Anna hated physical therapy. Each session made her feel weak, as each time she left in pain with little improvement on her ability to move her arm. Spending just a few hours out of the sling the previous day left her arm practically useless, which was increasingly frustrating. Because of the swelling, she had to spend the first twenty minutes of her session in an ice bath for her shoulder. Anna hated physical therapy.
"I was thinking, what are the chances of you clearing me with the sling?" Anna asked as Bruce recorded the physical observations he'd made of her arm before the ice bath.
"Anna, I don't think that's a good idea," Bruce answered, glancing up at her from the notebook. "Maybe if you were going back to work, but this is Hydra we're talking about."
"It could be another advantage." Anna insisted, causing Bruce to shoot her a disbelieving look. "Seriously. James was working with me yesterday on defensive maneuvers I can use with the sling. Plus I'd have a gun to defend myself. Hydra won't expect me to fight back if I'm injured. It could be used as another surprise tactic."
"It's still risky Anna. I could talk with Tony about it, but we both know you'll never get James to agree with it." Over the past week and a half that Bruce had had to observe James with Anna, it was blatantly obvious how he felt about her. She was the only person he truly trusted, and her safety was everything to him. He was extremely protective of her, and as such he hadn't been thrilled with the plan in the first place. Bruce was wary of the plan as well, but there was little he could do to talk down Tony, let alone both Stark siblings. The best he could do was make sure Anna was ready for whatever Hydra might throw at them.
"You just focus on Tony, and leave convincing James to me," Anna insisted, not wanting to give up on her plan. If they waited too long to put it into effect, Hydra could orchestrate an attack on the Tower. It was imperative that they keep the control in their hands. She knew it would probably be at least another week until she could manage to go sling free for any real amount of time. Which meant she needed to get everyone on board with her going out there with the sling. If Bruce tackled Tony, Anna could manage James. Once those two were on board, willingly or reluctantly, the others would follow.
…
As soon as Anya had left for therapy, James headed down the stairs to Steve's floor, where he found Steve sitting on his couch with his shield by his feet. They hadn't set a time to meet, as Anna didn't know exactly when she'd make her way down to the lab for therapy. However, it was known that it would be in the morning, leading to Steve preparing earlier so he'd be ready whenever James arrived. Both had gone the neutral route when it came to clothing, instead of their uniforms. The less attention drawn to them, the better.
"We can hit the gym on the way down, grab some weapons just in case, before heading to the garage." Steve spoke first, rising from the couch and approaching Bucky where he stood by the elevators. He was fine armed with just his shield, but he knew Bucky would be more comfortable with a weapon in his hands, preferably a gun. At least, he had always felt better busting into Hydra compounds with a semi-automatic and pistols as backup.
"You don't think the shield is a little too conspicuous?" James asked, eyeing the spangled shield as they loaded onto the elevator.
"No more than your metal arm," Steve retorted, causing James to glance down at his arm. It had been a while since he'd felt the need to hide his arm. More often than not he found himself forgetting it was different at all. He hadn't even thought about it when dressing that morning. Now that it was brought to his attention, James was forced to admit Steve had a point. His mechanical arm was just as noticeable as Steve's shield.
The elevator stopping at the gymnasium level prevented James from having to come up with a response. Instead, he led the way back towards the armament, eager to pick out what he needed and get on their way. As much as James would have loved to pick one of the semi-automatics, he ended up grabbing a pistol and a couple knives from the arsenal in the gym. They would be easier to carry around without drawing too much attention. The point of this excursion was to find any clues Hydra might have left behind, while drawing the least amount of attention to themselves as possible. It would be ideal if no one realized they had even left.
Steve didn't grab anything, claiming he was fine with his shield. Although James disagreed, he kept his opinion to himself as they made their way to the bottom level. The garage was filled with more cars than James thought strictly necessary for one man. Even if that one man was ridiculously rich. Since it was Steve who would be driving, James let him choose which car they would take. He'd known Tony longer, so he had a better chance of picking the car that would have the least chances of Tony noticing it missing. Not that any of Tony's cars were ideal for flying under the radar. Steve ended up settling for a black four door, the only one that didn't scream billionaire's car.
