This story is rated M for violence, mentions of past abuse, torture scenes, and sexual content.
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Disclaimer: I do not own the Avengers or any characters/organizations/plotlines related to them. If I did, we'd have a lot more Black Widow and Hawkeye.
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Red Room, Unknown Location—1994
Natalia was at the front of the line of girls following their trainer through the facility. They had left the areas they usually worked in and headed down two levels. Natalia felt like it had gotten colder as they descended deeper into the concrete halls. She wasn't comfortable with them changing the training schedule. She'd gotten used to the daily routine, it didn't bode well that the girls were being led somewhere new.
The trainer opened a door and gestured for the girls to go inside.
Natalia pushed her trepidation down and walked into the room. Cold, bright lights lit the room, reflecting off the row of steel tables down the middle. One wall was covered in what looked like lockers. A man wearing surgical scrubs stood next to the only occupied table. Someone was laying on it. As Natalia drew nearer she realized that the person was too still.
It was the first time she'd actually seen a dead body. She stepped up next to the table, unable to pull her gaze away from the corpse in front of her.
"Welcome," the man wearing scrubs said after all of the girls were in the room. "Welcome to our autopsy facility."
The girls remained silent, a few shifted nervously.
"Today you will observe as I perform an autopsy on this gentleman. He was poisoned," the man continued. "Let's begin."
Natalia remained in her place near the middle of the table as the other girls fanned out to get a better view. She fought down the rising bile as the doctor dragged a scalpel across the man's chest. She'd expected blood to come out, somehow it was worse that it didn't.
"Do not fear Death," he said. "You are here to serve the government, but ultimately, you will be serving Death."
Natalia shivered at his words.
Grozny, Chechnya—2009
"Cute," Clint said in response to the computer Natasha had shoved in front of him. On it was a picture of a little girl, blonde hair and blue eyes.
"Her name is Anna. She's six," Natasha informed him.
"Were you planning on adopting her or something?"
She shook her head, "No. She's Drakov's daughter."
Clint's eyes widened. "Drakov has a daughter?"
Natasha nodded, "Her mother died four years ago. Drakov never remarried and has been raising her on his own."
"You think she's involved in this. Why?" Clint asked.
"If I was in charge of getting Drakov to cooperate while I was still with the Red Room, that's how I would have done it. Grab Anna on her way home from school one day and let him know I had her. So long as he cooperates, nothing happens to her. The moment he stops cooperating, that's when little Anna starts losing body parts."
"Why are you cutting off body parts?" Phil wondered as he walked into the room.
Clint grinned at his handler, "So she can keep Drakov controlled. Natasha found his daughter."
"Drakov has a daughter?"
"That's what I said."
Natasha rolled her eyes at the two men in front of her. "The point is, I think they're holding her hostage somewhere in order to make Drakov work for them."
Phil studied the picture of the girl. It was taken while she was playing at a park. "She's what, five?"
"Six."
"Seems plausible."
"Here's what I want to know," Natasha said. "Why didn't SHIELD find out anything about her?"
"I think it's time we call Fury," Phil replied.
Fury answered on the first ring. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong sir," Phil said mildly. "Should something be?"
"I just assume that something is wrong when you call me directly."
Phil chuckled. "Not this time. We did find something though. Did you know that Anton Drakov has a daughter?"
Silence passed across the line. "I'm getting Hill. Are Barton and Romanoff with you?"
"They are."
"Good. I'll call back when Hill gets here."
Phil put the phone down and turned to Clint and Natasha. "Apparently, he didn't know. He and Hill are going to call us back."
"It's a pretty big thing to miss." Clint said. "I can understand missing the part about her being a hostage, but to not tell us anything about her existence is bad. She could ruin any attempt to take out Drakov."
"All I did was run a few Google searches on Drakov. An obituary for his wife mentions the daughter. I found the picture through Interpol."
The phone rang, ending the conversation.
"You're on speaker," Phil announced, setting the phone on the table.
"How did you learn that Drakov has a daughter?" Hill asked.
"Google," Natasha supplied. "Then Interpol."
"We don't think Drakov is a willing participant in manufacturing the drug," Clint said.
"He'd make a valuable asset if you're right," Fury said. "You think they've got his daughter?"
