Daisy stared at the apartment with wide eyes. She glanced around and took a small step forward, evaluating the situation. Everything had been tossed around and scattered. It didn't look like anything was stolen, but rather thrown about or broken. One of the vases of flowers was broken on the ground. Daisy immediately picked it up and stood the flowers upright against the television and sighed.

"Do you think those guys did this?" Daisy asked.

Bucky frowned. "Probably. Let me go make sure there's no one in here, okay?"

Daisy nodded. "Okay. Be safe."

Bucky nodded as he grabbed a large knife from the kitchen. "Don't worry, I'm a pro."

Bucky headed down the hall with the knife ready, putting the skills he had acquired to use. He checked every crevice and found no one there, but more of their things thrown everywhere or broken.

When he opened the closet to the guest room, a man readied a gun but Bucky disarmed him before he could shoot. Daisy heard movement and ran to the kitchen to grab another large knife just in case.

The man tried to disarm the knife from Bucky, but Bucky caught it before it fell and held it to the man's throat.

"You still got it in you," the man said to Bucky. "HYDRA would be proud."

"No," Bucky said. "I'm protecting the woman I love. That wouldn't make them proud."

Before Bucky could do anything, he heard police sirens outside. Next thing he knew, three police officers were barging into their apartment. Daisy followed them.

"Which one is it, ma'am?"

"The one with a knife to his throat," Daisy said. Bucky released the knife and handed the intruder over to the police, who cuffed him immediately. He rushed over to Daisy, who dropped her knife and wrapped her arms around Bucky's neck. She clung to him for dear life.

"Are you okay?" She asked. Her voice was trembling. Her whole body was shaking. Bucky rubbed her back slowly.

"I'm fine," he said. He had scared himself but he knew that what he did was right. "Are you?"

Daisy nodded into Bucky's shoulder. "I'm just glad you're okay. I called 911 the minute I heard something going on."

"Smart girl," Bucky chuckled. "I'm just glad you're safe. For a minute, I thought-"

"You did the right thing, Buck," Daisy reassured. "The Winter Soldier wouldn't have protected me. Sergeant Barnes would have."

Bucky took a deep breath and rested his head on hers. "Thank you. I needed to hear that."

Daisy chuckled. "That's what I'm here for."

They pulled away when the police began to question them and had them fill out a report. Daisy was still shaken up but luckily, most of the questions were for Bucky.

"Do you two have a place to stay just in case?" One of the officers asked. "Maybe a good friend?"

"Yeah, I know who to call," Daisy nodded. "Thank you, officers."

"Should we call Steve?" Bucky asked.

"I'm calling my friend Cari," Daisy said. "She's got a huge place a few blocks away. Inherited it from her family, they're loaded. Besides, they might look for us at Steve's if there's still some of them out there. Just pack a few night's worth of stuff just in case."

They packed their things in silence. Bucky couldn't help but feel guilty; he had put her in this danger by sticking around for so long and for being selfish. He never expected ex-HYDRA agents to come banging at her door.

"Daisy, I…"

"I already know what you're going to say, Buck," Daisy said. "Don't you dare blame this on yourself." She picked up her phone as she finished packing her bag and gave Cari a call. "Hey girl, it's me. We had a break-in over here. Do you mind if Bucky and I stay at your house for the night?"

On the other end, Cari's eyes widened. She knew exactly what that meant. "Of course, Daisy!" Cari said, keeping her voice perky. "Any time, sista. You know where to go. I'll set up the spare bedroom the second we get off the phone."

"Thank you so much, Cari," Daisy said. "I really appreciate it. We'll be over in a few."

Daisy hung up and tossed her phone in her bag. Bucky stood there with both of their bags — mostly clothes and toiletries — ready. He tossed them in the trunk of Daisy's car and sat shotgun as she began to drive off.

"I thought you said Cari lived a few blocks away?" Bucky asked. "Why are we taking the highway?"

"Because we're not going to Cari's," Daisy answered. "We're going to Avengers Tower."

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Bucky asked.

"Because they might have been tapping in on our phones, Bucky. I learned all about these guys when I learned all about you and Steve back in the day. I know how they work just as well as you do," Daisy said. "Cari used to work for S.H.I.E.L.D., and is good friends with Miss Potts. You may have heard of an Agent Phil Coulson?"

"Yeah, why?"

"That was her cousin."

"So if Cari worked for S.H.I.E.L.D., how do you know Cari?" Bucky asked. "Was it no accident that you found me in the museum that night?"

"We were sorority sisters in college," Daisy said. "I promise you, Bucky, I wasn't there on behalf of any of them that night or ever. I took you in because I wanted to. I didn't even tell Cari about you until they chased after you and Steve. We developed an emergency system in case this sort of thing ever happened. I've never worked for S.H.I.E.L.D.; I graduated with a history degree with concentration in museum studies, nothing S.H.I.E.L.D. worthy."

"So, based on what you said to her on the phone, she knew what you were actually saying?"

"If there are any HYDRA agents still looking for us, they will direct themselves to her house where she lives with her fiancé, who she met at S.H.I.E.L.D., so it's nothing they can't handle."

Bucky sighed. Daisy reached over and held his hand. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about any of this sooner. I should have let you know. I wasn't trying to be sneaky, just smart and cautious."

He could hear it in her tone: she meant it. He didn't think Daisy had the ability to lie to him. "It's okay, Daisy," Bucky said. Even if he wanted to be, he couldn't be mad at her. "I believe you."

Daisy smiled. "Don't worry, Buck. We're going to be okay."