A few days following Bucky's transfer back to the city, his first court date was set at last. He was set to be arraigned in front of a judge at the federal courthouse in New York City, where it appeared the trial would be taking place. The hearing was just under a month away, set rather coincidentally for the day before Adelaide's first birthday. The minute that the timeframe was set, Summer's search for a lawyer went into hyperdrive. It also continued to prove utterly fruitless.
With only three weeks to go until the hearing, Summer and Steve returned to the tower late in the morning feeling equally as frustrated as the other and bordering on hopeless as far as the lawyer search was concerned. Nobody seemed to have what they were looking for, which was the will and the belief necessary to defend a man with a past as complicated and difficult as Bucky's.
"You know, I had really high hopes for this one," Summer muttered, following Steve into the main public entrance for the tower on the ground floor. They usually entered a much more private way, but she needed to check her mail and that required using the main entrance. "I still think they might have been okay."
"I can't explain it, I just... had a bad feeling," Steve sighed, keeping his head down as he and Summer passed employees and guests and everyone else who populated the tower at that busy hour.
"Whenever I like someone, you have a bad feeling," Summer sighed, walking up to a desk where she'd be retrieving her mail from the attendant of. "Then when you like someone, I have a bad feeling."
"What was that one place from a few days ago?" Steve asked as Summer smiled and took the roughly fifteen envelopes addressed to her. "Land... something and Zack?"
"Landman and Zack," Summer said, turning and heading for the nearest pair of elevators, flipping through her mail. "We agreed that they weren't a good fit."
"Well, we're running out of time," Steve sighed. "And not that many firms are willing to even talk to us."
It was true. Summer wasn't sure if she should be surprised or not that most lawyers didn't want to make their names off of defending JFK's assassin. The ones who did were either sketchy or simply struck Summer or Steve as untrustworthy, and most of them freely expressed their belief that really they'd be lucky just to get Bucky a life sentence in prison rather than the death penalty, and Summer simply would not accept that.
"Well, we just need to keep looking," she said, looking up when they reached the elevators and pushing the button to go up. Steve nodded, looking up at the floor numbers above the doors before something to his left caught his attention. It was two men, sitting nearby in a seating area meant for clients or others waiting to be led up, and they were looking their way and talking amongst themselves
Summer was checking her phone for the time when she noticed Steve shifting as if to shield her from something, and she looked up in sudden concern only to find two men she'd never seen before stand up and start walking their way. One was blonde and smiling, almost a little too much, and the other wore dark glasses on his face and toted a walking stick - Summer assumed right away that he was blind.
They didn't look dangerous in the least, but Steve, of course, took no chances and maintained his protective stance as the guys walked up to them.
"Hello," the blonde one said, eyeing Steve a bit nervously and still smiling, "Sorry to bother you both, but you -" he turned to Summer, "wouldn't happen to be Summer Barnes, would you?"
Trying to ignore the instant sinking feeling that overcame her everytime some random person recognized her, she glanced at Steve and then replied, "Yeah, I am." Her face had been splattered all over the place following her visit to the FBI building, so she wasn't surprised whenever someone stared now or asked her if she was who they thought she was.
"I'm Franklin Nelson, and this is Matt Murdock," he told her, gesturing to the dark haired man next to him who nodded once to her and smiled. "We're -"
"Oh," Summer said, blinking and nodding, glancing again at Steve and wordlessly communicating for him to stand down. He did, but he kept a wary eye on the men. "Right, you guys have left me like... ten messages in three days."
Matt smiled and replied, "Sorry about that. We've just been eager to speak with you about your husband's case."
"Right," Summer nodded. "Well, I did look your firm up after I got your messages, but... honestly, I'm looking for someone who's a little more... experienced, so..."
"Understandable," Foggy nodded, again looking up at Steve and quickly looking away. It never got old watching people fidget and try not to stare when they were in the presence of Captain America for the first time. "We don't blame you."
"You work for Stark Industries, am I correct?" Matt asked.
The elevators opened, but Summer ignored them for the time being. "Yes, I do."
"Excuse me if I'm wrong, but you probably have the option of hiring a very experienced defense attorney from the legal department. And I'm sure you've found quite a few firms by now that are interested in taking your case."
He wasn't wrong. Summer paused and waited for him to go on.
"We might not be the most seasoned lawyers, Mrs. Barnes," he added, "but we believe that your husband is innocent and we're willing to help you prove that."
Summer blinked, looking at the man and his blonde partner, then at Steve and finally back to Matt. Not a single lawyer had said anything like that yet. "You think he's innocent?"
"It's pretty clear to us, just from reading files from the SHIELD leak, that there is a strong case for his innocence," Matt replied. "It seems to be a case of blaming a gun for a crime instead of the one controlling it."
Summer could have cried to hear someone outside of the Avengers and their friends say this about him.
"All we're asking for is fifteen minutes of your time," Foggy said. "That's it. Just one chance. Then we'll stop blowing up your phone."
Summer looked at him for a moment, smiling at the remark, and then she considered it for a moment. What did she have to lose? Everything else had struck out so far, so why not? They might have been clearly very green, but they sounded like they actually genuinely believed in Bucky's innocence. And that meant everything to her.
