A/N: This chapter is dark and involves some loss for those of you sensitive to such issues.

Before dawn the next morning, soldiers came back into her cell, jerking her roughly up from the bed as she cried out from her injuries. Immediately, she saw one of the guards was Cole who was handling her as carefully as he could and retain his disguise. Just having him there, helped her fight off the fear that was about to claim her.

Chris went along, leaning on the concealed S.H.I.E.L.D. agent when she faltered which was a few times. Her entire body was wracked with pain and her left eye was swollen completely shut. Her upper lip was split, she'd felt that with her hands. At least they washed the blood away. The woman who fed her along with another woman she'd not seen before and a guard escorted her to a shower where they'd stripped her and cleaned her under the mostly warm water and dressed her into new to her pajamas that were old and too big. She'd hurt so badly, she didn't care who saw her body during that.

When they reached the end of the torturously long walk to end up back in Odysseus' living room, Chris cowered from him when he approached her. The bastard chuckled at that.

"That's good," he said, smirking. "You already fear me."

Chris dropped her head, praying he wasn't planning on a second round of beating her.

"Before I head to my island, I need you to help me," Odysseus told her. Grabbing her by the back on her neck in the enormous pajama shirt, he shoved her towards the wall of electronic screens until she was staring at a screen of code, trying to focus on it with just one eye. "What do you think of that, Athena?"

Chris's heart pounded painfully in her chest as she slowly scanned the code.

"I was told the world believed you dead, Athena. If that's true, then why are your friends looking for you?" Odysseus demanded. "Huh?"

His grip was painful on her neck. Chris was afraid to speak. Afraid not to speak. He had to know that it wasn't her. She'd been in a fucking, electronic-free cell for over two weeks.

Then it occurred to her. What friends? Her heart clenched in her chest. As much as she wanted her boys and the Avengers, to come for her, she didn't want anyone hurt. Not for her. Not because of what she'd done for the bureau.

"Did you read it?" his voice was too calm.

Chris scrambled to read it, scanning each line wildly until she spotted the data on him. Oh God. They'd tracked him down just for looking for her. No…

"Who is Meraxes?" Odysseus demanded. "And don't lie because I already know the answer."

No, he's just a kid. He'd been so proud of the moniker, a legendary dragon from the Game of Thrones books. Chris swallowed hard, swearing that she could taste blood in her mouth. "F-Fred… Fred Jennings."

Jerking her back, he forced her to look at him. "Who is he to you?"

Chris didn't have to lie there. "I worked with him… That's all."

Odysseus grinned a slimy grin that made her feel ill. "No one special then?"

Chris shook her head as much as she could.

"Was there anyone special, Athena?" he asked gently. "Any former lovers I can… dispatch?"

I'd like to see you try to dispatch either Bucky or Steve.

Again, Chris shook her head as much as possible. No one had ever known her to date. No one outside the compound knew about her relationship with Bucky and Steve.

Odysseus stared at her hard as if trying to determine if she were lying.

Without warning, he shoved her hard onto the floor, laughing when she cringed like a dog before him.

Pulling a phone from his pocket, he took her picture. "Look at me!"

Chris had been trying to hide her face but when he looked as if he were going to kick her, Chris did what he wanted, brushing her hair back from her face. As damaged as her face felt, she didn't even know if she was recognizable at this point. He took more photos.

Stepping over her, Odysseus stepped over her and went back to the screen, pulling up a video.

"Watch!" he ordered her.

Chris scrambled on the carpet, as fast as she was able to move with her injuries and took in the screen. A spike of fear pierced her heart as she watched the screen, seeing a man walking in the video in front of the person filming. They stopped at a door and knocked.

"No!" Chris screamed as she watched Fred answer, his eyes rounding in fear when the man who knocked raised the gun.

She couldn't look back at the screen when the gun went off. They'd killed Fred. An innocent kid…

Her soft sobs were drowned out by the sound of his laughter as she sank onto the carpet. This was her fault. They'd gotten a message out. Odysseus and his people realized someone knew she was alive, that they were being watched. They could target anyone.

What if they discovered Cole?

How could she stop this?

