Chapter 5. The Storm

This chapter contains sexual content which may not be suitable for readers under the age of 18.

Halfway to the Bunker they turned into a gravel road that reduced their speed considerably. Bucky had to drop back a bit because the dust generated by Steve's car made it almost impossible to see where he was driving. Clint was navigating for Steve based on the directions the outfitter had given them. They wondered how he managed to keep his business going in these times considering he would need access to grasslands and water. Then they came over the final rise and realized how he kept in business. He wasn't just an outfitter but a slaughter house. Hundreds of broken down horses were being kept in pens, waiting to be slaughtered for their meat.

"I didn't know," said Clint, spitting out the window before he rolled it up in an attempt to keep out the smell. "Bastards."

"We still need the horses," said Steve. "Think he would sell them to us?"

"He would want more," said Clint. "Do we have anything left to barter?"

He pressed his comms and asked if anyone had anything left to barter. Bucky said he had a box of penicillin and a vial of broad spectrum antibiotics. Peter said he had some loose electronics parts. Jade looked at her hands and saw it. Pulling her wedding ring off she held it up.

"18 k gold wedding band," she said. "Has to be worth something."

They pulled up to the house and Steve, Clint and Bucky approached the outfitter. Clint insisted on checking out the horses first, running his hands down their legs and over their backs, then checking inside their mouths. He was happy with two of them but said the third one wasn't healthy.

"How does Clint know about horses?" asked Jade.

"He's a farmer," said Peter. "Has a farm in Iowa. His wife and kids are there. He'll be going back to them for a while after this next mission."

Jade focused her attention on the bartering. She was tempted to listen in mentally but resisted knowing it was more important that they trusted her. Finally, they appeared to have struck a bargain. Bucky came to her side of the car and asked for the ring. He caressed the side of her face when he took it and gave her a soft smile. Then he went to the cooler and took out two vials of penicillin from the box. Clint was leading the horses into a horse trailer which they would return on their next provisions run. He guided Bucky to the jack part, and he backed into position while Clint hooked it up. He came around to the window.

"We bought the horses, but the saddles and trailer are loaners,"he said. "Thanks for giving up your wedding ring, it made the difference. Gold always does."

On the drive back Bucky explained that Clint already had a place in mind to keep the horses and would work on some things to barter for saddles before he went home. Jade said she knew how to forage in the badlands and could find all sorts of things good to barter.

"Like what?" asked Bucky.

"Precious stones," she replied. "Opal, turquoise, jasper, quartz. You just have to recognize the signs of where a vein comes up to the surface. There's lots of geodes as well. None of them are particularly useful but they're pretty and perhaps someone wants something pretty. Ma taught me. It's how she supported herself before the Others."

"Look who has hidden skills," said Bucky, smiling, and taking her hand.

Although the rain threatened it hadn't come down but once the two vehicles arrived everyone rushed to get everything inside as soon as possible. The weather station on the roof gave every indication of a storm brewing and no one wanted to be caught out in it. Clint led the three horses to the garage area and tied them up while he removed their saddles. They had bartered for some feed, and he fed and watered them. Jade approached him.

"I haven't seen a horse since I was little," she said. "Can I pet them?"

"Sure," he said. "Stroke the side of their neck or scratch them behind their ear. Stay away from the nose area as that's very sensitive. If they want you to touch it they'll tell you. If they back away let them go."

Tentatively she reached out and stroked the first one on the side of its neck. It stepped forward into her and she put more pressure on her touch. It gently breathed on her shoulder and Clint smiled, nodding encouragement. Lightly she touched its mind and felt its acceptance of her presence. There were flashes of what it had experienced previously.

"You're okay," she whispered. "Clint will look after you."

She backed away and turned so Clint wouldn't see her cry. He was perceptive and stood near her.

"Hey," he said, touching her arm. "They've had a tough life but they're free of it now. I'll look after them and I'll teach you to ride and look after them while I'm gone. They'll be alright."

She nodded and left him to finish settling the horses down for the night.

—-

Let's see colors that have never been seen

Let's go to places no one else has been

Electrical Storm by U2

—-

In the common room Bruce and Ma had been busy, making food for everyone and it was all laid out for them to help themselves. Bucky was sitting on the couch with a huge sandwich and a bottle of beer. Jade grabbed half a sandwich and a coffee, sitting next to Bucky. The mood was good as the run had gone well with no hiccups except for the encounter with the two traffickers.

