Not getting a response, a worried Jarvis slid down the crevice to check on his friend. He arrived just in time to see the massive crocodile gearing up to attack Peggy.

Jarvis snatched the waning torch from Peggy's weakened grasp and thrust it at the ravenous creature. Without a thought to his own safety, he moved closer and waved the dying fire at it.

All the while, he yelled, "Keep back, Max!"

The immense reptile growled dangerously but did not charge. Nor did it retreat as it had done so in the past.

Jarvis made a quick decision, "Miss Carter, you best go ahead of me."

Even not at her best, Peggy remembered that she was the one who was supposed to be taking all the risks. And having a giant, deadly monster nipping at your backside fits that rule spectacularly. Stubbornly she shook her head.

Jarvis could be just as determined, "No, I insist." And before Peggy could formally object, the butler forced her into the opening. Hissing in pain and dimly realizing that she could hardly put up much of a fight as it was, she yielded to his demands.

Begrudgingly she waved him off and then made her way upwards slowly. But the whole time, she made sure that Jarvis heard her grumbles of dissent. Had she turned around, she would have seen his self-satisfied smirk.

Making sure to keep the torch angled low as a warning to the enormous crocodile, Jarvis braced his long body against the walls of the tight fissure and began to climb.

By the time they reached the end of the plugged exit, both were gasping loudly from the lack of air. At the front, Peggy feebly began to dig away at the hole of the small opening.

Needing both hands to help her, Jarvis jammed the broken femur torch's sharp jagged end into the wall and continued upwards.

Squeezing in next to her, they tiredly worked on removing the blockage of the multiple rocks and soil.

Hearing the roar of the hungry crocodile sounded a bit too near for Peggy's liking. It seemed that the more rubble they pulled free and dropped below, the more material the creature had to climb up on. It had already used this new mountain of rock to reach the mouth of the narrow fissure that they were in.

Peggy did her best to only focus on the task of breaking through into the beacon room. But the noise of the frantic burrowing behind them had her looking back past Jarvis.

Horrified, she saw that the crocodile was using its long snout to shovel through the smaller entrance hole, easily widening it.

In moments, the gap was big enough, and the powerful creature pushed headlong after them. Though it was a snug fit for the behemoth, the beast was determined and hungry. Quickly it slithered upwards and was dangerously closing in on Jarvis's posterior!

"Mr. Jarvis, your six!" Peggy yelled.

Twisting around, the butler saw that the crocodile was nearly upon his backside. Panicking, he kicked the waning torch free from the wall and onto the creature. The dwindling flames instantly sparked brightly when the torch bounced off the reptile's snout. The creature shook its head in anger and lunged forward.

Jarvis swept up his feet just before the crocodile could bite them off.

Then luck smiled upon them, for the immense reptile's thick lower body suddenly became jammed in the smaller passageway. Desperate, it began to thrash about, which caused the surrounding earth to crack and crumble. This further weakened their escape route, and debris collapsed downwards on Jarvis and Peggy.

Frantically, the humans knocked aside the smaller pieces that were dislodged by the crocodile's agitated movements. The positive from all this was that the volatile action had finally opened the exit hole large enough for one of them to fit through.

Neither said a word when Jarvis boosted Peggy ahead of him.

Peggy began to squeeze out the small gap and into the beacon room as quickly as her injuries allowed. Feeling like toothpaste coming out of a tube, she did her best to ignore the pain as she pulled herself upwards. Even with Jarvis helping her, it seemed like she was struggling through molasses.

Within the crevice, the crocodile had finally worked its way free and surged closer. Suddenly it was right behind Jarvis. Mercilessly, it snapped at his dangling feet.

Instantly invigorated, Jarvis somehow crawled hurriedly past his sluggish friend and into the room.

Having barely missed the butler's feet, the creature focused on Peggy's floundering limbs. The crocodile was nearly upon her, but Jarvis dragged Peggy out in the nick of time.

The massive crocodile attempted to follow, but its immense lower body could not squeeze through the tight opening. Only its snout could poke out from the hole. The frustrated beast roared at them as it fought for leverage. Hearing its sharp claws scrambling for purchase sounded like nails on the chalkboard to Peggy.

Unable to stand on her own, Peggy scooted further away from the enraged reptile as it began to inch its way closer to her.

Panting, Peggy was having a hell of a time catching her breath. The CO2 levels must have been off the charts, she exhaustedly thought.

