Chapter 15. Hope
Four years later
Tommy Chapman wrote down the last spelling word and looked at his mother. "That was a hard word," he said. "Are you sure that was grade 3 level?"
"It was grade 5 level," she stated, looking over his sheet. "You spelled it right just like all the other grade 5 level words I've ever given you. You're smart, Tommy. Don't ever forget that."
"What's the point of being smart if I'm stuck here all the time?" he asked. "Couldn't I go to regular school and at least have some friends?"
Lacey sighed. "We've talked about this. It's not safe."
"For me or for the other kids? I wouldn't use my strength against anyone, Mom. Ever. I wouldn't be a bully."
"I know," she agreed. "You're a good kid. But all it would take is one slip up and someone could say something to the wrong person. You know there were a couple of men asking about me in town, right? If they see you they'll know whose son you are because you look just like your dad."
The boy's face turned red. Five years since his Dad was killed by Thanos and there were still people looking for his mom, because they figured out she had Bucky Barnes' child. Why couldn't they just leave them alone? He got up off the chair and went to the door.
"I'm going to the treehouse," he said. "I want to be alone."
She nodded her assent and walked to the door, watching as he ran to the other side of the property in seconds. It wasn't fair, she knew, but Phil Coulson had figured the CIA were looking again, especially since she published her third book. Once they knew she hadn't turned to dust they started searching for her again. Terry walked in from the barn.
"What's wrong with Tommy?" he asked. "He left here in a hurry."
"He asked about going to regular school again," she answered. "He's lonely for kids his own age."
"Which he can't because of the two men asking about you in town," said Terry. "I feel for him."
"When he was little he had Nathaniel Barton," said Lacey. "It helped him and they had such fun together. Fuck, I hate what Thanos did. No one's happy because nearly everyone lost a loved one. Nothing's been the same since."
"It brought us closer," noted Terry. "Just saying, little sister."
Lacey smiled. "It did. About the only good thing to come out of it."
A text message on her phone alerted her and she took off out of the house yelling for Tommy. Terry ran to catch up.
"What is it?" he yelled as he ran behind her.
"Someone trying to enter the property," she called back. "Wong got an alert from the protection spell he put on the perimeter."
Tommy appeared and ran to her. "What?" he asked.
"We have to go to the house, now," she said. "Someone is trying to get onto the property."
They ran back and entered the house where Lacey texted back. A portal opened and Wong beckoned them through then he laid a spell on the property, making it look abandoned and stepped back into the portal, closing it behind him. Lacey, Tommy, and Terry found themselves at the base of a grand staircase in a building. Wong looked at them.
"Welcome to the New York Sanctum," he said in his understated way. "That was close. I've made it look like the farm is abandoned. Unless they have a sorcerer with them they shouldn't be able to tell it's a spell. Let's see who they are."
He brought up another portal that remained invisible on the other side and they watched a dark SUV entering the property from the highway. It pulled up to the driveway between the barn and the house and two men got out. Both were armed with handguns and had them drawn as they looked through the property. Then they returned to the vehicle and the rear passenger door opened. A woman got out but her face was covered by a hood.
"I thought you said that she lived here, with a blue eyed boy," the woman said to one of the men. "This place looks abandoned."
The man she addressed looked embarrassed. "He must have lied," he replied. "I could go back and shake him down. She picks up her mail at the post office in another town nearby. We could take her there."
"Don't bother," said the woman. "My SHIELD contact said she's very protective of the boy. We would have to take both of them alive to make either of them cooperate."
Lacey looked at Wong in alarm. "She has a SHIELD contact who told her about me and Tommy?" she whispered. "What the hell? Who told her in town that I lived there and that I picked up my mail at the post office?"
"Let me get a close up of her licence plate," said Wong and he read it out loud as a pen and paper pad appeared out of nowhere to write it down.
The woman walked into the house and looked around, checking out the books. She stopped and looked at a particular one, pulling it off the shelf before putting it back next to a picture. Wong focussed the portal on the book and Lacey gasped, as it was her third book and it was next to a picture of Clint and his family, from the day the photographer came to take her author picture for her second book. Then the woman turned and left the house, lowering her hood before she got back into the SUV. Wong used magic to take a picture of her and they watched as the men got back in and the vehicle left the farm.
"We need to show this to someone," he said. "I'm reluctant to show it to anyone at SHIELD in case they're compromised. Who else do you trust?"
"Natasha," said Lacey, without hesitation.
