Standing invisible in the quiet laboratory, Abel made his decision.
He wasn't going to leave empty-handed. And he wasn't going to destroy the research either.
He was going to steal it.
The logic was simple: Veritaserum was one of the three most important potions he needed to restore, and it was also one of the hardest. The original formula required materials that didn't exist in this world—materials he hadn't been able to source anywhere. But this serum, this crude copy made from Kilgrave's cells and genetic material, might contain compounds he could study. Might contain something useful. At minimum, it was worth examining.
Besides, there was something deeply satisfying about the idea of taking research that Hydra had funded and keeping it for himself.
Abel ended the invisibility spell and allowed himself to become visible again. He pulled on the black hooded sweater he'd prepared and tied an artistic mask—the kind you'd find at any roadside vendor—across his face. It wouldn't hold up to serious scrutiny, but it would be enough to obscure his features in the moment.
Then he turned to the researcher still hunched over his desk.
Abel raised his wand. The spell came smoothly now, second nature: "Obliviate."
Bright white light burst from the wand tip and filled the laboratory instantly, swallowing everything in its path. When it faded, the researcher was still sitting at his desk, looking mildly confused, with no memory of the research project he'd been working on minutes before. No memory of Kilgrave's cells. No memory of the serum. Nothing.
While the researcher sat in his daze, Abel moved quickly and efficiently. He popped the hard drive out of the computer—simple hardware, not as secure as it should have been. He destroyed the computer's physical components to ensure nothing could be recovered. Then he gathered every container of serum he could find, every vial, every sample, every piece of research material. He shoved it all into a reinforced bag he'd brought, then systematically destroyed all remaining traces of the experiment.
No notes. No backup files on paper. Nothing left behind.
He was halfway to the door when the laboratory entrance exploded inward.
Security guards poured through—at least eight of them, maybe more. They were holding electric shock batons, their expressions aggressive. They'd been alerted. Someone on an upper floor must have noticed the disturbance, triggered an alarm.
Abel didn't hesitate. He raised his wand and began casting rapidly.
"Petrificus Totalus! Petrificus Totalus! Petrificus Totalus!"
Yellow light spilled out like a flower blooming, fast and precise. Each bolt caught a guard square in the chest, and one by one, they froze mid-motion—arms locked, legs locked, bodies becoming human statues. They wouldn't stay petrified forever; the spell would naturally wear off in about a day. These were just security guards, ordinary people caught in something they didn't understand. Abel saw no reason to permanently harm them.
Within seconds, the laboratory corridor was full of frozen guards.
Abel ran for the nearest floor-to-ceiling window. He didn't bother trying to open it. He pointed his wand at the glass and cast without slowing down.
The window exploded outward.
Abel was already moving toward the gap when he felt it—that sharp, urgent spike of danger. His instincts screamed at him, and he didn't think, didn't hesitate. He raised his wand and threw up a barrier.
"Protego!"
The barrier materialized just as gunfire erupted from behind him. Not a handgun. Something more serious. Bullets came rapid-fire, and each one hit the Protego barrier like they were striking real metal armor. They bounced away with sparks, ricocheting into walls, into ceiling panels, into everywhere but Abel.
He spun, wand already raised, and saw him. A man in a dark suit, holding a pistol with professional competence. The way he moved, the way he held the weapon—this wasn't a security guard. This was a trained operative. Someone who'd killed before. Multiple times.
A Hydra operative.
Abel didn't have time for a prolonged fight. Every second here was danger. He made a decision and snapped his wand in the man's direction, using a different kind of force—not a direct spell, more like magic turn into kinetic energy channeled through his will.
The man got thrown backward like he'd been hit by an invisible truck. He slammed into the wall behind him hard enough that all the air exploded out of his lungs. He crumpled, unconscious.
Then Abel turned and ran.
He didn't jump from the window. He fell, letting himself drop into the night air, feeling that brief, exhilarating moment of weightlessness and pure velocity. The ground rushed up toward him, and about halfway through the fall, he cast the spell smoothly.
"Wingardium Leviosa*.*"
His descent slowed gracefully, the magical force catching him like invisible hands, gently guiding him down to the roof of a nearby residential building. He landed silently, bag of stolen research secure in his grip, and didn't stop moving. He ran across the rooftop, jumped the gap to the next building, and disappeared into the maze of New York's nighttime architecture.
Behind him, alarms were blaring. Security was mobilizing. But Abel was already gone, already invisible to pursuit, vanishing like smoke into the darkness.
By the time Hydra operatives reached the ground floor, there was nothing left but confused guards, destroyed equipment, and the unmistakable signs of a professional theft.
Abel had played a dangerous game. Stealing from Hydra was a risk he'd calculated carefully. But he also knew something the Hydra operatives didn't: they wouldn't pursue this aggressively. Not right now. Not when their entire strategic focus was on something far bigger. The Insight Project demanded all their attention and resources. A theft from a subsidiary lab wasn't worth drawing attention to their operations.
Hydra would cover it up. They'd suppress the incident, silence the witnesses, and move on. And in doing so, they'd inadvertently protect Abel from deeper investigation.
For now, at least, he was safe.
And he had the materials he needed.
END CHAPTER 20