"I really don't give a damn what you think, Director Fury," Ross informed him. "HYDRA knows we have Athena, they've set a trap for her on this mission. Agent Danforth will avoid the trap, disable their network, the team comes home. Mission accomplished. It's not difficult to understand."

He watched Nick's one good eye assessed Ross, knowing his boss didn't trust or care for the secretary at all.

"Agent Danforth knows about this?" Fury asked.

"She does, and she assures me she can use the trap against them to help us cripple the network. We'd be a fool not to try it," Ross said smugly.

"Agent Danforth was confident, was she?" Fury pressed on.

That didn't ring true. While the young woman had a quiet confidence, he'd give her that, she wasn't brash. He couldn't imagine her making such a bold statement like that, especially to Ross. It appeared to him, in his own observations, that she was intimidated by the man. The sad thing was, Ross wasn't after her. He was after Captain America, wanting to punish him for going against the accords and dividing the Avengers for a time. Most everyone, over time, had come to understand the captain had his reasons.

Everyone but Ross.

"Yes," Ross said in a tone that told Fury he wouldn't hear any objections.

"What do you propose doing?" Fury told him.

"I propose nothing," Ross told him. "I'm assembling a squad who will take Danforth closer to the site. She'll take care of the network, send word to the team that the enemy's defenses are down. The team eliminates the base, one of HYDRA's largest and strongest holdings, and we're done. They come home and get ready for the next threat."

Fury wasn't buying it. He was too still, his expression set in stone behind the eye patch.

"Agent Danforth is not to leave the compound," Fury reminded him. "That's the agreement we made with the FBI. You going to go against them too?"

"At the moment, Agent Danforth is not employed by the FBI," Ross walked closer to the darker man. "Legally she is an employee of Stark Industries and a civilian. That means I can contract her help in this mission, Fury, and I will. She's the only one who can handle this particular trap. If she's successful, the team finishes the job and come right back."

"And if she's not successful?" Fury asked calmly. Too calmly.

"There's always that chance, Fury," Ross told him with a wave of his hand. "The Avengers face danger each mission. She knew the risks when she was with the bureau. We'll jump off that bridge if we come to it."

When they come to it.

"And if I appeal? Block your attempt to take Danforth away from this compound?" Fury shot back.

"You could try. We're leaving at dawn, so I'd recommend that you act quickly," Ross told him, spinning on his heel and marching out of the room.

Ross never saw him behind the door. Fury wasn't aware that he'd listened in either.

Acting as if he were just coming to Fury's door, Phil Coulson walked in calmly, as he always did, and came to stop in front of his boss's desk.

"You asked to see me?" Phil asked.

"I did," Fury told him. "I need you to meet with Miss Potts. I need you to get the terms and conditions of Agent Danforth's contract. I need to know precisely what Ross can and can't do when it comes Agent Danforth."

"I understand," Phil told him.

And he did. The situation, in Phil's mind, was grave. Agent Christine Danforth may be a former FBI agent and current employee of Tony Stark's, but she had great potential use in the Avengers Initiative.

But to Ross, she was a pawn on the game board. And he wasn't certain what Ross's intentions were with the young woman yet. He understood that Ross had poor intentions.

To Phil, she was also the girlfriend of Steve Rogers, also known as Captain America who'd been his hero since he was a child. Oddly, she was also the girlfriend of his best friend Bucky Barnes. While Phil couldn't begin to understand that arrangement, he was open-minded. Steve Rogers had saved the world many times over. In his mind, Rogers was pretty much entitled to what he wanted. Fortunately, he didn't ask for much.

Phil had been around since the captain had been recovered from the ice. The man had been through one holy hallelujah of a learning curve in adjusting to life seventy years later. He'd lost Peggy Carter, lived with the fact that HYDRA had captured her best friend and turned him into a deadly assassin. Steve Rogers had fought all the way up to heaven and all the way down to hell for his best friend had saved and helped rehabilitate him, in ways only a true hero could.

In the last couple of years, the only thing Rogers lacked was romantic companionship. Several of them, particularly Romanov, had tried to introduce him to possible companions. None of it went very well.

