Salvation - Gabrielle Aplin.
"I find the family the most mysterious and fascinating institution in the world." - Amos Oz.
The ride from Washington to New Jersey was a long one. Well, it was about three and a half hours. And even though Katie had been on longer drives before, it felt like the road went on forever. Mainly because she felt so anxious.
At the start of their little road trip, Katie thought she may be able to catch up on some sleep. Oh how wrong she was. Though her limbs felt heavy and Katie felt like she was getting weaker and weaker every minute, the moment she closed her eyes they would spring back open.
She had so much to think about, and yet her mind drew a blank. Really, Katie was still having a hard time figuring out what just happened. Hadn't she just been sitting in a nice, hot bath? God, what she wouldn't do to rewind to that moment again. Everything had flipped upside-down within the past 24 hours. Nick was now dead and gone. S.H.I.E.L.D. was compromised and no longer safe. She and her father were wanted fugitives. Pierce was a dick - well, that one had always been true.
Meanwhile, Steve and Natasha somehow managed to hold a conversation between the two of them. At first, they both tried to include Katie. But after only a few 'hmm's' and 'yeahs', they'd both left her to her thoughts.
That didn't mean Katie couldn't hear them. And Natasha definitely peaked her interest a little over half way to New Jersey.
"Was that your first kiss since 1945?"
"That bad, huh?"
"Kiss?" Katie's head snapped up. There was a story here. And right now, Katie could definitely use a story to distract her from everything going on - or not going on - in her head. With slightly narrowed eyes, Katie moved up to sit on the edge of the seat as she looked between Natasha and her father. "What kiss?"
Natasha had a twinkle in her eye as she looked over her shoulder at Katie. Katie gave the red-head a confused look before turning to her father. His face started to flush red and the color crept up his neck. He kept his eyes on the road, both hands gripping the wheel.
"Public displays of affection make people very uncomfortable."
Steve's tone was automatic, as if he was trying to convince himself of this fact as well as inform his daughter.
Katie's look became even more confused. Her mind was working slower than normal because of everything that was going on, on top of being tried. But after a few seconds, Kate's mind made the click.
"Wait, wait you two…" Katie looked from Steve to Natasha. Her father continued to look straight ahead while Natasha gave her a small shrug and a 'no-big-deal' look. Which, okay, if really wasn't. But on top of everything that was going on, added to the fact that this was her father and best friend… Katie ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "As if things weren't weird already."
"Anyways," Natasha looked back at Steve, a small smirk making its way on her face. "Was it your first kiss since 1945."
"It was not my first kiss since 1945," Steve glanced over at Natasha, the blush gone now. His tone giving away that he was done with this conversation. "I'm 95, not dead."
Both Katie and Natasha gave Steve a look. Because yes, Steve obviously wasn't dead. But really, Katie had no idea who her father would plant a kiss on. He seemed so busy with S.H.I.E.L.D. and educating himself. And yes, Katie wanted her dad to be happy and move on. But she knew he hadn't done that at this point yet.
"So there's no one special?"
Katie turned her look to Natasha. Was this really the time and place to talk about this?
"Believe it or not," Steve said. "It's hard to find someone with the same shared experiences."
Katie huffed in agreement as she sat back in her seat. Wasn't that the truth. Katie could back that up with experience herself.
Steve gave her a questioning look in the rearview mirror. Katie tried to return it with a smile, but she could tell it looked forced. Therefore she let the smile fall and just turned to look out the window at the trees blurring by.
Katie stopped listening to her father and Natasha. She may seem like she was taking this all harder than Steve and Nat. And maybe she was. Katie didn't know. Natasha was good at hiding how she felt. That was her job, it was what she did. And her father, Katie learned over the year that her father sometimes let his emotions get in his way. But he also did whatever it took to get the job done. Therefore, if pushing past his emotions was what it took to get to the bottom of this and keep people safe, that was what he would do.
Katie, on the other hand… This was her life. Yes, she spent a number of years being as far away from S.H.I.E.L.D. as possible. But, S.H.I.E.L.D. was the only thing she had left of her life. It was the only thing she'd had left that was always going to be there. Now it was gone.
