Surrounded by Hydra

"Peter, I have some bad news." When Peter met with Director Garrett this time, the other man immediately handed him the tablet with a grim expression. "George Stacy has confessed."

"What?" Peter was shocked. He hurriedly took the tablet and opened the video. In the interrogation room, Chief Stacy faced the camera and confessed everything, admitting that he was a member of Hydra and identifying other Hydra members.

Peter’s hand trembled, and he failed to hold on to the tablet. He let it fall onto the table, but the voice from the device still came through clearly.

"You saw it yourself. He admitted it on his own, without any torture or coercion." Director Garrett patted Peter on the shoulder and comforted him. "This is a good thing, too. At least we no longer have to wonder whether the people reviewing the evidence have a problem."

"There’s another piece of good news. Gwen has been proven innocent. Her father’s situation has nothing to do with her. You can go pick up your girlfriend."

"Besides, George Stacy was only an outside agent within Hydra and hadn’t committed any serious crimes. So he signed a plea agreement as well. He won’t be prosecuted for this, but he can no longer continue serving as police chief."

Holding the tablet, Peter left Director Garrett’s office with his mind in a fog, unsure whether he should be happy or sad.

Of course he was happy that Gwen was fine, but her father had confessed, and Peter had no idea how he was supposed to face her.

Moreover, Chief Stacy, who had always presented himself as upright and selfless in front of Peter, was actually a member of Hydra. Peter could not process the news at all. It felt as if his entire worldview had been thoroughly scrubbed away.

Carrying a heavy heart, Peter arrived at the place where Gwen was being held. He presented Director Garrett’s order, and after it was verified online, he successfully brought Gwen out.

After leaving the holding facility, Gwen let out a long breath and said with a smile:

"You really only understand the value of freedom after losing it. It looks like your earlier guess was right. There really was something wrong with the people reviewing the evidence. Has my father been released too? Let’s go home together. I’ll make something delicious for you."

Then she saw the grim look on Peter’s face. Her heart sank, and she suddenly had a bad feeling.

"What’s wrong? Has my father not been released yet? What about Uncle Ben and Aunt May?"

"Only your suspicion has been cleared. Uncle Ben and Aunt May are… are still…" Peter stammered.

"How could this happen?" Gwen’s delicate brows immediately furrowed. "S.H.I.E.L.D.’s efficiency is terrible. I’ve always felt that they couldn’t be trusted."

Peter’s eyes wandered. He did not dare meet Gwen’s gaze.

"What’s wrong?" Gwen asked suspiciously.

"Gwen, about Uncle Stacy… well…" Peter faltered, making Gwen even more anxious.

"What happened to my father? Was he hurt?"

"No, but…" Peter still did not know how to phrase it.

Gwen’s gaze shifted, and she spotted the tablet in Peter’s hand. She immediately snatched it away, turned it on, and saw George’s confession video.

"Clatter!"

The tablet slipped from Gwen’s hands and fell. She covered her mouth with both hands, completely unable to believe what she had seen.

Peter put an arm around Gwen and comforted her in a low voice. "Don’t worry about Uncle Stacy. He’s already signed a plea agreement. He was only removed from his position, and S.H.I.E.L.D. won’t prosecute him."

But Gwen could not accept any of it. She shoved Peter away and shouted, "They must have used me to blackmail my father! Otherwise, why did everyone else stay under investigation for so long while I was cleared so quickly?"

After shouting, Gwen paid no attention to Peter or the nearby S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel. She turned and ran out. She wanted to go home and ask her father about everything face-to-face.

Peter followed Gwen out the door. They hailed a cab and rushed to her home. When they arrived, George came out to open the door and let Gwen inside, but he blocked Peter from entering.

"Sorry, kid, but our family needs to spend some time alone. You should go back and visit your uncle and aunt!"

George’s attitude was extremely cold, something Peter had never encountered from him before.

Peter had no choice but to retreat a few steps and say awkwardly, "Uh, if you need any help, you can call me anytime. I keep my phone on twenty-four hours a day."

But the only response he received was the thunderous slam of the door.

Peter sighed and turned to leave. He went to the police station again, intending to visit Uncle Ben and Aunt May, but was told that the two of them had already been transferred to S.H.I.E.L.D. because the evidence against them was conclusive.

Peter hurried back to S.H.I.E.L.D. and returned to Director Garrett’s office.

"Director, this is all a Hydra conspiracy! The evidence is fake!" he said anxiously, standing in front of the desk with both hands braced against it and his body leaning forward as he stared at Director Garrett, who was seated behind the desk.

"Peter, I understand how you feel."

Director Garrett stood up, led Peter to a nearby sofa, and sat him down. He personally poured Peter a cup of coffee, then sat across from him and began reasoning with him.

"But we can’t determine that the evidence is definitely fake! Take George Stacy, for example. Because of his case, we even arrested the people who reviewed the evidence and investigated them."

"But what was the result? The facts proved that he was Hydra!"

"And the reason Thomas said those things to you was entirely to use you to disrupt S.H.I.E.L.D.’s normal operations and take the opportunity to rescue George Stacy. If we hadn’t kept things confidential and George had learned about it, what if he had stubbornly denied everything? Wouldn’t we have let a member of Hydra off?"

Peter grew frantic. "Director, Uncle Ben and Aunt May are different from George. They definitely aren’t Hydra!"

"Peter, don’t let your emotions cloud your judgment. Think about it. Your parents were Hydra for so many years, and they even felt comfortable leaving you in their care. How could they possibly have known nothing about it?"

"That’s presuming guilt! You’re making wild guesses!" Peter shouted.

Seeing that Peter was no longer falling for his tricks, Director Garrett immediately became displeased. He straightened his face and scolded him:

"Look, Peter, when I talk to you about evidence, you say the evidence is fake. When I talk to you about reasoning, you say I have no evidence! So apparently, you get to have every argument on your side, is that it?"

Peter was momentarily speechless, unable to think of how to refute him.

"Hmph! From now on, we’ll follow the investigators’ report!" Director Garrett snorted and issued a dismissal. "I have official business to attend to. You shouldn’t keep coming to my office every day. That’s all!"