A/N I decided that I was too inspired after finishing my drabble, "Stiff," to just let this story go! Simmons' time in Hydra could have ended really terribly: this is the story about what it might have looked like if it had. This is a multi-chapter fic with appearances by every major character in SHIELD. I hope you all enjoy reading this as much as I have enjoyed writing!
Important note:This story takes place after ep. 2 x 3 (Making Friends and Influencing People) and before ep. 2 x 5 (A Hen in the Wolf House). To give you some of the setting, the team knows about Jemma's undercover work, Raina is not in the picture, Skye knows naught of her father or of Coulson's scribbly-scrabbly, and Coulson and Skye are kind of at odds. I hope that gives some important background!
Many huuuuuge thanks to sapphireswimming, my good buddy, for inspiring me to continue and offering feedback every step of the way! I love you, buddy!
Jemma's heart thudded in her chest. She prayed silently that she was alone in the conference room of Hydra head quarters, save the presence of Bakshi, to be advanced in clearance. There was no safe alternative to why she had, for a third time, been pulled suddenly from her research by two stoic Hydra guards.
As she had been led down the hallway flanked by these well-trained, well-armed men, Jemma had considered again that Coulson and May must have either been distressingly desperate or insane when they determined that she was fit for undercover. More than that, deep cover. Jemma could not lie convincingly even on petty matters and she had no useful self-defense skills that would be effective against highly-trained ex-SHIELD agents. And yet she had trusted their judgment and dove straight in.
And why? Jemma mused, not for the first time, that there was no safe way to end an undercover operation. This thought and various scenarios played through her head each night as she tried to sleep. What was the best case an operative could imagine? Was there ever a sparkling moment when one could say no more useful information could be gathered and it was now time to pack up and head home? No, every new discovery would just instill the further need to stay undercover. There would always be more. Until she was discovered. And then she would die a horrific death, or else be brainwashed and used against her friends.
Which brought Jemma to another heart-stopping encounter with Bakshi. Bakshi's eyes were difficult to read in the low light of the conference room; although, there was the possibility that his expression was just so well schooled that Jemma might not have been able to read him even if the lighting had been better.
"Agent Simmons," Bakshi spoke in a gentle, subtle tone that did nothing to ease Simmons' tension. "You have done superb research since you joined Hydra. You see things in a way that even our other top researchers in the fields of Biology and Bio-Chemistry cannot seem to grasp, particularly when it comes to your insights on alien biology."
Jemma quickly nodded and murmured her thanks for the compliment.
Bakshi continued, not noting Jemma's response. "That said, my next decision was a difficult one. Part of me was eager to change your loyalties so that we could keep your skills." Jemma's heart froze. "But Whitehall turned me to the belief that there can always be another scientist, but there will not always be another chance to teach SHIELD a lesson."
Jemma opened her mouth to assure him that she was thoroughly confused, she was loyal to Hydra, but Bakshi raised a hand to silence her. His eyes glinted, but his face remained calm and his voice, eerily soothing. "There is no need, Agent Simmons, to defend yourself at the current time. We have discovered your true loyalties. All that is left is to use you wantonly as a message to SHIELD."
Jemma was petrified and left helpless by the straightforwardness of Bakshi's demeanor. They still remained the only two in the room, but Jemma could feel the smothering certainty that she could not run or fight. She was truly lying in the belly of the beast. Coulson would not know that she was compromised. No help was coming.
Feebly, quietly, but determinedly, Jemma declared, "I will tell you nothing of SHIELD."
A deep, almost cheerful voice from behind her said, "Oh, there is no need for that. I'm not seeking information. When I drain the last breath from you, you will be sobbing out everything you know, but there is nothing I seek. I need nothing more than the visceral pleasure of destroying you."
Bakshi glanced over Jemma's shoulder at Whitehall. "As I said, Agent Simmons, Doctor Whitehall can be very convincing when he knows what he wants."
A/N I didn't think it was necessary to explain how Simmons' cover was blown. Honestly, Hydra is big, evil, and smart. I really felt like it wouldn't be too difficult for them to figure out Simmons' loyalties, just using all the notes that Morse makes in "Hen in the Wolf House." So you and I will just never know! However, this fic takes place before "Hen in the Wolf House," so Raina is not anywhere on the scene – it wasn't her!