlock could only sigh helplessly. Although he truly did not want to get too close to S.H.I.E.L.D., after becoming familiar with someone as good-natured as Coulson, Sherlock could not possibly remain as openly hostile as he had been the first time.

All he could say was that this was Coulson's personal charm.

Shaking his head to clear away the jumble of thoughts in his mind, Sherlock picked up the file from the hood of his Raptor and opened it.

Sherlock's originally helpless expression turned grave as he looked through the documents. As he flipped through the pages, his face grew darker and darker.

Finally, after Sherlock finished reading the last page and closed the file in his hand, he took a deep breath, pulled out his phone, and made a call. His voice was terrifyingly cold.

"John Wick, do you know the manager of the Continental Hotel in Los Angeles?"