Chapter 3. Third Day Blues

The following morning Bucky got up earlier to see if he would have any luck fishing from the dock. For about an hour he tried his luck as he sipped his coffee but nothing was biting so he picked up his tackle and went back inside. He made himself an omelette for breakfast again, chopping up some onion, peppers and celery to go in it. Sliding it onto the plate with some toast and bacon he picked it up and took it out on the deck to eat in the fresh air. As he ate he saw Julia standing on her deck looking out over the lake. She was still in her pyjamas, wearing a thick housecoat and her hair was still messy from bed.

"Good morning!" he called over, expecting a cheery reply in return but she just looked at him wordlessly and went back into the house.

At first it was unsettling but he respected her privacy and resisted the urge to go over. He finished his breakfast, washed the dishes and brought out the tools to begin prying up the damaged boards on the deck. After a few moments of prying the first board off he heard the sound of Julia's screen door slamming and he looked up to see her glaring at him from her deck, still in her pyjamas and house coat.

"Could you not do that?" she asked angrily. "Not now, please?"

Then she turned back into the house. Concerned Bucky stood up and took his work gloves off. He stepped down the stairs and went over to her house, looking in the window. Lightly he knocked on the screen door.

"Julia?" he inquired. "Can I come in?"

There was no answer and he opened the door hesitantly calling out to her again. Then he heard the sound of crying and he stepped inside.

"Julia?" he said softly. "What's wrong, sweetheart? Why are you crying?"

Her head appeared from the couch which faced away from him but she said nothing and laid back down. Kneeling in front of her he remembered not to take her hand but he did smooth some hair away from her face.

"What's happened?" he said in as soft a voice as possible.

Without speaking she opened her emails on her phone then opened one that had been sent that morning. It was from the SFPD, thanking her for her service but that they were terminating her contract without cause.

"I did have contracts with several departments in the San Francisco area but after the divorce that went down to one. I was hoping SFPD would keep me on but it looks like Mason poisoned that well also," she said in a depressed voice. "Why does he hate me so much? Why would he do this? He's the one who cheated in our marriage. Why am I the one paying the price?"

Bucky looked at the email, thinking all sorts of terrible things about Mason but knew that him speaking his mind right now wouldn't help Julia. He put the phone on the coffee table and motioned for her to sit up.

"Will you take a hug?" he asked gently. "I feel like you need a hug right now."

She nodded and sat up. Bucky sat beside her and hugged her, keeping it as neutral as possible. When he removed his arms she took one of his hands and held it.

"I don't why Mason is doing this to you," said Bucky calmly. "Not having met the guy I don't what to say about him but sometimes people believe they are so right and they go at it with such fervour that they run over anyone that seems to be in their way. Or he could just be a major asshole."

Julia chuckled slightly, seemingly preferring to believe that her ex-husband was an asshole. They sat there on the couch in the living room, hearing the sounds of birds outside come through the screen door. Bucky said nothing figuring she just needed his presence more than anything so he waited. It wasn't like whatever he had planned to do needed to be done right away. After about 15 minutes Julia suddenly leaned into him and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you," she said quietly. "When I saw this I kind of lost it. There's nothing to keep me in San Francisco now. I've lost all my contracts. No one wants to hire an autistic woman whose biggest skill is noticing minute details and connecting them in her mind. I'll have to find something else to do. Maybe I'll go back to college and get my PhD."

"I'm sure you'll find something," replied Bucky. "You're smart and resilient. Don't let the bastard get you down."

"My new mantra," she said, lifting her head and smiling at him. "I'll be alright. My brothers and sisters will be coming later this afternoon. Would you join us for dinner? I'm sure they would be happy to meet you. They always worry about me making friends." She stood up and stretched. "I'm going to start a cooking and baking spree to prepare for my family. I'll let you get back to your deck. Thanks for coming over and making me feel better. You made a difference."

"You're welcome," replied Bucky softly. "You call me if you need anything, okay? Just one question. Is Devin your married name?"

"No, I kept my name," she said. "If I took Mason's name I would be Julia Bender. At least I don't have to spend any money getting my IDs all changed back."