"She's six and hasn't been to school in several months," Natasha explained. "If we get her and bring Drakov in, we'll stop production of the drug."
Hill sighed loudly. "Do you know where she is?"
"I think I know how to find her," Clint said. "A guy in a suit visits Drakov every few days. We think he's one of the leaders. I could tail him the next time he visits. I'm guessing that he knows where she is, if he's not the one holding her."
"It wouldn't be too difficult to rescue the girl in order to get rid of their leverage over Drakov," Natasha added.
"The objective is to take down the ring," Fury said. "Do you believe that this would help?"
Natasha and Clint looked at each other for a moment.
"Yes," Clint said.
"Without Drakov, they'll be stalled in production of the drug. That will give us a little bit more time to collect the information we need before we move on them. It also takes out the risk of the drug being used against us when we go," Natasha said.
Fury paused for a moment before speaking, "Okay, see if you can find the girl. Don't forget the objective though."
"Any reason why we didn't know about her before we got here?" Phil asked.
The agents on the other end of the line remained silent.
"We're looking into it," Hill finally said.
"So you don't know anything more than we do," Clint said.
"Obviously there was a time crunch to put together a dossier on Drakov," Hill defended.
Natasha snorted, "Not enough of a crunch to explain how Interpol had the information but we didn't. I'm guessing CIA, MI-6, Russia, China, Israel, and many others had the information too. So why didn't we?"
"We're looking into it," Fury repeated.
Phil shook his head when Natasha opened her mouth to respond. His tone was meant to ease the tension, "We understand that. But you'll understand why we're frustrated. This entire operation needs to be rethought now. It would be nice to be sure we won't discover something else similarly important."
"I intend to make sure that doesn't happen," Fury said. "Hill is going to investigate and take over providing the intelligence for this mission. We'll keep you updated."
"Thank you sir," Phil said. The call ended.
"He thinks we always just throw the objective out the window," Clint grumbled after Fury hung up.
Phil gave him a look. "That's the part of the conversation you're fixated on?"
"Yeah, there's nothing we can do about the intel right now. So what's the look for?"
"Well, we kind of do," Natasha said. "Or at least we decide to throw the protocols out the window."
"That's different," Clint argued. "We've got the highest success rate in SHIELD anyway, they should cut us some slack."
Phil cleared his throat, "Back to the matter at hand, who's going to run surveillance right now?"
"I will," Clint volunteered. "I need to get out of this house before I start to go crazy."
"I want to get inside Drakov's apartment," Natasha announced. "See if he has any information on his daughter. Or maybe she's there and we're wrong about all of this. Either way, his apartment is the place to start."
"Go. I'm going to see if I can find anything more from Interpol or any other sources. Clearly SHIELD isn't going to be giving us more intel at this point," Phil said.
Clint and Natasha grabbed their gear and headed out of the safe house.
Natasha hovered at the mouth of an alley next to Drakov's apartment. She could see the guard sitting outside and was waiting for Clint to confirm Drakov's position before she tried to enter. She didn't want to risk walking in while Drakov was still home, it would blow the entire operation.
"I've got eyes on Drakov," Clint said over the comms.
Natasha nodded, "Copy. I'm headed in. Let me know if he leaves."
"Ten-four, good luck."
Natasha squared her shoulders and stepped out of the alley. She walked directly to the door of the apartment building and pulled it open. The guard looked her up and down. She ignored him, walking inside of the building without a backward glance. The first thing she'd learned about infiltrating somewhere was to act like she had every right to be there. People didn't doubt confidence.
Once inside, she dropped the arrogant expression and took in her surroundings. She stood in a relatively nice lobby area. The dim lights likely helped hide any dirt and the air was a bit stale, but otherwise, it was decent. Natasha walked up to the only other person inside. An older woman was checking her mail.
"Здравствуйте," Natasha said. (Hello.)
"Здравствуйте," the woman replied with a surprised look. (Hello.)
"Где я могу найти строительную супер? Я должен встретиться с ним в его квартире," Natasha asked. (Where can I find the building super? I'm supposed to meet him at his apartment.)
"Поднимитесь по лестнице на третий этаж, повернуть направо, это шестая слева. Количество 319," the woman said. (Go up the stairs to the third floor, turn right, it's the sixth one on the left. Number 319.)
