Sam rubbed his face again and sighed. He left his computer in the basement and walked up the stairs to the kitchen and grabbed a granola bar.
This thing with Bucky had him twisted. He shouldn't have let him go. He'd seen the super soldier annoyed, eager, hot headed and dangerous, but he'd never seen him desperate. His work as a counselor meant that he had to let people go at the end of the day to live their own lives. But that stubborn cyborg was family, and you didn't let family leave when they were crying for help.
Bucky wasn't answering any of Sam's texts, and he didn't even have Jenny's number. What the hell was going on?
He'd tried to continue the research on this Max character and Leviathan, but he was coming up short. Every source said the organization had been cut off or absorbed into Hydra in the fifties, and there were no traces besides Max. All he could find was some sparse information on his mother and that his father had died under questionable circumstances. After that he was a ghost. Which had him worried. Ghosts were harder to fight.
"You got that look in your eye," said Sarah coming into the kitchen.
"What look," said Sam. He knew, so it wasn't a question.
"That 'somethin's brewing' look. Like you're about to leave again."
"Where would I go? I'm flying blind."
Sarah put her cheek against Sam's shoulder. "That's your least favorite feeling."
Sam smirked. "I know you know something, don't deny it."
She jolted away busying herself with the dishes.
"Sarah," said Sam. She'd been cagey since Bucky and Jenny had left. "Where did they go?"
She put a stack of plates in the cupboard and picked up the boys' jackets off the back of the dining room chairs. "Sam, if I thought you should know I'd tell you."
"I know you better than anyone, and I can tell it's important."
Sarah hung the jackets up and sighed looking down at the floor. "It's not mine to tell. Look, if things get dicey I'll tell you."
"What if they are?"
"You have a reason to believe that?"
Sam looked out the window. "No."
"Then trust me."
He sighed and nodded. "I do, but I don't like this."
"I know." She turned around.
"Was it before or after?"
"Doesn't matter. You know my word is my bond."
He shook his head and tightened his jaw. "I wish Steve were still here," he said.
Sarah's spine straightened and she turned around. "Everyone relied too much on Steve Rogers," she said under her breath.
"What?" asked Sam.
"Sam, listen to me. Stop trying to be Captain America and be Captain America. You don't need Steve, you never did."
Sam looked at her surprised. "You sure are blunt today," he said.
"I'm sick of you coming back filled with self-doubt," said Sarah. "You earned the title a million times over. It's time for you to trust yourself."
He couldn't hear this right now. She was cutting into him too deep. "I'm gonna change for a run," he said and started up the stairs. Maybe Sarah was right, but today he felt lost. Being Captain America was a dream come true and an exhausting fight all at once. He did wish Steve were still alive. He had so many questions, and a lot of them had to do with Bucky. He'd never had a friend like Steve. Someone who always knew what to do. If he were here, he could give him some direction. He stood at his door and stared at the knob. He'd told Bucky several times that Steve was gone and that he had to move on, but had he himself gotten over it? Steve was his best friend, and now Bucky, but it still felt like they'd withheld from him.
Sam opened the door to his room and found one of Jenny's tee shirts on the carpet. He picked it up and put it on his hamper. Then noticed a light coming from his side table. A phone was lit up, and buzzing, then went dark. It must be Jenny's. He picked it up, seeing calls over and over from the same number. He put it back down and picked up his own to text Bucky and let him know that she'd forgotten it when it lit up again.
He picked it up and answered.
"Jen? Jen is that you?" came a frantic female voice.
"This is Sam Wilson."
"Oh my god. Oh my god…" said the voice. "Captain America, Jesus…"
He smiled. He still puffed with pride when he got that reaction.
"Is Jenny there?" said the woman. "I've been trying to reach her for hours, and let me tell you, that's not great on this pregnant woman's blood pressure…"
He froze. Babies were not in his purview. "Are you having it now?" he asked panicked.
"I need to talk to Jenny. Where is she?"
"I hate to tell you this, but she's not here."
"Is she with Bucky?"
Sam hesitated. He didn't know this woman, though she sounded like Jenny's friend. But what did he really know about Jenny anyway?
"If she's with you or Bucky, I'm not worried. But I have information about Max Fennhoff. I'm assuming you know who that is?" said the woman.
Sam's internal radar went off. For some reason, his skin crawled at the mention of the Max's name.
"We put out an APB on him," said the woman. "An alert just went off. He's in New York, and off the grid."
"The magician?"
"No, no not magician," said the woman. "Hypnotist. He brainwashes people."
Sam's blood ran cold. Bucky. Why hadn't he put two and two together? Bucky's brain wasn't safe. "What's your name?" asked Sam.
"Nicole. Nicole Martin."
As if in answer, Sarah stood in the doorway, her eyebrows knit with concern.
"It's dicey," said Sam.
Sarah sucked in a breath and put her hand over her chest.
"Nicole Martin," said Sam. "Tell me everything." He put the phone on speaker.