Well, this ended up being longer than I had planned. There was more to this part of the story than I knew when I started it. Hope you like.
Risks: Chapter 4
Nick Fury sighed. The call had him a little concerned. It might be nothing. It probably was nothing. But he really couldn't afford to take that chance. He made a couple of calls, arranged a couple of things, then sat back to consider. There was really only one person besides himself that he would trust with this, but she was still furious at him. He rubbed his arm at the memory.
Nevertheless, he knew she would be professional and do what needed to be done. He paged her to his office.
When she arrived, he could still see the anger in her stance and her clinched jaw.
"I have an important job for you. I need for you to pick up a very special package and deliver it to a new location." She started to speak, but he held up his hand to forestall her. "I know you have a lot going on here, but this is important and you're the only one I will trust with this job."
Her response was a raised eyebrow, which he chose to ignore.
"This needs to be quick and it needs to be quiet. I'm sending the information you'll need to your data pad."
She opened the information he had just sent her and looked it over, quickly committing it to memory.
"Any questions?"
"No, sir," she replied.
Before he could speak again, she looked up. "If that's all, sir, I need to get going."
With a sigh, he nodded. "That will be all, Agent Hill. You are dismissed."
When she reached the door, she looked back at him, started to speak, then shook her head and turned again.
"I do trust you," he murmured, so softly, she wasn't completely sure he had spoken at first.
Still standing with her back to him, she spoke. "Can we talk when I get back?"
"Yes, we can."
After changing her clothes and taking an unobtrusive sedan from the motor pool, she drove a roundabout route to the pickup sight, her mind sifting through the events of the last few weeks, from the battle with Loki and the Chitauri to Phil's death, sleeping with her boss, Phil's undeath, and assaulting her boss. She wondered what life would throw at her next.
She made a few more turns, carefully checking her mirrors for tails, then pulled up in front of a building about half a block down from the address she was looking for. Climbing the steps of the generic brownstone, she noted a lack of signing to identify the purpose of the building. Inside the front door, a young woman looked up from behind a secure window.
"May I help you?"
Recalling the information she had been given, Maria asked to speak to Mrs. Hardy.
"Of course. One moment." She picked up a phone on her desk and spoke into it quietly. A few seconds later, a door behind her opened and an older woman stepped up to the window.
"I'm Mrs. Hardy. How may I help you?"
"I'm Ms Andrelli. Robert Ignacio sent me to pick up his package."
The woman nodded. "Of course. Won't you come in?" She pushed a button and when a buzzer sounded, Maria opened the door and stepped into the secure area.
"If you'll wait right here, I'll have that out for you shortly," she told the agent, disappearing back behind the door she had entered through.
Less than 5 minutes later, she returned, two children trailing behind her. The boy was about ten years old, tall and slender with closely cropped dark hair, serious eyes, and skin the color of milk chocolate. The girl was about six, her hair plaited in tiny braids and her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"Here you are, Ms Andrelli. This is Javion and his sister, Keisha. Children, this is Ms Andrelli. You'll be going with her now."
Maria looked at them, hoping her face didn't betray her surprise. Surely this was a mistake.
"This is Mr Ignacio's package?"
Mrs. Hardy seemed puzzled by the question. "Yes. What were you expecting?"
The agent gave herself a mental shake. "Of course. I just wanted to be sure I got everything he left."
"This is all," the older woman reassured her, handing each child a backpack.
As she turned towards the door, something outside caught Maria's attention. She wasn't sure what she had seen, but alarms were going off in her head. She turned back to Mrs. Hardy.
"Is there another way out of here? Back door? Roof access?"
The woman didn't hesitate. "Both. Which would you prefer?"
Maria thought a moment. "Roof, I think."
Grabbing a key ring from the desk, the woman started down a hallway, the other three trailing along behind her. She unlocked a door and pointed to the stairway. "It will lock behind you."