While a gasping Jarvis grabbed their gear by the cupola's destroyed entrance, Peggy slowly rummaged through the small pack for their breathing masks.

Jarvis stumbled back with their diving tanks, her compression gun, and the cumbersome transmitter part of the scanner. Though they worked as fast as they could, it felt as if forever had passed before they could finally get their tanks hooked onto their masks.

Once finished, all Peggy could muster was shallow breaths, but the air helped restore some of her vitality.

Hoping that it still worked, Peggy shouted into the mask's mic, "Howard, Howard, if you can hear us, move the boat closer to our location."

Howard's relieved voice came in loud. It almost sounded as if he was close to tears, "Peggy, Jarvis, you're alive?!"

Peggy yelled, "Yes, but just barely. Coming out hot!"

"I'll be there, pal. You can count on it," Howard promised.

Peggy glanced over at the squirming crocodile. The aquatic beast had finally dug enough of the lower rocks away so that it could fight its way through the hole.

She realized too late that the crocodile was between them and the exit. She cursed the fogginess that riddled her fatigued mind.

Before it could corner them, a desperate Jarvis chucked the bulky transmitter at it. The hungry reptile snatched it up in midair and then roared when it realized it wasn't food. But the device's sacrifice had given Peggy and Jarvis time to stumble past the furious beast and escape into the supply room.

Spitting out the crushed transmitter, the crocodile charged after them. After it slithered through the beacon supply chamber, the room's tight exit only slowed the massive beast down momentarily. Nothing was going to stop this hungry creature.

Because of her injuries and the heavy tank on her back, Peggy struggled to scramble up and down the crooked stone corridor that led to the middle tier. With Jarvis' help, she was just able to keep clear of the crocodile's sharp bite.

The few times the creature got too close to them, Jarvis would fire a compression round at it. But they were stumbling around too much, which caused his aim to be off. He hit everything but the crocodile.

As bits of debris peppered it, the creature thundered an angry response back at them. At least it was smart enough to back down the few times Jarvis shot the air gun at it.

Finally, the duo made it to the submerged section of the tower.

Following the nylon guideline, they dove in and out of the water as they stumbled closer to the exit. During this, they barely kept ahead of the hungry creature.

Thank God for the guideline, Peggy thought blurrily. She knew that in her current state of mind that she would have taken a wrong turn, and they'd be at a dead-end in more ways than one.

At times, the immense creature was so close that Peggy swore she felt the rush of churning waters each time it snapped its large jaws shut behind them.

Though it was easier for Peggy to get around in the buoyant water, it was also the same for the huge crocodile. It swam effortlessly after them. Only the skinny and twisting corridors saved them from becoming the creature's next meal. Every now and then, the behemoth reptile would get stuck in a smaller opening, which afforded our duo the chance to get further away.

But the crocodile was just as determined as they were and would not let its food out of sight.

Peggy nearly wept when she saw that they had made it to the hole that led to the Mediterranean Sea. They pushed their way through to safety just in time.

Right on their heels, the crocodile slammed headfirst into the stone blocks of the Lighthouse, barely missing them. Thankfully it could not fit and pursue them outside the ruins.

As the vast sea flowed all around them, Peggy sighed, relieved. Finally, they had made it out alive.

Suddenly, the fortified stone walls behind them shook violently as the stubborn leviathan began to ram into them repeatedly. Sections of the middle tier shifted and cracked, causing the exit to enlarge slowly. A few more direct hits and this dangerous beast would get through.

Frantic, Peggy grabbed the compression gun from Jarvis and ordered, "Move back!"

He protested, "You're not going to kill it, are you? Max is an innocent creature."

True, it wasn't the massive crocodile's fault for following its natural instincts, but it was still a deadly killer.

She shouldered Jarvis out of her way and said through a determined grimace, "I know it isn't fair, but I cannot allow it to roam free. That creature would kill a lot of people before it was stopped." She did not want to imagine what havoc a crocodile this size would do to the local population.

Knowing that this was going to hurt, Peggy fired the burst of air anyway. All the compressed gas achieved was pushing the enraged crocodile back further into the toppled Lighthouse. Worse, it blasted away more of the silt at the opening, inadvertently widening the gap.

Gritting her teeth from the jarring pain, Peggy saw the enormous reptile charging forward again, all the more resolute to escape. It crashed into the wall, and more bits of rubble fell away. Now its long snout could fit through.