"I would have liked to have seen that," said Bruce. "They are truly vermin. I wonder why the sheriff lets them conduct business."

"He's likely getting a kickback," said Steve. "Bucky put them in their place. Next time, though, we better be prepared for a bigger show of force. Everyone knows Bucky isn't to be trifled with. I'm surprised they even tried."

"They know what she is," said Ma, out of the blue. "Someone in that town sensed her and probably wanted to test her. Did you not sense anything?"

"No, not at all," said Jade, worried now. "Could they have shielded themselves from me?"

"Probably," said her mother. "I think we need to look at strengthening your abilities. Wanda, do you think you can help?"

"I think it's a good idea," she replied. "I sensed something but they blocked me as well."

"Much as I want to discuss this further Jade and I are tired," said Bucky, taking her by the hand. "We're going to bed. Don't bother us."

Everyone smiled at the announcement knowing exactly what he had in mind. Halfway down the hallway he stopped and pushed Jade against the wall, kissing her hard, pressing himself into her. Then he picked her up in his arms. She entered the code into their suite and he put her down inside, kissing her as he started to undress her.

"Wait," she said. "Where's Ben? He wasn't in the common room."

Almost immediately she received a thought message from her mother that Ben would be staying with her tonight. Turning back to Bucky she pushed him towards the bedroom tugging on his clothes. By the time they got to the bed both were naked. Both explored the other's body with their mouths, tongues and hands in a flurry that caught them both up. When they stopped and became tender with each other Jade took a condom out of the box and rolled it onto Bucky. He pushed her down and guided himself into her slowly, knowing she would be very tight and firm. He buried his face in her neck as she caressed his head and shoulders then began thrusting into her with a slow but steady rhythm. They heard the sound of thunder outside.

"Here comes the storm," he whispered, as he kissed her.

"The storm inside or outside?" she whispered back as she encircled him with her arms.

A flash of lightning lit up the inside of the room briefly even through the narrow slits of windows. It was followed by a big boom of thunder and Jade felt the electricity hanging in the air with her senses. Bucky shifted and pulled one of her arms away from him, stretching it out alongside her head. He ran his hand up the side of her body, brushing against her breast then up her arm before holding it in place above her head. Leaning over her he mouthed her breast, sucking on the nipple and pulling it up with his lips. Then he pulled her other hand away and ran his other hand up the side of her body until he was holding both of her hands above her head with his artificial hand. With his free hand he grasped her chin and brought his face down to hers.

"Do you know my name?" he said in a low but demanding voice. "My real name?"

"James," she whispered. "Your name is James."

"I only want to hear it from your lips," he ordered. "Say it, say my name."

"James, my James," she whispered as she felt a rush begin in her.

"You're mine," he said, jamming himself hard into her, "and I'm yours. My Jade."

A flash of lightning followed by an instantaneous crack of thunder occurred as she called out at her release. He let go of her hands and continued his drive into her before finally reaching his climax, coming with a loud groan that filled her ear with its force. She caressed his head and back as he laid on her with his full weight before lifting himself out and laying at her side. He pulled her hand to his lips and kissed it.

"Jade," he said softly. "I'm sorry, I tried to be gentle."

She rolled onto her side and laid her head on his chest. "It was good," she said quietly. "It's been so long."

The thunderstorm raged around the Bunker as they cuddled together under the sheets. Every flash of lightning brought her closer to him as he held her tighter during each clap of thunder. Finally, they could hear the drumming sound of a hard rain, hitting the roof and running down the piping that took it to an underground cistern. He sat up, holding the condom in place while he went to the bathroom. He stopped at the intercom and pressed the code for Steve.

"Do we need to be on alert for the Others in this rain?" he asked.

"It's the safe thing to do," replied Steve. "I didn't want to interrupt you. We can handle it."

"Like hell you can," said Bucky. "I'm here if you need me."

"Are we in more danger during the rain, even here?" asked Jade as she held up the sheets for him to get back in.

"Yes, especially now they have the exo-suit," he replied. "Are you ready for more?"

She smiled and climbed on top, straddling him at his hips. "Are you ready for a connection?"

"As you kids say, bring it on," he said, caressing her arms and thighs.