"Okay," she nodded. "We can go to my office and talk."
Both men smiled in reply, and Matt gave a quiet and respectful thank you as the elevator doors opened once more. Summer let them get in first, and as they walked inside, she looked at Steve and they shared a look just before he asked in a whisper, "How long have they had their firm?"
"... You'd probably feel better if you didn't know," Summer whispered back before stepping on the elevator. Steve made a slight face but quickly tucked it away, smiling again at the two men as he stepped on next and the door closed.
As the elevator took them up, the four of them stood there in an awkward silence until Steve glanced at Foggy and held out his hand. "I'm -"
"I know," Foggy smiled, shaking Captain America's hand with a slightly goofy look on his face. "It's an honor to meet you. You're even taller than you look on TV."
"Oh. Thanks," Steve smiled before also shaking Matt's hand. He seemed a little less starstruck than his counterpart, and all in all had a very calm, interesting air about him.
"My mom's a big fan," Foggy added. "If you could maybe... sign something for her, it would -"
Matt cleared his throat. "Foggy."
" - It would make her year."
Summer stifled a laugh as Matt used all of his self control to not shake his head, but Steve was nonplussed. "Sure. No problem."
Foggy then smiled triumphantly, and Summer realized that of all of the lawyers they'd interviewed so far, these two were the only ones who seemed like actual normal human beings. She wasn't sure if that meant they were qualified to handle the trial of the century, but they certainly hadn't set off any red flags yet.
She led them to her office, which she hadn't been spending a lot of time in lately, and Steve grabbed an extra chair for himself as Summer sat behind her desk and the two lawyers sat in front of it. Steve ended up closing the door and sitting to the side of the desk as Summer took a breath and said, "Okay, so... I'm just gonna jump right in because I've honestly lost all my patience in the last couple days. You said that you believe my husband's innocent and that you can prove it. But when you say innocent, are you talking an insanity plea?"
"No," Matt replied. "Although we could argue that, if you wanted."
"I don't," Summer shook her head. "I know it's the easy choice but then if it works, they might mandate some kind of psychiatric confinement and that would... it would be bad for him. He's not insane. He wasn't even insane back then, he was just..."
"Brainwashed," Foggy finished for her. "We've been reading up on the leaked files."
"I have his original file from the USSR," Steve interjected. "Everything they did to him, it's in there. At least as far as we know."
"Good," Matt replied, angling back towards Summer. "The thing about this case, it's not going to be cut and dry. People are already debating it and arguing about what sentence he should have and the trial hasn't even started yet."
"Yeah," Summer agreed, "and I read way too many of those debates online and drive myself crazy."
"Then you know that the divide is almost even between the two sides," Matt said. "All we have to do is convince a jury of reasonable doubt that your husband was in his right mind when he committed the crimes he's charged with."
"And he obviously wasn't," Summer nodded.
"But the problem is," Foggy added, "he killed a President. And not just any President. He killed JFK, and now the government's embarrassed because everybody knows they pinned the crime on the wrong guy, and everyone's wondering what else they covered up."
Matt then added, "So they're going to do everything they can to save face. And I'm willing to bet it's going to involve painting your husband as a dangerous and unpredictable threat and his friends as irresponsible vigilante enablers."
When Steve's brows furrowed, Foggy elaborated, "The Avengers operate without any clear jurisdiction or federal oversight. And trust in any public figure, even you, Mister - Captain - is pretty low after the whole SHIELD debacle and the Ultron mess."
Somewhere in the back of Summer's mind, she registered that this lawyer had just called Steve Mister Captain.
"But that doesn't have anything to do with Bucky," Steve pointed out.
"It does because the whole world knows that you were hiding him here in this tower," Matt said. "It gives weight to the argument that you operate above the law and are willing to compromise the safety of the public for one man who might still be very dangerous."
"He isn't dangerous," Summer immediately replied. "He's a good father and a good man. He's worked so hard to get this far and..."
"I don't doubt you, Mrs. Barnes," Matt replied quietly. "I'm only naming just one of the tactics they might use during this case. And you have to be prepared to hear a lot worse than what I just said."
Summer sighed, nodding and knowing that he was right. Steve then said, "We have a lot of proof of what HYDRA did to him. Not just files but videos we recovered from a HYDRA base. One was made after Howard Stark was killed, and you can see how confused he was. He questioned what they made him do at every turn, and every time they would take his memories and torture him until he stopping asking questions."
"You have this video?" Foggy asked, and Steve nodded. "That could be a very key piece of evidence. Have you found anything related to the Kennedy assassination?"
"Nothing concrete, definitely nothing like that," Steve replied. "The reason why we have the Stark video is because he was sold back to the American arm of HYDRA by then. Most of our information is dated after the Soviet Union collapsed. A couple of files is all we have dated earlier."
"Well, still," Foggy replied, "all of that can help. The more that can prove he wasn't in control of his own actions or even fully aware of them, the better."
As the men spoke amongst themselves, Summer felt her phone buzz and briefly checked it to find a text from Darcy. She'd taken the kids that morning for Summer, and apparently the kids were ready to have their mama back. Summer texted her back to bring the kids to her office, and then she put her phone down and took a moment before she asked a question that needed to be voiced.
