Disclaimer: Agent Carter still ain't mine- and apparently they're bringing in Anna next season! Here's hoping she's as kickass as we all hope!

Author's note: Normally I hate long author's notes at the beginning of a chapter, but I have some 'splaining to do! Where have I been since I published the last chapter? I left my old job as an editor, got an incredible awesome new job writing science curriculum, got to visit my family for a week back on the east coast, got married, went on my honeymoon, and got pink eye and a cold on the way home. So suffice it to say, it's been a kickass summer (minus the pink eye). I'm back, my free time is back, and the rest of this story should be coming in a timely fashion! This chapter may be a bit slow, but we're setting up the ending here. Thanks for sticking around ya'll!

Chapter 3

Trust

Pants, done. Shirts, started. The uniform jackets would be last- some of the elbows would require more time and care to fix, and after her conversation with Jürgen, her nerves were too frayed to focus on the detail they'd require.

The shop was quiet, Herr Acker in the front reading the newspaper and occasionally humming an old folk song as he flipped through the pages. Alone in the back room, she wished someone, anyone would come in to break the monotony and keep her from thinking about the events of the morning.

She glanced at the clock. Nearly closing time. Edwin would be here…

The bells above the door rang.

"Can I help you, my boy?" she heard Herr Acker say over the rumpling of the newspaper.

"I'm sorry to bother you- is Anna here?" She had expected to feel relief when Edwin arrived, but she hadn't realized how comforting just hearing his voice would be. A reminder that she wasn't as alone as she felt.

"I promised to walk her home," he continued, pulling her from her thoughts. "I know I'm a bit ear—"

"Say no more my boy!" Herr Acker replied excitedly. Anna rolled her eyes as she folded the shirt she'd been working on. The old man was ever the busy-body, worse than the old yentas in her mother's stories. It was as annoying as it was endearing, but it would only help them.

Straightening her skirt, she emerged from the back room, wondering how she should greet him. Edwin and Herr Jarvis were out- both would out him immediately as a foreigner. And was he pretending to be Hungarian? Or German? What language should she greet him in? He'd just spoken German, but Herr Acker might find it odd if she addressed him that way…

Last night she felt so confident in Edwin's plan- he had a cover story, what did she have to worry about? There were so many questions she wished she had asked, so little she knew about the dangerous game she'd fallen into.

"There you are, Anna!"

German. Alright, she could do this. Grasping his outstretched hand, she pulled him down so she could reach his cheek, kissing him lightly. It was a show for Herr Acker- proof to anyone who might ask questions that their relationship was legitimate.

"Hello dear." She turned back to her boss. "Herr Acker, please let me introduce—"

"Hans Lefkowitz," Edwin chimed in, causing Anna to bite back a sigh of relief. He figured out where she was going. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"And you as well my boy, despite stealing my seamstress out from under my nose," Herr Acker chuckled, shooing them out the door. "It's been far too long since I've seen a smile on young Anna's face. And caused by a good German boy, no less!" Herr Acker explained.

"Hungarian, actually," Edwin replied casually. She wasn't sure why he was sharing so much, but she assumed it was important. "But my parents were German. From Bremen. They came to Hungary just before I was born. German is my first language- I'm afraid my Hungarian will never match it."

"I can understand that," her boss replied with a smile, and it dawned on her why he'd given that information. A reason why they did not speak Hungarian, given to a man who understood how difficult learning a new language was. "Well, who am I to stand in the way of such happiness. Go, go! I may be an old man, but I still remember how to close up shop."

With a grateful nod and brief goodbyes, Anna wrapped her arm around Edwin's and swiftly left the shop.

OOO

"Can you take the bag, darling?" she asked, shoving the sack into Edwin's arms, hoping that the quick movement would hide the nervous shaking of her hands. Secretly, she wondered if she'd ever recover from the fear she felt after the morning's encounter.

As they'd walked arm-in-arm away from the hotel, Edwin had informed her that maintaining normalcy was the best way to cover their tracks- which was how he'd ended up at the grocer's stand, watching her haggle with a farmer over a half liter of nearly spoiled milk, two stale loaves of bread, and five eggs. Though there was shock in Edwin's eyes as he took in the meager offering, he said nothing, simply taking the bag and nodding his thanks to the grocer.

The last few blocks to her home were quickly covered. As they approached the building, she glanced up at the window as she did every night- no one home. Again.

"You'll come up for dinner, yes?" Anna asked. The surprise on Edwin's face mirrored the surprise she felt. The solitude and loneliness was biting at her spirit, and after her encounter with Jürgen, she needed desperately needed to know that someone, anyone, was there.

"Will there… is there enough?" He looked between her and the bag.

"There's always enough for a friend," she replied with a small smile, a tinge of red lighting up her face at the meager offering. His dinner at the hotel would likely be much heartier and more filling. It didn't seem to matter- Edwin returned the smile, holding the door open so they could enter.

