Chapter 9: Broken
Evelyn was driving with Bucky sitting beside her, staring out the window. She felt her heart clench as she turned the corner, heading towards her hiding place when her phone went off. Glancing at the phone that sat on the dashboard of her car, she saw Steve's picture show up. She grabbed the phone off her dash before Bucky could look at it. "Yeah," she answered.
"Where are you?" Steve asked.
"I'm busy," she replied as she turned another corner and the car went into an underground tunnel.
"Is he with you?" Steve asked.
She leaned back in her seat. "I'm not willing to divulge that information," she replied.
"Why not?" Steve demanded.
"I have to do this on my own, Steve. He can't see you, this is goodbye," she answered.
Steve was silent on his end. "Goodbye?" he asked.
"Yes, Steve, until I know that Bucky will be alright I'm not coming back. I love you, big brother," she answered.
"Evelyn…" Steve started to say.
She took her cell phone, tossing it out the window. Bucky stared at her quizzically as she just stayed silent, driving him outside of the city. "Where are we going?" he asked.
"We're going to our son," she answered.
He looked at her. "I have a son?" he asked. She nodded her head slowly.
"A beautiful little boy," she replied softly, her throat constricting slightly.
Bucky sat in his seat staring at the metal arm that Hydra gave him, flexing his fingers. "You're Captain America's sister?" he asked. She nodded her head slowly and Bucky was silent again. "Was he happy when we got married?" he asked.
"He was the best man at our wedding," she replied as she drove the car out of the long tunnel.
She let out a deep breath. "I had your wedding ring engraved with something special too," she added, "But I guess when Zola removed your arm, he removed he ring and destroyed it." The idea of it broke her heart, she had saved every little bit of money she had earned helping Mrs. Steinhauer at the flower shop to get his wedding ring engraved. "Do you remember what was engraved on your ring?" she asked, she knew it was a long shot but she had to ask. She glanced at him as he shook his head slowly and she let out a sigh.
Pulling up to a house, she got out of the car as Bucky slowly got out of the passenger's side. "Come on," she said softly. She reached for his hand and he met her halfway, grasping her hand tightly in his good hand as she led him up to the front door. "Carmen?" she called out. She had Bucky stay in the shadows, since she wasn't sure if Carmen would go back and tell Steve that Bucky was there.
"Mrs. Barnes, how was your trip?" the woman asked.
"Successful," Evelyn replied, "Is he awake yet?"
"He's upstairs playing," the woman replied smiling.
Evelyn gave the woman her money and thanked her before she left for the evening. "I'm going to go get him, just try to make yourself comfortable we're not going to stay here long," she told him. Bucky nodded his head slowly, watching her go upstairs and looked around the house. It was a beautiful little house, something for a small family. He saw pictures covering the wall and looked at them. One picture showed Evelyn sitting in one of the many hospital rooms SHIELD had on their carrier.
Her beautiful brown hair was stuck to her head, obviously from sweating during the labor and delivery of her child. The baby was wrapped in blue blankets, red from the delivery and screaming his little heart out. She was obviously crying happy tears, looking at the child in her arms.
The picture beside it showed the little boy looking only like he was just a year-old his face covered in a brown substance grinning at the camera with his few teeth he had in his mouth. There was one picture he was surprised he didn't find, his and Evelyn's wedding picture wasn't anywhere to be seen. "Jimmy?" Evelyn called, making him turn around. He saw her standing there with the little boy on her hip, staring at him.
The little boy was holding onto a blanket, his thumb in his mouth as he stared at Bucky. "Want to meet your son?" she asked. Still in disbelief that he had a son, he walked over and stood in front of her looking at the little boy in her arms. The little boy stared at him with wide eyes as Bucky stared at him equally stunned.
"Daddy?" the little boy asked curiously, recognizing him from his pictures his mama showed him.
