The Black Winter

Chapter 10

Joan's pov
"How long have you actually been with Hydra?" I ask, now standing inches away from her small frame.

"Why does-" she goes to ask, but I cut her off.

"Just answer, the fucking, question." My voice comes out deep and menacing, and I can tell that she is feeling the tone.

"Six years," she squeaks out.

I can't help but chuckle at this.

"Joan, enough!" Steve demands.

"Are you serous?" I scold.

"Six years? What a fucking joke," I laugh.

"Joan. Stop!" Steve scolds.

"Really Steve? Come on. Why are you taking her side? Your best friend was literally with the people that turned him into a monster for seventy years. Natasha,was with them from the time she was five until she was sixteen! This girl is acting like she had it worse than any of us!" I yell, I was fed up.

"Just because I wasn't there for as long as you guys, doesn't mean that my experience was nice. You have no right to judge me after everything that you've done to me!" Rose screams with tears streaming down her face.

She's weak. The fact that Hydra wanted her is a complete mystery.

"What did I do to you?" I ask.

"You really don't remember do you?" She scoffs. "Let me ask you this, how long have you been with Hydra?"

I pause. I let out a sigh and in a deep voice, I tell her, "I've been with those motherfuckers for an entire century. Don't you dare. Compare your time. To mine," I tell her through my teeth.

Rose backs down and curls into herself. She steps back, eyes on the ground.

"Joan, enough. I think we're all on edge. Let's just take a deep breath and calm down," Steve says.

I dart my eyes at him. All I feel is anger and rage. Then, James places his hand on my shoulder. I let my shoulders drop and I let out a long breath.

"Ok, Rose, why don't you tell us what exactly happened," Steve says.

"I-I thought she was my friend at first. I had been with them for three years at this point. She was training me. At night, she would give me her rations. Until one day, she changed."

"How so?" Steve asks.

"She became more cold and less like a human, but more like a robot. It was like she lost something. I had failed to keep up with her, and instead of her helping me like she used to, she started to tase me. I begged for her to stop, but she didn't. Then, I ended up black in out from the pain," Rose explains.

"When I woke up, I was hanging by my wrists. She beat me until my heart stopped. Then," but she pauses.

"Then what Rose?"Tony asks in a soft calm voice.

If the cards were turned, they would be all over my back. Hypocrites.

"Then, they wiped me for the first time. I begged, I BEGGED for you! And you just stood there! I Pleaded for YOUR help! But you just stood there and watched! You let them hurt me!" She screams at me, now in tears.

I watch as Steve wraps his arms around the sobbing girl. She grabs onto his shirt and whales into his chest.

"I'm sorry," I say weakly, looking down. "I didn't know."

"Why? Why did you lie to me? You told me that they were never going to hurt me. I thought, I thought I could trust you," her voice is broken up. In between every word was a hiccup.

"I don't know."

"Joan, don't lie. The least you could do is tell her the truth," Tony says.

"But I don't know the truth. I don't remember her, I don't remember doing that," I tell them, my voice also cracking.

"Yes you do," Tony says.

"Whatever, I give up with you people. You know what? Rose, stand up," I command.

I pull out a hand gun from the back of my pants. Everyone steps back and gasps. I walk over to Rose and say, "Hold out your hand."

She opens her hand and closes her eyes shut, turning her head away. What a wimp. Nonetheless though, I place the gun in her hand. I grab her wrist and force the gun to my head. For once, she actually looks me in the eyes.

"Do it. If you hate me so much, and you hate Hydra, do it it. Kill me. I'm clearly still Hydra so kill me. Do to me, what I did to you."

"Joan-"

"Shut up James. Let her make her own decision. She's not apart of Hydra, she has free will. Go ahead. Just you and me. Kill me, cause I can't," I tell her. My voice is deep, but sad.

"I-" Rose starts but I cut her off.

"Do it!" I shout. But she doesn't. Instead she unloads it and throws the gun away from us. I scoff and stand up straight.

"I'm not going to kill you."

"What?"

"I'm not going to kill you," she vertebrates.

"Then your weak and a coward," I tell her. I turn my back to her and go to walk away.

As I leave the room, everyone just stands there stunned. No one darting to move. I make my way to my room and grab a bag from the closet.

I throw it on the bed and go into the closet. I grab a few shirts and then go into the dresser and pull out multiple pairs of pants. I stuff them in the bag and then pull out a box from under my bed. In it, are guns, amo, and knives. I throw them in the black duffle bag as well and zip it up.

I go back into my closet and pull out a box from the top shelf. I bring it to my bed and cautiously open it up. As I open it I see my suit resting just the way that I had left it. My mask was resting on the top of the uniform. I sigh and take it to the bathroom and change.

Once everything is on, the only thing left to put on is the mask. I walk over to the mirror and put it on. Once it's on I want nothing more than to take it off. I hated things on my face, but I needed it on. Comfortable with the uncomfortable.

I walk out of the bathroom and head back into the bedroom. I walk over to the bed and grab the duffle bag. The moment I swing it over my shoulders, the door bursts open. Thankfully it was only James, or so it seemed.