Pulling out onto the street, it didn't take long before they hit traffic. It seemed there was always traffic in New York, no matter what the hour. When they had driven from the airfield, Jarvis had helped them find alternative routes. This time, they were on their own. If they even tried to use Jarvis, it risked giving their plan and whereabouts away to Tony.
"Anya said she'd be in the lab with the doctor until twelve. That gives us a little over three hours." James commented, both to reassure himself and Steve that they had time, even with the traffic.
"How's she doing?" Steve asked as he navigated the turned onto the bridge connecting Manhattan to Brooklyn. He hadn't seen Anna since the gym yesterday, when she first got her sling off.
"She's frustrated with her shoulder and is dead set on moving her plan into action. Even though she's not ready." James grumbled, staring out the side window as he subconsciously flipped one of the knives. Anya's stubbornness could be endearing. Just not when it involved putting her life on the line.
"Are you sure it's not you who's not ready?" Steve commented, remembering all the times Bucky had said similar things about him, both in his pre-serum and post-serum days. In fact, when he'd tried four times to join the army, Bucky had been less than supportive of Steve's goal. Even after he transformed, Bucky hadn't liked the idea of him and war. Bucky simply didn't like those he cared about putting themselves in danger, no matter if they were ready or not.
"She's not ready. And I think it's ridiculous that the doctor is telling her she might be." James insisted. He saw the way she would wince when moving her left arm, even when she tried to hide it. She favored her left arm, and would brace herself whenever he'd adjust his position on the bed. Anya's pain was far from being controlled, meaning she wasn't ready to be fighting.
"I know, I was there when you told her as much. I never thought I'd see the day Bucky Barnes said the wrong thing to a girl." Steve couldn't help but chuckle at the memory. He'd never seen Bucky so clueless when it came to girls.
"What are you talking about?" James asked, turning towards Steve. He had stopped tossing the knife, pocketing it in its sheath as he waited for Steve to clarify.
"Back in the day you were the smooth talker and I was the one who had no idea how to talk to a girl. Now I'm the one who has to tell you when you say the wrong thing to Anna." Bucky had always known what to say to get a girl to blush and smile. His confidence attracted the girls, and his manners and his dance moves had them swooning.
"I was good with girls?" If James focused enough, he could vaguely make out outlines and shapes: girls faces or dresses. And Dancing. The images had that in common, they were almost always dancing.
"You had a different date just about every Saturday." That didn't sound like being good with girls. If James was so good with them, then why did he never get one to stick around? Wasn't that the point of it all? To find a girl that would stick with you for more than a night, or a weekend.
"I don't want a different date every week. All I want is Anya." James stated blatantly, pulling the knife back out.
"I've noticed." Steve commented recalling how Bucky had socked him in the jaw, twice, because of Anna.
They were silent the rest of the drive, until Steve parked the car a block down from where Hydra had ambushed Anya and James. James was the first one out of the car, and would have continued on if Steve hadn't stopped him. He was still used to solo-missions. Working with a partner was new to him. The past hadn't caught up to him enough for him to be comfortable with working in as a team. Still, he would try. Pointing Steve towards the building the shots had come from, James made his way towards the alley where the fight had occurred. Those two areas had the highest probability of something being left behind from the fight.
James scoured the alley, but the only sign that Hydra had been there were the bloodstains from their fallen agents. They had cleaned up after themselves well, just like James had expected. Still, he couldn't help but feel frustrated and disappointed. Making his way back out of the alley, James pushed his way past the people on the street as he headed towards the building he had sent Steve to. Perhaps he would have more luck there.
"Did you find anything?" Steve asked when he noticed Bucky climbing over the side of the roof from the fire escape.
"Nothing," James grunted, making his way across the roof to where Steve was, keeping his eyes peeled for anything of interest but coming up empty.
"Me neither." Hydra hadn't left anything more than scuff marks from their scope. Not even the shells from the bullets were left behind. Steve's report didn't stop James from surveying the area himself. It was on his second rotation of the roof that something clanged to a landing by his feet.
"That's something," Steve muttered, before grabbing James and pulling him behind the shield. Shortly after that, the grenade exploded, pushing against the shield but not breaking the barrier. "And you wanted me to leave this at home."