After a while, the truck finally started to slow down before coming to a stop. Katie wasn't really sure if she'd fallen asleep or not. Because one minute they were on the open road with the sun shining through the windows. The next, they were traveling down a dirt road, the sun setting. Maybe she'd been in a big daze the whole time, because she didn't feel rested or like she slept.
A soft sigh left Katie's lips before all three stepped out of the truck. Katie looked around with narrowed eyes. It didn't look like much at all. Natasha had her phone up in front of her face. Steve grabbed his shield out of the truck before slamming the door shut. Katie suddenly really wished she hadn't left her gun at Nick's place in her panic. She felt bear and defenseless without her weapon.
"So," Katie stuck her hands in the pockets of her hoodie as they slowly walked forward. "This is it?"
"The file comes from these coordinates." Natasha look around with a cryptic eye as they all stopped in front of the gate.
Katie suddenly felt like her was hit up a wall of bricks. How? How did she miss this? Of all places. She looked through the gates with wide eyes, her heart jumping in her chest. Sure, the last time she was here had been in 1968. But this place… Katie knew this place. Almost better than anyone.
"So did I."
Katie glanced up at her father. Only she found him looking at the old, faded sigh pinned on the gate with a longing look on his face.
CAMP LEHIGH: U.S. ARMY RESTRICTED AREA
Natasha stepped forward and pushed the gate open with a squeak before slowly stepping forward. He phone was still held up. Steve made to follow after her. But he stopped and placed a hand on Katie's back in a fatherly way. Katie glanced up at him, and this time she didn't even try to force a smile. She was sick of faking smiles.
Steve watched Katie for a few moments. He then gave her a comforting rub on the back before slowly following after Natasha, walking into the Camp.
Taking a deep breath through her nose, Katie stepped onto the Camp grounds. And she was hit with a wave of emotions. The place still looked the same. Really, nothing had changed in all those years. Hell, the place even smelled the same.
Katie walked along the ground, the sun getting lower. The hoodie was unzipped at this point, but she didn't care if she was cold. Because with every step, she could hear the ghostly voices of her family. Her little brother's excited yells. Her little sister's squeals of laugher. Her stepfather's deep chuckle. Her mother's loving voice. Uncle Howard's sarcastic remarks. And the sound of a slap being delivered from her mother to Howard's head whenever he said something inappropriate in front of the kids. Katie almost laughed now that she pictured it.
Everything came back to her clear as day. She remembered playing outside on the hot summer days with Uncle Dum Dum. She remembered 'helping' Uncle Howard in his lab when she was older. She remembered playing Ches's little assistant as a kid. It all came back to her. And it wouldn't leave.
The sun was almost completely gone at this point. The three were silent the whole time as they walked around the in closed space. Each of them was looking for something different.
Eventually, Katie met up with her father and Natasha again, next to one of the old, faded buildings.
"This camp is where I was trained." Katie caught Steve say to Natasha as she got closer. But she didn't comment. She was too lost in her own thoughts and emotions to have the energy to really say anything at the moment.
Katie knew what this place meant to her father. And to her mother. When she was just a kid, her mother told her this was where she and Steve met for the first time. And when Katie got older, Peggy told her the full story and what this place was really used for.
"Change much?" Natasha asked. She was walking around with her phone still up.
"A little."
"Got anything Tash?" Katie asked as she came to a stop next to her father, who seemed lost in thought at the moment. She didn't really think Natasha would find much, if anything. Not here anyways. Not in the spots she was looking. But if Katie didn't already believe it, these past few hours taught her anything was possible.
"Nothing." Natasha dropped her phone to her side. "This is a dead end. Zero heart signatures. Zero waves. Not even radio. Whoever wrote the file most have used a router to throw people off."
"But it definitely came from here." Katie questioned, crossing her arms. She was pretty sure not many - if any - people knew about this place still. Or what it meant. Let alone come here still.
"Definitely." Natasha gave a sharp nod as she started typing on her phone.
Then, Steve suddenly started to make his way towards the one place of the in closed space that Katie had been avoiding. Because just being inside these gates was making her feel this overwhelmed. God knows what she'd feel like it she went over there.
