Chapter 90: Bad Plans

Bucky laid in bed for a long time before Mika finally woke up.

She was able to sleep soundly, but he didn't trust the hotel sheets, and the noises from the street and the nearby rooms kept him from anything more than a light doze. For the first few hours he replayed the day before: what he did, what he should've done, what he should've said, what he had to do now.

He was almost certain that Hydra had something to do with these super soldiers. After all, who else would make them, and who else would try and steal medicine and shut down global efforts? No matter how many times they thwarted the bastards, they kept coming back. Multiple heads never reared, but the thought alone pissed Bucky off enough that he almost got up and started tracking them right then. But if it was Hydra, then he needed to know where they were hiding. And if he wanted to know where they were hiding, then he had to be quick, and efficient. He had to find out before they realized what he was doing.

He'd been out of the game for too long. They'd changed locations by now, changed everything. Between the fall back when Steve woke him up and the Blip, Hydra would be completely transformed. So, he had to go to the expert.

The last few hours he formulated a plan. It was a terrible plan, probably the worst plan he'd ever had in his entire life, but it was the only one that might work.

God, it was gonna suck so bad.

Mika stirred next to him, and he forced his body to relax, as if he too was just waking from a restful and rejuvenating slumber. There was no way she'd know he missed most of his sleep that night. She opened her beautiful brown eyes and blinked, her vision focusing and her lips bending in a small smile.

"How long have you been awake?" she asked, rolling towards him and wrapping her body around his. His arms fell over her back and waist and he pressed a kiss to her head. Her hair didn't have the same scent from their usual shampoo, but it was nice to hold her close.

"A while." he said, a good, noncommittal answer.

"Still thinking about last night?" she asked against his chest. He sighed.

"Yea." No use lying about it. She hugged him tightly, as if she alone could hold all his pieces together. Really, she could, but he wouldn't put that burden on her. At least not first thing in the morning. He'd get her coffee, then the puzzle could begin.

"Do you still think Steve made a mistake with you?"

His breath left in a rush. "Damn, we're really starting the day with that?"

"Just wondering if you felt different after a sleep." she said with a shrug. "Not that you slept, but…"

How did she know that?

"No, I don't think he made a mistake." he said. It was the truth, the woman in his arms was proof enough of that. "This whole thing just…makes me wonder if I'm not as far along as I thought I was."

"I think you're doing pretty fucking great." she said, making him laugh. "And, as I've been telling you for years, you don't give yourself enough credit."

"Yea, well, don't speak too soon." he said. "You haven't heard my plan yet."

"Plan?" she asked, pushing herself up onto her elbow. "What plan?"

Well now he didn't want to say.

"There's one person who knows more about super soldiers than anyone else. More about Hydra than anyone else." he said. Mika furrowed her brows, growing extra still at his words.

"You really think they could be behind this?" she whispered.

"I can't think of anyone else." he said. She put a hand to his face, and he could feel her heart hammering against him.

"What if they try to take you back?" she said. Panic laced her voice, but as soon as the words were out, her face hardened. "I won't let them. I won't let them take you."

"They won't take me." he said, consoling himself as much as he was consoling her. "I'm a lost cause at this point. But clearly they're back in action, and we gotta find them before it's too late."

"I don't like the sound of this." she said. "Who's the person you mentioned? The one that knows more than anyone?"

"…Zemo."

Mika didn't move. Her eyes stayed on him, and he wondered if she was thinking that he finally did crack and go insane. After all, Dr. Raynor told him time and again that his trauma was enough to make even the soundest mind unravel, and oddly enough it was probably the serum that kept his faculties intact. But that was neither here nor there. What mattered was the look his wife was currently giving him.

"No."

"Mika, you can't just say no." he said. She sat up fully and crossed her arms over her chest. She was trying to look imposing, so he stayed laying down, giving her the full effect. His dog tags, warm from being pressed between their bodies, slid off with a loud clink. There was an indention on her sternum where they'd sat.

"I can just say no. This is a terrible idea." she said. "That man nearly got you killed, Bucky. He brought out the soldier again, he's the reason that you lost your arm and nearly died and I almost…" She stopped, looking at the ceiling and blinking furiously. He sat up at that point, and when she looked back at him, her eyes were clear. "I almost lost you, because of him. And you, Mr. Dramatic, I would've never gotten to tell you that I loved you too." She poked him in the chest.

