Let me first start off with a huge apology. I am so so sorry it has taken me this long to finally update this story and this chapter. A lot has happened in the last year or so (I still can't believe it's been that long T_T) I'm sorry! To give context, I graduated from college, moved across the country, got a full-time job, then started a master's program. I have not allowed myself to write but it has never been far from my mind. Thank you to everyone who favorited, followed, and reviewed this story! I love every notification I get and it reminds me to come back to this story. Thank you for being so supportive! I wrote the majority of this chapter, Steve's POV, months (has it really been years?) ago and finally finished it with Charlie's POV. I will not make any promises but here's to hoping this will kickstart me into writing again. Thank you for your patience, and I hope you like this chapter!
Steve kept his hands clasped in front of him as he stood with Bucky in front of the doctor. The list of Amy's injuries were…extensive to say the least and with each one announced, Bucky crumpled into himself. Steve noticed the miniscule hunching of his friend's shoulders, the way his face gave the slightest twitch.
"…and she-uh Mrs. Thomas arrested in surgery but we were able to get her back. She's stable now and you'll be able to see her soon-" the doctor didn't finish speaking before Bucky turned and walked away. Steve held up a hand to cut the doctor's stammering off and watched Bucky head into the bathroom. He'd follow in a minute.
"And Sam?" Steve asked. The doctor's eyes flicked between Steve and the men's room door before taking a deep breath.
"Broken femur. We reset it and put it in a cast. He's awake in a private room, 308. A-and just so you know Captain, no one knows you're here. We tried to keep this as quiet as possible," the doctor reassured. Steve forced a smile on his face and stuck out his hand.
"Thank you, doctor. I appreciate everything you've done." They shook hands and the doctor nodded farewell. Steve let out a long sigh. They did it. They got Amy out with minimal injuries to the team. Sam getting hurt did not sit well with Steve but he was glad it wasn't more serious. Steve walked to room 308 and knocked lightly.
"How are you feeling?" Steve asked.
"Like sleeping for weeks," Sam replied. Steve scoffed and walked into the room. Sam was lying on a hospital bed, cast around his broken leg. He had a few other cuts and bruises but other than that, he was all right.
"They'll send you home tomorrow and then you can take all the time you like."
"Wow, that sounds like so much fun."
"Seriously, take the time off," Steve insisted. Sam nodded and then frowned.
"You're not seriously going back are you?" he asked. Steve shrugged.
"Kraus was the top gun in that facility. With him gone, the others will have scattered and hopefully left some documents."
"Okay, but do you have to go now?"
"Yeah, for that possibility that they're destroying documents instead." Sam shook his head and sighed. Steve turned to leave.
"Have you been looked at?" Sam asked.
"I'm fine, Sam. Nothing time won't heal," Steve said. Sam raised an eyebrow. Steve ignored it.
"I'll see ya, Sam." Steve waved farewell and closed the door. He was about to check the bathroom when he saw Bucky talking to a nurse. Steve walked over to hear the end of their conversation. Amy was in room 310 and Bucky could stay for as long as he wanted. The nurse left with a few backward glances. Bucky didn't say anything as he recognized Steve. He went to the room immediately and all Steve could do was follow. Amy…still didn't look great. She was pale, looked fragile and there were several monitors hooked up to her. Steve could hear Bucky's breathing increase. He put out a hand, thinking to comfort his friend, when Bucky moved to the bedside chair. By the look in his eyes, Steve knew he wasn't going anywhere until Amy woke up.
"You okay here, Buck?" Steve asked, more for himself than Bucky.
Bucky didn't answer, only nodded.
"I'll be back in the morning."
Steve didn't wait for an answer. He walked to the roof after making sure the doctors and nurses didn't need anything else and everyone was safe. He found Natasha leaning against the chopper, picking at her nails.
"Everyone get their band-aids?" she asked without looking up.
"Yeah. You ready?" Steve asked. He pushed away the creeping exhaustion and rolled his shoulders.
Natasha hummed and went around to the other side of the helicopter. Steve climbed into the cockpit as Natasha started the machine up. He stared straight ahead, trying to keep his mind focused. He hadn't gone into the compound thinking to take it over. He'd wanted to but Sam had convinced him not to. Now, it fell into his hands.
The helicopter took off effortlessly and Natasha guided it back to the compound. It wouldn't take more than a few minutes. They had been lucky to be close to a hospital for Amy. Steve closed his eyes and tried to shift the pieces in his mind into place. Amy. Kraus. Amy killing Kraus – he'd have to think about that later. Bucky. The machine. The way Bucky had nearly lost it. The way Amy brought him back like Steve never could. Natasha and the helicopter, the closed cockpit door. Steve snatched onto that thread and opened his eyes.
"Do you know Bucky?" Steve asked, looking at the red head next to him. She didn't react, not visibly. He had a feeling she'd tensed though. He didn't have the capacity to be subtle right now.
