In Hell's Kitchen, it wasn't particularly unusual for car chases to happen even during the day, so not many people paid attention to the Purple Man fleeing with a young girl.
In fact, even Purple Man himself didn't understand why anyone would be trying to kill him.
But the truth wasn't as important as survival.
"Looks like I need to head to Boston or San Francisco immediately. New York is too chaotic to stay any longer."
Purple Man led the seemingly dazed Jessica Jones around several corners and randomly got into an empty taxi. He then told the driver, "To Kennedy Airport, now."
He didn't care that there was another person in the car. From the moment he spoke, these people became his loyal puppets. He was confident in his abilities.
After all, this power had never failed on ordinary people.
It even worked on his lover.
The driver in the front seat started the engine and began moving forward. When the taxi turned around a bend at the end of the street, Purple Man saw the pursuing Sicilian mercenary in the rearview mirror.
He was holding an AR-15, preparing to shoot at the taxi.
But a second later, the gang members Purple Man had controlled along the way shot him from behind, and the last mercenary fell to the ground.
After finishing everything, those gang members dragged the mercenaries' bodies back into the hotel.
Purple Man lounged comfortably in the back seat, his left arm around Jessica beside him. He lit a cigarette, enjoying the pleasure of another narrow escape.
"I don't particularly like nicotine. I suggest you put that cigarette out immediately."
Purple Man: ??
Someone actually dared to challenge his authority. But since he was in a good mood, he'd give them a quick end.
"Open the door and jump out of the car."
However, his proud mental control ability failed today. There was no response, as if the ordinary person in the front seat was completely unaffected by his influence.
Lynn was, of course, no ordinary person.
"Perhaps sometimes you shouldn't be so confident in your abilities, Kilgrave."
This Purple Man wasn't like the comic version with purple skin and special mutations. At least for now, he looked like a normal human.
At least on the outside.
Lynn's words made Purple Man immediately try to open the car door, but he found his body tightly bound by ethereal purple tentacles.
These psychic tentacles not only drained the strength from his body but also made him feel dizzy and unable to speak.
Lynn looked at Jessica, who was clearly still under Purple Man's control. However, Lynn didn't plan to release her from the control yet. Although her abilities weren't too strong, Lynn didn't have time to deal with her emotions if she became agitated.
The taxi drove to a bay area commonly seen in Manhattan, and the driver stopped the car.
Lynn walked to Purple Man's side and casually searched through his belongings. After looking around for a while, Lynn frowned and said, "You've been doing bad things for so long, and you don't have any savings? Well, I suppose as someone with mind control abilities, you don't really need savings. Maybe my thinking is a bit too conservative.
But going after a little girl, I think your tastes are a bit too dark.
Oh wait, she's an adult, so she's not a little girl in your eyes, right?"
Lynn was unusually talkative, but the more he spoke, the more frightened Purple Man became. After all, Lynn hadn't stated any conditions. He was even saying things that only police would say.
This person was either a madman or a crusader for justice. Considering that Lynn was standing with him at a smelly bay area in Manhattan, Purple Man didn't think Lynn was a crusader for justice, which meant he could only be a madman.
"Although I'd like to hear what you have to say, considering your abilities, I won't give you the chance for any last words. Farewell, my friend."
Despite Purple Man having a lot to say, Lynn wasn't going to give him the chance.
The taxi driver took out a jack from the trunk and then pulled out a bunch of nylon ropes to tie up Purple Man.
Meanwhile, Lynn took out a fruit knife from the car.
After the driver finished tying Purple Man up, Lynn stabbed him in the back, causing a massive amount of blood to gush out unstoppably.
Afterward, Lynn reached out and extracted a section of spine from his body, carefully wrapping it in a newly purchased sterile bag. After doing all this, Lynn unhesitatingly kicked Purple Man into Manhattan's somewhat dirty bay.
This villain was thus sunk to the bottom of Manhattan's waters, creating only a small splash.
After Purple Man disappeared, Jessica suddenly collapsed to the ground, covering her mouth and staring intently at the now-calm surface of the water.
Lynn walked up to Jessica but didn't touch her with his arms. Instead, he stood at a safe distance and said, "Kilgrave is dead. I'm not sure what you've been through, but if you want to rest for a while, you can come back with me.
You can rest for a bit, then take a hot shower.
I'll give you half an hour to calm down, and then you can tell me your decision."
Lynn didn't think that he, as an outsider who had just met her, could comfort the girl. Perhaps she would become a strong person in the future.
But for now, considering that the Jones house was empty, Lynn feared that Jessica had once again lost all her family.
He didn't believe that a few words could pull such an unfortunate girl out of her loss and pain.
"It's best to leave this to time."
"Boss, your time is valuable, and so is mine. In half an hour, I could have taken several fares," the taxi driver said.
Lynn nodded with satisfaction. This guy still had his original behavior patterns and thought processes, which meant his brainwashing had been successful.
