Phillips snorted, "I think you got him pegged, Rogers.", with a nod, and smiled, "All the same, I'm happy for you, Steve. You are going to have a heck of a service pay after the war ends, and it would suffice well for your wife and kids, not that you are going to be paid as well for those years too, Carter, you will, along with Ramirez, being engaged to Barnes and all, but can't fight against many closed minds these days for equality of pay...", with a scoff, as it was clear that Peggy and Audrey are two of the best women he very much respects and trust.
Peggy smiled, "Hey, I'd take any pay from you, General, than any of those bigots...And it means a lot hearing that from you.", before she heard a hungry cry from her son in her arms, "Excuse me, this guy is needing some mealtime.", with a smile, and kissed Steve on the cheek warmly, respecting the PDA around Phillips, and left them.
Steve looked at Phillips, "Thanks, General...And I really hope we get the war really done for in the new year.", glancing at the time as it was only a few hours before midnight, still amazed that '44 went fast, and hopefully, 1945 will be the year.
"Amen to that, Steve.", Phillips nodded firmly, and so, after Phillips left for his base apartment, with Brookyln and Asher tucked away for bed as it was way too late past their bedtime and schedule of sorts, midnight was welcomed with passionate and tender kisses between the three couples.
The next day, Steve told Bucky of the news of the trial, and the date and such, and Bucky told him that he'd think about coming as well, as it hit him, realizing that if he's going to be a witness...he'd have to speak about some things including the train, and he was distracted, even between making sure Audrey is getting some attention and seeing her off to the mechanic shop, even in his own training cycles on the track himself and such.
Audrey gazed at her fiancée sleepily, waking up in the middle of the night, "I can tell that your mind is whirring so much of gears that I can practically see them running in there...No, don't be sorry...Kiddo is kicking the bladder again...Let me use the bathroom, and then let me help you set this straight, okay?".
"Alright...", Bucky sighed as he waited a minute before Audrey came back. "Getting harder for me to get up so easily and sit down... half the times now I worry I might already start before I truly sit down and make a mess that no one wants to clean up.", she explained as Bucky gave a small chuckle.
"Had a similar issue when I only had one arm for a while there... bit hard to keep your pants up enough to be able to go when you're trying to both hold yourself and the pants.", Bucky commented.
Audrey smiled, "At least it's better now, and you look badass with the metal arm, and it makes me feel safe, all of us safe, mi amor...", as she cuddled into him, and he smiled softly as he stroked her baby bump, kissing her on the lips.
"You always find something to make me feel better, mi amor.", Bucky murmured warmly before sighing softly, and Audrey looked at him, "You really are worried about something...You know Zola can't hurt us when he's in handcuffs, and in a dark cell, and yes, it's true that he's below us in the SSR cells with Phillips ordering every soldier on patrol to keep an eye on him while the trial is coming up, but we're far from him literally across the base...".
"Yeah; still feels too close for comfort... I know he doesn't look it, but I still worry about what that man can do if left to his own devices for even a moment.", Bucky said. "You attribute him to you losing your arm more than say the soldiers that were shooting?", Audrey suggested.
"That, because he told them to, and it was his train too...He may have had a part in building that train as well...", Bucky frowned, closing his eyes as memories ran through his head. It was so fast, yet it felt like time was still, and the thought of leaving Audrey even then pained him as much as the fear of losing her and their baby right now.
Hell, when he heard what happened with Audrey and Zola in Steve's words, he was damn proud of Audrey for a moment yet hated himself for bringing heartbreak to her, even when he survived, it was a long, horrible week for her, and a hazy, painful week for him.
"Look, what happened has happened, okay?", Audrey told him. "We just have to live with it; and at the very least, you're still here with me and soon Zola will be nothing but a bad memory...".
Bucky glanced at her, feeling her hands on his arms, and saw the love, determination, and resilience in them, and smiled fondly, "You ain't giving up on me, Audrey, huh?".
Audrey smirked, "Nope, and you're stuck with me and our baby for life, as long as we love you, Bucky...You know, perhaps you'd feel better if you know our baby's gender...", with a hum.
Bucky looked surprised, "Are you sure? You said that you want to be surprised at the end of it all...", and Audrey smiled warmly, "I know, but if you are more motivated to know, you will even be more determined to put Zola out for good, and if you knew you gave our baby a safer world without that...that overblown ego of a sicko, it's a win-win for all of us...".
"...He has no idea how brilliant you are, mi amor...", Bucky smiled in awe, and nodded, "Okay, just use my crystal and scan, right?". Audrey smiled, "That's right...", taking up her oversized shirt she got from Bucky, exposing her baby bump to the air.
