Chapter 31
Bruce and Ruby relaxed in the hot water after their second love making session of the day. The silence between them was comfortable, but soon Ruby's incessant curiosity got the better of her.
"Can I ask you a question?"
The man across from her visibly tensed, "what?"
"How did you get like this?" she asked before she could talk herself out of it. "The Hulk, I mean."
"Hubris," he smiled sadly. "The same reason I let Stark talk me into the disaster that created Ultron."
"I don't see you as that kind of person."
"Most of the time, I don't either, so I'm either really good at hiding it, or really good at self-deception."
Ruby didn't respond, leaving him to decide if he wanted to continue or not.
"I was working on the effects of Gamma radiation on the human body and there were indications that instead of cell destruction, that certain levels of exposure led to accelerated cellular growth and repair. I theorized that with the correct catalyst and delivery system, Gamma radiation could lead to cures for cancer and degenerative neurological disorders."
He fell silent and stared at the clouds floating overhead. Ruby watched as various emotions crossed his face.
"What should have happened is that I submitted a research proposal to test this theory on cells cultured in petri dishes and slowly moved on to rats, then primates. But apart from one incident, I couldn't replicate what I had seen previously. My research was stopped at the petri dish level. I refused to accept the failure." He looked down from the sky and met her eyes, "I knew, just knew that what I had seen was not a fluke."
Realization dawned for Ruby, "it wasn't an accident. Your exposure."
"No. I tested my serum on myself." He laced his fingers behind his head as he slumped forward, "I was such an idiot."
"No," she crossed the pool and knelt in front of him. "You're a genius. You're driven. But you're not an idiot. If you were, then there's many more just like you. Do you realize that at least five Nobel laureates experimented on themselves? The doctor who proved yellow fever was transmitted by mosquitoes died proving his theory. Even your beloved Captain America allowed himself to be used as a guinea pig for an untested super-soldier serum."
He peered at her, the pain obvious in his eyes.
"You have a lot of company, Bruce. Are you going to call Steve Rogers an idiot?"
"Of course not, but that was different. He ended up a hero and I'm just 'Hulk smash!'"
Ruby giggled at his imitation, "you don't really sound like that. But," she grabbed his hand and hugged it to her chest, "he could have easily ended up just like you."
He gave her a weak smile, "where have you been all my life?"
Ruby grinned and started to answer when an explosion shook the mountain, making the water they were in splash over its banks.
"What…," Ruby gaped and stood up to leave the pool, only to be stopped by Bruce and pulled back down into the water. "Wait, we have to go! That could be Hydra coming after us!"
"Shh," he whispered. "If that's hydra, then they don't know we're here. We need to stay until we figure out what's going on."
"What do you mean? They know we're here! They just bombed the cabin."
"Which means they think that's where we are. Or were."
She saw what he was getting at.
"How did they know we were even here?"
"They could be tracking me," he guessed.
"But you've been here for almost a week. Why attack now?"
"Maybe they're tracking you?"
She thought about it. "They did seem to always know where we were in Colorado. So, what's the commonality?" She thought frantically. They were almost naked in the pool, having come up here to retrieve the clothes they left the night before. "Why did they bomb the cabin instead of this pool?"
"Maybe they just know the general area and guessed we were in the cabin?" He suggested.
She looked up at the sky overhead. "We're sitting ducks if they fly over."
"Yeah, we're only safe here if they're relying on infrared imaging."
"If they were using IR, they would have known we weren't in the cabin," she pointed out.
"Unless it was just a tactic to flush us out."
"So, which is it? Were they just guessing or trying to make us reveal ourselves?"
"What's your gut tell you?" he asked.
Ruby chewed her lip as she thought through their options. Subconsciously, she reached for the pendant and froze when her fingers didn't find it.
"My pendant's gone," she said to herself.
"You left it at the cabin…," he trailed off.
"I was wearing it the entire time in Colorado."
"And they always knew where we were."
"I left it in the cabin and they just blew it up."
"Ruby," he asked sharply, "where did you get the necklace?"