Mumbling her thanks, Maria ushered the children through the door. "Up," she told them. They climbed in silence, exiting at the top onto the flat roof. Motioning to the children to stay low and be quiet, she crept to the edge of the roof and looked down. She didn't know who the men standing near her car were, but she didn't think that Fury had sent an escort.
Okay. Plan B.
Thankfully, the buildings here were close enough together that is was just a short jump for her to get to the next rooftop. The little girl, though, wasn't so sure. She shook her head, eyes wide, when Maria motioned for her to jump. Javion also tried to encourage her, but she still refused. Finally, Maria pulled the girl onto her back and took her across. In this way, the trio traveled across several rooftops, finally reaching one with a fire escape ladder that led to an alley below.
From the alley, they entered into the flow of pedestrian traffic. Maria tried to adjust her pace to that of the children, but she had a nervous feeling that there was no time to linger. Several times, she had noticed cars passing slowly, the men inside carefully examining the crowd on the sidewalk. Once, a car even drove past, then turned around to head back their direction. A quick shortcut through another alley and a couple of turns left them in the clear again.
Finally the little girl stopped.
"Come on," Maria urged her. "We have to keep moving."
"For how much longer?"
"Until we're safe."
"I'm tired and hungry," the girl protested.
"We have been walking a long time, Ms Andrelli," the boy interjected. "Maybe we could sit somewhere just for a few minutes."
She noticed that both children looked sweaty and tired and reminded herself that they were not agent recruits that she could demand keep pushing on. She nodded towards a small diner. "We can go in there and rest, but only for a few minutes."
"Then what will we do?" the boy asked.
"I'll let you know when I figure it out," Maria told him.
In the diner, they slipped into a back booth where the agent had a clear view of the street in front. The waitress brought water and menus and told them she'd be back shortly to take their orders.
She urged the children to drink while she tried to plan out a course of action. Finally, Keisha spoke.
"What's your name?"
"Ms Andrelli."
"No, your real name."
"Agent Hill."
"Your really real name."
She sighed with exasperation. "Maria. My really real name is Maria."
"That's a nice name."
"Thank you. I'm glad you approve."
The girl took another drink. "So, are you friends with my uncle Nick?"
'Uncle Nick?' she wondered. "We work together."
"And he sent you to help us?"
"Apparently."
"Then you must be his friend, 'cause he said he wouldn't trust us to many other people. We're too important to him."
Maria looked at her and smiled. "I'm sure you are." She glanced out the window again. Was that the same car that had passed just a few minutes before?
The waitress came back. "You folks ready to order?"
Hill picked up her menu, not really looking at it. "What's good tonight?"
The other woman looked at her, then at the children. She leaned over and asked softly, "Is everything alright?" When Maria looked at her, she continued. "I noticed you've been watching out that window. Is someone looking for you?"
The agent grabbed for the lifeline offered. "It's my ex," she replied in a low voice. "He's determined that we're not getting away from him, and he's got lots of friends out there. They've been following us."
The other woman looked over at the children. "Is that right? You hiding from your daddy?"
Javion understood immediately. He took his sister's hand under the table and squeezed it, hoping that she would play along. "Yes, ma'am. Mama said that we were finally going to a safe place where he can't hurt us anymore."
"I'll let you out the back door," the woman told them. "But first, let's see about getting you a different look." She led them back to the back room. "This is the lost and found box. People always leaving hats and jackets and stuff here and usually don't come back for them." A little digging produced new wardrobes for all three and soon they were heading out into another alley.
"So, you got a plan yet?" Javion asked.
"You see that big building over there?" she pointed. "The big one with the 'A' on it?"
They both nodded.
"That's where we're going. If something happens to me or if we get separated, that's where you need to go. Ask for Tony Stark or Pepper Potts. Tell them that I sent you and that you need to contact your uncle. You got that?"
"Tower with the 'A', Tony Stark or Pepper Potts," Keisha repeated. "Got it."
Javion looked at her. "Is that THE Tony Stark?"
She nodded.