Obviously, the creature was not going to give up. Shaking from pain, Peggy once more raised the weapon to fire.

"Then let's seal Max in there instead," Jarvis suggested.

Racking her muddled brain, Peggy wondered how on earth they could do that. Even at its highest setting, the compression gun would only buffet against the reinforced exterior of the Lighthouse like crashing waves. How could it ever work on a structure that was once considered the most fortified against the pounding seas?

No, what they needed was more of a focused, hard punch to collapse the opening—something like a battering ram.

Suddenly, she had an idea of just how to do it. Eyeing the elongated propulsion unit by the mouth of the entrance, Peggy commanded, "Mr. Jarvis, grab the jet pack."

Stuttering his head fearfully, a leery Jarvis began to approach the opening cautiously.

Seeing him nearing, the crocodile stopped ramming the hole and just poked its snout out in hopes of nabbing him. Peggy swore it was grinning at her friend the entire time. And so did Jarvis, who halted in his tracks.

Peggy lurched closer. Working past the ache of her ribs and back, she raised the compression gun that felt as if it was getting heavier by the second.

Trying to keep her shaking hands as steady as possible, Peggy ordered curtly, "Go, now, Mr. Jarvis."

Just as Jarvis lunged towards the jet pack, Peggy fired, instantly driving the crocodile back. Her friend was able to grab the jet pack, and he quickly swam back to her with it.

She'd have to give him credit. His voice only slightly shook when he asked, "Now what, Miss Carter?"

"I need you to place both our air tanks near the opening." Before he could protest, she added, "Then you will aim the jet pack at them. Hopefully, the mixture of jet fuel and oxygen will make an explosion big enough to collapse the opening."

Jarvis frowned, "Doesn't that seem like overkill?"

Peggy shook her head, "We can't risk it. That creature knows how to get out now. I am sure over time, it would succeed if we don't seal it in properly."

"Yes, Max is a rather tenacious bugger," Jarvis grumbled.

She hissed, "Hurry!"

Doing what Peggy said, Jarvis unhooked the breathing apparatus from his mask and then went to help her remove hers. The SSR Agent tried to take the deepest breath possible. She hoped what little air she captured in her lungs would be enough.

Firing the compression gun once more drove the crocodile far enough back that Jarvis could drop both tanks next to the opening. He dove out of the way just as the creature's jaws came rushing out at him.

As the crocodile continued slamming into the widening hole, Jarvis swam back to Peggy.

For a moment, they watched the immense reptiles determined strikes loosening more of the blocks around it.

While the seconds ticked by, Peggy almost fired off another shot of air, but she couldn't do it anymore. Shooting off the last blast had done her in. This all-consuming pain made it difficult for her to hold her breath, and she really wished Jarvis would hurry up and get set.

As if he had heard her desperate mental plea, Jarvis hefted the jet pack onto his shoulder and aimed it at the air tanks. During this, the adamant crocodile continued battering against the opening. As more rocks tumbled away, Peggy set the dial on the propulsion device to the highest speed it could go.

Jarvis dug his feet into the sand. Nodding he was ready, Peggy then flipped the switch.

The strength of the thrust was so strong that Jarvis was partially dragged off with it. Then, halfway to the target, he let go.

Suddenly, the jet pack slammed into the entrance, causing the oxygen and fuel tanks to crack open. Then, just as fast, sharp metal edges scratched against one another. Only a small spark was created in the expanding sea of jet fuel. But that was all it needed.

A massive explosion occurred, collapsing the entrance completely.

The resounding shockwave sent Peggy and Jarvis tumbling backward. They both slammed hard into the seafloor, which knocked out most of Peggy's remaining breath.

Shaking her muddled head, Peggy almost expelled the last of her air away when she saw Jarvis floating unconscious nearby.

They had barely any time left. Her ribs were on fire, as were her lungs, and she knew Jarvis wouldn't last much longer either. Looking up, she realized they were still too deep under the turbulent water. They could never swim the distance to the surface in time without drowning.

Lungs near bursting, she grabbed Jarvis around the waist tightly. She then aimed the compression gun at the seafloor and fired the weapon at its highest setting.

The blast propelled them up so fast that they quickly broke through the water. Together they shot so high into the air that they must have gone up an additional twenty feet.

As they began to fall back towards the ocean, Peggy knew it was going to hurt. Regardless that it was water, it would still not be so soft for her injured back.