"Not Steve Rogers, or Colonel Rhodes or Phil Coulson?" asked Wong.
"She's a beautiful woman," replied Lacey. "They might not see past that. Natasha is ... incorruptible."
"Okay," declared Wong. "Let's see where Miss Romanoff is."
Wong waved his arms around in the air, bringing up all sorts of shapes and diagrams of light. Tommy watched, entranced at the process. Then Wong gave a grim smile and opened another portal which they all went through. It opened into a ballet studio where a solitary person was practicing at the barre. She saw the portal opening behind her via the mirror and turned around to face them.
"Well, you know my secret," said Natasha. "I do this to work off anxiety. I've been here a lot lately. What's so important that you had to portal in?"
"Someone came onto the farm, with guns, looking for me and Tommy," said Lacey. "She knew about us. Said her SHIELD contact told her about us."
Lacey handed Natasha the picture and the Black Widow looked up in alarm. "She was there with armed people looking for you? Did she say anything?"
"That both Lacey and Tommy would have to be taken alive for them both to cooperate," replied Terry. "You know her."
"I do know her," said Natasha grimly. "Did you tell Steve or the others about this?"
"No, I figured you were the one who would be least impressed by a pretty face," said Lacey. "Who is she?"
"Sharon Carter," said Natasha. "Former SHIELD agent who joined the CIA then went underground after she helped Steve, Sam, and Bucky get out of Berlin. We thought she disappeared in the Blip."
"She knows it was Clint's farm as well," said Lacey. "She went into the house and looked at the books on the bookshelf, picked out my third one then noticed it was next to a picture of Clint and the family."
"Damn, it might not be safe to stay there anymore. If someone from SHIELD talked to her they might not know she's switched sides. Because I'm pretty sure that's what's happened." Natasha took a deep breath, then looked at Wong. "Can they stay temporarily at the Sanctum?"
"Yes," he said hesitantly. "But they could be affected by the magic going on there."
"I know," she replied. "I have to figure something out and find out who told her about Lacey and Tommy. Give me a day."
Wong also gave Natasha the licence plate information and opened another portal to the Sanctum. He escorted them to a room then used magic to turn it into a hotel suite of two bedrooms, one with two beds and one with a single bed.
"You can stay here tonight," he said. "I'll come get you for dinner later. You can look out the windows as they are invisible to the outside. I will send one of you with a sorcerer to the house to get some clothes later. Want to make sure that no one returns there first."
"Thank you, Wong," said Lacey, gratefully.
"Hmmm," was his answer and he made himself scarce.
Later, after dinner Terry went with a sorcerer and came back with a backpack jammed with clothes for each of them. He also brought Lacey's laptop. Wong promised that a couple of sorcerers would monitor the farm to make sure Carter and her gunmen didn't return. The following morning there was a knock at the door of their suite. Wong called through to say it was him. He was followed by Natasha and Coulson. Lacey stood up and placed herself in front of Tommy.
"I don't blame you for not trusting me," said Coulson, raising his hands in surrender. "This is on me, completely. We ran the licence plate of the SUV and checked traffic cam files. It was one of the two vehicles that followed us after your Mother's funeral. It means Carter has been looking for you for some time. She was someone that Nick Fury trusted when she was at SHIELD but it appears she went underground and became involved with a criminal known as the Power Broker in Madripoor. We think she's been selling SHIELD and CIA secrets to him while staying completely off the radar."
"Why would she want me and Tommy?" asked Lacey.
"There was a rumour the Power Broker wanted an army of super soldiers to be his enforcers," said Coulson. "We've been trying to verify it but when I asked Sharon about it when I last saw her she said he lost his top scientist in the Blip and wasn't working on it anymore. She brought up keeping Bucky Barnes' kid safe so the Power Broker couldn't get to him and use his blood to create more serum. I should have asked her how she knew but instead, like an idiot I said he and his mother were safe. Then I said how protective you were of him. I shouldn't have trusted that she was still loyal to SHIELD. I assumed she had advised the Avengers she didn't disappear in the Blip. That was my mistake and I'm sorry."
"So what are you going to do about her?" asked Lacey angrily. "We've lived on that farm for almost 9 years without a problem. Now, suddenly, we're homeless."
"We're going to find her and arrest her," promised Coulson. "As for the farm ... I think you can go back there. We have some technology that can disguise your faces. Natasha has used it before. We have a couple of shape shifting Inhumans that can impersonate you elsewhere and keep her people running in circles."
