Authoress Note: Welcome to Chapter 14 of Always. Thank you to those who have left reviews and kept up with this story. It really does mean a lot to me that you guys are enjoying it. I hope that you continue loving this story. There is only one chapter left after this. Without further ado Chapter 14. Enjoy!

Chapter 14

Peggy slowly stepped inside of The Whip & Fiddle Pub through the make-shift door.

Steve sat at the bar drinking a beer beside Dorothy who was drinking from a whiskey glass. Steve took a breath hearing the soft footsteps of Peggy. "Doctor Erskine told me the serum wouldn't just work on my muscles and my reflexes - he said it would work in my cells, creating a protective system of healing, of regenerating. Which means…" He turned to Peggy, with somber eyes. "I can't get drunk. Did you know that?"

"Your metabolism burns three times faster than average. He thought it could be one of the side effects." Peggy said softly.

"Probably didn't want anybody stealing his schnapps."

"It wasn't your fault."

"You read the report?"

"Yes."

"Then you know that's not true."

Dorothy finished off her whiskey and raised her hand for another. Tears slid down her cheeks and she wiped one away with the back of her hand.

"You did everything you could."

"I got in over my head. Bucky waded in and pulled me out, just like he always did. And the one time he needed me to return the favor, I couldn't."

Dorothy gripped the glass in her hands tightly remembering what Steve had told her. It made her heart clench in her chest tightly.

"I doubt it's that simple."

"All I had to do was hold him."

"Did you believe in your friend? Respect him?"

Steve looked up at her. "Of course."

"Then stop blaming yourself. Allow Barnes the dignity of his choice. He damn well must have thought you were worth it."

Steve stared at his beer. "As soon as I finish this, I'm going after Johann Schmidt. I'm going to burn out every hole there is for him to hide in. And I'm not going to stop until he and all of Hydra are captured or dead."

Peggy nodded her head and then took his beer, drinking it down for him. "Let's go then."

Dorothy looked over, finishing her whiskey rather quickly. She slowly got up to her feet. "I'm going with you."

Steve looked over at her with concerned eyes.

"They took everything from me. It's the least I can do."

CAFACAFA

Phillips stood at the head of the table looking rather grim.

Steve, Peggy, Dorothy, Howard, and the rest of the Howling Commandos surrounded him.

"Johann Schmidt belongs in the bughouse. He thinks he's a god and he's going to blow up half the world to prove it." He stabbed his finger at a map of the United States. "Starting with the U.S.A."

"That's insane." Duggan said, shaking his head.

"So's Hitler, but he's gotten pretty far with less than Schmidt has." Peggy pointed out.

"But Hydra would need millions of men, fleets of transport. They'd have to be fed, fueled." Falsworth said.

Howard shook his head lightly. "Schmidt's working with powers beyond our capabilities. He gets

across the Atlantic, he'll wipe out the entire eastern seaboard in an hour."

Steve stared at the map, eyes drawn inevitably to New York. "Every able-bodied man we have is either here or in the Pacific. Our borders are wide open."

"How much time have we got?" Jones questioned softly.

"According to my new best friend, under twenty-four hours." Phillips explained.

Dorothy pursed her lips together into a thin line. Of course that wasn't good. They were going to have to race against the clock.

"Where is he now?" Steve questioned.

Phillips pointed to a spy photo of a mountain. "Hydra's last base is here, in the Alps…" He drug his finger down. "Five hundred feet below the surface."

Morita got closer to look at the map. "What are we supposed to do? It's not like we can just knock on the front door."

The room suddenly went silent and everyone turned to Steve.

"We'll go in and make a distraction." Steve said thinking.

"Could be very insane, but it will work." Dorothy said thinking. She looked at Steve and then nodded her head. "Hydra's technology may be good, but ours is just as good."

Steve nodded his head firmly agreeing with what Dorothy was saying.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

This is the end of Chapter 14. I hope that you enjoyed this part of the story. There is only one part left and honestly I'm quite sad that I'm ending this book. I've had so much fun writing this story it's not funny. I can't wait to start the next part of Stark Dynasty. Which will be with Agent Carter Season 1 and 2 together so it won't be so drawn out. Unless you guys think I should do it the other way. Please leave a review and let me know what you think. Until next time.