And then Agent Danforth came along. At first, she'd formed an attachment with Barnes. She'd been shot on the mission and had spent the week at the compound to recover. Anyone with eyes had seen the jealousy on Rogers. He'd been attracted to her from the start. Those who knew him well, however, knew there was no chance he'd take her away from Barnes.

In time, they became a trio even though it wasn't immediately apparent that the three of them were paramours. It had taken Phil a little time to come to terms with it. He had no prejudices. It just wasn't what he expected from his childhood hero. He accepted it now. Steve Rogers, Captain America, was still and would always be his hero.

Captain America was the reason they all had a planet to still live on. Did that mean he deserved a boyfriend and a girlfriend if that was what he wanted?

Yes. Yes, it did.

But now, as he headed for the elevator to speak with Pepper Potts, he was faced with a growing problem. Ross, in all likelihood, would find a way to rip Chris out of the compound for the mission. Best case scenario, things went just as Ross said and the team finishes the job and comes home.

Worst case scenario, Danforth would be intercepted or killed because she was pulled out of the safety of the compound.

Even worse scenario, Ross had other plans entirely for Chris. What if he meant for her to die or be compromised? Wouldn't he see it as an advantage to eliminate the young woman from the lives of Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes?

Phil believed he would.

What would it do to Steve Rogers to lose something else in a life that had taken so much from him even as he fought for others? It would also have a negative impact on Barnes which wasn't good for anyone.

The team had already been sent on a mission and were on the wrong side of Siberia. Not only did Rogers and Barnes likely not know about the plans surrounding their girlfriend, but they weren't there to protect her.

Phil's mind was made up by the time he reached Pepper's office. Tony's soon-to-be wife smiled at him from behind her desk and listened as Phil explained the situation. That lovely smile didn't stay long.

"Can he? Can Ross… do that?" Pepper wanted to know.

"That's what we're trying to determine," Phil told her.

Pepper reluctantly handed over the contract and Phil tuned everything around him out to study each word. By the end, he was internally screaming. There was no wording to block Ross, in his authoritative position, from taking Chris. A case against her removal from the compound could be made but Ross was nothing if not determined. He'd likely already decided on a loophole.

Returning the contract to Pepper, Phil excused himself to head back upstairs to inform Fury.

But Fury was limited in what he could do.

The plan formed in his head quickly. First, he'd tell Fury what he'd discovered and help him if requested. Then he needed to fabricate an emergency, so he could gain a few days off. He also had plans to make, credentials to produce. So much to do.

If Phil's instincts were correct, Agent Christine Danforth was in a good deal of danger all because she fell in love with Captain America and Bucky Barnes.

And because Captain America also loved her, he was going to do his damnedest to try and keep her safe and bring her back if it came to that.

The first day they spent long hours setting up the base on the outskirts of St. Petersburg. Under a bleak winter sky, they moved in and adjusted to the cold as they got themselves settled for the next several weeks. Steve had been told four weeks but now there were rumblings of six to seven. It was late October now. It wasn't looking like they'd be spending Thanksgiving with their girl. He just hoped they made it back for Christmas.

Tony seemed preoccupied for the next few days and with Tony, that was never a good sign. By the end of the week, Nat informed him that either she or Steve would be confronting him about it. Steve decided to volunteer. Tony was a lot less likely to get upset at Steve under pressure than he would Nat. Something about their history he supposed.

That night, Bucky had snuck into his room and they were able to give each other release quietly in a way they hadn't done since the war. While he felt a lot more relaxed as he stretched out on his cot that night, he still worried about Chris back home. He hoped that she was keeping busy so she wouldn't miss them too much. He'd been hoping they'd be able to contact her briefly over the weekend, but they were too far out of range.

When he'd gone to talk to Tony, as he'd promised Nat he would, the first warning sign that something was wrong was revealed.

"I'm fine, Cap," Tony muttered because he always said that. At first. When he saw Steve was leaning in the doorway with no intention of moving, he huffed out a heavy exhale. "Steve, everything is going to be okay. Really."

