Alicia Tells Ben Grimm

Ben stared at the damp panties, which lay in a clear ziploc bag on the bed. He ran one stony hand over his rocky pate. On the other side of the bed, Alicia Masters sat quiet, tense.

"Whatta we do?" he said.

"I don't know," Alicia said.

He stared out at the damning panties. There were little gold and dark hairs mixed together in the fabric. His blue eyes watered a little, though he hadn't cried in years.

"Stretch is my friend. From long before I met Sue. Should I go tell him? But if it ain't nothin', I'd be the cause of a lot of marital strife. I don't want to go poke into their business if there's a rational explanation fer dis," he said. "Mebbee she's been undercover? All part of the disguise?"

"Ben, I know what I smelled," Alicia said. "There's another woman. I know it. She hasn't even tried to hide it. Married women don't walk around with breath that smells like pussy."

The Thing held his head lover.

"I believe ya, baby. I knew somethin' was up," he muttered. "She's been leavin' the Baxter Building more often. Comin' home late. Dressin' more revealin'. Hasn't been huggin' or kissin' Stretch-o like she used to. Ever since she started goin' to that damned psychiatrist..."

Ben scratched a stony finger along his chin.

"You don't think the head-shrinker had anythin' to do with this, do ya?"

"I'd never have thought Sue would cheat," Alicia said, rubbing her hands up and down her arms, hugging herself close. "I want to believe someone else is making her do it, like my father with his magic puppets. But how would we know?"

The Thing considered that. His hand closed around the used panties in their bag.

"I know somebody to ask," he said.

He rose like a mountain rises. Slowly, but unstoppably. His heart heavy as he considered his options. No matter what he did, Ben Grimm knew the Fantastic Four—his family—would never be the same.