"What is it?" Natasha narrowed her eyes slightly before following after Steve. Katie let out a sigh that was a cross between frustration and exhaustion before chasing after them.
"Army regulations forbid storing ammunition within 500 feet of the barracks." Steve started. Katie almost snorted. Of course. She was stupid to think her father wouldn't notice this. "This buildings in the wrong place."
Natasha just looked confused and a bit skeptical as they got closer to the building. She looked like she was about to say something before Katie cut her off.
"He's right," Katie shared a look with Natasha. The three came to a stop in front of the front door and Steve used his shield to broke the lock. A feeling a dread and anxious started to take over Katie. "And I really hope the files weren't sent from in here."
"Why?" Steve gave her a questioning look. But Katie just glanced at him from a moment. She then placed her hand on the door handle, a whole new wave of emotions hitting her as she let out a soft breath.
"Because this is basically my home."
June 9th, 1963.
Katie pushed open the heavy, metal doors. She stepped over the threshold, her black and white polkadot dress swagging just below her knee while her long blonde, curly hair was pulled up with a headband. She didn't normally wear dresses, but she liked to dress up every now and then. And what better time than when you were spending bonding time with your step-father.
Jack liked to take Katie out once in a while. Just the two of them. It started when Katie was about ten and he wanted to get to know her better before he married her mother. Katie didn't mind through. She loved Jack. His was one of the many father-figures Katie had. And over the years, Katie learned to go from looking at Jack as a friend, to looking at him as a father. Of course, he'd never replace her actual father. But he wasn't trying to either.
"I'm going to head to your mother's office," Jack came up from behind Katie and place a hand on her back. "You coming?"
Katie nodded and the pair made their way down the stairs, leaning to the main floor. Katie couldn't help but smile as she was met by the sights and sounds that she grew up with and loved so much. People were sat at their desks, working away, talking about different missions. The sound of papers rustling echoed off the wall.
It was only just mid-day, and the little outing Katie and Jack were on was cut short when Dugan showed up. They were out for lunch at the restaurant they always went to when he walked in. Peggy had apparently sent him because Lydia had gotten sick.
The days when Katie and Jack went out were the days that Peggy took Robert and Lydia to S.H.I.E.L.D. with her. Through they didn't really know what S.H.I.E.L.D. was - they were only seven and five years old - and Peggy didn't want them to think they had to be involved in S.H.I.E.L.D. when they were older, she still wanted them to know the place and feel comfortable with it.
However, they should have known five-year-old Lydia was under the weather and not fit to be at S.H.I.E.L.D. for the day. All morning, she was complaining she was to warm and tired, despite getting a full night's sleep. And she wasn't her normally bubbly self. She didn't even squirm while Peggy was doing her hair.
So Peggy sent Dugan to inform Jack that he had to take his daughter home. They couldn't have all of S.H.I.E.L.D. coming down with the flu.
Katie and Jack made their way past the desks. Katie smiled, waved, and said hi to the agents as she walked by them. They then turned towards the left and made their way down the hallway. They walked past a few doors before coming to one that had 'Agent Peggy Carter' written on the front.
Jack pushed the door opened before stepping in. Katie followed right behind him.
Peggy's office was simple and had everything a office normally had. The desk was on the wall opposite to the door with two chairs in front of it, which was where Peggy sat. She looked up when she heard the door open, a small smile on her lips.
"Hi mum," Katie sent her mother a smile.
"Sorry to cut your day short." She apologized, standing up and walked around the desk.
"It's fine, love." Jack stepped farther into the room as Katie closed the door behind them.
"Daddy?" Lydia spoke up upon hearing her father's voice.
Katie looked to the right and saw her little sister lying on the couch. She was wrapped in a blanket with her teddy bear tucked into it with her. She was paler than normal. And though her dirt blonde hair was in two pigtails, a few strands where stuck to her forehead.
"Hi princess." Jack walked over to his daughter, kneeling down in front of her. "How are you feeling?"
"Yucky." Lydia spoke softly, pulling her teddy closer.
"I know," Jack moved the pieces of hair from her forehead. "Me and Katie are going to take you home, okay? And we're going to help you get better. How does that sound?"