"You know Tony Stark?"
She heard the awe in his voice. Of course the kid had heard of Stark.
"We work together. Sort of. Sometimes."
"Cool."
"Not really. Come on, we've still got a long ways to go."
Refreshed by their short break, they made good time and were soon only a few short blocks from the Avengers Tower. The closer they got, though, the more uncomfortable she felt. She called to Keisha who was skipping ahead. Something felt wrong.
Suddenly, a man stepped out of the shadows and grabbed the little girl, putting a knife to her throat. Maria stopped and pushed Javion behind her.
The man smiled. "Thought this was a long shot, but here you are."
"Yes, here we are. Now what?" Maria asked, assessing the situation.
"The boy joins me and his sister and the three of us leave."
She appeared to think for a moment. "Nope. Don't think so. The boy stays here."
The thug was confused. "I have a knife," he told her, just in case she missed that detail. "I'll slit her throat if you don't send him over here."
She shook her head. "No, I don't think so. You're clearly supposed to deliver them alive, so I really doubt you'll do anything to harm either of them without orders."
Behind her back, she tried to signal to Javion to be ready to run. She caught Keisha's eye, making sure the girl was focused on her.
While the assailant tried to think of a response, Maria suddenly reached for his knife hand, at the same time hollering for Keisha to kick. She did, and slipped out of the man's grasp. Javion grabbed her hand and started running towards the tower.
"Maria!" the girl called, momentarily distracting her. She felt the knife cut into her abdomen. In swinging the knife, though, the attacker left himself open and she swung her knee up in the oldest self defense movement known to womankind. She heard a satisfying 'crunch' followed by a sick sounding little squeak, then the man dropped to the pavement and curled up in a fetal position.
She pressed her hand to her side, feeling it grow warm with blood. No time to deal with that now.
At the door to the tower, she pressed her thumb to a reader and leaned forward for a retina scan. She hoped Stark had told the truth about her having access to the tower facilities. She sighed with relief when the door opened.
"Welcome, Agent Hill," a disembodied voice toned.
Both children looked around, confused.
"Thank you, JARVIS. Is Stark around?"
"Mr. Stark and Ms Potts not currently on the premises."
"I just need to borrow a vehicle for a little bit."
"Take the elevator down to the basement, Agent Hill. All vehicles are ready to go, keys are in the ignition. You make take your pick."
In the garage, they looked around. Javion was heading towards one of the expensive sports cars, but Maria stopped.
"JARVIS, I need something that will blend in."
"Agent Hill, this is Tony Stark's garage." He was quiet for a moment. A spot light suddenly shown off to one side. "This might suit your needs, Agent Hill."
Following the light, she smiled at the sight of the SUV. "Perfect, JARVIS, thank you." She opened the back door and boosted Keisha inside. She bit her lip at the pain in her side. When she turned to Javion, he was digging in his back pack. He pulled out a clean white sock and handed it to her.
"You need to get pressure on that to stop the bleeding."
She nodded a thanks and closed the car door behind him. As she slid into the driver's seat, she spoke again.
"JARVIS, since this belongs to Stark, I'm sure it's not a standard floor model. Anything I need to know before we head out?"
"Fully armored. Bullet-proof, bomb-proof body and windows. Puncture proof tires. Hi-power engine. Leather interior. Bose sound system."
"Anything else?"
"Don't touch the red button."
She looked down at the dash, noticing the button and fighting the sudden urge to push it.
"You guys ready?" she asked.
"Ready," Javion answered.
"Ready, Aunt Maria," Keisha echoed.
'Aunt?'
She didn't know how to answer, so she put the car in gear and followed JARVIS's directions to exit the garage.
The reinforced SUV was a comfort, but she still stayed on full alert, carefully watching all around, noticing vehicles around her. Again, she took a roundabout way, probably doubling the time it took to reach her destination, an ordinary house on an ordinary suburban street.