"Look," she began slowly, "you guys are saying all the right things and you seem to really mean it, too, and... that's the main thing I was looking for in a lawyer, someone who actually believed that my husband's innocent and won't just settle for a life sentence as if that's a good thing. But I have to ask - are you guys just trying to make your careers off this case? I mean... you just opened your firm less than a year ago. You can't blame me for wondering if I'm not making the biggest mistake of my life by considering hiring you."
"And this is a federal case," Steve reminded them. "You'd be going up against the whole Justice Department and all of their resources."
"Those are all fair points," Matt replied, "and the first one to make most of them was my partner here."
Foggy nodded. "It's true. We're under no illusions here. And you'd both be crazy to not think that you might be better served by more experienced lawyers."
"So sell me," Summer said, looking at them both expectantly. "Tell me why I should hire you guys over someone like, say, Landman and Zack who's been around forever and has pretty good client reviews."
Summer could immediately tell that the name meant something to the two men, as they both paused and Foggy's eyes widened just a tad.
"Well," Matt began with what looked like the start of a very small smile on his face, "to start with, we actually interned at Landman and Zack after we graduated."
Summer paused. "Really?" Then she paused again. "Then why aren't you working with them now?"
"We were set to make partner," Foggy said. "But we turned them down."
"We're not in it for the money," Matt added, "or for any other reason you'd be justified to assume. We became lawyers because we want to help people. We defend the innocent. That's why we're here. Not for your money or for the fame that would come with this case. And I can promise you, Mrs. Barnes, that we would do everything in our power to defend your husband if you hire us."
He certainly made a good case, and Summer couldn't help but be impressed by the both of them, perhaps Matt especially. He spoke quietly and thoughtfully but with such conviction and eloquence that Summer got the feeling that he constantly surprised those who underestimated him.
Summer looked at both men, finding nothing but sincerity on both of their faces, and she couldn't believe it, but she wanted to hire them more than any of the other attorneys she'd met so far. She wanted to hire them a lot more.
But it was such a huge decision with such far reaching consequences. She felt the start of familiar panic start crawling up the back of her neck, and before she could break into a sweat, she took a breath and said, "Would you two excuse us for a minute?"
"Absolutely," Foggy replied. "Take your time."
Summer smiled politely and then stood up, walking out of the office with Steve and closing the door. As soon as the door was shut, she looked at Steve and said, "Am I nuts for actually considering this?"
"Maybe," he shrugged. "What do you think?"
"I think that they seem completely genuine," she replied, "and that they're saying everything we've wanted all the other lawyers to say since day one. And they don't seem to be the typical blood-sucking parasite-type lawyers."
"I like them too," Steve said quietly, "and my gut says it might not be a bad idea. But..."
"But they're inexperienced and who we hire could mean the difference between Bucky living and dying," Summer said, finishing for him. "I know."
Steve let out a sigh, looking around the otherwise empty office space. "I don't know, Summer."
Thinking hard, she said, "I mean, everything would be on the line for them, too. And they sound like they really believe in the case. That's more than I can say for any of the other lawyers we've talked to."
"I know," Steve nodded, putting his hands on his hips as he continued to think. "We could give them a shot. We can always hire someone else if it doesn't work out."
"Yeah? So we should do it?"
"We need somebody," Steve replied. "And I'd rather it be someone who's on our side than someone who thinks we've already lost."
"Okay," Summer nodded, taking a deep breath. "Okay."
As she mentally prepared herself to walk back into her office and tell the two men that they were hired, Darcy arrived with the kids in tow. David was walking behind her and Adelaide was on her hip, gnawing on what appeared to be a french fry and lighting up with a big smile when Summer came into view.
"Mama!" the baby exclaimed, all but diving out of Darcy's arms at Summer as soon as she was close enough.
"Told you they were ready to have you back," Darcy said as Summer smiled and took Adelaide into her arms, kissing her fat little cheek as she giggled. "Apparently I'm only cool for like three hours max."
"Well, thank you again for taking them today," Summer said, putting Adelaide on her hip. "It was a huge help."
"Oh, no problem. Any luck with the lawyer hunt?"
Summer glanced at Steve before replying, "Actually, yeah, I think so. I think we finally found someone good."
"Really? Awesome, because the arraignment's what, three weeks away?"
Summer nodded. "Yeah, exactly." Then she paused and asked, "Why is David hiding behind you?"
"Oh," Darcy grinned, glancing behind her. "David kind of... found something today."
"Found something?"
"Well, when I took them out to get food, on our way back he kind of... well... David, just show her."
The boy hesitated, but after a moment he finally stepped out from behind Darcy. Summer's eyes were immediately drawn to a little black ball of fluff that he was holding in his hands, and when said ball of fluff looked up and laid it's startlingly green eyes upon her, Summer had to fight not to grin.
"You found a kitty?" she asked as David walked closer to her to show it off. Summer reached down and gave its little head a few pets, and with a slight grimace she said, "I'm not sure if we can keep a kitty here, sweetie..."