Bucky blew warm air into his crystal, resting his head on her baby bump as he scanned it with the crystal slowly and gently, and widened his eyes in awe and tears as he saw the picture in his mind, "Oh, Audrey...It's sleeping and twitching around like they're dreaming...", facing Audrey with a smile.
Audrey gently ruffled his hair, tears prickling at her eyes as she heard him, seeing the awed and adoring look on his face, whispering, "And the gender?".
"Can't fully tell yet...", Bucky admitted to her. "Being a bit sure to not let us know as to spoil any sort of surprise...", he smiled as she shook her head.
"You make it very difficult to come up with a name for you if we can't narrow things down.", Audrey playfully argued with her belly.
Bucky saw the baby move around in their sleep, turning over, listening to their mom, and revealed what they are, and Bucky gasped softly in surprise, chuckling warmly, glancing at Audrey, "She heard you.".
Audrey widened her eyes, tears falling in joy, "It's a girl?", with a happy sob, and Bucky smiled tenderly, taking her hand to touch his hand over his crystal, and in a moment, Audrey's seeing the same thing.
She whispered, "Oh, my god...She's healthy too, growing close to full term...", seeing how their daughter is moving though the womb, floating on her back, like a relaxing swimmer, sleeping, as she's getting to be 7 months along, and it reminds her of that wonderful night under the stars in the ocean.
"Marina...", Audrey whispered softly, and Bucky looked at her, "Marina?", confused for a moment before he connected the dots, "Is that a name relating to the sea?".
Audrey smiled, "Yes, it is...I have a strange feeling that it's more of that night in Mexico, in the sea, and that guesthouse on the beach, than the night in Paris, though I might be wrong as the timing is a bit off between such and all.", as she pulled away, leaving their daughter in private as Bucky took off the crystal, looking thoughtful.
Bucky smiled, "You know what, I like it...Okay, that's one of the names on the small list...unless you want a big list?", with a teasing chuckle, and Audrey playfully swatted his shoulder, "Oi!", smiling and giggling, and replied, "I'll take four names as a small list over anything else, and Marina is one for the first name choices...Your turn.", with a chuckle.
Bucky hummed, "Well, I rather liked the sound of Jaime, for a choice of middle names.", with a smile, and Audrey smiled, "That's Spanish as a version for James...You really enjoyed Mexico, huh?".
"Certainly; although it certainly helped with meeting your family and all... made it feel more like home in a way, you know?", Bucky nodded. "Mi casa, su casa...", Audrey smiled. "Makes sense considering that we're to be married and all...".
Bucky smiled, "I can't wait to see you once again in a dress...You are going to be the most beautiful woman to me on our big day...Of course, with our daughter as an adorable flower girl in tow...", with a fond chuckle as he stroked her baby bump, kissing it, imagining their wedding so much easier with knowing that he has a daughter...a daughter he's going to love and protect with all his heart.
"You are going to be a wonderful father, Bucky, I know it...Okay, here's my second pick, and this is for the middle name route, Rosalie.", Audrey replied with a tender, loving smile.
Bucky hummed thoughtfully, "Marina Rosalie Barnes-Ramirez...That actually brings a nice sound to the tongue. Okay, that's the top full name pick of the narrowed list...And for the second full name, how about Teresa Jaime Barnes-Ramirez for later, just in case if we go with Marina for this one?".
Audrey repeated it thoughtfully, and smiled, "That's a good name. Teresa. I can get behind that. You feeling better now?", with a nod.
"Much better... but I truly will be good once Zola's gone, the war is over and especially we have our child in our arms... and both of you are okay...", Bucky added as Audrey smiled.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine; I'm sure these crystals have been doing some good work to make sure that I'm not in any real risk...", Audrey reassured him.
Bucky nodded, and kissed her baby bump, and then covered it back with the shirt, and then leaned over to kiss Audrey on the lips, whispering, "I love you, my girls...", as he gently wrapped his arms around her.
Audrey smiled, "We love you too, Bucky...", before yawning once more, and Bucky smiled, grabbing the blankets as they spooned in their huddle, and he spoke, "And I will fight in the trial for our family, I promise.", intending to be the best witness he could be in the trial.
"I know you will, mi amor...", Audrey whispered, happy to see that her beloved fiancée is motivated more than ever and is over the moon that they have a daughter, and so, they fell asleep.
Indeed, on the first Saturday of December, in a sanctioned courtroom, the secret trial commenced, with Steve and Bucky giving their side of many things that involved Zola, with General Phillips reporting the several interrogatories he had with Zola as a witness as well, with Stimpson as an attorney defendant, asking questions on both sides, which Zola refused to have an attorney himself, defending himself, with Anthony Eden as the typewriter recorder of the entire trial, and a random few SSR officers as the jury, with a nonbiased judge that was referred personally by Churchill. It lasted almost four hours, and then after a conference of the jury with a lunch break during that, the verdict is then given.