"Not good enough," said Lacey. "Do you know who in town told her we lived at the farm?"
Natasha looked away then at Coulson and shrugged. "It was a farmer that sells you straw bales," said Coulson. "Jack Manning."
"I'll kill him," blurted Lacey. "I will literally kill him. He already charges me more than he does other farmers. Then he doesn't even put them in the barn, leaving it for us to do."
"We can take care of him," said Coulson. "Mac has volunteered to make an official visit to him. You know how intense he can be. I'll be with him as well and together we will make him regret ever saying anything. Unfortunately we can't do much more because officially the farm doesn't exist and neither do you."
"There's one other thing," said Natasha. "I wasn't supposed to say anything but I think you need to know. We may have a chance to reverse the Snap. I can't say much more about how but we rounded up all the remaining Avengers to make it happen. We're going to bring everyone back. If we succeed you need to be at the farm for when Laura and the kids return."
"When?" asked Lacey. "When will you do this?"
"Tomorrow to get the stones then the reversal the next day," replied Natasha. "I already found Clint. Bruce convinced Thor. We're getting the stones and then we'll reverse the Snap and make sure that no one who was born since then is lost. Everyone that was killed because of the Snap itself will return. So go back to the farm and when Laura returns you get her to call Clint so that he knows she's back."
Natasha started crying and Lacey hugged her, then cupped Nat's face between her hands as she nodded her head. She agreed to go back to the farm that day. After breakfast, Wong confirmed there were no further incursions on the farm. He opened a portal to it so Terry, Lacey and Tommy could walk through to the farm as they had left it before Wong put the abandoned spell on it. They all wore the electronic masks that Coulson gave them earlier. It changed their hair, eye colour and faces completely. They wore them throughout the day and only took them off when they went to bed. The following day they wore them again. It was mid afternoon when Laura, Lila, Cooper, and Nathaniel suddenly reappeared out near the picnic table. Lacey disengaged the mask and ran to Laura, hugging her hard.
"Do you have your phone?" she demanded. "Call Clint, right now."
"What happened?" asked Laura. "Where's Clint? We were having a picnic."
"I'll tell you but you have to phone Clint right now," said Lacey, beginning to cry. "Please just do it."
Laura pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialled Clint. It rang several times, then she heard his voice. He said "Honey" twice then the call was dropped and she looked at Lacey, confused.
"What the hell is going on?" she asked, then she looked beyond Lacey to where Tommy had run up, his nano mask in his hand. "Why is Tommy older? And who is he?"
She pointed at Terry. Lacey held her again for a few moments. "You've been gone for 5 years," she said. "There was a battle against an extraterrestrial in Wakanda and he had the power that allowed him to snap half of the world's population out of existence. You, Lila, Cooper and Nathaniel turned to dust. Clint went off the deep end and left me here. This is Terry, my older brother. He came to live with me and provide what protection he could. Tommy is now almost 8 years old. Your kids are the same age as when they disappeared."
Laura dialled Clint again but it went to voice mail and she looked at her phone with frustration. "Why doesn't he answer?" she asked.
Lacey's phone rang and she answered it. "Wong!" she exclaimed. "Laura Barton and her kids are back. What's going on?" She listened for a moment. "What? How? What are you going to do?" With wide eyes she looked at Laura as she relayed Wong's message. "The extraterrestrial, Thanos, is back and he just destroyed Avengers headquarters. The sorcerers are trying to gather all the soldiers and Avengers who reappeared and re-arm them. Then they're all going to the battlefield. Come on, it should be on TV."
They all ran to the house and turned the TV on. Most of the channels had news helicopters filming from the sky. It was chaotic as they had to avoid being shot at themselves. Through the smoke and fires they both saw that the Avengers compound was completely destroyed. The immense size of Thanos' spacecraft as well as the creatures that came out of it running rampant over the destruction was frightening. On the TV they saw Thanos, with his army, standing off against Iron Man, Thor and Captain America. It looked like once again Thanos would defeat them then all sorts of portals began opening behind the three Avengers and more Avengers came out, then other armies of humans, and aliens. In the sky portals opened and strange flying craft appeared. Tommy stood beside Lacey watching all of this then touched her arm.
"Is Dad alive?" he asked, hopefulness tinging his voice.
She looked at him then hugged him hard. "Yes, he's alive, somewhere there," she said, almost crying. "Now he has to fight again along with all the others."