"Спасибо," Natasha said before moving to the stairs. (Thank you.)
Natasha found the super's apartment easily enough. She knocked on the door, hoping the man wasn't home. It would be annoying if she actually had to con the guy into giving her Drakov's apartment number. There was no answer after the first knock. She tried again, louder this time. Listening hard, she heard nothing behind the door.
Looking to make sure the hall remained empty, Natasha pulled out a set of lock picks and went to work on the door. It didn't take long to pick the lock and get into the apartment. She shut the door behind her, pulling out one of her Glocks. A quick search through all of the rooms showed the owner was out.
Natasha had to give the guy credit, he kept his apartment tidy. It was quite the opposite of what she had expected. He might even be doing work around the building for all she knew. His office was neat and organized. Natasha crouched down behind the desk and began opening the drawers. A guy as orderly as this had to have a list of all the tenants and their apartment numbers somewhere. She didn't want to take the time to hack into the computer with his location completely unknown.
In the second drawer from the bottom, she found what she was looking for. A folder labeled "Tenant Listing." She pulled it out and skimmed the list of names.
"Anton Drakov, apartment 207" was listed a third of the way down the page.
Natasha shoved the folder back in the drawer and hurried out of the apartment.
"Number 207," she texted Clint and Phil so they'd have the number for future reference.
Breaking into Drakov's apartment took less time than the super's.
To say the interior was sparse would be an understatement. Other than some clothes and chemistry books, there weren't any personal items in view. Nothing to indicate the presence of another person in the apartment. Clearly, Drakov hadn't been living there for long. She did a sweep for signs of electronic surveillance and found none.
Then she went to work searching the place. In the kitchen, she opened every drawer and cabinet finding nothing but a few dishes. The fridge had two piles of leftovers and a bottle of wine. She moved to the living room, lifting up each couch cushion and peering under the couch. Nothing. In the bathroom, she found that the medicine cabinet was stocked with basic toiletries and several bottles of medication, mostly for pain or heart burn. The bedroom then became the focus of her search. She dug through the closet and dresser.
Drakov's clothing revealed only that he had a penchant for buying grey shirts. Natasha turned to the bed, noticing the covers half-heartedly thrown over it. If she had to guess, Drakov wasn't sleeping well. Under the pillow she found what she was looking for.
A picture of Drakov, his wife, and his infant daughter rested on top of the small pile. The edges were worn. Beneath it were two more pictures, both of Anna. In the first, she was posing in front of an old building. The second one was of her asleep on a couch. Natasha pulled out her phone and took pictures of the pictures to bring back to Phil and Clint.
She placed the pictures back almost reverently, understanding their importance to Drakov. After straightening the pillows, she turned and left the room. One last check of the apartment convinced her that there was nothing else there.
Natasha walked out, pulling the door closed behind her and making sure it locked. She hurried out of the building, ignoring the guard again and continuing down the street. Once around the corner she pulled out her phone and texted the images to Phil. He'd be able to get them onto the computer and into Drakov's file from there.
"Hawkeye," she said over the radio.
"Don't worry, Drakov's still here."
"I'm out. Found some pictures but that's all there was," she replied. "I'm on my way to meet you. What do you say we do a little breaking and entering at the lab?"
Clint's grin was easy to imagine, as was Phil's eye roll.
"Sounds good to me," Clint said.
Phil's sigh was audible. "Don't get caught."
"We're professionals, Phil," Clint told him.
"I'll be there in twenty," Natasha said before ending the conversation. She picked up her pace, wanting to get there as soon as possible.
Clint waited until the car turned the corner before following. He had to be sure they didn't suspect a tail. Fortunately, the streets were busy. Clint had little trouble staying a few cars behind. He followed the car across the city, driving past when it pulled up to the gate of a mansion.
He parked the stolen scooter a few blocks away and returned to the house. The driver closed the garage door on the car and followed the man in the suit up to the front door.
"They stopped at a mansion across the city," Clint radioed. "I'm texting you the address."
"I'll run it down," Phil replied.
Clint began to study the building in front of him. A high fence ran around the property. He could see through the black, metal posts onto the well-groomed lawn. A pair of guards stood on either side of the gate. Another pair was walking away, around the side of the house. A third pair appeared from the opposite side.
