Hide & Seek – Twenty One
"Eighteen floors of people? What's the maximum amount of people then?" Sam asked.
"Four apartments to a floor. Maybe four people in each apartment," Sharon said.
"288 people," Steve said doing the math very quickly.
"Give or take."
"We need to clear the building. If Bucky plans to blow it up…" Steve said.
"We could pull the fire alarms," Sam suggest.
Steve shook his head. "Anything like that would cause a mass panic."
"And we'd end up with firemen, and probably police and ambulances. A lot more attention that we need at this point."
"Which is actually no attention. We don't really need anyone to know we're here."
"I don't think we have time to knock on doors and tell people to evacuate," Sam told them.
This is what should have been decided upon on the plane.
"We could get a few people to help us," Sharon suggested.
"But what would we say?" Sharon said. "We'll all sound crazy."
The three of them were on foot heading towards the building. They'd all been hoping that as they got nearer, they'd find that the building was no longer in use. However, they found lights on in almost every window.
"Bucky won't blow up something full of families," Sharon said.
Steve shook his head. He didn't think he believed that. He figured that Buck would do anything to anyone that got in his way.
They watched the building from a short distance away. The front door had a doorman. It had become some swanky living place since it had originally been built.
"Sharon, can you go inside and ask him for directions?" Steve asked her. "Find out the lay of the land, see if the building is full."
Sharon pulled her hair into a ponytail and flipped her bag over her shoulder. She looked instantly five to ten years younger as she smiled at them.
They all activated their earpieces and made sure they were sending and receiving.
"I'll see ya," she smiled.
Steve and Sam watched as Sharon made her way across the parking lot towards the front of the building.
Steve and Sam turned to each other and then muted their comm devices.
"What's the plan here, Cap?" Sam asked.
"She'll go in and find out just how many residents the building has. She'll find out some info and leave. We'll go in while the guy is distracted."
"You don't think Sharon will be angry?" Sam asked. "Leaving her out and all?"
"I don't want her getting hurt."
"Guys? I'm in the lobby, but there is no one here. The attendant's desk is empty."
Steve turned the sound back on so he could respond.
"Don't do anything yet," he said.
But it was too late. He heard a door close and then Sharon came back on the line.
"I found the basement stairs," she sounded breathless.
"Sharon, don't do this on your own," Steve tried to say in a measured tone as he was running towards the back end of the building. Sam was attempting to to keep up but he knew from past experience that it was an impossible chase.
Steve stood on the edge of the glass and waited for Sam to catch up. He peered in to see if the man had come back, but the lobby was empty.
"Sharon, which door did you go through?" Steve said through gritted teeth. He was so angry at her. Why would she do this?
Doubt was clouding his mid, something wasn't right but he didn't know what it was.
"Sharon, where are you?"
There were three doors in the lobby and a set of elevator doors.
"Sharon?" Sam shouted.
But now she wasn't answering. Something was definitely wrong.
"We've got to find her."
The first door was stairs that lead up. There were no stairs leading down at all.
The next door had a set of basement stairs, but so did the third door. They both listened for any sounds, but nothing.
"Which door, Cap?" Sam asked.
Steve had no idea.
He chose the left most door and the two of them began to head down the staircase.
…
Sharon was staying as quiet as possible, but that was because the man holding onto her had a gun and was ready to fire it on her. She didn't know who it was, but he'd smashed the earpiece after she'd announced that she'd found a basement staircase. She knew that Steve was going to be really mad at her. Hell, she was mad at herself. Maybe if she'd waited, she wouldn't be in this situation.
The man had a full face mask on; she couldn't even see his eyes. But something about his voice was familiar. But one thing was for sure: it wasn't Bucky.
"Your two little friends are coming after ya, now ain't they?" he said as he tossed her into what looked like a former examination room of some kind.
Sharon rolled her neck and looked at him. "I don't know who you're talking about."
"Whoever you were talking to, Sharon Carter," he said. "Steve Rogers."
She stared at him and he started to remove the mask that he was wearing. Sharon recognized the sneer instantly: Brock Rumlow.
"Oh my god," Sharon hissed.
"Did ya miss me, Agent Carter?"
"Rumlow?" Sharon hissed.
It looked like he'd been through hell, but it was definitely Brock Rumlow, former head of the STRIKE team.
"I go by Crossbones, now, honey. But it's all me," he sneered. "I really didn't think I was gonna get this lucky tonight, but I get like four frickin' birds with one stone."
"I really have no idea what you're talking about…" Sharon told him.
He reached out and grabbed her by the ponytail. "You don't know what I'm talking about?" he laughed. He shoved her and she fell back against the wall.
Sharon tried to not hit her head against the wall – she wanted to stay clear-minded – but the force of his shove was intense and she blinked into the now-blinding light.
"Seriously? I would have thought that Captain America's little groupie coulda taken a hit better than that!" he laughed at her. "Or should I say…whore…just like your aunt…"
Sharon saw red and when Rumlow mentioned her Aunt Peggy. She was on her feet in a flash and launched into a fight with him. She screamed as
…
Steve and Sam made their way downstairs in the building. They were pausing every so often, listening for any signs of Sharon.
"I don't like that her earpiece isn't working," Steve said.
Sam shook his head in the semi-darkness. "I don't either," he said.
"And I don't like that there aren't any signs of her at all," he told Sam.
They moved down another level in the basement of the building. That's when they heard Sharon's scream.
They both ran in the direction that they thought they'd heard the scream come from.
…
Sharon threw another punch and clocked him hard, but he recovered quickly and grabbed her arm and yanked. If he pulled any harder, he'd dislocate her shoulder or break her arm.
Sharon couldn't get out of his hold and she couldn't get away from his hot breath on her neck.
"It is such a rush getting to take you out," he breathed in her ear. "I've always thought you were cute, you know."
"Really?" Sharon said through clenched teeth. "Because I've always thought you were disgusting," she said as she elbowed him in the gut.
"You'll get what's coming to you, you bitch," he hissed at her while he recovered from the hit. He wrenched her arm backwards again while tugging down the zipper of her jacket. Her arm was almost to the snapping point when someone tapped him on the shoulder.
Rumlow turned for half a second and then all of the sudden he was flying across the room.
The force of the blow had knocked Sharon to her knees, but she stood quickly when she realized who had come to her rescue. Bucky Barnes.
He made short work of knocking Rumlow out cold before offering his non-mechanical hand to Sharon to help her up.
"Thank you," Sharon said while climbing to her feet.
He didn't say anything. A look of confusion crossed his face, as if he recognized her, but he released her hand and was gone before Sharon could stop him.
Rumlow started to stir a moment later and Sharon looked around for anything that could bind his hands. She spotted a small length of rope and she tied his hands behind his back. He started to struggle as he regained consciousness again.
Sharon took her cheap shot and punched him in the jaw again.
He lost the fight for consciousness again.
"Sharon?"
She whipped around and found Steve Rogers standing in the doorway. She could feel the bruises forming on her face, neck and body where Rumlow had landed his hits. She could tell that her lip, again, had opened up and was bleeding.
She had never been that girl. But she rushed towards Steve and he pulled her into a tight embrace, just holding her against him.
"What happened?" Steve said into her hair.
"Bucky's here. He…saved my life," Sharon told him.
…
Author's note: thank you all for continuing to read this little story of mine. Let me know what you think of this last chapter!