"Ross royally fucked up when he tried to fuck me," Odysseus told her. "You were my prize! I paid a fortune for you and now those fucks at the FBI are looking for you?"

He didn't say anything about the Avengers. Chris thought that was interesting.

Chris had assumed that Ross was the one who'd betrayed but to have that verified…

"If they don't want to end up like poor Fred, they will act as if you are dead, Athena," Odysseus said in a warning tone. "If not, I will send you back to them. One small piece at a time."

Chris's heart raced in her chest as he ordered the guards to yank her back up and drag her back to her cell. Again, Cole was the one she leaned on when the pain was great. At least she had him…

"Captain Rogers," FRIDAY announced that morning as Steve poured coffee for Bucky and himself, "my boss would like a word with you."

"Go ahead," Steve said as Bucky stumbled into the kitchen of Tony's Florida home.

A screen materialized, and Tony's somber face appeared in front of them. "Hey, Cap."

Tony only contacted them when he had news but one look at that expression and Steve knew it wasn't the type of news he wanted.

"What is it?" Steve asked quietly.

"Odysseus knows we're looking for Chris," Tony explained. "He sent thugs to Fred Jennings' place in DC. They shot him in the head."

Steve's heart clenched in his chest, remembering the fresh-faced kid that had accompanied them to Australia.

God only knew what he could be doing to their girl. Their Chris.

"It gets worse," Tony told him. "He sent a warning to Crenshaw with the Jennings video…"

Steve shook his head. "He sent them a video of Jennings being executed?"

"Yep, and he sent this…"

An image of Chris filled the screen and Steve felt tears coming on. There she was, beaten and broken in a huge pair of pajamas, cowering on the floor. Her entire face was bruised, beaten. Her beautiful lips were split, one eye was completely swollen shut.

The worst part was the fear he read in her expression. A tear ran down his face as he felt Bucky come up behind him to look. Their girl didn't deserve any of this, no matter what the bureau had her do in the past.

"What else?" Steve wanted to know all of it.

"He said if he catches anyone else trying to trace her, he'll start sending her back in tiny pieces." Tony's image was back.

"Anything from that? Was there any trace?" Steve asked.

Tony nodded. "I'll send details. I'd recommend moving fast, Cap. We know who Odysseus is…"

"Who?" Bucky's voice was tight.

"Carlos Vallejo," Tony told them. "The crazy half-American drug czar that no one has ever been able to catch."

Steve had read about the man and all his sinister acts. He tortured people, dropped them into mass graves. Some of his victims were never found. It killed him that Ross had given the woman they loved to such a sadistic bastard. Ross hated him so much he'd take it out on her. Chris wouldn't last long in circumstances like that.

The pain in Tony's expression led Steve to know that Tony also cared about Chris's situation.

"It won't take Ross long to get wind of this," Tony added.

Steve had already thought of that. He also knew that Tony and the others would want to be there but if they were going to hide their true whereabouts from Ross, Tony and the rest of them had to stay put.

"We'll be back soon," Steve told him. "You'll have to deal with him in the meantime."

"That's just fine," Tony told him. "Be careful. Take care of her… Okay?"

When the screen disappeared, Steve turned to Bucky, meeting his gaze.

"Bucky," he began, placing his hand on the other man's shoulder, "we're going to get her back."

Bucky nodded, the pain in his expression nearly took Steve's breath away. The rage running through him a dangerous thing, he trembled from it.

"He's mine," Bucky whispered.

Steve wasn't going to argue the point. Tony, as promised, had sent coordinates to his phone.

"FRIDAY, find a place for us to land in the area where we are least likely to be detected," Steve commanded, watching as Bucky stared off into space, still shaking.

Because he felt the need to, Steve put his own coffee down and slowly wrapped his arms around the man he loved, pulling Bucky back against his chest. Bucky allowed it, just a slight bit of the tension leaving his body at the contact.

"I'm leaving within the hour," Bucky told him.

"I'm going with you," Steve whispered near his ear.

