Natasha Romanov was, easily, not a religious woman.

Sure, if pressed on the subject, she would tell you that she believes there is something out there higher than us, for she had seen too much and was far too pragmatic too dismiss the notion. She had met devils, angels, and Gods of long-lost civilizations as a member of both the Defenders and the Avengers. But as she stood before the mangled form of a woman the world had loved and thought dead for half-a-decade, machines and tubes hooked up to her scarred form, only one phrase came out of her mouth.

"Dear…Lord…in Heaven."

For the second time in as many days, the Black Widow stood in the office of Theobald Parrington, the MI-5* agent picked to head up the investigation to discover who was threatening the Queen Elizabeth's life. With her was the field agent Parrington had picked to help Natasha in the field, William Peak.

* (MI-5 is sort of like the US's CIA ~This footnote brought to you by the letter 'J'ason)

"Can you tell me," began Natasha, as she placed her fists on top of Parrington's desk, leaning toward the man, "Why someone from MI-5 would arrange an assassination attempt on me?"

Parrington stuck his finger under his collar, loosening his tie a bit. He obviously still felt uncomfortable around Natasha, after the verbal and mental bruising she had inflicted on him the prior day*. He still had yet to find that black widow spider she had handed him. "I-I'm afraid I have no idea of what you are speaking of, Miss Natasha. No one here is trying to kill you." He chuckled nervously.

* (Last issue ~Jason, Lord of the Short Attention…uh, what was I talking about?.)

Natasha leaned closer. "Then why did someone try to shoot me last night*. After I caught him, did he tell me that the hit was arranged by a 'Robert Heath', whom Mister Peak here tells me, works for this agency?"

* (Last issue again. Heck, if you didn't realize this already, you need to go back and read #1. Go ahead, I'll wait. ~Patient Jason.)

Parrington looked up. "Heath?" he asked. "He quit MI-5 a few years back. Shortly after he wrapped up the investigation on the Princess' death from the car wreck in Paris."

"You won't mind if we look at his files, then?" Natasha asked.

"Of-of course not," Parrington stuttered out. "I have nothing to hide from you."

Natasha stood up straight, her hands on her hips. "Thank you. But if I discover otherwise, you'll wish you had never contacted me in the first place!" She then whirled, and once again stormed out of Parrington's office, Mister Peak following close behind.

"What makes you think I already don't?" Parrington said under his breath as he watched her walk away.

Mister Peak sat in the glow of the computer monitor, with the Black Widow watching over his right shoulder. They had been looking over Robert Heath's personnel file for the past hour, with little to show for it. Heath seemed to have had a rather uneventful run with MI-5, with the usual various 'CLASSIFIED' entries one would find with such an agency. The only exception was his being the first agent on the scene after Princess Diana's fatal car accident, and the agent to head the follow-up investigation. Heath had quit the agency shortly thereafter.

"Well, Miss Natasha," Peak began, leaning back into the chair. "This seems to be a bit of a dead end, wouldn't you say?"

Natasha rubbed her chin. "My instincts tell me this Heath is involved in this somehow. Why would he send a hitman after me unless he were afraid I'd find something out?"

"Well, to be fair…you once were a Russian spy who stole sensitive British documents before. It's possible someone carried a grudge, no?"

"First, I only allegedly stole documents from your government," Natasha smiled and winked at Peak. "Second, that was before Heath's time with MI-5. Is there any way to find out that classified information at the end of his tenure?"

"Not without clearance much higher than mine. Parrington might have high enough clearance, but the git wouldn't tell us just to spite us." Peak randomly clicked on the 'front page' tab at the top of the screen, and all of Robert Warren Heath's vital information popped up on the computer. "In fact, it looks like this is top-level sec-wait a moment."

Natasha leaned over Peak's shoulder to get a better view of the monitor. "What is it?"

Peak pointed at the screen. "Here. Look at his termination date: April of '98." He then clicked on the 'Requisitions' tab. A list of dates and requisitions popped up. Peak then scrolled to the last several entries, all marked 'CLASSIFIED'. "Now look at the dates on these last group of requisitions. They're all-"

"-From after he quit," Natasha finished. "Why would he still be receiving funds and materials from MI-5 after he no longer worked for them? And why would they be classified?"

"I don't know, but look at this…the last entry before he quit. It appears that MI-5 bought him a house 'in lieu of pension'. I've never heard of MI-5 doing that before."

Natasha stood up and rubbed her chin. "It's not much, but it's a start. The address appears to be Northern London. I should be able to get there in no time."

"What should I do?" William asked.

"Find out where the Queen is today and be there. I'd feel better knowing someone I trust is watching over her."

William blushed slightly. "Why, thank you Miss Natasha. I'll be in radio contact if anything happens."

