"I need details," Natasha put her feet up on the control panel of the Quinjet. "I'm living vicariously through you at the moment."
"Get your feet off the weapons controls," I tried to sound annoyed at Natasha but it didn't work. She just smirked at me and put her feet up higher looking at me with a raised eyebrow in challenge.
"The quiet guys are usually the best in bed," Natasha continued. "So give me details."
Clint sighed in aggravation shooting Natasha a pained look. He was concentrating on flying. I was sitting on the floor between the 2 chairs. It was a tight squeeze but I wanted to keep an eye on Clint's flying. Not that he was really needing it. Besides a few very minor corrections he was doing a brilliant job.
Our mission was in Germany. We'd be escorting a scientist out of Erfurt back to the US. Sabine Baecker was one of the worlds leading authorities on alternative energy. She'd been working for SHIELD for years as a consultant and there had been a few interested parties try and recruit her. Last night she'd nearly been abducted while walking to her car at work. She was currently bunked down in a safe house and it was our job to retrieve her.
To keep it quiet and discreet we'd land the Quinjet about an hour away. SHIELD had a small runway there under their payroll and control. A car would be there and then we'd pick up Doctor Baecker and head back to the Quinjet. It was very straight forward and would wrap up within a day. I'd originally only been flying but with some convincing I'd been allowed to tag along for the escort as well. Speaking fluent German helped my case a lot. Coulson had pulled Clint aside before we left and I had no doubts he was given some very strict instructions about keeping me out of trouble.
"Come on Kari," Natasha whined with a serious pout on her face. "It's a long flight and I was on a solo mission for a week. I need human interaction and you and Barton are about the only humans I like enough to interact with."
"You're so bossy," I craned my head back to pull a face at Natasha. "Fine, he was amazing. Are you happy?"
"What part of him was amazing?" Natasha pushed for more information. She was looking down at me expectedly. "Like I said, I need details."
"What if I don't want to hear these details?" Clint protested looking over to Natasha.
"Then take your hearing aids out," Natasha said smoothly.
"It doesn't help that I can still lip read and know exactly what you're saying," Clint shot back.
"Stop complaining," Natasha kicked his chair. I quickly jerked back so I didn't cop a leg in my face.
Natasha and Clint fought just like Jared and I did. It amused me to no end to listen to their bickering at each other. I had a feeling Clint was only doing this to annoy the shit out of Natasha. He'd already pestered me about it during our flight back from the supply drop. I'd sent Riley a text telling him I wouldn't be home until later because we had a mission. I'd been a little hesitant about his reaction to it actually happening. But all I got back was him telling me to be careful and straight after that was that he'd miss me until I got home. The grin on my face only gave Clint something to tease me about more.
"Yeah stop complaining," I ganged up on Clint in retribution for his teasing. "I'm letting you fly so you just cop whatever we decide to dish out."
Clint just shot me a weary look. Before I could be smart to him again he flicked the autopilot on and reached up, pulling his hearing aids out.
"Go sit in the back," Clint's voice was a little louder than normal.
I couldn't help but stare at the 2 tiny devices in his hand. I'd never seen them before. It was very easy to forget that Clint was deaf. His hearing aids sat right in his ear so they weren't visible even if you looked really hard.
"Fine," Natasha didn't need to be told twice. I didn't miss the slight twist of her face so she made sure Clint could see her clearly while she spoke. As Natasha stood up, she grabbed my arm as well. I was right behind her in getting up. I couldn't resist taking another quick look at the hearing aids as Clint put them in the cup holder.
"This means he trusts you," Natasha said as she followed my gaze. "A lot. I can count on one hand the amount of people he takes his hearing aids out around."
"I think he just likes me because I'm teaching him to fly," I joked to cover my small embarrassment. Natasha sat down in one of the chairs in the back and I sat on the floor, stretching my legs out in front of me. We were still another few hours out and Clint wasn't handing the controls over anytime soon. I was feeling bored and slightly wound up in anticipation of the mission.
"That too," Natasha gave me a small smile. "So give me details."
I laughed quietly at my friend. When Clint and I had gotten back from the supply drop she'd been waiting for us with coffee and McDonalds. I confessed my undying love for her as she brought me a triple cheeseburger with bacon. It'd been easy to get caught up in teaching Clint to fly I hadn't realised I was starving until I smelt that cheeseburger. It was gone in about 3 bites.