Bucky smiled and left her to return to his deck. When he got back he went inside and pulled his cell phone out. He took a breath then dialled and waited for it to be answered.

"Sam?" he said. "I need a favour. Can you check out a police detective in the San Francisco area by the name of Mason Bender? He recently divorced his wife, a Julia Devin. Zoe did a check on Julia and she might be able to help but I have no favours left to ask her."

"Why did you ask Zoe for a check on her?" asked Sam.

"Because at first I thought she was HYDRA," said Bucky. "It's a long story but I think he's trying to hurt her. It's just a hunch but there's something not quite right about him."

"Okay," said Sam, not sounding convinced. "Are you attracted to her? Is this some kind of knight in shining armour thing to impress her?"

"No, it's not that," said Bucky sincerely. "We've become friends. She's on the autism spectrum, is very smart and she worked as a consultant with several San Francisco area police departments as she notices things and can make connections. Her ex accused her of being a fraud because for the five years of their marriage she didn't know he was having an affair. Now, she's lost her final contract and is basically out of work. I don't think he ever cared about her. Maybe he married her to set her up for failure. Something doesn't sit right with me."

"Well, you have good instincts," said Sam, "most of the time. I'll do some research. Maybe I'll come to see you. Sarah is driving me crazy already and I wouldn't mind some time away. How is Bob's place?"

"Older, a bit run down," replied Bucky. "But the scenery is beautiful. Julia is living next door at her parent's place. You should come. You would like her. She's ... different."

He hung up and put his phone in his pocket. Then he went back out and measured the length of the hole in the deck to cut the new board. He brought several boards out at one time. Over the next few hours he replaced about a dozen boards. As the day warmed up he took his T-shirt off and welcomed the heat of the sun on his skin. After that he stopped only to drink some water. There were a few times he heard whistles from the lake but when he looked up the boats they came from sped away. He just shook his head.

"The word is out about you," said Julia, coming up the deck steps with a plate of sandwiches and a couple of beers. "You made an impression last night at the burger place."

She wore a tank top and shorts which showed off her legs. Placing the sandwiches on the picnic table she unscrewed a beer and handed it to him, then opened hers.

"They've never seen a man who can dance?" joked Bucky as he took a drink. "Or a man without a shirt?"

Julia laughed. "Both," she answered. "Also an Avenger, someone with good manners, and a gentleman. I've had a few texts asking if you'll be there tonight."

"Only if you're coming," he replied, "and your family. Wouldn't want to leave them out."

"I'm sure they'll say yes."

She held out the sandwiches to him and he took one, sitting across from her at the table. He watched as she bit into hers. They both ate silently for a few minutes.

"May I ask a personal question?" asked Bucky, to which she nodded. "How did you meet Mason?"

"On a case," she replied, "before I ever worked as a consultant. I was a witness to a bank robbery. Three men, all masked, and armed. They had the security video but I had a detail that the video didn't pick up. One of the men smelled like rotten fish. All the other witnesses just called it bad body odour. But I specified the fish smell. He came to talk to me several times about it. Turned out that smell was connected to a specific genetic condition. I looked it up and told him about it. They did a search of known criminals with body odour issues and narrowed it down to two people. One of them was their guy and through that they linked the trio to four other robberies. Mason took me for dinner to say thanks."

"When did you become a consultant?" asked Bucky.

"About 6 months after we got married," replied Julia. "Mason was working another case, a murder. There were conflicting clues. A DNA sample that pointed to a dead person as the main suspect but they had been dead for years. Obviously the sample was planted but by who? I read over the notes and crime scene photos and noticed that in two of the photos of the same item something had been moved which is a big no-no in forensic circles. Turned out one of the forensics officers was connected to the murder victim. They had removed something from the first photo taken by another officer then replaced it with another item with the old DNA sample thinking it would lead investigators away from him. It did but because it didn't lead anywhere it didn't make sense. I pointed it out to Mason's partner when he came over while Mason was out and he told the Captain. They identified the two different officers who took the pictures and one of them was their guy. I was offered a consultant's contract right after, working on cold cases, going over the evidence and crime scene photos."

"Fresh set of eyes," commented Bucky. "How did Mason take it?"

