Chapter 13
Tracey paced back and forth in her room. Her feet were keeping up a steady pace as she did. She might as well be wearing a rut into the wooden floor. She chewed her cheek and bit her nails as thoughts ran through her mind. It had been two days since Burnow had threatened her mom. She was scared. She didn't know when he'd call back. He most likely had her and she couldn't tell anyone! What could she do? She wanted to scream. This man was infuriating!
She needed to meet up with him. She needed to make sure her mother was safe. She needed to get the location from him and yet he hadn't called! She couldn't even call him back because of his stupid unknown number!
She needed to do something. She needed to do something to get the situation out of her mind. But no matter what she did she couldn't get her mind away from it. She couldn't paint. She couldn't go for a run. She couldn't even talk to the others without being distracted. That would make it obvious that something was wrong and she couldn't lie to them. She was a horrible liar! Especially since she lived with Clint and Natasha! And she didn't even want to lie to Natasha or even May. She could tell that the older woman had a knack for detecting liars. Any of the ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents could probably tell when someone is lying.
She groaned and flopped down on the bed face first. She took a deep breath and let out a scream, muffling it against the fabric of the comforter. She rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling with a heavy sigh. What could she do? She couldn't tell Bucky. She knew that he could tell something was up. He wasn't an idiot. He always knew when something was bothering her and she felt awful that she couldn't talk to him like she usually would do. She knew it would help the team out with the mission, but she couldn't risk Barry's and her mom's lives.
She closed her eyes and sighed again, flinging an arm over her eyes. They snapped open and she bolted up when she heard her phone start blaring out its ringtone. Practically jumping across the room, she snatched her phone off the dresser and immediately answered. She didn't want to waste any time. He had to have her mother and there was no way she wanted to get her involved in this matter.
"Hello?"
"Hello, Miss Madison," Michael Burnow greeted cheerily. It made Tracey sick. "I hope you're doing well."
"'Well' as in I've been waiting two days for a creep to give me information on where to meet him, then I've been great," the hacker said, her voice laced with venom.
She heard laughter come from Burnow. "I do love these conversations with you!"
"Get to the point!" Tracey snapped, her brow furrowing.
"I would calm down if you'd like me to continue," he said, his voice steady and calm. This man was further infuriating her. "Onto our meeting arrangements. Today, I'm going to need you to meet me at Twenty-Eighth Street near the storage units at the docks. Three o'clock."
"Three o'clock?" the blonde woman parroted, turning her head to the alarm clock on Bucky's nightstand. It was currently quarter to noon. "Why so early? That's in broad daylight. Wouldn't you rather meet at night where people can't see you like any other bad guy?" she said, sarcasm evident in her voice.
Another chuckle sounded in her ear. "Ah, Miss Madison, you're quite charming. But I see it as less suspicious. It's just two people getting together on a regular day."
"Except we're not friends and we're meeting at the docks," she said, rolling her eyes. "Definitely not suspicious."
"Don't test my patience, Miss Madison. Let's not forget your brother's and mother's lives are at stake here," Michael said, his voice going darker. "Three o'clock," he repeated before the line went silent. "Be sure to come alone."
ooOOoo
Two days had passed since Tracey found out about her dad. Two days since Bucky tried to talk to her. Still nothing. Tracey remained silent and acted as if nothing was wrong. Well, tried to act as if nothing was wrong. She was doing an awful job at it. No matter what Bucky did, she would not talk to him. It worried him. He wanted to help with whatever was troubling her, but it was frustrating when she wouldn't talk.
He had spent the past two days trying to get her to talk, but, as always, nothing. So he opted to just letting her be and spending time in the gym to think. Think of how to get Tracey to talk to him and think about the plans for the mission against Burnow.
Now, after three hours at the gym, he headed back up to his and Tracey's floor. He needed a shower. Badly. And he was hoping to spend some time with his girl. Even if she didn't want to talk, he'd at least spend the time to calm her down.