"He really was amazing," I couldn't stop the stupid grin on my face. "He's just perfect, I found out he can even cook. I'm sold. I think I'll keep him."
"Amazing doesn't tell me details," Natasha pushed with a sly smile. "Though that grin says a lot."
I'd never had this. If someone had told me a few months ago I'd be sitting in the back of a Quinjet girl talking with the Black Widow herself, I'd check them into the nearest psychiatric hospital. This was one of those times I was having a hard time believing this was actually my life now.
"You remember that night you picked Jared up from the keg party?" Natasha continued without waiting for an answer from me.
"I don't think I'll ever be allowed to forget that night," I said dryly.
"You did pretend to be a stripper and walk out after being paid," Natasha looked very proud of me. "We were going to set you up that night and I suggested Riley. Jared said you'd eat him alive. But I knew better. Call it women's intuition. So I'm not going to ask again for details, I'm just going to beat it out of you."
I knew that wasn't an idle threat.
"You were right, the quiet ones are always the best," the grin on my face pulled wider. "He is a god with his tongue. Really generous too, got me off a few times before he even fucked me. And huge."
Natasha laughed at my last statement.
"Do you feel like you should be walking with a limp?
"Not quite, but sitting does remind me of him," I laughed with her. "I'm kind of hoping this mission really does wrap up quickly because he promised to fuck me on every available surface in his apartment this weekend."
"Lucky you. It is only a simple level 3 escort," Natasha looked a little envious. "We should be home by tomorrow. Can I persuade you to be dragged away from your sex god for dinner on Saturday night?"
"Sure, dinner on you?" I said smartly. "And is my sex god invited if I'm dragging myself away from him."
"Of course," Natasha gave me an unbelieving look. "We better invite Barton as well."
"Right now?" I looked over to the pilot seat. Clint caught my gaze in the reflection of the windscreen and raised an eyebrow in question. Natasha's fingers flew in a few quick and sharp motions. I watched her carefully in how quickly she could sign. It was yet another thing I needed to learn and hadn't touched on yet.
"Can we make it kid friendly?" Clint asked. "Lila said she'd die if she doesn't get to see Kari sometime soon."
That made me smile. Clint's youngest had really grown on me. I'd have to warn Riley in advance. But then again I was working with 2 spies. I had no doubt Riley had already been given the talk about keeping Clint's family very quiet and away from work.
"HeeBeen it is then," Natasha spoke while she signed to Clint. He nodded his approval before turning his attention back to flying.
"What's HeeBeen?"
"It's an all you can eat place that has sushi, sashimi and the best Korean BBQ you will ever eat in your life," Natasha explained. "It's amazing."
"I'm so in love with you," I grinned again. "That does sound amazing. Lets hope everything goes to plan for the mission."
"We'll be in and out in about 3 hours, piece of cake," Natasha shrugged almost looking bored at the prospect of this mission. I had to remind myself this was a very standard day for her and Clint. It was well below their skill level. The only reason we'd been given it was to keep things easy for my sake.
"Are you two done?" Clint called back looking over his shoulder. "The silence is driving me crazy. Come sit back up here."
I shot up and beat Natasha to the co-pilot seat. She was short, she could deal with being squished on the floor between the seats this time. It was barely enough room for my legs to stretch out. Completely unperturbed by me beating her, Natasha just plonked herself down on my lap. I protested but all I got from her was a smug smile and shrug. I looked to Clint for help and all I got was a shrug from him as well.
"I told you when you first met her she only likes touching people if you're her favourite lounge chair, guess what?" Clint said smartly. "You're now her favourite lounge chair."
Well, there are worst things in life that could happen.
