Inconsequential Intimidation

The door slammed echoing on the cold, concrete walls. The four men's footsteps fading in the distance. Natasha took a deep breath, letting it out as a barely audible sigh.

"Nat? How long?" Clint, her partner asked. He had been waiting for her to relax.

"Since they grabbed me on the mission," Natasha answered. "These guys were behind the abductions, not the cartel," She paused. "I infiltrated the warehouse to get the data and take down the leader. Some of his men dragged me out. They brought me here and started asking me questions about my past missions. The boss recognised me and that's why they went looking for you. As you could see they were hoping to use you as leverage to get answers."

"I watched them blow up the warehouse after they dragged you out."

"How many days?" She asked.

"Three, plus another one?" He replied. "They blindfolded me so I'm not sure exactly."

"They must've kept me out for longer than I thought," she muttered, twisting her wrists slightly to ease the pressure on them. "I've only been awake about 12 hours, like this."

"You've been chained to the ceiling the whole time?" His voice didn't betray the concern shown in his eyes.

"Yes, my wrists were already raw then." She watched him look her over again. They both knew her wrists would take weeks to heal after this ordeal.

"What do they really want?" He began thinking out loud. "They know who we are, and who we work for. Why don't we get out of here?"

"They want information," she answered. "A mission they shouldn't even know about." She pulled herself up putting her weight on the chains again. "I don't know what they know, or how."

"Which mission?" Clint pushed.

"Ukraine three years ago," She answered.

"That solo one you came back all battered and bruised from," He nodded. "I will never forget the aftermath of that mission." At her nod, he continued. "To this day, I don't know how you were still standing, let alone walking when you got back. The doctors told me you should've been dead. The doctors expected you to die. Yet you survived."

"You sound like you want to be rid of me," she joked with a smile before her tone turned serious. "I'm a survivor, I guess. Although you know the psychological toll that mission took. I can't, I won't give them any details. The things I saw would be disastrous in the wrong hands. It would cause World War III."

"So how do we get out of here without telling them anything - preferably burying them with the building," Clint asked. "What's the plan?"

"We need to know what they know," Natasha answered. "And how they found out. I just need a few more hours." She paused, a bitter smile painting her face, "Some explosives would be good too."

He nodded, "Anything I can help with?"

"Always."

"I hope you'll let me help with the guards this time."

"I just might," she nodded. "Get some rest, but be ready." She knew he hadn't slept more than a couple of hours in the last four days. She watched as he closed his eyes trusting her to watch out for them. Natasha listened to the sounds outside their prison. The shuffle of footsteps and the slamming of doors. She could use the sounds to map the base in their immediate vicinity and to estimate the number of guards they might face. She would need plenty of warning when the men would return. They would be going out blind, that was nothing new. Natasha closed her eyes doing her best to rest. She would need to be alert when the men returned.