James ignored the second comment, jumping up and scanning the nearby buildings for their attacker. Grenades didn't just fall from the sky. Someone had thrown it. When the smoke cleared, movement to his right caught his attention. James didn't hesitate. With a running start he launched himself off the side of the building and onto the roof of the one adjacent to it. The roof where Anya had been shot. Rolling to his feet he took off after the man on the roof, who was headed towards the fire escape. Pulling his gun out, James was just about to fire when Steve's shield whizzed past him, knocking the man to the ground. It gave James enough time to make it across the roof and grab the man before he ran again.
Yanking the hood off of the hostile, James eyes narrowed dangerously when he saw who had thrown the grenade. Brent. Clicking the safety off the gun, James raised it until the barrel pressed against Brent's forehead. To his immense satisfaction, James felt Brent's pulse quicken in fear as beads of sweat formed on his forehead. As if James would really let him get off so easy. Moving the gun to his arm, James made sure to make the shot just graze Brent's upper arm. It was enough to sting like hell but not enough to do any real damage. Pocketing the gun, James pulled out one of the knives. More damage could be done with a knife without being lethal.
"Breaking Anna was the most fun," Brent commented with a sick smile once he realized James wasn't going to kill him. "Watching her fight it at first, before giving up and accepting it. Like the whore that she is."
James saw red at Brent's comment. He wasn't sure what he meant by half of it, but James knew enough about Anya's past with Brent to know what he might be referring to. Flipping the knife in his hand to adjust his grip, James pressed the knife hard against Brent's jugular instead of carving into the bullet wound as he had originally planned. It only had Brent's smirk growing, knowing he'd hit a nerve.
"Bucky, don't. We need him alive. He's Hydra." Steve called out, coming to stand beside Bucky after retrieving his shield. They had come there looking for something Hydra had left behind. An agent of theirs is a pretty big thing to find. Brent could provide them with important information.
That close, Steve could see the cold look in Bucky's eyes. It was one he'd seen multiple times when they raided Hydra facilities. The killing instinct had taken over, the enemy was in his line of sight, and Steve wasn't sure if Bucky would listen to him. Eventually, Bucky removed the knife from Brent's neck, causing Steve to let out a sigh of relief. Before Brent could say anything else, Bucky pulled back his left arm, striking the right side of Brent's face with his metal fist and knocking him out cold.
"This is the guy who laid his hands on Anya," James bit out, glaring at the unconscious man before him. For some reason, he felt the need to defend his instinct and desire to kill the man to Steve.
"I know who he is," Steve responded, fists clenching at the imagery of this punk hurting Anna. "What I want to know is why he's alone." It was odd, for a Hydra agent to attack on his own. Any other time Hydra had attacked, it had been with numbers. It didn't make sense. Why send just the one? Why Brent? What was the point of it all?
…
Telling Rumlow that they hadn't managed to get the Stark girl, again, was about as pleasant as Rollins had predicted. Alerting him to the fact that she had gotten caught in the line of fire was even worse. He had wanted the recruit dealt with, immediately. Not only had the asset gotten away, but the recruit had managed to shoot Anna.
"Why don't we let the Asset take care of him?" Rollins suggested, continuing on once Rumlow remained quiet. "Send the boy after the Asset, give him the mission to take him out once more. If he succeeds, we have one less problem on our hands. If he fails, he'll be dead anyway. No way the Asset lets the boy live."
Rollins was positive about that last point. Being in charge of recruiting meant Rollins hand-picked those he thought would help Hydra accomplish either their short term or long term goals. The recruit in question had been in prison for assault charges against the Stark girl. Normally, Hydra didn't recruit sadistic psychopaths simply for their uncontrollable nature. However, when the Stark girl had gone missing with the asset, Rollins thought someone like the new recruit might just help them track her down or draw her out. He was obsessive, and manic and had served his purpose.