A cold breeze greeted them as she unlocked and opened the apartment door. She was reminded of the games they played when she was young- she'd made it home. To base. She was safe for now.

"It takes a bit to warm up," Anna explained apologetically, opening the grate of the stove to see how much coal was left from the previous night. She lit the coals, adding an extra piece before returning to the table. If she kept moving, she wouldn't have time to think about the dangers lurking outside. "There's not much coal left, but we'll have enough for dinner."

Edwin set the bag on the counter. The scene was so… domestic. A picture from another time, when war wasn't raging a few miles away. "We could go to a café. You don't have to go out of your way—"

"It's fine. Really. I'll have to cook for my brother and father anyway." She grabbed several potatoes off a shelf and began peeling them. "Work keeps them late."

He stepped around the table, picking up a potato. "Then I could help—"

"Please, just sit!" she interrupted quickly, louder than she had intended. This was her distraction. "Please. Just let me cook."

Anna picked up the knife to slice the potatoes, but her hands were shaking again. With a sigh, she grabbed a pot, filled it with water, and placed in on the stove. She picked up the knife again-

"Anna."

Her hands were still shaking.

"Anna, put the knife down." Edwin's voice was low and calm. A warm hand enveloped her's, forcing her to drop the utensil. "What happened? Tell me."

"I think…" Her voice broke, and she swallowed hard, trying to make the words form. "I think Jürgen knows."

If her words scared him as much as they scared her, Edwin did not show it. "What happened?"

"He said… he told me to be careful. Said that people were always watching."

With a gentle tug, he pulled her toward the main room, sitting her in her father's worn easy chair. He knelt on the floor in front of her, her hand still squeezed tightly in his, forcing her to look him in the eyes. "Did he threaten you?"

She shook her head in the negative, her hair escaping from the bun she'd fixed earlier that morning. "He asked me to fix his uniforms. Said he wanted to be prepared."

"Prepared for what?" Edwin asked, his voice more urgent, though the worry in his eyes subsided.

"His leave was ending. He's going to the eastern front."

"When?" he pressed. Almost like an interrogation.

"He didn't say," she replied, almost frantic as she realized she'd been so focused on her fear, she may have missed an opportunity to get Edwin the information they needed. She might have failed them on her first day. Reliving the conversation, Anna quickly added, "At least two days from now- that's when he wants the uniforms done."

"Do you believe him?"

She stopped. Did she believe Jürgen? Was it possible he just wanted to scare her? Scare tactics were nothing new- the Arrow Cross Party, those Hungarians aligned with fascist Germany, had targeted Jews since the war began. It wouldn't take much to find out her religion- it was recorded in the last census. It wasn't beyond the realm of possibility that Jürgen might want to scare a Jewish girl. One last childish hurrah before he returned to nearly certain death in Russia.

It wasn't an outlandish possibility.

It just didn't make sense.

"No." The words were barely above a whisper. "No, I don't believe him."

"Neither do I." Edwin leaned back on his toes, releasing her hand and running a hand through his hair. "I just wish I knew why."

Her stomach growled as they sat in silence, and she stood to return to the kitchen. Edwin rose with her, grasping her shoulder and forcing her to face him. "We can stop this. We don't have to keep going. If you don't feel safe, no one will force you to keep going."

He was right. They could stop it. She could walk away. But if Jürgen already knew, what was the point? In for a penny, in for a pound.

"I'll get dinner started, Hans."

OOO

Three days passed after their dinner. Three days since Jürgen had asked for his uniforms to be ready. One day since he was supposed to arrive to pick them up.

The starched uniforms still awaited his return.

Anna hoped they stayed there.

OOO

"Have you always worked for Herr Acker?" Edwin asked as the old man left the shop for lunch, setting a bag of food on the table. Steam rose from the bag- it was still hot and fresh, a treat these days.

Edwin had become a constant presence, despite the fact that Jürgen had seemingly disappeared. After he'd left that night, she found him waiting outside her apartment the next morning, and each morning after. He had arrived at lunchtime each day with a meal for them to share. Had walked her home each night and stayed for dinner and conversation until he had to return to his actual work.

She wondered what his commanding officer thought of this. Wondered why he maintained the charade. Wondered why she dreaded the day it would come to an end.

Reaching across the table, she took a piece of still-warm bread from the bag. She had been right- the food the Americans and British were eating was far fresher and more nourishing than anything she'd seen in months. It took all her effort not to stuff her face full.

"No. No I didn't." She paused to take another bite, chewing slowly. They'd made plenty of small talk over the past several days, but nothing quite so personal as this. Memories of what she used to have flooded her, a melancholy nostalgia. "I used to own a dress shop, before they forced me out of business for being Jewish. One of my mother's friends left it to me after she died. She taught me everything I know. I designed my own dresses. They were popular."

Not quite true. But some of Budapest's wealthier socialites had worn her dresses to parties and the theater. One had appeared in the newspaper several years ago. She was proud of her little accomplishments.