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he walked off the elevator. He smiled down at Dexter as the golden retriever greeted him. The dog's tongue hung out as he smiled up at him and his tail wagged furiously. He jumped up and down at his owner's legs. This confused Bucky. Dexter never jumped on him like that unless he came back from a long mission. Plus he always had Tracey to keep him company. That only made Bucky to believe that Tracey had been either out or she had holed herself up in her room. That latter worried.
He quickly finished petting the dog, ordering him to go lay down at his bed, before he headed down the hall to his and Tracey's room. The floor was quiet and the door to the bedroom as closed. He'd find out whether she was out or in there soon enough.
Standing outside the door he reached a hand out to grab the door knob, but froze. Tracey was in there. He could hear her talking. But to who?
He leaned forward and listening closely to what she was saying through the door. His brow furrowed when he only heard her talking. Clearly no one else was in the room. She was alone, but talking to herself? No. It had to be whoever she was talking to on the phone the other day. His brow furrowed. Who was she talking to? Whoever it was made her skittish. She always seemed frantic and persistent to not let Bucky know about them. This worried him more.
"Three o'clock?" he heard her say. He raised a brow. What was going on at three? He leaned in closer trying to hear better. "Why so early? That's in broad daylight. Wouldn't you rather meet at night where people can't see you like any other bad guy?"
Bad guy?
Bucky's eyebrows shot up. No. It couldn't be. There was no way
"Except we're not friends and we're meeting at the docks," she said. "Definitely not suspicious."
A meeting at the docks? Not shit that was suspicious.
Bucky's brow furrowed as he stood outside the door. Something was going on, his suspicions were confirmed. And Tracey was unfortunately involved. The super soldier could only guess as to who was on the other end of the phone and this made him furious.
It was Michael Burnow. Who else would it be? He was the one causing problems all over the city and for the team. Not to mention his laky was going after Tracey during the last super soldier attack. This only pegged the question as to what did Burnow want with Tracey? What was he doing to her that she wouldn't tell anyone? He was going to find out, that was for sure.
He opened the door as soon as he heard his girlfriend stop talking. He was going to find out. "Hey, Trace," he said, putting on a smile as he walked through the door. He stowed his anger and worry. He couldn't let Tracey know he overheard part of the conversation she just had.
"Bucky!" Tracey said, jumping a little and nearly throwing her phone out of her hand. Her eyes were wide as she stared up at him. "What…what are you doing here?"
"Well, for starters I live here," he said, chuckling lightly as he walked up to her. "And second I came up here so I could shower."
"Right, duh," the blonde said, laughing as she placed her phone on the nightstand. "How was the gym?" she asked, trying to make a conversation.
The metal armed man shrugged his shoulders. "It's the gym. Nothing exciting." He wrapped his arms around her waist, smiling down at her. "How's your day?"
"Um pretty good. Nothing really happened," she said hesitantly.
Bucky paused, staring at her. "Are you okay?"
"Of course," she said a little too quickly.
"Trace, is something wrong?" He prayed she'd finally tell him. Talk to him.
Tracey stared up at him, her mouth opening and closing. It looked like she was going to say something which made the super soldier anxious. Sadly, she shook her head, crushing those hopes.
"No, everything's fine."
Bucky pursed his lips and nodded his head. He put a smile on his face as he rested his hands on her waist. "How about we watch a movie?"
"A movie?" Tracey asked, her eyes quickly flickering to the alarm clock on the night stand. It didn't go unnoticed by the super soldier.
He smiled down at her again. "Come on, just one movie. It'll get your mind off your dad," he said softly, rubbing his thumb against her cheek. "You can pick it. I'll even shower just for you," he said, a grin on his face. It grew when he got a laugh out of her.
"Thanks, Sergeant," Tracey said, smiling up at him. "I'm glad to know that you're willing to shower just to get me to watch a movie."
"Hey, how else will I get you to cuddle with me?" he asked, his smile going ear to ear. He wrapped his arms around her, resting his forehead against hers. "Come on, doll. Just one movie. You've been stressed these past few days. I want you to relax."