Lydia gave a small nod. She looked so tired.
"Okay." Jack smiled. He placed a kiss on her forehead before standing up. He walked over to the desk and started to talk to his wife. And Katie took this time to move from her spot by the door.
"Hi monkey." Katie walked over to her baby sister.
"Hi kitty." Lydia replied weakly.
"Not feeling so good?" Katie gently lifted Lydia's head and sat down on the couch, placing her sister's head on her lap. She started to play with her hair lightly as Lydia shook her head.
"Can you make me chicken noodle when we get home?"
Katie smiled down at the little girl. "I think I can."
"With crackers?"
Katie chuckled. "Of course. They're the best part."
Lydia looked up at her big sister through her long eyelashes. She gave Katie a weak smile. "Thanks kitty."
Katie returned the smile as Lydia lied back down. She shivered slightly, so Katie wrapped the blanket around her tighter.
"Where's Robert?" Katie heard Jack ask her mother. It was only then, as Katie looked around, that she noticed her brother was missing.
"With Howard." Peggy replied. But as if on cue, the door opened and in walked Chester Philips. With a very disappointment looking Robert Thompson walking behind him.
"I take it he wasn't with Uncle Howard." Katie commented. But a look from her mother had her thinking maybe it wasn't the best thing to say.
Growing up, Katie was always told that she got her knack for trouble from her father. Which was true. But as she got older, Katie realized it also came from her mother. And this fact was proven when Robert got older and he too started getting into more and more trouble.
"Found him wondering around the halls," Ches explained. "Heading towards rooms he shouldn't be in."
"Robert." Peggy stepped forward, her arms crossed. "What did I tell you?"
"To stay with Howard." Robert looked down at the ground, his hands in his pockets.
"Yes," Peggy raised an eyebrow at him. "I told you, you either had to stay in this room or with Howard until your father got here."
"But I got bored," Robert looked up, trying to explain himself. "Howard started going off on some new… things for his expo. I didn't understand what he was saying, and he was so caught up in it, so I left."
"Robert," Jack stepped in. "If you're going to be coming to the office with your mother, you need to listen to her rules."
"Sorry mum." Robert turned to the ground, looking up at his mother through his lashes.
"Well," Ches spoke up, causing everyone to turn to him. "As touching as the family moment is, I have work to do."
"Thank you, Sir." Peggy said and Ches gave her a nod in return.
"Bye Ches!" Katie called out as he was walking out the door. However, he stopped just long enough to send Katie a look. Katie sent him a big smile before he left, closing the door behind.
Katie didn't care what Ches said. She knew he liked the nickname.
"Come on" Jack picked up Robert's and Lydia's jacket. "Let's get our sick girl home."
Jack handed Robert his jacket. He then walked over to Lydia and started helping her get in hers when the door swung opened again.
"Peggy!" Howard came running in. "I can't find… Oh."
Howard's eyes were wide open when he entered the room. His face was flushed and panicky. However, his shoulders dropped when his eyes landed on Robert. "Never mind."
"Howard, I asked you to watch my son." Peggy narrowed her eyes at him. "Not bore him so much he leaves and has to be returned by Phillips."
"Sorry Peg," Howard rubbed the back of his neck. Katie couldn't help but roll her eyes.
"Please tell me this isn't what you were like when you watched me?" Katie sent Howard a smirk as she stood up from the couch.
"No," Howard returned the smirk. "I was worse."
"Okay," Katie turned around and found Jack lifting Lydia in his arms. "Time to get this one out of here."
They all bid their goodbyes to one another. Katie gave Howard a hug and her mother a kiss on the cheek. Peggy told them she'd be home in a few hours as she gave Jack a kiss, then they were out the door.
With Lydia in Jack's arms, Katie held onto Robert's hand as they walked past the desks once more and up the stairs, the S.H.I.E.L.D. symbol on the wall behind them.
"This is S.H.I.E.L.D." Natasha stated once they walked down the steps and Steve flicked on the lights.
