Written in the Stars: Bucky Barnes

36. Car Ride

They arrived at Sam's door and he let the three in without hesitation allowing them to get cleaned up in his guest room. Stella was the first finished and joined Sam in his kitchen. 

"Need any help?"

"No I've got it you've been through enough."

"It's okay Sam busy hands help me think."

Sam relented and she helped him to prepare breakfast for them all. "You going to be okay?" Sam asked breaking the silence.

"Yeah, it's just a lot to process my father, Howard," Stella corrected herself after all Zola was right he wasn't really her dad. "He helped to create S.H.I.E.L.D. with the hope of stopping another HYDRA from forming. Turns out they were there the whole time. I should've paid more attention, I should've noticed."

"Hey, this isn't your fault," Sam said "there's no way you could've known. You only joined a few years ago."

"Yeah, I guess. The only thing that confuses me is once I joined HYDRA had all of my information, including my abilities so why am I still alive?"

"Maybe they thought they could use you to their advantage."

"That's not exactly comforting Samuel."

"I'm going to go let the other two know food is ready." Sam walked back in a few minutes later with Steve and Natasha behind him and they ate in relative silence. Once they were finished they sat in the kitchen going over everything they knew. They surmised it was Pierce who called the strike on them and that they needed to get Sitwell alone. Sam dropped a file with the word Falcon in bold letters on the front of it. Steve picked it up and looked through it Stella looking over his shoulder. 

"I thought you said you were a pilot," Steve said looking up at him quizzically.

"I never said pilot," Sam replied with a smirk.

"I can't ask you to do this, Sam. You got out for a good reason."

"He's right Sam you don't have to do this," Stella added.

"Dude, Captain America, and Purple Storm need my help. I can't think of a better reason to get back in."

"Where can we get our hands on one of these things?"

"The last one is at Fort Meade, behind three guarded gates and a twelve-inch steel wall."

Steve looked over to Nat and Stella them all sharing a look before Nat shrugged her shoulder and Stella smirked. "Shouldn't be a problem."

"Don't worry tweedy I'll get your wings back," Stella joked.

"Is this payback for calling you Purple Storm?"

"Oh, this is just the start of it."

***

Stella and Nat made their way to Fort Meade together easily making their way in and retrieving the wings for Sam. 

She was sat next to Sam at an outside table of a restaurant looking at Sitwell talking to the Senator. 

"Time to make a call," Stella handed Sam the phone and watched Sitwell answer it. 

"The good-looking guy in the sunglasses and cute but temperamental redhead, your ten o'clock," Sam said indicating where the pair were sat. Jasper looked around obviously not seeing them. "Your other ten o'clock."

"Poor idiot can't read a clock. I'm headed to the car with Steve see you in a few," she said walking to the small sedan and getting in the backseat behind Steve. "Think this will work?"

"It has to the guys has about as much of a spine as a jellyfish," Steve replied, "here he comes."

Sitwell got in the passenger seat looking between the two friends nervously. "Aw calm down we aren't going to kill you here. I don't want to have to pay for the seats to be reupholstered," Stella said patting the man's shoulder causing him to jump. She rolled her eyes and sat back in the seat.

They got to their destination and Steve drug Sitwell up to the roof tossing him on the gravel Nat and Stella followed close behind. Sitwell acted like they had all expected, a nervous little weasel, as Steve asked him questions backing him to the ledge. He called Steve out on the fact he wouldn't push him over the ledge and the super-soldier agreed.

"You're right, it's not my style. It's theirs," he said motioning to the two redheads.

Stella and Natasha shared a look before they both threw a kick to Jasper's chest making him fly over the edge.

"Thanks, I needed that."

Nat and Steve gossiped some more about girls before Sam arrived with a very unharmed, yet terrified Jasper Sitwell dropping him back to the rooftop.

Stella took her place next to Sam as Steve and Natasha got the rest of their information from the man. Once they were done they all went back down to the small sedan together.

"Stells, you follow behind just in case anything happens," Steve tossed her keys to a motorcycle and she stopped herself from asking where the hell he got them from.

"Got it."

***

Following a few cars behind Stella noticed a large armored car pass her unmistakable for S.H.I.E.L.D. she clicked on her earpiece trying to warn Steve when she saw the car up ahead with the Winter Soldier on top tossing Sitwell into an oncoming big truck.

"Shit," she cursed trying to speed up to help as the car skid to a stop throwing him off and the other car slammed into the rear of the sedan. "Double shit," Stella kicked her bike into high gear catching up as fast as she could. The car her friends were in flipped and she expertly laid her bike down letting it skid away and ran with the momentum of her planned wreck. Tossing her helmet to the side just in time to see Steve being flung off the overpass into a bus down below. HYDRA operatives swarmed out of the vehicle and started firing on Nat and Sam. Right when she went to rush forward a familiar face got out of the vehicle and looked at Stella.

"We really should stop meeting this way."

"Trust me I don't want to be here anymore than you do," the brunette countered.

"Then you chose the wrong side don't you think?"

"Think about it, why did I stop him from killing you last time? They know about your powers, you're dangerous. They think they can turn you to their side."

"You say that as if you're not one of them."

"Not all of us got a choice."

"I don't want to hurt you, but I'll do what it takes to protect the people I love. I'm not that same scared agent anymore." Stella said willing the wind to whip around her.

"Then don't let them kill him. Trust me, you of all people will want him alive."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

The brunette held her hands up and moved back into the vehicle, Stella didn't have enough time to dwell on what the woman meant she needed to help her friends.