She parked the car down the block and looked around carefully before opening the door for the children to exit. She led them through the shadows to the back door of the house, motioning for them to crouch out of sight at the bottom of the raised porch. With a hand on her sidearm, she knocked lightly on the door. It opened slightly and a beefy young man stared out at her.
"Yeah?"
"I'm here to deliver a package for Mr Ignacio."
He looked behind her. "I don't see any package."
There was a commotion behind him. "You'd better not be leaving my grandbabies standing out there in the cold, young man."
At the sound of the woman's voice, the children ran up the stairs and pushed past the guard at the door. Maria followed them inside, watching the older woman kneel to wrap her arms around the duo. She looked them both over, hugging and kissing them and getting their hugs and kisses in return.
She sensed his presence before she saw him, looking towards the doorway as Nick Fury crossed the threshold into the kitchen. He crossed his arms and leaned back against the doorjamb.
"I take it you ran into some problems, Agent Hill."
Keisha looked up at him. "Uncle Nick!" she cried, throwing herself at him. He caught her and swung her up, hugging her close. Javion came over a little slower, offering his hand. Nick shook his hand, then pulled him into a quick embrace.
"Aunt Maria took really good care of us, Uncle Nick. The bad men showed up at our school so she took us up on the roofs and we jumped and jumped and jumped then we climbed down the fire 'scape and walked and walked. The bad men were following us, but she kept seeing them and getting us away. Then we went in the diner and the lady gave us some disguises and we went to the tower with the 'A' on it, but another man with a knife grabbed me and said he was gonna kill me, but Aunt Maria told him he wasn't and she grabbed his knife and Javion and me ran and then the man cut her, but she kicked him, just like you always told me to kick bad men and we all ran to the tower and a voice with no man let us in and we took a car and drove here and here we are."
"That sounds like quite the adventure," he told her.
"It was."
The children's grandmother stood and smiled over at her. She looked to Nick. He cleared his throat.
"Anne, this is Agent Maria Hill. Agent Hill, this is my sister, Ann Wilcox. And you met her grandchildren, Javion and Keisha. Though they're about to get new identities."
"Thank you, Agent Hill."
"Just doing my job," Maria responded.
"Maybe to you, but to me, this is my life," the other woman answered, hugging the kids again. She studied Maria for a moment. "My brother must think very highly of you. When we've done this in the past, he took care of it all himself."
"You've had to do this before?"
"A couple of times," she acknowledged. "Fortunately, we have Nick to make the arrangements."
"Since it's my fault you're in danger, it's the least I can do."
"No, it's not your fault, Nicholas. Some of these people have other agendas and you know it."
He shrugged. "Anyway, Agent Hill is my deputy director. If you have an emergency and you can't reach me, you can always contact her."
Anne narrowed her gaze, looking at him, then at Maria. "Your deputy director, huh? I see."
"Yes. My second in command."
Suddenly, she turned back to Hill. "Keisha said you got cut!"
"Just a scratch. I'm fine," Maria reassured her.
"You let me be the judge of that," Anne told her, hurrying to the other room and returning with a first aid kit. "Show me where."
Nick reached and took the kit from his sister. "You need to go, Anne. We're already running behind schedule." He looked to the man who had opened the door. "You get them to the airport, Kennedy."
Maria handed him the keys. "Take Starks SUV. It's probably safer than anything we've got. Just don't push the red button."
Kennedy took the keys and looked to Fury. The director nodded. "She's probably right."
Nick hugged his sister, then squatted down to look both kids in the eye. "I really appreciate you doing so well for Agent Hill. I need you to look out for each other and for your grandma, okay?"
They nodded solemnly, then hugged him tight. Then they both crossed over to Agent Hill. "Thanks for everything, Agent Hill," Javion said, offering her a hand. She shook it. "You're very welcome. You did an excellent job following orders."
Keisha threw her arms around the agent, who patted her back and looked uncomfortable. "Thank you, Aunt Maria. I hope to see you again soon."
"Thank you, Keisha. You were very brave."