Compared to the kind of mind control that turned people into loyal dogs and puppets, this skill, which could be removed at any time without affecting their original thinking, was more practical.
Lynn pulled out a U.S. banknote and handed it to the driver.
"Wait patiently."
"Yes, boss."
After some time, Lynn saw through the rearview mirror that Jessica had stood up. She threw all the surrounding garbage into the water.
With her super strength, she even effortlessly threw in an iron trash can.
Afterward, she began to shout and scream as if she had gone crazy, truly frightening the driver.
Even Lynn's earlier hand-extraction of a human spine hadn't scared him this much.
Finally, after smashing the surrounding concrete ground and throwing all the garbage into the sea, she slowly sat down.
After a few more minutes, she slowly got into the back seat of the taxi.
"Let's go."
Lynn had originally thought Jessica would need a little help, but now it seemed he had overthought it.
This girl was stronger than he had imagined.
They stopped at Redwood Street, and Jessica silently followed behind.
When Lynn stood at the door of his fried chicken shop, he encountered another group of unwelcome guests.
"I thought you'd stay away from my fried chicken shop after learning your lesson, but I see you've decided to come back?"
"Cut the talk. Where is the Daywalker?"
"You mean Blade? Why ask me? I have zero interest in your vampire feuds.
And I don't like being threatened. If you really want to know Blade's location, bring me a million dollars—that would be much more useful than the M1911 in your hand.
I find it amusing that your minions came to die with submachine guns before, and now you ragged vampires, armed with weapons that shoot sugar beans, dare to come and give me trouble again?"
Lynn's words visibly shook these idiots. Deacon had probably issued some kind of bounty, making these vampires want to try their luck.
But Deacon clearly hadn't given them more information, otherwise these malnourished-looking vampires probably wouldn't have had the courage to mess with Lynn.
Two guys in the distance were already starting to slip away after hearing Lynn's words.
But just as they turned around, they seemed to hit something like an iron plate, losing their balance and falling to the ground.
Tom and Jekyll blocked the vampires' escape routes from both sides of the alley.
"You didn't think I was talking to you for so long just to let you guys walk away, did you?
Remember to use your brain when choosing a job in your next life—you might live longer. Or maybe just steal blood bags from hospitals. I think that might be more suitable for you."
During this time, Jessica hid behind Lynn, staring at him intently, her hands gripping the hem of his coat.
"Kill them and clean up the scene. We still need to open for business tomorrow."
After saying this, Lynn pulled up the roll-up door with one hand, preparing to enter the fried chicken shop.
But even a cornered rabbit will bite, let alone these vampires who clearly weren't good people.
The leader, after seeing the bloody scene of Jekyll and Tom transforming and beginning their slaughter, immediately had his mental defenses crumble. Instead of running away, he charged toward Lynn.
He even forgot he had a gun.
He just wanted to capture Lynn, who looked like the weakest person at the scene, hoping it might give him a way out.
Just as Lynn was about to take action, he suddenly saw Jessica, who had been behind him, rush forward and kick the vampire several meters away.
For an 18-year-old high school student, she did quite well.
"Come inside first. Jekyll and the others will handle the rest."
"What are... they?"
Clearly, the shock brought by the two beast soldiers was far greater than that brought by the vampires.
"Hmm... my employees?"
Afterward, Lynn ignored the vampires who were still firing ineffective sugar beans at the two beast soldiers and closed the thin roll-up door.
Lynn's fried chicken shop had a basement, but for now, he didn't want to take Jessica down there. He opened a side door that led to a storage room and bathroom, along with a shower area.
"There's no bathtub or bathroom, so you'll have to make do. I'll leave clothes on the washing machine outside the door.
Only men's clothes, I'm afraid."
"That's fine."
Was this her original personality? Lynn couldn't remember. At least in his mind, Jessica Jones definitely wasn't this taciturn.
In his perception, most characters in the MCU universe had more outgoing personalities. Apart from Daredevil Matt, there weren't many taciturn heroes.
Of course, our great lawyer Matt wasn't exactly taciturn either. Lynn's knowledge of superheroes was pitifully limited.
The fight outside lasted only about a minute. When Lynn opened the roll-up door again, Tom and Jekyll were putting on their pants.
He took out two metal buckets and a bunch of cleaning supplies from the shop. It looked like they had a busy night ahead.
While Lynn was directing Jekyll and Tom to clean up the scene, he heard a familiar voice.
"I didn't know you had these tricks up your sleeve."
"So I guess you're talking to me instead of dispensing justice right now? I imagine Deacon is tougher than you expected.
Otherwise, you probably wouldn't be coming to find me again."
Blade didn't say much more. He was holding a box in his hand.
"Is this money enough to have your two subordinates come with me? Deacon has found something I'm not familiar with.
He now has extraordinary power, and I need some extra support."
Lynn didn't refuse Blade. He took the briefcase, walked into the shop, and lay down on his old rocking chair to count the money.
"Is there someone else here?"
