Silver Death

Just Drive

The plane from Montreal to Regina is quiet. The airport in Montreal is quiet. The landing in Regina is bumpy. The unloading of the plane is normal, slightly pushy and smelly.

I'm half asleep when I ask for my truck out of parking. I didn't even notice Sam following me to the help desk, or Tony follow me out to the parking garage. It isn't until my bags are in the back seat that someone makes themselves known.

Winter is standing behind me when I turn around after placing my bags in the truck. He holds out a hand to shake. I hug him. "Let's get outta here."

We get in the truck, after rolling a few feet I hit the brakes. "Where's the others?"
"Check your seven."

Looking behind me and pointing until I find a familiar faced person I see Hawkeye, then wave him over.

"You're Clint eh?"
"Yah. Your mind a little fuzzy?" Fuzzy? How about completely jumbled and half erased. "Yah. You could say that. I'm gonna follow you home I guess. Meet at the nearest gas bar?" That's what they call them right?
"Yah. Meet you there." I nod and drive off, pay for parking and find a gas bar. Husky gas will work. Someone from inside comes out and fills the tank, I go and get extra large coffees for myself and Winter, we might have a long drive ahead of us. Paying cash and going outside I nod to Clint, to signal I'm ready to follow him out. He starts, I follow.

After making it out of city limits James turns to me. "What happened to you?"
"What do you mean?"
"While you were, where ever you were what did they do to you?"
"I was in Russia."
"That doesn't answer my question."
I put on my blinker taking an exit, "they wiped me. Made me forget even leaving after getting thrown by the Hulk."
"Bruce. You call him Bruce."
"Okay. They made me forget your team, the house in Russia. Uh, I think her names Aly?"
"Yah. Aly, do you know who she is?"
"Well, Anatoly told me that I had a kid when I asked if there should be someone else sitting with us during rations."
"Anatoly?"
"Yah, Dr. Anatoly. He helped me get away." I take off my gloves.
"Did he put those in you?"
"Maybe. It could have been Dr. Erick. He's not really a doctor, more like a torture specialist."
He remains quiet. "Jess?"
"Yah?"
"Do you remember Steve?"
"Captain America?"
"Yah. Him."
"I can remember him laughing at me. I'm not sure what about though."
"Do you want me to tell you or are you gonna ask him yourself?"
"Why was he laughing at me?"
"Tony Stark had some faulty wiring in a jet. When you went to fix it you were sent flying out the back of said jet. Steve saw and was laughing. He also heard you um, he heard you singing."

If my knuckles could turn white they would be. "What?"
"He heard you."
"What song?"
"I'm not sure. But it was in English. He understood all the words and wasn't scared."
"What song?"
"I don't know."
He should know me better than this "Ask him. I want to know."

Sighing he pulls a walki talki from his pocket, "Clint you have a phone with you?"
"Yah. Why?"
"Can you get ahold of Steve?"
I lean forward and grab a phone out of the dash hideaway "here."
"Or do you know his number?"
"Yah." He gives us the number and Winter dials. One ring. Two rings. He picks up on three rings.

"Who is this?"
"It's me Steve."
"Buck, where are you phoning from?"
"Pay phone. Can you believe they still have those?"
"Yah, I can. What, um did you find her?"
Winter looks to me, I shake my head. "No, there's a song that came on over the speakers in the airport. It was the one that you caught Jess singing."
"What about it?"
"What was it called?"
"I don't know, when did I tell you about it?"

Winter looks at me "he didn't Steve, I just remember you laughing at me."
"Jess?"
"Think so, don't honestly remember if that's my name or not."
"It is. Why did Buck say he didn't find you?"
My hands readjust on the wheel in front of me, "don't be mad at him. I asked him not to, um say he found me."
"Why?"
"I'm not sure if I'm coming back to where you are." Looking to Winter he seems worried, Steve's breath hitched when I said this. "I don't want to hurt anyone Stevie. If I get mad around all of you I could hurt someone."
"What about Aly?"
"I don't know. Don't tell her anything until I get to you. Please?"
"Okay. Stay safe okay?"
"Course Captain, what else would I do?" After half a second of no reply I disconnect the call. "Do you remember the way back to, wherever y'all are living?"
"Yah I know the way back to your house."
Hitting the gas and speeding past Clint after receiving a honk we pull past him, "tell Clint what we're doing, I need to find my files."
"How'd you know about the files?"
"I always have files. Right?"
"Yah. Didn't expect you to remember that, would have expected the knowledge of your daughter."
My foot switches pedals. "What?"
After he jolts forward with a face full of surprise he looks at me "You have a kid, how can you not remember something like that?"
Clint comes into view in my rear view. "Get out."
"What?"
"I said get out. Got out of my truck Barnes." Rarely do I call him by his last name. Only in times of great anger.