CHAPTER 9: A Daring Escape
It was the worst feeling in the world. The Winter Soldier was still numb after they headed for the abandoned bank. He was led to a safe where the damn chair was waiting for him; his mind kept coming back to that moment.
"Bucky?" The Soldier knew he heard that name before; it was not strange to him. But the most intriguing thing was the man who called him by that name. He was also very familiar and the shocked expression on the man's face was still bothering him.
The doctors started to prep him for his usual check-up. His arm needed some slight repairs after the little electric disk that was tossed at him. They could not risk a malfunction at that moment.
The silence filled the room, which was normal since none of the doctors ever talked with him. Usually, that didn't bothered the Soldier, but today was different. He wanted to distract his mind from the images that were starting to appear. They kept coming, clearer each time.
"Sergeant Barnes." The Winter Soldier heard a horrifyingly familiar voice and then he saw the face of a man with glasses staring at him from above. Then the scream and the face of the man from the bridge was loud and clear. "The procedure has already started." He could see blood forming as someone dragged him on the snow. "You are to be the new fist of HYDRA." More doctors lining up around him until he grabbed one by the throat only to feel a painful sting in is chest. "Put him on ice."
There was a rush that ran through his veins; he couldn't control the adrenaline that was forming inside of him. The Soldier felt the need to run away, to hurt someone. Before he could notice, all the guards and agents were pointing his guns at him, ready to shoot.
"Wipe him?" The sound of the girl's voice made the Soldier turn to face her for the first time. He was aware of her presence since she entered the room, but it was hard to concentrate around her. It was best to ignore.
"Wait a minute, you can't do this!" She was desperate and looked really scared. But not for her, for him. The sensation that formed inside of the Soldier when tears started to flow from her eyes was something he had never felt before. She still cared about him, even after he almost killed her, more than once. She even stood against him earlier, helping the targets they were supposed to terminate. And now, she was crying, protesting and risking her life for him.
The Soldier didn't spoke, he didn't wanted to make things worse. He knew what was coming as he was being leaned against the cold backrest of the chair; he was going to forget. About the man on the bridge, about the visions, the strange doctor, the snow, and painfully enough, about her.
Harley didn't sleep; she was haunted by nightmares and visions the entire night. Bucky's screams were still echoing in her mind, making the situation even worse. She had no idea of what was going to happen to her now, but she didn't care. The only thing she wanted, more than anything, was to break free from that place and take Bucky with her, but the fact that he obviously wouldn't remember her brought Harley back to the sad reality.
Someone banged loudly on the door, causing her to jump. She approached it as Rumlow opened the door's little window.
"You look terrible." He said with that stupid tone. He expected her to reply but she merely stared at him, looking disgusted. "Today's a big day. We're going to make History. So it's only natural that your ass stay in here since you ruined everything yesterday. I just wanted to let you know that when we return, you better be ready. Pierce still has a lot in store for you, sweetie." He widened his smile, trying to intimidate her. She let out a small laugh.
"That's cute." Harley replied, ironic. "You think you're all so scary. But Mister, I've seen scary. And you ain't got his smile." She smirked at him before returning to bed, she was not in the mood for Brock's provocations. Besides, Harley meant every word she said.
Steve was still lost in his thoughts. He hadn't been able to think straight since his encounter with Bucky. It seemed impossible that his best friend, the one he saw dying right in front of his eyes, was alive and had turned into a killing machine.
"He's gonna be there, you know?" Sam's voice brought Steve back to the present.
"I know." He replied, bitter.
"Look, whoever he used to be… the guy he is now, I don't think he is the kind you save." Sam proceeded, cautiously. "He is the kind you stop."
"I don't know if I can do that." Deep down Steve knew Sam was right, but he couldn't just give up on Bucky. He meant a great deal to him.
"He might not give you a choice. He doesn't know you." Sam understood why Steve would feel conflicted, but they needed to focus on the real danger.
"He will." Steve said, final. He wanted to believe in those words, he needed to try to bring Bucky to surface and bury the Winter Soldier. "Gear up, it's time."