We landed in a small city named Gehlberg. There wasn't much there besides the tiny airport and a few local shops. It was just getting on dark as I landed the Quinjet. A parked car was waiting for us already but the airport was deserted. There hadn't been any communication from air control to even land us. It a little bit eerie with how quiet everything really was. But Natasha and Clint didn't look worried at all. We were armed and taking off down the single lane road within 5 minutes of landing. I hadn't been allowed to pack the AWSM sniper rifle I'd become fond of. But to mollify me slightly Clint had packed the bow I'd been using in training for my use, along with the pair of P30 sidearms. Natasha and Clint were both armed with their usual choices. Clint was driving with Natasha sitting in the front. I sat in the backseat enjoying the glimpses of the country side that could been seen in the fast falling darkness. I was well travelled thanks to my parents. But just hopping in a Quinjet and jetting off to the other side of the world was taking a bit of getting used to. Not having to worry about a passport, go through customs like a normal person. No change of airports and long flights. We'd make it to Germany in a little under 5 hours.
"So this is going to be simple," Clint's voice dragged me from my scenery watching. "Pick up Dr Baecker and drive back. Fly home and all wrapped up nicely. Her english isn't the greatest which is why Coulson is letting you tag along. So translate and sit in the back like a good kid and no complaining."
"Yes Dad," I rolled my eyes at Clint. "Why can neither of you speak German?"
"It's hard," Natasha supplied with a half hearted shrug. "And my brain doesn't need to cram any more languages in it."
"I can speak enough to order a stein of beer," Clint shot me an amused look over his shoulder. "Other than that, can't be bothered to be honest."
I couldn't even remembered why I thought taking German in high school, along with my French classes, was a good idea. It wasn't the easiest language to learn and already knowing Russian and Icelandic made it confusing enough most days. It was just another thing I wanted to cram into my already over achieving brain.
"If we run into trouble, which we won't," Clint dropped the joking tone and was back to business. "Stay down and do as your told. No arguments."
I nodded. This was so ridiculously straight forward I wasn't even feeling nervous about it. Unlike the last mission we did where I'd been a bundle of nerves, I wasn't even feeling a twinge of them this time. It was exciting being let out in the field again. I was feeling more prepared for it this time than before. But like Clint said it was going to be simple.
The hour drive stretched out in front of us in easy conversation. Natasha was disappointed we wouldn't be able to linger in Germany because she hadn't been here for ages. She and Clint spoke of the amazing pub they'd stumbled across last time in Hanover. My stomach was growling by the time Natasha had given a description of the food they served there. The cheeseburger really had done nothing to fill a hole in my very empty stomach. All the talk of schnitzels was making me really hungry.
It was completely dark by the time we'd reached the safe house. It had the porch light on but no other signs of activity. It was on the outskirts of the town. In a small suburban area which made it look completely inconspicuous. Just another 2 story house in a long street with plenty of other houses just like it. Cars were parked in driveways. A few kids toys were scattered on different lawns. The house to the left of the safe house had a bicycle sitting on the front lawn. The soft sounds of normal every day households drifted in and out of hearing.
And here we were doing a pick up of a scientist who worked for a covert government agency that not many people even knew about. If you said to the average person on the street you worked for the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division you'd be met with a blank look. Here in this suburban street would be no different.
Clint tapped his fingers on the steering wheel but didn't turn the car off. There would be a 45 second wait until Dr Baeker was escorted out to the car. The agents in the house would scan the street for any sign of hostile activity before making the short trip to the car.
"13," came out in Russian, no more than a whispered breath from Natasha.
I hadn't even been counting down. I was too busy looking around the neighbourhood to actually be paying attention. Some great super spy in training I was.
"Here we go," Clint let out a small breath as the front door opened. A small woman walked out, flanked by 2 men in civilian clothing. To a casual observer it would just look like 2 people helping someone else to the car. But the 2 agents were rigid. Their eyes scanning the street in the darkness. For the first time in this mission I felt my nerves kick into gear. My mouth went dry and my palms started to sweat as Dr Baecker walked down the 2 steps off the porch. It only took 3 steps for her to reach the car and open the backseat door. But those 3 steps felt as if everything had gone into slow motion.
The slip of a woman settled herself in the car next to me. I quickly launched into the small part I'd have to play for tonight. My German was rusty and slower than I would have liked, but I was confident I wouldn't screw it up. Coulson had given me a basic version of what to say to her before we left.
"Doctor Baecker I'm Agent Lyngley, this is Agent Romanoff and Agent Barton," I nodded my head introducing my team mates. "Thank you for your patience and understanding in this matter. We will be driving directly towards the airfield and leaving as soon as we arrive. Again SHIELD apologises for all inconvenience caused by this situation."