They watched it all for hours; the back and forth, the wave after wave of attacks, the destruction of Thanos' spacecraft then came word that the alien invader had been defeated but at a cost, as Tony Stark had perished after successfully snapping Thanos and his forces out of existence. Both Laura and Lacey cried when that was announced. As the smoke cleared from the battlefield the news helicopters that were still flying showed the extent of the death and destruction. More portals were opened allowing many of the participants in the battle to return to their homes. Nothing was heard from the Avengers and the women wondered if there had been more deaths not announced.
The following morning a quinjet flew over the house drawing the attention of the Barton kids as they ran out to the yard, approaching it after it landed. Clint came down the ramp and joyfully hugged his kids then seeing Laura walking across their yard went to her and kissed his wife tenderly. Lacey, who hoped Bucky was with him came up after with a questioning look.
"He wanted to come but there were some important things that he and Steve had to do first," said Clint. "He plans to turn himself in as well."
"Bucky said before that he was going to do that," replied Lacey. "I just wish he came to meet Tommy in person, first."
"There's one other thing," said Clint. "Natasha ... she didn't make it. She was killed before the battle while we were acquiring the stones. She's gone."
"Shit," whispered Lacey and she began to cry then she looked anxiously at Clint. "Did she tell you about Sharon Carter before she died?"
"No, what about her?" asked Clint.
"She came here looking for me and Tommy, with a couple of gunmen," said Lacey. "She works for a criminal called the Power Broker."
Clint grabbed Lacey's arm and pulled her away. "That's impossible," he said quietly so Laura and the kids wouldn't hear. "I killed him, in Madripoor, a year ago. When was this?"
"A few days ago," said Lacey, just as quietly. "Phil Coulson told her about me and Tommy, believing her to still be loyal to SHIELD. Turns out she's been looking for us all along. I don't think you killed the real Power Broker, Clint. Coulson said there is a rumour the Power Broker wants super soldiers for his own personal army."
"You're sure it was her?" he asked. "She was SHIELD then she joined the CIA after the HYDRA files were released. She helped Steve, Sam and Bucky get out of Berlin."
"You can ask Wong and Coulson if you don't believe me," said Lacey, angrily. "Her men talked to Jack Manning. He told them Tommy and I were here at the farm. They showed up here with guns to take us by force. Thank God Wong had a protection spell on the place. It gave us enough warning for him to portal us to the Sanctum in New York."
Clint looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry," he said, ashamed. "I should never have left you here unprotected. Losing Laura and the kids made me spiral and I lost it. You kept my farm going and I owe you so much for that."
He watched Lacey's face as all sorts of emotions played across it. "I don't know what to do," she finally admitted. "I thought for sure that Bucky would come with you. All along he's said he wants to be with us and instead he stays to talk with Steve?"
"I'm sure you were part of the conversation," replied Clint, trying to soothe her. "Look, he's been gone for 5 years and when they reappeared they were thrown right back into the fight. He's still getting his bearings. They both know that you're here. Give him a chance."
She nodded and watched as Clint returned to his family. Both Terry and Tommy came to her and watched the happy reunion. Taking Tommy by the hand she walked towards his treehouse while Terry followed. When they got there she looked at them both.
"I thought Bucky would come with Clint but he stayed to do some things with Steve," said Lacey, sombrely. "He also plans to turn himself in. I don't know what's going to happen with any of it."
She opened her mouth to speak some more but nothing came out except sobs as she began to cry. Tommy hugged her and Terry put his arm around her shoulders. It was hard for both of them to watch this woman who had been strong for so long break down in front of them. An hour later it was Terry who looked up to see two men walking across the pasture towards them. One he recognized as Steve and the other, with long dark hair and a beard was unknown to him but with a start he realized it was likely Bucky.
"Stay here," he said to Tommy, as he stood up and began walking towards them.
"Terry, this is Bucky Barnes," said Steve when they were just a few feet apart.
Terry punched Bucky in the face, catching him off guard. It staggered him and Bucky touched his cheek in response.
"That's for making my sister cry," said Terry angrily. "You don't deserve her or Tommy. She expected you hours ago but it was more important for you to have a talk with him first?"
"Terry, that's my fault," said Steve, putting his hand on Terry's arm. "He wanted to come right away but I needed to talk to him first for my own reasons. Don't be angry with him. Be angry with me."