At that, David looked up and gave her the poutiest, most big and watery-eyed look she'd ever seen before in her life. The kitty blinked at her, then closed its eyes and purred as David held it tighter and snuggled it to his chest.
Summer looked at Darcy and then Steve, who grinned at her and said, "Tony's never explicitly said no pets."
"Never," Darcy confirmed. "Like, not even a sign anywhere or anything."
"True," Summer mused, looking at how adorable David looked with the kitty and knowing full well that she didn't have it in her to say no anyway. David had been through so much and was still struggling to keep calm and steady day to day, and animals were known to be great therapy in general. He deserved a kitty, plain and simple. "Okay. You can keep it. But you have to help take care of it, okay?"
His eyes lit up with joy for the first time in weeks, David nodded furiously and ran up to Summer, giving her a big hug full of gratitude. She laughed and hugged him back, glad to see him happy for once, and then she said, "Now we've gotta go out later and get a litter box and food and stuff."
"You know what," Darcy said, "I'll run out and get all that stuff, and you can pay me back later. I've gotta go out anyway and nobody's trying to stalk me or take my picture."
"Are you sure?" Summer asked.
"Oh yeah," Darcy waved her off. "Don't worry about it."
"Thanks," Summer smiled, and Darcy again waved her off before tickling Adelaide and making her giggle one more time before heading off. And then, with her baby on her hip and her son in tow with a little black kitty cat in his arms, she and Steve headed back inside her office.
"Okay," she said after they walked inside and both men turned in their seats towards them. "You guys are hired."
Matt smiled. Foggy appeared genuinely quite shocked. She half-expected him to dumbly ask really?! but instead, they both stood up and Foggy said with full seriousness, "Thank you for giving us a chance. We'll do everything we can to make sure that you won't be disappointed."
She then shook both of her hands, and upon shaking Matt's, Adelaide eyed him with a little smile and then reached out and grabbed his sleeve.
"Oh sorry, that's my daughter," Summer chuckled, trying to pry her little hand away.
"It's no problem," he chuckled back, reaching with his free hand to find and tickle the back of Adelaide's hand. She giggled and pulled her hand back, half hiding her face and half giving him what were for babies the equivalent of heart eyes.
"She's a big flirt," Summer explained, shaking her head and not wanting to think of how that trait would translate once she hit her teen years.
"Yeah, so is he," Foggy said, nudging Matt in the arm. Then after Matt smiled and shrugged him off, Foggy turned back to Adelaide and said, "She's adorable."
"Her name's Adelaide," Summer said proudly. "She's turning one in a few weeks. And this," she said, shifting towards David who stood at her side still cuddling the kitty, "is David. And the new kitty he just brought home."
"Hi, buddy," Foggy said with a friendly smile, to which David merely eyed him suspiciously and slunk away slightly.
Summer smiled and said, "Yeah, he's not big on new people. Or talking. But he warms up to you eventually."
"It's no problem," Foggy assured her. "Are you guys staying here? Are you safe?"
"As safe as we can be," she replied with a nod. "I know my face got splashed around everywhere the day I went and visited Bucky, and my old Facebook pictures are everywhere, so we've just been staying inside, mostly. The press doesn't have the kids' names yet, which is a miracle."
"They'll get them eventually," Matt said. "You'll need to prepare for that. Everything's going to get a lot harder for you once the trial gets started."
Summer let out a breath and then asked, "What's the first thing we need to do?"
"We need to see him," Matt replied. He inclined his head in Steve's direction and asked, "Can you help arrange that?"
"Yeah, of course. When?"
"As soon as possible," Matt said. "Preferably today. We've got a lot of work to do."
Summer didn't doubt the truth of that statement for a moment. Steve immediately got on his phone, and she held Adelaide a little tighter on her hip, feeling oddly calm for the time being. She knew the feeling wouldn't last, but her anxiety over finding a lawyer had been soothed and despite how very green the two lawyers were, her gut told her that she'd chosen well. She couldn't be sure just yet, but her instincts had never steered her wrong before.
It was one more piece of the puzzle down, and one step closer to climbing the enormous mountain standing in front of them.
Later that day, as the sun was setting outside, Summer again found herself deep in the bowels of FBI headquarters again, only under much different circumstances than the first time. This time she had her two new lawyers with her as well as Steve, and they were sitting in a holding room on one side of a table with Bucky sitting on the other. There was no glass between them this time, but he was still shackled to the floor and she wasn't allowed any physical contact with him.
And that was an incredibly difficult rule to adhere to when Bucky was sitting there, looking at her with such profound misery and resignation in his eyes that all she wanted to do was grab him, hug him and never let him go.
"Your arraignment is going to be fairly simple," Matt said, all business as he addressed the legendary assassin before him. Bucky had barely acknowledged either lawyer upon introduction, mostly just sitting there and listening and occasionally giving Summer the looks that were breaking her heart. "They're going to formally read you their list of charges, and then you'll enter a plea. After that, the judge will decide whether or not to set bail."
"Is that a possibility? Bail?" Steve asked.
"It's unlikely," Matt admitted. "I won't say it's impossible, but I wouldn't get your hopes up."
"So will he stay here the entire time, then?" Summer asked, horrified at the thought.