"Ouch, okay, I deserve that." he said, rubbing the spot. When did her fingers get so sharp? They were nearly as sharp as her words. "I don't want to see him either. But we have to get ahead of these guys, and if anyone knows anything about the super soldier underground, it's him."

"Just give me a couple days with a full computer, I bet I can track it all down." she said with a shrug. "No need to go visit the sociopathic maniac that nearly got you killed."

"I didn't nearly get killed-" She interrupted by putting her fingers against his lips.

"Sh, sh, sh, I don't need to hear about your super healing and how strong you are, okay, we've been through this." she said, shaking her head. "I know you're very strong and can survive everything but it still scares me, so don't do it."

"Yes, ma'am." he said, his voice muffled against her hand. "Sorry."

"That's better." she said, replacing her fingers with her lips. God, he would never get tired of kissing her. "So we're not seeing him, right?"

"We have to see him." he said, earning a frustrated huff. "I know, I know, but I've been up all night thinking about it. There's no other way around it. Trust me, if there were any other options, I'd take them."

"I don't like it." she murmured, deflating. She started picking at a loose thread on the sheet, and he covered her hands with his to still them.

"Me neither. But once we get this taken care of, then we can go back to our lives and leave this all behind us." he said, putting his hand against her cheek. She rested against his palm, giving him the sweetest smile that made his heart ache. He was conveniently leaving out the worst part of the plan, but it was too early in the morning and he still had to convince Sam to the first part.

"Maybe we should move out to the country after all this." she said. "Get far away from everything and everyone."

He laughed and shook his head. "You would hate that."

"No I wouldn't!"

"You're a city girl, through and through."

"I'm not, I grew up in the country, thank you."

"Oh yea? How would you feel about driving thirty minutes to the grocery store?"

She opened and closed her mouth a few times, trying to come up with a response in English or Romanian before finally giving up. "Ugh, okay, fine, we'll stay in the city. But maybe a different city, where no one can find us."

He smiled and pulled her in for a kiss, seriously considering standing up Sam and whatever mission they had in favor of staying in this little hotel room with Mika. After all, they technically never had a honeymoon. Now, there was a thought.

"Let's take a trip." he said, pulling back. "After all this is done, let's go to the coast. You and me."

She raised her eyebrows. "You want to take a beach trip? Sounds like a…a…what are the words you used…tactical nightmare?"

"Watching you run around in a bikini for a few days will make up for it." he said with an impish grin.

"Oh?" she cocked her head to the side. "Come up with a different plan besides Zemo and we'll find a nudist beach in France. No bikini necessary."

In his defense, Bucky did think really, really hard if there was an alternative to the plan.

"God, fuck me, but I really think we have to do this." he said, dropping his head into his hands and closing his eyes. If he didn't look at her, then he wouldn't think about what was underneath her t-shirt and picture her out in the sun with nothing but a smile-

Focus. Focus.

"Fine, your loss." she said with a sigh.

"It really and truly is." he deadpanned with his head still bowed. "Fuck."

"Unfortunate." she said. "Well, should we call Sam?"

"Do we have to?" He was mad at Sam now. It wasn't his fault, but Bucky didn't want to be mad at himself for once, so he chose to be mad at Sam.

"No, that's literally my point." she said. She pulled his face back up to look her in the eyes. "You realize I just worry about you, right?"

"I know. I appreciate it." he said. "And trust me, if there was any other way…"

This time, her smile was sad. "I know. Now go on, call Sam. I'll find out where they're holding him."

An hour later, against all judgement from every party involved, they were on a plane back to Berlin. Bucky tried to get Mika to stay where it was safe, but ever since the whole battle for the end of the world against aliens he was unable to convince her to sit at home while he dealt with this nonsense. And, of course, she pointed out that the first mission he went on without her led to his arrest. He had no further arguments after that.