Tracey chewed her cheek as she looked from him to the ground. She pulled on a small smile, trying to hide her worries. "Alright, but you need to shower first."
"Deal," he said, kissing the top of her head.
ooOOoo
Bucky looked down at Tracey next to him. The entire time they were watching the movie she wouldn't sit still. She fidgeted with her hands. She bounced her leg up and down. She constantly shifted her position on the couch. Eventually, Bucky had put his arm around her to keep her still. Now she was only fidgeting with her hands as she sat leaning against him.
"Tracey, are you sure you're okay?" he asked, rubbing his thumb against her arm.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she said, glancing up at him quickly before turning her attention back to the movie. "I'm just a little tired, I guess."
"You've been tired this entire week," Bucky said, his brow arching up. "You haven't even been working on your computer that late either. Baby, what's wrong?"
"Nothing, Bucky. I'm fine," she said, shaking her head.
"No you're not," he said firmly. "Trace, I know you. Something's wrong. You can tell me. You know that right?" he said, staring down at her, searching her brown eyes, praying that she'd finally open up.
"I know that. I've just got a lot on my mind about the mission," she said, looking down at her lap.
Bucky sighed and took one of her hands in his metal one. "Just promise you'll talk to me if you need some help."
"I will."
He sighed once more before turning back to the movie. He didn't believe her. She wasn't going to talk even if she needed help. Whatever Burnow had on her was keeping her silent. He didn't like it.
A moment later he looked down at Tracey when she began to get up.
"Darling, what's up?"
"I have to go out," she said, walking away and heading to their bedroom.
"Out?" His heart was pounding now. She was actually going to meet up with that psychotic man. "What do you need to go out for?"
"Groceries," she stated. "I need to get some things for dinner tonight," she called out from their room.
Bucky got up and followed. Standing in the doorway he watched as she hustled about the room grabbing her phone, keys, and purse. She was seriously going. His brow arched up in worry as he watched her, but quickly put a smile on his face when she turned around to head out.
"Do you want me to come with?" he asked.
She shook her head. "No, no. It's fine. You can hang out with Steve or one of the others while I'm gone." She stopped when Bucky didn't move from the doorway. "Its fine, Bucky. I'll be back. I promise."
How do you know that? was what Bucky wanted to say. Instead he only wrapped his arms around her and held her to him as he kissed her. He brushed some hair out of her face when he stared down at her.
"I love you, Tracey."
"I love you too, Bucky," she said, giving him yet another small smile. "I'll be back."
Her boyfriend watched her leave. He followed her through the floor until she got on the elevator. He stared at the doors for a few minutes once they closed. His lips were pursed and his eyes were hard. No way was he going to let her go see that man by herself.
ooOOoo
The wind blew around her, blowing her hair all around her face, making her constantly push it behind her ears. But it was pointless. The sound of the waves hitting against the sides of the docks and concrete walls supporting the road filled the air. A few seagulls flew overhead every now and then. The boats that were docked rocked up and down along the waves.
Tracey pulled her phone out and looked at the time. It was three.
She pocketed it again and looked around. She was by herself. No one was around. Was Burnow lying about meeting up? Was he late? Or was he planning on just grabbing her while she was off guard. She scoffed. This man was insane in her opinion. Anything could happen with him it seemed. Thankfully that kept her on her toes.
She leaned back on her right leg and crossed her arms. She chewed her cheek as she scanned the area, looking for any sign of the man. She turned her head to the right for a second time when she saw a figure walking towards her. She stood up straighter, her brow furrowed.
"Miss Madison!" Michael Burnow greeted as he walked up. He had a large smile on his face as he looked at her. "I'm so glad you came." He looked around them and the smile remained. "And you didn't bring anyone with you. I'm glad you listened."
Tracey glared up at him as his smile remained on his face. "Where's my mother?"
Burnow blinked, eyebrows raised. "Where's your mother? Did you think I actually had your mother? Oh no, Miss Madison. I wouldn't bring her into this situation unless I absolutely needed to."
