Metanoia
Chapter 21 - Kef
The pier was brightly lit by the overhead sun and sweat rolled down Steve's back. He wanted to say it was from the heat of the midday sun, but he knew it was because the lives of an estimated 150 civilians were resting on his shoulders and one wrong step could have them all slaughtered.
Somewhere behind him he could hear the sounds of battle: Natasha's Widowbites as she attacked, and the grunt of Clint as he swung his bow like a bat. In the air Tony's repulsors fired and Sam's jets hummed as they ducked in and out of the fray, plucking people to safety when either of them got the chance. This was coupled with tck-tck-tck of gunfire, turning the heart of one of California's most love tourist attractions into a warzone.
They'd managed to kill four of the nine enhanced shoulders already, three of them at Steve's hand. His objective now was to get to Rumlow as quick as he could. There was a chance that if he took him out, the rest of them would be useless.
"Cap, I got eyes on Rumlow," Sam said, his words music to Steve's ears. "Heading into the Carousel, he's alone, but be cautious."
Steve oriented himself and saw the Hippodrome building up ahead, it's pale walls a beacon on the pier.
"I'm on my way there now. Bruce, what's the situation with the Hydra soldiers? How many more do we have to take out?"
"US military seem to be handling them now. Several arrests have been made and we've had a few casualties. Cut their numbers by a third though, so that leaves you guys to take down the Enhanced," Bruce replied, having been left in the tent to avoid having to use The Hulk. The quarters were too close for something of his size and there were too many civilians that could get hurt by him in the crossfire.
"And civilians numbers? How many have we accounted for?"
"Around 90 but we have no way of knowing exactly how many of them there were on the pier in the first place. It's a Saturday at the start of tourist season… best estimate is that there were between 200-300 people on the pier at the start of the attack, with around 90-120 remaining now. The military have pulled people out but a full sweep hasn't been done." Bruce paused "There's also been civilian deaths, we're still getting numbers on those."
Steve loosed a breath as he tuned Bruce out, his stomach in knots but determination in his veins.
He pressed himself against the wall of the Hippodrome, hunting for answers. It was quieter on this part of the pier and he wondered why. Soldiers, super or otherwise, hadn't stopped him from making his way here. It made him nervous and had him feeling like he was walking into a trap. His team was doing a good job but the pier wasn't all that big. He should have at least run into someone who wanted to stop him by now.
"I'm going in after Rumlow. Keep taking those guys down. Widow, if you can get over here to cover me that'd be great."
"On it, Cap. Just let me… Oh, hey Soldier –" Her voice turned sickly sweet before there was a crunch and the familiar sound of a body hitting the floor. "I'll be behind you in 5."
Steve steeled himself up and pushed into the building, holding his shield high in front of him in the event of an ambush.
The carousel was still and quiet in the middle of the atrium, and it reminded him of something he'd seen back in his day. The wooden structure was bathed in light that streamed in through the arched windows, giving it an otherworldly feel, which would have been beautiful under different circumstances. There were people cowering against the center column; mothers and their children were taking cover as best they could, all of them looking terrified and desperate for help. They must have been on the ride when everything broke out. Steve jumped on his coms right away to get someone over to get them out.
"I have hostages in here. Women and Children," he said as he flashed a little boy with tears streaming down his face a confident smile. The kid buried his face into his mothers' neck and her arms tightened on him.
"We'll send someone in for them, sweep the place, and make sure it's clear." Maria was the one who replied to him. "There should be a way out through the maintenance entrance in the basement, opens under the pier."
"I'm behind Nat. I'll get them out," Clint answered Maria, and Steve straightened his shoulders satisfied that these people would be helped.
"He went that way," a woman said in a cautious and low voice. She was cradling a child to her chest and looked terrified, but she raised a hand to point at a maintenance door on the far side of the carousel despite that fear. "The big man with the mask over his face? Th-that way."
"Thank you, ma'am. Someone is coming to help you so just sit tight, ok?" He nodded to her, lifting his SHIELD and entering the door.