The jail in Berlin was a lot nicer than the one in Baltimore. All it took was a flash of a badge from Sam and a little sweet talking, and an armed officer led them down the wide, clean hallways to the maximum security wing. Bucky could tell that the man knew exactly who he was, and that he was very uncomfortable to be walking in front of the Winter Soldier. Mika's eyes kept flicking between Bucky and the officer, probably noticing his discomfort, but she said nothing. She just took his hand and held it as they walked. This was one of the reasons he liked staying in their little bubble; she didn't have to see the looks people gave him, see how they reacted to a trained killer in their midst. She saw him, but the rest of the world saw the Soldier, and he was selfishly afraid that one day she would see him more as the Soldier too.

But if this guy only saw the Soldier, that was fine. If the Soldier meant he could get this job done faster and be done, then so be it.

"He's just through that corridor." the officer said, gesturing down a hall. Bucky nodded.

"Give us a sec." He knew he was supposed to be polite, but the guy didn't expect politeness. If anything, he was happy to remove himself from their presence, if only for a moment. Mika's big brown eyes narrowed as she watched him go.

"I don't like him." she said in Romanian.

"It's okay, he doesn't matter." Bucky replied in kind.

"Uh uh." Sam said, gesturing between the two of them. "This wasn't funny the last time, and it isn't funny now."

"Right, sorry." Mika said in English. She didn't look sorry, but Sam didn't comment on that.

"I'm gonna go in alone." Bucky said. He tried to sound a little authoritative, but that was never really his strong suit.

"Why?" Sam asked, at the same time Mika said, "No."

"You're an Avenger. You know how he feels about that." Bucky told Sam. A weak argument, but an affective one. Hopefully. He turned to Mika. "And I don't trust you not to strangle him through the bars."

"It's not like you two were known for frolickin' through the sun together." Sam pointed out.

"Besides, he would have to get close enough for me to strangle him." Mika said, making a motion like she was choking the life out of someone. Bucky pushed her hands down and rolled his eyes.

"He was obsessed with Hydra." Bucky said. He remembered Zemo's absolute glee at pulling out the notebook, how he held it so gently, reverently. The man knew things about Hydra that were lost to a generation of them, and had spent his years tracking down every detail. He knew the Winter Soldier as well as himself. The thought alone made his heart skip a beat in fear. "We have a history together. Trust me, I got it."

He didn't give Sam time to reply, instead turning and stalking towards the officer. He was starting to move like the Soldier again, but he couldn't look too far into it. It was mission time, and he had to act like it, even if he was nervous. Mika quickly caught up with him.

"What are you doing?" Bucky asked, his voice gruffer and meaner than he meant. He cleared his throat and tried again. "I thought you were gonna stay with Sam."

"Oh, that whole thing was for both of us?" she asked, her eyebrows raised. "I told you, you're not doing things alone. Not anymore, not ever again."

His heart would've glowed with affection if it wasn't lodged underneath his throat. The Soldier never felt nerves, or pain, or fear. No, Bucky remembered feeling all that stuff later, when he was allowed back into his own mind. Mika looked resolute, her arms crossed over her chest. He sighed.

"Okay, but listen, this is delicate, so if things get hairy and I tell you to go-"

"I'll go, I promise." she said.

"I'm holding you to that." he said. Technically, he wasn't lying to her. Technically, he just wasn't telling her the entire plan, or that he would, eventually, have to send her out. God, he was going to be in so much trouble later.

The officer buzzed them into the corridor and led them to another door, calling someone on the other side when they arrived. After a quick glance over his shoulder he spoke in German to the other person, and Bucky pretended that he couldn't understand it. No need to make the man more scared than he already was.

Another buzz, another door, and he led them to a solitary cell. Glass stood between them and Zemo, giving him the illusion of an animal in a zoo. The cell had few personal items and barely any light, or perhaps Zemo kept only the blade of sunshine for dramatic effect. Even in a jumpsuit and trapped in a cell, the man carried himself like he had years of secrets propping him up. The door closed behind them, and Bucky and Mika stepped up to the glass.

"Longing," Zemo said in Russian. "Rusted. Seventeen."

Bucky let out a sigh. "Those days are over." he said. The words still made his stomach quiver in fear, but he didn't show it.

"I know." Zemo said. He sounded almost sad about it. "I just wanted to see how the new you reacted to the old words."