They both landed in the sea with a sharp jolt. Then a huge splash of water crashed back on top of them. As they bobbed on the surface, Peggy exclaimed between gasps, "Bloody Howard and his need to overcompensate!"

The abrupt landing roused Jarvis. Both he and Peggy groaned in pain, but they were free and alive. Tiredly, they removed their masks and breathed in the fresh air.

Peggy heard the once bored Press suddenly going wild on the nearby craggy shore of the Citadel. It seemed that seeing a scantily clad beauty flying up out from the water like some mystical sea nymph had garnered their interest once more.

Frankly, Peggy was too sore to care that all had seen their grand escape. She ignored the paparazzi's hooting and hollering yelled her way.

As Peggy and Jarvis trodden water, Howard zipped the small speed boat over to them. With a huge smile of relief, he then helped them aboard. Before they could collapse onto the seat, he hugged them tightly. Loudly he gushed, "Oh, thank God you didn't die!" He shook his head, "You two certainly know how to give a guy a heart attack."

Finally released, Peggy and Jarvis crumpled onto the back seat, panting from pain and exhaustion. Eyeing them critically, Howard asked, "Hey, where are my diving suits?"

After tossing their masks onto the floor, Peggy leaned forward, her elbows resting on her knees, "Just be satisfied that it saved my life."

"It did?" Howard grinned, pleased. He then saw Jarvis inspecting Peggy's wounded back. Staring at her in concern, the inventor grimaced when he saw the large black and blue bite marks bruising around her middle.

When Jarvis gently poked at her injury, Peggy gritted through clenched teeth, "As well as getting us caved in on a misfire—"

Howard nodded absently, then stated, "But it also saved your life."

Sighing, Peggy admitted softly, "Sorry we lost your jet pack and scanner."

The millionaire inventor shrugged, "Too bad about the jet pack, but not a problem regarding the scanner. I'm already working on a newer model that I was going to use to find you. I tell yah, these field tests are working out wonderfully! I figure that the improved scanner will be ready for the open market by the time we are done with this little adventure."

As Howard turned the speedboat around, both Peggy and Jarvis shared a look of indignation that seemed to say, "Well, that's Howard for you."

It was a short trip back to the yacht, and after tying the speedboat to the rear of the large craft, Howard began to help Peggy up the gangplank. Always dutiful, the exhausted Jarvis protested, but Howard explained, "I best do it, Jarvis. The Press is already wondering about the mystery man who shot out of the water with her like a cannon."

"It's alright, Mr. Jarvis," Peggy muttered and tried to smile encouragingly at him. But, instead, it looked more like a grimace. Frankly, all she wanted to do was lie down for a while, "Just a nap, and then we can tell Howard all about our fun."

"Actually, I think the best course of action for you is a hot bath and some pain killers," Jarvis countered.

In too much discomfort to stubbornly refuse, Peggy nodded in agreement. Besides, she liked how he thought. Still, she could not help but quip, "Oh, please don't say killers."

Jarvis looked briefly to the water, and Peggy knew he was concerned that Max had not survived the explosion. Though she felt bad, she reminded herself that such a massive reptile would have slaughtered many people had they not stopped it.

Smirking at her easy acquiescence, Howard suggested, "You should try out this special bathtub I have, Peg. It's called a water spa. You can fit at least six people in it."

She had no idea what it was, but it sounded heavenly. Then she wondered how he knew it could fit six but decided maybe she shouldn't ask. Instead, she muttered, "You have one here? Of course, you do."

He led her up to the second floor and explained, "Yeah, it's in my bathroom. It even has therapeutic jets."

Through teeth clenched from the pain of climbing the stairs, Peggy mocked, "Jets? Your invention? Better not. It might shoot me through the roof!"

"Ha, ha, Peg," Howard deadpanned as he now slowly walked her into his cabin.

Seeing how difficult it was for her to get around, the millionaire suggested, "Let me send in Colette and Paulette. They can help you."

He expected a rebuff, but Peggy just nodded her head. Carefully sitting her down on his bed, he made a quick call on the nearby intercom. In moments, the two maids rushed in and began to prep the water spa. After shooing Howard and Jarvis from the cabin, they assisted Peggy towards the bathroom.

While the maids got her settled, Jarvis knocked on the door with the pain reliever pills. When Paulette answered, she glared at the concerned Howard, who was standing just behind the butler. She accused, "How could you do this to her!"

Arms raised in surrender, Howard assured her, "I didn't lay a hand on her!"