"It's quite alright Agent Lyngley," Dr Baecker gave me a tolerant smile. Her German was almost too fast for me the understand. "I thank SHIELD for jumping on the matter so quickly. Life sometimes gives us a push in the direction we weren't sure of."
She carefully adjusted her dark hair which was pulled back in a tight bun. I had to hand it to her, she didn't look nervous. Not even the tiniest bit frazzled. Her comment about life giving you a push didn't go unnoticed by me. I was about to ask her what she meant when the thump of the boot closing made me jump slightly.
"And we're off," Clint said quietly as he shifted the car into reverse.
"Your German is excellent Agent Lyngley," Dr Baecker shifted her gaze to the back of Clint's head. "Slow, but perfect accent and pronunciation. Where did you learn it?"
"High school," I explained. "I'm rusty but thank you."
"How far do we have until we reach the airfield?" Dr Baecker asked still staring straight ahead.
"An hour drive," I said. "And a 5 hour flight back to DC. You'll have an Agent meeting you in DC to help you get settled."
That's all I knew of her situation. I couldn't stop the tug of sympathy in my chest as I saw her calm facade crack for the briefest moment. I knew all too well what it was like being thrust into a situation that you didn't want. To have your entire life pulled our for underneath you.
"DC is quite lovely at this time of year," I fumbled to fill in the silence. "I haven't lived there long, but the food scene is amazing."
I ignored the growl of protest coming from my stomach at the mention of food again.
"Of course you have all the tourist things there like the White House, Smithsonian and all the memorials," I continued. "There's plenty of museums, art galleries and shopping malls."
Natasha looked back at me with a questioning look. Beyond my little speech Clint had made me memorise on the way here I wasn't supposed to say or do much else.
"My English is sufficient to not be rude and keep speaking in German, which your companions obviously don't speak," Dr Baecker switched to heavily accented English. "I do appreciate the effort though Agent Lyngley."
Dammit. We'd been told her English wasn't that great. It'd been about the only reason I was actually allowed in the car.
"Yes but I needed to brush up on my German," I lied, hoping my smile was genuine. "I don't get to practice it much."
Dr Baecker just gave me a tolerant smile and the car lapsed into silence. I looked out the window but there was nothing to see in the black of the night. The route we were taking took us past mostly farm land and lightly wooded areas. No streetlights lit the way to give any hints of the scenery. There wasn't even enough moonlight to give off any light. It was just a long stretch of black road.
I lent my head against the window and stared at the back of Natasha head. She'd taken her phone out and was flicking her fingers along the screen idly while reading something. I tried to look over her shoulder but the screen was too far away for me to read what she was looking at. I rested my chin on the chair and gently tugged on one of her red curls to get her attention.
"What are you reading?" I asked. I was bored again already.
Natasha didn't answer. She just held up her phone closer to her face so I could read as well. It wasn't anything very exciting. Just a news article on Tony Stark, the weapons developer. It was going on about Stark Industries ready to unveil a new weapon that would be a game changer. It was set to be unveiled in a few months.
"Arrogant dick," Natasha muttered under her breath as her eyes flicked across the screen.
My reply was cut off by the unmistakable sound of a .50 calibre weapon being fired. None of us had the chance to react as the car swerved and the flipped. It happened so fast I didn't even have the breath for a scream to let loose. The sounds were terrible, the shattering glass and groan of metal being warped out of shape. I only dimly heard Dr Baecker screaming beside me. I just squeezed my eyes together tightly and held onto my seatbelt. It was the only thing stopping me being tossed around like a rag doll in the mangled wreck. The car rolled 3 times before settling on the roof. The blood rushed to my head as I hung by my seatbelt. All I could hear was my ears ringing. Nothing else, no matte how hard I shook my head trying to get the horrible sound to go away.
My hands fumbled for the button to release the seatbelt. It let go and I landed on the roof with a very muffled thud. My head ached as I pushed myself up on all fours very shakily. I couldn't feel anything. My body felt completely numb. I could just make out Dr Baecker hanging by her seatbelt. Her eyes were closed, a line of blood dripping down her face. But the steady rise and fall of her chest told me she was alive. I felt a hand close around my leg and look back to see Natasha. She'd crawled through the shattered window of my seat. Her lips were moving but I still couldn't make out any sound. The yank she gave on my leg was enough to get the idea. Move and move right now.