"Is she going to be okay, Stevie? Is she…." Bucky's voice broke and Steve tightened his arms around him. "I want Ross to pay for this. He did this to her, to get to us… He…"

"Not us, Buck," Steve whispered. "Me. Don't you dare blame yourself for this."

"You didn't agree to the accords because of me," Bucky reminded him.

"I wouldn't have agreed to the accords anyway," Steve assured him. "Don't take this on yourself. Just help me. She's going to need you. She's going to need both of us."

A drop, one of his lover's tears, fell onto Steve's forearm that rested against Bucky's chest. "Our poor baby doll. It would have been better for her if she'd never met us at all. Steve, we –"

"No," Steve said gently. "Thinking like that doesn't change anything. She is in our lives. We both love her. And we're both going to get her through this. I promise you."

Bucky angled his head to gaze back at Steve, seeming to consider his words. They'd both been through so much. And now it was Chris and yes, she'd been taken and hurt, and it was their fault.

But Steve swore with everything in him that he'd be there for her. He would never allow her or Bucky to be compromised. Ever again.

They shared a gentle kiss, a soft moment that filled the calm before the storm.

"We will get her through this," Bucky whispered against his lips. "After everything you and I have been through, we should be able to handle that…"

Steve nodded, held him close for one heartbeat more.

"Let's suit up," Steve said then, ready now. "Let's go get our girl."

Phil Coulson was aware of several things.

It started with the fact that Odysseus had been drinking all day and had decided to delay his trip to his "island" for another couple of days. Phil's tolerance had been reached the minute the bastard had decided that he wanted Agent Danforth brought up "to have some fun with her."

He needed to get her out of there, out of the compound. Now. He would hide with her until Captain Rogers arrived.

He'd just reached his meager quarters as one of Odysseus's foot soldiers when he checked his phone. He'd been afraid that his message about the trading cards hadn't been received. It had been sent a couple of days ago and there'd been no reply. When he saw the simple return message, he smiled.

Who is this…?

It was code for "on our way". Phil grinned, shoving the phone back into his uniform and rushing around to grab what he needed. It was easy to subdue the guard posted to guard their arsenal. After he'd dropped the man unconscious to the floor, he grabbed a couple of rifles, a couple of handguns for Chris, and some ammunition. He found the tactical uniform and boots she'd been wearing when she'd been captured, shoving them into a duffel bag and he was on his way.

The keys had been trickier to get. As fate would have it, another prisoner had an episode of some type in his cell and Phil was able to pick the key ring off one of those guards, making his way quickly to Chris's cell while they were preoccupied.

The sight that greeted him when he reached her cell stopped him cold.

He found Chris huddled in the corner and the blood… At first, he was afraid she might have harmed herself. Then he realized that the young woman was bleeding but not intentionally. It was awkward because of where she appeared to be bleeding from.

"Agent Danforth," he whispered as he made it into the cell. "Are you okay? Is this your… cycle?"

She had her arms wrapped around her middle, shaking her head as tears spilled from her eyes. "No," she said in a shaking voice. "I have an IUD. I don't normally have cycles. It's just… it might be..."

Oh God. Phil's heart sank as it occurred to him that it might be another horrible side effect from the severe beating she'd taken. If she'd been pregnant…

"What am I going to do?" she sobbed.

His heart broke a little at the question asked in such a scared voice. That a young woman as confident as she had been brought to this by such degenerates…

It fed his determination.

"I'm going to get you out of here," he told her.

"No, I don't want them to hurt you," she whispered. "And they will. I can't let them hurt you for what I did."

Phil reached up and removed the identity masking technology from his face. He hoped in revealing to her that he wasn't some young rookie, she'd have more faith in him. She'd trust him.

Her eyes widened on his face once he'd pulled the technology free.

"What? Agent… Agent Coulson?" Chris looked as if she meant to touch his face, but her hand was covered in blood and she pulled it back.

"I'll explain everything when you're safe." He smiled, nodded. "Now, I'm going to get you out of here," he said again.

This time, Chris nodded. He could see the glimmer of hope in her soft gray eyes.

"Captain Rogers is on his way," Phil told her, watching that hope grow.

"And Bucky?"