Of course Rumlow had no idea of the boy's history with Stark. If he had, he probably would have ordered the boy dealt with earlier. Rollins couldn't deny that the recruit was more of a liability now. However, Hydra could profit from his death. Sending him after the asset almost ensured his death, especially if the asset had any knowledge of the recruit's history with the Stark girl. If, by chance, the recruit succeeded in killing the asset, then Hydra would have one less enemy to deal with and the recruit would be dealt with by one of Hydra's own. If he failed, and was taken alive, the recruit could be the key to feeding false information to the asset and everyone else that was helping him. It was a win-win-win in Rollins' eyes.
"If this backfires, it's on you," Rumlow threatened, though it was a little hard to take it as seriously when he was still recovering from his third degree burns. They were barely able to get the doctors at the hospital to release him in his condition. "Anna is still top priority. As soon as theirs an opening I want the team to take it."
The Stark girl would always be top priority when it came to Rumlow. Rollins didn't understand how getting the doctor would help them accomplish Hydra's main goal, but Rumlow was in command of their division of Hydra. Rumlow had been the one privy to Pierce's plans, not Rollins. Pierce had originally ordered the kidnapping of the doctor, so perhaps there was a reason behind it all. Whatever it was, Rollins just wanted to get the girl already so they could focus on the next step.
"I'll make the call then," Rollins stated, taking out his phone and dialing on his way out of the room.
…
"Come on, we need to get him to the car," Steve ordered, handing Bucky his shield before reaching for Brent's shoulders and hoisting him up. It would be asking too much of Bucky to have him carry the agent. Steve felt lucky that Bucky was able to control his rage enough to not kill the man the first time he had a chance. They just needed to get him to the car and to Stark Tower, alive. Although the whole 'getting him into the car plan' was complicated a little when they reached edge of the building.
"Get down!" James shouted, pushing Steve back just as the fire escape exploded behind him. Pushing himself up, James peered over the edge again to find the fire escape completely destroyed by the blast. Before he could come up with another way down, the sound of a gunshot had him ducking back behind the cement wall of the roof.
"Another agent?" Steve asked, still crouched down and gripping tightly onto Brent. Bucky's eyes shifted to him as he pulled out the pistol again.
"Can I kill this one?" Steve simply nodded at Bucky's question, watching as he braced himself against the cement wall before leaning over it and firing a few shots. He pulled back at the sound of returning shots, with a look of frustration and determination in his eyes. The second time James went back over, he only fired one shot. There were no returning shots.
"How are we going to get him down now?" Steve asked, joining Bucky at the edge. There were no stairs, and no ladder. No way to get a 180 pound unconscious Hydra agent off the roof.
"I could climb down and you could drop him down to me." James suggested casually, as if dropping a man from a ten story building was nothing out of the ordinary.
"I think that's the worst idea I've ever heard," an annoyingly familiar voice noted from behind, causing James to turn around and glare at the sidekick. He swiftly moved his glare to Steve, accusing him of telling the sidekick where they were going.
"Nobody told me shit," Sam exclaimed, moving his goggles off his face so he could participate in the glaring. "When I couldn't find Steve to train with, I checked the security feed. Jarvis was more than happy to oblige."
"Come on Bucky. It's not like Anna and Tony won't know what we did. I'm sure the explosions have garnered the attention of the press." Steve spoke up, adjusting his hold on Brent. There was no way they were getting their hostage down in one piece without Sam and his suit.
"You were worried about me tattling on you? Seriously?" Sam asked, crossing his arms as he stared pointedly at the unconscious man Steve was holding. "You're bringing back a Hydra agent as a souvenir. I think they're going to notice."
"Shut up and help." James grunted, forced to accept the sidekick's help at the sound of sirens in the distance. The last thing they needed was the police to show up and find them at the scene of the explosion with a hostage and a dead man.
…
"You guys need to see this," Tony insisted, barging in on Anna's psych evaluation and turning on the TV. "There's been an explosion in Brooklyn."
That last part got Anna's attention, as she tuned into the news program that was covering it. Apparently two explosions had gone off not long after one another in the business section of Brooklyn. It was when the reporter mentioned the street names that Anna's stomach started feeling uneasy. It was the same street where James and she had gotten attacked by Hydra.
"Do you think it has something to do with Hydra?" Anna asked, rising from the chair she had been sitting on as she approached the television screen.