The door lead to a stair well and he descended down, realizing after a few moments that he was under the carousel now, in the maintenance tunnels. The lights were dim and the temperature was cool but he pushed on. His earpiece crackled as the reception failed. He knew he should have waited for his team but Rumlow was too important.
He tried all doors he came to and all of them were locked, except for one. He kicked it open with his boot, with his shield up and his gun pointed over the top of it in anticipation for an attack.
But it didn't come. Instead he was met by the sight of Rumlow reclining lazily behind a worn desk, his mask off and resting in front of him.
"It took you long enough, Cap."
Steve could see his face in all its grotesque glory.
Taking a cautionary glance around the room, Steve found that he was in a simple office where there seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary besides Rumlow. Behind the desk was a boiler and a few discarded mops that looked like they were several months past rotting. Steve doubted if anyone had been in there for a long, long time.
"Your defences were good. Had to be thorough when taking them out," Steve shot back and Rumlow smirked. His feet were up on the desk and he looked almost bored, as if luring Steve here was all part of his game.
"Well the plan always was to keep you all occupied for as long as possible." Rumlow grinned, lacing his fingers behind his head in an arrogant show of victory. Steve frowned.
"The plan?"
"Everyone has a plan, Cap. What's yours?"
Steve frowned at the question. "To end this."
"Right, of course it is. You only ever want to fix things… the world, yourself… the girl." Rumlow smiled as Steve's spine stiffened. "I'm surprised she's not here. My girl shares the same obsessive want to fix things too."
Steve bristled, knowing he was being baited.
"Your girl?" Steve asked, frowning slightly as jealousy bristled through him. "You mean, Aurora?"
"Who else?" Brock rolled his eyes. "Like it or not she's the one thing we have in common. But she's mine," he snarled, his casual facade slipping for a second. He breathed deep before smiling again. "We were doing just fine before you decided you wanted her again."
"I never decided that at all." Steve shook his head, levelling his gaze on Rumlow.
"You see that's what I thought at first. Back when you still thought I was on your side and you saw us together. I didn't think you would come between us. You and I were friends after all." The sneer pulled at his scars and twisted them, making him look like he was made from clay.
"We were never friends." Steve shook his head. Rumlow snorted, sneering at him in derision.
"I'm heartbroken," Rumlow bit sarcastically with an eye roll. "Still, friends or not she assured me whatever you two had was over. She talked to me about you sometimes. Late at night after we were both spent from fucking. She had me entirely convinced she was over you."
"So what made you change your mind?" Steve snapped out, trying hard to ignore almost every word he said about her. He didn't want to know what had happened between the two of them. She'd only made it seem casual but he was getting the sick feeling that it was more than that.
"She was Hydra. She may have thought she was a double but there's no way I can be double crossed… and then she saw you again and suddenly she's SHIELD?" He spat, the spittle hitting an inch to the left of Steve's boot. "Bullshit. She hated SHIELD… but she loved you. Even after you practically killed her." Steve flinched at the hard words. Rumlow caught the reaction and smiled. "You told her she was worthless; Said she couldn't do things. I'm guessing that you probably wouldn't let her come. You probably fed her some bullshit about it being too dangerous, what if this was a trap for her?" He waited expectantly and Steve knew he was treading dangerous waters.
Rumlow was under his skin, getting into his mind and twisting things he thought he had worked out.
"Is it?" Steve asked, the back of his neck prickling with anger. His fist was gripping his shield strap so tightly his fingers were hurting. Rumlow was goading him, trying to get a rise out of him so he would lose focus.
"No. No this was always just a distraction. One that you couldn't say no to. None of you could." Rumlow dropped his arms from his head and placed them on the table.
Steve frowned. "A distraction for what?"
"Karpov taking back what's his. The man is smart, I'll give him that." Brock grinned. "He's gonna help me take back what's mine too. That's the deal."
"You have no idea where she is," Steve spat, his jaw clenched so tightly as even he didn't believe the words. The thought was in his mind now.