"They're just words now." Mika said, and Bucky put a hand on her leg. They couldn't give Zemo an inch, or else he'd take a mile. He turned his grin on her, and Bucky felt his hackles raise.

"I know you, Mrs. Barnes." he said. "You made quite a stir with your trial. It was you, calling that day, was it not?"

"You're not talking to her, you're talking to me." Bucky said. Zemo clucked his tongue like a disappointed mother.

"Ah, but she spoke to me first. It's only polite to reply, James. But nevertheless," he said, coming right up to the glass. Inches separated them now, and he stared into Bucky's eyes, tilting his head left and right as if to get a better view. "There's still something in there." He looked to his cell, the small space even smaller now. "At least you were not conscious for most of your imprisonment."

"That time wasn't exactly a picnic." Bucky said through gritted teeth. Zemo had deep knowledge of the intimate details of Bucky's imprisonment. If he was awake, he was tortured and beaten until submission was the only answer. A cell was a luxury; he got a cryo chamber.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry." Zemo said, turning away. He spared a glance at Mika. "To both of you. It was never personal, you were simply a means to a necessary end."

"Bull shit." Mika seethed, smacking the glass. "You act like he's a thing, like you didn't nearly ruin his entire life."

"I ruined nothing, Mrs. Barnes. Look, you're still alive, and together, and happy." he said. The grin that split his face made Bucky simmer with anger, but after little sleep and a lot of stress, Mika was on her last thread.

"Fuck you. How we've ended has nothing to do with you and everything to do with us." she said, hitting the glass again, and again. Bucky put his arms around her waist and pulled her away before she could hit it again. "You almost killed him, you-you-narcissistic asshole." She said the last part in Romanian, unable to translate.

"Everything okay?" the officer opened the door and asked. He first looked to Bucky, clearly expecting him to be the perpetrator. What a surprise to find Mika's face red with anger and hands balled into fists.

"Go find Sam, Mika." Bucky said. She clenched her teeth and looked like she wanted to argue, but she remembered her promise from earlier. With one last glare at Zemo, she strode from the room.

"Very spirited, that one." Zemo commented once the door was closed.

"Fuck you, don't talk about her." Bucky said. "I'm here for something else."

"Oh, do tell." Zemo said, sitting on the edge of his bed and resting his elbow on his knees. "I do love news from the outside world. Tell me, how are they all faring after the demise of Iron Man?"

"That's not my department." Bucky said. He was regretting this plan, and if he hadn't spent the night trying to think of anything else, he'd be doing that now. But he - they - were stuck. "Someone recreated the super soldier serum. I need to find out who."

Zemo perked up. Slowly, he stood and returned to his position at the front of the cell, his breath leaving fog over a small area. "You are assuming Hydra has something to do with this." he said. "Which is why you came to me. Which means you're desperate."

Bucky was getting tired of people telling him what he was.

"Luckily for you," Zemo continued, "I know where to begin."

"Tell me." Bucky said. There was the briefest flare of hope, that maybe he didn't have to go through with this, that maybe they could get by with information alone. But of course, it wouldn't be that easy.

"Now, now, James, you know that's not how this works."

Bucky was also getting tired of people calling him James.

"From what I can tell, you're not in a position to bargain." he said. He told himself it was like being back at the farmer's market in Romania, haggling for prices, as if there wasn't a lot more at stake besides saving a few lei.

Zemo scoffed. "Remember a few moments ago? I already know that you're desperate. And you're ready to make a deal. That's why you sent your wife out of the room, yes? Didn't want her to hear whatever else you have to add."

Bucky bit back a curse, mad that after years of being a spy this asshole could still read him so easily. This was a weak point for him, and Zemo knew that. After all, they called him the fist of Hydra, not the voice. And there was a reason for that.

"What do you want?" he asked, even if he already knew the answer. Zemo smiled.

"Let's have a chat, shall we?"

Oh, Bucky, what have you done?

So sorry for the late update, y'all. I had a family emergency come up last weekend, so I wasn't able to get things done. Should be smooth sailing for a while though!

I seriously can't thank you enough for your support. Some days it's really hard to keep writing, and y'all's reviews and love for Mika and Bucky keep me going. So, thank you. Thank you so much.

-XM