"You don't seem old enough to be running your own shop," he remarked off-handedly. As soon as he realized what he said, his face flushed bright red. "Not that you couldn't, I just meant—"

Anna laughed, wondering how a man who wore his emotions on his sleeve had become involved in such a covert mission. "I'm nearly thirty, Ed- Hans."

She caught herself quickly. The relative calm of the past three days had nearly pushed away the fear she felt, although the underlying knot in her stomach remained. It had all been so… normal. Almost like they were really a couple. She could almost forget that Edwin was a soldier trying to get information to protect his men and his friend, and that she was trying to guarantee herself a safe haven when the war ended.

She was Anna Zellner, seamstress and woman. Not Anna Zellner, target of the enemy.

"And you? What did you do before all this?" she asked, genuinely curious about the man behind the soldier.

"An accountant, if you believe it. At a solicitor's office." Edwin was beaming, the pride in his job evident in his face. "I come from a family that's always worked in private service. My mother worked as a housekeeper before she was married. My father is a butler on a country estate. I was the first to get an education, to leave. They're very proud of that."

His joy was contagious, and Anna found herself grinning. "That's wonderful. Truly."

"After this is all over and you have your shop back, I'll be happy to check your books for you." The cheeky smile he gave her nearly doubled her over in laughter.

"I suppose I'll have to make your future wife a dress in return? Red and blue I think- a Union Jack dress to thank the heroes that saved Hungary!"

A funny look briefly passed over Edwin's face before the grin returned. Finishing the bread and vegetables that Edwin had brought, Anna walked to the door to hang the sign that the shop was open again.

Across the lobby, she saw Marja emerge from the elevator. On the arm of Howard Stark.

Her friend didn't notice her at first. A quick glance made it appear that Marja and Stark were together. But closer glance revealed that the coy smile on Marja's face and the jolly, carefree look in Stark's eyes were false. The heavy coat that Marja wore was bulkier than normal, and her movements were stilted. Almost like she was carrying something under her coat...

It wasn't until they were nearly halfway across the lobby that Marja looked through the window of the shop and caught Anna's eye. Anna knew the confusion was written plainly on her face. She saw Marja shake her head slowly.

"Are you alright Anna?" She jumped a bit at the feeling of Edwin's hand on her waist, resting his head on her shoulder to peek over it and out the window. In view of everyone in the lobby, he played the doting boyfriend.

"Of course. Everything's fine. I'll see you at closing time?"

"I'll be waiting," Edwin replied. With a kiss on the cheek, he left the shop.

Marja was still watching.

OOO

His return was anticlimactic.

When Jürgen strode back into the shop, there was a smile on his face. It gave him an air of innocence- he couldn't have been more than twenty-five to begin with, and his face was that of a boy striving to look like a man. He greeted Herr Acker with a nod of his head and walked into the back room without waiting for an invitation.

Anna stood as he entered, taking a steadying breath before offering him a smile. He would not know how much he had scared her. "It's lovely to see you again, Obserschütze Koenig. Would you like a seat while I get your uniforms?"

"No, thank you, Fraulein Zellner. I must apologize for my delay in picking them up. I was held up yesterday- my orders were changed. I'm going back to Germany within the week."

"Will you be stationed near your family?" she asked politely as she aimlessly shuffled through the closet where the uniforms were stored. She knew exactly where Jürgen's were, but if she could keep him talking, perhaps… perhaps she could actually be of help.

"A brief train ride. My mother is pleased." He leaned against the table where she kept her supplies, picking up a pair of scissors. He stuck a finger through one of the handles, twirling it around his finger.

He's trying to scare you. Don't give in. He won't do anything with Herr Acker here.

"I hope this means that conditions have improved at the Russian Front? If you are no longer required there?" She'd play the innocent girl that knew nothing of war.

He stopped spinning the scissors and looked at her through squinted eyes. Trying to figure out her angle, she supposed. "Unfortunately no. But my service record has qualified me for a special mission in the west."

"Then I'm sure your mother will be both pleased and proud. Here they are! Good as new, Obserschütze Koenig. You'll look so dashing when your family sees you!"

"Thank you, Fraulein." Jürgen paused again, looking over the fabric. His finger traced along the seam of the jacket. "I also have to apologize for my behavior the last time I was here. When I said you weren't alone. I didn't mean to scare you. I just wanted to warn you- I've seen some suspicious fellows hanging around the hotel. You're important to Herr Acker, and I don't want to see you get hurt."

It was a lie. A bold face lie.

But was he making these people up or was he implying that he knew the Americans and British were there?

"Thank you, Obserschütze Koenig. So few people are willing to look out for others these days. It's rare to find someone as kind-hearted as you. Now, is there anything else I can do for you today?"

He might be a liar. But Anna could lie too.

Thanks so much for reading. Aiming for a chapter every two weeks til we're done (maybe 2-3 more left?). Reviews and con-crit are always greatly appreciated.