"It was a gift," she whispered, "from Izzy."
He wrapped her in a tight hug, "I'm so sorry, Ruby."
She pushed against him, forcing him to release her, "no, there's got to be another explanation. There's no way Izzy is with Hydra. We've been friends for years."
The distinct whomping of a helicopter rose over the noise of the wind through the trees around them.
"We have to move," she said, shelving the suggestion that her best friend was a Hydra operative.
"The cave?"
"Are there any other places to hide?"
"Not that I've found since I've been here."
"Then it's the cave. I hope the bats don't mind company."
"It's not the bats I'm worried about," he told her as he grabbed their clothes. "Let's go."
She grabbed his arm before he stepped away, "wait. Put your shoes on first."
"Why?"
"If they are using IR, then they'll be able to track us by our footprints. They'll be hotter than the surrounding ground, especially since we've been in this pool."
Bruce nodded, "good call. If we go deep enough into the cave, the rock will block our heat signatures."
Hurriedly, the pulled on their shoes, then scrambled through the trees towards the cave as the helicopter closed in. The cave wasn't far, but it was farther down the slope of the mountain than the spring and they had to be careful to stay under the cover of the trees. By the time they reached it, the helicopter sounded like it was right on top of them.
"If they're using IR, they can't help but see us," Ruby panted.
"There's nothing we can do now except hope they aren't," Bruce said over his shoulder as he entered the cave ahead of her.
Maybe it was the adrenalin coursing through her, but the cave didn't smell nearly as bad this time and she wasn't bothered by the bats overhead that squeaked and chirped in protest at being disturbed for the second time today. Together they edged pass the low passage with the animal den, going deeper into the mountainside than they had earlier. Soon the light from the entrance faded and they were left in complete darkness.
"Is this far enough?" she asked softly, aware that the walls of the cave would reflect and amplify her voice.
"Yeah, probably."
He stopped and turned around in the tight space, pulling her into his arms again. Suddenly aware of the drastic drop in ambient temperature compared to the pool they had just left, Ruby snuggled gratefully into his embrace. They stayed that way as they waited to be discovered by their pursuers.
Without light, Bruce had no way of knowing how long they waited in the dark. The only indication he had was the cramping in his shoulders from hugging Ruby to him. He shifted slightly to relieve the burn and Ruby stirred in his arms.
"Are they gone?" she whispered.
"I'm not sure. I haven't heard anything for a while."
But the cave not only hid them from Hydra, but also prevented sound from reaching them.
"I think I should go look," he loosened his hold on her and stepped back.
"Oh, no you don't," he could hear a hint of alarm in her voice. "You're not leaving me alone in here."
"What if they're still out there?"
"If they catch you leaving this cave, then they're going to get me too. It's not like I have anyplace to run."
"Good point," he conceded. "Lead on."
"I didn't say I wanted to be first!" she squeaked. "Besides, you're more bullet proof than I am."
"Oh, so that's how it's going to be. Send me out first to get shot?"
"Of course," he could almost hear the smile on her face, "I'm not stupid."
He leaned down to kiss her on the lips but missed and got her nose instead. She giggled.
"Shh," he whispered.
"If you guys don't stop giggling and come out, I'm going to come in and shoot you myself," a voice from outside the cave called out.
He froze in place, all playfulness forgotten. Ruby pressed back against him, her hand groping until it found his to clasp.
"It's too late to be quiet now," the voice chastised them. "Get your asses out here."
"Wait," Ruby whispered, "I know that voice."
Bruce shook his head and smiled ruefully, "it's Bucky."
She relaxed against him, breathing a sigh of relief.
"If you don't hurry up, we're going to leave you here. Maybe you'll get lucky and Hydra won't come back," Bucky teased.
"Alright," Bruce called out. "We're coming out. Give us a sec, we're crammed up in here pretty good."
"No, we're not," Ruby muttered.
"He doesn't need to know that."
Soon, they exited the cave into the bright afternoon sun. Squinting, Bruce clasped Bucky's hand, "thanks for coming for us."
