PREVIOUSLY: Joe Robbie Robertson is found guilty of misprision of felony and sentenced to three years in prison at the Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Unfortunately for Robbie, his troubles are far from over when he finds out that Tombstone, whom he helped put in jail, is assigned to the same cellblock. To make matters worse, Tombstone appears to have a lot of influence on the prison guards and on his fellow cellmates. Fortunately for Robbie, a humongous black man named Bruiser comes to Robbie's rescue during a particular incident with Tombstone, and the two become good friends. Still, that doesn't stop Tombstone from plotting to "take care" of Robbie when Bruiser is not around to protect him.

In Spectacular Spider-Man #152, the reader gets a taste of what Bruiser is capable of when Tombstone sends a half-dozen men after him. Bruiser mops the floor with them and is consequently sent to solitary for a week. Although Robbie is without protection, Tombstone doesn't dare cause him any problems because the "rules of prison" forbids it.

More recently, in Spectacular Spider-Man #155, Tombstone, with the (reluctant) aid of Robbie Robertson, tricks Spider-Man into coming over to the penitentiary and injects him with a virus very similar to the one the fake J. Jonah Jameson used on him in the theatrical supply warehouse in Spectacular Spider-Man #153. Spidey blacks out and wakes up a short time later chained up to a wall, Tombstone towering above him. Tombstone begins beating on him and (stupidly) reveals his plan to escape from prison using him as a hostage.

Later that evening, choppers carrying heavily armed men appear in the sky above the penitentiary. The guards hit the alarm, which is the signal for Tombstone and his men (and a shackled Spider-Man) to begin their escape. When they reach the prison yard, Spidey breaks free from his chain and starts taking out Tombstone's men. Through a stream of bullets, Tombstone grabs a hold of Robbie Robertson and manages to climb aboard one of the choppers, which immediately takes off. Spidey manages to grab hold of the underside of the chopper but Tombstone sees this and he begins beating on him, hoping to make him fall to his death. Finally overcoming is fear of Tombstone, Robbie grabs him in a chokehold and pushes himself and Tombstone out of the chopper. His web-shooters having been damaged during his earlier altercation with Tombstone, Spidey cannot help but watch Robbie and Tombstone fall to their death. He then climbs aboard the chopper, takes out the remaining armed goon with a solid kick in the face, and forces the pilot to turn around and take him back to the spot where they fell. Looking down at the forest and foliage covering the ground, Spidey soon realizes that if they did survive the fall, finding them won’t be that easy.

Also in Spectacular Spider-Man #155, Harry Osborn offers a depressed Flash Thompson a construction job at his chemical plant, which is being rebuilt as a result of the whole Inferno fiasco. Flash politely refuses at first but Harry convinces him to at least think about it before saying no.

Back in Manhattan, Mary Jane has enlisted the help of her friend Regina, Flash Thompson, Gloria Grant, Betty Brant, and Harry & Liz Osborn (with little Normie) to paint their newly acquired apartment. Unbeknownst to all of them, they are being watched by Felicia Hardy, a.k.a. the Black Cat, through the skylight. More specifically however, Flash is the one being watched by Felicia. Flash tries to strike a conversation with Regina, MJ's model friend, but the latter shuts him down rather nastily. Liz Osborn, who takes notice, feels bad for Flash because her life worked out so well with Harry and little Norman while nothing went right for his. At the other end of the room, Mary Jane realizes that her cousin Kristy's visiting hours are almost over at the hospital and that she needs to get there right away. She excuses herself and takes her leave, while the others continue to paint. Flash's thoughts reveal that he is jealous of Peter and Mary Jane's amazing love for each other. He wonders if he’s ever going to be that lucky.

Meanwhile at the offices of the Daily Bugle, J. Jonah Jameson and his wife Marla are discussing him losing the newspaper to whomever has apparently bought out all the stocks. JJJ tells Marla that having it all ripped away from him by a cheap stock manipulation pains him more than he can tell her. Marla replies that it pains her more to see it happen to him and that she's there to share his pain. JJJ tells her that she should have stayed at the penthouse. Marla replies that her place is at her husband's side. She goes on explaining that it still hurts every time she thinks of how he must have suffered – kidnapped by the Chameleon – while she traipsed over Europe on a research sabbatical – never knowing he was in trouble. Jonah tells her that knowing she was safe in Europe gave him the strength to fight back and survive. Suddenly, the door to Jonah's office opens. Standing in the doorway, Thomas Fireheart, a.k.a. The Puma, introduces himself and tells Jonah that, as of thirty minutes ago, he is the new owner of the Daily Bugle.

