Thanks to everyone who is reading this. I hope that you are enjoying reading Shadows. I'll try to get chapters up quickly but the school musical is sort of interfering with my free time.
Shadows – Chapter 4
Natasha stood frozen; she'd heard the whole conversation. She watched in horror as the Shadow, Natasha realised that it was her, took the comm link out of Steve's ear.
"Don't think I've forgotten about you Agent Romanoff," Natasha committed the voice to memory. "If you want your Captain back all I ask for in return is Agent Barton. He'll know where to go." The Shadow dropped the device on the floor and trod on it.
Bruce was staring at Natasha but she didn't care. With a purposeful stride she set off towards the super soldier. The Shadow caught her eye and winked.
Suddenly all the lights went out; the room went deathly silent. Natasha could hear Starks voice as it travelled over the crowd. "It can't be a power cut, we generate our own-"
The sound of machine gun fire pierced the silence and screams erupted from the crowd as bullets tore through their evening wear.
Natasha lost sight of Steve in the pandemonium. She shoved her way through waves of hysterical people but when she got to the bar it was empty,
"Damn!"
xxx
Thor spotted Bruce standing by a pillar. "Doctor Banner, we must empty the building." The scientist looked at him and Thor could see flecks of neon green in his eyes.
"Yes, that sounds like a plan." The room was already half empty and the remaining guests were either fleeing for the exit or lying on the floor, injured or dead.
Thor wasn't really bothered by the bullets but he knew that if one touched Bruce the Hulk might make an appearance.
They made their way out of Stark Tower where they found Tony and Pepper. Tony had gone a bit red in the face.
"What? Who? Argh!"
"Calm down," Pepper played the voice of reason, "Tony you don't have your suit. You're not going back in there."
The gunfire stopped and the small group could hear sirens. Thor was still getting used to the constant activity that was Manhattan. It was so different from home.
xxx
Natasha got out of the building once the shots died down. Neither Steve nor the Shadow were in the building. It was all her fault; she'd convinced him to talk to her in the first place. To release some of her feelings of guilt she shot a few of the machine gunners with the handgun from her thigh holster.
How the hell had they got into Stark Tower with guns? She'd have to bring it up with JARVIS at a later date.
Natasha spotted the other Avengers and walked over to them.
"Natasha." Pepper sighed in relief. "We were worried that you'd been shot."
Bruce looked at her over the top of his glasses. "Why'd you walk off earlier?"
"Steve he-" She took a deep breath. "You know the girl that he was talking to." Everyone apart from Thor nodded. "She ummm, well turns out she was the Shadow."
A collective gasp came from the group before her. Pepper looked confused, but Natasha could tell she knew it was serious. "Is he Ok?"
"She took him. I'm going to SHIELD HQ."
"We'll come with you."
"No Tony, you guy stay here. Sort out the party. Fury wouldn't tell you what was going on anyway."
Xxx
Bruce watched as Natasha walked away, pulling her phone out of nowhere and speaking to someone.
"So the Red Room organised that?" Tony looked confused and angry.
"I guess so. If they took Steve maybe they're going to use him as bait for Clint," Bruce reasoned, "six months is a long time to, errr… shadow someone."
"I hope that the Captain is alright." Thor sounded concerned, hell, they all sounded concerned.
"We should sort out the party Tony." Pepper sounded close to tears. "There is going to be a lot of talking to do. Oh my God, how are we going to explain this?"
Tony put his arm around Pepper. "Don't worry Ms Potts, I'll handle it."
"Oh, I feel safer already." Pepper said sarcastically.
Bruce let out a tense laugh. "Let's get this over with then."
xxx
Natasha was still in her ball gown when she arrived at SHIELD. She strode towards Fury's office and knocked on the door. He normally made her wait a while before letting her go into his office, to test her patience, but only seconds later she heard, "Enter."
Natasha pushed the door open and stepped in, closing it behind her.
"Did you hear?" She was still afraid (less scared, more respectful) of him even after working for SHIELD for six years.
"It's already on the news." Director Fury turned one of the monitors on his desk around so that it faced Natasha. It showed a lie feed of Tony talking to news reporters, the sound was muted. "What actually happened?"
"The Shadow got Steve." There was no use beating around the bush. "What do we do?"
"We," Fury emphasised the word, "don't do anything. I am going to sort this out and you are going to do your job."
"Which is?" Natasha was confused.
"Whatever I need you to do. You are dismissed." He picked up the phone on his desk and made a call.
Natasha walked out. She was furious; he couldn't just leave her out of this process. She had to do something: she had a call to make.
Xxx
Clint's phone vibrated on the table in front of him. To answer or not to answer, that was the question. Days of only having himself to talk to – and he wasn't the best companion – had worn him down.
"Barton."
"Clint, hey."
"Nat? Hi."
"Listen Clint. I know that you're running away from the Shadow, but-"
"Woah, there. Who said anything about running away?" Did Nat think he was a coward?
"Fine, 'strategically disappearing'. Anyway, I don't know how to say this but… they've sort of taken Steve."
Clint froze. What the hell! The Shadow was after him, not golden boy Rogers. "Oh God. This is all my fault. What are SHIELD doing?"
"They won't let me know. If someone calls you tell me."
"Sure." That was a lie and they both knew it. He'd never be allowed to tell her. "Where is everyone else?"
"They're fine; they're talking to the news teams. Ok well, call me." Nat hung up.
Clint stared at the phone in his hand. He should have told her. He'd been in love with her for four years and never told her. Nearly killing her on the helicarrier had made him realise it was now or never. For the past few months he'd been working up the courage to tell her but now he was stuck in South Africa.
His phone vibrated on the table again. Two calls in one day, boy was he popular.
"Barton."
"Barton get your ass back to New York now. There is a car on its way to your location."
"If I can ask sir, why?"
"Captain Rogers has been taken by the Shadow and you have to get him back."
"How?"
"I'm sorry Barton, you're going to have to give yourself over to the Red Room, hostage situation Alpha Omega." It was like the bottom had fallen off his stomach.
"What?"
"It's the only way, we watched the recordings, she said do herself."
"She?"
"The Shadow. Agent Barton, it is your job to put everyone else before yourself. Don't make me force you to do this."
"Ok." Oh crap. How was he supposed to explain this to Natasha?