"When we saw the smoke from the cabin, we thought we were too late," Bucky told him.
"Well, we weren't inside when they hit it."
"Good thing. You might have survived, but she probably wouldn't have," Bucky nodded towards Ruby who was gratefully taking a bottle of water from one to the SHIELD agents.
"Yeah, about that," Bruce lowered his voice. "We have a problem back at the compound."
"That was going to be my line," the other man frowned. "We have a mole. Maybe more than one."
"I have one name for you: Izzy."
"Are you sure? Fury's top candidate is Ruby."
Bruce felt his anger rising, "no! It's not her."
"There's some pretty damning evidence."
"I don't care what you have," Bruce growled. "It's not her."
Bucky shrugged, "if you say so. It's not my call."
Bruce closed his eyes and breathed deeply, "let's head back and get this cleared up."
Ruby glanced nervously back and forth between the two men as they sat in silence in the back of the Quinn jet. Something was wrong. Even a blind person could feel the tension in the air. Bruce was teetering on the edge as he held her hand. She watched the muscles in his jaw tighten and release repeatedly as he clenched his teeth.
She was on edge also. The thought that Izzy was a Hydra mole was repugnant, but it was the only explanation that made sense. Until she took it off in the cabin, that pendant had hung around her neck 24/7 since her friend had given it to her. The only opportunity Hydra might have had to put a bug in it was while she was unconscious before she woke up on the helicopter heading for Colorado. That was an awfully short time for them to remove the pendant and fabricate an exact replacement that contained a bug.
Arthur Conan Doyle was correct when he said 'once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbably, must be the truth, she thought glumly.
When the Quinn jet touched down, Bucky stood and stepped over to Ruby.
"I'm sorry, Ruby," he held up a pair of cuffs, "but until you're cleared, you have to be treated as a threat."
She gasped, "what do you mean 'cleared'?"
"I'll let the Director explain everything. I'm to take you directly to him."
"The hell you are," Bruce snarled and stepped in front of her to block the soldier. "I will take her to see him. Without handcuffs."
She heard Bucky sigh, "you're to report to Dr. Bennett for an immediate brain scan."
"I will after this mess with Ruby is taken care of."
"Look, I don't want to fight you, Banner. I promise I will take care of her. No harm will come to her while she's with me. I'm with you. I don't believe she's the mole, but it's important to rule her out beyond all doubt."
Ruby stepped around Bruce to look up at him, "he's right. Fighting this will just make me look guilty. And you need to go see the doctor and make sure you're okay," she leaned her cheek against his arm and gave it a squeeze. "I trust him. He's the one that helped me after the incident at the pool." She held up her cast.
Guilt flashed across his face and he started to shake his head.
"No, Bruce," she said firmly. "There are times when I need you to protect me. This isn't one of them. I need to face this on my own."
He smiled and leaned down to kiss her, "you're amazing."
"I know." She lifted her chin and nodded to Bucky, "let's go." She motioned to the cuffs, "you won't need those."
Proudly, with her head held high, she left the jet, leaving the two men to follow in her wake.
Her bravado lasted until she was seated across from Fury in his office. Bucky closed the door and leaned back against the wall behind her. Apparently, she might be a threat to the director of SHIELD. She took a drink from the cup of water Bucky had given her right after they entered the building. The hot spring combined with the rush through forest and the wait in the cave had come close to dehydrating her.
Fury observed her silently, watching her squirm under his gaze. Just when she thought she couldn't take it any longer, he tossed something across the desk at her.
"Care to explain this?"
She leaned forward to look at the object. It was her bracelet.
She frowned as she picked it up and examined it, "I don't understand."
Fury picked up a remote and the monitor on the wall to her left displayed an aerial view of the compound with little red dots.
"This is a map of the headache outbreak," Fury explained. "See anything interesting?"
Ruby pushed herself up and stepped over to look more closely. The majority of the red dots were clustered around two locations: one in the hangar and one in the dormitory. Her frown deepened.