"Well, this case has kind of already gone through uncharted territory," Foggy said, glancing through a couple of papers that were before him. "Technically, they should have arraigned you within 72 hours at the latest after your arrest. So this hearing is coming about two months too late."
"Is that grounds for... false imprisonment, or something?" Summer asked.
"There are enough laws on the books post 9/11 that they can invoke to justify the wait," Matt replied. "They were following protocol normally reserved for detaining foreign terrorists, which... they technically had grounds for."
"Well then the least they could do is let him have bail," Summer muttered, looking away. She glanced up then and caught Bucky's eyes as they again fell to her, and her heart felt tight at how pale and tired he looked. He needed to get out of there.
Foggy appeared to be in some sort of deep thought. Silence prevailed for a moment, and then he looked at Matt and said, "Maybe bail isn't out of the question. We could make a solid case for it."
"It's beyond proving he's not a flight risk," Matt noted.
"Right, but what if we proposed bail with very strict conditions? House arrest, constant monitoring, the works. And if it was at Avengers Tower in the middle of the city, full of people and cameras, that would be easy."
Matt considered that for a moment. "Still a tough sell."
Then Summer had a thought, and even though she felt like she was in so far over her head that she couldn't even see the surface, she said, "What if we also say it's... for his health? His mental health? They want him competent to stand trial, right? But staying down here underground in a cage alone would drive anybody out of their mind."
Bucky glanced away from her then, looking down at his hands that were in his lap.
"And he has a family, kids that miss him," Summer said, maybe grasping at straws but not caring. She just wanted him home.
Foggy twirled a pen in his hand before saying, "We could use the help of a psychologist if we're trying to sell this angle."
Summer's eyes then lit up and she all but exclaimed, "Doctor Connor! Your therapist," she said to Bucky before looking back at the lawyers. "He hasn't seen him for a while but he used to talk to him twice a week. He's actually been calling me but I keep forgetting to call him back. Could he help?"
"How long did you see this therapist?" Matt asked Bucky.
Bucky thought for a moment before muttering, "Two years."
"That's good," Foggy said, jotting down a note. "We can get a statement from him. That could help a lot."
Summer smiled, nearly overjoyed to have contributed something potentially very helpful to the case. She smiled at Bucky, but he couldn't quite muster up a smile of his own. He didn't want to get his hopes up, and she couldn't blame him. Even if the look on his face was a knife to her heart.
"Keep in mind that even if they set bail," Matt said, "they could set it so astronomically high that they know you'd have no hope of posting it."
Summer's smile fading, she looked at Steve who glanced at her before saying, "Maybe Tony could help."
"We're talking in the millions," Foggy told him. "And that's if it even happens."
"We'll make it work if it does," Steve said confidently.
Matt nodded his way, then turned back to Bucky and said, "Until the arraignment, just hold tight. If they try to question you or interview you, don't say a word unless we're also here. You have rights. Don't forget that."
Bucky nodded slowly. Summer couldn't take the look on his face anymore and pretend it wasn't there, so she leaned a little further across the table and said, "Bucky, this is... this is good. There's hope. These guys believe in you and they're going to do everything they can to get you out of here."
He still didn't say a word. He nodded though, and then Steve added, "She's right. And there's a lot of people who think you deserve to be free. Not just us. People all over the country."
Summer then watched as something in Bucky's expression changed. He looked down and clenched his jaw, then looked back up with what looked like a war brewing in his blue eyes. He looked at Steve first, and then at Summer as he opened his mouth and almost began to speak.
But that was when the guards standing at the door declared their time up and moved forward to retrieve Bucky. He clamped his mouth shut and kept his eyes locked with Summer's as they released his shackles and then used them to start leading him out the door.
She couldn't help but immediately tear up, calling after him, "I love you. Don't give up."
He kept his eyes on hers until they walked him out the door and he was forced to look away. Summer stared at the door for a few moments after, willing her eyes to stay dry as she muttered, "We have to get him out of here."
"Yeah. We do," Steve agreed. "He doesn't look good."
"Do you think they're hurting him or something?" Summer asked, looking back and forth between Steve and the two other men.
"I don't know," Steve said, clearly distressed at the thought. "I hope not. But even if they aren't, you know how he is."
Summer did know, maybe even better than Steve himself. And that was exactly why they needed to get him the hell out of that place and back home.
Summer felt a comforting hand on her shoulder, and she looked over to find that it belonged to Matt. She couldn't see his eyes behind his glasses, but she didn't need to in order to know that he meant his next words fully and sincerely. "We're going to do our very best to get him home, Mrs. Barnes."
She sniffed back more tears that threatened and nodded. "Thank you."
She could make it. She knew that she could, and she would. But knowing that Bucky was suffering immeasurably worse in his solitude was enough to make her want to burn the entire building and everyone else in it to the ground and run away with him to some place where nobody could ever find them again.
Three weeks passed. Summer and Steve remained hard at work and in daily contact with Matt and Foggy, whose lack of other clients allowed them to devote their energy entirely to Bucky's case. The national media openly puzzled over the choice of defense attorneys and wondered exactly how two unknown rookies from Hell's Kitchen had gotten the job, but the more time that passed, the more confident that Summer became in her decision.