Natasha walked up to the modest cottage, noticing several cameras scanning the exterior of the house. "Not a surprise, since supposedly an intelligence agent lives here," Natasha thought. It was a great location for anyone who wanted to be aware of his surroundings; flatlands on all sides, with no trees or bushes for about 50 yards in every direction. The only window she could see in the front was a large curtained window a few feet to the right of the front door. Whoever was inside obviously knew she was there, so she decided the most direct route of action was best. She approached the front door and knocked.

The man monitoring the camera feeds in the back bedroom of the cottage saw Natasha approaching long before she reached the front door. He looked down where his leg was bandaged tightly, a victim of an encounter with the Black Widow the night before. Here was his chance for revenge, he thought as he picked up his M16 machine gun. He hobbled toward the front door, the pain of every step making him angrier with the woman on the outside. He set himself up at the end of the entryway, opposite the front door.

There was a knock at the door. He lifted his gun and yelled, "It's open!"

The doorknob turned, and the door slowly began to swing open. He opened fire, sending bits and pieces of the door flying everywhere, as smoke filled the room. He didn't stop firing until the top half of the door was completely gone, letting in the sunlight from the outside. The lower half of the door hung slightly ajar.

"Hahr! Showed that bloody bitch to mess with me! I musta blown her to Picadi-"

The glass from the front window exploded inward as Natasha crashed in, using the heavy curtains as protection from the shards of glass. She landed in a tuck and rolled, coming to a stop in a standing position. Barely before the gunman even registered what had happened, Natasha lifted her right arm and shot her 'widows bite', the concussive weapon she wore as a bracelet, at the man's forearm. With a yelp of pain, he dropped his gun.

"You missed."

With a cry of rage and a surge of adrenaline, he ignored the pain in his leg and arm and charged at Natasha, arms outstretched for her throat. He was promptly met with a side kick to the chin which staggered him. Natasha then dropped to the floor, and knocked his legs out from under him with one graceful sweep of her own leg. He crashed to the floor and Natasha was upon him in a moment, grabbing his collar and yanking his face to hers.

"Heath," she snarled. "Where is he?"

"B-basement," he sputtered through several chipped teeth and a rapidly swelling lip.

"Thank You," she said, letting go of his shirt and letting him drop back to the floor. "Now, if you had turned yourself in last night, you would have been spared this..." She then balled up her fist and hit him upside the head, knocking him out.

Natasha searched the house until she found the door to the basement. She descended into the brightly-lit basement slowly, trying to get a good view of her surroundings. It was large down here, much larger than the house above. Obviously, there had been some renovating done. The large room was lavishly decorated, with paintings on the walls, antique furniture, and soft music playing from hidden speakers. At the far end of the room, an ornate bed was surrounded by a multitude of machines, and the figure in the bed was attached to these machines by various wires and tubes. A man sat in a chair next to the bed, his legs crossed, his fingertips pressed together. Natasha immediately recognized him from his MI-5 file as Robert Heath. However, she was more fascinated by the figure in the bed. She approached closer. Could it be…?

"Dear…Lord…in Heaven."

Heath stroked the woman's hair. "Yes, it's her."

The Widow spoke to Heath, but remained unable to take her eyes off the figure in the bed. "I though…we all thought she had died-"

"-Shortly after the car wreck in that Paris tunnel? That's what I-and MI-5-wanted the world to think," Heath finished.

Natasha finally broke the spell she was under and looked at Heath. "But why?"

Heath sighed. "She was one of England's most beloved, if not the most beloved figure in our time. I, and MI-5 agreed with me, that it be better that the world think her dead than giving them this…this mangled shell of a human being. My association with MI-5 was officially ended, though I still work for them in an unofficial capacity, as her caretaker." With that, he stroked her cheek. "In return, they pay to keep her, and me by association, in luxury."

"So has she been the one sending the Queen death threats?" Natasha asked.

Heath looked at Natasha and smiled. "Oh, no, no. I've been doing it…for her."

"For her?"

"Yes. You see, she's in a deep coma. The doctors say she's brain dead, but actually, only I can hear her in her deep, dark place."

With a dawning realization, the pieces finally fit. "Mister Heath…you're insane."

"I…am not…CRAZY!", he screamed, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a gun. "She talks to me…only ME! She tells me how unfair it is how that bitch of a mother-in-law is still in charge of Great Britain, and she's," and with that he stroked her scarred face with the barrel of the handgun, "she's reduced to…this. She told me to send the letters to the Queen, and it was easy enough to place them in very personal spots. There are a great many of the royal servants who hold a great affinity for her. However, they all think she's awake and fine. They don't know the whole truth."

"The whole truth?"

"Yes…you see, the Princess is losing her battle. She's dying in body as well as mind. So I had those letters sent knowing nothing would ever come of them. I just sent them to make her happy in her final days. Sadly, I knew they would finally draw unwanted attention toward me. That's why I sent the hitman upstairs after you. So she would be able to live out her final few days in peace. But now…now I must take other measures." Heath replaced the gun in his jacket, and withdrew a small control panel with a red button on it. He pushed it.

