It's 11:50 in the evening.
Stark Beach Villa, Long Island.
The waves crashed against the rocks, producing a deep, rumbling sound.
In the living room, only a few dim wall lamps were on.
At this moment, Luca was sprawled out on the sofa, completely lacking any decorum.
His face was pale, his forehead was covered in a thick layer of cold sweat, and every breath he took seemed extremely difficult, as if his lungs were filled with water.
"Water... give me water..."
Luca pointed at the coffee table with a trembling finger, his voice so weak it was almost inaudible.
At this moment, the domineering aura he displayed during the day was completely gone.
"Okay, boss, hang in there!"
Jessica, standing to the side, looked anxious, her eyes red with worry.
I hurriedly poured a glass of warm water and carefully fed it to Luca.
But in that instant when she lowered her head, an uncontrollable surge of ecstasy flashed in her eyes.
This is true!
Luca Stark has really lost his superpowers!
Ten minutes ago, his body suddenly began to tremble violently, and then he collapsed onto the sofa as if all his strength had been drained.
Jessica could sense that the suffocating pressure that had always surrounded Luca had disappeared.
He is now weaker than an ordinary person who is seriously ill and bedridden!
Looking back on all that had happened during this time, Jessica felt inexplicably happy.
Judging by the time, the organization's assassination squad should have arrived by now.
Happy!
Luca took a sip of water, seemingly regaining a little strength, and shouted towards the outside of the living room.
"I'm here, boss!"
Happy immediately ran out of the corridor, holding a shotgun in his hand.
"Boss, don't worry. The security system is fully activated. If even a mosquito flies in, JARVIS will blast it to smithereens!"
Happy patted his chest and guaranteed it.
Luca nodded weakly and closed his eyes.
Jessica sneered inwardly.
Security system?
Security systems are completely useless against Hydra's elite squads.
Click.
Just then, the clock struck twelve.
The lights in the villa went out instantly!
All electronic devices simultaneously emitted a soft beep, then fell silent.
The power is out!
"What's going on?! JARVIS? JARVIS!"
Happy shouted in the darkness, but there was no response.
Clearly, the enemy used a high-powered electromagnetic pulse bomb, which crippled the villa's local area network.
"Enemy attack! Protect the boss!"
Happy roared.
But strangely, he didn't stand in front of Luca as usual.
Instead, he skillfully and nimbly rolled on the spot and crawled directly into a safe room behind the bar, locking the door behind him.
It all happened so fast that Jessica was stunned.
How can this guy run faster than a rabbit?!
Wasn't he usually extremely loyal to Stark?
Why do they run away as soon as there's danger?!
But Jessica had no time to think, because she could already hear the faint but deadly sound of a window breaking outside.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Several black cylinders were thrown into the living room, instantly bursting into blinding light and thick smoke.
Immediately afterwards, a dozen or so people dressed in all-black tactical armor and wearing night vision goggles burst in through the window.
The leader was a burly man wearing a mask.
This person is Brock Rumlow, commonly known as Crossbones.
Beside him stood a man with long, flowing hair and eyes as cold as a machine.
His left arm is a metal mechanical arm.
This person is Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier and Captain America's good friend!
"Clear the obstacles, capture the target alive."
Crossbones coldly gave the order, and his men immediately dispersed, surrounding Luca on the sofa.
Countless red dots landed on Luca's chest and head.
Jessica felt a surge of excitement when she saw these familiar colleagues.
But her orders were to remain undercover, so she absolutely could not reveal her identity until she had a clear understanding of the situation.
"Ah!! Who are you people?!"
Jessica screamed.
He then pretended to be terrified, but still bravely spread his arms and stood in front of Luca.
"Don't hurt the boss! Who are you?! I... I'm calling the police!"
Jessica shouted, while secretly exchanging a glance with Crossbones.
Crossbones immediately understood.
He knew this was the organization's most important high-ranking spy within Stark Industries, and he absolutely could not expose him.
"Get out of my way, woman!"
Crossbones let out a loud shout in perfect unison, then strode forward.