At home, she tried to stick to a tight schedule and was looking for an affordable - and trustworthy - tutor to hire for David while she kept him out of school. That search was proving hilariously fruitless, and in the midst of that and everything else, she also had to get her birthday shopping done for Adelaide. She bought everything online and tried not to think about how she'd once looked forward to going out and hitting toy stores with Bucky, picking out Addie's gifts together and making the kind of memories she hadn't gotten to have with David. And yet there she was, hiding out in a tower and ordering everything from Amazon because showing her face in public was reserved for only things that couldn't be avoided. She was extremely grateful for Esteban and Nicolo, however, who had volunteered to take care of Adelaide's party for her so she could focus on taking care of everything else.
Meanwhile, on the lighter side of things, David's kitty had yet to be named, so his working title was, rather simply, kitty. He was a good kitty, taking to domestic life and the concept of a litter box pretty well, and the calming effect on David was invaluable. Adelaide loved the kitty too, though she had to be closely watched because she had the tendency to be a little too rough and slightly torture the poor thing. The kitty, however, still seemed to like her just fine, and Summer didn't mind having a sweet little ball of fur occasionally snuggle up on her lap and purr in contentment.
She got the room next to hers set up with all of David and Adelaide's furniture and belongings, but they chose to sleep curled up in bed with her every night. For two kids who had watched their father have about twenty guns pointed on him as he was forcibly ripped from their happy home, wanting to stay close to their mother at night was far from unreasonable. And for her part, she slept better with them close, too.
Bucky's arraignment was set for mid-morning the day before Adelaide's birthday. When that day came, Summer woke up early, got dressed in one of her best, professional dresses that she wore for work, and then forced herself to eat a decent breakfast for once. Paul came by the tower, having agreed the week before to come and stay with the kids while Summer went to court, and once he was settled in, Summer thanked him profusely and then left with Steve, headed towards the federal courthouse where they would meet Matt and Foggy before the arraignment began.
A lot was on the line that day, and it was one of those things that Summer or anyone else in her shoes could never be truly prepared for. But the same could be said of the entire process, and it simply was what it was. There was no time to cry or panic or get sick with worry. She just had to keep putting one foot in front of the other and pray as hard as she could for the outcome that she wanted.
She also prayed for Bucky's strength, and for him to not lose hope if bail wasn't set and his near future was confined to a solitary cell underground.
She and Steve entered the courthouse, quickly located the correct room, and sat just behind Matt and Foggy, behind the partition. There were cameras being set up to televise the hearing, and on the other side of the courtroom was the special prosecutor that the Attorney General had appointed to handle Bucky's case. He was an older fellow, seasoned with hundreds of convictions under his belt and cozy with the political establishment in D.C. Compared to him, Matt and Foggy looked to the world like bugs waiting to be squished with a rolled up newspaper.
Summer looked away, took a deep breath, and wished that she'd taken a Xanax with breakfast.
One thing that could be said for the federal agents who Bucky faced contact with on a daily basis was that they were not the horrific pieces of scum that his HYDRA handlers had been. They weren't gentle or warm, certainly, but they didn't taunt him for fun and they didn't knock him around for fun either, or stare at him like he was less than human. Far from it, they were forbidden to speak to him or interact in any way, and they respected those rules. They gave him food that he barely ate and the showers that he was allowed were hot and not the nightmarish things HYDRA had subjected him to.
Some of them looked fairly terrified to be in his presence. Others might have had a slight bit of sympathy in their eyes, and still others seemed completely unaffected. The ones that came to retrieve him from his cell to take him to the arraignment were the latter, all stone-faced and neutral and efficient. They were led by the same agent who had been leading the investigation, the one who came by to ask Bucky questions every few days that he refused to answer, and it was as they loaded him into the back of an armored truck that morning that he saw the sun for the first time in two months.
His arms and legs shackled to the floor of the truck in reinforced chains, he kept his head down during the brief journey. Nobody spoke to him and he sure as hell wasn't going to speak to them. For two months he hadn't uttered a single word to any of them. The only times that he had spoken at all were during the few visits he'd been allowed from Steve and Summer and, more recently, his new lawyers.
The ride to the federal courthouse was short. For some reason, one that he would later blame on his mental state, Bucky didn't expect the swarm of flashing cameras and people yelling that awaited on the other side of the truck's doors.
He did his best to ignore the cameras and obnoxious questions as the agents hustled him inside, knowing in the back of his mind that they could have brought him in much more discreetly if they had wanted to, but that was just it. They didn't want to. They were showing off, wanting his face plastered all over the news as much as possible, with both of his hands bound and hair hanging loosely around his face and their prison clothes on him, underneath the headline Look! We're doing something right for once!
Maybe they were. He'd spent so much time alone with nothing but the demons and ghosts of his past to keep him company, he was starting to wonder if everything wasn't as it should be. He was no longer living in a bubble surrounded by people who loved him and made him believe that his past didn't define him and that he was good and deserved a happy life. But maybe they were wrong. Maybe they'd always been wrong, and this was what he would always deserve.