What was left of the windscreen shattered as a bullet ripped through it. Instinctively I ducked, covering my head with my hands.
"Kari MOVE," It was Clint's voice that finally broke through the ringing of my ears. I didn't need to be told twice. I scampered and slid out of the car as quick as I could, right next to Natasha. She didn't wait for me to get to my feet. She grabbed my hand dragging me to my shaking legs and we both took off running for the line of trees not far from where we'd crashed. My legs collapsed as Natasha pushed both of us behind a tree. The ringing in my ears started to die off to a dull thumping, right in time with my racing heart. Natasha tapped me and then tapped my holster. I nodded and pulled the sidearm out with shaking hands. With my free hand I reached up and wiped my face. My hand came away sticky and I pulled my hand back to stare at it. The dark stain told me I was bleeding but I couldn't actually feel anything enough to know where it was coming from.
"Hey," Natasha's voice finally broke through the noise in my ears. "Can you hear me yet?"
"I think so," my voice echoed in my head. I blinked a few times trying to make myself focus.
A noise to our left made me jump. I raised my gun quickly and snapped my head around to face the would be attacker. It was only Clint, with a still unconscious Dr Baecker over his shoulder. He set her against the tree gently.
"Sniper," Clint said grimly turning to face both of us. "We've been compromised."
There was a loud crack a few feet away as another round slammed into a tree. All 3 of us dropped to the ground. None of us moved a muscle for a good minute afterwards. It was enough time for my hearing to return to normal. The night air was still. No breeze stirred making any movement from us sounding impossibly loud.
"Location?" Natasha whispered.
"Unknown," Clint's voice was tight. "Just…"
He was cut off by another loud crack. I held my breath and started to count, listening for a thump. I'd only gotten to 2 seconds when the unmistakable thump was heard. The way Clint had his head cocked I could tell he was listening for the exact same thing. I held up 2 fingers and he nodded.
It was a counter sniper tactic. The bullet makes a cracking sound as it passes the sound barrier and hits the target. The thump afterwards is actual sound of the weapon being fired. The crack is heard first because the bullet passes at super sonic speed. For every second there was generally abut a 300 yard distance.
"600 yards," Clint breathed out quietly. "He's trying to draw us out."
All was silent for another minute. On such a dark night in the cover of trees, with us dressed in black tactical gear it would have been hard to make us out. Even with night vision. We were well concealed in this little grove of trees.
"We need to bait him into taking another shot," Natasha murmured quietly. I nodded my head in agreement and only stopped when I realised she was looking at me. Fuck.
"Coulson is going to fucking kill us," Clint groaned as he caught the look. "How long can you stay invisible and run for Kari?"
"Hopefully long enough not to get shot," I looked between the two of them. Dread started to worm into my body. "Please tell me I won't get shot?"
"You won't get shot," Clint chuckled but there was little amusement behind it. "Just go invisible, run to your right and shoot off a few rounds. Then run like hell."
"What if he has IR?" I was already slowly pushing myself to my feet.
"He doesn't have IR otherwise we'd all be dead," Natasha patted my leg reassuringly. "Just run really fast after you let those few shots off."
I didn't let myself have time to be scared. Or to argue over what needed to be done. I needed to do this and I was our best shot at drawing out the enemy sniper. Preferably without a .50 calibre bullet being slammed into any of us. I should have been sick with nerves by the time I'd stood up and let the invisibility slide over my body. My body was shaking but I just couldn't really feel anything. On numb legs that seemed to work by themselves I jogged about 100 yards to the right of our position. I didn't even hesitate when I was far away enough. I cocked the P30 and fired off half a dozen rounds. I was sprinting back towards the car as soon as my finger released off the trigger.
The answering round from the sniper slammed into the tree right where I'd been. I ducked behind the wrecked car, skidding to my knees. Leaning against the mangled wreck of metal I was breathing heavily but I didn't dare go visible just yet. I heard the sharp whizzing sound as Clint fired an arrow off. A second later a gargled scream came followed by an even louder thump.
