Druid in the Marvel Universe Chapter 24: Where Did You Get Your Hand Custom-Made?

Hell's Kitchen was weirdly quiet tonight. Alvin cradled the little one, shooing away her nightmares whenever she scrunched up her face.

A night without dreams! Of course, Alvin didn't catch a wink. Early morning, instead of his usual run, he grabbed breakfast from Uncle Cheng's stall and headed back to the shop.

He took care of the little princess who woke up startled and then rudely woke up Nick and Frank.

Frank woke up to find his son, who had been keeping watch over him all night. He felt a pang of shame.

On their first day back together, his 8-year-old son had to look after him. Frank felt pretty crappy about himself. Even though his son's care had helped his injury a lot, he realized he'd been neglecting his family way too much. With family around, even bad injuries healed faster!

Frank couldn't be prouder of his son. The only bummer was Alvin's attitude. How could he treat my son like this?

If it were me in a bad mood, I'd have beaten you to a pulp. But my son just loves this, always looking for trouble and getting scolded in return.

Hell's Kitchen felt off today. Alvin drove his pickup to the school gate as usual. Frank stayed at the shop to sort out the rental issues.

The road felt unusually smooth today. All the cars made way for Alvin's old Ford pickup.

A trip that usually took 30 minutes only took 15 today. Alvin felt a bit smug, thinking the people here finally recognized his contributions. He should now be considered a celebrity in Hell's Kitchen.

After getting out of the car, Alvin sensed something was off. Something must've happened that he didn't know about. Everyone looked at him with eyes full of awe.

The rebellious kids in their weird outfits at the school were all gone. Everyone looked downcast, making the community school look like an Ivy League institution.

Even Vice Principal Nelson, who usually stood at the school gate, looked at Alvin with a mix of "awe," "fear," and "incredulity."

Impatiently, Alvin said to Nelson, "What the hell is going on? Did aliens invade Earth?"

Nelson respectfully bowed and said obsequiously, "Good morning, Principal! Your heroic deeds last night must have spread throughout Hell's Kitchen by now."

Alvin was stunned for a moment and then understood. The blame for Bloody Jason's actions had fallen on him. He thought about explaining but decided against it. There was no point in talking to Nelson.

The sudden infamy made Alvin's work very easy today.

Judging by these kids' behavior, their parents must have lectured them a lot this morning!

From a distance, Professor Cage shouted in his raspy voice, "Alvin, how many people did you kill yesterday?"

Alvin, not wanting to deal with this old rascal, turned and jumped into his car, fleeing back to the restaurant.

He returned early today, just in time to marinate today's beef. Yesterday's beef was leftovers from the day before.

He brought 50 kilograms of beef from the basement freezer, placed it on large trays to thaw naturally in the first-floor hall, and mixed black pepper and salt in several large bowls.

Little Ginny enthusiastically helped Jessica, carrying a small cloth and following her every step. Whatever Jessica did, Ginny did too. Alvin thought the restaurant would be twice as clean today.

He praised Ginny and kissed her on the cheek. The little girl's enthusiasm soared, even though she knocked over a few spice jars. Her diligence deserved praise.

The morning flew by, and the Peace Hotel was officially open for business. As usual, a bunch of diners showed up right on time.

The only difference? The locals from Hell's Kitchen greeted Alvin with respect, while the out-of-towners acted like they always did.

Fifty steaks? No biggie for Alvin. But the "Sweet and Sour Ribs" and "Tomato Beef Stew" he promised Ginny yesterday? Those took some serious time.

When those dishes were finally ready, a bunch of diners started whining about not being in the loop about the special menu. Of course, it was the out-of-towners doing the complaining.

Alvin held Ginny, sitting on a high stool behind the bar. Jessica, totally unprofessional, joined them. Each had a bowl of rice, eating like they didn't have a care in the world.

Halfway through the meal, Jessica, trying to keep up her young beauty image, didn't go for a third bowl. Alvin and Ginny kept eating, laughing, and joking around.

When Ginny was almost done, Alvin turned down her third request for more rice. He kissed her pouting face, poked her bulging belly, making her giggle, and then cleaned up the dishes.

Around one o'clock, when the place usually cleared out, three uniformed cops and a middle-aged guy in a suit walked in.

Alvin recognized two of the officers, Michael and Scott. They greeted Alvin first, and the enthusiastic Scott even high-fived and fist-bumped him, making the female officer frown.

The middle-aged guy in the suit was super chill, naturally sitting at the bar and smiling at Alvin, "Hey, Mr. Alvin. I've heard your steaks are the bomb. I've always wanted to try them but never had the chance. Can I get one today?"

Seeing Alvin frown, the middle-aged guy continued, "Oh, I haven't introduced myself. George Stacy, Commissioner of the NYPD." He extended his hand to shake Alvin's.

Alvin shook his hand and apologized, "You might have to wait until tonight. Today's lunch portions are sold out."

George was cool about it, saying, "That's a bummer! Can I at least get a glass of water?"

"Sure thing." Alvin signaled Jessica to serve lemon water to the commissioner and his crew.

The female officer leaned on the bar with her left elbow, tapping her fingers to get Alvin's attention, "Can't you make an exception?"

Alvin ignored her rudeness and looked at Michael and Scott.

Michael awkwardly smiled and explained, "This is Officer Misty Knight, our new precinct captain in Hell's Kitchen." He then stepped aside, clearly not a fan of his new boss.

Alvin grinned, "Congrats to our Hell's Kitchen precinct for getting a new captain."

He then looked at Misty, "Did you get a new door too? The previous captains had a rough time."

Misty, clearly hot-headed, slammed her right hand on the bar. The bar made a loud "bang," and her steel arm left a noticeable dent in the heavy wooden bar.

No one in the restaurant left. Most of the curious diners had already gone. Those remaining were locals who knew a bit about Hell's Kitchen. They watched Alvin with excitement, wondering how he would handle this.

Alvin looked with interest at Misty's finely crafted mechanical arm, "Officer Knight, if you give me the contact for the company that made your arm, I can forgive the damage to my bar."

Misty glared at Alvin, "Alvin Ye, we suspect you're involved in yesterday's Long Island massacre. You're now a suspect and need to cooperate with our investigation."

Seeing Michael and Scott behind Misty, heads down, Alvin knew they were setting her up. But who cared?

You can't ignore your own stupidity just because someone set you up.