"The house belongs to Abram Germanovich Sedov," Phil said. "He's on the city council and is known for throwing his money to whatever cause and whichever politician will benefit him most. I'm sending you a picture."
Clint pulled out his phone and opened the message. He dialed Phil to continue the conversation.
"Something wrong with the comms?" Phil asked when he answered.
"Looks weird if I'm just talking to myself on the street," Clint explained. "The picture is definitely the guy in the suit."
"I'll add him to our list of known members. He might be the source of the money."
Clint froze as he watched the front door open. A little girl stepped outside, followed by a guard and a strict-looking woman.
"She's here," Clint said.
"Who?"
"Anna. She just walked outside. She's under guard, otherwise I'd try to grab her."
"Stay on the house," Phil ordered. "Follow if Anna leaves. See if there are any holes in the security. I'll have Natasha come meet you."
"Have her bring the rest of my gear. We need to act tonight if we're going to get Anna back."
"Okay. Let me know if anything changes."
Clint hung up and turned his attention back to the house. Anna was being led around the yard by her escort. She didn't look particularly happy.
Clint leaned back against the wall, preparing himself to wait for a while. They still had a couple of hours until dark.
Natasha arrived an hour before dark. She'd stocked up on weapons and ammunition for the both of them.
"Three teams of two circling the mansion, two more at the front gate and another at the back," Clint told Natasha when she stopped in front of him.
"Any blind spots?" Natasha asked.
Clint shook his head. "Not for more than a second or two when they're coming around the side of the building. They've got it almost perfectly timed."
"Damn."
"Yeah."
Natasha watched the mansion for a minute. "Do you know where Anna is once we're inside?"
"No, I haven't seen any sign of her since she took her walk around the house."
"Give me the scope."
Clint pulled it out and handed it to her.
Natasha raised the scope to her eye and peered through. She studied each window in the house for a few seconds before moving on to the next. She spent extra time examining the ones with lights in the them. An adult walked in front of one of them. She watched for another moment before moving on. Towards the right side of the house, a small shadow passed in front of one of the windows. Natasha focused on it, waiting to see if it would happen again. A minute later, the figure passed again. This time, a woman followed.
"I think I found her," Natasha said. She handed the scope to Clint. "Third window from the right, second floor."
Clint watched for a few minutes before nodding, "The silhouette looks like the woman I saw with her."
"So they've got the nanny staying with her. Makes sense."
The assassins were silent.
"How do we get in?" Natasha asked.
"We have to take out at least two teams of guards simultaneously and silently," Clint mused.
"Do we go for the front or the back?"
Clint thought for a moment. "Front. Less distance to the house. We really need to take out all of the guards though. They'll get suspicious if they don't see each other and leaving bodies will definitely tip them off."
"Okay," Natasha said. "You take out the pair that comes around the corner on patrol. While you do that, I can handle the two at the gate. We get in, and each take out another pair of guards. Whoever finishes first goes after the one on the back gate."
"We're assuming that they aren't in regular radio contact," Clint pointed out.
She looked at the house. "There's a little girl being held hostage in there. It's an assumption we'll have to make."
Clint nodded, "Let's do it."
"I'll let Phil know we're going to act. You get in position. We'll have to be quick."
Clint grabbed the bag full of his gear. He shrugged into his vest and pulled out his quiver, clipping it on. "You signal me when you're ready to move."
Natasha nodded, dialing Phil on her phone. She waited until Clint had picked a spot and stopped. He was half hidden by the shadows, she watched as he drew back is bow. She took a deep breath and turned on her earpiece. "I'm headed over to the gate."
"Ready when you are," Clint replied.
"Good luck," Phil said.
Natasha sauntered over to the gate, doing everything she could to draw the guards' attention. She knew that they would be suspicious since she was wearing her black catsuit and had guns visible. Hopefully, they'd be too stupid to recognize her as a threat though.
"Можем ли мы Вам помочь?" asked one of the men. (Can we help you?)
Natasha held her hands up slightly as a sign of peace. The guards both had hands on their weapons. "Ты уверен, что может. Я ищу кого-то." (You sure can. I'm looking for someone.)
"Кто?" the man asked, taking his hand off the gun. (Who?)