"You're gonna wear that?"
"No. If you're going to fight a war, you got to wear a uniform." Steve said, walking away, more determined than ever.
There was not much to do in a confined space; Harley knew that from innumerous experiences. But she had also escaped from confinements before. The comparison between escaping from Arkham Asylum and a HYDRA facility almost made Harley laugh. This was no picnic. She had to think harder and plan a strategy if she hoped to escape this place.
Harley knew that Rumlow, Rollins and a majority of the other agents, including Bucky, were off somewhere. That only meant that the place was not heavily guarded as usual. Pierce was also nowhere near, according to Rumlow. This was her chance; she doubted an opportunity like this would ever happen again. Thinking over and over, Harley suddenly remembered Ivy and the idea was formed in her head. Taking a thorough look around the room to see if there were any cameras, she concluded it was safe to proceed.
"Excuse me!" Harley knocked on the door so whoever was guarding the outside would hear her.
"What do you want?" The little window was open revealing an agent she had never seen before.
"Nothing much, really. It's just… I'm feeling kinda lonely in here." She said, soft.
"And why is that my problem?" He asked, but she could see the curiosity starting to show in his eyes.
"I just thought you would keep me company. There's room in here for one more." She winked at him, forcing herself to smile from ear to ear.
"Yeah, they said you were crazy. Now I actually believe them." He said, unlocking the door and entering the room. "They also mentioned how you like a little spanking, too."
"You just read my mind, cowboy." Harley said, backing up a little bit as the agent closed the door behind him and started to get closer.
When he was inches from her, Harley kicked his leg, causing him to kneel. She then punched his face, kneeled his nose, jumped behind him when he tried to grab his gun, holding his arms behind his back and putting her legs around his neck. The agent started to gasp for air, trying to loosen his arms to get Harley away from him. She was concentrating all of her strength in that grip. When the man finally stopped moving, Harley moved away from him.
After checking his vitals twice to make sure he was dead, she removed his clothes, grabbed his pistol gun, a few more bullets just in case and, of course, the door key. She put his uniform on top of her own clothes to look bigger and wrapped her hair under his hat. Then, Harley put the man in the bed, positioning the body with his back facing the door, covering him with the blanket.
Taking a deep breath, Harley unlocked the door and peeked around the corridor. She was not familiar with this new location, but since it was a bank, it shouldn't be too hard to escape from. She pulled out the gun, checking it to see if it was loaded and headed out the room, locking the door behind her. Harley wanted this to be as quiet as possible, if she could avoid shooting anyone it would be better. She figured the corridor was filled with cameras, so she kept her head down at all times. Probably nobody was watching since there was no commotion when the guard entered her room, but she couldn't risk it. She turned around a corridor and found a flight of stairs heading down; there had to be a garage. It was too easy for Harley's taste, but she couldn't stop now.
When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she heard voices from the nearby corridor. Harley started to walk a little faster, hoping she could pass unnoticed by the laughing idiots up ahead. Luckily, they were too focused on their conversation about world domination or whatever that Harley was able to proceed without any problem. The path was getting darker, which was a good sign. Keeping her head low as she passed a couple more agents, she finally found what she was looking for: a car. Harley started to search her pockets for a car key, but the only thing she found was a pass card with the agent's identification. Taking extra care now, she approached the vehicle, trying to figure out how to get inside without a key.
"Stanley, what do you think you're doing?" A loud voice made her jump. Harley turned to see who was calling. It was a tough-looking security guard, probably in charge of the parking lot. "You were supposed to be guarding the nutty, not here. Are you taking advantage because the security camera is broken?" The man was trying to intimidate her at any cost. Harley noticed the car keys on the man's jeans.
"Sorry cupcake, but I don't have time for this!" She said, punching the man's throat. When he was down she kicked him again just in case and grabbed his keys. She pressed the alarm and waited for the car's headlights to appear in the darkness. When they did, she ran in its direction, getting inside and starting the vehicle. She approached the panel near the garage door. Harley grabbed the pass card and the door opened. "Was that as easy as it looked? Oh well, off to my top priority; I have a broken mind to fix!" She thought as the car speeded into the streets of Washington.