The maid then turned on Jarvis. Before he could profess his innocence, she slapped him hard. After snatching the pills from the shocked butler's hands, the door was then slammed in their faces.

"Well, I say," Jarvis said, rubbing his tingling cheek.

"Women, right," Howard patted Jarvis' shoulder and added, "You look like you could use a stiff drink, pal. How about we both get one, and you can tell the Professor and me all about your underwater adventure. I'd wait for Peggy, but I have a feeling she won't be up anytime soon."

Jarvis nodded and followed Howard to the upper decks.

To say that the snorkeling Russians weren't impressed when Peggy and Jarvis suddenly spurted out from the ocean would be an understatement. But there was no time for admiration, for Stark's speed boat had already plucked up his friends and was about to leave the area.

Knowing that they only had one chance at this, Dmitri quickly aimed his specialized gun at the rear of the idling speedboat. The Russian fired. He just barely got the tracking device adhered to the small vessel's stern before the boat sped off back to the yacht.

It wasn't much, but it was the best he could do. Sneering, both Russians silently agreed that they needed an upgrade to their situation.

While Peggy soaked dreamily in the luxurious warm jet spa, Howard gave the order to get underway.

Next stop - Olympia, Greece.

After a time and many drinks later, Howard went to check on Peggy.

As they were being dismissed, the maids wouldn't stop glaring at him, and his protests were ignored. Howard wondered if they would still visit him nightly during this voyage. Oh well, he thought, they were a bit too distracting anyway.

Tapping on the bathroom door, he heard Peggy's relaxed reply, "Come in."

Entering, Howard replied sheepishly, "Hi, Peg, it's just me coming to see how you are doing,"

"Oh, just fine," she replied languidly.

Behind the privacy screen, he heard a loud sigh of relief among the swirling water. Though tempted to look, Howard knew not to push Peggy's boundaries. Even if she was half asleep from the drugs and booze, she could still hurt him enough to leave a permanent limp if provoked.

To make matters more maudlin, after hearing Jarvis retell their harrowing adventure, Howard realized how close he had come to losing his two best friends.

"You had me really worried, Peg," his voice faltered with emotion.

"It's alright, love, we lived," her slightly slurred reply had his eyebrow cocking. He wondered just how much pain medication Jarvis had given her. But then, by the size of the bruises sprouting on her back, it probably was the right dosage.

Undeterred, Peggy continued, "Now, Howard, we've been through worse. Remember that damn rebar?" She waited for his reply, but upon hearing only silence, she said, "Please don't tell me that you are considering calling this whole thing off due to one errant giant crocodile?"

Taking her challenging tone to heart, Howard stood straighter, "No, of course not. We'll just have to be more careful."

"Exactly," she did a small titter. It was so unlike his friend that Howard seriously questioned if she should be mixing the drugs with liquor. Sounding a bit flirty, Peggy commanded, "Now come from behind the screen. I hate talking to you like this."

Though concerned that this could lead to trouble, a wary Howard did as she asked.

Thankfully, the churning, bubbling water covered most, if not all, her amazing curves. Still, his imagination held no boundaries.

Nevertheless, decency had him sitting cross-legged on the floor with his back angled away from her. With his womanizer background, he knew that most would view his current propriety as being ridiculous, but he really did respect Peggy. That and the fact that her right hook could flatten him.

Oh, don't get him wrong. In the past, he had thought about what it would have been like to have slept with her. Unfortunately, one of the sticking points was that he had never kept a female friend after he had done so.

And it would kill him to lose his friendship with one of the few people that understood his peculiarities and continued to put up with him. Still, he could always appreciate the appeal of a fine-looking woman with brains to boot.

Absently, he plucked at an errant piece of thread coming loose from a button on his shirt. Then taking a chance, he glanced over at her and was relieved to see that her eyes were closed.

Howard remarked casually, "Jarvis told me about Max and its incendiary poop. There wasn't much in the bag, but I sent out what was left on the dried grass to be tested. I bet I could corner the market on this alternative fuel."

He sighed, discouraged, "That is if I can replicate it. By the sound of things, there was no way the crocodile could escape from all that damage. So the only way to reproduce it now is to recreate that particular environment. Now I might be able to regrow that special grass, but having to raise such a critter—"

Glaring at him, Peggy stated incredulously, "You're not actually going to try that, are you? That's just cruel, Howard." She dramatically crossed her arms, then winced but still stubbornly kept her pose.