Back in the forest, Spidey regains consciousness, Banjo towering above him, and the other inhabitants surrounding him. Banjo's and Bugeye's mother accuses Spidey of being with the government and coming over there to take her sons away from her. Spidey replies that he's not with the government and that he's simply looking for a friend. The mother calls him a liar and tells him that all government men are liars. Having said that, she begins telling her story. Years ago – pregnant at the time, she was working in the garden outside her cousin's house near the Three Mile Islands Nuclear Power Plant. One morning, there was an accident at the plant and some radioactive gases were released in the environment. The government lied and said that it was impossible and when her sons were born strange, the government said it was just a coincidence and that it was likely that there was something wrong with either her or the boy's father. She couldn't argue because their father was dead. But she soon realized that if it weren't for the radioactive gases, then why was Banjo growing up so fast. As the years passed, Banjo just got bigger but Abner (a.k.a. Bugeye) learned to use his psychic powers against those that came to hunt Banjo. But it got so bad for her boys downriver that she moved them and herself back home to the hills, where she thought they'd be safe...until now. Pointing a finger at Spidey, the mother tells him that when she left Harrisburg, she swore that the next government man she'd see, she'd teach him how it feels to be hunted. "That's you." she says to Spidey. Spidey replies that she's making a mistake, as he is not part of the government but the mother replies that he made the mistake coming there. She then tells him to run. Spidey tries to reason with her but Bugeye uses his psychic powers on him – making him fall to his knees – and tells him to do as his mother said. Spidey stumbles towards the forest, his head spinning like a merry-go-round. Once Spidey reaches the trees, the mother sends Banjo after Spidey and orders him to kill him.

Meanwhile at the Eating Disorder Unit of the Queens Medical Centre, Kristy Watson is attending a support group meeting with other patients who are suffering from eating disorders. When the time comes for her to talk about how she feels, she freaks out at Dr. Ransome and the other patients and storms out of the room, screaming at them to stop trying to brainwash her. As she heads towards her room, she runs into Aunt May and Mary Jane who have come to visit her. Tears filling her eyes, she runs to MJ and jumps in her arms, begging her to take her home. MJ replies that she wants to help more than anything but she tells her that she does think that the hospital is the best place for her to be right now. Furious, Kristy slaps MJ in the face and takes off running telling them that she wish she were dead. May consoles MJ and tells her that she mustn't take her words to heart because, as Dr. Ransome said, Kristy is very emotional at the moment. MJ replies that she isn't taking her words to heart but that it hurts to see her in pain and helpless.

Back in the forest, a very dazed and confused Spidey is running as fast as he can to stay ahead of Banjo. He reaches the area he spotted when he first got there, where underground coal fires seep through the ground surface, and trusting his spider-sense, he leaps on top of a nearby cliff and waits for Banjo to show up. When Banjo does show up, Spidey immediately jumps from the cliff to try and catch him by surprise. But Banjo is quicker than Spidey had thought and he dodges his attack. Banjo actually grabs Spidey and throws him around like a rag doll. Spidey lands right on top of one of the coal fires and his costume catches on fire. Spidey rolls on the ground and manages to extinguish the flames but Banjo is already over him, grabbing him by the leg and starting to squeeze him in a massive bear hug. Spidey fights back fervently and manages to break free from Banjo's grip. He then smashes both his fists on either side of Banjo's head, right on his ears. In pain, Banjo screams and starts to frantically run all over the place. Screaming for his mother, Banjo accidentally steps on rotten planks that are covering one of the underground coal fire holes and he starts falling down the hole towards the fire. Fortunately, Spidey shoots a few weblines and catches Banjo before he hits the flames. A short time later, Spidey brings a bruised and battered Banjo back to his village to the utter astonishment of his mother, brother and other villagers. Furious, yet scared, the mother asks Spidey what he did to Banjo. Spidey replies that he saved his life and goes on saying that he admits being wrong about treating Banjo as a freak when he first got there but they were also wrong to attack him too. Bugeye calls him a liar and accuses him of hurting Banjo. He prepares to use his psychic powers on him when a weakened Banjo grabs his hand and tells him that what Spidey said was the truth; he did save his life and he is just looking for his friend. Banjo goes on saying that maybe they've been hiding from everyone so long, they don’t know who to be afraid of anymore. Spider-Man acquiesces and tells them that they are not the only ones who ever made that mistake. "But considering how you were treated by the world, I really can't blame you." says Spidey, who then proceeds to ask them about Robbie. The mother replies that he's the first stranger they’ve seen in years. "Robbie" thinks the web-slinger. "Where are you?".

In the near distance, Spidey hears the whisper of the Susquenanna River and in his mind's eye he imagines the miles and miles of river curving south through Southern Pennsylvania and he wonders where, between the shores and beyond the currents, where would Robbie Robertson's body come to rest? For surely, he couldn't possibly still be alive. Could he? Could he? As Spidey ponders about this, a Mormon man driving a horse carriage suddenly hears a cry for help coming from some shadowy individual who has just emerged from the river. The Mormon man tells the individual to come out from the shadow but the individual simply replies that his friend – whom is revealed to be Robbie Robertson – took a hard fall and is seriously hurt. The Mormon comments on the individual being badly bruised himself and the individual replies that their boat capsized up river and they hit the water pretty hard, adding that Robbie broke his leg. The individual asks if Robbie is going to be okay. The Mormon bends over Robbie and after examining him for a few seconds, he tells the individual that Robbie does not seem to have any internal injuries, although he cannot be certain since he is a veterinarian, not a doctor. The individual who is revealed to be Tombstone emerges from the shadows and tells the Mormon man to not let anything happen to Robbie as he owes the man too much. Speaking in the third person, Tombstone tells the man to ask anyone: "Tombstone always pays his debts in full".

To be continued.