Natasha smirked, "Маленькая девочка, светлые волосы, голубые глаза, около шести лет." (A little girl, blonde hair, blue eyes, about six years old.)
The second guards' eyes widened in recognition.
The one who was talking to her kept his expression bland. "К сожалению, не видел ее." (Sorry, haven't seen her.)
"Вы уверены? Анна Её зовут. Анна Драков," Natasha said. (You sure? Her name's Anna. Anna Drakov.)
The guard shook his head, "Без понятия." (No idea.)
"Я не верю тебе," Natasha said. (I don't believe you.)
She wrapped her hand around the guard's throat, kicking out at the silent one behind him. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched as the two patrolling the yard collapsed, black shafts sticking out of their chests. Grabbing onto the guard's head with both hands she twisted sharply, dropping him as he went limp, neck oddly twisted.
The second guard was gasping for air from the kick, trying to draw his revolver. Natasha pulled out her knife and plunged it into his throat, ripping it out with a twist. A moment later, Clint was by her side, helping her open the gate.
"He really should have some type of electronic security system on this thing," Clint muttered.
Natasha shrugged, "Maybe the guy doesn't trust computers."
"I'll take the right," Clint offered as they sprinted across the lawn.
"See you on the other side."
Clint broke to the right and rounded the edge of the house. He drew an arrow and sent it flying into the back of the first guard he saw. The partner was half a step ahead. A second arrow downed him before he could react to his partner's demise. He took off for the rear gate, knowing that the last guard was the one who would probably alert the house to the attack.
Natasha froze and put her hands up when she came into view of the two guards. She could see Clint headed for the last one as the pair approached her, weapons drawn. They were wary of her presence.
"Встать на колени!" one of them yelled. (Get on your knees.)
Natasha moved to kneel as ordered. She watched them as they stepped closer. A few more feet and she'd be able to move.
The first guard moved ahead. Natasha twisted, kicking out at his knees, causing them to buckle. His partner shouted in surprise. Her knife stuck in the center of his torso a second later. He looked down in surprise, dropping his weapon.
Natasha drew her gun and shoved it into the stomach of the man on the ground. She squeezed the trigger, the man's body muffling the sound. Reaching out, she pulled her knife out of the other guy. He made a gurgling noise at her, blood oozing out between his lips. She drew the blade across his neck, stepping away to avoid the arterial spray.
Clint approached again surveying her handiwork. He had collected his arrows and replaced them in his quiver.
"You know," he said conversationally. "Before I met you, I did most of my killing from a distance. A lot less messy."
Natasha rolled her eyes. "I saw your apartment before me, this is less messy than that."
Clint snorted and followed her around to the front of the house. They picked the lock easily. A quick sweep around the entryway revealed no security system. "Sedov's an idiot. No electronic security and only nine guys to guard the house?"
Natasha nodded and crept over to the stairs. She gestured for Clint to go first. The pair moved through the building and down the hall to the room they'd marked as Anna's.
"Go first," Clint whispered. "She probably won't react well to an armed man walking in and trying to take her."
"You may have a point."
Natasha opened the door and stepped inside. She slipped over to the bed and knelt down. The little girl was sleeping peacefully. The door closed with a quiet snick, indicating that Clint was inside.
"Anna," Natasha said softly, reaching out to nudge the girl. "Anna."
The girl shifted in her sleep, eyes cracking open slightly.
"Анна, вам нужно проснуться." (Anna, you need to wake up now.)
Anna's eyes opened. She curled back in fear at the sight of the unknown woman kneeling next to her.
"Не бойтесь. Меня зовут Наташа," Natasha said, holding out a hand to help the girl sit up. (Don't be afraid. My name is Natasha.)
Clint shifted position next to the door, drawing Anna's frightened gaze.
"Это мой партнер, Клинт. Мы здесь, чтобы спасти вас." (That's my partner Clint. We're here to rescue you.)
"Они имеют папу," the girl whispered. (They have my daddy.)
"Мы знаем. Мы собираемся пойти помочь ему в следующем," Clint said. (We know. We're going to go help him next.)
Anna cocked her head to the side. She looked at Natasha, "Он говорит смешно." (He talks funny.)
Natasha smiled, "Он американец. Будете ли вы с нами? Мы должны спешить." (He's American. Will you come with us? We have to hurry.)
