THIEF | BUCKY BARNES

ONE HUNDRED

ASSOCIATES
❝He won't be alone, I'll be there.❞

"Karli Morgenthau is too dangerous for you guys to be pulling this shit." John spoke up as he and Lemar walked down the stairs.

Odessa rolled her eyes and felt Bucky's grip tighten. He pulled her as close to him as possible and pressed his lips against her temple before asking,

"Ah. How'd you find us now?" He raised his hands as he spoke to John. His voice was laced with sarcasm, something that Odessa was growing used too.

"Come on, man. You really think three Avengers can walk around Latvia without drawing attention?" Lemar questioned raising his brows questioningly.

"No more keeping us in the dark. You could start by telling us why you broke him out of prison." John pointed towards Zemo with a clenched jaw.

Odessa chuckled as she looked between the men, technically the trio had nothing to do with how Zemo escaped. He managed to get out on his own, with the smallest bit of assistance from Bucky.

"He did that himself, technically." Bucky shrugged as Odessa rested her head on his bicep. Bucky pressed his lips against the top of her head, causing the corner of her lips to curl upwards.

"This better be an unbelievable explana-"

"Hey, take it easy before it gets weird." Sam cut John off as he started to get all up in Bucky's face.

Bucky's jaw clenched as he watched John's eyes flicker down to Odessa's cleavage. Which was also something that didn't go unnoticed by Sam, who then shrugged off his jacket to give her, knowing that if Bucky took off his jacket, his vibranium arm would be on display and that would make him incredibly anxious.

"I know where Karli is." Zemo spoke up, clearing his throat to gain everyone's attention. He tried to walk past John and Lemar, Bucky and Odessa following him closely, but John placed his hand out to stop them.

"Well, where?" John asked as he looked towards Sam.

"All we know is, it's a memorial. So, we're gonna intercept her there." Sam responded as he walked past John and Lemar, following the others.

"That means civilians. High risk of casualties." Lemar spoke towards John, trying to warn him that there could be people out a risk if they rush into the situation without thinking.

"All right, good, we'll move in fast. Take her by surprise." John continued as he follows the group.

Odessa clenched her jaw and span on her heel to face the two men. She placed her hand out in front of her to stop them from walking further. She tutted before saying,

"Hasn't the poor girl being through enough. Can't you let her grief and let us deal with it?" The brunette raised her brow and she felt Bucky lightly pull her back.

"Karli is a criminal. She deserves to be locked up and one more word from you and you can join her." Seethed John.

"No, Dessie's right." Sam snapped, hating the way that John just spoke to Odessa. "I wanna talk to her alone."

Bucky pulled Odessa with him to continue walking and following after Zemo. He hated John for the way he spoke to Odessa and the way he treat her like an object. Odessa noticed Bucky's clenched jaw and pulled him to the side momentarily.

She brought her hand up to cup his cheek and gently connected their lips. The kiss didn't last long but it said everything that they needed to say.

"I'm not losing her again." John spat.

"Look, the person closest to her died, she's vulnerable. If there's any time to reason with her, it's now." Sam continued as Bucky and Odessa walked beside Zemo.

"What? No. Wait, no. No. Stop. Hold on. Stop, okay?" John and Lemar pushed their way in front of the four. "I think we're way past reasoning with her, unless you forgot the fact that she blew up a building with people still in it."

"Sam, you walk in there cold, she could kill you." Lemar warned as he looked directly at Sam.

"If I go in hot and the op goes wrong, more people will die." Sam resorted.

"You're gonna let him do this? Are you gonna let your partner walk into a room with a Super Soldier alone?" John looked towards Bucky, trying to make him feel guilty about something that he agreed with Sam about.

Odessa stepped forward, holding her head up high. She allowed her eyes to flicker up and down John in disgust before saying,

"He won't be alone, I'll be there."

The plan was that Sam and Odessa went to talk to Karli to try and appeal to her good side. She was a good kid with good intentions, they just didn't go the way she had intended.

"Oh so now you're gonna let your girl go in too?" John questioned with a cocky laugh, causing Odessa to roll her eyes at his immaturity.

"They've dealt with worse. And he's not my partner, and I don't control what Dessie does." Bucky reminded John.

Odessa looked up to Bucky, he knew that she would be okay. She was strong, after all she had the training from him and from HYDRA. He knew that if needs be she could defend herself. But also, if anything was to happen, he would be in that room in a second without any hesitation.

"I used to counsel soldiers dealing with trauma, okay? This is right in my wheelhouse." Sam pushed past the two angrily. He knew what he was doing and he hated when people under estimated him.

"Yeah, I know. And I know those soldiers, which is why I know this is a bad idea." John continued.

Odessa looked across to Lemar pleadingly, she knew that he was John's voice of reason. If there was one way to get to John, it was through Lemar.

"Wait, John. If they can talk her down, it might be worth a try." Lemar offered Odessa a small smile, showing her that he was willing to help for the greater good.

"We'll deal with you later." John spoke as his eyes narrowed onto Zemo.

"I'm sure it will all come to an agreeable conclusion. My associate is just up ahead." Zemo spoke as he motioned to the young girl he had spoken to earlier.

The four of them walked past John and Lemar towards the young girl. Zemo pulled out his wallet and handed the girl some money, saying,

"Hello, my friend. This is for your family. Can you show us the way?"

The girl motioned them to follow her, which they all did without any complaints. Odessa knew that it was probably best to remain quite, the girl seemingly trusted Zemo and they needed her to get to Karli.

She opened a small door and pointed to a room, causing them all to nod in response as she walked off.

"Karli's in there." Zemo announced.

"All right." Sam nodded, watching as Odessa pressed her lips against Bucky's before following him. They both knew what they needed to do.

"Hey, you for ten minutes." John shouted as he cuffed Zemo to the water pipes. "Then we're doing things my way."

"Ah yes, guns blazing is always the best way." Odessa responded sarcastically as she glared towards John before walking away to find Karli.