Tony never just called him Steve. Something was definitely not okay.

"What do you want me to say?" Tony was getting anxious now.

"Either something could go very wrong on this mission and you're not telling me," Steve explained. "Or something is very wrong back home and it involves Chris and you're not telling me."

His heart sank when Tony's gaze met his own. "It's a little of both."

Patiently, Steve closed the door to the room filled with whirring electronics behind him, locking the door. He'd sit there all day if he had to until Tony told him what was going on.

"How so?"

Tony came to a stop right in front of him.

"Steve, I located a huge vulnerability in the network here three days before we left. I was excited because I thought just maybe if we could break in on their network we could either cut this shit show short or avoid it altogether. But…"

"But?"

"The further I explored the vulnerability I thought I'd found, the more I realized that it was a very sophisticated trap and it wasn't meant for me," Tony said soberly. "It was left by an old nemesis of Athena's. Goes by the name of Odysseus."

Chris. They were after Chris.

"Homer, right?" Steve came up with the name.

"Yep, the Odyssey. Athena helped him at every turn after the Trojan War." Tony's gaze dropped. "Did you know that one of Athena's titles was "gray-eyed". It's something to do with olive tree leaves. Since her eyes are gray I thought that was interesting…"

Steve loved her gray eyes. No one he'd ever seen before had eyes like hers.

"Wait, she helped Odysseus?"

Tony nodded. "In Homer's story."

"But when she was with the FBI, they were enemies?" Steve was confused.

"It appears so." Tony blew out an exhale. "He has ties to HYDRA, he deals in human trafficking, but I didn't have time to do a lot more poking around."

"What did you do?" Steve wanted to know.

"I didn't give it to Chris, if that's what you're wondering," Tony said quickly, glancing back up. "I kept her busy with the compound security schematics and she did a great job actually…"

"Is that trap going to endanger our mission?"

Tony shook his head. "No, turns out it won't. It doesn't benefit us at all."

Steve waited. The part Tony didn't want to say was coming…

"Ross and his people also found it," Tony told him. "They didn't immediately realize it was a trap meant for Athena, but they did figure it all out about the time I got word to Fury. They met about the situation. Fury didn't tell me what the results of the meeting were."

Steve felt sick. He didn't know why he just had a bad feeling about it all. He trusted Fury more than he had in the past. But knowing Fury and Ross were back at the compound making decisions where their girl was concerned? He didn't like it.

"Is that all?" Steve asked quietly.

"One more thing," Tony told him, holding his friend's gaze. "Ross arranged to meet with Chris just after her meeting with me. That was right before we left for this mission."

Steve's mind ran wild with things that could mean. "You think Ross is going to try and commandeer Chris while we're here?"

"I don't know, Steve," Tony answered honestly. "I don't know what he's up to. It just left me feeling uncomfortable. Particularly with how he acted during our meeting about this mission."

Steve agreed.

"Worst case scenario," Tony told him, "she'll get stuck working with him until we get back."

Steve nodded though he very much doubted that was the worst the man could do. All he could hope was that Fury would look after her and protect her from the man who Steve didn't care for and certainly didn't trust.

A week earlier…

Chris strapped into a jet filled with S.H.I.E.L.D. agents which would have been a comfort if she'd known any of them. Maria Hill was overseeing the compound since Coulson was out dealing with a family emergency so there was no one she'd worked with before.

It was going to be okay.

It was the mantra that had filled her head since she'd been told to suit up by Ross.

Steve and Bucky had left on their mission to Siberia that morning and that had been hard enough. The holidays were right around the corner and she didn't know if they'd even be home for them. If they did make it, planning their new living arrangements over the holidays was something her heart very much wanted now.

Then she'd met with Ross who had explained that a trap had been left for Athena on the mission by an old enemy. Odysseus. If she could make her way around it, it was possible she could disable a good portion of their network. She'd get word to the Avenger team that part of HYDRA's defenses was down and it could shorten their mission in Siberia immensely. They could come home, and she'd be able to contribute. A win-win, right?

