Like Foggy said,

[man_without_fear]

Conscience.

Guilty or clear, it weighs on the minds of all men.

Actions taken, choices made, and the motivations behind them. They shape who we are, and the whole of us is in what we've done.

"You're Jack Murdock's kid, aren't ya?"

Past.

Present.

Future.

The weight of the world is nothing compared to the burdens of the soul.

"Seemed you had a lot on your mind, last time you were here."

To have to shoulder both alone is trying.

To do so by choice is damning.

"Take care of yourself, Father."

Why does a blind man have a bathroom mirror? It came with the apartment.

Standing at the sink in front of the mirror he can't see Matt lets the tap run and gargles salt water; spitting out mouthfuls until the tinge of blood no longer washes out with it.

Even without the benefit of a reflection Matt can tell he looks a mess. He's sore from head to toe with a dull ache in the back of his skull, the uncomfortable grind of protesting broken ribs, and the constant sticker of hurt in his side that reminds him with every other movement that he was stabbed last night.

If he was wiser he might have listened to advice and stayed in the bar.

Then again if he was sage he wouldn't be doing the things that lead to being in this kind of shape in the first place.

For now he does what he can; taking a shower, inspecting stitches and changing bandages, a clean suit, combed hair, and painkillers.

That's the good thing about bathroom mirrors, the medicine cabinets behind them.

-----

When Matt gets to the office Foggy and Karen are talking. Their tones are light when they greet him as he slides in through the door, but that changes when they get a look at him.

"Jesus, what happened to your eye?" Foggy asks as Karen approaches with concern.

Matt can feel the heat and ache of the bruise on his temple, but plays it off with a smile.

"Yeah, uh, I'm fine. I just, I wasn't paying attention last night. It's my fault."

"You need a dog," Foggy declares, an old argument they've had for a long time. Only now, Foggy has Karen to support the idea.

Cornered by the pair Matt shakes his head, ready to walk away to avoid the conversation when a rap on the door derails all three of them.

"Was… that a knock?" Foggy asks and nobody moves.

Finally Matt prompts Karen and she pulls the door open revealing a gentleman standing on the other side who smiles at them and asks, "Hi, do you do walk ins?"

Maybe it's the way his morning started, or how sitting in the uncomfortable folding chairs that make up their office furniture sets his side to flare in pain, or maybe it's all in the other man's attitude, but Matt doesn't like him straight away.

Seated in the conference room across from Matt and Foggy with Karen taking notes, the gentleman stranger throws about jargon and flattery; building up Matt and Foggy and giving up nothing about himself. Never has Matt listened to a man speak so many words that don't say anything; which is saying something given Matt's profession.

The gentleman explains his purpose without any real explanation, and then says the magic word.

"Retainer?" Foggy perks up like a puppy who's seen a tennis ball, either not noticing or ignoring how off the whole situation feels.

Matt prods, looking for information. He tries for a name, what he gets is a company.

Confederated Global Investments.

"It's the only name relevant to this discussion, Mr. Murdock," the gentleman informs Matt genially.

Matt isn't amused, or buying it.

He presses and the gentleman reveals that he knows a whole lot about Matt and Foggy; where they're from, where they graduated, who they interned with; and still he doesn't give any information about himself and doesn't bend to the questions Matt keeps asking.

Foggy tries to mediate, the gentleman keeps up the banter and smiles and finally brings out assurances. And a check.

"All my employer wants is for you to continue to be ethical, decent men. Good lawyers."

By the beats Foggy's heart skips when he looks over the check Matt can imagine the figure printed on it.

By the drop of the man's smile and voice Matt can tell the gentleman isn't pleased by Matt's lack of reaction.

The man comments on it and it's Matt's turn to smile.

"Like Foggy said, we're particular about our clients."

The gentleman drops the pretense of charm and goes for a different angle, glancing now at Karen. "I'm curious about your clientele. Do they all end up working for you after you get them off for murder? Or is just the pretty ones?"

That strikes a chord that even Foggy feels and reacts to. Matt sends Karen out of the room and the gentleman recants.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset." The apology is about as sincere as his line about ethical lawyers.

Everything that's going to be said has been, and the gentleman pulls his final card. He offers Matt and Foggy an opportunity to examine one of the company's cases. Foggy agrees gladly and Matt again shows less reaction than the man expects, but accepts as well.

"What could it hurt?"

As soon as the gentleman is out the door Foggy is barking at Matt for his hostility towards a new potential client. Matt is already on his feet and moving.

The gentleman gave them thirty-eight minutes to get to the fifteenth precinct. On his way out the door Matt tells Foggy he'll meet him there.

"Meet me? The hell you going?"

Matt ignores his name being called out, focused instead on the footsteps heading down the stairwell ahead of him, and the steady 'tch' 'tch' tch' of the expensive watch on the gentleman's wrist.

It isn't his senses that are telling Matt something's off about the man with the eight hundred dollar shoes and daggers in his charm, it's instinct.

When he catches up to the gentleman just as the man is stepping into an SUV that pulls out in a convoy of three Matt has his instincts confirmed.

Something is up here, and he needs to get to the bottom of it.

On cue the hitch in his side calls out, reminding him of his last undertaking.

Reaching beneath his jacket, Matt carefully feels out the tender area; his fingers finding it damp and tacky with seeping blood.

Buttoning up his suit Matt turns with cane in hand and taps his way back down the street; headed for the fifteenth precinct.




[dialogue taken from Netflix' Daredevil: 1.3 - Rabbit in a Snowstorm]