Anna hesitated, biting her lip. "Вы обещаю вам поможет папу?" (You promise you'll help my daddy?)
Both assassins nodded.
"Хорошо," Anna said. She climbed out of bed and began to get dressed. (Okay.)
Clint turned to Natasha. "We can't take her out the gates."
"Why not?"
Clint raised an eyebrow and Natasha frowned before nodding. "Right, the bodies."
She looked at Anna for a moment. "We'll carry her. Tell her to keep her eyes closed until we're clear of the mansion."
Clint nodded.
"Анна, я собираюсь нести тебя отсюда. Я хочу, чтобы ты закрытыми глазами, пока мы не сказать, что вы можете посмотреть," he said. (Anna, I'm going to carry you out of here. I want you to keep your yes closed until we tell you you can look.)
Anna hesitated before nodding. "Ты убил охранников, не так ли?" (You killed the guards, didn't you?)
Clint looked to Natasha.
Natasha knelt in front of the little girl. "Да. Вам не нужно, чтобы увидеть их." (Yes. You don't need to see them.)
"Хорошо," Anna said. "Я не буду смотреть." (Okay, I won't look.)
"Есть что-нибудь вы хотите принять отсюда?" Natasha asked. (Is there anything you want to take from here?)
Anna nodded and pulled a stuffed bear off the bed. She walked up over to Clint who scooped her up. Anna buried her face into his neck and the teddy bear. Clint nodded to his partner and they exited the room.
Natasha led the way through the house, Glocks out and ready to fire in case they ran into any trouble. They slipped past the gate and down the street. They stopped a few blocks from the house and Clint set Anna down telling her she could open her eyes now.
"Мы должны позвонить в наш босс в настоящее время," Natasha told the girl. (We have to call our boss now.)
Anna nodded.
"Phil," Clint said over the comms. "We've got Anna."
Silence met his words.
"Coulson," Natasha tried, wondering if there was something wrong with the link.
Still no answer.
"Coulson, can you hear us?"
Nothing.
"Phil, we got the girl. Want us to bring her back to the safe house."
Natasha shook her head at Clint. "Try your phone?"
Clint pulled out his phone and froze. He handed it over to Natasha, the text message from Phil displayed on the screen.
"Safe house compromised. Will contact you."
"What does that mean?" Clint snarled. "Is he okay? Compromised by what? Did they find us before we got them? Or is it something else?"
Natasha stepped forward and grabbed Clint's arm. "Hey, I don't know any more than you do. Right now we need to get Anna somewhere safe. We'll contact SHIELD once we've done that."
Clint took a deep breath and nodded, "Any suggestions for where to go?"
"Let's find a hotel away from here," Natasha said. "We can sleep some after we find out what's going on and be ready to act tomorrow."
Phil sat down in front of his equipment to monitor Clint and Natasha's movement at the mansion. He didn't have any way to watch them, but he would be able to hear their chatter. His phone was next to him, ready to call the police or SHIELD depending on what the situation necessitated. With any luck, he wouldn't have to do anything.
While they began their assault, Phil continued to work on finding more information about Drakov and Sedov. He wanted to be prepared for whatever Sedov would throw at them when he realized that his leverage over Drakov was gone. Clint and Natasha's banter was comforting after they'd breached the security. He listened as they spoke to Anna and felt himself relaxing as he realized that all they had to do was get out now.
A knock on the door had him standing up and grabbing his gun. No one should be approaching the safe house. Phil pulled up the video feed for the camera above the door. What looked like a SWAT team was standing outside the door. He watched the leader raise his hand and knock again. Phil texted Clint while he gathered the most sensitive information and dropped it in the incinerator shoot SHIELD had installed. It took a few seconds to type in the passcode that would shut down all of the computer software and make the files inaccessible to anyone but SHIELD. Assuming these guys were legitimate, it would mean hours of annoying questions and phone calls until he was released, but he would be released.
Phil refused to think about what would happen if they weren't legitimate government agents.
The door shuddered in its frame as they took a battering ram to it. Phil knew it wouldn't hold after the next hit. He pulled out his SHIELD badge and holstered his gun.
"Полиция!" the leader shouted as they barged into the house. (Police!)
Phil held up his hands, badge visible.
"Вы прерывания официальный операцию SHIELD," he told them. (You are interrupting an official SHIELD operation.)