"Did you read his file?" Natasha answered.
"It was Russian. Why?"
"Because that's mainly where he was kept."
"And you? Is that where they kept you?" Steve asked. He flinched internally at how that came out. He just didn't have the energy to sugar coat it. Natasha looked at him slowly, unreadable. Steve held her stare. She smiled slowly, showing perfect white teeth.
"Everything you need to know is in the file I gave you. Read between the lines," Natasha said, voice silky. That was Steve's cue to back off. He wanted answers. He was tired of the secrecy. But he wasn't about to break Natasha's trust either. He sighed and looked out the window.
"I hate reading between the lines."
"And yet you're so good at it."
They finished the remaining minutes in silence. Natasha landed the helicopter on top of the compound and they both tensed. Nothing moved. Steve got out first, shield up, senses alert.
No one was here.
Natasha walked up behind him and crossed her arms. Steve stood up from his protective stance and swung his shield on his back.
"Where do you want to start first?" Natasha asked.
"Control room. We need all the files that are left," Steve said.
"Okay. You do that. I'll play peek-a-boo."
"Natasha - "
"Relax. I'm going to find the hidden documents. Keep up, Rogers." Natasha sent him a smirk but it didn't reach her eyes. Steve sighed and followed after her. She split off without a word down a corridor and left him to find the control room.
Steve walked through the halls, listening for any signs that someone was still here. It was silent. He walked through a familiar hallway and stopped. The bodies were still here. He walked through them, checking for pulses and consciousness. The few he found alive he kept unconscious and tied them up.
"Natasha," Steve said into his phone.
"Yes?" came her sigh.
"If you find anyone alive, leave them alive. I want to question them."
"Alright. Don't forget to take out their cyanide teeth." Steve heard a scuffle through the phone and then a scream. Right, the cyanide. He hung up the phone and went back to the agents he tied up. Quickly, before his stomach said otherwise, Steve pulled the cyanide teeth and kept walking.
He rounded a corner and came to the hallway with Kraus. The man was still there, lying in a pool of his own blood. Steve could still hear the gunshot ring out and see Kraus fall. He had expected Bucky not to listen. He hadn't expected Amy. Steve took a deep breath and shook his head. He knelt down and looked through Kraus' pockets, finding pictures and a key. There were three pictures; one of a young boy in front of a house, a man around Amy's age next to a car, and a couple in Africa. Amy looked like the couple in the last photograph.
Steve stood and found the control room, which the key opened. He couldn't really blame Amy for killing Kraus. But he wasn't necessarily happy with it either. She wasn't the fight he needed to pick though. Looking around the room, there were a lot of other fights to pick. Steve rummaged through the papers, grabbing the ones that caught his attention. He cemented the maps into his memory and any other papers that littered the walls. Anger was simmering in Steve's head, keeping him focused on getting what he needed.
"Natasha. Any documents that we already have or don't need, burn it. I don't want them knowing what we have."
"Got it."
"Who's the best person to call to protect someone?" Steve asked. He collected all the documents and maps into a heap on the floor. Now for a lighter.
"Maxwell. He works for Stark now. Call both."
"Got it." Steve hung up the phone and rummaged through the drawers. Finally finding a lighter, he set the papers aflame and called Tony.
Charlie was actually sweating in the kitchen tonight, and it wasn't just because of the oven. Not only had their air conditioner stopped working but the back window had gotten jammed too, making the kitchen and back area a furnace. And now this.
Charlie wiped her face with a towel hanging from her apron and stood looking at the oven with her hands on her hips. It had died suddenly, with her half-baked cookies inside and was starting to make some awful noise. She flipped the power switch and the noise petered out into a whine before going completely silent. Her gut clenched painfully and she rolled her bad shoulder, hoping to distract herself. It wasn't what she thought – couldn't be that – there was no reason to –
"Lottie? You got those fresh batch of cookies, yet?" Nana called through the serving window. Charlie took a deep breath and joined Nana in the front.
"Sorry everyone, but the oven just gave out. No more cookies or baking tonight," she announced. There was a collective groan throughout the diner and a few of the regulars tipped their hats in farewell. Nana frowned at her, a silent question in her stance. Charlie just shrugged and shook her head.
"Oh now that's just awful," a woman at the counter said in a southern drawl. She was average height with large perfectly formed, brunette curls framing her face. Her lips were formed into a pout but her eyes – her eyes made Charlie pause. They were a light grey, speckled with blue and it felt like they were watching Charlie's every move.
"I was so looking forward to tryin' your famous cookies, people talk about them all over town!" the woman continued.
"Sorry ma'am, can't do much if the oven decides to quit. Try coming in later this week and we should have everything up and running by then." Charlie smiled, pushing down the feeling of unease. Her stomach was not liking this mix of paranoia and fear.
