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Chapter 3: In Loving Memory Of
Steve Rogers stood a few feet from the end of the bed, looking at the man tied to it. He was trying to find something he recognized in the familiar face. Anything. But it seemed that everything he had known had been worn away with time.
The soldier glared from his place in the bed. He knew who the man in front of him was. Knew their shared history. None of it mattered though. There was absolutely nothing left of the man Steve Rogers was looking for. The twisted, mutilated thing that had exited the hell Bucky Barnes had entered, was a miscreation. Rogers needed to get that through his thick skull.
Steve looked to the floor, giving up the search. For the time being.
"I'm not happy this either, Buck." Steve looked up again, nodding at the soldier's bonds. "But this is just a pit stop. We're getting a couple things in order before we can move again."
The soldier flexed his fists, hating the reminder of the straps holding him down.
"There are…" Steve looked like he struggled with himself for a moment, unsure if he should say something. "Some of Hydra's victims are being treated here. That woman from early?"
The soldier didn't acknowledge the question. He'd nearly forgotten about her. When they had tied him down, she'd come out of nowhere, shrieking and trying to free him. She had been visibly unstable. He had shoved her back, not wanting her help.
"Do you remember her?" It wasn't so much the question, but Steve's guarded tone that caused the soldier to ever so slightly titl his head. Rogers took that as an indication that he should continue. "She was, uh... she was one of the women Hydra had. But don't worry about it, okay? We're getting out of here in the morning. I'm going to stay here with you until then."
The soldier didn't need Bucky's memories of his friend to know Rogers was lying. The other man was horrible at deception. If he had a sense of humor, he would have chuckled at the miserable act. Instead the soldier watched in a unyielding silence as Rogers settled into a chair to the right, preparing to keep vigil over the memory of his friend.