Meanwhile, thousands of miles away.
While Su Modie was still sipping coffee with a few girls in a cafe and planning the "Midnight Sons," Makima, as the undisputed hardest worker in the incarnation team, had already used her S.H.I.E.L.D. cover to build the skeleton of the Thunderbolts.
Makima's efficiency had always been terrifying, and it served as a perfect blueprint for the future Midnight Sons.
The Abomination, transformed from Bronski, was absolutely loyal to Makima due to Control, making him the undisputed top enforcer of this strike team. As for the second official member Makima had in mind for the Thunderbolts, his reputation was not small either.
Off the coast of Georgia, United States, cold sea winds howled year-round.
Here sat an isolated island, known to the outside world as the "Alcatraz of the East Coast."
The reason was that the island housed the highest-security private prison for felons in the U.S.—Seagate Prison.
Before Tony Stark created that "Deep Sea Prison" built in the depths of the ocean, this was the final destination for super-gang leaders, high-IQ financial fraudsters, and highly dangerous individuals.
For instance, the fake "The Mandarin" who put on a show on TV, and Luke Cage, who was currently serving a miserable sentence inside after being framed.
However, Makima hadn't flown all this way today to bail out those two.
Accompanied by the low rumble of engines, a convoy of three black bulletproof SUVs slowly drove through the heavy barbed-wire gates of Seagate Prison under the nervous gaze of the guards, stopping in front of the main building.
The car door opened.
A burly bodyguard in a black suit stepped out first and respectfully opened the rear door.
Makima stepped gracefully out of the car in her high heels.
She wore a well-tailored black suit jacket over a white shirt, with a pair of oversized black sunglasses perched on the bridge of her nose, concealing half of her stunning face.
Her long red hair fluttered slightly in the sea breeze, and her entire being exuded a cold elegance and authority unique to those in power.
Without even lifting an eyelid, she ignored the awestruck gazes of the armed guards and walked into the main prison building with unhurried, confident strides.
Wifey is so cool!
The warden, sporting a beer belly, had been wiping away cold sweat and waiting for a long time.
Upon seeing Makima enter, he immediately broke into a fawning smile and bowed as he led the way. "Officer, the person you specifically asked to see has been arranged in the special visitation room in advance. He... they are waiting for you inside."
They?
Makima stopped, lowered her head slightly, and gave him a cold glance over the rim of her sunglasses.
She didn't recall writing two names on the interrogation list.
The warden swallowed hard in fear and braced himself. "Officer, as you know, although this gentleman is locked up in Seagate Prison, he still wields considerable influence outside... He requested that he must bring his... friend when seeing visitors."
"We... we couldn't really refuse. After all, someone from above also put in a word, asking us to let him be a bit... dignified here."
"Is that so?" A playful smirk curled on Makima's lips as she pushed her slipping sunglasses back up with her index finger. "Dignified?"
"Understandable~"
It was normal. Even for a prisoner behind bars, as long as there were enough digits in his bank account or valuable technology in his head, there would never be a shortage of privileged classes opening doors for him.
Reaching the end of the corridor, Makima reached out and pushed open the iron door.
Just as the warden tried to squeeze in after her, a thick hand pressed against his chest.
The person who stopped him was the black-suited bodyguard following Makima.
He also wore sunglasses and remained expressionless, but it wasn't hard to tell that this bodyguard was Bronski.
With a "bang," the visitation room door slammed shut right in front of the warden's nose.
The light inside the room was dim.
Behind a long iron table, two men in orange prison uniforms sat casually.
One was young and thin with delicate features, but he spent the whole time shrinking back and didn't even dare to look up. The man sitting next to him, clearly in a dominant position, wore black-rimmed glasses and was slightly chubby.
This man showed no sign of the desolation expected of a prisoner.
Instead, he sat with his legs crossed, tapping his fingers boredly on the table, his posture as arrogant as could be.
Even without his expensive suit, one look at that greasy face was enough to recognize him instantly—
The former head of Hammer Industries, the tech-geek who claimed to be Tony Stark's lifelong rival, Justin Hammer!
Yes, the second core member Makima had traveled all the way to Seagate Prison to scout for the Thunderbolts was this very arms dealer, who had been sent to prison by Tony after hiring Ivan Vanko and causing a massive mess at the Stark Expo.
Although in public opinion, this greasy man couldn't even compare to one of Tony Stark's fingers.
Especially after the Battle of New York, even his level of flamboyance was a total defeat, something he himself was very reluctant to admit. But stripping away that layer of a buffoon, one had to admit—
Justin Hammer was still a rare military-industrial talent and capitalist.
After all, Makima couldn't exactly kidnap Tony Stark to slave away for her strike team.
Getting Stark to join... wasn't entirely impossible.
But the prerequisite was that she'd have to stuff Reze into the team as a Tony-trap.
But if she actually did that, the chaos would be immense—if Tony found out that Makima, whom he had mourned for so long and who had nearly given him PTSD, hadn't actually died and that everything was just a scheme, there was no telling what kind of world-shaking mess he'd cause.
So, settling for the next best thing, bringing Hammer—who also had a solid military-industrial foundation—into the Thunderbolts to redeem himself through service, and having him dutifully handle the team's weapon R&D and funding, was undoubtedly the most cost-effective choice.
Makima walked to the long iron table, pulled out an iron chair, and sat down gracefully.
Bronski behind her was sharp enough to step forward like a submissive and sensible servant, respectfully taking her discarded suit jacket and sunglasses with both hands.
He then stepped back half a pace, standing straight behind Makima like an iron tower.
Without the sunglasses, Makima's face—one that could make most men in the world stop breathing—was fully exposed under the dim light.
Her gaze was calm, carrying the unique scrutinizing air of a superior, as she swept her eyes over Justin Hammer across the table.
With just that brief look, Makima immediately sensed something was off.
This former military-industrial tycoon didn't show a single ripple in his eyes after seeing her true face.
No amazement, no lust, and certainly none of the instinctive greed and drooling most men showed when they saw her.
That look was as flat as if he were looking at an unattractive block of wood.
Interesting...
This was surprising enough, but what shocked Su Modie, who was observing in the shadows, even more was Hammer's subsequent behavior.
The former billionaire naturally extended an arm and wrapped it around the delicate-looking young male inmate beside him.
Not only that, Hammer seemed completely unconcerned about the presence of outsiders as his hand rubbed back and forth across the young man's waist and legs, getting handsy.
His technique was as practiced as it was suggestive.
Su Modie was dumbfounded...
Wait... dude...
Are you freaking gay?
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