Rory would do anything to keep any of them safe. What if something had happened while he was gone and this really was a distraction to take her? That's how Zemo took her from him last time. Who was to say Karpov wouldn't use the same tactic?
His mind raced and he hoped his team wasn't far away. He'd been dumb to come down here on his own. His coms only crackled with static and he didn't want to call on them and show Rumlow how scared he was. He was flying solo for the foreseeable future but surely someone would be coming after him soon.
"You can't be sure she's where you left her, can you?" Brock laughed, reading the expression on Steve's face.
Steve straightened his shoulders and cleared his throat. Rumlow's mind games might have been working on him but he knew that the other man felt the exact same way about Rory as he did.
So naturally, turning the tables was the only option he had to stall for time.
"Oh I know exactly where she is," Steve said in a voice far more confident than he felt. "I put her there myself with the promise that when I got back we would talk about us. Hate to be the one to tell you this, Brock, but she's quite eager to see if she and I can make things work again. I mean, we worked just fine this morning… and last night. Same intense chemistry we've always had in bed - "
Rumlow's chair thudded to the floor with enough force that Steve was sure he heard something crack. His eyes blazed with anger and Steve knew he'd hit a nerve.
"I hate to say it, but I think you're old news." Steve shrugged, flexing his fingers on the band to his shield.
"She loved me," Rumlow roared, his face twisting. "She loved me more than she ever loved you. I never hurt her like you did."
Steve's jaw clenched as the truth hurt but he shook it off.
"No, maybe you didn't… but you're still second best to me," Steve taunted, the words sliding off his tongue far easier than he imagined they would. "She used you to get over me but look what happened as soon as I came back into the picture… She left you to be crushed by a building and came running back." He smiled as Rumlows' face went red. "That day she stayed at her sisters? The one when you almost caught me at the mall? She was with me."
Rumlow's eyes widened with rage before he swiped the desk across the room with a closed fist. Steve took a step back calmly, watching him bellow like a bull.
"She'll love me again," he growled, drawing himself up to full height. Steve took a small step back, realising that whatever they'd done to save him had made him bigger and his presence took up the room.
"Will she?" Steve rolled his shoulders, sensing the fight that was coming.
The ex-SHIELD agent was as fast as Steve remembered and hit a little harder as he rounded on him with jabs, crosses and a hook that felt like a sledgehammer. Steve could only block as he advanced, bracing his forearm over his head with his shield above him. He sucked in breath after breath as Rumlow's blows landed, rattling his teeth. Maria hadn't been wrong when she'd guessed Rumlow had been enhanced.
Soon Steve had the wall at his back and he had no choice but to dodge a wild uppercut and dive under the fast fists to even the game, grabbing Rumlow in a clinch that allowed him to throw his knees into his abdomen.
They grappled for five long seconds, evenly matched in their fight. For every knee Steve pummelled into Rumlow, he received a blow overhead in return until both of them loosened their grip and stepped away from each other to catch their breath.
Rumlow circled him, his steps solid and sure, his eyes screaming with bloodlust. Steve watched him closely, circling with him, never letting him step without stepping too.
Rumlow let out a low laugh.
"I knew you were the one who taught her how to fight. I could just… feel it." His fists clenched, the gloves creaking in the silence of the labs. "You both have the same moves… the same way you throw a punch…" he said with a breathless exhale. He was having far too much fun with this. It was like the fight meant nothing to him.
Something wasn't sitting right with Steve. Rumlow had something planned. He could feel it, but he just couldn't work out what it was.
"I didn't teach her but I sure trained her hard. It's how we got closer I guess," Steve said calmly, his heart hammering in his chest. Not knowing Rumlow's angle was making him nervous. Nothing Rumlow was doing made sense, even by unhinged psychopath standards.
"That explains why she was all over me the night I taught her how to kill," Rumlow said in a teasing tone and Steve's heart stopped. His eyes grinned at the expression that must have been on Steve's face because his next words sounded delighted. "Oh yeah, Rogers. I was there when my girl took her first life. Let me tell you, the sex after was –"
He never finished the sentence as Steve charged forward, fury pumping through his blood. The one thing he would never like about who she was now was her ability to kill without a second thought. She'd never been like that before.