"I don't know. I do know that one of my cars is missing. So is Pigeon, Capsicle, and Tin Man." Anna's attention was drawn away from the television screen at Tony's words. The chances that James and Steve just happened to go out into the city the day an explosion occurs in Brooklyn was non-existent. It was Hydra who was responsible for the explosions. And it was meant for James and Steve.
"We have to find them. They could be injured, or Hydra could have them. I have to make sure he's alright." Anna insisted, her voice squeaking slightly in panic. The news claimed no one was injured, but that didn't mean anything. The news lied all the time. Anna needed to see with her own eyes that James was okay. That they were all okay. Before she could take more than a few steps towards the elevator, Tony was stopping her.
"You have a tracker in your neck. If you step one foot out of this building without backup Hydra will be all over you. For all we know, they could be using this as a ploy to get you outside." Tony was alright with Anna's plan, when the team was together and had a precise plan put in place to ensure her safety. Running out there with no plan and no backup, although normally Tony's style, was not something Tony was willing to do when it was Anna's safety on the line.
"Then it's working pretty damn well." Anna grumbled, trying to pull her arm out of Tony's grasp. She only managed to escape his grip when the elevator dinged open to reveal James, Steve, and Sam. Immediately rushing towards James, Anna stopped inches from him, her eyes searching him for injuries even as she asked the question.
"I'm fine," James insisted, a little shocked when his answer had Anya pushing him roughly before crossing her arms and glaring at him.
"What the Hell were you doing in Brooklyn in the middle of the day?" There was no reason good enough to justify him leaving the Tower without telling anyone. Besides, it was completely hypocritical since James along with everyone else was adamant she couldn't leave without an army of superheroes tagging along.
"Looking for any clues Hydra might have left behind to help us locate them." James admitted, feeling as though keeping Steve and his plan quiet was kind of impossible at that point.
"We agreed on a plan to draw Hydra out." Anna reminded him harshly. The plan was the whole reason Anna had been training with James, and had been attending daily physical therapy sessions with Bruce. To prove to James that she could handle it. Apparently, no matter how much proof she gave him, he was never going to support her plan.
"This plan didn't involve you putting your safety at risk." James retorted, not backing down. He hadn't done anything wrong. All he was trying to do was track down Hydra. And he'd gotten results, having managed to capture an agent that could spill intel. Just because he didn't wait for Anya's plan to be put into action didn't mean he had done something wrong.
"No, worse, it involved you putting yours on the line. As well as Steve's and Sam's. Without back up. What the Hell even happened out there?" Anna was aware that she was cursing more than normal, and that everyone's eyes seemed to be trained on her and James. However, she felt the situation garnered her reaction.
"Your boys went AWOL and ran into your ex on the roof. They insisted on bringing him in for questioning while I was stuck with taking care of the agent Cap let your boyfriend kill." Sam answered on behalf of James as he made his way past the group to one of the free chairs. He hadn't been thrilled when he got stuck with clean-up duty. Though his answer wasn't exactly descriptive, it had Anna noticing, for the first time, the unconscious man Steve had hoisted over his shoulder.
"Oh my God. You knocked him out?" Anna exclaimed, watching as Steve moved to place Brent on the chair beside Sam. He had to ask Sam to hold him up while he went to get something to tether him with.
"He's lucky he came back alive at all. I wanted to kill him." In truth, James was going to have a little fun torturing Brent before he actually killed him, but killing him was on the list of things he was going to do.
"So what do you plan on doing with him now?" Anna asked, confused at what they all hoped to achieve by tying up an unconscious Brent in the lab. She understood the questioning part, but what came after he answered their questions?
"I'm going to torture him until he tells Hydra's secrets, then I'm going to kill him." James answered as if it was the simplest, most logical thing to do. Then again, he had been an assassin. Torturing and killing were in his job description.
"And what if he won't talk? Then it'd all be for nothing." Anna didn't agree with James way of getting information. She didn't like the idea of needlessly hurting people, even asses like Brent.