"Where it started anyways," Katie said softly. As she looked around at the place that she could have once called home, a shiver made its way up her spine. The place that was filled with warmth and life once upon a time was now cold and dead. "I was four when mum, Ches and Uncle Howard decided to start up S.H.I.E.L.D. and they needed a safe place to do it. So they made this the main office and disguised it as an ammunition bunker."
The three continued their search in silence after that. But the place was cleared out of anything that could have been important. There wasn't a book or file anywhere in sight, let alone any sort of technology.
They kept close to each other as they looked around. Steve then came to a door and opened it. Katie felt like she was breaking a rule as she stepped inside. There were a number of rooms she wasn't allowed to enter at S.H.I.E.L.D., and this was one of them.
Steve had his shield ready as they walked further into the room. But he lowered it when they found three pictures pinned on the wall. Framed portraits of the organization's founders. A photo of Howard Stark, Peggy Carter, and Chester Philips.
Katie had seen the photos many times before. They were hung up at S.H.I.E.L.D.'s base in New York and in a room at the Triskelion. But it still felt like a punch in the stomach when she looked at them.
Steve took a deep breath through his nose before walking father into the room. The two girls shared a look before following after him, when he suddenly came to a stop in front of one of the bookshelves.
"Katie." Steve looked at her suddenly with slightly narrowed eyes. "Did you spend any time in this room?"
"No," A confused look fell upon Katie's face as she answered slowly. "I wasn't allowed in this room. It was where they kept most of the files. And because I wasn't an agent or anything, I wasn't allowed to look at them. So I stayed out of this room."
"What is it?" Natasha stepped forward, obviously knowing something was off.
"If you're already working in a secret office…" Steve pushed the bookshelf apart. It slid open and revealed a shallow hallway with an elevator at the end. "Why do you need to hide the elevator?"
Katie shared a look with Steve. Her heart started to pick up slightly. They made their way down the hallway towards the elevator where Natasha used her phone to get the code. She punched in the numbers and the elevator suddenly came to life. Cautiously, the three stepped inside.
The ride was quick and short, giving no one really any time to think about what they could find. When the door slid open, they all stood on guard. The lights were very dim, but Katie could still make out the outline of what looked like some type of technology. Maybe it was a secret lab belonging to Uncle Howard? God, Katie hoped so.
Slowly, they left the elevator. The doors closed behind them as they walked farther and farther into the room. Suddenly, the lights came on one by one. A number of old looking computers came into view.
"This cannot be the data point." Natasha broke their silence as they made it to what seemed like the main computer. "This technology is ancient."
She was right. The room was filled with old computers. Ones that would never be able to support the type of files that where on the flash drive.
That's when Katie say it. In a room full of old, run down computers was a flash drive port. One that looked basically brand new. Just sitting on the desk.
"Tash." Katie nodded her head for the red-head to come over. She then pointed to the flash drive port before sharing a look with Natasha.
Steve came up next them as Natasha pulled out the flash drive and placed it in the port.
The old school camera that was placed on top of the computer suddenly moved. Katie started to feel sick to her stomach as green front came up on the scene and the computer spoke.
"INITATE SYSTEM?"
"Type yes?" Katie wish it sounded like a statement, not a question, as she shared a look with Natasha.
She typed in YES before suddenly smiling as the computer cranked up.
"'Shall we play a game?'" Natasha joked before turning to Steve."It's from a movie-"
"I know. I saw it."
"Of course you did." Natasha turned to Katie and gave her look.
"What? I like WarGames." Katie shrugged before crossed her arms over her chest. Whatever Natasha was going to say next was lost however, when an accented voice started to fill the room.
"Rogers, Steven. Born, 1918. Rogers, Katherine. Born, 1946. Romanoff, Natalia Alianovna. Born, 1984."
Katie turned towards the screen at the sound of her name. What was once a black screen now showed a green outline of what looked like a face, the camera moving once more.
"This has to be some weird recording." Katie narrowed her eyes at the monitor, the wheels in her head spinning as she tried to figure out what was going on. She almost jumped in surprise when the computer spoke up.
"I am not a recording. I may not be the man I was when the Captain took me prisoner in 1945, but I am." A picture of Arnim Zola suddenly came up on the screen and Katie's eyes narrowed even more.
