Chapter 12

For two weeks, Danielle and James lived in the small apartment in Deva without worrying about being found. They acted like newlyweds, rarely leaving the apartment unless they had to.

Danielle held onto James's arm while they walked through the town square. "Why did we have to leave the apartment?" Danielle questioned.

James kept his eyes on the people as he answered her. "Because we needed to gather supplies and get some fresh air."

"Fresh air is overrated." Danielle leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Maybe, but it's good for you." James kissed the top of her head.

He led her to a store and opened the door for her. They walked around gathering the food items and other supplies they needed. At the register Danielle paid the cashier and James grabbed the bags, leading the way out of the store. They were a few blocks from the building when James stopped.

Danielle turned to him. "What's wrong?"

"I heard something," he glanced behind them, "go to the apartment and wait for me."

"What? No. I'll go with you." Danielle stepped back the way they had come, but James held her shoulders to stop her.

"Go to the apartment. I'll be right behind you." James put the bags of food in her hands.

"No, James," she argued. "We stay together."

James placed his hand on her cheek and forced her to look at him. "Danielle, please go. I'll be right behind you."

Danielle nodded. "You promise?"

"I promise." James kissed her forehead and backed away from her.

Danielle turned quickly and continued the walk to their apartment. She climbed the stairs and locked herself in the apartment, her hand shaking as she bolted the door. Going to the bedroom she and James shared, Danielle took out her gun to study the street below the window.

On the street she saw locals going about their business, but James was nowhere to be seen. She collapsed on the bed with her head in her hands, thinking about what would happen if James didn't return.

She would be alone and empty handed when she returned to SHIELD—if she returned to SHIELD. She couldn't face Fury if she didn't have James, and she couldn't face Steve after lying to him for nearly three months.

A knock on the window broke her thoughts. Danielle got to her feet and aimed the gun at the figure on the fire escape. When her eyes focused, she recognized James. She placed her gun on the table and opened the window.

James stepped through the window then closed it behind him. As he turned, Danielle's palm connected with his cheek, slapping him across the face. James was stunned.

"Okay, I deserved that." He conceded.

"You're going to tell me what's going on, or I swear I'm calling SHIELD." Danielle stared him down.

James held up his hands to seem less threatening. "I heard someone mention HYDRA on the street today, so I followed them."

"And you couldn't mention that before you ran off?" Danielle argued.

"I was trying to protect you."

"By leaving me alone and making me worry?"

"If you would have gone with me, I would have been worried about you the whole time," James stared at the ground, "I needed to focus to keep my guard up. I needed to know you'd be safe if I…if I was…captured." His eyes avoided her gaze.

Danielle allowed his words to sink in and change her mind from anger to understanding. "What did you learn about HYDRA?" She asked, crossing her arms.

James looked out the window. "There's a smaller base about fifteen miles from here. It's one of the only intact cells left."

Danielle studied James, letting his body language fill in the information he wasn't saying. She knew what he wanted to do. "You want to take it out, don't you?"

Finally, James met her gaze. "Yes. I want to end HYDRA before they destroy more lives."

Her head screamed at her to ignore his sympathetic appeal, but her heart wanted her to hug him. Danielle sighed.

"I'm still mad at you for leaving me and thinking you knew what was best for me, but I agree with you."

James nodded his understanding, but couldn't help the smile on his face. "You won't stay mad at me long," he stepped toward her, "will you, Dani?"

"One kiss won't make me forgive you." Danielle turned her head away, but stood her ground.

James continued his advance, closing the distance between them. "The problem is," he said as he leaned in, "if I kissed you, I don't think I'd be able to stop."

His lips pressed against hers once, the action softening her defenses against him, and allowing him to grab her around the waist. One kiss turned into two, three, four, then Danielle leaned back.

"What are we going to do about HYDRA?" She asked.

James cupped her cheek. "I haven't made it to that plan yet. I'm more focused on my current project." James began to kiss her harder and Danielle melted into him.

"How exactly do you plan on taking out this base with just the two of us?" Danielle asked, cleaning her gun at the table.

James looked up from the notebook in front of him. "What do you think I've been writing down?"

Danielle smiled. "I thought that was your diary and you were writing little hearts by our names." She slid the magazine into the pistol and set it on the table.

James rolled his eyes. "I have yet to understand your sense of humor. Do you think all assassin's doodle in a book?"

"No," she moved to stand behind him and draped her arms around his neck, "only the dark and brooding ones." She kissed his cheek.

"You're crazy," he replied.

Danielle laughed at his remark. "So, what's your plan?"

"The men I…"

"Beat up?" Danielle supplied.

"Interrogated," James insisted. "They told me how many soldiers there are and they gave me a copy of the blue prints."

"I'm assuming they didn't give them willingly," said Danielle.

"Not exactly, but that's not important. I just need to get into the main communications room while you set some charges. We can stop them from coming after us, or from hurting anyone else." James pointed at the blue prints and his own drawings of where to place some explosives.

Danielle stood straight and stared at him for a moment. "You want us to go into a fully stocked HYDRA base and take it down? Just you and me?"

"That's all we need."

"James it's not worth it. If you get caught they will brainwash you again and I couldn't handle that." Danielle felt the tears brimming at her eyes.

James stood and pulled her to his chest. "I wouldn't let them take me and I would never let them hurt you."

Danielle nodded, but continued to cry into his chest. He held her tightly, rubbing her back as she cried.

James felt the tears coming to his eyes, reminding him of how close he had grown to her in the short time they had spent together. She was the first person to show him compassion in 70 years and he would never be able to repay her. "Listen to me. Everything will be all right." He pulled back to face her. "Dani, look at me," she met his gaze, "I love you. I would never let anything happen to you."

"I love you, too, James. I don't want to lose you." She placed her hands on his chest feeling his heartbeat.

"You won't." James kissed her forehead. "I promise." He kissed her lips firmly, hoping she would understand how much he cared for her.

She pulled away from the kiss, breathless.

James brushed his thumb across her cheek. "We need to get ready to leave. I think we can get this done and leave Romania by Friday."

"That's a shame. I've come to like it here." She smiled.

"I know. Me too, but we can do the same thing in another country and start all over again." James kissed her. "And this time you don't even have to chase me there."

"But if I did I would find you. You're terrible at hiding from me." Danielle teased.

James furrowed his brows before lifting her from the ground. "That's because you are the best tracker I have ever met besides me."

"Oh really? I bet you couldn't find me if I ever ran from you." She replied.

James scoffed. "I wouldn't even have to search two hours before I found you."

Danielle tilted her head. "Nice try, but I wouldn't make it that easy."

"I love a challenge." James smiled. Danielle began to protest but James kissed her lips to stop the snarky comment that was about to escape her mouth.

Late in the night when the city was asleep, James laid in bed staring at the ceiling. Danielle laid next to him sound asleep with her arm draped over his stomach. James rubbed his metal hand along her arm, keeping track of time with the motion of his hand. He had laid there for a few hours thinking about his plan and his hatred for HYDRA.

They had stolen his life from him. They caused him to fall from the train. They found him in the snow and made him a slave for their purposes. HYDRA needed to end before they ruined more lives.

Then there was Danielle.

The woman who was meant to recapture him for another group of questionable people, but instead captured his heart like no woman had done before. She was the reason he wanted a normal life and he wanted to be able to share it with her. She deserved to be happy, but he wasn't sure he could give her that.

He was a fugitive, a wanted man, and a criminal, there was no option where he could live a normal life never running from the authorities. James thought about his plan to take down the HYDRA base and realized there was only one way to give Danielle the life she deserved.