Shannon jumped in to the taxi James hot on her heels, catching the drivers eyes in the rear view mirror she spoke "Drive." She could feel James's gaze burning in to the side of her head "Are you OK?" She asked staring out of the window not wanting to look at him.
"Who were those men?" James asked so quietly Shannon had to turn just to make sure she hadn't imagined it, his gaze was still on her but for the first time since they had met, she couldn't see any emotion in his eyes, turning away from her looking out of his own window he murmured "Your nose is bleeding."
Shannon wiped away the blood and stared back out to the New York Streets in chaos "Not here." They sat in silence both watching police car after police car sped past them in the opposite direction towards the Stark building
"Later" James murmured in the same quiet voice. "Later" Shannon murmured back.
"No...please...no" A bump in the road shocked Shannon from her slumber, she had been resting on something metal, raising her head James lips a mere centimeters from her own "I didn't drool did I?"
A look of confusion crossed James face but was soon replaced by a smirk and a chuckle that was short but made the tension from earlier suddenly disappear, she made to pull away actually realizing how entwined her body had been to his, she stretched suddenly feeling very self conscious of herself, looking out the window she realized that they weren't in New York anymore.
"I was going to wake you soon, how far do you think is safe enough?" No where the dark thought in Shannon's mind sent shivers down her spine, she had tricked herself in to thinking she was safe before and she had been obviously wrong, now they had to be more careful.
"How long have we been driving?" Shannon's eye caught the taxi's meter, $250 in bold red letters glowed back.
"About 3 hours, where somewhere in Pennsylvania and I've been watching and no one's following."
Shannon lent forward towards the driver catching his tired gaze "Turn in to the next motel." Fifteen minutes later the taxi rested to a stop at an old, tired motel. The vacancies sign flashing in what seem to be the entrance. Another building faced the motel, the word BAR stood above the entrance in bold, blue font.
Shannon pulled herself out of the now stationed taxi, her legs feeling like jelly from being still for such a long time, reaching inside her bag she pulled out her money and paid the driver, looking deep in his eyes she spoke slowly "Remember nothing." Walking away James watched the taxi disappear back in the direction to New York.
"Wouldn't it of been easier to do that before paying him? Save us some money."
Shannon moved towards the motel "Where on the run, that doesn't make us thieves."
Walking in to the pale cream entrance Shannon and James were greeted by a small, aging woman who could barely see over the counter "Welcome to Highway 80 motel, what can I do for you?" Her eyes barely left the tv screen tucked away in the corner.
"Room for two."
As Shannon and James both moved for the key, the old lady pointed down a well lit corridor "Room 15 straight down the hall and to the right."
Walking down the hall towards the door James lent towards Shannon's ear "One room?"
Shannon stopped at there door, the five on fifteen had lost a screw that held it in to place and it rattled as they both entered. The room was a comfortable size, an aging king sized bed sat against the wall, the stripy black and white wallpaper was drooping off the it at the corners. A worn beaten up leather chair had been placed between a chest of drawers and a small table, everything matched but badly.
James closed the door after himself, Shannon threw her bag on the bed, she sat beside it engulfed in to the over soft mattress.
Looking at James she sighed. "We had a deal didn't we? Your memories?"
James shrugged off his coat , he moved and rested on the chair, rubbing his face he looked at Shannon who had followed his movements, she looked defeated.
"Yes we had a deal but first you need to explain what happened in New York."
Shannon sighed rising to her feet, she began pacing the small space between the entrance of the room and the entrance to the bathroom. "I can't."
James made it over to her in three long strides he rested his hands on her shoulders looking in to her eyes. "Where in this together now, so you have to learn to trust me."
Shannon stood staring in to those perfect blue eyes that even in such a small time had such a strong effect on her, his lips so close to hers that if she just lent a little closer she could brush her own against them, his neck in the line of her face all she wanted to do was rest her head in to it, she wanted to be hugged, to feel safe. He had rescued her today she owned him the truth.
"The guy at Stark's is called Knight" as Shannon began to talk James sat in her position on the bed, his eyes never leaving her face.
"Knight was or is a lead scientist at the Hydra facility i lived in. That's how he knew me."
"But he called you Whisper."
All the hair on Shannon's neck stood on end at the mention at that name "Because that is my name. Well it was back then." Shannon stopped staring at the floor, memories she had buried deep rose there ugly heads "I was an experiment just like you. A weapon."
James listened, he could see how hard this was for Shannon but he couldn't protect them if he didn't have all the information. "Do you go as Shannon so they can't find you?"
Shannon sat at the side of James, she stared in front of herself thinking about her past "My name is Shannon Smith not because I'm hiding but because I'm not Whisper anymore." Shannon turned to face James "It's probably for similar reasons you haven't asked me to call you Bucky."
James left the bathroom, he felt better after washing the journey off his face, Shannon had been quiet after he had brought up the name Whisper, she had sat in the chair just staring in to space.
"Do you want to start?"
James nodded and sat on the corner of the bed opposite. "What do I have to do?" he asked, Shannon held out both her hands "Hold on."
James took Shannon's hands, there fingers entwined. He felt her power enter his mind, he felt it stretch within every inch of it, his thoughts, his feelings and the reason she was inside his brain, his memories. Shannon pulled further inside losing her own thoughts, she was engulfed in to everything about him , images whizzed in front of her eyes like a movie on rewind, some memories she was a part of from the past two days. She saw James's journey surviving after Washington, broken and beaten. She saw him fight and eventually save Captain America, it racing across her mind like they were her own.