The Russians didn't seem to care.
"Вы находитесь под арестом за незаконное разведывательной деятельности," the leader said. (You are under arrest for illegal intelligence activity.)
A second agent barked orders to the team: "Поиск дом." (Search the house.)
Phil submitted to the rough search he was given. His hands were cuffed behind his back and he was lead out of the house with the lead agent.
His mind raced as they climbed into the car. Clint and Natasha would be fine; they were almost out of the house when he'd gotten picked up. But it would be a long time until he was able to contact them and reassure them. Until then, Clint and Natasha were on their own. Phil hoped they wouldn't do anything stupid.
Clint led the way through the city to the hotel they planned to stay at. He left his gear with Natasha and took Anna in with him, she'd been silent most of the way across the city. Before they walked into the hotel, Natasha bent down and whispered to Anna: "You have to pretend like Clint is your dad while you're in there. They might not give us a room if they don't believe it."
Anna nodded solemnly and took Clint's hand, walking into the hotel without hesitation.
Once Clint secured a room—he'd insisted on one next to the fire escape—he texted Natasha the number and opened the window for her. She climbed up the fire escape with the gear and slipped into the room.
Anna looked at the two assassins from her spot on the bed.
"Мы должны назвать нашу организацию в настоящее время и выяснить, что происходит с нашей обработчика," Natasha explained. (We have to call our organization now and find out what's going on with our handler.)
"Вы не собираетесь, чтобы помочь моему отцу?," Anna asked. (Aren't you going to help my dad?)
Natasha nodded, "Мы, но мы не можем ничего сделать, пока завтра в ближайшее время. Вы, вероятно, следует вернуться, чтобы спать." (We are, but we can't do anything until tomorrow at the earliest. You should probably go back to sleep.)
Anna shook her head. "Я не устал." (I'm not tired.)
Clint looked at the girl for a moment before speaking, "Хотите, чтобы посмотреть телевизор, а мы говорим нашей организации?" (Would you like to watch some TV while we talk to our organization?)
"Есть ли у них какие-либо фильмы?" she said. (Do they have any movies?)
Clint flipped on the TV and began searching through the channels for movies. He and Anna settled on watching Peter Pan.
Natasha held up the phone as explanation and moved into the bathroom to call Fury.
"It's almost midnight there," Fury answered. "What happened?"
"We got the girl," Natasha started. "But when we tried to contact Phil after the operation, he didn't answer. Clint had a text from him saying the safe house was compromised and he'd contact us later."
"Fuck," Fury swore. "You guys get somewhere safe?"
"We're at a hotel."
"Hill's here, give me a second."
Natasha could only hear muffled discussion on the other side of the phone.
Fury spoke again, "Hill just got a call from our Moscow base. Phil called them. He got picked up by the police for illegal intelligence activity. It's going to be a while before they get everything sorted out and get him out of custody."
"We're kind of working on a time limit now that we have the girl," Natasha said.
Fury sighed, "I trust you and Barton to continue the operation as you see fit. Phil will be in contact as soon as he's out. For now, keep Hill or I in the loop."
"Yes sir," Natasha said, hanging up. She took a deep breath and walked out of the bathroom.
Clint was lounging on the bed next to Anna, engrossed in Peter Pan. He looked up when Natasha walked out.
"Police arrested Phil, he's fine but won't be released for a while. Fury wants us to contact him or Hill before we do anything."
Clint nodded, "So I guess we're staying here for the night."
"I'm going to get cleaned up," Natasha said. She pulled out the shorts and t-shirt she kept in her bag and walked into the bathroom. "You seem to have things handled out here."
Clint narrowed his eyes at her as she left.
"Вы поженились?" Anna asked when the bathroom door closed. (Are you two married?)
Clint looked over at the girl in surprise. "Нет, а почему вы спрашиваете?" (No, why do you ask?)
Anna shrugged, "Вы только, кажется, как и вы." (You just seem like it.)
AN: Thanks for reading! Please leave a review.
Preview of Next Chapter: "Dr. Drakov," Clint said, clearing his throat.
The doctor turned to look at him.
"My name is Clint Barton, I work for SHIELD. We're here to help you and your daughter."
Drakov shook his head. "We don't need help."