"I'm not gonna fight you." The blonde man said, dropping his shield. "You're my friend." He was beaten, bruised and giving up willingly. But that just wasn't enough. The Soldier couldn't stand all those voices and images that were forming in his head. He needed to silence them, plus, he had and assignment to complete. The pain coming from his shoulder wasn't helping, either. The Soldier grabbed the man, knocking him to the ground.
"You're my mission." The Soldier said, punching the man repeatedly as each memory was beginning to surface. "You're… my… mission!"
"Then finish it." The man said, weak, now more injured than before. "Cause I'm with you till… the end of the line."
He stopped. Everything stopped. What was going on? Why was he doing that? Why was he hurting that man? He didn't want to do that anymore, he would end up killing him. He kept staring at the man with his eyes widened; there was something about that last sentence that froze the Soldier completely.
Before realizing it, something hit the carrier right where they were. The ground collapsed, causing the man to fall. The Soldier still could grab the remaining wreckage with his improved arm. Suspended there, watching from above, he saw the man hit the water. He would drown for sure, he was weak and defeated. The Soldier let go of the carrier and dove after the man, still being able to reach him in time. Dragging his unconscious body to land, he stared at him one last time before turning around and disappearing into the unknown.
Harley didn't really know where to start, but she had a hunch that HYDRA would be trying to take over SHIELD. When she was approaching the headquarters, something made her stop the car immediately. What seemed to be three huge ships were hovering up in the sky, aiming their huge canons at all directions. Harley got out of the car in the middle of the street, where people around her were doing the same thing. Police officers were starting to block the road ahead to prevent people from crossing the path of destruction. Harley removed the agent's uniform and left it in the trunk, keeping only his gun. She knew Bucky was there, possibly Steve and Natasha too. Harley needed a way in, so she turned around and started to run towards the forest, hoping for a shortcut.
Almost running out of breath, what was already bad became worse. The ships started to tear each other to pieces, firing against themselves. Harley stared at the nearest one, her mouth and eyes widened. For a brief moment, she thought she saw a blue and red silhouette hit the water. "Steve!"
Without taking another look to the wrecked ship, Harley immediately ran towards the lake, hoping she would be able do something in time. It took her a while to get close, but once she did, Steve was already in land, looking worse than Harley thought. His face was severely bruised and he had bullet wounds across his stomach and chest. It had been an ugly fight, for sure. Only then, she realized that Bucky was probably the one who caused all that damage, and it was also probably the one who brought Steve to safety. "He remembered." Harley thought, a bit of joy and hope lighting her up. Steve coughed, causing Harley to focus on the situation. She needed to get him somewhere safe, but there was no way she could carry him around. Taking her time to think of a solution, a chopper started to land near where they were, the force of the wind causing Harley to fall back a little into the lake.
"Harl?" Natasha suddenly appeared dressed in her Black Widow suit, followed by the flying man from yesterday and agent Hill. "You keep appearing in the weirdest of places… Oh my God!" She was surprised at how injured Steve was. "Sam, give me a hand!" She called the man and together they dragged Steve towards the chopper.
"Can you stand?" Maria asked a now soaking wet Harley, offering her hand.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Harley replied, holding onto the agent's arm and following them to the chopper.
"Long time no see, Miss Hogue." Harley paralyzed when she heard that voice.
"Nick?" She widened her eyes at the smiling man piloting the plane. "Ya sneaky bald pirate, you were supposed to be dead!"
Fury laughed as the chopper took off. They needed to get Steve to the hospital as fast as they could. Even though the situation wasn't looking very good, Harley felt a warmth growing inside of her. For the first time in days, she was actually feeling safe.
Steve opened his eyes slowly, accustoming them to the brightness of the hospital room. There was a sound of music playing as he turned his head a bit to find Sam sitting by his bed, asleep.
"On your left." Steve said, still feeling a little weak.
Sam opened his eyes instantly. "You know what the funny thing is?" He asked, smiling. "Even after being out for a week and looking like this, you'd still beat me on a race."