Terry shook off Steve's hand and still glared at Bucky. "I agree," said Bucky quietly. "I don't deserve her or Tommy. You've been on your own taking care of them while I was dust. That's something I likely will never be able to repay. I'm just asking that you let me see her and my son now. Please."
With a grimace Terry stepped aside and stood with Steve while Bucky walked towards the treehouse. As he got closer he could feel his anxiety level increase when Tommy stepped protectively in front of Lacey, glaring at Bucky with anger in his eyes.
"I'm sorry," said Bucky to the boy. "I should have come here sooner with Clint. You're right to be angry with me. I thought a few hours wouldn't make much difference but I was wrong."
"You made Mom cry," accused Tommy. "We've been here waiting for you my whole life. We needed you."
"Do you want to hit me?" asked Bucky. "You're welcome to do it. So many things have kept me away that I couldn't overcome and instead of coming right away when I could I put my best friend first instead of the woman I love and the son she gave me. So if hitting me will help you get over how much you hate me right now then hit away. I can take it."
Tommy approached Bucky and took a fighting stance, looking angrily at the man he had loved through their conversations on a computer screen. Bucky kneeled impassively waiting for his son to act. Then he saw the tears forming in Tommy's eyes and pulled him into his arms, enveloping him in an embrace.
"I'm so sorry," he whispered, feeling all sorts of emotions as he held his son for the first time. "I should have been here sooner but I'm here now."
He continued to hold Tommy for a long time until the boy stopped crying then Bucky looked fondly at his son's face, touching his hair and cheeks. Tommy looked back at his mother, stepping aside as she stood up and faced Bucky who now stood before her with his head bowed. Lacey's eyes were red and puffy. She was sniffing loudly and wiped her nose with the back of her hand, having nothing else on hand. Neither of them said a word for the longest time. Then Bucky reached out with his flesh hand and gently touched Lacey's cheek.
"I still love you," he whispered. "Do you still love me?"
"No, I hate you," she replied quickly. "I hate that for five years I couldn't see your stupid face on my phone. I hate your beard and your long hair. I hate that you chose to fight a crazy alien instead of being here with us. Most of all I hate that it's not over because you're going to turn yourself in and probably go to jail instead of running away to another country with me and Tommy, and living a life on the run. I hate all of it ..."
"No you don't," said Bucky gently, stepping closer and putting his arm around her waist to draw her in closer. "You love me. You missed me. I'll cut my hair and my beard. You know that I had to fight. Just like you know that I'm done with running. We're almost there, Lacey ... almost at the point where we can be a family. We just have to go through a little more separation, a little more long distance relationship, and a little more loneliness so that we can have a lifetime together."
As he spoke Bucky lowered his face closer to her so that by the time he finished speaking his lips were just inches from hers. When their lips finally met her arms went around him as tightly as his did around her. After they broke apart Bucky looked for Tommy and put his arm out to him so he could hold them both. Steve patted Terry on the back.
"Let's give them some alone time," he said. "They have a lot of catching up to do."
"He still doesn't deserve them," muttered Terry but he went with Steve.
Bucky sat in the treehouse, looking with emotion at both Lacey and Tommy, still not quite believing that they were finally together. "We have a couple of days here before Tony Stark's memorial," he said. "Then Steve has to take some things back to the past so the timeline isn't affected. Bruce and Rocket are rebuilding the time machine that Thanos destroyed so once that's ready he's going. I am turning myself in but the lawyer has already negotiated a conditional pardon for me. It means I have to live in the New York area for a while while I undergo a psychiatric assessment then therapy to make sure I'm not a psychotic killer. I would like it if you lived with me there but things might be hectic for a while with court appearances and such so if you can stay here or even buy another farm then that would be better. It would keep you out of the public eye because there are still people who don't think I should be free."
"I haven't talked to Clint or Laura yet," said Lacey. "Maybe I should look at another farm but it was something I kind of wanted to do together as a family."
"I want to go to school," stated Tommy. "Real school, with a teacher."
"I've been homeschooling him," explained Lacey. "It was safer but he's been lonely for friends his own age."
"Once I'm done all of my legal commitments I'll protect you both," said Bucky. "Tommy can go to real school then. Terry, that's your brother right? He can still live with us but I don't think he likes me."
"Don't worry about him," replied Lacey. "He was just being protective. He'll come around."
She took Bucky's hands in her own. Tommy put his hands on theirs and they all smiled with anticipation at each other. For now they were together. There were still going to be some issues for a while but they all knew that a life together was coming. They just had to get through some things first.