His thoughts swirled stubbornly through his head as he was led into the courtroom and then walked towards where his lawyers sat. He looked to the row of seats behind them and saw Steve sitting there with Summer, right in front, both of them looking at him with that same mixture of love and quiet horror that he'd seen from them every time they'd visited him.
But they weren't the only ones there. Sam was there too, sitting behind them with Natasha and Wanda. Clint was there too. So was Dr. Connor, that incorrigible old man, and maybe most surprisingly, Tony was also present with Pepper. Vision was with them, too. Nick Fury's presence was perhaps the most looming and intimidating of all, and he was joined by Maria Hill and a few other associates that Bucky knew from his work at the facility.
It was a show of solidarity, and for some reason, it hit him like a hard punch to the chest. He looked back to Summer and watched her eyes start to grow watery, just before he was seated next to Matt and Foggy and was forced to look away.
How all of these people could have faith in him when he had all but already given up on himself was beyond his comprehension. How Tony could be sitting there in his corner when a judge was about to formally hear charges of Bucky murdering his father was an even greater mystery.
"Are these chains really necessary?" Foggy asked one of the guards who had escorted Bucky after he was seated. "Can't you put him in something a little less extreme?"
"Protocol, sir," the guard replied before leaving them.
Foggy, who was sitting the closest to Bucky, paused and then said quietly to Bucky, "Sorry about this. We also requested that the hearing be private, but we didn't get anywhere."
Bucky glanced at the cameras lining the room, not surprised at all.
"Might not be a bad thing, though, because the whole country's gonna see all the support you've got behind you."
All the support he didn't deserve. He cleared his throat faintly and asked, "What do I do?"
"Not a lot," Matt replied. "You rise when the judge comes and goes. You answer him when he asks you a question. And when they ask how you plead, you say not guilty."
Bucky paused, looking between the two lawyers in quiet confusion. "By insanity?"
"No," Matt shook his head. "Just not guilty."
... But he was guilty, and the government had heaps of proof of it. How in the world then could Bucky claim to be not guilty and not make a huge joke of his entire defense?
"Trust us," Matt told him, fully serious and fully sincere.
Bucky was fairly sure that his lawyers were both utterly delusional.
But that was when the bailiff announced the judge's arrival, and before Bucky could further argue, everyone in the courtroom stood up. Bucky followed suit, keeping his expression blank and nerves calm as he watched the judge walk in and take his seat. The judge was old, older than the prosecutor representing the government, and Bucky wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad thing, or if it mattered at all.
The next fifteen minutes passed by in a surreal haze that hurt more than he had expected it to.
As Matt had explained, the judge asked him a few questions, mostly pertaining to his awareness of his surroundings and soundness of mind. He answered quietly and respectfully, never much more than a simple yes or no, aware of the many eyes on him. He couldn't even comprehend how many people were watching this on their phone or TV.
Then the charges were read. The first one was the most obvious one, the first degree murder of President John F. Kennedy. Next came Howard Stark, and then six more names. Most of them were government officials whose deaths occurred between the 50s and 70s, a few of them scientists and engineers. He remembered killing most of them, but not all.
The eight deaths were only about a third of his total kills as the Winter Soldier, but they were the only ones prosecutable for a number of reasons. Most of the other ones had been non-Americans or ones that lacked clear evidence implicating him. But it hardly mattered - eight was more than enough.
Then, after the charges had been read, the judge asked how he pled. Bucky couldn't believe what he was about to say and he still thought it was laughable, but he still said not guilty.
The judge was so confused by this that he asked the counselors to approach the bench, just to make sure that they realized how stupid of a plea that was. Once he was satisfied that they were more than aware, he let them go back to their tables and then moved on to the issue of bail.
That was when Bucky's sense of dread began to set in. He held no hope of being released on bail, but he knew that Summer and Steve both did. They had both already been through so much because of him, and now they would have their hopes crushed and he'd have to see the disappointment on their faces as he was led back to his solitary cell across town.
But the process didn't quite go as he expected. Matt and Foggy presented the judge with a number of statements. The first was from Dr. Connor, who vouched for his mental state and lack of aggression or the potential for a flight risk and argued that further incarceration under the current circumstances would only serve to impair his mental function and delay or otherwise impede a swift trial. The second was from Nick Fury who echoed the same sentiments and noted his previous two years of secret service with the Avengers and the stability and responsibility that he had demonstrated during that time.
Then Matt and Foggy presented their proposal of a very strict and transparent house arrest at Avenger's tower. They gave the government a lot, offering 24 hour access to Bucky and even some surveillance in the common areas of the tower, which was a concession that likely made Tony want to roll into a ditch. Essentially, he would still be very much in prison, only he would be with his friends and family and have the chance to spend time with them before potentially serving the rest of his life in prison or being put to death.
The special prosecutor, unsurprisingly, countered with all of the arguments that Bucky expected - that he was an inherent flight risk, that to consider such an idea would be special treatment for the Avengers who were unpoliced and unaccountable and dangerous, and unprecedented in a case of this magnitude.
The judge called a recess to consider his decision. Bucky was shocked. He was actually deliberating this?
Behind him, Summer and Steve smiled at him, cautious hope clear in their eyes. He couldn't smile back but he held their gazes long enough to tell them what he needed them to know - that he didn't expect to come home, and if he didn't, that it was okay.
