Chapter 71: Rebecca

July 13, 1977

Brooklyn was hot.

Summer knew nothing about the place - she couldn't remember the last time she'd been stateside - but she knew that it was hot, and muggy, and the smells of the streets and the sewers threatened to choke her. She didn't know how the women walked around with their hair in waves and curls around their faces. Even the men had their hair long and blowing in the wind created by the taxis and bicyclists racing by.

Winter looked completely at ease. Asshole.

She hated that they were out in the evening, the last rays of the sun still making their dark clothes and weapons very obvious. Hydra had them orchestrate the whole blackout for this moment, for this one assassination. With the streetlights gone, the city was supposed to have a curfew, leaving them to move between shadows and leave with another life under their belts.

But it was the middle of July, and the days were long, and Summer was sweating through her tactical gear. It was supposed to be dark. This was stupid.

The mark sat on the steps in front of a brownstone, his friends around him as they chain smoked cigarettes and drank from bottles wrapped in paper bags. He was just a kid, Summer thought, but really everyone was a kid compared to them. She wasn't entirely sure on her age, but she knew she'd been on earth for a very, very long time. This kid was surrounded by four other kids of similar age - sixteen, maybe older - and was very obviously the leader of the ragtag group. He spoke like he was charming, and he knew it. He acted as if his mere presence was a gift to the boys around him.

Summer was unimpressed.

"We should just snipe him and leave." Summer said. She shifted her tactical gear, unsure why they needed full protection just to take out some punk kid. "This is ridiculous."

"They said wait until dark. That's the whole point of the blackout." Winter said. He sat back against the brick wall, his rifle resting across his lap. Something was different about him, about the way he carried himself. It had been that way the whole mission.

"You know this place." Summer said, narrowing her eyes at him. He glanced back, working his jaw for a moment before answering.

"I think I do." he said. He ran a cursory check over the adjacent fire escapes and the streets below. If he wanted, he could take the shot from right here and be gone in a flash. But orders were orders. "Things seem…familiar. But I can't remember anything specific."

"Hmm." Summer said, some sort of sensation turning over in her chest. Jealousy. "Have we been here before?"

"Not in a long time." he said, which was an odd answer. She didn't think she'd ever been to Brooklyn before. His eyes changed, his gaze softer, almost hazy like the smog above the city. Summer sighed and relaxed back against the wall.

"Don't understand why they sent both of us out here. And so early." she said. She liked warmth, that was for sure, but something about the solutes in the air made her skin crawl. "Seems like a one-asset job."

"Perhaps you're my chaperone." he said dryly.

"You definitely need supervision." she deadpanned. The corner of his mouth twitched.

All but one of the boys burst into laughter, the sound traveling all the way up to their perch on the fire escape. The last one blushed furiously, either in embarrassment or anger or a combination of the two. His hands balled into fists and Summer shifted forward, eager to see if they would start fighting. That would, at least, make the evening interesting, but ultimately the boy slouched in resignation, dropping his hands. The mark made another jibe of some sort, his laugh the loudest and most obnoxious.

"Do you know what's different about this one?" she asked. Winter shot her a look out of the corner of his eye.

"No questions." he said, reminding her that they weren't allowed to ask them. He never questioned orders. He always took them at face value, and strategized to accomplish them in an efficient manner. He was a good asset, but he did not always see the bigger picture. That was her job, to fill in what he didn't see.

Perhaps that's why she was here to help assassinate a teenager.

Nowadays their missions usually did not come from a commanding officer, but from a face in a screen. The face was familiar, but they went into the Machine soon after seeing it. By the time they came out, she only knew that the face gave orders.

The sun dipped lower, finally going below the horizon, though its last rays would paint the sky red for a while yet. More people hurried along the sidewalk now, eager to get home before darkness settled and the curfew came through. The boys on the steps didn't move, but they did yell and jeer at the pedestrians. The mark made a variety of vague threats, both to the men and the women that walked by. The pedestrians did not respond beyond annoyed glares.

Winter perked up as a woman stopped for a second between the buildings, adjusting the bags in her arms to carry them easier. Without another word, he stood and swung over the railing of the fire escape, jumping down one floor at a time.

