Clint was glad to be back in New York. After traveling the world sniffing out HYDRA bases for four months, he was ready for some time off. Recon work was the worst. It wasn't too bad while Natasha was with him, they worked well together and she knew how to have fun with it, but Steve called her back to help follow up on one of the bases they had found. That was two weeks ago. It had been a long two weeks.

His arrival at the Avengers tower would be logged, and someone would haul him into a conference room for a debriefing soon. He dropped his bag in his room then went to the kitchen for a bottle of water. Walking back to his room he passed through the common area and saw a woman on a coach. Her knees were up against her chest with her arms wrapped around them, and her long, auburn hair hid most of her face.

"Hi," Clint said.

She jumped, but held her sitting fetal position.

Clint looked around for someone, anyone, but she was the only person there.

"Are you a new recruit?"

She didn't move. Didn't say a word.

"Ooo-k. My name's Clint."

"Her name is Cora," Steve said as he entered the room. "Cora Miller."

"Is she ok?"

"Not really. I'll explain later."

"But she's not a bad guy, right?"

"No. No, we don't think so. Let's talk about the rest of your trip, then I'll fill you in."

"Sounds good."

Clint walked a little closer to the woman.

"I guess I'll see you later. It was nice to meet you, Cora."

Clint tried to brush a bit of her hair away from her face.

"Don't touch me!"

Clint and Steve both took a step back, and Clint held his hands up. Her hair was parted like a curtain, enough for him to see one wide, terrified eye.

"Sorry. No touching. It's just... your hair was in your face and I thought I should move it so we could see each other better."

"Don't touch me." Her voice trembled as she looked down.

"Should we leave her like this?"

"I'll send someone to sit with her."

Clint followed Steve, but turned to look back at Cora. She never moved.

"What's wrong with her?"

"The HYDRA base you and Natasha located in Chicago. She was there. She was the only one still alive."

"What do you mean?"

"They were doing human experiments. We only know who she is because they had a file on her, and Tony did some research."

When they got to the conference room, Steve pulled a file off the table and handed it to Clint.

"Cora Miller, thirty-eight. She went missing six months ago. Never made it to work. Got on the L train and was never seen again."

"Until you guys found her," Clint said as he flipped through the file. There were pictures of her strapped to a table, blindfolded, gagged, bruises on her face and arms. "What the hell did they do to her?"

"We don't know. The files we have don't detail their procedures or their goals, and she's not talking."

"Would you? Her behavior makes sense now. She's got some serious PTSD, man."

Steve nodded. "We're trying to give her some space. She seems better when she's left alone."

"Somebody has to help her get through that."

"We will. But she's only been here two days. Like I said, we're giving her some space. She has a room, but she seems to like the open areas more."

Clint tossed the file back on the table. "You would, too, if you lived in a six by four cell for half a year. You said she was the only one still alive. There were others?"

"Five others. Gun shots to the head. We think they started executing them when they realized we were there."

"How did she manage to escape?"

"She was on the table, not in the cells with the others. They didn't have time to get to her before we did."

Clint stared at the folder until Steve sat.

"Tell me about the last leg of your trip."

After he filled Steve in, Clint went back through the common room. Cora was still on then sofa, still curled into herself.

"Cora..."

She tensed, but didn't move. Clint kept his distance.

"It's Clint. I just wanted to apologize for before... for the hair thing. I promise to keep my hands to myself from now on."

She gave no acknowledgment.

"Anyway, if you ever want to talk, only if you want to, I'm willing to listen. I know some of what you went through, and... well... I'm here if you need me."

He backed away a bit before turning on his heels and leaving.

"Thank you," Cora whispered.

Clint barely heard her, but he stopped and looked back. She hadn't moved.

"You're welcome."