CHAPTER 24

FEBRUARY 28, 2014 8:53 PM

Nick Fury was shot approximately forty-five minutes ago. She warned him and he had more than enough time to figure his way out it. Allie cursed him under her breath as she walked out of the elevator once she reached her floor. Her heart rapidly thudded against her chest as she entered ICU. She hated hospitals. The whole thing made her uncomfortable. The lighting, phones constantly ringing, doctors and nurses rushing down the hallways, and family members crying over the death of their loved ones. She turned her head to the side as she stared at the family. Her legs slowly stopped moving as the emotions sunk in. This image was all too familiar. She shook the painful memory out of her head and continued to walk into the waiting room.

A tall, dark haired woman paced across the room as she chewed on her nails. Allie watched the other woman squint her eyes as her dark brows scrunched together. 'She's nervous,' Allie noted to herself. When Allie met the other woman's eyes, she advanced toward her with caution.

"You must be Alexandra," she said with a sigh. "I'm Agent Hill. I'm sorry we have to meet this way."

"It's alright. What exactly happened?" Allie asked.

"He was shot three times," Hill quickly responded. "One bullet missed his heart by half an inch, another shattered his ribs on his left side and the last one punctured his lung. It collapsed just before you arrived. He is in critical condition."

She took a minute to let the agent's words sink in as she slid down in a chair near her. "He won't make it, will he?"

Hill was about to answer when Rogers walked into the room. When he saw Allie there and looked at her suspiciously. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same. I have more of a right to be here than you. Nick is family to me," Allie responded defensively as she shot up from her seat.

He sighed as he advanced toward her, "And I'm a friend. We all care about Fury, Allie. You don't need to be so guarded all the time."

"Sorry," she replied as she took in a deep breath. "I don't do well when it comes to this sort of thing."

Steve started as he rested the palm of his hand on her shoulder. "Why don' I get you some coffee? I owe you one."

"That's sweet of you, but I don't think caffeine is the proper antidote for my nerves," she sighed as she sat herself back down.

"I can get you some tea," Hill offered with a soft smile.

Allie looked up at the female agent, gratefully. "That would be wonderful, thank you."

MARCH 1, 2014

1:00 AM

Rogers and Allie stood behind the window while surgeons operated on Fury. They watched with anticipation as a red headed woman walked up from behind them.

"I came as fast as I could," the redhead said as she stood next to Rogers ad watched the surgeons do their work. She noticed another woman standing next to Rogers and gave him a grin. "You finally got a date, Rogers? Not the best place for one, but I'm still impressed."

Steve and Allie looked at each other in horror. "Oh no, we're not-" Steve began.

"Sorry for the confusion," Allie interrupted Steve's poor explanation. "I'm Alexandra Pierce. You can call me Allie. Nick is pretty much family, thus why I'm here."

"Oh," the other woman replied with raised eyebrows. "Sorry for making assumptions. I'm Natasha, by the way."

"Lovely to meet you," Allie forced a small smile as she shook the woman's hand.

Natasha flickered her eyes back at Rogers with seriousness, "Is he gonna make it?"

"I don't know," Steve answered.

Natasha looked back into the glass window. "Tell me about the shooter."

Steve sighed. "He's fast and strong. He had a metal arm."

Allie's ears perked as Steve answered. He saw her Soldier. This was not good. She held her composure and focused on listening to their conversation as she kept her eyes on Fury's unconscious body.

"Ballistics?" she heard Natasha ask.

"Three slugs. No rifling and completely untraceable," Hill replied as she walked up to the group.

"Soviet made?" Natasha wondered.

"Yeah," Hill quickly answered.

Suddenly, there was a loud high pitch beeping noise that flooded through the hallway. The group watched in shock as the doctors attempted to stabilize their patient.

"He's dropping," a doctor announced, with panic in his voice.

Allie spun herself around and her body slumped onto the ground as the commotion grew.

"-BP is dropping. Defibrillator!" A doctor shouted. "Charge to one hundred."

"Don't do this to me, Nick," Natasha muttered to herself.

"Stand back! Three, two, one. Clear!" Another doctor shouted. "Pulse?"

"No pulse," someone replied.

"Charge to two hundred, please. Stand back! Three, two, one. Clear! Give me epinephrine. Pulse?"

"Negative."

Something big and heavy sunk to the pit of her stomach. Fury was dead and it was her fault. She watched Steve walk away from his spot next to her and toward the opposite side of the hallway and tears escaped her eyes.

"What's the time?" A man asked.

"1:03, Doctor," a feminine voice answered.

"Time of death, 1:03 AM."