"A young girl. Why? Eavesdropping on someone showering isn't very nice."
"Sidhis, I have no interest in your sexual preferences. Are you going to do business or not?"
Blade didn't say anything more. He just waited as Lynn counted the money. This was almost all the assets he and the old man had, but considering what Deacon was doing, Blade felt the money had to be spent.
Hunting vampires wasn't a simple job—it always involved a lot of blood and death.
"A hundred thousand dollars, not a small sum. With this much money, why are you still working alone?"
"Most people would just be a burden. This kind of work is better done alone. So, do you accept?"
"I can, but I have one more condition."
"Say it."
Lynn put away the box. Jekyll came in from outside, took the money into the suitcase, and at the same time received half a spine that Lynn took out from his coat.
Purple psychic energy still wrapped around it.
After that, Jekyll took Purple Man's spine downstairs, leaving the money upstairs.
"I want to inherit Deacon's assets. If you agree, I don't even need this money, since as a regional vampire leader, his assets are definitely more than this.
You only need to—and can only—go after Deacon. I'll send Tom and another guy to assist you, and at the same time, I need you not to casually kill excess vampires.
After all, I need some of them to help me take over Deacon's things."
Purple Man was a poor guy, but Deacon probably wasn't. They definitely had a base, and that base was likely not some rural cottage.
Lynn had asked Blade before. Each time he struck, he would take down several bars and underground fighting venues, as well as numerous hotels and cafes.
Clearly, these guys had systematic businesses, otherwise they couldn't maintain such a large number of people.
Otherwise, the number of disappearances in New York every day would probably make the police station explode.
"They are vampires. Are you planning to continue Deacon's business?"
"Naturally, I don't have that intention. In fact, don't you think Tom looks familiar?"
Upon saying this, Blade turned back and carefully looked at Tom.
"You have a way to cure the vampire disease?"
"No way to cure it. In fact, he's still a vampire, and that... energy residing in his body hasn't disappeared.
But they don't need to drink blood anymore, and they can even walk during the day.
Trust me, without the need to drink blood, these guys are far less harmful, not much different from the gangs you see everywhere in Hell's Kitchen."
That so-called energy was naturally the dark power from Chthon. Lynn wasn't a magician, so he naturally couldn't eliminate that dark power, but he still had ways to limit the effects brought by that dark power.
At least until Dracula came in person and ordered Tom to drink blood, the vampires he had modified wouldn't need to drink blood or fear sunlight anymore.
"..."
Blade thought for a moment, but he found he didn't have many options. The vampires in Deacon's headquarters were armed to the teeth with all kinds of weapons.
And most of them were elites transformed from various veterans and special forces. Although he was confident in hunting them down,
he wasn't confident in rushing directly into Deacon's headquarters and killing them all at once.
Although Lynn didn't seem like a good guy right now, Blade didn't care. Currently, he was just an avenger. Whatever Lynn might cause later wasn't within his consideration.
There might be more dangers, but he would deal with them personally when the time came.
"Deal."
"Then take your money back. I'll have Tom go with you now so you can get familiar with his power and combat ability."
Just then, Tom finished cleaning up the mess outside and dragged a large package into the fried chicken shop.
Jekyll also crawled out from the basement. The spine in his hand was gone, and he brought up a stack of potions.
"Consider it my gift to you. When you need me, you can call me. You're not going to set out right away, right? I think you probably have some additional arrangements."
Blade threw an old-fashioned phone to Lynn.
"I'll notify you with this."
"How traditional."
"I don't particularly like advanced equipment."
After speaking, Blade disappeared into the night. His movements were much quicker than those of ordinary vampires, and within a few breaths, Blade had completely disappeared from Lynn's perception range.
Tom only belatedly followed.
But Lynn didn't care about Tom.
At this moment, the door to the side warehouse slowly opened.
Jessica walked out wearing a somewhat loose short-sleeved shirt and jacket.
"Rest up. There's a bed in there. It was originally mine, but I have work to do tonight, so you sleep there for now."
"What about those people outside?"
"The term 'people' might be slightly inappropriate. Those weren't people, they were vampires. Of course, personally, I don't see a problem with calling them people."
"Like in 'Interview with the Vampire'?"
"Your film knowledge is a bit different from what I expected. I thought young people would prefer 'Twilight.'
But let's not discuss those things now."
Lynn walked up to Jessica.
"You can sleep first and decide where to go tomorrow morning. Think carefully, after all, you've seen quite a lot today."
Having said that, Lynn walked into the basement.
"If you want to stay, come to the basement to find me. If you want to forget everything and return to... a not-so-perfect life, have Jekyll come find me."
Closing the door, Lynn looked at the spine that Jekyll had placed in the large culture tank. Although there should have been a brain in there, Lynn didn't need it.
The genetic information in a section of spine was enough for Lynn to recreate a blank body.
"Looks like I won't be able to sleep tonight."
Lynn still had a lot of work to do.