There was too much cold blood on her hands and now Steve knew exactly who to blame. All sense of reason left him as he attacked.
Rumlow had to be stopped. He had to be brought down and taken in no matter what- not just for the safety of the people in the building but for hers as well. He needed to do this for Aurora because after everything she'd done, all the years that had passed, he still loved her.
"The way she looked after she killed her first target was beautiful, Rogers," Rumlow spoke through Steve's attack, his voice full of smug satisfaction as Steve's control slipped. "The way her eyes went dead and cold. The way she fucked me so hard I saw stars… I don't know if she was trying to forget but I like to think killing made her so fucking hot for me that –" His words were only cut off by Steve's fist to his throat but he still managed a laugh. Blood pumped through Steve's ears, drowning out any more words about the woman he loved. His muscles felt heavy and worn out but he kept fighting, fighting for her and only her.
"She is not yours. She never was and never will be," he growled as he squeezed Rumlow's throat.
"You… sure… about that?" Rumlow asked, his teeth bared and pulled back like a rabid dog. "How do you know you weren't followed to wherever it is you're squirrelling her away? Are you sure that place is safe?"
Steve sneered and squeezed tighter.
"The farm girl look is so hot on her." The words were a wheeze but they shocked Steve as badly as if Rumlow had shot him.
Steve's fingers loosened for a fraction of a second and that was all Rumlow needed to throw him off and turn the tables. The breath left Steve's lungs as Rumlow pushed him face-first into the floor. His arms were pinned behind his back, effectively rendering him helpless.
"I'd kill you but I want you to live through losing her… again… to me," Rumlow's voice was a rasping puff of hot hair on his ear and he writhed to break free from the hold.
Steve drew a breath as rage flooded his system but he had no chance to move as Rumlow grabbed a handful of his hair and wrenched his neck back. The solid concrete floor cracked in several places as his forehead was driven into it, rattling his brain hard enough to make him as useless as an infant. His limbs went lax as his brain threatened to give up on him.
"Oh yeah, by the way," Rumlow spoke again, his voice dim under the ringing in Steve's ears. "Madam Hydra sends her regards."
Something stung Steve's neck and cold flooded his veins. Between the throbbing in his head and the venom in his blood it was only a matter of seconds before the world went black around him and he passed out cold to be left at the mercy of Brock Rumlow.
Rory sat on the porch steps and watched the Quinjet take off and then disappear into the brilliant blue sky. She was still mad at Steve for ordering her to stay put, but she understood why. It wasn't safe, for either her or James to be out in public when they were virtually the two most wanted people in the United States, hell, and the world.
At least on a farm in the middle of Iowa, no one knew they existed.
That still didn't make her feel any better about her friends going off to fight a battle without her. It made her feel useless and cowardly and it took all of her effort not to call Maria and demand she send her a jet to go after them.
"I get that you want to help," James said quietly from where he sat beside her. "But we can't." He was her rock now and she wrapped her arm around his bicep and buried her face into his arm, giving a heavy sigh.
"And I get why we can't," she murmured. "But that doesn't mean I have to like it."
"I don't like it any more than you do, doll," James replied. "This is my fault. Karpov and his men are after me and I'm not even going out to meet them." He was tense beneath her fingers and she dug them into his arm, shifting her head to look at him.
"It's too dangerous. He would only use you."
"I know he would and that's what I'm afraid of. If Karpov has that book then I'm done. All he has to do is say the words and I become a mindless drone who would kill anyone he was asked me to." He cleared his throat. "I could kill you."
"You're getting closer to not being able to be wiped again, J. Maybe you'd be able to fight it?" Rory said, resting her head back onto his arm and holding him tightly. She stifled a yawn as James shrugged in response. She was tired in that weary kind of way that she felt in her bones. A small part of her was glad she wasn't fighting. There was only so much adrenalin her body could take.