"Caw caw motherfucker," Clint called out across the now quiet landscape. A small laugh escaped from Natasha.
I went visible again, still breathing heavily. I let my head fall back against the car trying to suck the precious oxygen into my lungs. I'd been on autopilot before and now my body was only just catching up with what I'd done.
"You good Kari?" Natasha called out. I could see her peeking from out from behind the tree. It was just the barest outline of her figure.
"Yep," I called back sucking in another deep breath. My heart was still racing but I forced myself to take a few more calming breaths. In and out. That's all I needed to focus on right now. Clint and Natasha both came from out of the tree line, both still had weapons out.
"We need to move," Clint reached me first. He slung his bow over his shoulder and offered me his hand. I reached up and grasped it. His firm grip as he pulled me back to my feet seemed to calm my racing heart down. I was fine. I wasn't shot or hurt in my mad dash. My hands wouldn't stop shaking though. I could feel them trembling against Clint's calloused grip.
"It's just adrenaline," Clint said to me calmly. "Its normal."
"Normal," I let out a very shaky laugh. "No part of my life is ever going to be normal again."
"You're laughing your good," Clint smiled at me, calming me down even further. "We need to get back to the Quinjet."
I nodded in agreement. Clint gave my hand another squeeze before dropping it. He went back to the tree line to where Dr Baecker was still slumped on the ground unconscious. Natasha was nowhere to be seen. I hadn't seen her slip away in my brief conversation with Clint.
"Where's Nat?"
"Scouting ahead," Clint explained. He was checking over Dr Baecker with eased practice. I guess being married to a doctor had its advantages. "She'll find anyone ahead that might be trouble for us."
Would I ever get like that? Just be able to slip away and instantly know what to do in this type of situation? I would have never thought to send someone ahead to check the route for anymore trouble. Now that I thought about it, the sniper should have had a spotter. Clint only fired one arrow. If there had been a spotter where was he now? I opened my mouth to ask Clint but sound of a single shot being fired off made me jump.
"Just me," Natasha's voice carried across the air easily. "Found the spotter. Target neutralised."
Well, that answered my question.
"Bag anything that might be of interest," Clint called back. "Same with the sniper. Call out on approach. Kari come help me here."
I walked over to where Clint was kneeling over Dr Baecker. She was still breathing, but she hadn't stirred.
"Is she ok?" I asked.
"She's breathing, no sign of trauma besides the head wound. I think she's just knocked herself out," Clint said calmly. "Are you hurt anywhere?"
I still couldn't feel anything. I had no doubt I'd be bruised and aching by tomorrow. I just nodded not sure if I really had the words to speak right now. Everything had just happened so fast. One second we were driving and then the next a sniper was trying to take us out.
"How's the weather down there?" Natasha's voice called out.
"Sun is shining," Clint replied.
I let out a small barely amused chuckle at the call out. It was so simple and in the pitch black night we were in a little out of place. Natasha appeared from the shadows a moment later.
"Nothing," Natasha's voice was clipped and professional. "We need to move though."
"Agreed," Clint picked up Dr Baecker and propped her over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. She didn't even stir as Clint adjusted her. "Grab anything we need from the car Nat."
This wasn't going to be fun. Clint took off at a fast jog, me right on his heels. Natasha joined us after emptying the car of our weapons. She handed me the smaller bow Clint had given me earlier and slung Dr Baecker's bag over her back. She jogged to the front and stayed there. The first few miles were fine. It was easy to fall into a steady rhythm. At about 3 miles into it the jogging started to hurt. At 5 miles it began to really hurt. 10 miles became nearly unbearable from the pain in my ribs. What I couldn't feel before was now coming to hit me full force. My ribs felt bruised, making drawing in breath painful. My head throbbed with every step of the way. I started to lag behind and it wasn't until I stumbled Clint turned around to check on me. I rested on my hands on my knees, bent over as if it'd help me breath easier.
"Nat", Clint stopped instantly. Natasha only a second behind him. She jogged back to me rubbing my back.
"I'm fine," I panted shaking my head. "Just need a second."
"You need to say something," Natasha scolded me. "You're no good to us if you collapse."
