The Cover Legion building no longer felt safe to him. He worked in it, lived in it, and for years, Matteo had thought of it as his home. Realistically, nothing had changed, but Matteo kept replaying what he'd seen and the word "illegal" that had come out of Max's mouth. 

Speaking of Max, although on the surface he seemed the same, Matteo noticed that he was more alert and serious than usual. He hadn't said much, so Matteo didn't know what his plan was, but it seemed that while Matteo had been busy in San Dence, Max hadn't slacked off in Goldby City. 

There was also another significant change in the case. Max decided to explain the situation to Ciara. She was part of their team, and while she wasn't as young as Matteo, she was still young enough not to have worked with Tigress and Mimic all those years ago, and that was enough for Max to be sure they could trust her. 

If Sawyer hadn't decided to quit, he would probably have been part of the team, too. 

Still, it was too small a team to investigate the corruption of an entire organisation of heroes, and they were all well aware of it. 

"I'm telling you, we'll set a trap, catch Revenger, and find out what he knows and, more importantly, how he knows it," Ciara suggested again, tapping her finger on the table. 

"Because catching Revenger is so easy," Matteo muttered in annoyance. Ciara was well aware of Matteo's failed attempts to catch the masked villain, but suddenly, she was talking about catching him as if he were a common thief on the street. 

"There's three of us, and he's alone," Ciara pointed out, looking at the blonde as if he was the one who was an idiot for doubting her plan. 

"It wouldn't be the first time multiple superheroes have gone after him. Revenger is clever and always prepared. Surprising him is impossible," Matteo countered. Though it sounded like praise for his nemesis, it was simply the truth that soured the hero's mouth. 

"Matteo's right," Max finally interjected. "Besides, it wouldn't be a good idea to catch Revenger. He's one step ahead of us, and it's obvious that he knows what he's doing. We don't need to fight him to find out what he's up to. Just follow him." 

"Most of the time we don't even know where he is until it's in the paper the next day," Ciara reminded, and Matteo immediately remembered the Vista Avenue article. 

"First things first, let's go through all the news of the last year and make a map of all the places where the Revenger has been seen or where Matteo has fought him. Maybe we'll find something we missed before," Max suggested, resting his hands on the back of the chair in front of him. 

"And then?" Ciara asked. 

"In the meantime, we'll wait for him to show up again," Max corrected her, turning to Matteo. "He already gave you the information once, I don't see why he shouldn't do it again. He obviously wants us to know." 

"What if it's a trap?" Ciara asked before Matteo could speak. 

"It could be," Max admitted. "I'm certainly not saying we should let our guard down. Matteo will be the main handler with the Revenger, but one of us will be around whenever possible. And don't forget our comms." 

"I don't think it'll be hard for you to make sure Matteo's OK from up close, Vague," Max added with an amused smile. Although Revenger had been able to use Matteo's ability against him, he doubted he could do the same with Ciara. It was literally impossible to see her coming, not to mention the fact that she would also be able to make Matteo invisible if necessary. 

"What about San Dence?" Matteo asked this time, changing the subject. Max told him that he would take care of it and that Matteo didn't need to go back, but the bad feeling he had about what he had seen there still hadn't left him, and he knew it wouldn't until he had some answers. 

"I contacted my people in the city. They said there was a small earthquake the day before you arrived. There is no evidence that it was natural though. It looks like someone blew up part of the underground and then bribed people to make it look like a natural disaster." Max's expression changed again, and his solemn face betrayed how he felt about it. "So there is no point in contacting the local police. There's a good chance they're involved. Maybe not all of them, but it's not worth the risk," he added. 

"So even fewer people to trust," Matteo muttered. As a superhero, he was used to looking for the good in people, and he was becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the situation. The only thing that at least slightly pleased him was that he was right. If the building did exist, he was almost 100% sure it was underground, and someone had decided to get rid of it because it contained too much evidence.

"Right now, all the people we can trust one hundred percent are in this room," Max estimated, gesturing with his palms. He didn't say anything more about the building, which meant that he believed Matteo's statement from the night before.

"What percentage does Revenger get?" Ciara asked with a sarcastic grin. She was the only one who still wasn't taking the situation seriously, and it sounded like she wasn't aware of the risk they might be facing. Or she was aware of it and just didn't care, which was rather unlikely as she was a superhero, and caring was literally in her job description.