"This entire house in lined with explosives, Miss Romanov. You have two minutes to get out before the house explodes."

Natasha began to approach Heath. "Heath, no! This isn't the way--!"

Heath merely held up his hand. "Please…let us have our final minutes together in peace."

Black Widow debated for the briefest of moments, then sprinted back up the stairs to the house above. As she burst through the basement door into the kitchen, she was tackled by the hitman she had left for unconscious in the living room. His heavy frame landed hard on hers, knocking the wind out of her. His hands clasped around her throat and he squeezed.

"K-kill you! I'll kill you, you bloody cow!!"

Natasha was unable to tell him that the house was going to explode in approximately a minute and a half, as her supply of air was cut off. The combination of the air being knocked out of her and her inability to draw a new breath was quickly causing her to fade into unconsciousness. As the stars before her began to turn to gray, the hitman suddenly stiffened and fell on top of her, his hands loosening their grip. Natasha ripped his hands away and took a huge gulp of air, before pushing the man off of her. Standing above her, arm outstretched for her, was William Peak.

"<Cough> Peak! What are you doing here," she rasped.

"No time for chit-chat, Miss Natasha. We must go now." With that, she reached up and grabbed his hand, and he hauled her to her feet. They grabbed the unconscious hitman and dragged him out and away from the house, just as a series of explosions erupted from inside, engulfing the house in flames.

A short time later the police had arrived to investigate the explosion, interrogating Natasha and Peak as to the events. Peak invoked his MI-5 credentials and told the police that while the exact details are confidential, that the person sending death-threats to the Queen had been stopped. Peak then approached Natasha.

"How did you know I was in trouble, Mister Peak?" Natasha asked him.

"Well, after you left, I…convinced Theobald Parrington to give me the information on the classified information in Heath's file."

"Convinced him, eh? When will he be out of the hospital?"

"Oh, heavens no. I merely convinced him it would be more prudent to give me the information than to have you coerce it out of him. He seems quite terrified of you, Miss Natasha. However, I fear he may take his displeasure of you out on me in the future. Perhaps it is time to distance myself from MI-5.

Anyway, after learning the truth about Heath and who was in the basement, I came here to help you out. I arrived just in time to see that ruffian with his hands on you, and I promptly, how would the Americans say? Oh, yes, I 'knocked his block off'."

Natasha smiled a heartfelt smile at him. "That's twice you've saved my life, Mister Peak. However, I may have a way to pay you back, if you're really quitting MI-5…"

A Few Days Later, At the New York Offices of SHIELD

"The Director will you see you now."

Natasha stood up from where she was sitting, thanked the secretary, and entered the office of the current Director of SHIELD, Forge*. As soon as she entered, Forge stood from behind the desk he had been sitting, and motioned at a nearby chair.

* ( Forge took over as the head of SHIELD over in X-Force. ~X-Jason)

"Please, Miss Romanoff, have a seat," he said.

"That's Romanov," Natasha replied.

"Pardon me?"

"Romanov. With a 'v'."

"I'm sorry, Miss Romanov," Forge said, sounding slightly sarcastic.

"No problem, Mister Vorge."

"Forge."

"Pardon me?"

"Forge. With an 'F'. And no Mister. Just Forge."

"Oh. I'm so sorry…Forge."

"Ahem…anyway, Miss Romanov, what may I help you with?"

Natasha and Forge both sat in their respective chairs. "I would like to know," Natasha began, "why when MI-5 put in a request to SHIELD for my help, they were told that you were 'unwilling to loan me out at this time'?"

Forge flexed his robotic hand. "Well, you see…I had just gotten command of SHIELD, and felt it best that I get a handle on all our resources before I let any of them be used by outside agencies."

Natasha's eyes narrowed. "Resources? Forge, let me explain something to you. I am a freelance agent. I work with SHIELD, nor for SHIELD. Now, I don't even do that. I quit, Forge." Natasha stood up.

"Wait," Forge said, standing as well, "You can't qui-"

Natasha put up a hand, silencing him. "I just did. From now on, if you need me, you can contact me here." And she pulled a small business car out of a hidden pocket on her uniform, and set it on the table. It read:

Widow's Peak Enterprises
Espionage for Hire
(800) 555-4SPY

She began to walk out, but paused briefly and turned back toward Forge. "Oh, yes…I just hope when the time comes that you need me I'll be able to 'loan' you my services. Good Day, Director."

"Black Widow, wait!" Forge called, but Natasha had already left.

Next Issue: The Black Widow's first case takes her into the deep, dark recesses of…THE SECRETARIAL POOL!! Guest-starring Iron Man!