"We'll have to check that out later then, just to make sure." Steve joked.
"How you're feeling?" Sam asked, a little concerned this time.
"I'm fine. Never been this bad before, but I'll live." He answered, vaguely. "Luckily you guys pulled me out before I drowned."
"What are you talking about?" Sam asked, confused. "I thought it was the girl who saved you."
"What girl?" Now it was Steve who was confused.
"I think her name is Claire." Sam answered as Steve widened his eyes. "I didn't actually had the time to talk with her about it, but she was there by your side, looking soaked. I figured it was because she dove in the lake after you, but I guess not."
"Hey there boys!" A familiar voice came from the door, causing them both to look.
"Speak of the devil." Sam said so only Steve would hear him.
"Claire! I'm so glad you're okay!" Steve said, smiling. "We were really worried about you!"
"Nah, don't bother, I'm a tough gal." Harley said, bubbly. "Right now, you only need to worry about getting well soon so you can get out of that bed."
"Well, I'll leave you two alone; I really need to eat something. See you later man!" Sam said, rising from the chair and leaving the room.
"How are you feeling?" Harley asked, sitting on the same chair Sam was.
"I'll be fine. What about you?" Steve had been worried about what kinds of sick tortures could be inflicted upon Claire during her time being a HYDRA hostage.
"Trust me, I've been through worse." She said, bitter. "Wasn't fun, that's for sure. It'll give me a few more nightmares, but I'll get through it."
"How did you escape?" Steve asked, curious.
"It was surprisingly easy. They must have underestimated me, but I'll admit that security wasn't all that heavy that particular day." She proceeded to explain her 'brilliant' plan, causing Steve to let out a few good laughs.
"Well, at least you got there just in time to get me out of the water. Thanks Claire, I owe you!" He said, taking her hand in his.
"What?" Harley asked, confused. "What are ya talking about, Cap?"
"Sam said you pulled me out the water, that you were there right next to me." Steve stared at her for a moment. "Unless… Bucky!" Steve widened his eyes in shock.
Harley's stomach gave a knot. She knew it had been Bucky, although she didn't actually see it. There was a conflict inside of her that consisted on either she'd tell Steve about the horrors she witnessed being performed on Bucky or she'd just omit it. In the end, Harley chose the ladder. Steve was already suffering just from seeing Bucky on the highway; he didn't need to know about the tortures he had been put through. It wouldn't change the situation they were in, so why causing him even more pain?
"He was there with you, wasn't he?" Steve asked, bringing Harley out of her thoughts. "You recognized him? Did you ever talk to each other?" Steve was getting agitated.
"Ok, first of all, calm down Cap! Second, yes, he was there. I didn't know who he was until you pulled off his mask that day on the highway. Also, we had a couple brief conversations but…" Harley stopped to think on how to proceed. "I don't think it was enough for him to remember any of it. There was a lot going on around that place." She said, staring at the ground.
Steve kept silent after that. He was probably thinking where Bucky could be right now, just like Harley was. There wasn't much options or clues on where to find him, it wasn't something she could do on her own. Besides, now that Steve was recovering it would be better to leave that quest up to him. Compared to Steve and Bucky's history together, Harley was merely just a stranger.
"I'm not Peggy's nurse anymore, you know?" Harley said, breaking the silence. "After being away for so long, they moved her to a different sector. Her mind deterioration got worse, too. Her family is here now, at least."
"What a shame. Poor Peggy! Well, the important thing is that she's surrounded with her loved ones." Steve replied, a bit sad. "So, you got fired on top of everything?"
"I tried to explain the situation to my co-workers. Brenda even said she thought she had seen me on the news because of all the mess we made on the highway." Harley shivered at the thought. "Anyway, long-story-short, yes, I'm unemployed at the moment."
"I'm sure you'll find something soon enough." Steve yawned, closing his eyes and begging to feel sleepy.
"Yeah, I hope so." Harley answered, softly. "What I want to find right now is out of my reach, thought." She thought as her eyes also grew tired, and she settled in the chair, welcoming a good few minutes of sleep.