"I'm good," I protested despite my breath coming out in a gasping wheeze. "My head hurts and my ribs feel bruised. I didn't feel it before."
"And your adrenaline just wore off I'm guessing," Natasha continued to rub my back. "We've still got about 5 miles to go. Can you suck it up for a bit longer?"
"Sure," I straightened up. It wasn't really an option. We were stuck out here in the middle of no where without any means of communication to let anyone know we'd been ambushed. We'd been operating under radio silence and we all left our cell phones behind in the Quinjet. Getting back to the Quinjet was our only option. We needed speed and I wasn't going to be the dead weight dragging us down. As we took off again, this time Clint fell in behind me. He was there to give me some gentle encouragement anytime I slowed down. Even though I didn't have the breath to word it, I was really grateful for his patience and encouragement. If I'd been in his shoes I don't think I would have been so understanding. I'd be the type of person to wish for a cattle prod for encouragement.
It was like those last few miles of the arctic survival course stumbling down the mountain and not really remembering anything about it. I knew my feet were moving one in front of the other, but beyond that it was just a blur. I'd barely realised we'd made it to the airfield until my feet made a loud clatter as we ran up the ramp of the Quinjet. That was enough to snap me out of my fog as I ran to the pilot seat. I powered up to get us in the air as soon as possible while Natasha radioed in.
"Sitrep," it was Coulson's sharp tone over the radio straight away.
"All accounted for Sir," Natasha's face was as calm as her voice. "Ambushed by a sniper about 15 miles from the safe house. Both sniper and spotter neutralised. Sending you through coordinates now for clean up crew."
Natasha's fingers flew over the screen of her phone as she kept speaking.
"Dr Baecker will need medical attention back at base, no major injuries but she is unconscious. Barton is stabilising her now."
I looked over my shoulder to see exactly what Clint was doing. He'd pulled out the gurney that was tucked away under the seats and hanging IV lines.
"Injury report on you 3," Coulson sounded less sharp now and more concerned. "No bullshit either. You've got clearance to fly as fast as possible back to base. Get back stateside ASAP."
"Headaches all round," Natasha rubbed her own forehead as if to emphasise the point. "We haven't stopped to assess damage to be honest Coulson. It was a long run. But all on our feet and alive without any danger of keeling over before we get home."
"I'll have another med team on standby just in case," Coulson's voice left no room for arguments. "Radio check in every hour please."
"Copy that Sir."
I got us into the air and flying back home as quick as humanly possible. As soon as we levelled out to altitude Natasha got up and went to the back. I didn't bother with autopilot. We needed to get home and fast. I just hit the stick as hard as possible. My attention was broken by Natasha coming in from behind me. I was about to open my mouth to ask what she was doing when she stabbed me in the neck.
"What the fuck Natasha," I yelped as she injected me with god knows what. With my free hand I reached around to try and swat her. She'd already moved so I settled for grabbing the stinging flesh. It had been right on the massive hickey Riley had left.
"Morphine and you are welcome," Natasha drawled. It was times like this her Russian accent made an appearance. "Now hold still while I clean that blood off your face and see how bad that cut actually is."
"Its fine," I tried to swat her again. "Leave it alone."
"Trust me you don't want to be walking out of this jet with a face full of blood," Natasha came towards me with an alcohol swab. "Coulson will yank you from the field so quickly your head will spin. And then shoot me and Barton for not looking out for you."
That made me still. I sighed in defeat and let Natasha probe the cut on my head. I hadn't paid attention to my reflection until she'd mentioned it. My left hand side of my face had a long trail of blood down it. The cut in my hairline was pretty insignificant but it'd bled like a bitch. I was lucky a cut on my head was the only major concern I had. Now I'd stopped running my ribs stopped aching. Or that might have been the hit of morphine I'd just gotten. My headache had all but disappeared and I could concentrate on flying. Natasha made it painless and kept out of my line of vision.
"How did you find the spotter?" I asked curiously as Natasha worked away at my face.
"He wasn't far from his partner," Natasha gently prodded the cut. It started bleeding a little bit again. "He'd grabbed the rifle and was trying to line a shot up. Didn't even see me. Sloppy work, not a professional job."