"Winter!" Summer hissed. She picked up his rifle and slung it over her shoulder before following him, grateful for the enhancements that allowed her to catch up to him as he darted through the back alleys. Fences meant nothing to him, and he scurried over them barely touching the chainlink. "Winter, where are you going?" She hadn't seen the mark move. In fact, she was pretty sure the mark was still back in his original position.

Winter didn't listen. He kept moving, checking the mouths of the alleyways as he passed them. He was following the woman with the bags. Why was he following the woman with the bags?

"Winter-"

"Sh."

Summer's head snapped back as if struck. Did he just shush her? Anger flared in her chest and she felt the heat in her cheeks and the back of her neck. He was going off mission, following someone who wasn't the mark, and when she questioned it, he had the audacity to shush her? He was lucky she didn't kick him into the wall right there.

They followed the woman for three blocks. She kept her head down but her eyes alert, scanning the area around her for threats. Smart, Summer thought. With the light quickly fading, people would have higher likelihood to attempt to take her groceries from her. She would look like she was in her 40s, except the grey streaked throughout her hair and the crows feet at her eyes told a different story. Her hands also gave her away, the knuckles just starting to swell and the veins becoming more prominent. She did not move like an assassin, nor did her muscle mass indicate her being a super soldier.

Did Winter have a mission besides the kid?

Winter cut through an alley, using the elongated shadows to hide. Through the railings they watched as the woman found her home and walked up the front stairs, fumbling with her keys. The bags crinkled and shifted precariously, and with practiced movements she corrected the groceries before they fell. She finally got the door unlocked and called to the inhabitants as she entered, the door slamming and locking behind her.

"Winter." Summer said. "We're running out of time."

"It's…" he blinked, staring through the window. The woman was in the kitchen now, talking to a man. Their dining table had room for many, but only the two of them were in the house. "I know her."

"No you don't." Summer said. How could he know her and she didn't? She wasn't a lab coat, or a commanding officer. He couldn't know her.

"Yes, I know her." he said, more insistent this time. "R…Re…"

"Winter, the mission."

"It's right there. I can almost…"

"The mission. We have to go-"

"Rebecca."

"What?"

"Rebecca. Her name is Rebecca."

"How do you know her name?"

"I…" he trailed off, and she could practically see the gears turning in his head. "I don't know."

"We have to go." she said. When he didn't turn away from the window, she grabbed his arm and pulled him away. His blue eyes, normally blank or vaguely annoyed, now looked at her with confusion and pain. They didn't feel pain. At least, they weren't supposed to. "The mission. We have to finish the mission."

"The mission can wait."

"No, it can't." she reminded him. "The blackout won't last forever, we have to take him out now."

"I have to figure this out." he said, roughly pulling his arm from her. He looked through the window again; the woman and the man were now preparing a meal in the kitchen. Summer's chest ached now, a feeling deep in her bones that she didn't understand. Winter's face showed a shade of anguish she'd never seen on him. Not that she could remember.

"I'll do it then." she said. She tugged a pistol from the holster. It was supposed to be a shot from afar, a bullet they could never trace. Well, they couldn't trace this one either. "Just stay here. Figure out who that is."

He tore his gaze away again, and this time whatever expression he had made her heart skip a beat. She swallowed the odd feeling and turned on her heel before any other weird sensations decided to appear.

She grabbed a hooded sweatshirt and hat, both discarded by kids playing in the last few rays of the sun. The sweatshirt hid her tactical gear, and she twisted her blonde hair up to tuck it beneath the cap. The world was fading to grayscale, and soon the opportunity would be gone. The three blocks went by much faster this time, though she needn't have worried; the mark and his friends still sat on the steps, a new victim of their ridicule now sputtering curses at them. Ugh, teenagers.

Summer went through an alley, then around the next street so she was coming up behind them. The mark sat at the top of the stairs, on his throne of concrete and brick, reigning over his subjects like the king he wanted to be. It was easy, so easy, to sight him, aim, and pull the trigger.

There were a few screams from surrounding people and exclamations by those closest to the mark, but Summer didn't stay to watch any of it. She tucked the pistol into the back of her pants and tossed the cap away as she ran, letting her hair flow. She tried to match the looks of fear on the faces around her, hoping that she did it right. Hydra would never let anyone catch her, and she could never give in to any court interrogation, but she didn't need the added headache of breaking out of jail.