For all that she'd felt trapped in the compound, why did she feel so unsafe now? It wasn't as if she had no faith in the abilities of the men and women around her. She did. They would get her to the site in Eastern Europe and hopefully, get her back.

And Chris didn't care what trap had been set for her, she could manage it. She hadn't encountered a trap or code sequence yet she'd fallen for. Now with Steve and Bucky's lives on the line, the lives of the entire team, she had real motivation to get it done. Oh, she would.

It all just really felt off somehow. Fury had been there with Ross to see them deploy and his emotions were full of hesitancy and concern. It was very unlike the director. Ross still seemed pleased with everything in a way that confused her. Why would he be happy to help out the Avengers? Happy to be part of anything that involved her? There was something missing.

Chris would have felt so much better if either Hill or Coulson had been able to come along.

"Agent Danforth?"

Chris looked up to see an agent not a lot bigger than she was standing next to her seat. "Your comlink in place?'

Chris nodded. The agent was a young man in his early twenties she'd guess. He had friendly dark eyes and sandy blonde hair that reminded her a bit of Steve's. His emotions… Well, it was odd. She would have guessed a young agent like himself would have more bravado and eagerness. The calm of the young man was almost disarming. It was like he had the demeanor of someone much older and more mature.

"If you need anything, let me know," he told her. "Agent Santino Cole. They call me Sonny."

"Sonny Cole?" Chris asked, and he nodded. "I'll remember."

Young or not, meeting him had made her feel a bit better.

They took off not long after that and Chris had nodded off for most of the flight. Her boys had worn her out the night before, it had been amazing. When they landed, Chris tried to get herself awake and alert. She wasn't going to be able to hack anyone with a sluggish brain.

Once they were off the jet and into a formation, Chris felt a little nervous. She would have felt much better to have Steve or Bucky with her, but she had to make the most of the situation she had. Her body armor was on and secure, her briefcase ready. Chris could and would do this. For Bucky and Steve.

They hadn't walked more than a few feet away from the jet when a blast sounded from above and Chris spun around to watch in horror as the jet was blown apart before her eyes. The blast sent them all flying backward. The breath was knocked from her lungs as she realized someone had landed on her, trying to shield her.

Disoriented and struggling to breathe, Chris stared up at Agent Cole. She wanted to ask what was going on but didn't have enough wind to speak.

HYDRA soldiers came, surrounding their group and studying them closely. Her heart flew in her chest as she realized that they had been badly compromised. There was a good chance she wasn't going to make it out of this.

"There she is," a gruff voice announced.

A soldier not quite as big as her super soldiers but large and strong enough marched over, disarming her and grabbing her by the arm. He dragged her over to the soldier in charge of the unit who leaned down to look into her face. His grin was smug.

He rose against to his full height and then nodded.

"Get rid of the rest," the leader commanded.

"No!" Chris screamed.

HYDRA's soldiers fired, greatly outnumbering the ones who'd accompanied her and Chris screamed as she watched them try to fire back but eventually fall one by one as she was carried away. Scanning wildly, she looked for Agent Cole but couldn't spot him.

Agent Cole couldn't have made it. None of them would.

Real fear crept into her heart as she realized she was now a prisoner. They roughly shoved her into the back of an armored vehicle with the leader who watched her like a hawk, confiscating her case roughly. After a moment, he grabbed a walkie from his hip and spoke into it.

"Target acquired," the leader announced. "You can give Ross his money now."

Chris felt sick. Ross had sold her to the enemy? No amount of money equaled even one of the lives of the men she'd just watched get shot down next to the jet. Tears began to slide down her face.

"What's wrong, honey?" the leader said with a smirk. "You're still alive. For now. You want to stay that way, cooperate. Yeah?"

"They'll come for me, you know?" Chris said quietly, not sure she'd spoken loud enough for him to hear her.

"Who? S.H.I.E.L.D.?" the leader asked, seeming amused. "I doubt that. The story is that the jet was shot down. No survivors. No one will come looking for you. You work for Odysseus now."