It wasn't okay, of course, but they needed to think that it was. He needed them to be strong for not just their own sake but for that of his kids, who needed them now more than ever. He needed them to be strong so that he could have some semblance of peace in his solitude, knowing that they were okay and his kids were okay and that they would all make it without him.
When the judge returned and took his seat once more, Bucky stood and felt a sharp wave of anxiety uncurl in his gut. He had no hope - he couldn't let himself have that luxury - but this was his last chance to have some time with his family before facing justice.
"I'm conflicted on this," the judge admitted, looking out at the faces before him, "but I've made a decision. The truth is that with a case like this, where the crimes are of such a magnitude and high profile, there is no precedent for setting bail."
Bucky clenched his jaw and looked down. That was it. Of course it was. He would have been silly to expect anything else.
"However, there's also no precedent set for this entire case."
Bucky's eyes shot up.
"Not only are we trying a man for a crime that the government knowingly pinned on the wrong man over 50 years ago, but we are also trying a man who we are all aware by now did not knowingly defect to the USSR or willingly commit treason. Anyone with an Internet connection can verify this on their own. This is a remarkably complicated case and even at this early stage, we should all be able to agree that it is not black and white and that we're all in uncharted waters at this point. Now, I think that given the dubious manner of Mr. Barnes' arrest and the fact that this arraignment is essentially a joke, considering he's been in custody for two months already, the defense's proposal for house arrest is reasonable."
Bucky's jaw nearly hit the floor. Was he hallucinating?
"In the same vein," the judge went on, "the arrangement will be a burden on the FBI, and I am not a fan of special treatment for anybody. That's not what this is. But after reading the sworn statement of the psychologist who has treated the defendant for several years, I see the logic in the defense's proposal. I'll set bail at 15 million dollars, the terms of which are conditional upon house arrest and full cooperation from the defendant."
And just like that, the judge smacked his gavel once, and the hearing was adjourned.
Bucky almost didn't make it to his feet when the judge left. He was so deeply shocked and confused that his legs were on the verge of losing function.
"Well," Foggy said to Bucky after the judge had gone, "happen to know anybody with fifteen million bucks laying around?"
Bucky turned and looked at Summer over his shoulder, finding her staring at him in sheer shock with her hands over her mouth. Steve was flabbergasted as well, and Bucky wasn't sure how to feel. Bail had been set, yes, but he and Summer definitely didn't have $15,000,000 to their name.
"We'll get to work on this right away," Matt assured Bucky as Foggy gathered up their things and the guards came over to take Bucky back. "This is good. This is a victory for us."
Bucky nodded, then had to shove down an instinctual urge to throw the guards off of him as they grabbed him and began to lead him away. He controlled himself, looking back at Summer once more as he was marched out of the courtroom.
He might actually get to come home.
As Bucky grappled with the prospect of having some hope once more, he missed what happened a few moments later, after he was gone and when Summer and Steve both stood up to leave and looked at each other incredulously.
"They actually set bail," Summer marveled, staring at Steve with wide eyes.
"Yes they did," Foggy said, he and Matt making their way to them. "I can't believe it either and I helped pitch the deal."
Summer smiled at them both, then said, "But I did hear the amount right? Fifteen million?"
"Fifteen million," Matt confirmed. "I'm surprised it's not more, honestly."
Steve, knowing full well that there was only one man they knew who could help them, gave Summer's back a pat before he stepped out of their row and walked to where Tony was standing with Pepper a few rows down.
Summer watched as Steve walked up to Tony, who immediately put up his hands, closed his eyes, and nodded to Steve.
"I know," he said before Steve had the chance to utter a single word. "I know. I've got this."
And when Steve immediately hugged Tony right there in the middle of the courtroom, in front of cameras that were still rolling, Summer immediately knew what it meant and felt happy tears spring to her eyes.
"Thank you, Tony," Steve said as Tony hugged him back, patting his back humorously and grinning a little.
"Yeah, yeah, you're welcome. By the way," Tony replied, "This totally makes you my bitch now."
Steve laughed, and Tony gave Summer the thumbs up. She smiled hugely and then vigorously hugged both Matt and Foggy before being the next one to all but tackle Tony in an enormous hug, knowing that she could never ever repay him in a million years for the gift that he was giving to her family.
Against all odds, Bucky was coming home. Adelaide was going to have a happy birthday after all.
A/N: Hey look, a semi-happy ending for this chapter! :D They're only at the start of this whole ordeal but hey, you guys can't say I'm completely cruel :p Thank you guys so much for the feedback and great response that you've all had to this new phase of the story, it means SO much to me because I've been looking forward to this for AGES and I'm REALLY happy that you all seem to be enjoying it (even though it's been mega-angsty so far :D). Your all's reviews make my day, so keep them coming and I will do my best to have next week's slightly happier chapter out in a timely manner :D a BIG thank you to my co-conspirator midnigtwings96 for always helping me out and frankly being the main reason why I manage to keep this giant story updated and alive (seriously, all the credit goes to her). Thank you all again, and as usual, I'll see you next week! :D