"At the time I thought he was proud of me but several of the cold cases given to me were his and he didn't like that I found some of his conclusions premature," she replied. "It caused some problems but I didn't think it was anything serious."

Bucky finished his sandwich and beer. "Well, thanks for these," he said, standing up. "I appreciate it."

"No problem," replied Julia with a smile. "I didn't mind."

She picked up the empty plate and beer bottles then walked down the steps. Bucky watched her until she got inside the house. Pulling out his phone he called Sam again and told him Julia didn't become a consultant until 6 months after her marriage starting with cold cases, some of which were her husband's.

"You think he was hiding something?" asked Sam.

"I don't know," answered Bucky. "But she helped him with a big case first, one where a forensics officer switched out evidence. What if it wasn't the first time?"

"Then it would expose him as not being as thorough as he should have been," stated Sam. "I'm liking this guy less every moment. How about I fly out there tomorrow? I want to meet this woman."

"Sure," said Bucky. "Just in time to sand and stain the deck."

Sam laughed. "You sound like Sarah," he remarked. "I'll send you my flight information. Can you pick me up?"

Bucky agreed and hung up. If Sam could see that Mason wasn't quite the detective he made himself out to be then maybe there was something to investigate.

He looked at the deck carefully to see if he had missed any damaged boards. There were two along the edge and he pried them up throwing them on the pile of wood to cut down. Measuring the spaces he cut the last two boards and nailed them into place. He opened the can of wood filler and filled in all the nail holes on the deck and the guard rail. Putting the lid back on he stood back and wiped his forehead.

"Time for a swim," he said out loud.

First he had to clean up so he tossed the cut ends onto another pile, swept the sawdust off and took the tools back into the house. Changing into his swim shorts and grabbing a towel Bucky locked up the house and came out to the dock in his flip flops. Diving into the water wasn't quite the shock it had been the previous morning but it was still cold. Bucky headed for the rock again and unlike his first swim there were quite a few people out and about. Many made comments about him being crazy or having ice water in his veins. He just waved at them. When he made it to the rock he turned around and swam back. Soon his dock was in view and he swam up to it pulling himself onto the boards. He grabbed the towel and dried off before slipping his flip flops on. Looking up he saw Julia with three people on her deck and he waved. They walked over to his dock.

"Told you he was swimming," said Julia to the others, "Bucky Barnes, this is my sister Janey Weller, my brothers John and Jake Devin."

Bucky shook hands with all of them. "Sorry about being wet," he said. "It got warm doing the deck work and a swim was the best way to cool down."

"The cold doesn't bother you?" asked Janey.

"High metabolism," explained Bucky. "My usual body temperature is about 101 F. I burn food and alcohol off immediately. I also can't get drunk which makes me designated driver usually."

"Julia tells us you've become friends," said John. "I hope you're a better friend than Mason."

"I hope so, too," said Bucky. "I have a single word to describe him but I'll refrain from referring to it at the moment."

"He means asshole," said Julia grinning. "Lighten up John. Bucky's been nice to me as a friend."

Jake, Julia's other brother, gave a mock punch to John which they all smiled at. Bucky excused himself to get dressed and the others returned to their house. Ten minutes later he knocked on their deck door and walked in. John handed him a beer and Bucky knew he had passed a test. Julia had gone all out on making a good supper and Bucky made sure he helped her with setting the table and clearing away dishes after. Her brothers took care of washing the dishes and putting them away. They sat around having another beer afterwards and Janey finally brought up the arm.

"Tell me about your arm," she said, looking at her brothers first. "I know you both are dying to ask for yourselves. Let's get it out of the way. Bucky's a normal guy with extraordinary abilities which the arm is part of. I want to know more about it."

Bucky surprised himself as he told them everything about the fall, the torture, and brainwashing, the titanium arm he wore as the Winter Soldier, having it destroyed by Iron Man, then undergoing deprogramming and having a vibranium arm designed and built for him by the Wakandans. Both John and Jake were spellbound while Janey fought back tears. Julia just sat and listened, smiling lightly at Bucky.

"You really are 108 years old?" asked John. "How long will you live?"