She took a deep breath and entered his mind, seeing everything in his past, good and bad. She saw him in childhood playing, laughing, making friends with Steve. Then she felt his fear during the war. He interrupted and asked if all of this was necessary. She assured him it was so there were no secrets to come out of the shadows during their times in each other's mind. To comfort him she showed her life, growing up in a commune with a mother and father.

"Why is your mother's face hidden?" he asked.

"I only have memories of her presence, not her face, or voice," said Jade. "Just experience my life."

Then she shared the day she was cast out to die in the Badlands. He felt her loneliness and fear, touching her as she relieved this traumatic part of her childhood. A beacon of light appeared, Ma, finding her, crying over her, then caring for her. Comforted by her sharing Bucky agreed to share the next part of his life. She was with him as he fell from the train, the look of horror on Steve's face getting further and further away.

"No, I don't want you to see this next part," he pleaded. "It hurts, it hurts so much. Please don't make me relive it."

"I'm going to store it for later," she said. "You were hurt so badly, my love. But it's done and now you're here with me, in a bed, and I'm in your arms. We're safe as long as we're together."

Feeling his acceptance she skipped forward to when Steve found him again and helped him reintegrate into society. Saw the friendship with Sam which surprised her because they didn't seem to be friends now.

"What happened between Sam and you?" she asked. "Why aren't you friends now?"

"I broke the code," said Bucky. "I fell in love with his sister and he wouldn't accept it. Then I broke her heart to please him but it just made him angrier. We haven't been friendly since. I ... I miss him so much."

"Is that partly why you went back to get Steve?" asked Jade. "He was friends with both of you. You hoped he could mediate the chasm between you."

"Then Peggy died," said Bucky. "I told you, I'm poison to those who love me."

She felt his grief at losing his friend, Sam, and then losing Peggy, grief he still suffered from. Then she saw Lily, his wife. The baby was premature and shortly after the birth his wife suffered a seizure, eclampsia. Without the high-tech environment of a hospital, she had no chance, dying in his arms as his son did hours later.

"I wanted to die that day," he said, "but instead I suffered."

"James, let it wash over you," soothed Jade. "She loved you so much she moved on so you could love me. It's okay, my love. Remember her and Jimmy. They'll be in your heart forever."

Gently she stroked his chest and shoulders, massaging the tightness out of the muscles she was touching. She stroked his head and face.

"That feels good," he said. "I feel it up in my spine and into my brain."

She showed him when she met her husband, an outdoorsman, when they were hiking in the same area of the Badlands. He had been taken by her strange but compelling looks and visited regularly. They married and lived near where Ma lived. On the day Ben was born he was with her, in their home, as the midwife delivered their son. It was beautiful and Bucky found himself wishing he had been Ben's father.

"You are his father," said Jade. "I showed you to him that first week before we rescued them. He loved you already and he sees that you are a good man. He's learning so much from everyone and would like to learn from you. Show him how to work with wood. He likes to use his hands. Ask him about The Hobbit. He brought his copy with him so you two could discuss it."

"I didn't know," said Bucky. "I will spend more time with him."

Bucky felt her grief when Seth disappeared after the Snap. When he didn't return Ma realized something else had happened to him.

"I hid this from Ma," said Jade. "But I found him shortly after the Snap. He had fallen down an embankment, broken his leg. No cell phone coverage. He died there Bucky, alone, in the wilderness he had loved so much. I buried him myself with rocks. I never wanted anyone else until I found you."

She leaned over to kiss him and gently touched his tongue with hers. His hands came to either side of her face as he felt her kiss from her perspective.

"Is that how I feel when you kiss me?" he said softly. "It's incredible, feeling it from both of us."

"Touch me Bucky," she said. "Feel what your hands do to me."

"Oh! Jade, I never thought ..." he stopped, at a loss for words.

"No more talking," she said, "just feeling and doing what is natural."

For the next hour Jade slowly helped him through lovemaking with a psychic connection. Even the act of rolling on the condom gave pleasure to both of them. As they felt the moment of penetration from both sides both of them were lost in the sensations for a while until Jade pulled back just a little. Their shared orgasm was something earth shattering to Bucky. He had always been a good lover, but this opened his eyes to how much more he could do to please Jade. When they were finished, she had slowly withdrawn the connection until it was just them laying in each other's arms.