"I don't want to take that chance," James muttered after a moment.
Rory nodded pulling away from him.
"I know…C'mon, let's go and watch the news while we wait for them to come home. I've gotta call my grandparents too and make sure they're ok…" Roray said, trailing off. She stood and dusted her hands off on her jeans. Her family would be fine. They were in Tony's home in Malibu, which was probably the safest place on Earth; but she still needed to check in for her own peace of mind.
She held a hand out to James and he took it, hauling himself to his feet as they went inside.
James flicked the TV on as she dialled the first number she had ever memorized in her life and waited for someone to pick up.
"This is Dugan?"
Just hearing her grandfathers gruff voice brought tears to her eyes and she smiled.
"Hey Pa. It's me, I'm just checking in," she said, her voice sounding uncharacteristically soft to her ears. Even James glanced at her in concern and she waved him away, assuring him she was fine.
"Aurora my girl!" Dugan bellowed loudly. "How are you? Where are you? You know when I reminded Steve about the safe house I didn't meant for you to blow it up!"
Rory laughed knowing her Pa's scolding tone was more in jest than actual anger. She pushed outside into the heat of the day.
"Well I didn't do it intentionally," she said. "It also technically wasn't me who blew it up, it was Hydra."
"Oh yes, how could I forget the technicalities?" He laughed. She imagined him rolling his eyes and rubbing his bushy moustache.
"Will it be ok?" Rory asked tentatively. He gave a heavy sigh.
"The damage was mostly to the front room and you know how much I hated that room." She laughed at that. "It was too purple, too stuffy… I'm not entirely sad it's gone. It can be rebuilt. Don't worry yourself about it"
"It's our home, Pa. How can I not worry?" Her voice was soft as she spoke, filled with far too many emotions to even try and name.
"Because you have more important things to worry about, like this crisis in Malibu… you're not coming with the Avengers are you?" He asked.
"I'm not,"
"Did you and Steve part ways again?"
She frowned. "We didn't, but what makes you say that?"
"I just figured that when the Avengers were called to action you'd have been first in line."
She frowned and leaned against the porch railing.
"I wanted to be Pa but Steve decided it was too risky. He made James and I stay back at the – at the place we're at," She corrected herself quickly, not sure if she should tell her Pa where she was. It was more for his safety than hers. The less he knew, the better, just in case.
"Ah yes, my granddaughter is SHIELD, Hydra and the US Government's most wanted," he said dryly. She snorted.
"You forget I'm with James Buchanan Barnes, Pa."
"Sorry, second most wanted. We're still so proud of your accomplishment though!"
She laughed again, feeling tension drain from her body. It was nice talking to her Pa and his humor made her feel slightly better about the situation. She rolled her shoulders, tiredness seeping into her bones. She felt like she could sleep for a month.
"I'm still the favorite child," she shot back, making him laugh.
"As long as you don't tell the others," he replied.
"How are the others?" She asked, thinking of her siblings.
"Oh getting there. Going stir crazy of course. The fight in Santa Monica broke out and it was all we could do to stop Grant and Tim from running along with Tony and Bruce," he said in exasperation.
"What kept them back?" She asked, knowing it would be something like locking them in.
"Their kids." Her Pa's simple words put into perspective exactly how dire the situation with her family was. She'd put them all in danger, uprooted them from their lives and made them sitting ducks. For Tim and Grant to not run head first into a firefight, their kids were their world and she would do anything to protect that for them. That weight settled on her shoulders and she closed her eyes.
"Don't beat yourself up about this, Aurora," her grandfather said in a gruff voice after her long silence gave away her thoughts. "This type of thing was a long time coming. Your grandmother and I made a lot of enemies back in the day and it makes sense that you have too, but we are absolutely fine. We're safe, Tony has made sure of that, so please don't be too hard on yourself."
She nodded, taking in her grandfathers' words. He'd acknowledged that this was her fault but also that he understood why. He had done the job before and he also knew the risks. They all did.
"Have you heard from Steve?" She asked, needing to change the subject.