"I don't know," admitted Bucky. "Steve went back to 1947 and then showed up in 2023 to pass the shield on. He looked like he was in his 80's but in terms of years he was awake he was probably 110 or so. Chronologically he was 180. Chronologically I'm 108 but I look what, about 36, 37?"

"Amazing," said Jake.

Julia's phone chirped with a message and she looked at it. "They have places saved for us at the burger bar," she said, "but we better get there quick. It's blues night tonight."

Bucky offered to drive for obvious reasons so he left them to get his truck keys. They met him in his driveway. Julia went into the front with him while her brothers put their sister in the middle of the back seat between them. Thirty minutes later they arrived and were greeted like long lost family when they got inside. Even Bucky received a few hugs and cheek kisses from several women he danced with the previous night. He made sure to sit beside Julia as he was feeling a little anxious and she looked at him then leaned in close.

"It'll be okay," she said knowingly. "I'll stick close to you."

She took his hand in hers and smiled at him. He could feel his anxiety lessen considerably and looked at her in appreciation. The brothers ordered tequila shots all around and he downed his. Then he ordered a beer for himself while Julia ordered a Sidecar. The band started and Bucky could see why the place was packed because the band was very good and he found himself enjoying the music a lot. It made him realize that he had been missing out not going to the blues bars in New Orleans. The next time he was there he was definitely going. People started dancing but the first couple of songs were a little too fast for him and he preferred to wait for a slower song. When the band started playing You Send Me, Julia grabbed his hand and pulled him out.

"I can't do those other ones," she said. "It's too much for me to handle but this is a good one."

It was a good song and Bucky decided to try and download it later. "This sounds like Motown but I've never heard it before," he said into her ear.

"It's from the 50s," she replied. "The guy who sang it likely would have been signed by Motown but he died in 1964. He had several good songs."

The next song was Black Velvet and Julia asked if he would stay on the floor and dance with her. Bucky liked it as well, finding it quite danceable. She told him it was about Elvis Presley and he vaguely remembered hearing the name. He watched Julia as they danced and smiled when she started singing along to it. When it ended he sat down while she went to the bathroom. The brothers went to talk with some old friends leaving Bucky and Janey alone.

"You like her," she said simply.

"Yeah, I like her," he said. "She's interesting."

"I mean you really like her," she restated. "She's touched you. I see it by how you look at her."

"No, I don't think of her that way," protested Bucky. "We're just friends."

"Okay," said Janey, "forget I said anything."

She sat back sipping her drink. Bucky took another drink of his beer. "Tell me about Mason," he said. "How did he and Julia get together?"

Janey took a big breath. "First of all, none of us liked him," she said. "He seemed too smooth, you know? We've always been protective of Julia and he just seemed to swoop in and remove her from our influence. He asked her out for dinner after she helped him with a bank robbery. I think at first he was curious and wanted to pick her brain on how to notice minute details. But it's not something she can teach, right? She was just born that way."

"I have to admit it bothered me when she analyzed me just after we met," said Bucky. "I thought she was a HYDRA agent. We laughed about it later. I got a friend to check up on her and when I learned about her abilities I felt guilty for thinking she wasn't on the level."

Janey nodded. "That's fair," she replied. "But Mason, it was like he wanted to know exactly what she was thinking when she was making connections. He didn't really get it about her being on the spectrum. To him it was all bullshit. He kept asking her out and then out of the blue he asked her to marry him. We were shocked when she said yes but she insisted she loved him. She helped him on some cases and mentioned it to his partner, who's no longer his partner now. He told the police captain about her observation and then he asked if she would work on some cold cases."

"Mason didn't like that," stated Bucky.

"No, he didn't," replied Janey, then she nodded at Bucky indicating Julia was coming back. "We'll talk more."

Julia came back and reached over Bucky to get her drink. When she took a sip she put her hand on his shoulder. Janey noticed and gave Bucky a knowing look. Then Julia took his hand and pulled him up onto the dance floor again. It was a slow blues song, Slow Dancing in a Burning Room which Bucky found enjoyable as well. As they danced Julia looked up at him a few times then put her head onto his chest. He bent his head over hers and breathed in the smell of her hair. She's just a friend, he told himself. By the time the song ended he wondered if that was completely true anymore.