"It wouldn't be for nothing." After what Brent had done to Anya, he deserved a slow, excruciating death; to receive a little bit of what he'd put Anya through. "And he'll talk. He's not one to keep quiet about what he's done, if he's proud of it," James spat out. If the psychopath liked to brag about what he'd put Anya through, it stood to reason he'd brag about what he'd done under the employment of Hydra.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Anna asked, confused about whether James was referring to something Brent said about her, or about Hydra.
"He mentioned you before we knocked him out." It didn't escape Anna's notice that James' jaw tightened and his fists clenched after he spoke. It had her stomach clenching.
"What did he say?" Anna whispered, physically paling at the possibilities of what information Brent might have given James. No one knew the whole story of what Brent had done. Anna had wanted to keep it that way. Or at the least, be the one that eventually told James the whole truth.
"Why? Was there more to what he did to you than what you told us?" James insisted, taking a step closer to her. His eyes were concerned, however the cold anger was still visible on the edges, waiting to take hold. His question had Anna's palms sweating as she glanced around the room. All eyes were trained on her, waiting for her answer. There was no way she was admitting it to everyone. She'd already told them about the beatings, that was humiliating enough.
"Fine, torture him for information, kill him, do whatever you want. I won't be staying to watch." With that, Anna bolted from the room, not even bothering to wait for the elevator. Instead she burst through the stairwell doors and started climbing up and away from the scene in the lab. James was torn. His concern for Anya had him eying the door, but his desire for revenge had him glancing back at Brent, who was now tied to the chair, albeit still unconscious.
"Don't do anything with him until I return," James demanded before taking off after Anya. Beneath the anger, she was hurting. He needed to make sure she was alright. And he needed to know the whole truth about her and Brent. She hadn't answered his question, which meant there was more to it, there was something she wasn't telling him. Before James tortured the man to death, he wanted to know everything he had done to deserve it. James also liked holding all the cards in an interrogation. Anya had one of the cards he needed.
A/N So internet at my boyfriend's parent's house was a no-go. But I did get to have a marvel marathon there without the usual distractions of the internet, so that's a plus. I hope you enjoyed the little increase in action this chapter had. I'm not sure if this is going to reach 27 or 28 chapters now, depending on how much I put in the next chapter. If I don't have enough of the story left to fill two whole chapters and end this where I want to, then the next one might be the last. That saying, chapter 1 of the next story will be posted immediately after this one is finished. And I'll reveal the sequel's name in the author's note in the final chapter for guests who want to be able to search it later :) Oh yeah, and I'm gonna try to get the next chapter up by Thursday. This week is a busy one!
Onto Guest review responses!
To Violett (since your personal message is turned off): Wow, your review was very flattering. I'm glad you did find my story, if just so you could say all those wonderful things! I'm with you in the sense that I haven't read the comics, so I'm writing solely based off of the Marvel cinematic universe. I agree, James' character fascinated me, his character as well as his story seemed so intricate and interesting that I had to write a story and explore it further. I'm very flattered to hear you like my depiction of him as well as his relationship with Anya. I still might write a one shot story later about their progress so there's still hope for that ;) They have stayed at the tower for a while now. There will be a change of scenery and pace and plot come the sequel which I am looking forward to writing. I'm taking your comment on Iron Man being in the story as a positive one, meaning you liked that I pulled him into this. I am not a violent person, so I probably wouldn't hit Tony if he was my brother, but I understand completely why you would! Glad you like the cheesiness, I can't help but throw some in there every once in a while. I choose to call it romantic, but sometimes cheesy and romantic can be synonymous. Glad I've got you excited for the battle. It's coming up soon! Yep I try to update twice a week. I use to update every day or every other day but life got a little busier. I'm so happy to welcome you to this story's family! Sorry this chapter was posted later than anticipated. Hope you enjoyed it!
To the guest who commented how Bucky hasn't regained his sixth sense about women: nope not at all. He's not used to dealing with girls, and he's used to analyzing situations in a tactical way. He's never experienced anyone being attracted to him while being the Winter Soldier, as the only people he had contact with were Hydra and the targets he killed. Anya and Bucky are in the blushing teen phase as neither have had a real relationship in a while. That being said, he is comfortable around Anya, the most comfortable he's been around anyone in a while.
Rach
xoxo