Sue Storm Takes Dr. Stone To The Baxter Building

"Reed, I need a guest room prepped. Full medical quarantine and decontamination," Sue Storm said into her communicator.

"Done," her husband's voice said after a moment. "Who's our guest?"

"My psychiatrist, Dr. Karla Stone," Sue said. They were moving above the city, invisible and carried by invisible **** fields. The Invisible Woman's breasts—all the rest of her—were cold as the air moved across them, but she couldn't stop to dress. "She's been exposed to the Mandrill's pheromones."

"So that's why S.H.I.E.L.D. is swarming Central Park," Mr. Fantastic said. He paused for a moment. "I can arrange for Plan B in the bathroom if—"

"They didn't have sex!" Sue said, heat rising to her face, anger in her voice. "Although it was a close thing. Fortunately I was with her, and got my **** field up in time before I was exposed."

She could almost hear Reed's nod.

"Even so, you should decontaminate as well. Mandrill's pheromones can be persistent. I'll arrange an adjoining suite, burn bags for your clothes, and new outfits."

"Thank you, darling," Sue said, and meant it, despite the slight guilt she felt. "What would I do without you?"

The thought echoed through Sue Storm's mind. But another, more terrible thought warred with it. What would she do without Karla? The Invisible Woman's heart was torn. She knew that her experiences with Karla were a betrayal of her marriage. Yet she was still married to Reed, still being his wife and the mother of their children in every way that mattered. Wasn't that enough? Why couldn't she have both?

Karla, for her part, was quiet. Her arms were wrapped around herself, shivering and muttering. Sue had seen addicts to super-**** exhibit similar behavior. Her lover had only been exposed to Mandrill for a few moments, and was already in withdrawal.

Sue and Karla entered through the quarantine airlock on the Baxter Building's lower east corner, which most people mistook as a kind of loading bay. Heavy metal doors slid apart, then sealed behind them.

"Okay," Sue said to Karla, as they faded back into view. "I'm going to release the **** field now. Then we'll be decontaminated, and we can relax..."

Sue dropped the **** field.

Immediately, the alarm blared.