"I doubt any force on earth could keep him away," Phil assured her. "I need you to stay quiet and stay behind me. You understand?"

Chris sniffled, pulling herself together. "Yes."

Phil pulled her suit out of the bag, helping her change into it as gently as he could. He winced as he watched her tear off a portion of the pajamas to stuff into her uniform to stop the bleeding. He'd also brought a black skull cap, tucking her fair hair up into it.

Once she was ready, he gave her the handguns and ammo, helping her load them as quickly as possible.

They'd just made it out of the cell and down one corridor when he heard the guards calling for him. They called him "Sonny the Yank" which had prompted many crude jokes at his expense.

Knowing they were looking for him, he'd been the one Odysseus had sent to bring Chris to him, spurred him into action.

Stopping he said, "Do your best to keep up."

And with that, they were off. Chris couldn't run fast, and he knew she was in pain. But she hardly made a sound as she gave it everything she had, stumbling along but doing her best to stay with him.

It wasn't until they'd reached the rear exit of the compound that the guards caught up with them and Phil knew a moment's fear even though he had his rifle trained on them. There were seven soldiers, four with assault rifles trained on them. He tucked Chris behind him, trying to push her out of the open door.

The leader spoke in rapid Spanish, asking who the fuck Phil was. He must have killed Sonny and here he was trying to take Odysseus' prize. The man laughed, saying that his master would probably start with her toes, sawing a big one off and mailing it to Ross.

Phil would be damned if they laid a hand on her.

Just as he contemplated his next move, Captain America's shield flew in, taking out three of the soldiers as guns began to blaze. Phil turned, shoved Chris to the ground and shielded her himself. Faster than he could think, the two super soldiers rushed in, taking out the soldiers in a shockingly low number of movements and shots.

As Phil watched, Barnes kneeled to the ground, tipping up Agent Danforth's chin with the tips of his metal fingers. Her chin quivered as she stared into his eyes.

"You came for me," she whispered, crying.

Barnes gently kissed her while one small hand rose to touch his face, leaving streaks of her blood. The captain's gaze, who'd joined them on the ground, followed the trail of blood she'd left.

He glanced up at Phil in alarm. "She's been shot?"

Phil shook his head.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Steve whispered, his hands moving over her face, her body.

Casting a terrifying glance over his shoulder, Barnes rose from the ground.

"Get her back to the jet, Stevie," he told the Captain. "Take care of her. I've got this."

Phil was afraid at that moment. The demeanor of the man before him with his metal arm and a fucking arsenal of weapons strapped to his body didn't seem like the quiet Bucky Barnes that everyone at the compound had slowly grown accustomed to.

No, Phil felt as if he were in the presence of someone else. Someone terrifying…

"Bucky," Chris pleaded, "please don't go. Don't leave…"

His expression softened as he looked back, took a knee before her again.

"Doll, Stevie's going to take care of you," he said firmly but with kindness in his eyes. "You've lost a lot of blood. We can't let anything else happen to you."

"You can't go alone… Please…"

Another kiss he pressed to her broken lips.

"I will be back," he told her, accepting no further argument. "I will see you on the jet after I take care of this."

And with that, he strutted up the hallway in a way that stopped Phil cold.

Captain America's eyes blazed with determination as he watched him march away.

"They could kill him, Steve," she cried as the Captain gently scooped her up into his arms.

"I don't think so, baby," he whispered.

Phil started to follow Barnes. A hand on his shoulder stayed him.

"No," Captain Rogers told him sternly. "With me."

Phil glanced back, the sound of gunfire and yelling had just erupted.

Following orders, Phil helped Captain Rogers get Agent Danforth back to the jet.

By the time they'd gotten to the jet, Steve had a plan in his head. Once he had Chris and Coulson safely on the jet, able to take off if things took a turn for the worse, he felt a lot better. Chris had been inconsolable about Bucky going off to fight alone and honestly, he wasn't doing well with the idea either. With Coulson's help, he'd given her a mild sedative, sending her to sleep in seconds.

"I'm never going to be able to thank you enough for this," Steve told Coulson over her sleeping form. "Thank you for staying with her."