Her body jolted as she was forced to watch and feel James sit in a funky looking electric chair, she felt every ounce of pain he had to endure just because the man behind Hydra's weopon had cracked a little.
"But I knew him" James's voice rung in Shannon's ears, the pain, the confusion dragging her own mind deeper in to his, she saw Steve Rodgers's confusion at seeing a friend he thought was long gone, the relief and the distraught at what Hydra had become. "Finish it because I'm with you till the end of the line."
Washington eventually whooshed past as Shannon was introduced to James's ice prison, the torture and pain that was forced upon him just because he was useful, she witnessed his most recent target one by one, a younger Black Widow made an appearance being used as a human shield. She felt her body slipping, the motel disappearing , it felt wrong she tried pulling back but her powers had taken over, she hadn't used them for such a extended amount of time and now she had lost control, her power was hungry and it was feeding on James's strength.
Shannon lifted her head expecting to be in there room with James but instead of the grubby carpet her face was lying on a cold cement floor. Shannon sat up, James was lying by her side, his eyes shut.
"James?" Shannon gently pushed James as his eyes flickered open, he nodded as they both looked around. The room was military some sort of base, a row of shelves and containers filled with weapons took up nearly all the room, a small space separating them leading towards the door. James and Shannon both stood gazing at there surroundings, a nagging feeling attacking Shannon's mind. Like an itch she couldn't scratch.
"What the hell?" James called out to Shannon as she delved deeper in to the rows of weapons, as she rounded the corner, a casket shaped container loomed in front, the nagging feeling clicked in to place. She turned and barrelled straight in to James, he stood staring at the box, the top glass that was frosted but a persons profile could be made out. Even if the profiles details couldn't be fully seen, Shannon knew that this was why they were both there, they were connected and she hadn't even realized it.
"This is me isn't it?" James asked almost a whisper, his eyes never leaving his younger imprisoned self.
"Yes I think so."
"Why is this different?"
Shannon looked towards the direction of the metal door "Because its not your memory, its mine." James looked at her, confusion etched in his eyes. His gaze followed Shannon's as the sound of the door to the room opened, James pushed past her as she stood rooted to the spot, he did a double take as the figure who had joined them came in to the light. It was Shannon. She was stood staring at the room like her present day counterpart had just been doing. The past Shannon looked barley a teenager, her hair was shorter almost the length of a boys but he could tell it was her. The biggest change was her eyes that he caught as she walked past him, they didn't have the playful spark that James was growing accustomed to, this Shannon was all business.
James turned following the younger Shannon, the present day one hadn't even moved since her younger self had entered, her gaze never leaving her past self.
"When was this?" James watched as the younger Shannon gasped in surprise at his own younger self, she stood on her tip toes to peak in to the glass.
"This was my first escape attempt."Shannon's eyes travelled back to the door, almost instantly it opened, two male voices filled the quiet of the room. Two very familiar voices. "I didn't get very far."
Jacob Knight and Alexander Pierce both stood in the small space before all the weapons, they were in a deep discussion, they voices dripping with passion. James tensed at the sight of the younger version of his handler from Washington.
"You can't do anything." Shannon murmured as she moved towards her younger self, she watched as she scurried against the rows of weapons trying to find anywhere she could hide. The present day James and Shannon both watched as the young Shannon tensed in fear at the very sound of Jacobs voice, James realizing how long Shannon had feared the man from New York.
"The miracle program has been very successful sir, we have so many bright, young candidates." Jacobs voice drifted across the weapons, it slowly gaining towards them.
"Oh I don't deny that Doctor Knight but at the minute your weapons need babysitting where as mine is fully functional now and can be put in storage after. How about a little spin so I can show you what the Winter Soldier is capable of?"
James almost growled as both men rounded the corner, there eyes falling on the small Shannon, she was stuck like a rat caught in a trap, the encased James behind her and Pierce and Knight in front of her.
"And at least I know where my weapons are" Alexander snapped in disgust as he turned on his heels and marched back the way he came "Deal with it" he spat as he left the room.
James watched as the younger Shannon cowered down, making the present day one turn her face away, he grabbed hold of her hugging her as tied as he buried her face in to his neck, he felt her tears on his skin as Knight marched towards Shannon's younger self, he grabbed a metal rod off one of the shelves flicking a switch it unleashing electric at the end. James watched as Knight repeatedly hit the young child, he watched as every time the rod came in to contact with her skin she would yelp in pain and the Shannon in his arms would jump, He watched as she was dragged past them by her leg, beaten and bloody. He witnessed her battered hand lift towards his younger self still in his prison, he looked on as young Shannon's pupils turned from brown to bright white, he felt her power push past him to his cage, he saw one of the many pipes keeping him prisoner quietly become undone.
Shannon pulled back, taking control of her own senses, she pulled them back to safety, to the motel. She felt James fingers still entwined in her sweaty own, as soon as she opened her eyes she pulled away racing towards the bathroom, just making it to the toilet as she threw up the contents of her stomach, she could feel her entire body shaking as she sank lying helplessly to the tiled floor, the cold feeling helping calm her shocked body. She saw James's faded white sneakers quietly follow her in, he slowly joined her on the ground, his face level with her own.
"I never realized it was you" She mumbled as her teeth chattered. James moved towards her, pulling her in to a hug, his metal arm tight across Shannon's back. They were like that together for a almost an hour not saying a word until James began to feel the tension in Shannon's body ebb away
"What now?" He mumbled in to her hair, she pulled away slightly looking deep in to his eyes, the spark he hadn't seen in the younger version of his companion had returned.
"Well I don't know about you but I need a drink."