Winter was in the exact same spot as she left him, watching through the window as the light faded. Rebecca and the man now had candles on the table for light, their supper halfway eaten. She laughed at something he said, and he reached across the table to grab her hand. It was the perfect picture of domesticity. Something pulled at Summer, deep in her abdomen, something that made her throat ache and her hands clench. Was this what life was like, for those that weren't assets?

"Rebecca." Winter said. "My sister."

Summer's eyes snapped to his. "What?" she asked. "A sister?" Assets didn't have sisters. Assets weren't human. They were tools, weapons, they were…they were…

Winter had a sister.

Winter had a sister.

"Shit." Summer said. She blinked, trying to dig into her own mind. If Winter had a sister, what did that mean for her? Did she have one? Or a brother? Faces floated through the ether of her mind, but none of them stayed around long enough to stick. It didn't feel like she had a sibling.

"I think I know this place." Winter said. He broke his trance for a moment to look around him, his brows furrowed. "Something about this place…I know it."

"Your sister is here." Summer said, like this wasn't the fucking craziest thing she'd ever heard. "Are you from here?"

"Indiana." he said, the answer surprising him both. "I lived in Indiana, then we moved here."

"'We'?" Summer asked. The jealous monster in her chest reared again; why did he get to remember sisters and homes, and she couldn't? She dug into her memories again, but the more she tried, the more her head hurt as if she were back in the Machine.

"The family." he said, air leaving him as if he'd been punched. "I had a family."

"You did?" she asked, her voice small and shamefully weak. A family. She barely remembered the word, but she remembered wanting one. "Winter, what happened to us?"

"I don't know." he whispered. Something about him was different now. "I don't know."

Rebecca put their dishes in the sink, then blew out all the candles but one. This one she picked up, and led the man away. They could hear the creak and groan as they took the stairs to the second floor, content to wait out the blackout there. Winter swung up onto the porch, his hand poised to knock, but Summer jumped up and stopped him.

"What if it's a trap?" she said. He wasn't behaving rationally, wasn't looking at the big picture. He always had this problem. "They knew we would be here, what if they just set you up?"

"It's her. I know it is." he said, though he let his hand drop. He stared at the door as if willing it to open, to see his sister's face again. Summer replayed the moment in her mind, seeing all the points of similarity between the two of them. If this woman was not his sister, then Hydra or Nought or whoever had done a damn good job pretending. "I know it is."

"Let's wait it out until morning." she said. Sure, they were supposed to rendezvous back at the retrieval point ASAP, but without a finite deadline then they couldn't be punished. It would be easy to come up with a lie, and as long as the handlers didn't ask direct questions, it would be easy to keep it. "We can get more information then."

Winter didn't look like he wanted to agree, but he allowed Summer to tug him away. They didn't go far - just across the street - and found places on the fire escape again. This time, the stoop they watched was empty. The city was dark, and the stars and sliver of a moon didn't help the lack of electricity. Far away, they could still hear the sounds of a city in turmoil as the blackout rolled through the streets, cutting off the subway and the streetlights.

"Do you think we were always this way?" Summer asked. She sat with her legs crossed underneath her; it wasn't a tactical position, but it was comfortable, and they were going to be there for a long time.

"I don't think so." Winter said. His eyes never left Rebecca's door. "I still don't remember anything besides her. And a little bit of the city." He paused, looking at Summer. "Do you think my brain is finally giving out?"

"No, I don't think so." she said. The fact that they were still living, still speaking, meant their brains were very strong. "I'm jealous, actually."

"Jealous?" he said, as if he'd just remembered the word.

"I want to remember." she said. She made another brave attempt, but got nothing but a lance of pain through her head. "But when I try, there's nothing."

"I didn't remember before." he reminded her. "Not even when I saw her. I just knew something was different about her. And I had to figure it out."

"What are you going to do come morning?" she asked. The question hung in the silence between them, and she noticed the quiet whirs and clicks of his hand as he flexed the fingers nervously.

"I don't know."

"We're probably going to get punished."

"I know."

"So you better make it worth it." she said. Maybe she didn't remember anything, but she knew he was important, that he meant everything. She would die for him. Perhaps she already had. He let out a sigh.