She knew of Zola. She'd even seen him a few times in person. But they'd never spoken. Peggy had never allowed it. Not that Katie complained or even wanted to talk to him. She didn't like him as a kid and she didn't like him now.
"You know this thing?" Natasha asked Steve, who gave the computer one last look before he started to walk around.
"Arnim Zola was a German scientist who worked for the Red Skull." Steve explained. "He's been dead for years."
"First correction, I am Swiss. Second, look around you. I have never been more alive." Zola said. Katie looked around. The room was ten times bigger than she thought it was, filled with computers and databases. "In 1972 I received a terminal diagnosis. Science could not save my body. My mind, however, that was worth saving. On two hundred thousand feet of data banks. You are standing in my brain."
Now Katie really did feel sick to her stomach.
"How did you get here?" Steve questioned.
"Operation Paperclip." Katie sighed softly, running a hand through her hair as Steve gave her a look.
"What?"
"After World War ll, S.H.I.E.L.D. recruited German scientists with strategic values." Natasha explained.
"Really," Katie added. "It wasn't the most brilliant idea."
"They thought I could help their case," Zola spoke up. "I also helped my own."
"HYDRA died with the red Skull." Steve protested.
"Cut off one head, Two more shall take its place."
"Prove it." Katie stepped forward. Her stomach had started doing flips at this point, her heartbeat going up.
"Accessing archive" Zola said before bringing up old footage of the Red Skull, Captain America, and the S.H.I.E.L.D. founders. Steve, Katie, and Natasha watched and listened as Zola explained everything. Everything about S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA. And with every word he spoke, Katie felt more and more weak in the knees. She watched in horror. Listened as her whole world, her whole life, her history and childhood was turned upside down. Everything she knew, everything she thought she knew, it was all turning out to be one, giant lie. She started to feel light headed. And she couldn't stop the tears from swelling in her eyes as more pictures flashed before them.
"That's impossible," Natasha protested. "S.H.I.E.L.D. would have stopped you."
"Accidents happen." Zola pulled up a newspaper picture. The pictures of Howard and Maria Stark when they died in the car accident. Follow by a picture of Nick.
"Oh god." Katie clamped a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide with unshed tears.
"HYDRA created a world so chaotic that humanity is finally ready to sacrifice its freedom to gain its security. Once the purification process is complete, HYDRA's new world order will arise."
Katie couldn't take it anymore. She couldn't stop the tears as they leaked out of her eyes. The giant room they were standing in suddenly felt like a broom closet. Katie's breathing was fast and hollow. She didn't want to believe any of it. She wanted it to be all a lie. But as it turned out, her life was the lie.
Katie turned around and ran out of the room as the sound of Steve's fist smashing the screen filled the room. She jumped in the elevator and the doors closed behind her. In no time the doors opened again. Katie stepped out of the elevator and walked out of the hallway. She heard the elevator go back down as she entered the file room again.
That's when her eyes landed on the three pictures of the wall, and she lost it. She couldn't hold everything in any longer. Drawing her fist back, she threw it forward and punched the wall under the pictures with all her might. A crack made its way up the wall as it shook. The pictures almost fell off the wall and there was an indent where Katie's fist had hit it. A sob wrecked her body. Then another. And another. The tears were rolling down her face at this point as Katie placed her forehead on the cool wall, right under her mother's photo.
That's when she felt it. She wasn't really sure what it was, but she felt something. Something was wrong. It was almost like time stopped. Katie slowly lifted her head off the wall. Her sobs were gone now, but her eyes were red and her face was wet from tears. Katie looked around slowly with narrowed eyes. Then everything happened at once.
The sound of her name being yelled.
The facility exploding and going up in flames.
The darkness as she flew backwards.
What would you guys say if I told you that we won't exactly be following the Winter Soldier storyline anymore...?
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, so much is about to happen in the next few chapters and I'm so excited to share it all with you!
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Also - and I really hate to bring this up - but the number of reviews per chapter have dropped, a nice bit. Please, don't be scared to tell me what you think or even just saying hi! I loving hearing what you guys wanna see happen and/or how you're liking the story so far :)