Kalinda looked up at the night sky, alone in her little yard, quite around her. She hugged herself, but she could still hear the woman's voice, the news reporter, as she conducted her segment, emergency broadcasting.
"...it is believed that Michael Stark, son of Tony Stark, and follower in both the Iron Man legacy, and the Avengers team, is dead, after the Stark Industries tower was destroyed..."
Even after all this time, it hurt to think of Michael. Or the others. But Particularly Michael. Kalinda had left the team, left S.H.E.I.L.D after she had been asked to go on a solo mission. She hadn't returned to New York for two months, due to the unfortunate fact that she had been in a coma. No one, expect perhaps her mother, and of course, Fury, knew what had happened to her, and she had simply said that the mission had taken longer then she expected, and she had had to go undercover.
It had been a fright, and one she never wanted to repeat. So she had chosen to leave, which meant severing all ties. Including leaving Michael. She had found out that most of the others had left too. And while it hurt, she couldn't make herself go back. she always said to herself that she would. But she didn't.
She got herself a job, as a police officer, worked her way up and for the last year had been riding a desk. She kept her skills sharp, and every so often, she would bring out her suit. But she never put it on.
Her lip trembled, and her eyes filled with tears. She had always meant to tell Michael. But now it was too late. She sunk down to the ground, wrapping her arms around herself, and let herself break down. And then she rose, drying her eyes. She went inside her little house, kneeling down and petting the puppy she had only just adopted, and said softly, "I'm going to ask Lisa to look after you for a while. I have something I need to do" Lisa was her neighbour, and adored dogs.
After sorting everything out, Kalinda went to what other people would use as a study, but she used as a room for her gear. Her weapons, her tools of her trade, and her skills. She knelt under a desk cluttered with gear, and pulled out the box which held her suit. She stared at it for what seemed like the longest time. And then she put it on. Despite the fact that she was slightly taller, and older, the suit still fit comfortably, like a second skin. She slipped daggers, and other various weapons around her body, and just as she was heading out, she heard the blades of a helicopter.
"never miss anything, don't you, Fury?" She muttered to herself. "Eyes everywhere indeed" This lead her to wondering who he had watching her. That was a problem for another time.
If someone had killed Michael, then she would avenge him.