The man almost jumped back when the child reached out to him. "He wants to touch your face, that's how he likes to learn about people," Evelyn assured him. Standing still, Bucky allowed her to step forward and the little boy reached out again, his tiny hand touching the man's stubble covered cheek.
"Daddy," JJ said smiling, his eyes wide.
The little boy held both arms out to him. "Up?" he asked.
"What does he want?" Bucky asked.
"He wants you to hold him," Evelyn replied, "Do you think you want to give it a try?"
Bucky stared at the little boy, frowning a little to see that he just wanted to be held. "Daddy, up!" he insisted.
"I'm not going to hurt him am I?" he asked.
"Just hold him lightly, don't have to put too much pressure on him," Evelyn replied.
Swallowing hard, he allowed Evelyn to place the little boy into his arms and he just froze, staring at the boy that was now touching his face continuously. He took the hat off Bucky's head and put it on his own head with a big grin. Evelyn was smiling through her tears as she watched this moment. It was obvious this man was terrified, he went from killing everything in sight to holding a child in his arms. A child that obviously loved him so much already. "We need to go," she murmured.
"Where are we going?" he asked.
She started grabbing bags that she had packed and hidden in the closet along with some other photographs and a large leather book. "They'll be here soon searching for me," she replied.
"Why?" he asked.
"I just basically ran away from home even though I'm a grown woman and can make my own decisions," she replied.
Bucky frowned as he watched her put other important things together. "We have to go," she murmured. Bucky nodded as he carried the sleepy child out of the house and over to the waiting car. Evelyn looked around the house and let out a deep breath as tears welled up in her eyes a little bit. She couldn't come back here, not until Bucky was better. Until he was no longer a threat to anyone and he could remember who he was, they would stay in hiding. That would be the best decision for them. Letting out a deep breath, she turned on her heel with the duffle bags and left the house.
She tossed them into the back of the car before getting into the driver's side. "Wheaw we goin, mama?" JJ asked.
"We're going on a long trip with daddy," she replied as she started the car.
"Unca Teve?" he asked.
"Uncle Steve won't be able to come," she replied softly.
"Unca Cint and Aunt Tasa?" he asked.
"They have to go take care of Lucan remember sweetheart? Don't worry we'll visit them soon so you can see Lucan," she replied.
The little boy frowned a little but was content with his mother's answers as he started playing with his toys again. As they drove off, Evelyn glanced over at the glove compartment. "Inside the glove compartment there's a detonator in there," she told him.
"Why would you have that in here?" Bucky asked as he pulled up the small contraption.
She held her hand out to him. "Give it to me please," she replied. He handed her the small round object that looked like a pen but with a red button on the end of it. She held it up and pressed the button, watching in the background as her home blew up in flames.
"What did you just do?" he asked in disbelief.
"We're starting over," she replied before she hit the gas and sped off.
Steve drove up to Evelyn's house to see that the entire place was up in flames. "EVIE!" he shouted getting out of the car.
"No! Steve!" Clint exclaimed grabbing his friend, "She's not in there!"
"What do you mean she's not in there?" he answered.
Natasha walked over to them with Lucan on her hip the little boy was staring at the flames with wide eyes. "A neighbor said that she was home earlier today, she came home with a man," she told her friend. He frowned.
"Did they say what he looked like?" he asked.
"They couldn't see his face, they just saw him walk into the house with her then he came back out with JJ and she followed behind him with enough stuff to survive on for a while," Natasha replied.
Steve rubbed the back of his neck, staring at the wreckage. "She's covered any sort of path she left behind," Clint put in.
"She's with Bucky," Steve answered, "That's the only explanation."
"And she doesn't want to be found," Natasha put in.
Clint stood beside his wife, his arm going around her waist as they looked at their friend as he picked up part of a picture frame that had landed in the street from the explosion. "What do you suggest we do?" Natasha asked.
"Find them," he replied.
"Steve…" Clint started to say.
The Captain swung around and looked at his friends. "We find them," he repeated before he got into his car and sped off.