"I can see why that takes so much out of you," he said, playing with her fine hair.

"It's physical and mental," she replied. "It's also addictive as it hits the pleasure centre of the brain pretty hard. We can't do it for a long time or else we'll begin to crave it."

"Alright," he agreed. "I won't ask. You decide when we do it again. Thank you for showing me your life. Thank God, Ma was there for you."

"Bucky, I have to sleep now," she whispered. "Will you just talk to me? Tell me a story."

He held her and stroked her hair while he told her about his time in Wakanda, working as a farmer, living in a hut. Just like in the medical room she fell asleep quickly but he kept talking, more for himself. He wondered how the Wakandans were handling the Others. They had lost contact with them and with New York. Losing Fury and Rhodes had really hurt them as well. Plus no contact with the Guardians and Thor, making him wonder if the Others had attacked other planets as well. Jade stirred and pressed her head into his chest. He kissed her hair, her almost white fine hair.

"I love you, Jade," he whispered.

There was no alert after the rain storm but the next morning they went outside to see if anything had been affected. Part of the road they used to get to the highway was washed out. Steve, Bucky and Clint surveyed the damage.

"Looks like a lot of manual labour for you and me,"said Steve to Bucky. "We'll have to build up the section that washed out with boulders then tamp down the smaller material on top. Perfect timing."

Steve directed Clint to begin the riding lessons, for anyone who was interested, while he and Bucky started hauling boulders to build up the road. It was hot work for the two men and they soon had to take their shirts off. Jade, Maria and Wanda came out to survey the damage. At least, that's what they told everyone in the bunker. At one point Maria said something in a low voice and all three of them started laughing. Steve was clueless to why they were laughing but Bucky knew exactly why they were there. He stopped to take a water break and poured some water over his face, shaking his head and running his hands over his hair. Then he looked directly at Jade and thought at her.

"You ladies enjoying the show?"

"Very much," she replied audibly. "You should go shirtless more often."

"Yeah, Bucky," said Wanda. "Both of you are showing more than enough skin for us."

He shook his head and started laughing. Jade asked the two women if they wanted to look for gemstones in the washed-out area. They both shrugged and Jade asked Bucky to lift them down to the where the water had flowed downstream. She described to them what to look for and immediately found a chunk of opal, then a big rock with turquoise bits showing. The other two got into it and within half an hour Wanda had to conjure a box for them to carry their findings. They brought them back to where Steve and Bucky were working. Both men were clearly impressed.

"Do you think you can polish those up to barter?" asked Steve. "I would think they would be worth quite a bit."

"If you have a Dremel tool, some sandpaper and some mineral oil, plus some work gloves and protective eyewear, yeah, I can do it," said Jade. "It takes a while. Ma used to do it all the time."

"There's a Dremel and sandpaper in the workshop," said Bucky. "I would have to look for mineral oil."

"Bruce might have some in the medical lab," said Maria. "I'd like to give it a try. Keep a couple for decorations in our room. You said there might be geodes around as well. What do they look like?"

"They're roundish but lumpy and they feel light," said Jade. "If you shake it you can hear the loose crystals inside. The amethyst ones are worth money. The quartz ones are more pretty than anything."

The women went upstream from the washout and like before came back with a box of stones and about half a dozen geodes. All three were animated about finding so much that could be transformed into barter material. Bucky watched them as they walked back to the Bunker with their boxes. He was glad that Jade had a skill that would benefit them. There was so much about her that even he didn't know, despite the mind connection they had shared. A shadow crossed his face, and he looked up from where he was standing in the washed-out area. Sam was there.

"Wondered if you needed any help," he said to Bucky. "I've helped rebuild some washed out roads in Louisiana."

"Sure," said Bucky."Come on down. Maybe the ladies will come back and ogle our sweaty bodies again."

"Yeah, I heard," laughed Sam. "They were talking about it in the workshop while I was trying to build those IEDs. It was embarrassing listening to them talk about you two like that. I wanted to be in on the action."

Bucky laughed outright and gave Sam a fist bump. His presence did help and his experiences in Louisiana helped them build the section better. By sundown they had rebuilt one side of it, enough that they could drive out if they had to. If all three worked on it the next day, and maybe roped in Peter and Scott it could be done well before the end of the day.