"That's my room in the dormitory."
"And?"
Her hand went to her throat. "That's our lab," she whispered.
She turned back to Fury. "You found the cause?"
"You're holding it."
She held up the bracelet and examined it closer. One of the charms was damaged; crushed by some force. She paled and her legs threatened to give out under her. Staggering back to her chair and collapsing into it, she stared blindly at the bracelet as hot tears spilled down her cheeks.
"Izzy," she whispered miserably. If she had any doubts before, they were gone now.
"What?"
"It's Izzy," she raised her head to look at him. "I think there was a beacon or something in the necklace she gave me also. That's how Hydra was able to track us in Colorado and how they found us today."
"Do you have any proof?"
She shook her head. She had nothing but the knowledge that it wasn't her. The jewelry had belonged to her and there was no way to prove Izzy had given them to her already bugged.
"Here's the problem I have, Ms. Beaumont." Fury leaned back in his chair and looked oddly unhappy. "You were the one working on top secret files stollen from our server. The institute you worked at, funding by your father, was a hive of Hydra activity. Banner wasn't attacked by Hydra until he discovered you with the stolen formulas. By your own admission, the necklace you had was a tracking device so Hydra could track your, and consequentially Banner's movements. Finally, a bracelet you wore was the cause of an outbreak of neurological disorders and drove Banner to lose control and run off by himself, making him vulnerable."
He leaned forward and looked at her intently, "is there any other way to explain all this other than you being with Hydra?"
She shook her head, "I know it looks that way, but I'm not with Hydra." Even to her it sounded weak.
Fury stood and paced behind his desk, "fortunately for you, it's too neat. Too obvious. And I don't like neat and obvious."
She blinked. What was he getting at? She was having trouble focusing on what he was saying and the room was tilting to the side. She must have been more dehydrated than she though as she took another drink of water.
"I think everything is connected to you, but I don't think you're responsible. Bucky agrees with me."
"You, you don't think…," she started, but let the question die.
"We pulled all the surveillance over the last two weeks and some interesting patterns have emerged," Fury continued. "There is a lot more going on here than meets the eye."
"I don't, don't…," she tried again. Why couldn't she seem to be able to put together a coherent sentence?
"But you'll understand that we want to be positive you're telling the truth," Fury leaned over her with a crocked smile. Or was the room crooked and his smile was straight?
"You drugged…," she slurred as she slid out of the chair towards the floor. The room tilted alarmingly as arms caught and lifted her. She would have protested, but her head lolled against Bucky's chest and her eyes refused to focus.
"Take her to the room we have set up," Fury's voice came through a thick fog as if he was miles away.
"What about Banner?" Bucky's was equally as distant. But wait, wasn't he carrying her? Or was she flying high above the building?
"The doctor will keep him long enough for us to find out what we want to know."
Bruce was barely holding onto his anger as he paced back and forth in Fury's office. What he really wanted to do was punch the director in his smug face, but Bruce knew what would follow and that wouldn't help matters any.
"I can't believe you would do this!" he shook his head. "No, not really, I should have expected something like this from you. You live and breathe deceit." He turned to glare at Bucky, "but you. You know what it's like to not have any control of your life. Not to mention that you promised, PROMISED, she would be safe with you!"
"She was never in any danger," Bucky replied calmly. But Bruce could see his eyes darting around when he though no one was watching. He was calculating the distance between Fury and the exit and anything that could be used as a weapon in the office. He was preparing for Bruce to lose control and to have to face the Big Guy. Bruce was sorely tempted to test his theory. He was pretty sure the Hulk could take him, but not without a lot of collateral damage, so he took a deep breath and sat down.
"Are you at least satisfied now?" he demanded.
"Yes," Fury nodded. "She's not the mole. We didn't think so, but that wasn't good enough for me when the safety of my people is at stake. You can appreciate that, can't you?"
A tiny part of his brain did understand, but the rest was still livid about their treatment of the woman he cared for.
"So, what now?"
Fury's smile sent a shiver down his back, "I've got a plan."