Coulson blushed, nodded. "I wish I could have done more… I-"

"You will," Steve bid him. "Stay here. Monitor her. I'm going to help Buck."

Coulson smiled at that. He knew Captain America wouldn't be able to sit out that fight. He nodded, and Steve left, confident that their girl was safe.

His best guy?

Steve ran as fast as he could back for the compound and what he found was worse than he feared.

The trail of bodies didn't surprise him. The state of those bodies, however, made Steve pause. Limbs were bent at odd angles or ripped off, the finesse Buck had normally had as an assassin and elite soldier? Gone.

Pain streaked the floors in trails of dark red as Steve kept moving, out of the compound and into the house. When Steve finally caught up to Bucky, everyone around them on the lowest floor of the mansion was dead. All except the man Steve recognized from his research as Vallejo also known as Odysseus.

And Bucky had already started on him.

Crawling like a dog on the floor, the man cried and yelled, trying to find a way to get away from Bucky who'd already shot him in the leg and the side.

"My men will be here," Odysseus warned, "they will make you suffer… as you've… never suffered before."

The man Steve loved glanced up at him without emotion, wearing the Winter Soldier's face, before turning his attention back to his prey.

"If you had any men left," Bucky said quietly, "and you don't because I killed them all, collectively, they would have no idea of how a man can truly suffer. But you will…"

Pulling out one of his many knives, Bucky shot it through one of the man's hands, sticking him to the floor as he screamed. The man's dark eyes darted around frantically, noticing Steve for the first time. Recognition flashed in his eyes before returning his gaze to Bucky.

"I know you," the man cried. "You're him!"

Bucky stuck his other hand to the floor with another knife and Steve debated what to do as he watched the man start to bleed out on his own carpet.

"Bucky, finish this and let's get back," Steve kept his voice calm, quiet. The last thing he wanted to do was set Bucky off. He just wanted to get him and their girl safely back.

Steve had spent long months with his friend like this, triggered by things they couldn't anticipate until he'd gone back into cryofreeze in Wakanda and Shuri had supposedly removed the triggers in his mind.

Now, he found himself wondering if they were gone after all. Bucky was very much that man that nearly beat him to death on the helicarrier the day they outed HYDRA. At the moment, he was dealing with the Winter Soldier.

Bucky didn't pause, didn't seem to be paying Steve any attention as he pulled out another knife, twirling it in his long fingers.

"Buck!" Steve rushed over, grasping his metal shoulder. "Stop!"

The metal arm shoved Steve back roughly before Bucky bent down and started carving into the man on the floor whose screams rang in their ears.

Again, Steve fought to make him stop. "Stop!"

Bucky paused to snarl at him. "He. Hurt. Her."

"And she needs us. Now." Steve stared him down, the moment so intense and full of dark energy that Steve felt as if he were fighting for breath.

Again, Bucky shoved him back, making him stumble a few steps. Then he leaned down to grab Odysseus's head, twisting it quickly with a sickening crunch. He dropped Odysseus lifelessly back to the floor. Steve would get Tony's help dealing with this when he got back.

He watched as Bucky swallowed hard, gathering up his knives and swiping them on the pants of his uniform before tucking them back into place.

Silently, Bucky followed him back out of the mansion, back through the compound. Bucky was silent as a ghost as they finally reached the jet, climbing on and securing the ramp.

Phil smiled when he spotted them. "Where am I flying us to?"

"Back to Tony's place in the Keys," Steve told him. Coulson nodded and headed for the cockpit for their return trip.

Bucky helped Steve secure Chris on the medical table, frowning at the bloody towels tucked around her abdomen. Steve had wondered where the blood was coming from on top of all the bruises and cuts that littered her small body. He had to think of how they would get her medical care when they got back to the states.

And there was also Bucky. Oh, Steve knew he was in there somewhere but the emotionless mask he wore still sent chills down his spine as he watched their lover take a seat next to Chris's table. When he saw that Bucky held her hand in his flesh one, his heart squeezed a little in his chest.

Their Bucky was still in there.

Steve was determined to take care of them both. They were his. He'd be their strength.

And once he knew they were safe…

He was going after Ross.