Nick walked them out to the vehicle and Maria finally lowered herself into a chair, still trying to ignore the pain in her side. When he returned, he found her sitting with a towel pressed to her side, her eyes closed as she slowly breathed in and out.
He took the first aid kit down the hall, then returned. Without a word, he scooped her up and carried her down the hall and laid her out on the bed. It happened so fast, she wasn't even able to protest. When he started to pull her shirt up, she pushed his hand away.
"I'm fine."
He gave her a fierce look. "I've already got one of my top agents down, the last thing I need is for you to end up with an infection."
"Then give me the kit and I'll take care of it myself."
He pulled at the bottom of her shirt again, the dried blood causing it to stick to the wound. She gasped at the sudden pain.
"I don't think so," he told her.
When he started to pull her shirt off, she glared at him and pulled it back down. He looked at her. "Agent Hill, it's not like I haven't seen you before."
Finally, she gave in and helped him pull the shirt over her head. He leaned forward to examine the wound. "It doesn't look very deep, but we're still going to have to clean it."
He moistened a gauze pad and looked at her. "This is going to sting a bit."
"I can handle it."
Gently, he began to wipe away the dried blood, doing his best to clean the wound without causing undue pain.
She bit her lip, watching him work and trying to ignore the sensations that his hands on her caused. Finally, she spoke.
"I'm really sorry about the other day."
"I understand. You were upset."
"Yes, I was," she acknowledged, "but I had no right to be. And I had no right to hit you."
"Apology accepted," he told her.
"How is your arm?"
"Still sore. You've got a wicked hook, Agent Hill."
"If it's any consolation, my hand still hurts, too. You've got some firm muscles there."
"Good."
He looked up at her. "How are you doing?"
"Okay. Just hurry up and get it done," she told him.
He resumed his task. "I'm sorry, too," he told her. "I should have told you earlier."
"No, I should understand better than most anyone that sometimes, you have to keep secrets," she replied.
"Truth be told, when I told you he was dead, I thought he was. When the medics arrived, they couldn't find a pulse. They said he had lost too much blood. When there was a lull in the fighting, I called down to the medical center to see how things were there and one of the other doctors told me that Dr Carlyle was in surgery with Agent Coulson. I didn't say anything because I didn't want to get anyone's hopes up, but then when I saw how his 'death' motivated everyone...pulled the team together...it just seemed like a good idea to let the misunderstanding stand..."
"I understand."
"So you'll stand behind me when the Avengers find out the truth?"
"Of course I will...way behind you..."
He gave her a glare. "Are you sure you want to give me that attitude? Remember what I'm doing here," he reminded her holding up the tube of antibiotic ointment.
"Then I'll plead the fifth," she told him, settling back.
He applied the ointment, then a couple of steri-strips over the deepest part of the cut, then covered the whole area with gauze and carefully taped it down.
"Good to go," he told her, standing up to return the first aid supplies to the bathroom. When he returned, he looked at her stretched out on the bed.
"Now this is a real shame."
"What's a shame?" she asked, raising up on her elbows to look at him.
"You. Me. Alone in this empty house. And you injured."
Smiling, she cocked her head. "Actually, I'm feeling much better. I have this amazing doctor who bandaged me up."
"Did he kiss it and make it better?"
Puzzled, she looked back at him. "Do what?"
"You know...when you were a kid and your mom or dad..."
He suddenly realized that her father had probably never kissed away her hurts.
"Oh."
He walked over and sat on the bed next to her. "It's even better when you're grown up, though." He leaned over and gently kissed the skin around the bandage. He heard her draw in a breath and sat up.
"I'm sorry. Did that hurt?"
"No," she said, her voice husky, "that didn't hurt."
He moved to he lips. "Good. I don't want to hurt you."
"I think it will be okay. As long as we're careful...and I get to be on top..."
He kissed her again.
"I think I can do that"
And he did.
As always, hope you enjoyed. Please read and review. Do you want more?