He casually threw a punch, but the force was just right.
"Bang!"
Jessica was hit in the shoulder by the punch and flew away with a scream.
He slammed heavily against the wall in the distance, then slid painfully to the ground, pretending to have passed out.
But in reality, she still slightly opened one eye, secretly delighted, preparing to enjoy the sight of Luca being captured alive.
In the living room, only Luca, with a gun pointed at him, remained.
Crossbones walked to the sofa, staring at the weakened Luca, a cruel smirk appearing on his lips beneath the mask.
"The famous Mr. Superman seems to be in a bad state tonight."
Crossbones used the barrel of his gun to lift Luca's chin, his tone mocking.
"Didn't you say you could crush mechs with your bare hands and treat aircraft carriers like toys? What's wrong? Now you can't even stand up?"
"Come on, kill me! Let me see just how powerful this so-called Superman really is?!"
"Come on, move!! I gave you a chance, but you're useless!!"
Crossbones usually hates Luca the most.
But back then, he could only rage helplessly; now, he can mock with abandon.
Luca glanced at him, but outwardly leaned back on the sofa and coughed violently twice.
In addition, there was a sense of utter despair and anger in his eyes.
"Ahem... Who exactly sent you? Justin Hammer? Or those resentful remnants of Osborn?"
At this point, Luca stared intently at Crossbones.
"How much did they pay you? I'll pay ten times that! No, a hundred times!"
Save your breath, Stark.
Crossbones scoffed dismissively.
"There are some things in this world that money can't buy. For example, our faith."
"Faith?" Luca looked puzzled.
"What beliefs do you hold? Which cult do you belong to?"
You don't need to know.
Crossbones was clearly a well-trained agent and wasn't falling for the trap at all.
He knew the adage that villains die from talking too much, and he would never reveal the organization's secrets to his mission targets.
"Take him away. If he resists, break his arms and legs."
Crossbones waved to the agents behind him.
However, just as the two agents were about to move forward to arrest Luca...
Luca suddenly smiled.
It was a strange and mocking smile.
"You won't tell me? Fine then. I just wanted to see if you guys would blow up a truck."
Luca sighed softly, the despair and weakness on his face vanishing instantly.
"Game over."
The moment those words left his mouth, Crossbones felt a chill run down his spine, and a strong intuition sent shivers down his spine!
"Fire!!!"
Without a second's hesitation, Crossbones pulled the trigger!
"Bang!"
Deafening gunshots rang out inside the villa.
A large-caliber armor-piercing round struck Luca directly between the eyebrows!
Luca's head snapped back, blood splattering in the darkness, and he collapsed heavily onto the sofa, motionless.
"Dead?!"
Jessica, who was pretending to be unconscious in the distance, almost cried out in surprise when she saw this scene.
Wait, Luca Stark is dead?!
Although I knew Luca was weak tonight, how could he be shot in the head so easily?!
And what about Happy?
Why was there absolutely no sound when Crossbones fired the gun?
If Luca is really dead, how could Happy possibly remain indifferent?!
Jessica, being a top-tier spy, immediately sensed something was amiss.
Based on what she knew about Luca during this time, she knew that he was cunning and treacherous, and there was absolutely no way he could die so easily.
So, that cunning child keeps touching your belly!!
There's definitely something fishy going on here!
To make the performance more realistic, and also to test the waters.
Jessica quickly scrambled to her feet and scrambled toward the sofa.
"Boss! Boss, how are you?!"
She collapsed onto Luca's body, weeping uncontrollably.
If you didn't know better, you'd think she was Luca's girlfriend.
"Wake up! You can't die, boss!"
"What will I do without you?! My salary, my bonuses!"
Seeing Jessica crying her heart out, Crossbones couldn't help but admire his colleague's acting skills.
No wonder she's codenamed Spider-Woman; otherwise, why would she be a high-ranking agent?
Their professional skills are truly impressive!
He turned around and waved to the agents behind him.
"The mission has changed; the target has been killed. Prepare a body bag and take him back for analysis."