"Oh, but I'm only here for one more day." The woman sighed heavily and then perked up.
"Say, I'm travelin' with my brother who's an electrician, and well he can fix jus' about anything. I could ask him to come by and see if he could fix it tonight!" She grabbed her phone from her purse and started to open the screen.
"Well now that-"
"That's really not necessary," Charlie said, interrupting Betty. The older woman started and gave Charlie an odd look. Charlie kept going, a smile plastered to her face.
"Not only am I one of the best bakers in town, I've gotten pretty good at fixing things by myself. Don't worry, I'll have this oven working in no time."
"Oh it's really no trouble, I'll just call him-"
"No, please, let me fix my oven. I'd hate to ruin your guys' vacation by putting you to work, plus it's a handy skill for me to learn. Really, I can do it," Charlie insisted. The woman pursed her lips and for a second looked angry. Was that Charlie's paranoia? Then the woman shrugged and put her phone away.
"Well if you insist. By the way, do you know of any good hotels nearby? I'm not sure I can stand being alone with my brother in tiny car for one more minute," the woman asked. Charlie could feel Nana start to say something but Bentley beat her to it.
"Nearest hotel is another twenty miles up the road, can't miss it." He took a slow sip of his coffee without looking at the woman. The woman's eyes widened in surprise and she looked between him and Charlie.
"Is there really nowhere closer for us to stay? I don't know if we have enough-"
"Nope, not unless you want to invade a private home. The gas station down the street is open until ten." Bentley still had yet to look at the woman. Charlie waited, barely breathing. Please don't say anything Nana, she thought. The woman sighed dramatically and started pouting again.
"Well shoot, that puts a bummer on my night. No cookies and another car ride with my brother, ugh. Have a good night y'all." She got up from the counter and sauntered to the door, passing Nattie on the way. Nattie paused and cocked his head as she walked by, looking confused. Charlie slowly let out the breath she'd been holding when the door chimes finally fell silent.
"Now what in the Sam Hill was that all about? Lotte, you don't know a thing about fixing ovens and Bentley, you know our house is always open to stray travelers," Nana said, hands on her hips. Bentley slowly looked up at Charlie.
"What are you going to do, Charlie?" he asked quietly. Charlie looked at the ground and shook her head.
"I don't know."
"I think it's time-"
"Are you two going to answer my question?" Nana interjected. Charlie looked up at her guardian, mind going blank as to what to tell her. She didn't want to scare Nana, not like she was scared. And what if it all turned out to be Charlie's paranoia and nothing was wrong?
"Didn't that woman come in earlier today?" Nattie said, walking up to the counter.
"Did she?" Bentley asked, turning towards Nattie.
"I was sure she did. She asked for five cookies, which I thought was an unusual number, and then-"
"She asked for cookies? But she was just complaining about not having any cookies!" Nana said, exasperated. Charlie's fingers were going numb. It was just her paranoia, nothing was wrong. Just her paranoia. Nathan held his hands up in surrender at his wife's tone.
"That's what I remember. That and she asked if any celebrities came by often. Said, she'd heard a rumor that Captain America had stopped at our diner."
Charlie's heart rate picked up.
"What did you tell her?" she asked. Her voice felt small and – it had to be her paranoia. Nothing was wrong.
"Well, of course I said that was silly. I told her not many people made it through our little town, let alone celebrities. I wasn't about to give up our boy's past whereabouts to just anyone, now was I?" Nathan explained. Charlie took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She rubbed her temples, trying to slow her heart rate.
"Charlotte-"
"I don't know."
"You need to call him, now."
"I don't know, Bentley!" Charlie snapped, eyes flashing open. Bentley was watching her, eyes hard and knowing.
Something was wrong.
Nana and Nattie were silent, watching the two of them. Charlie took a deep breath. Took another one.
"Nana, please don't call anyone to service the oven. I can fix it."
"But Lotte-"
"The oven's broken? First the AC and window, now the oven. We have to call somebody in-"
"No." Charlie stared at both of her guardians, making them go silent. "I can fix it. Just-just give me some time. I can fix it." When they just stared at her, Charlie turned on her heel and fled to the kitchen.
"Listen to her. Don't call anyone," Charlie overheard Bentley saying. "I'll take a look at the window and AC tomorrow."
"Bentley, what is going on?" Nana stage whispered. Bentley answered her with another question.
"Why would a woman come in looking for Captain America when no one else knew he was here?"
The situation finally seemed to hit Nana and Nattie and they went completely silent. Charlie couldn't take it. She took one look at the half-baked cookies on the counter and went out the back door, to the escape of the cool night air.
Let me know what you think! Also, be sure to check out Aulizia's story "Broken Pieces" to get more juicy details about Amy and Bucky. I love love love her characters and the way she writes Bucky, so definitely give it a read! :)