"Arnim Zola...", the judge said. "You have been found guilty by this court for crimes against humanity; in regard to your actions involving the HYDRA organization. The work you have done; breaking almost every law that civilization has set in regard to research and warfare. I therefor sentence you to death by hanging. Does the condemned wish to speak before we adjourn, and you're being taken away?".
There was a brief silence around everyone in attendance. Steve and Bucky now understood why they had saw a man earlier by the name of Pierrepoint; whom was England's chief executioner, they were leaving Zola to be quickly lynched by the man. They guessed that he had no idea whom Zola was but that he had to be hanged.
"This trial is nothing but a farce.", Zola said. "Just a little show to put your consciences at rest rather than simply doing the job of sending a man to my cell with a pistol or lining me against the wall. Too afraid to let the world see me; to allow my vision the risk to spread... HYDRA will continue even after me... even after the Red Skull... no matter what victory you or the Bolsheviks in the east think you'll achieve..". There was another pause. "Hail HYDRA...", he finished. Steve snapped his fingers as two of the SSR officers moved to take Zola to Pierrepoint and his gallows.
Zola glared at Steve and Bucky as he was marched out, and Steve squeezed Bucky's shoulder, "You did good, Bucky...I know I did well, but I'm damn proud of you, brother...".
Bucky glanced at Steve, "Thanks, brother...", with a small smile, and Phillips glanced at them, "I'll watch, and I'll make sure that nobody will dare do anything with his body or interrupt the whole thing. He deserves to rot and be ashes, nothing to be remembered...I will not blame you two if you wanted to be away from him after this, being with your family and all.".
"Yeah... just let us know in a bit how it goes...", Steve said. "I think I just want to calm down and relax for a few days and put all this behind us...".
Phillips nodded, "Of course.", and left them to follow the SSR officers and Zola. Stimpson nodded at them respectfully with a small smile, and Anthony Eden saluted them respectfully.
They went another way, leaving the sanctioned courtroom, heading to the Rogers apartment home where Audrey is visiting, needing company to be distracted by Peggy and the children, and as Audrey worked upon knitting a blanket, learning to make it as a hobby, the women and children looked up at the sound of the door opening.
Audrey put down her knitting needles, and stroked her baby bump anxiously, looking between them, and Bucky exhaled with a small smile, looking at his fiancée and unborn child, "We won. Zola is getting hung any minute now...".
Peggy, upon feeding Asher, smiled in relief, "Thank the Lord and the Kings!", as Audrey eagerly and carefully got up, sauntering to hug Bucky with overjoyed tears, "Oh, Bucky! I was praying for it to be on your side!".
"Wasn't much doubt to it, Zola was just bragging the whole time...", Bucky sighed. "Of course, his last words did make a bit of a point... maybe the whole trial was a bit of a sham to ease our consciousness; that maybe it should've been more open...".
"You know he was just saying that to try to get to anyone that he could.", Audrey said. "Honestly; I feel that we did the right thing by even giving him that chance of a trial... could've easily had just lined him up against a wall like the Nazis...".
"Or worse like how the Nazis did to the Jews.", Peggy commented as Steve kissed her on the lips, comforting her, as Brookyln climbed happily into his lap, playing with a teething toy, while Asher kept feeding from Peggy's breast, with a blanket for privacy.
Bucky exhaled, realizing that his sister-in-law was right, and stroked Audrey's baby bump with a smile, "How's our little girl doing?", and Audrey huffed with a wry smile, "Active, kicking me every half hour. I swear she can feel so much already from our emotions. Ooh!", as a kick came under Bucky's hand.
"Heh. Just like her mother.", Bucky commented with an awed smile, feeling better, but until Phillips calls the phone to let them know that it's done, he isn't 100% relieved yet. They settled down, with Audrey and Peggy distracting them with the story of Brookyln teaching Asher how to splash in his little baby bath, and three minutes later, the phone rang.
"I'll get it.", Bucky said as he took another deep breath; probably expecting what was on the other end and what news there would be. He reached the phone and answered, "Hello?".
Phillips' voice replied, "It's done, Barnes. His body is currently being ashes as I'm seeing it now after the rope was quick on him. He doesn't deserve a burial, for he deserves hell. You will never see him again.".
Bucky exhaled as the burden of worry and fear left his shoulders, leaving him lighter, spoke quietly, "Thank you, General.", and Phillips replied, "You're welcome, Barnes. Enjoy your few days of rest and such, but after that, you and Rogers get back to mission work, is that clear?".
"Sir, yes, sir.", Bucky replied, and Phillips said, "Good day, Barnes.", and then the phone hung up with the ringtone, and Bucky put it back on, and looked back at his family, both the Rogers and Barnes-Ramirez together with a firm nod and a genuine smile, "It's over.".