"No… The Avengers are coming to, aren't they?"
"Of course. They left about 30 minutes ago?" She looked at her watch, surprised that the day had slipped away from her.
"From where exactly?"
"The less you know the better, Pa. It shouldn't take more than 45minutes for them to arrive, if that. They're in a Quinjet and Barton is flying it. He likes pushing the limit."
"Alright my girl. I'll trust you." There was a noise on theother end of the line like Dugan had covered the mouthpiece and then he was back. "Your grandmother wants a word. I love you, Aurora."
"Love you too, Pa." She smiled. She'd have given anything in that moment to be wrapped in his arms again like she was 5 years old. The phone was passed over. "Hello Grandma."
"Oh my Darling it's good to hear your voice." Peggy's crisp accent was like music. Rory took a seat on the top step, resting her arm on Lucky when he sat down beside her. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah, we're fine," Rory replied, filling her grandmother in on everything that had gone on since they'd last spoken a little over three weeks earlier. That had been when she was at Stark Tower, after being shot. Her shoulder ached from the memory and she rubbed it.
God it felt like it had been years since that moment, but in reality it had been only a little over 2 and a half months since she'd returned from Australia, 9 weeks since SHIELD had fallen and 2 weeks since she and Steve had sort of patched up their differences.
It was no wonder she felt physically and mentally tired and she said as much to her grandmother.
"I just wish it were over, Grandma."
"I know my darling and it will be soon," Peggy replied, her voice filled with nothing but love and support.
"When it is I don't want to do anything but sleep and just exist without watching my back," she added, stifling a yawn on the back of her hand.
"I'm sure that can be arranged. We'll move back to Boston. Settle down, live quietly." Peg's promise was like music to her ears and her eyes burned with tears of frustration and tiredness.
God hoped it could be that way. She was done with espionage. She was done with being someone she wasn't. She'd proven her point and ruined lives in the process. This life just wasn't worth it anymore.
She said goodbye reluctantly to her grandmother a little while later, promising to call again soon. When she went back inside the war at Santa Monica was still raging and she watched the screen as she fell into the sofa beside James.
"How is your family?" He asked, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.
"Safe," Rory replied, settling against the cushions and curling her feel underneath her butt. "That's all I can ask." She yawned again. "Any news from Santa Monica?"
"Fight's still going strong but news crews were taken out of there a long time ago. The stuff we're getting is from a distance or replay of earlier." James turned the volume down but the images still flickered across the screen. She looked for her friends but scenes kept changing too fast and she only caught glimpses of half of them. Social media would have been better to follow it with but she honestly didn't want to. What she really wanted to do was sleep.
"That's good then." Rory nodded, closing her eyes. Although she wished she had been there, it was nice to be able to close her eyes without fear of anyone attacking them. The farm was so silent and still. Perhaps when this was all over she'd live on one. She'd get another dog to keep Biscuit company.
It was a nice thought and she drifted in and out of sleep, as she lay curled up on the couch. James sat beside her, as a silent and comforting presence that made her feel safe. Everything was a haze and she didn't know how long she'd been out when the buzzing of her phone pulled her from her almost-sleep.
She groaned, burrowing deeper into the couch. She was too tired to talk to anyone.
"That's your phone, doll," James chuckled when the ringing continued. Rory felt it hit her side as he threw it at her. "It's your lover."
"Not my lover," she mumbled back, pulling herself from the almost sleep she'd fallen into. She cracked an eye and looked at the screen. Sure enough, Steve's name flashed across it and the thrill of excitement she got in her stomach made her out to be a liar.
"Yeah, sure. I heard you the kitchen back in Boston," James muttered as she walked away. "Probably a good thing it was blown up after what you two did in it."
She gasped a laugh and swore at him before she answered the call.
"Finished saving the world already, Hero?" she asked with a smile, burrowing deeper into the cushions of the sofa.
"Not quite, cupcake. Your hero just might need saving."
Author's Note:
And I leave you on a cliffhanger! Sorry. Next one out soon. Thanks for all the love and support.