I flinched, not only at her prodding fingers but the meaning behind those words. I still didn't know if I could do that. Walk up to someone and put a bullet in their head. It seemed to cold and methodical just coming up behind someone and shooting them. But if Natasha hadn't of killed the spotter I had no doubt he'd be trying to kill us. It was a sobering thought.
"Does this happen a lot?" I tapped my fingers against the control stick. "Missions not going to plan?"
"Missions never go to plan," Natasha let out a small chuckle. "Ever. You just learn to be flexible and deal with whatever situation comes up. By the way that's a big hickey on your neck."
Smooth change of subject Romanoff.
"His are bigger," I smirked. Two could play that game.
"Fucking vampires, both of you."
As soon as we hit open ocean I pushed the Quinjet down to the lowest altitude I was cleared for and opened it right up. Clint and Natasha took turns between keeping me awake and keeping an eye on Dr Baecker. She still hadn't woken up yet, despite all her vitals being stable. Clint had gone to pester me to take over the controls until he saw the altitude and speed we were flying at. We were sitting just under Mach 1 at 800ft. Not something I'd be very comfortable letting him handle at this stage. As it was, it was taking a lot of concentration from me to keep going.
It was strange to being landing back in DC with it being daylight and early afternoon. We'd just flown through several time zones and my body was telling me it should be close to midnight. As soon as I got the Quinjet in position in the hanger it was a massive scuttle of activity. A medical team was on board as soon as the ramp opened and they busied themselves with Dr Baecker. A second team was waiting in the hanger. Coulson standing with them.
"Do you 3 ever stay out of trouble?" Coulson looked between the three of us with obvious relief. "Debrief while you get checked. Lets go."
I didn't need to be told twice. I grabbed my phone and followed my team up the medical.
I sat on the bed quietly while Clint and Natasha filled Coulson in on what happened out there. The cut on my head didn't need stitches, but my ribs were bruised. I'd be given strict orders on no training for the next week, at all. After being the straggler and weakest one in this mission I had every intention of defying that order. Judging by the smirk Natasha gave me when I was told that, I was sure she'd be the one helping me defy that order as well.
"And then we were home," Clint finished. I'd barely heard anything during the run down he and Natasha had given. I was tired and desperately wanted a shower.
"Lets see what forensics brings us," Coulson was sitting in chair in front of us. "Otherwise I don't want to see any of you for the next week. Go home and get some well deserved R&R. Kari you can wait here for a second."
I'd gone to get up as soon as Coulson said we could go home. Dammit. I obediently sat back down on the bed watching Natasha and Clint both leave with a pout on my face. Natasha held her fist up towards her ear in the indication she'd call me later. I just nodded before turning back to Coulson.
"Can I trust you to go home?" Coulson got straight to the point as soon as the door clicked close.
"I'm not going to sit here for the next week smelling like Clint's gym bag," I said smartly. I immediately toned down my sassiness with the look Coulson gave me. He was not amused and being deadly serious.
"I'm staying with Riley while Jared is away," I said quickly to cover my ass before I got into trouble. "I won't be alone. If I'm having any problems I'll ring you straight away."
I knew what Coulson was getting at. This mission wasn't terribly easy on me. Right now my mental health would be more of a concern than my physical health. I had no doubt I soon as I got back to work I'd be sitting down with a psychologist. How I'd made it this far into my job and not had a psych evaluation yet I will never know. They weren't my favourite thing in the world.
"Good," Coulson was watching me carefully. "He's waiting outside by the way. I didn't want you driving home so I called him in."
"Thank you Sir," I had to use every ounce of self control not to leap off the bed. "Am I dismissed?"
"Go," a small smile broke out on Coulson's face. "Be good, and listen to the doctor's orders."
I didn't need to be told twice.
Authors Note
I hope all my followers enjoy the quick update! I had to beta this myself so excuse any mistakes.
Some exciting news! I got my motorbike license. It's taken me quite a long time to do but but I finally did it! I'm very excited about it. Bad news is that having a motorbike license adds onto my duties at work. But only another 2 weeks to go and I'm back to my normal hours. I will aim for another update towards the end of next week.
Thanks to my very faithful reviewer kira shadow wolf, you never fail to be the first one to review a chapter! And thanks to anyone who's added this to the follow or favourite list. Until next time.