"Maybe I only remember cause we're here." he said. "Maybe I only remember cause of her."

"That's a dangerous train of thought."

"I know." he said. He was quiet, holding back thoughts he didn't want to share. Winter was never a big picture thinker, but he knew about having goals, and he made damn sure they achieved them.

"What else do you remember?" she asked. She turned so she was facing him, settling back into her position. He kept his eyes on the front door.

"Fighting." he said. "But I had two hands. And family. Not faces, just a feeling."

"Just a feeling." she echoed. She stopped trying to think of details, and just focused on the word, family. If he had a family, she had to have one, right? The idea conjured up feelings of inadequacy, and anger, and something she couldn't name. She had a family, and she'd tried to forget them, even before the Machine. "Do you…did we have different names? Like Rebecca?"

"I assume so." he said, shaking his head. "But I can't remember mine."

"Can you remember mine?" she asked. She was desperate for something, any detail from this life they allegedly had. He looked at her then, his eyes glinting in the near darkness. Something stirred in her, more than loyalty, more than unity. Something tied her to Winter. Without realizing it, she moved closer, until they were just a breath apart. His eyes never left hers, and he leaned in. Their foreheads touched and she closed her eyes in anticipation of…something, she wasn't sure.

When he first pressed his lips to hers, her reaction was to startle and pull away. What was that? What did it mean? Why did she want him to do it again?

She was tired of asking questions.

She kissed him again - because this was kissing, that's what it was, she remembered now - and their lips moved in ways that her mind didn't quite remember, but her body did. Maybe if they went a little longer, went a little deeper, then her memories would come back.

Pain hit her again, and she pulled back with a wince. It wasn't going to work.

"Doc." Winter said. Summer cocked her head to the side.

"What?" she asked. He let out a frustrated breath.

"Dammit, there's no way your name is Doc." he said. "I'm sorry, that's all that came to mind."

Dejection settled in her abdomen, but she kept her face neutral. "It's okay. Maybe another day." she said. They both knew this was their only opportunity, but they let the fact drift away in the humid breeze.

They should go back to the handlers. Their job was done, and they were ready to go back in the ice. Instead, they waited there all night, just to catch another glimpse of Rebecca.

When morning came, Rebecca went through the same routine in the kitchen, preparing a meal for the man - her husband, probably, Summer remembered husbands now - and sharing it with him. She went upstairs and changed, returning downstairs in slacks and a blazer and carrying a purse, her hair done in the flawless way of the fashion. When she walked out the door and started down the street, Winter and Summer left their spot, dropping down the fire escapes and following her at a safe distance, one street over. Winter still hadn't said if he was going to talk to her or not, but Summer went with him anyway.

I'll meet his sister, she thought. For some reason, she felt like a rock had settled in her stomach.

Rebecca knew the way to her work so well that her steps didn't hesitate, and she didn't spare any of her attention to her surroundings. It would be so easy to grab her, and to take her somewhere they could talk. Winter could get answers. Winter could have his family. Would he take her with him?

That was a stupid question. Of course he would. Even with her broken brain, she knew that.

Rebecca went up the steps to a building. This was it, this was their last chance. Summer looked to Winter, waiting for the signal to move in, or to drop back, or to do anything. But he just stood there, watching as she went inside.

"There you two are." a voice growled. With all the hubbub of morning traffic and the distraction of Rebecca, they hadn't heard the agent come up to them. "You're outta line."

"We-" Summer tried to cut in, tried to explain with a half-truth so that Winter could escape punishment.

The agent didn't care to hear it, instead just muttering twenty-two words in quick succession, the descent so fast the door hadn't even closed behind Rebecca before Summer and Winter were gone.

Oof, coming it right at the wire! Thank y'all so much for the love last chapter, I know that Infinity War is terrifying but I've got some cool stuff planned!...at least, I think it's cool.

I won't be able to update next weekend, and I may even have to skip the weekend after that because I'll be out of town. TBH I'm out the next three weekends, but we're gonna do our best!

That said, I usually post Sunday nights (my time), but if I finish really late (like tonight), would it be terrible if sometimes I posted Mondays? Or would y'all rather I just wait until the next Sunday? Let me know!

-XM