The hacker's mouth fell open. "You said that you had my mom!" she yelled.
"No, I said that you need to meet me unless you want your mother's life at risk too. I never said I had her. I'm a man of my word so I promise you I don't have her," he said. He clapped his hands together. "But now that you're here we can discuss what I need of you."
"You want me to get you information from Hydra that's supposedly yours," the blonde woman said, narrowing her eyes. "I'm only here because I don't want you threatening my family."
"And that's very noble of you," Michael said with a smile. "You're not only smart, but brave. I can only imagine how proud your father must be."
"Don't you bring my dad up. You murdered him and now you're threatening the rest of my family!" she yelled, pointing a finger at him. "I'm doing this for them. Not for you!"
"Understandable," the scientist said, nodding his head. "Yes, I do need you to get me information from Hydra. You have the skills to hack into their systems. You're what I need to further my plans."
"And what exactly are they?"
"That I'm sorry to say I won't be sharing with you," Burnow said.
Tracey opened her mouth to say something, but her eyes widened when she heard a voice speak up. Just as the newcomer spoke she and the scientist turned their heads to see Bucky storming up to them.
"I suggest you start talking, Burnow," he growled. "And get away from her."
"Bucky, no! What are you doing here?" Tracey exclaimed. She looked from one man to the other. Both were staring the other down. Bucky was glaring at the scientist, while Burnow smirked at the super soldier.
"I'm not letting you deal with this psycho by yourself! How could you not tell me what was going on?" Bucky yelled at the blonde.
"I couldn't I-"
"I thought I told you to come alone, Miss Madison?" Burnow said slowly and calmly.
"She did. I followed," the super soldier said, pulling a gun out and pointing it at the man.
Michael Burnow sighed and shook his head. "I didn't want to have to do this." He turned around and snapped his fingers in a direction off to the side of them. He smiled at Bucky when one of the super soldiers walked up to them. "Have fun, Winter Soldier."
"You said to come alone!" Tracey said, rounding on the scientist.
"I told you, I never said I would. I figured one of your little superhero friends would show up," he said with a grin.
Bucky glared at the scientist, ready to attack him, but turned his attention to the super soldier who was charging at him. He quickly blocked a punch before throwing his own. He growled as he fought the super soldier. He had to get him off of him. He had to get to Tracey.
Tracey.
His eyes widened when he saw Burnow grab Tracey by the arm and began pulling her away from him. He yelled out and pushed the super soldier off and ran at the scientist. Just as he was halfway to the two he was knocked to the ground by the super soldier. He rolled on his back as he dodged a punch to his head. He jumped back up and threw a punch to the other soldier, sending him staggering back. He turned around to go back after Burnow, but his heart fell.
They were nowhere in sight. The scientist and Tracey were nowhere to be seen.
"No, no, no, no!" the metal armed soldier said frantically. He ran down the street hoping to find them behind some storage unit that lined the area. Nothing! "Tracey!"
He turned back to the super soldier, ready to fight him and get information from him. But when he did, nothing. Just like Tracey and Burnow, the super soldier vanished. Bucky stood in the middle of the deserted street, looking every which way, hoping, praying, that Tracey would appear out of nowhere.
He couldn't believe he let Tracey go! He couldn't believe he couldn't protect her. His brow furrowed and his breathing became slow and angry. He was furious. When he found Burnow he was going to rip that man limb from limb.
Ya'll probably hate me right now. I'm not sure. I guess I'll find out haha. Sorry I don't have much to say this time. Other than I hope I haven't rushed the story. I feel like I haven't, but I always have that paranoia that something has gone wrong with it.
If you'd like to ask the Avengers, Madison twins, Coulson and his team, and anyone else in the tower any questions, feel free to message me on my tumblr. If you have any prompts for Life at the Tower/AUs, feel free to send them to my tumblr, PM me here, or leave it in a review.
Thank you for the support and I'd love to hear what you guys think so far. I'm still nervous that it's not going well. Sorry if I sound like a broken record. I think every writer has these kind of doubts when publishing their work.