He couldn't stop his grin at her petulant behavior, "No, of course not, Peg."

"Good, that poor homicidal beast must have been lonely from being stuck down there … all alone," she finished lamely. Ignoring her communication troubles, she reached for the glass of whiskey and then slugged down all the contents. Forlornly, she muttered, "I wonder if Max is even still alive—"

Howard cautiously watched her when she attempted to pour herself another glass. Unable to properly focus, Peggy asked sweetly, "Be a dear, Howard." She sighed, letting her body sink further under the roiling water, her tumbler thrust out towards him.

Looking at her bare, outstretched arm, he did his best not to contemplate her nude status. Trying to distract himself from any sort of erotic imagery, Howard refilled her glass. The whole time he wished that there was another tumbler so he could have one too. Instead, he said conversationally with a shrug, "Who would have thought crocodile dung would have been the secret ingredient."

Pulling the glass back to her, Peggy replied, "Well, there was that mosaic, and we did find a reference to the God Sobek in the Eastern Harbor. And that excrement did have magical godlike properties." She grinned over the rim of the glass and took another sip.

Seeing her eyes drooping and her hand lowering, Howard grabbed the tumbler of whiskey before she submerged the contents. He confirmed, "Yeah, Jarvis told us what you two thought."

After he drained the alcohol all down in one big gulp, Howard mentioned offhandedly, "When he proposed that it or its ancestors were the God Sobek reincarnated, well, the Professor was not amused."

Having sunk too low into the water startled Peggy awake. She rose enough to mutter, "Oh?"

Howard smiled at the memory, "Yeah. So, of course, I couldn't stop myself from hypothesizing that the Egyptians had used natural selection to evolve the crocodile into a specialized creature that could excrete fantastic fuel. When I stated, "And thus they had created a unique and spectacular species, a God in its own right," I thought Spencer would have a heart attack. He seems to be one of those more religious type archeologists."

Peggy frowned at the lack of drink in her hand but was too tired to try to wrestle the glass back from Howard's fingers. Instead, she smirked, "So you think that they created their own Gods? You can't be serious, Howard?"

Her friend grinned back, "Why not? And that would explain how a crocodile could do all that."

"At times, you are so odd," Peggy mused. She then grinned devilishly at him.

Howard knew it was just the drink and painkillers talking, but in that brief moment, he worried for his very soul. What little there was left of it as it were.

"Howard, you must come in. This feels so amazing. The bubbles tickle me in such wonderful places," she drunkenly purred, and Howard's toes curled. Though tempted as he may be, he shook his head. Honestly, he had no idea how Souza held it together around her sometimes.

Chuckling to hide his temptation, he stated, "Peg, I can't believe you." There was a time he wondered if she ever felt something more than friendship for him. Regardless, he knew she would wake up embarrassed if anything more ever came between them.

She teased, "Oh, live a little Howard."

"Not if I come in there, I would," he muttered and turned away from her once more. Even if his father hadn't raised him to be a gentleman, Souza would kill him. Of course, that was if a sober Peggy Carter didn't eviscerate him first.

He heard her splashing around the tub. It was a good sign that maybe she would be better sooner than they thought. Jarvis was hedging a few days, if not a week, but Howard knew Peggy during the War. He doubted she could stay still for even one day. But, truthfully, he did not know how long they could wait anyway. Not with so many interested parties wanting to find the treasure also.

Still, he had Captain Jasper change course to a different spot while she recuperated. When she was better, then they would then head for Olympia. In the meantime, they needed to keep the next clues destination a secret for as long as possible.

One of her wet toes nudged his back, "This is marvelous. What is it called again?"

Howard gulped, and his voice actually squeaked when he answered, "A water spa."

She laughed, her head tilting back.

Howard risked a glance and saw that she was once more resting her head against the tub's rim. Her right hand swayed back and forth, skimming along the surface of the invigorating water, her hazy mind lost in thought.

Gauging her relaxed movements, it not only told him that the therapeutic waters were working but so were the pain meds. So Howard would let her stay in there a bit longer, but not too much. Besides turning into a prune, she was getting so relaxed that he feared she might sink under and drown.

Knowing he best leave, he called back in the maids to get her ready for bed. He would remind them to tuck her back in her own chambers, not his.

Shaking his head, he glanced at his friend one last time. He wondered once more what it would have been like if he had landed this woman before she had lost her heart to Captain America instead.