Oh my God.

That was worse. They were going to tell Bucky and Steve she was dead. What would it do to them?

Her heart sank as she considered the desperation of her current situation.

She had to calm down. Chris had been trained by the FBI and she needed to remember that training. She needed to do just what the man said and cooperate. Chris would watch and listen.

She didn't care how long she had to wait. An opportunity would come along that would either allow her to escape or get word to Tony that she was alive and where she was. She just had to be patient.

And stay alive.

The third week of the mission in Siberia, Steve had everything in place for the first strike they'd planned against the HYDRA stronghold. He'd asked for clearance to proceed but had been told to hold by Fury with no reason given. He shouldn't have been too surprised when Ross showed up unexpectedly.

"Ross," Tony greeted him with undisguised disdain. "What are you doing here?"

"Just came to make sure things are on schedule," Ross told him and Steve meaningfully. "We really need to take out this base."

Steve rolled his eyes. As if none of them understood that.

"All is on schedule, chief," Tony told him without looking away from the screen he manipulated in front of him. "So if you'll excuse us…"

"It had better be on schedule, Stark," Ross growled at him. "The first part of this mission failed already and we're lucky that failure didn't compromise our arena here."

Steve narrowed his eyes at the man. "What failure?"

Ross turned to face him, his expression changing. "You didn't hear?"

"Hear what?" Steve wanted to know, already afraid of what he'd learn.

"An envoy was sent out to try to take down their network, just over two weeks ago," Ross said slowly. "They shot our jet out of the sky. We lost a lot of valuable men and women on that flight."

Steve lunged forward, grabbing Ross by the front of his tactical suit. Fear had his heart threatening to beat out of his chest.

"Who was on that mission, Ross?" Steve growled. For once, Tony didn't try to stop him. "Who?"

Ross tried to pry Steve's hands off him weakly, blinking several times before looking honestly contrite.

"Rogers, I'm sorry… "the bravado was gone from Ross's voice. "I thought Fury had gotten word to you."

"What word?" Steve spoke slowly, fighting the urge to snap the man's neck in his hands if the wrong words come out of his mouth.

"Let go, Rogers," Ross said finally.

Tony placed a calming hand on Steve's shoulder and slowly, he released the secretary. Steve's hands were shaking.

"Rogers, I'm sorry but… we sent an envoy to Prague because we'd found a vulnerability in their network. We thought. It ended up being a trap set for Agent Danforth. We sent her with a large group of highly-trained agents to the site but… the jet was shot out of the air. I'm sorry, Rogers. No one survived."

"Fuck!" Tony muttered, grabbing Steve and trying to pull him away from Ross, to keep him from killing him.

"Get out! Now!" Tony yelled at Ross who just managed to step back from Steve at the last moment and scrambled from the room.

Steve slammed his fists down on the table in front of him, yelling in range. Tony still had his arms wrapped around his friend, holding him gently and trying to calm him.

"Steve, take it easy," Tony whispered.

When the shaking started, Tony held on tighter. "He killed her," Steve's voice broke. "He killed her. What… what are we going to do? Bucky…"

"We don't know that yet," Tony told him. "I don't trust Ross any further than Chris can throw him. Something isn't right here, Cap. I don't buy it."

Tony hated the hope that flashed in Steve's blue eyes when he wheeled around and turned that pain-filled gaze on him. If he was wrong, he'd just made this so much worse. Tony knew that. But something hadn't felt right about the entire story from the beginning.

When they heard from Fury that Chris had been killed… maybe he'd believe it.

Steve finally crumbled, and Tony held on to him, trying to get him calmed. The last thing they needed was for Steve's head to be out of the game for this particular mission and it almost certainly was now.

"Bucky," Steve whispered finally. "Don't say anything to him. Okay?"

Steve pulled back and Tony nodded.

"We'll watch and listen, Cap," Tony told him. "We'll find out what's really going on."

Tony hoped he was right. Even if Chris were still alive somewhere, the fact that Ross was announcing her death probably meant that her situation wasn't good. Well, shit.