Phoenix Fire (Book 2 in the Winter's Series)

Chapter One: On The Run

It's been two weeks since the fall of HYDRA. Two weeks since I've been tailing HIM, waiting for the perfect moment to make my move. I've had to shoplift, steal, and beg just to make it through those long two weeks, but they've paid off. He's started to leave a pattern, he's establishing a sense of normalcy already. He should know better than to do that, he's been trained to avoid that dangerous mistake.

He's been visiting a museum for the past three days at noon. I know what he's trying to do, he's trying to remember his past. I'm still angry for what he did to me, but I understand that he really didn't have any control over it. I know what it's like to be in hunter mindset, the killer mindset. You are aware of everything that's going on but you are helpless to stop it. It's like being in the backseat of your own body, something else is driving you. My anger has long since lost it heat but the embers still glow waiting to spark to life again.

He walks through the tour that talks about Steve Rogers and himself. Who he used to be and what he used to fight for all on display for the public to view. He stands in front of the memorial describing his life and his time with the Captain. The picture displayed in the glass offers an insight on who he was when he was younger. He seemed happier, carefree, alive. Now he really looks like a dead man walking.

His cap distorts his facial features, but his roguishly long hair gives him away. I imagine the look of confusion and pain cloud his eyes. His grey jacket fails at concealing his strong, well worked muscles. However, it does hide his artificial arm from being noticed from passersby. The entire museum smells of old worn books, and clothes that have sat in the wardrobe for many years, never to be worn again. However, the thousands of new scents offer a decent distraction from the smell of history.

I keep my eyes on my target, silently observing his movements as discreetly as possible. As I start to read the information on his glass memorial, I realize that I can see my reflection behind his. I quickly look at his reflection to see if he had noticed, and he had. He stares hard at my eyes and starts backing up. He turns around and faces me, walking over to me with a serious look in his eyes. He grabs my arm and pulls me along with him into a vacant janitorial room. He pushes me against the wall, his grip tightening.

"Why are you following me? Who sent you? Who are you?" He asks, narrowing his eyes slightly. I know he can feel my pulse speeding up as I answer.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I answer as my pulse spikes. I should be better at lying by now but it's becoming more difficult for some reason.

"You're lying. Tell me the truth. Why are you following me? Who sent you?"

"No one sent me, and I'm not following you. You're making a mistake. Now, who are you?"

"I don't, I don't know..." He says letting go of my arm. "But I do know you've been following me. Why? What do you want?"

"You're my mission, my own personal mission. Yes, I've been tailing you for the past few days. I'm alone and I'm not working for anyone right now. You really don't remember me? Not even a little?" I ask tilting my head to get a better look of his greyish blue eyes. He shakes his head looking slightly confused.

"Should I?"

"We've worked together before, you and I. We were partners at one point, and now we've both left HYDRA so I guess we're kind of in the same situation. Although I remember my past and you clearly don't. You shot me, you clever bastard. You shot me through my only vulnerable spot, I saw you before you pulled the trigger. You killed me, twice now. It must be your special skill, killing me. The last one hurt the most though because I had something to live for. My life had meaning before you took it away from me. However, I suppose killing me also triggered some hidden gene evolution sequence that brought me back. So I guess I can't hate you for that, but it still hurts. Very bad, very painful." I say biting my lip to hold back the anger that wanted too badly to spill out of me and devour everything in its path of vengeance.