Max gave her a look that assured her he wasn't amused by her, but he answered anyway, "None."

"Any other questions?" 

The meeting was dismissed shortly after that, and everyone went their own way. Max and Ciara began working on the map while Matteo was sent home to rest after his trip, as Max didn't take his protests about needing to work seriously. He suddenly found himself with a day off, but instead of heading to his apartment, he decided to dial a familiar number. 

"I was beginning to think you wouldn't call," Sawyer's amused voice reached him in lieu of a greeting. 

"I've been busy," Matteo replied vaguely, then asked, "Are you free?" 

"I'm in my apartment playing video games. Care to join me?" Matteo couldn't remember the last time he'd just played games, since he spent most of his free time training, but since he didn't want to be alone right now, he decided to take Sawyer up on his offer. 

"I'm on my way," he assured him before ending the call.  

And so Matteo was suddenly spending his day on the couch, Playstation controller in hand, playing an action game with his former sidekick. 

In real life, Matteo was a more than capable superhero, but in the virtual world, where his survival depended on how fast he could press buttons, he sucked. And Sawyer was having the time of his life. 

"If you don't stop laughing, I'm going to reverse gravity, and you won't be able to play anymore," Matteo warned him as his character died again, and Sawyer couldn't contain his laughter. 

"I'm just glad I finally found something you're not good at," the younger man replied as he finally calmed down and settled back against the couch. 

"Believe me, I'm not good at everything," the blonde assured him. Although he always scored perfectly on his Legion tests, Matteo's personal life was a mess. The unwashed black shirt in his closet was proof of that. 

"You're definitely not good at flirting back when it comes to Revenger," Sawyer remarked, and Matteo's gaze left the screen immediately to curl up on him.  

"What the hell are you talking about?" He honestly had no idea what Sawyer meant, as he wasn't aware that Revenger had ever flirted with him. Sure, he'd teased him and called him that stupid nickname, but there was nothing flirtatious about it. 

"You seriously didn't notice that he has the hots for you?" Sawyer also put the remote down and looked at his friend like he was an idiot.

"No, he doesn't," Matteo countered immediately. Sawyer's eyebrows went up, and he laughed briefly at the man's answer as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. 

"Think about it." Sawyer said and then began to list, "He never hurts you so bad that you can't walk the next day. He always stays long enough to talk to you before he runs off. Not to mention he always waits for your reaction when he provokes you." 

Matteo opened his mouth to reply, but Sawyer beat him to it, adding, "And don't forget that he literally came to save you." 

"Us," the blonde corrected him immediately. "He came to save us." 

"Oh, sure." Sawyer's tone suggested he didn't believe him at all, and he even rolled his eyes in affirmation. "He certainly wouldn't have come if it was just you." 

"Still doesn't mean he likes me." Matteo frowned as his mind began to think about everything Sawyer had said, even though he was trying to avoid it.

"Believe me, after I quit I had plenty of time to think about it. How many times have we found out that he was somewhere thanks to the newspapers? He can be invisible when he wants to be. I'm really starting to think that every time he makes himself visible, it's because he's waiting for you," Sawyer continued, ignoring Matteo's discomfort with the subject.

Now, it made no sense at all to Matteo. Revenger was a villain. It was obvious that he had a goal, and after Matteo's last mission, it was beginning to look like his goal had something to do with the Legion. If he wanted anything from Matteo, it would be information about the Legion, not a date.

"Next time you see him, try asking him out," Sawyer advised him, and Matteo pierced him with a look the moment his words snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Very funny," his tone suggested the exact opposite.

"I'm serious," the younger one countered. "When was the last time you had a date? You're young, have fun." His statement was absurd when he was three years younger than Matteo, but he obviously didn't care.

"I don't want to go on a date," the blonde replied immediately. The only person he wanted to go out with wouldn't date him, and that was the end of the subject. Matteo's love life was pathetic, but he couldn't help his feelings.

"You'll die a virgin," was Sawyer's next argument, earning him another deadly stare from Matteo.

"I'm having a lot of sex, thank you very much." Sawyer looked as if he didn't believe a word of it, but he didn't argue, instead picking up the controller again. 

It was not quite the truth, tough. Matteo hadn't visited Rowan since the shirt incident, and it wasn't just fear of his reaction that kept him from seeing him again. But he had to admit that he was really starting to miss him. Perhaps he should pay him a visit.